Festiva timeshare

Festiva Resorts, a well-known brand in the vacation ownership industry, is reportedly ramping up on-site amenities and other offerings available at select properties across the country. Part of its Elevating the Journey campaign, Festiva will make various improvements to resort grounds and inside individual suites to give guests and owners a heightened vacation experience. [Read more…]

This year, Festiva celebrates their 15th anniversary. To commemorate this important milestone, they held an event at their first property, Festiva’s Ellington at Wachesaw on October 26th.

Festiva Resorts was founded in 2000 by co-founders Don Clayton and Herbert “Butch” Patrick. Since then, the timeshare company has grown to include 24 resorts around the U.S. and Caribbean. [Read more…]

This week the Festiva Development Group has added two resorts from Kosmas Group International (KGI Resorts) to its list of timeshare properties. Through the acquisition of KGI Resorts and its companies, Festiva will also be adding 15,000 timeshare owners, 1,100 intervals, and 200 staff members to its growing list of assets.

The new resorts included in this package include the popular Vacation Villas at Fantasy World II in Kissimmee, FL and Coconut Palms Beach Resort II in New Smyrna Beach, FL. With the addition of these resorts, there will now be five Festiva Timeshares in Florida.

Through KGI Resorts’ subsidiary companies, Festiva Development Group will also gain the Orlando-based travel agency E Tour & Travel. In 2012, E Tour & Travel helped over 20,000 to make hotel and travel reservations.

Festiva Development Group President Butch Patrick said, “The acquisition of KGI greatly enhances our ability to generate future growth due to their superb marketing operation and the variety of services they provide. This has the opportunity to greatly impact our company’s trajectory, particularly with KGI’s Lance Croft joining Festiva Development Group as our senior vice president of marketing. “

“The initial integration has gone extremely well and the assimilation will be complete in early 2014,” Patrick added. “We are excited to focus on executing the strengths of the combined companies to provide all of our members and guests with their fondest vacation memories.”

To further increase their presence in the sunshine state, Festiva Development Group will also move its corporate headquarters from Asheville, NC to Orlando, FL. However, Festiva still plans to maintain their office in Asheville as a secondary location. For more information please visit www.festiva.travel .

The following information is based on the most current updates available at the time this blog was published. Travelers, vacationers, and timeshare owners and timeshare resorts guests are always advised to check directly with their timeshare resorts or hotels for further updates.   

• At the Four Seasons New York, all 368 rooms were sold out for Tuesday, with rooms for Wednesday night still available starting at $995/night.
• The Westin Times Square is sold out, occupied by stranded out-of-towners and local families whose homes are flooded, without electricity or both.
•  As noted in Tuesday’s The Timeshare Authority blog (Hurricane Sandy Update for Marriott Hotels and Marriott Timeshares), some of the New York City hotels that are closed include: the Ritz-Carlton Battery Park and New York Marriott Downtown. Additionally, the Courtyard by Marriott in Lower Manhattan is closed due to lack of electricity.
• Marriott Vacation Club timeshare owners and guests can receive resort updates by calling:1-800-845-4226.
• Two hotels that belong to Starwood Hotels & Resorts’ system remain closed. These are W New York Downtown in Lower Manhattan that flooded but was fully evacuated at the time and Le Parker Meridien, which was forced to evacuate guests after a construction crane on a neighboring skyscraper partially collapsed, posing a threat to pedestrians below.
• Hilton New York (1335 Avenue of the Americas) is open for business. Restaurants currently open near the hotel include: Carnegie Delicatessen & Restaurant, Old Castle Pub and Restaurant, Benash, Astro Diner, Premiere Deli, Olivieros Cafe, Rosy O Grady’s and Bistro Milano.
• Hilton Grand Vacations is advising its upcoming West 57th Street by Hilton Club guests: “If you have a question about your reservation in light of current conditions, please call 1-800-932-4482 or 1-407-722-3141 for Owners and all others call central reservations at 1-972-770-6100 or 1-800-445-8667.”
• Bluegreen Timeshare reported this on Tuesday evening: Hurricane Sandy Update, and all is well at our resorts. Power is still on at The Breakers, The Soundings, Suites at Hershey, Atlantic Palace, Patrick Henry Square, and Shenandoah Crossing. Manhattan Club is functioning fine but have been without power since 5pm yesterday. Guests and Owners stayed in every resort except Atlantic Palace, which was evacuated yesterday.
• Festiva’s Coconut Malorie resort in Ocean City, Maryland reopened on Tuesday at 12 noon. There was no major damage, just a few leaks to repair.