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ARDA has a new 28-page consumer guide, “Understanding Vacation Ownership” to help consumers better understand vacation ownership products, usage, and terminology. The brochure is part of ARDA’s “Own the Fun” consumer education efforts to promote the benefits of owning shared leisure real estate. The print brochure is free to consumers, and a PDF version is also available for download. ARDA members may also order copies of the brochure by contacting Lou Ann Burney at lburney@arda.org.

The 2007 ARDA Awards Program is now underway. The final deadline for entry submissions is Friday, January 5. For more information about the program, or to download the nomination guide, please visit www.arda.org/awards or email awards@arda.org.

The AIF will be launching its flagship research study in January. Please mark your calendars, watch for the invitation, and respond to this important annual survey which will be launched in early January. Your participation in this survey will help the AIF provide the industry with key research statistics that will help organizations keep up with industry trends and chart strategic plans. If you have any questions about this research study, please contact Alison Powers at apowers@arda.org or 202/207/1140.

For the first time, ARDA will be a Platinum Sponsor of the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS) being held January 22-24 in Los Angeles. ARDA’s enhanced visibility will include an informational display in the Summit’s exposition hall and a display of the AIF’s outstanding new research materials. Several ARDA staff members will be on-site to raise awareness of vacation ownership market and to recruit new members; ARDA CEO Howard C. Nusbaum will also be a guest speaker. For more information contact Bob Craycraft, Vice President Industry Relations.

PricewaterhouseCoopers forecasts that growth in profits from hotel rooms will slow next year and in 2008, as the lodging industry faces a surge in new hotel construction and a flattening in room demand. The firm's forecast predicts that revenue per available room will increase 5.9 percent in 2007 and 5.4 percent in '08, a significant decline from the robust 8 percent growth posted during the current year. Finally, the report expects hotel occupancy at U.S. lodgings to be flat in the next couple of years, averaging 63.9 percent next year and 63.8 percent the year after. Historically, the average has been 66.5 percent.

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"Sign Here"
Washington Post (12/17/06) P. P1; Sottili, Carol

The article's author reports on the improving state and stature of timeshare properties. Today, timeshares are known more as "vacation clubs," and the industry has benefited from such big-name companies as Hilton, Hyatt, Marriott and Starwood making inroads. Even Disney is getting into the act, offering timeshare options at its Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa in Florida on a point system. The author further notes that "the old system, in which a buyer bought a specific week in a specific unit at a specific property, has been mostly supplanted by a more flexible product, with owners buying points that can used for different weeks at various locations." A recent Ernst & Young study conducted for the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) shows that $8.6 billion worth of timeshare units were sold in 2005. Over the past 17 years, the timeshare industry has recorded double-digit sales growth every year except one. ARDA President Howard Nussbaum states, "Sales tactics have changed dramatically during the last 20 years. Companies are trading on their good names, and they don't want to compromise that." (Web Link)

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"New Brochure Shows Vacationers How to 'Own the Fun'"
Business Wire (12/12/06)

In its free "Understanding Vacation Ownership" brochure, the American Resort Development Association (ARDA) offers vacationers advice about purchasing and selling timeshares. ARDA recommends that potential purchasers consider how the timeshare fits in with their lifestyle and life plans. Other suggestions include visiting the timeshare before buying, carefully reading and understanding all documents before signing, verifying that the timeshare resort is an ARDA member, checking for signs of good management and buying the best unit during the most popular season. Those looking to purchase from the secondary market should ensure that consumer protection regulations apply to the purchase, utilize the Internet and practice diligence. According to an ARDA study released this fall, 80.3 percent of timeshare owners were satisfied with their purchase, 75.7 said the purchase makes them look forward to vacations, 68.4 percent said the purchase has increased their vacation time and 66.4 percent said the timeshare increased their learning experiences. Finally, 52.8 percent said their timeshare unit had increased their health and happiness. (Web Link)

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"Florida Tourism Down Slightly So Far in 2006"
USA Today (11/28/06) Reed, Travis

