Street Talk International Archives

Street Talk is a compendium of tips, facts, gossip, rumors, speculation and editorial comment provided by The Timeshare Beat as an outlet for the free expression of its readers and for their entertainment. The Timeshare Beat makes no assertion as to the veracity of the items contained herein. If erroneous information is inadvertently included and a correction to this information is subsequently sent to The Timeshare Beat, the correction will be prominently published. Opinions published within Street Talk are the opinions of the authors thereof and are not necessarily the opinions of The Timeshare Beat.

STREET TALK INTERNATIONAL: Week of February 6 - February 12, 2004 " The theory of a free press is that truth will emerge from free discussion, not that it will be presented perfectly and instantly in any one account." -- Walter Lippmann Street Talk is a compendium of tips, facts, gossip, rumors, speculation and editorial comment. PUBLISHED ON FRIDAY E-mail: news@thetimesharebeat.com | Email: street@thetimesharebeat.com By visiting this site, you are agreeing to our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.   PEOPLE ON THE MOVE: Ferdinand Montes has been appointed as Vice President of Avalon Resorts’ Vacation Club, headquartered in Cancun, Mexico. With over 20 years in the time share industry, Mr. Montes has an impressive track record. Since 1987 he has been a proven leader of large successful timeshare developments. During his tenure he has been responsible for overall company operations at the corporate level, as well as overview of project start-ups, construction, sales, marketing, financing, and customer service in industry leaders such as Starwood Vacation Ownership Resorts and Westgate Resorts. His latest post had him serve as Global Corporate Director of Marketing for Avalon Resorts Vacation Club in Cancun. E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com CANADA ONTARIO: TORONTO: Interstate Hotels & Resorts has signed a contract to manage The Pantages Suites Hotel & Spa, currently under construction in Toronto's downtown theater district, for Skyline Executive Management Inc., an affiliate of Skyline International Development Group. The hotel, which is scheduled to open this month, is part of a mixed-used facility that will include condominiums, timeshare and retail space. The 157-unit property comprises a blend of hotel guest rooms studio rooms with kitchen one-bedroom apartments with full kitchen and dining area approximately 7,000 square feet of meeting space a 12,000-square-foot spa lobby martini bar and a circa 1950s-style, upscale " diner" restaurant and lounge. The property, located at 210 Victoria Street between Queen and Shuter Streets in the theater district, is adjacent to St. Michael's, a major hospital facility, and close to Toronto's " Times Square." Of the hotel's 157 guest rooms, 46 are timeshare units, which owners may choose to make available to the hotel as part of their guest room inventory. Interstate estimates that 50 percent of the timeshare units will be available for hotel rental. BRITISH COLUMBIA: In the " Getting Bigger" category, Point to Point Destinations reports that they are having lots of fun and now have 7 sales centers in Vancouver, Victoria, Whistler, BC and Bellingham, Everett, Rothell and Seattle, WA. Cheers! E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com

A S I A

INDIA: RCI recently announced that the following Indian timeshare resorts have qualified for the Gold Crown awards: Clifftop Club- Auli Club Mahindra Lake View Munnar Club Mahindra Varca Beach Goa Country Inn Bhimtal The Fort Holiday Klub Ralchak The Luxury Club at the Le Royal Meridian in Mumbai Orange County Resort Coorg Royal Goan Beach Club at Benaulim Royal Goan Beach club at Haathi Mahal Goa Sri Lanka 's The Oasis is also among the ten recognised resorts in the region. E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com

CENTRAL AMERICA

COSTA RICA: Interval International has affiliated The Sanctuary Resort & Spa, a vacation-ownership resort in Playa Azul, Guanacaste, on the northwest Pacific coast of Costa Rica. The resort consists of 10 two-bedroom villas and five luxury suites set amidst more than eighty acres of natural tropical forests and lush gardens. Additionally, 72 condominium units are projected for completion by the summer of 2005. With over a mile of secluded beachfront on the northwest coast of Costa Rica - considered an ecological treasure- the property caters to nature lovers and adventure enthusiasts from around the world. The Sanctuary Resort & Spa was developed by the Sanctuary Resort & Spa S.A., a family-owned company, founded by CEO Ben Benjamin and his son Mitch, in 1995. The company's mission is to create high quality properties following strict design and construction standards. PANAMA: Last week we mentioned that San Cristobal International (SCI) has entered into a contract to acquire the famous Buccaneer Resort on Isla Carenero in the Bocas del Toro Archipelago, along Panama's Caribbean coast. The Timeshare Beat has also published a couple of press releases from SCI recently. As it turns out, there's some pretty bad press on SCI, or on the people who work for them, in a Panama newspaper. The YIKES! kind of bad press. Shades of The Godfather. If you'd like to check it out, go to The Panama News at http://www.thepanamanews.com/pn/v_09/issue_09/business_01.html If it's all correct information, it isn't a pretty picture. E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com

