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 March 5 - March 11, 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. CANADA TORONTO: Toronto-based Four Seasons has just a couple of new residence clubs scheduled for 2004/2005 openings: Four Seasons Private Residences Whistler, B.C., Canada, with 35 units and Four Seasons Residence Club Punta Mita, Mexico (at last!), also with 35 units. Four Seasons has also made investments in Sedona, AZ at Seven Canyons, which is to include a residence club. The financing for these projects has not yet been completed so scheduled opening dates can't be established yet. A whole lot of their other new projects will include full ownership residences can we expect that maybe some of them might include the residence club as well? E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com The UK & EUROPE The UK: • SCOTLAND: The battle between Macdonald Hotels and some 4000 timeshare owners at Loch Rannoch Highland Club in Perthshire is about to spill over into the courts. They have been at loggerheads since last summer after club members managed to wrest control of a lucrative management contract from a subsidiary of the Macdonald hotel and leisure chain. Macdonald retaliated by barring the timeshare owners, and their families and friends, from entering the Loch Rannoch Hotel next door and from using leisure and marina facilities there. It's been a nasty fight, and in our opinion Macdonald has behaved like a 10-year-old who brought the ball to the game but wasn't picked for the team. " Fine, then I'll take my ball and go home!" Read the whole ugly story in The Scotsman: Law is last resort in timeshare tussle • ENGLAND: Are timeshare owners in the UK and mainland Europe going to have a new advocate? TATOC (The Association of Timeshare Owners Committees) says yes. VOICE (Vacation Owners Independent Coalition in Europe) has been formed as a non-profit making company through an alliance of TATOC and OTE (Organisation for Timeshare in Europe) to actively safeguard the interests of over 1.5 million timeshare owners, as well as consumers and the timeshare industry. Among other things, Voice will offer a complaints service for owners/consumers and will establish a standard complaints procedure that is monitored by government departments. For more information, read the press release: Are You Being Heard? E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com CARIBBEAN According to a study completed by Ragatz Associates, Aruba, St. Maarten, the Dominican Republic and The Bahamas can lay claim to the largest share of the timeshare industry in the Caribbean based on the number of intervals owned by consumers. Aruba and the Dominican Republic are the leaders in sales of new timeshares. The report, titled ResortTimesharing in the Caribbean, also revealed: As of October 2003, some 214 Caribbean timeshare resorts serve over 278,000 households, who own about 445,000 weeks or the equivalent in points. The Caribbean timeshare industry achieved nearly $347 million in sales during 2002, representing about 29,000 weeks. Caribbean timeshare owners report an 82 percent satisfaction rate, resulting in 90 percent utilization of timeshares. Timeshare owners and other guests spend nearly $635 million annually in Caribbean communities while on timeshare vacations. BAHAMAS: • The Bahamas government is inviting the timeshare sector to get back into the Bahamas in a big way. In an address to the 7th Annual Georgia Minority Business Leaders Awards Luncheon last month in Atlanta, Minister of Financial Services and Investments Allyson Maynard-Gibson said the industry is expected to achieve " significant growth" in the islands. Legislation will be tabled in Parliament via a new Timeshare Act to enable the largest timeshare operators in the world, including Starwood, Fairfield and others to expand their business in The Bahamas. " We invite you to join us as owners and operators of timeshare resorts. Again, there are immeasurable opportunities, especially in the Family Islands, in the timeshare sector," she said. Although members of The Bahamas Vacation Council (BVOC) recently raised concerns on certain aspects of the proposed Timeshare Act, it was noted that the Government aims to restore the industry to its previous leading position. We wonder if Starwood will ever develop timeshare at Our Lucaya? • NASSAU: Dikron Izmirlian, a Swiss-Armenian billionaire who owns the largest real estate plot at Lyford Cay hopes to make the Cable Beach strip a 'one-stop' entertainment destination based on the Las Vegas model, attracting leading singers, bands and entertainment groups for events such as concerts. Comedy shows would also be on the agenda, and the casino license already held by the Wyndham means the ground has already been paved for legalised gambling. The Cable Beach redevelopment revolves around two key factors - purchasing the Wyndham and Nassau Beach Hotels from their current owner Phil Ruffin, and re-routing the road through the destination to free up some 350 acres on the southern side for development into properties such as timeshares, condos and lots. Word is the Izmirlian group is set to acquire the government owned Radisson in addition to the Wyndham and Nassau Beach hotels, with Mr. Ruffin set to instead focus on his Las Vegas interests. It is unclear how