Hawaii Timeshare

The Timeshare Authority blog was among the many observers to note last week that Wyndham Vacation Ownership (Wyndham timeshare), announced its acquisition of Shell Vacations LLC and its subsidiaries. (See: Wyndham Vacation Ownership Timeshare Acquires Shell Vacations) But the Honolulu Star Advertiser took the news a step further, looking at what this timeshare industry transition would mean to the Hawaii timeshare community.

In an article titled, “Wyndham’s acquisition of Shell resorts affects 7 Hawaii properties” the publication noted that the acquisition involved seven upscale Hawaii timeshare resorts. The resorts are the Waikiki Marina Resort at the Ilikai; The Cliffs Club in Princeville, Kauai; the Kauai Coast Resort at the Beachboy in Kapaa, Kauai; the Lawai Beach Resort in Koloa, Kauai; the Paniolo Greens in Waikoloa, Hawaii island; the Kona Coast Resort in Kona, Hawaii island, and the Holua Resort at Mauna Loa Village, Kona, Hawaii island.

Although Wyndham timeshare will be assuming operations at the 7 Hawaii timeshares previously owned by Shell Vacations (as well as at 12 other timeshare resorts in California, Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Wisconsin, Texas, New Hampshire, and Canada), Wyndham does not seem to be planning to rebrand the Hawaii properties. Wyndham spokes­woman Lisa Burby was quoted by The Star Advertiser as saying, “It will still be a resort for Shell Vacations in Hawaii. Employees in Hawaii will still serve in a resort management capacity. Resort names are not changing. Everything will remain as is in Hawaii.”

Wyndham employs 709 employees in Hawaii, while Shell Vacations currently employs 434 people in Hawaii. In addition to operations at Shell Vacations Club, Wyndham will also provide marketing, sales and financial services at the Shell Vacations resorts. Burby went on to say, “Hawaii is really on the top of most people’s bucket lists, so being able to expand a presence in such a highly desirable destination is an exciting time for our company,” said “We’re just very excited for this opportunity to leverage our resources and our combined strengths.”

Last week, I was reading comments on a message board that is for Disney Vacation Club Owners or as DVC calls them, “Club Members”. The Disney timeshare message board was not part of Disney Vacation Club’s website nor was it a part of our company’s network of websites and we have no affiliation with it. I was just there reading the comments like any other website visitor.

One person posted a question, asking, “What are the pros and cons of buying Disney timeshare?” Interestingly, many members of the forum replied but all said more or less the same thing: there is no downside to owning Disney timeshare.

Here at SellMyTimeshareNOW.com and VacationOwnership.com, we have had a similar experience with Disney timeshare owners. While members may sometimes need to resell their DVC timeshare, it is rarely because they are dissatisfied with it. More often than not, these DVC owners have simply had a lifestyle change, such as illness, divorce, job relocation, or other similar reason that motivates them to sell their Disney timeshare.

Your Disney Timeshare Fall Vacation

While there are hundreds (maybe thousands) of reasons to love Disney timeshare, here are 5 of those reasons to enjoy a Disney timeshare vacation right now:

• All of the Disney Vacation Club resorts are year-round destinations, with events and activities to entertain you and your family in every season of the year.
• September is typically one of the slowest months for tourism travel. Families are often just getting the kids back into the swing of school and organized sports activities and are less likely to take their children out of school for a vacation early in the school year. Also, since most of the Disney timeshare resorts are located in Florida or coastal South Carolina, many travelers have apprehensions about vacationing in a month when hurricanes—if they are going to happen—are more likely to impact the weather. The good news is that crowds are smaller and lines are shorter when you vacation in September, almost anywhere you choose to go.
• Whether you are vacationing at Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort; Aulani, Disney Vacation Club Villas; Disney’s Vero Beach Resort; The Villas at Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa; or any of the Disney Orlando timeshares, you’ll find the summer temperatures beginning to cool down, especially as the calendar gets closer to October. Yet in all of those destinations you will still be enjoying weather that feels like a summer vacation.
• Fun seasonal activities abound in the Disney theme parks. Both Disneyland in Anaheim, California and Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida celebrate Halloween with Mickey’s Halloween Party (in Orlando, it is called Mickey’s Not-So-Scary Halloween Party) with events starting in September, although the Orlando celebration begins Sept 11, while in Anaheim the Halloween fun doesn’t get underway until September 28. In Orlando, you can also enjoy “Night of Joy,” a contemporary Christian music festival and the Epcot® International Food & Wine Festival.
• And reason five, might be the most important reason of all to enjoy a Disney timeshare vacation right now. If you are reading this list, then we already know that a little more summer vacation time sounds good to you. If you missed out on vacationing in Summer 2012 or you just need one more vacation “fix” before the cold weather starts to creep in, then why not spend it at the timeshare vacation destination where the owners say, “There are no negatives to being a Disney Vacation Club member.”

One of the many benefits of owning Disney timeshare is that as a member of the Disney Vacation Club you have select privileges that typically include discounts at the Disney theme parks, and also apply to Disney theme parks other than the one at which your timeshare is located.

Vacationers sometimes assume that to enjoy the Disney resorts you are required to buy a theme park ticket. This is not true. At each of the Disney parks there are areas that are open to anyone, without the requirement that you own a Disney timeshare and without the requirement that you buy an admission ticket to the theme parks. While your options vary from park to park, areas open to the public typically include the restaurants located outside the parks but on Disney property (such as those in most of the Disney hotels); common areas of the hotels; many of the sports activities, including tennis, biking, horseback riding, and golf; certain shopping areas; the spas at most resorts; and even some of the special events.

However in general, when you are enjoying your Disney Vacation Club timeshare, your plans will also include time spent at the parks themselves. That’s why Disney includes special discounts on annual park passes for its DVC Members.

Although these privileges are subject to change, here is current information on park pass perks for Disney Timeshare owners. [Read more…]

Shell Vacations Club Timeshare Owners Share on VacationBetter.org

As ARDA (the American Resort Development Association) continues to use its consumer blog, VacationBetter.org to spread the positive message of timeshare, this month the focus is on Shell Vacations Club.

In a short video from Shell Vacations Club, you not only see many of their beautiful resorts, but you get to hear Shell timeshare owners sharing their stories of why they value and enjoy their vacation ownership. Shell Vacations Club owners, like so many families with vacation ownership, love the beautiful, spacious resorts, and appreciate the flexibility of Shell timeshare points. And vacation ownership is so often about more than the vacations. For many families, timesharing creates memories they treasure for a lifetime and traditions they enjoy, year after year.

Stories from Shell Vacation Club Timeshare Owners

Among the Shell Vacation Club timeshare owners telling their story at VacationBetter.org  are Robert Fritschi and James Thompson, Shell timeshare owners since 2000. Robert and James share why Kauai is their favorite Hawaiian Island for vacationing. The two travelers have already vacationed at Shell’s Kona Coast Resort, have visited Oahu and stayed at Waikiki Marina, and the Big Island and stayed at the Ilikai.

But their Number 1 favorite Hawaii timeshare vacation destinations is the Kauai Coast Beach Resort at the Beachboy. They explain, “Much of Kauai is still unspoiled as is it does not have the large scale developments that some of the other islands have. When we have enough points for a two bedroom unit, we invite guests or family members to visit and enjoy Kauai. We like to drive to see as many of the local sites as we can and learn about the culture and history of the islands.”

They add, “We like Shell Vacations Club’s Kauai Coast property because it is low key. The grounds are beautifully landscaped and it is quiet and peaceful. It is a great place to relax. The resort staff has always been helpful and has gone out of their way many times to take care of some special request while we were guests. The housekeeping staff has always been very courteous and thorough. The units are beautifully decorated and the resort is well maintained. In the last couple of years, the resort has had major upgrades to the pool and the units”

Be sure to visit VacationBetter.org to read the stories of these and other timeshare owners.