AFRICA & MIDDLE EAST

KENYA: Four Kenyan men charged with murder in the Nov. 2002 car bombing of the Paradise Mombasa Hotel, an Israeli-owned coastal resort in Mombasa, planned the attack with other al-Qaida operatives, a prosecutor told a Nairobi court Feb. 2 as the suspects' trial got underway after months of delays. The bombing killed 15 people at the timeshare resort: 10 Kenyans, 3 Israelis and 2 suicide bombers. At about the same time the car bomb struck the hotel, several men fired two surface-to-air missiles at an Israeli charter airliner taking off from nearby Mombasa airport. Fortunately they missed, but not by much. No one aboard was hurt and the plane landed safely in Tel Aviv. (We wonder how many of the people on that plane ever flew again?) If you are interested in how the attack was planned, you can read about it at How Al Qaeda Carried Out Paradise Hotel Bombing The property doesn't seem to be affiliated with Interval International any more, nor does their former Web site work any more. Did they rebuild? Anyone know what's happened to this resort and its timeshare owners since the bombing? E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com

CARIBBEAN

BARBADOS: Under construction for 3 years, the Kings Beach Village, in St Peter, is finally set to open this month. Built at a cost of more than US$10 million, the 32 villas, just a short distance away from Kings Beach Hotel, are two-bedroom homes designed by architect Mark Hiorns. They are set on 3 1/2 acres of land. This is a Right-To-Use project. On average, a two-bedroom unit, which can accommodate four to six people, will sell for US$25 000 per week for a 40-year term. The project is being marketed primarily to the United Kingdom, and project owner Martin Richards says initially he would like to start by selling the timeshares himself and marketing it on the island, rather than linking it up to any international realtor. Richards also owns Kings Beach Hotel, which he will be able to use to generate tours of the timeshare project. The only other hotel property currently offering timeshare in Barbados is the Crane in St Philip. US VIRGIN ISLANDS: ST. JOHN: KUDOS to the Starwood team at Westin St John, who had their biggest month ever in January: $2.6 million volume $8400 vpg 22% net close Way to go team! E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com

MEXICO

SINALOA: MAZATLAN: Word is out that David Adkins International has now included Quintas del Mar, a beachfront highrise, in its Mazatlan inventory. With whole ownership and fractionals already on offer next door in Costa Bonita (newly affiliated with Interval International) Quintas del Mar will feature whole ownership from as little as $65,000 US, with six week fractionals going for a little over $20,000. This is in the new upscale section of town north of the Golden Zone, called Nuevo Mazatlan, where the Pueblo Bonito Emerald Bay is also located. E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com

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Street Talk is a compendium of tips, facts, gossip, rumors, speculation and editorial comment provided by The Timeshare Beat as an outlet for the free expression of its readers and for their entertainment. The Timeshare Beat makes no assertion as to the veracity of the items contained herein. If erroneous information is inadvertently included and a correction to this information is subsequently sent to The Timeshare Beat, the correction will be prominently published. Opinions published within Street Talk are the opinions of the authors thereof and are not necessarily the opinions of The Timeshare Beat. THIS COLUMN CONTAINS OPINIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS, STATEMENTS AND INFORMATION PROVIDED BY THIRD PARTIES. THE TIMESHARE BEAT DOES NOT REPRESENT, ENDORSE OR GUARANTEE THE TRUTHFULNESS, ACCURACY OR RELIABILITY OF ANY OF SUCH CONTENT POSTED BY SUCH THIRD PARTIES, OR ENDORSE ANY OPINIONS OR RECOMMENDATIONS EXPRESSED BY SUCH THIRD PARTIES. ANY RELIANCE ON CONTENT POSTED BY THIRD PARTIES WILL BE AT YOUR OWN RISK. CHANGES ARE PERIODICALLY MADE TO THIS COLUMN AND MAY BE MADE AT ANY TIME.

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