Figures published on Nov. 27 by Florida tourism marketing division Visit Florida reveal that a slightly smaller number of tourists have visited Florida this year, possibly predicting the state's first year-to-year decline in visitors since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Florida has witnessed 66.8 million tourists to date in 2006, 8 percent less than 67.4 million visitors during the same time in 2005. Overall visitor figures increased almost 7 percent two years ago and nearly 5 percent in 2005 to an unprecedented 83.6 million. Vanessa Welter, a spokeswoman for Visit Florida, noted that greater competition from other sectors and the ongoing memory of two vicious hurricane seasons could be to blame. She added that advertising expenses have soared while Florida's marketing budget has stayed the same over the last several years, meaning the state receives reduced exposure for the same money. Hotel occupancy in the Orlando region, which in 2005 saw 49 million tourists, has been smaller each month this year, except in April. The figures do not take into account Wall Disney properties or tourists who utilize timeshares, which have become more and more popular in the Sunshine State. (Web Link)

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"InfoValue and Extream TV Partner to Provide VOD to Hotel and Timeshare Market"
PRWeb (12/06/06)

InfoValue Computing and ExtreamTV (ETV) have agreed to provide video-on-demand (VOD) and Web connectivity to the hotel and timeshare industry under a new alliance. Under terms of the agreement, InfoValue's technology will provide IP-based services for offering VOD content to timeshare owners and hotel guests. ETV will deliver high-speed Web access to customers that is possible through its agreements with telecommunications providers. A combined ETV Solution and InfoValue SuiteTV has already been implemented at the Hotel Royal Plaza in Orlando. Aubrey Flanagan, InfoValue's vice president of business development and solutions, states, "The partnership with ExtreamTV is a compelling case study of how a systems integrator can fully utilize SuiteTV's full features to enhance the hotel guest's in-room experience." (Web Link)

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"Luxury Hotel Condos on Tap for Central Fla."
Orlando Business Journal (11/17/06) Mervine, Bob

In Lake Buena Vista, Fla., the Village at Midtown at Lake Ruby is looking to become a major travel destination. Plans are afoot for the 214-acre mixed-use project to welcome a 504-unit condo-hotel development, the first of its kind to be operated by Wyndham Hotel Group. Other Ruby Lake additions are in the planning stages, including a Hilton Grand Vacations Co. timeshare resort with an estimated 1,200 units. In total, Ruby Lake is expected to ultimately have 3,600 timeshare units, 900 hotel rooms and 150,000 square feet of commercial space. Groundbreaking on the condo hotel is slated for the end of next year's first quarter, with a November 2009 completion date targeted. Still, some remain concerned about possible overbuilding in the market. (Web Link)

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"Bluegreen Buys 2 Properties in Virginia"
Boston Globe (11/27/06)

Florida-based Bluegreen Corp. concluded its acquisition of the Colonial Capital Inn and a commercial facility in Williamsburg, Va., late last month. Terms of the deal were not published. The acquisition is part of the second stage of an almost 23-acre project. Bluegreen purchased the Liberty Inn and Conference Center and the Patrick Henry Inn in the initial stage. Bluegreen intends to construct eight campus-style facilities equipped with 400 two-bedroom timeshare dwellings on the 18-acre location that lodges the Colonial Capital and commercial structure. The project will be constructed in nine stages beginning in 2007. The Liberty Inn, which has 142 rooms, will be transformed into 76 one- and two-bedroom timeshare apartments beginning in the last quarter. The units are expected to be ready for occupancy in two years. In addition, Bluegreen plans to revamp the Patrick Henry Inn and keep utilizing it for overnight lodging. (Web Link)

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"Hotels to Keep Gaining in '07, Toy Says"
Honolulu Star-Bulletin (11/17/06) Wu, Nina

