ARDA

In Saturday’s The Timeshare Authority, we quoted Sandy Grey as a critic of the new timeshare regulations recently put in place by the European Union. Grey, essentially, was saying that the new timeshare laws are not yet tough enough to protect tourists from themselves. His statement appeared to say less about the laws and more about his lack of confidence in the consumer’s ability to make sound decisions.

Timeshare Industry Critic in Hot Water

The November 24 edition of the OTE e-News (Organisation for Timeshare in Europe) reported that the High Court in London has ruled that Sandy Grey, chairman of the Timeshare Consumers’ Association (TCA), is the man behind Crimeshare, a website found guilty of libeling many reputable individuals and businesses affiliated with the timeshare industry. According to eNews, “From the High Court judgement, it now appears that for a number of years Grey has been responsible for the publication of a web site that contained serious and defamatory allegations about many of the leading brands in the European timeshare industry.”

The OTE’s newsletter went on to explain that the Crimeshare website appeared under five domain names, and included personal attacks against both employees of and the directors of timeshare companies. Additionally, the website published blacklists that included reputable timeshare businesses. Among the 200 or so companies appearing on Crimeshare’s blacklist have been the American Resort Development Association (ARDA); Resort Condominiums International (RCI); and the Organisation for Timeshare in Europe (OTE).

In tomorrow’s The Timeshare Authority, we will look at the role Bob Trotta, well-known pioneer of the timeshare industry in Europe, played in bringing the case against Grey. And remember, to share your timeshare news and talk with other timeshare owners, visit The Timeshare Forum at Sell My Timeshare NOW.

On September 9, the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) launched a new website designed to benefit consumers, vacationers, timeshare owners, and everyone who needs a little more vacation time worked into his life.

VacationBetter.org is an online resource created to help you learn more about vacation ownership and educate you on ways to travel better … vacation better … and in general enjoy relaxation and recreation more in your life.

Howard Nusbaum, ARDA president and CEO was quoted in the association’s official press release as saying, “People love to vacation, but don’t always understand that there are great options like timeshare available to them.”

Recognizing that as a society we are over worked and under vacationed, this excellent new website seeks to help people “vacation better.” As satisfied timeshare owners already know, timeshare can afford you some of the easiest solutions out there for planning and enjoying a great vacation. The VacationBetter website tells us that timeshare industry research shows the top stress points related to a vacation are:

1. Planning it.
2. Agreeing on destination.
3. Cost.
4. Having activities to suit all.
5. Uncertainty of what the room will be like.

But for timeshare owners, these 5 problems all go away because timeshare eliminates the stress of planning, gives you great flexibility in your choice of destination, lets you keep the cost of vacation accommodations under control, and offers luxurious resorts that are loaded with amenities to suit every member of the family.

Timeshare … it really is your vacation better solution.

I just spent a couple of outstanding days in Breckenridge, Colorado, at the ARDA (American Resort Development Association) Rockies Regional Meeting. The meeting was excellent in several ways, the first being the location. The Beaver Run Resort & Conference Center that hosted the event is a classic Colorado condo-hotel ski resort with ski-in/ski-out access condos.

And of course, there is nothing any better than the chance to spend a few days in the mountains of Colorado. The skies were incredibly blue and the air had that crisp edge of freshness. Sell My Timeshare NOW was proud to be a Gold Sponsor of this very informative meeting, one of a series of ARDA regional meetings in which we have participated as a Gold Sponsor.

If you are not familiar with ARDA, they are the Washington D.C. based professional association that represents the vacation ownership and resort development industries. In 2009, ARDA celebrates 40 years of service to timeshare owners and the timeshare industry. Their membership is nearly 1,000 strong including privately held companies, publicly traded companies, and international corporations involved in the vacation ownership industry. ARDA’s membership also includes resort management companies, timeshare owner associations (HOAs), and owners through the ARDA Resort Owners Coalition (ARDA-ROC).

The Changing Face of Timeshare Ownership

ARDA Regional Meetings are an important time of learning, exchanging ideas, networking, problem solving, and generally getting things done. One of many topics that was addressed was a very interesting trend in timeshare ownership demographics.

Many people think of timeshare owners as typically falling into the Baby Boomer generation, and in many ways that is still true, although the profile of the new timeshare buyer and timeshare resale buyer includes more and more young couples and individuals all the time. However, there is also another way younger couples are becoming timeshare owners these days and that is through passing down deeded timeshare ownership within families.

This makes for an interesting new dynamic in timeshare ownership and ARDA, as well as the timeshare industry as a whole, is on top of it. Today’s timeshare owner may be a Boomer, a Gen X, Gen Y, Millennium, or Gen Me, meaning that vacation ownership resorts are learning to respond to a variety of generational and cultural issues. It also means that it is an interesting and exciting time to become a timeshare owner.

Be sure you visit The Timeshare Authority next week, when I will be sharing updates about ARDA’s new website www.vacationbetter.org

The situation with the airlines in the US is getting scary. According to information released by the Travel Industry Association, 41 million flights that typically would have been booked over the past 12 months have not been. In other words, the US economy failed to earn more than $26 billion because travelers decided against flying.

Americans are unhappy (justifiably) with the rising costs of airfares. We don’t like overbooked flights, being packed into planes like sardines, or being nickel and dimed over peanuts, sodas, and a suitcase that weighs too much. The study, conducted by Peter D. Hart Research Associates and The Winston Group showed that most people do not think things are going to improve any time soon.

Twenty-eight percent of air travelers avoided at least one air trip this past year, which translates to 12 million business trips and 29 million vacations annually or about 112,000 flights not booked each day. Airlines lost $9 billion in revenue; hotels lost $6 billion, while restaurants lost about $3 billion. But we all lost nearly $4 billion in federal, state, and local government tax money that was not collected on these services.

The Economic News Is Still Good for Timeshares

Timeshares are still weathering the declining economy pretty well. People are recognizing them as a smart alternative to hotel rooms and are buying timeshare to lock in the price of accommodations at today’s rates. Timeshare resales are particularly strong because people understand that buying timeshare as a resale property makes good economic sense. At Sell My Timeshare NOW, offers run more than $1 million dollars per day to buy timeshare or rent timeshare advertised on our website. Over the upcoming days, when the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) releases their annual State of the Industry report, I will be providing you more information about timeshare sales in the US.

What Timeshare Owners Can Do During These Tough Times

Each one of us has to write a plan that is good for our families and our futures in dealing with the challenges of the US economy. But in as much as you can, remember that the worst thing that can happen to the economic future of the US is if we all stop spending. Instead, look for ways you can cut back in some areas – like switching from a hotel room to a timeshare rental, or sharing the cost of a timeshare with friends or another family. Millions of families depend on incomes from the airlines and the travel and tourism industries; and if we all stop spending, we will snap the wings off the airline industry and force restaurants and vacation attractions into bankruptcy.

To learn more about timeshare resale and timeshare rentals, visit Sell My Timeshare NOW.