much is being spent to acquire the three properties but it is thought that Mr. Ruffin is likely to receive $200-$300 million from the deal. USVI: Demolition of the old Yacht Haven Hotel on St. Thomas should begin March 13. Going up in its place will be a $150 Million project that includes a hotel, 160-slip marina, 12 timeshare condos with a swimming pool and fitness center, a park, restaurants and retail & office space. Construction is expected to begin in mid-September. The developer is Island Development. E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com A S I A   SINGAPORE: Even before the new Consumer Protection (Fair Trading) Act went into effect recently, it was already getting results. Timeshare company Emperor Resorts International (ERI), which has been in the Consumers Association of Singapore's (Case) black book for a decade, wrote to the watchdog last week suddenly willing to resolve 52 outstanding complaints. The new law empowers Case and consumers to take companies to court over unfair trading practices, which include pressure selling, making false claims and unfair contracts. Case received 16,854 complaints of unfair trading practices last year. The most common complaints concerned high-pressure sales tactics - there were 1,468 cases. Surprise!(?)- timeshare sellers are the biggest culprits. Among other things, the new law will require timeshare firms to make a full refund if a customer changes his mind within three days of purchasing a holiday package. TOP 5 COMPLAINTS Using undue pressure to make a sale (1,468)- Timeshare, non-electrical kitchenware, beauty Making false claims about a product (1,093)- Beauty, timeshare, furniture, renovation Hiding facts in small print (645)- Maids, laundry, renovation Unfair contracts (570)- Cars, real estate, laundry, maids Overcharging (450)- Plumbing or eletrical work, beauty, electronic goods E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com MEXICO NAYARIT: VALLARTA: Just as new tourism development in Sinaloa's Mazatlan is moving north of the Golden Zone into " Nuevo Mazatlan" , new development along Banderas Bay is moving north of Nuevo Vallarta. The famed Punta Mita development at the far north end of the Bay started the process, and now it is beginning to fill in. The newest resort in the area to hit the books is an Interval International 5-Star property named Playa Del Sol Grand, located on Flamingos Beach just north of Nuevo Vallarta. The first phase of this mixed-use oceanfront property has 66 studio, one- and two- bedroom timeshare and condominium units, and 189 yuadditional units are scheduled to be completed by 2006. Onsite amenities include two restaurants, spa, gym, nearly 450 feet of beach, a stunning infinity pool with a swim-up bar overlooking the bay, multiple aquatic sports. Golf is available either at the neighbouring Flamingos Golf Course or nearby at any of the championship courses located around the bay. A Kids' Club facility will open at the end of this month. Anyone know who's in charge of sales and marketing there? BAJA CALIFORNIA SUR: LOS CABOS: If you're looking for someplace in Mexico for a nice spring vacation that doesn't include raucous spring breakers, look no further than Los Cabos. Members of the Hotel Association of Los Cabos have rejected any special packages or discounts that might encourage them to head for Cabo " since they only come to do things they cannot do in their own country," the group's president Alberto Coppel said. While it might hurt the bottom line of the community, Cabo doesn't care. In fact, more and more Mexican communities are beginning to object to the wild and often obscene tactics of America's youth during this annual rite of passage. Mexicans overall are a conservative people, and they'd just as soon see the " kids" stay in their own country to misbehave... We agree. E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com AFRICA & the MIDDLE EAST DUBAI: " Dubai is poised to become the Orlando of the Gulf. We have a strong commitment to the Gulf. Our total investment in Palm Jumeirah could eventually touch the $1 billion mark." So says Jassim M. Al Bahar, chairman and managing director of Kuwait-based International Financial Advisors (IFA). IFA is backing up its mouth with its money, having so far committed $800 million in investment in different projects in Palm Jumeirah. IFA's subsidiary IFA Hotels and Resorts is entering the cruise tourism business with timeshare products, the first in the region. They are launching a 22-metre yacht at the upcoming Middle East Boat Show, which will offer timeshare or fractional ownership to customers. Meanwhile, Dubai and Mauritius have displaced the Caribbean and Canary Islands as the top two long haul destinations from the UK. Dubai is seen as the closest exotic destination to the UK, and we wonder if the displacing of the Canary Islands as a favorite might also have been influenced by all the timeshare and holiday club fraud originating there, which has cost UK citizens millions of pounds over the last few years? E-mail street@thetimesharebeat.com Quotable quotes: " ...I encourage travel to as many destinations as possible for the sake of education as well as pleasure." -Maya Angelou People on the Move: No One on the Move? GO TO Street Talk USA

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