Jun 30

Timeshare Relief client Joan Koehler had tried to get rid of her timeshare, but like many others faced difficulty and lost money doing so.  Hear the relief in her voice when she responds to the questions of our interviewer.  Between the timeshare resales companies taking money for little to show for it and the consistent maintenance fee payments, it’s no wonder why Ms. Koehler felt as she did.  We’re just glad that we were able to help her.

Interviewer:                       All right, for the record, if it’s okay, what is your name?

Joan Koehler:                    Joan Koehler.

Interviewer:                       Are you satisfied with the service that Timeshare Relief has provided?

Joan Koehler:                    Yes, I am.  I was having a lot of trouble before and it smoothed it right out for me.

Interviewer:                       Are you still paying for your timeshare?

Joan Koehler:                    No.  No, it went through in a timely manner, and just everything was as I was told.

Interviewer:                       Did you enjoy receiving the notification of final transfer?

Joan Koehler:                    Yes.

Interviewer:                       Did you try any other service to get out of your timeshare?

Joan Koehler:                    Yes.  Timeshares Only, and I live in Florida and they’ve got signs all over the place, and they love to advertise on the TV and every place else, but they’re liars.  It took $300.  They wanted money upfront.  I hated them.

Interviewer:                       On a scale of 1-10, what is your overall satisfaction level with our service?

Joan Koehler:                    8.

Interviewer:                       Is there anything else you would like to share about your experience with Timeshare Relief?

Joan Koehler:                    No, that’s about it.  I was really kind of shy about putting out the money I had to put out, but it was worth it.  It wasn’t half as much for me as I lost in the first place.

Interviewer:                       Based on your experience, would you recommend our service?

Joan Koehler:                    Yes, I think so.

Interviewer:                       Sounds like you were pleased with your experience with us.  Thank you so much and have a nice day.

Joan Koehler:                    Thank you.  Bye-bye.
Please note that this testimonial was not paid for her response.  Timeshare Relief makes no claim that they can work with all timeshare owners as qualifications do apply.  Clients of Timeshare Relief pay a service fee for timeshare transfer services.

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Jun 29

Attention all timeshare owners…RCI, part of the Wyndham Exchange & Rentals recently announced that new travel and lifestyle benefits are coming to RCI Points members in the U.S. and Canada.  They are launching the RCI Points Platinum membership.

RCI promotes the RCI Points Platinum membership with benefits including:

  • Opportunities for automatic room upgrades (based on room availability, of course).
  • Access to “specially acquired hotel inventory”.
  • Up to 50 percent off at more than 50,000 dining locations and saving on thousands of everyday purchases like groceries, automobile services, home services, etc.
  • Member-only rates at ski, golf, and spa resorts.
  • Preferred pricing and “front-of-the-line” privileges at select attractions.
  • Member-only pricing and “First-Look” access to Broadway theater seating.
  • Up to $25 in rebates on each qualifying transaction applied to membership account.

Current members can upgrade to the Points Platinum membership for an additional $55 per year.

The RCI Points Platinum membership is currently being launched in the U.S. and Canada with hope to expand to other regions soon.  Member benefits may vary in other regions.

RCI is part of Wyndham Exchange & Rentals, the worldwide leader in vacation exchange and the European leader in vacation rentals. Wyndham Worldwide Corporation is one of the world’s largest hospitality companies with leading brands in lodging franchising, vacation ownership, vacation rentals and vacation exchange.

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Jun 28

When American Express cardholders book cruises using their membership rewards, a Scottsdale company, International Cruise & Excursions, Inc. (I.C.E.), is handling the transaction.

I.C.E. founders, John and Marcia Rowley, purchased office space in November and relocated the company’s more than 800 employees, from three locations in the West Valley (Arizone).  I.C.E. has been successful at providing cruise packages, reporting revenue of over $350 million last year.

The new headquarters includes a call center where representatives for corporations including American Express, Marsh & McLennan, and USAA, book clients’ cruise packages using reward points as partial payment.

I.C.E. started in 1997 with their primary focus allowing timeshare owners to trade their timeshare weeks for cruises. It developed a program that allowed partial payment for a cruise.

When timeshare resorts began using a points-based reward system, it allowed the company to begin working with corporations that offer points-based loyalty programs to their customers.

“There are 6.5 million active timeshare holders in the world, which is not small, but compared to American Express cardholders or Barclays Bank cardholders, or any alternative currency, those companies have 30 million plus members usually within their network,” John Rowley said. “So when you’re partnering with them and you’re providing a partial barter within their loyalty system, you really have tremendous leverage.”

I.C.E is continuously experiencing growth and is recruiting more employees in Scottsdale and around the globe.

“We have plenty of room for our operations here, and we have a number of employees who are home-based,” Marcia Rowley said. “We probably have a good five years of growth in this office if we didn’t make a big push for home-based agents, but we offer employees an opportunity to start working from home.”

More information can be found here.

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Jun 25

Timeshare Relief Mariott Vacations ClubIn 1984, Marriott became the first hospitality company to enter the timeshare industry.  Since then, Marriott Vacation Club has redefined the timeshare ownership experience.  Timeshare owners enjoy the assurance of a program from a recognized leader in the timeshare industry.

Marriott Vacation Club just launched the points-based Marriott Vacation Club Destinations program in North America and the Caribbean.  The program offers more flexibility and a more personalized experience.

This new program will allow timeshare owners to redeem points to travel within any of four Vacation Collections.

  1. Marriott Vacation Club Collection:  Access to more than 50 luxurious resorts and including added benefits such as:  any day check-in, varied lengths of stay, variety of accommodation sizes, and more choice of travel season at resorts in North America and the Caribbean.
  2. Marriott Collection: Choose from more than 3,000 hotels.
  3. Explorer Collection: Travel to new places or take a cruise with exchange for travel packages.
  4. World Traveler Collection:   Access to over 2,500 resorts in more than 75 countries through Interval International.

Timeshare owners will receive their points annually to redeem for their customized vacation.  They will also be able to save, borrow or buy additional points.  This new program also provides timeshare owners with a personal Vacation Ownership Advisor that will help with travel arrangements in the four Collections.

Keep coming back to this blog to learn about how this change will affect timeshare owners.  In short, Marriott grants flexibility to its timeshare owners, but at the same time creates a marketplace for the points and opens their timeshare units to be sold more than 50 weeks per year.

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Jun 22

Released today are pictures of the unfinished mansion of timeshare mogul David Siegel, founder, President and CEO of Westgate Resorts.  The $75 million price tag is one of the largest in the US and is advertised ‘As-Is’ meaning that a buyer would have to complete the massive project in addition to buying the property.

Hefty pricetag upfront and payments on the backend – sounds like a familiar business model.

For a few pictures, go to Yahoo or click on the picture…

Timeshare Mogul David Siegel Unfinished Mansion

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