Florida Timeshare

For the eighth year, September will be celebrated in Orlando, Florida as “Magical Dining Month.” As if Orlando needed yet another magical reason for you to plan an Orlando timeshare vacation or getaway, the culinary feast is motivation all by itself to visit the City Beautiful.

Diners can enjoy a culinary celebration that involves more than 60 restaurants. For $33 prix fixe (set price), each diner can select a three-course meal, including an appetizer, entrée, and a desert.

Of course, the Disney World area restaurants (including Lake Buena Vista) are involved. These are:

• Deep Blu Seafood Grille- Wyndham Grand Orlando Resort
• Hawk’s Landing Steakhouse- World Center Marriott
• Hemingway’s- Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress
• Il Mulino New York Trattoria- Walt Disney World Swan
• La Luce® by Donna Scala – Hilton Bonnet Creek
• Mikado Japanese Steak House – World Center Marriott
• NINE18- Villas of Grand Cypress
• Siro: Urban Italian Kitchen- World Center Marriott
• The Venetian Room – Caribe Royale Hotel
• Todd English’s bluezoo – Walt Disney World Dolphin

Universal Studios and Universal City Walk area participating restaurants are:

• Bice Ristorante – Loews Portofino Bay Hotel
• Emeril’s Restaurant Orlando
• Emeril’s Tchoup Chop – Loews Royal Pacific Resort
• Islands Dining Room – Loews Royal Pacific Resort
• Mama Della’s Ristorante – Loews Portofino Bay Hotel
• The Kitchen – Hard Rock Hotel
• The Palm Restaurant- Hard Rock Hotel
• Trattoria del Porto- Loews Portofino Bay Hotel

And this link will take you to dozens more restaurants that are participating in this very special, very scrumptious event.

Magical Dining Month, sponsored by Visit Orlando, will benefit Ronald McDonald House Charities of Central Florida, with one dollar from each meal being donated to the non-profit organization.  The event runs throughout the month of September.

In an article this week called, “Legislation Aimed at Timeshare Resellers,” published by the World Property Channel, writer Francys Vallecillo looks at the progress and the problems of the new Florida timeshare law. As Vallecillo writes:

“Florida is one of several states responding to a lack of consumer protection in the timeshare resale industry. Colorado, Texas, and Nevada have already passed legislation targeting resellers; legislation is pending in Massachusetts and South Carolina.

The Florida bill “added three very important protections for owners and associations,” Jason Gamel, vice president of state government of affairs for ARDA, told WPC.

Under the Florida bill, businesses that resell Florida timeshares must first provide the owner a written agreement outlining terms and conditions of the services offered. They must also place all funds from the consumer into an escrow account until the transfer is complete, with records kept for five years.

The bill covers all timeshares in Florida, regardless of where the owner lives.”

The article, which includes comments by Franz Hanning, chief executive of Wyndham Vacation Ownership and some of my own thoughts, along with those of ARDA’s Jason Gamel,  can be found at World Property Channel.

SellMyTimeshareNOW.com, and all the VacationOwnership.com LLC companies support the legislation, but continue to voice the concern that we, as an industry, cannot rely on legislation alone or a single Florida timeshare law to resolve the challenges of the timeshare resale market. The requisite remains that we come together as an united industry and create viable resale alternatives for timeshare owners and vacation club members so that they know from the day they purchase the product that they will always have options and timeshare exit strategies available to them.

Related news on Florida timeshare law from The Timeshare Authority:

• SellMyTimeshareNOW.com and Timeshare Closing Services Join ARDA in Commending FL Timeshare Legislation

Thanks to Extreme Engineering, Westgate Resorts River Ranch is being outfitted with a complete “High Action adventure™” area. High Action Adventure areas include thrill attractions such as climbing walls, zip lines, and Extreme Air Jumpers, all within one convenient space. Describing them as the new norm in resort entertainment, Philip Wilson, vice president of Extreme Engineering, explains, “High-action adventures  are … designed to keep the resort guests on the property and provide good, clean adventure with memories that will last a life-time.”

Westgate Resorts River Ranch is one of the full-service timeshare resorts operated by Westgate Resorts. Located south of Orlando, in River Ranch, Florida, this particular resort is already an adventure site, offering a true dude ranch experience with horseback riding, airboat and swamp buggy rides, fishing or target practice at the trap and skeet range, and other related activities. The High Action Adventure™ area by Extreme Engineering will add to the fun of this Florida timeshare resort. As Philip Wilson explains, “(it) is another layer of thrilling activities available on the ‘Dude Ranch’ resort. It’s like a babysitter on steroids … when they are done riding horses they saddle up again to ride the zip lines.”

Westgate River Ranch offers 1700 acres of natural lands to explore, western-themed accommodations, a pool and hot tub, a weekly rodeo, a full service marina, and even a petting zoo complete with llamas, pot-bellied pigs, and emus … plus soon, a whole new level of action adventure.

Here’s a view of an extreme adventure already in place at another destination.

Planning a Florida timeshare vacation —or for Caribbean timeshare, Mexico, or South Carolina getaway right in the middle of hurricane season might be a better idea than you think. First consider that hurricane season is … it officially begins on June 1 and doesn’t end until November 1. That’s a full six months that take you from Memorial Day to Thanksgiving and include many of the months that families want and need to plan a holiday at a Florida timeshare or other “hurricane zone” location.

Instead of giving up on the idea of taking a timeshare vacation in hurricane season, just do a little extra planning.

• Look at the peak of the season’s activity in the area where you are headed. For a Florida timeshare vacation, that peak would the last two weeks in August and the first two weeks in September. Although hurricanes can happen at any time during “hurricane season,” more than 90 percent of those that impact land in Florida occur during the peak four-week window.
• Find out if your timeshare offers a cancellation protection plan, such as the Points Protection Plan offered by Bluegreen Vacations, which helps you protect your valuable timeshare points during hurricane season. The Bluegreen Vacations Points Protection Plan is available for $39.95 per reservation, with discounts for Premier and Traveler Plus™ members. To learn more about Bluegreen Vacations Points Protection, go to Bluegreen Online or call 800.456.2582.
• Enjoy the fact that if you do vacation during September, you will benefit from smaller crowds at restaurants, attractions, and theme parks. This has nothing to do with hurricane season, but reflects the fact that many parents are unwilling to take their children out of school during the first month back in session.
• Lastly, if you do find yourself on vacation during severe weather, don’t be a thrill seeker. Follow the directions of authorities regarding evacuations and other storm relevant guidelines. While it may seem exciting to say you rode out the storm at your timeshare, even the most appealing resort loses its charm if it also loses electricity and drinking water, and if you are stuck inside day after day. Be safe and be smart when it comes to knowing when to head for another location.