Hospitality Advisors President and CEO Joseph Toy reports that Hawaii hotels are on pace to record more revenue in 2007, with mainland investors continuing to show healthy interest in lodgings throughout the state. Toy projects that 2007 total room revenue will surpass this year's, bringing in approximately $3.5 billion. Statewide, daily room rates now average $185 versus $167 in 2005. That is higher than such competing vacation destinations as Australia, the Caribbean, and Hong Kong. Higher room occupancy rates, meanwhile, can be attributed to a decline in the number of hotel rooms coupled with an increase in timeshare and condo-hotel conversions. Toy observes that much of Hawaii's projected gains next year will come from hotels that are currently being renovated and repositioned in Waikiki, as he expects the real-estate conversion pace to slow down in 2007. Meanwhile, transaction activity remains solid. Three years ago, there may have been as many as eight lenders vying to invest in a typical Hawaii hotel deal; today, there could be up to 30. (Web Link)

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"Business Group Leader Looks to the Long Term"
Travel Weekly (11/13/06) P. B16; Seiden, Allan

In an interview with Travel Weekly, Waikiki Improvement Association President Rick Egged spoke about his work upgrading Waikiki in order to adapt to changing times and visitor demographics and combat dwindling numbers of vacationers. Of the 4.75 million people who visited Oahu last year, 90 percent went to Waikiki, which is slowly trying to match the peak it achieved in the mid 1990s. Developers are building upscale properties that include condominiums and timeshare units as well as restaurants, shops and entertainment venues to attract high-yield travelers. Marketers are spending $500,000 to promote Waikiki as a diverse vacation spot, lift from the mainland remains strong, and despite recent rate increases, Egged asserts that the location is worth the expense. The long-term rental market is stronger than the market for daily rentals, and though 2007 is expected to be successful, convention rentals are down as compared to the previous two years. Egged forecasts, "There will be increases in timeshare and condominiums, most of which will be available as vacation rentals. The long-term rental market in Waikiki is still very strong, so most of those units and others that were once in hotel pools are now in long-term rentals." (Web Link)

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"Wyndham Vacation Ownership Expands Options by Adding Wyndham Hotel Stays to FairShare Plus Program"
PRNewswire (11/16/06)

Wyndham Vacation Ownership announced last month that the owners of its points-based timeshare swap plan, FairShare Plus, can utilize their points to stay at five Wyndham hotels and resorts. Intended to improve the flexibility and vacation choices for owners of FairShare Plus, this new offering is one of the initial vacation benefits that are being provided to supplement Wyndham's family of leading industry products and services. FairShare Plus owners may utilize their points at the Wyndham Sugar Bay Resort and Spa in St. Thomas; Wyndham Orange County in Costa Mesa, Calif.; Wyndham Midtown and Wyndham Peachtree Conference Center in Atlanta; and Bourbon Orleans in New Orleans. The amount of points mandated to stay at the various properties differs according to the time of year and additional usage rules. FairShare Plus owners can make travel reservations starting the first of 2007. Wyndham Hotels and Resorts President Peter Strebel comments that providing FairShare Plus owners easy access to these Wyndham properties "is an enormous opportunity for us to showcase a variety of Wyndham products to these loyal timeshare owners looking for additional ways to enhance their vacation lifestyles." (Web Link)

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"Timeshares: Owning New York Property by the Week"
The Real Deal (11/06/06) Londono, Vanessa

Although timeshares are a housing option more often associated with resort destinations such as Hawaii and Mexico than Manhattan, three brand-name hoteliers--Hilton Hotels, Global Hyatt Corporation, and the St. Regis Hotel--are planning to bring timeshare developments to the Big Apple. Hilton Hotels announced last month that it would construct the first ground-up timeshare development in the city on a site it purchased in June. In September, Global Hyatt signed a deal to purchase 485 Fifth Avenue, which it will convert to a hotel with timeshares available on the building's upper floors. Meanwhile, the St. Regis Hotel has announced that it is selling timeshares on two floors of its building located at 55th Street and Fifth Avenue. According to Mark Gordon, managing director and principal of real estate investment banking firm Sonnenblick-Goldman, Manhattan attracts two types of customers that could help make these projects a success: the national visitor who want to visit the city on a regular basis, and people who live in the tri-state area who want to spend a certain number of nights per year in Manhattan. In addition, high hotel occupancy rates and rising prices for condos and apartment leases are making it difficult for people to find assured availability in Manhattan, said Bjorn Hanson, principal in the hospitality and leisure practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers. (Web Link)

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