Monday, May 31, 2010

The Return of the Timeshare


Timeshare has its share of good and bad news. When it just started, you could only hear positive news about it. But when recession has started, multiple numbers of malevolent news came out. However, nowadays, it seems like the European Union has regulations that could make using timeshare during vacation a wonderful option.

Usually, there is what we call the seasonal or shared ownership or holiday membership club type of owning timeshare. This is the practice of having a specific time in using their timeshare units every year. But then, this kind of ownership still requires us to pay somehow an average amount of between £4,000 to 10,000 every year. On the other hand, despite the price, we are assured that we can experience the lifestyle of owning a timeshare for the meantime. But what happens if you cannot use the timeshare for a year?

According to an article by Liz Rowlinson, entitled Are Timeshares making a comeback? , there are many people who can buy timeshare units as their second home. But on one second thought, they would love to buy it if the timeshare arrangement is flexible for both parties, especially with regards to the timeshare exchange programs. This is due to the fact that most owners would save money for the future then would want to change their timeshare units for another when it already gets boring to visit.

Though we know that holiday exchange programs in United States are already prevalent, Dimitris Manikis of RCI’s Business Development thinks otherwise for United Kingdom. Though people from UK also like the program, they prefer to look for timeshares in their country rather than to its outside boundaries. This is what they called staycation.

Dimitris said that this trend only started last year simply because of the heavy consequences of the recession. This trend has become more prevalent due to uncertainty issues of air travel. And at the present, in UK, RCI has 105 affiliated timeshare resorts with its 105 members who can use them. It is also offering cottages for rent with ski and beach resorts as well as golfing estates and health spas.

Some of the timeshares available there are the Hever Hotel & Country Club, which can give you the time of your life playing tennis and golf in its countryside; the five- star golfing resort of Gleneagles in Perthshire, Scotland with apartments that you can pass on to your other family members; and the Forest Holidays’ Membership Club which can give you an extravagant experience of staying in a luxurious big log cabin.

On the other hand, with regards to the problems facing the reselling of timeshare which is still prevalent, there is now what we call the existing regulated channels for guidance. No worries anymore because of this EU regulation.

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