Timeshare Travel Chinese Style

To have one's own villa on some picturesque beach, from which one can enjoy the scenic coastline and hear the rolling waves? Many people may have such dreams, but most are held back by the exorbitant costs. Yesterday, the world's largest timeshare travel company came to Shanghai for the very first time to help the Shanghainese realise their dreams with the whole new concept of timeshare travel.

Timeshare travel is quite simply a one-time payment at prices lower than normal discounts for the right to use a property for one week each year for a total of 10 years (or 20 or 30 years). By becoming a member of this international network of travellers, one could opt to exchange timeshares with members owning other properties, and in so doing, travel to a different place each time. Particularly tempting is the idea that travel around the world no longer needs to be exorbitant. Timeshare owners can make use of their right to use their properties at the price they paid regardless of how hotel room rates may fluctuate. Therefore, with all other factors constant, timeshare travel expenses may come up to just half of traditional accommodation options, or even less. Even more enticing is the ability to swap travel destinations. As long as your visa application is approved, you can travel anywhere within the network without having to pay additional accommodation fees.

An RCI spokesperson pointed out that living standards in Shanghai are now the highest in China. The sophisticated hotel industry and the appearance of certain serviced apartments have prepared the way for the introduction of timeshare travel in the market. In the meanwhile, China now has about 115 holidays and demand for travel is on the rise. It is estimated that a timeshare travel network of a million members can contribute between RMB 5 billion and RMB 7 billion to the domestic economy, build between 3 and 5 million square metres of real estate, and create up to 20,000 jobs.


Nevertheless a spokesperson from the Shanghai Municipal Tourism Administrative Commission said that for RCI to be really rooted in Shanghai, it would have to overcome several obstacles. First, the reliability. When travellers buy hotel timeshares, they have to make a judgement on how reliable the property is, whether it would close down anytime, or even pretend to close down. With a spate of timeshare-related complaints that have surfaced all over China, cautious Shanghainese may adopt a wait-and-see approach. On the other hand, the hotel industry in Shanghai is booming, and the hotel occupancy rate for all the five-star hotels in November was almost 100%, and so it remains uncertain how many additional rooms would be enough for the city

Silverleaf Resorts

Based in Dallas, Texas, Silverleaf Resorts, Inc. currently owns and operates timeshare resorts with a wide array of country club-like amenities, such as golf, clubhouses, swimming, tennis, boating, and many organized activities for children and adults. For additional information, please visit www.silverleafresorts.com

Silverleaf Resorts first Indoor Water Park

Silverleaf Resorts, Inc. (NASDAQ: SVLF) today announced the grand opening of their first indoor water park at The Villages Resort in Flint, Texas, (near Tyler) which serves the Dallas/Fort Worth market.
"The opening of the indoor water park at The Villages Resort marks a significant milestone for Silverleaf Resorts, as we continue to enhance our resorts and increase our appeal to both new customers and existing members," said Sharon K. Brayfield, President of Silverleaf Resorts.
The $10 million indoor water park is approximately 19,000 square feet and features a signature bucket dump aqua play unit, wave pool, lazy river and four indoor/outdoor tube rides. The 7,000 square foot entry building includes a food service area featuring Yum! Brands Inc. products from Pizza Hut(R) Express and A&W All American Food(R) Express, an arcade filled with the latest electronic adventures, a souvenir gift shop, and a large changing room with over 1,000 lockers.
The Villages Resort is located on the shores of Lake Palestine, a 40,000-acre lake and one of the larger water-sports playgrounds in the Southwest used for boating, swimming and other recreational activities. Members have private access to the lake and three swimming pools, as well as a miniature golf course, lighted tennis courts, an archery range, softball field, and horseback riding.
In December, Silverleaf opened the new Beach Club section of The Villages Resort which will be sold exclusively as an upgrade product to existing Silverleaf owners. The amenities are scheduled for completion in the first quarter of 2008. Once fully developed, it will contain approximately 144 units.

In depth review of Cons of Buying a Timeshare

Reputation of unethical players and scams

Most of the major industry players value their brand's reputation more than the sale, and many have committed to standards of ethics in recent years. An organization to which we belong, ARDA (American Resort Development Association) includes most major timeshare businesses today and members subscribe to a set of consumer-friendly ethics rules. However, timeshare has an unfortunate reputation of being associated with hard sales pitches and sneaky sales techniques similar to the notoriety of used car sales. While these horror stories are few and far between these days, as with any industry, there occasionally still are unethical salespeople trying to do whatever it takes to bring home their commission. That is why it is important to do the homework you are doing right now.


Before walking into a situation where you know there will be a pitch, educate yourself on timeshare and go into it with an understanding of the pros and cons and what makes financial sense for your family's lifestyle. Research the resort and management company to be aware of any outstanding complaints. If you end up changing your mind after the purchase, most states have "rescission period" laws that allow you to cancel the sale within two or three days.

Benefit #3 of Buying a Timeshare

Ability to exchange

Exchange is consistently a top reason people buy into timeshare. When you own a timeshare, you have the ability to exchange for another resort. You can also buy a membership with one or both of the more traditional exchange companies, Resort Condominiums International (RCI) and Interval International (II), if your resort has an affiliation. To be fair, this Pro also made our Cons list below.

Although this has provided our family the opportunity to travel and stay in luxurious accomodations we otherwise wouldnot have been a ble to afford


http://www.sellmytimeshare.org/

Additional Timeshare Scams

The Overpayment Scam
The essence of this scam is that a purported renter or buyer sends you a cashier's check for more than you agreed on and has you wire the difference back. Some time later, however, the bank discovers the check was counterfeit and holds you responsible for the entire amount.

U.S. Postal Service tips:

Be skeptical of anyone asking you to wire money to overseas bank accounts, or to cash money orders or checks, on their behalf.
Know who you're dealing with—never give out personal or financial information to anyone you don't know.
Familiarize yourself with postal money order security features.
Never accept money orders or checks for more than the selling price.
Never agree to wire funds to a buyer—legitimate buyers won't pressure you to do so, and you have limited recourse if there's a problem.
Never wire funds to anyone unless you're sure the money order or check they gave you was cleared by your bank and the funds released

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