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Old 06-19-2008, 11:54 PM   #1
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Default Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

I only received one e-mail (rather than two) from UE.

--------------
This is an exciting time to be considering membership in Ultimate Escapes. I want to continue to keep you up to date on all of the exciting new locations and homes that we are adding each month.

Just this week the following beautiful homes are now part of our portfolio:

New Los Cabos Elite home now available - This stunning 5,500 square foot, five-bedroom, six-bath home is situated in the prestigious Cabo Del Sol resort development with amazing views of the Ocean and the world famous Jack Nicklaus Ocean Course. This addition marks the Club's 17th residence in Los Cabos.
Click Here to see photos of this beautiful new home.

New Lake Tahoe home now available - Photos will be coming later this month, but as of now Elite members are enjoying a beautiful new residence in Northstar at Tahoe Village -- one of the country's most "family-friendly" mountain resorts. With 70 trails, 17 lifts and 2,420 skiable acres, the mountain offers something for everyone. When the snow melts, there are still tons of activities that include championship golf courses, hiking and biking trails, Adventure Park, horseback tours, swimming, fishing and dozens of other outdoor events and festivals that make Northstar, a family resort, a true four-season resort. The unit is 4 bedrooms and 4-1/2 baths with over 2,900 square feet of space for your family to enjoy.

And other news:

We are proud to announce that our very own Ultimate Escapes member, Doc Rivers, won the NBA Championship! Click Here to learn more.

As you continue to consider to consider Ultimate Escapes, please feel free to reach me anytime with questions.

I look forward to speaking with you soon.

Warm regards,

Steve Healy
Senior Vice President, Sales
(407) 483-1903
Steve.Healy@UltimateEscapes.com
www.ultimateescapes.com

Ultimate Escapes, LLC | 3501 W. Vine Street, Suite 225 | Kissimmee, FL 34741
Ultimate Resort, LLC, is registered with the State of Florida as a Seller of Travel. Registration No. ST36413
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Old 06-20-2008, 07:26 AM   #2
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

I feel like I've seen pictures of the new Cabo home before in the portfolio of another DC. Is this the home that came from Ventures?

Nice pick up in Tahoe. That's a good size unit. Just curious, but is it in the Great Bear Lodge overlooking the rink or one of the neighboring buildings?

Glad to see that UE is correcting some of the pre and post-merger glitches. I assume they monitor this board.
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Old 06-20-2008, 02:29 PM   #3
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

I still received 2 of these emails from 2 different membership directors, one of which I have been in touch with and the other one I have never heard of. So I guess all the glitches aren't out yet! It has been a big turn off as a prospective member. I have been hearing negative things about UE from other clubs in regard to getting deposits back. I am not sure how much of that is true or how much of that is other companies seeing UE as a big competitor and trying to slam the competition.
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Old 06-24-2008, 10:14 PM   #4
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

Quote:
Originally Posted by kddpac View Post
I still received 2 of these emails from 2 different membership directors, one of which I have been in touch with and the other one I have never heard of. So I guess all the glitches aren't out yet! It has been a big turn off as a prospective member. I have been hearing negative things about UE from other clubs in regard to getting deposits back. I am not sure how much of that is true or how much of that is other companies seeing UE as a big competitor and trying to slam the competition.
There must be a conversion problem at the DC as I get 3 emails from them today AND a phone call was waiting for me when I got home from someone I've never conversed with. Confusing.
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Old 06-25-2008, 12:13 AM   #5
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

correct TarheelTraveler >

Beach & Water Retreats - Ventures Equity Vacation Club
" Casa Corona - Los Cabos, Mexico"

LuxuryRealEstate - Cabo San Lucas, Mexico - La Casa Corona - Residential
$3.6MM sales price, nice

(lots of mexico listings seem to go without updates)
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Old 07-01-2008, 01:58 PM   #6
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

kddpac: Getting deposits back is arguably an issue for all clubs but let me at least interject a fact: it took me 7 months to get out of PE.
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Old 07-01-2008, 02:29 PM   #7
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

Quote:
Originally Posted by DC Skeptic View Post
kddpac: Getting deposits back is arguably an issue for all clubs but let me at least interject a fact: it took me 7 months to get out of PE.
Are you speculating that the lengthy wait is "industry-wide", and would be similar in all clubs, or was it that PE and UR were undergoing the transition to combine and people were skeptical to join at that point? (I don't know exactly when you chose to leave...)
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Old 07-01-2008, 03:04 PM   #8
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

you were talking about PE??
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Old 07-01-2008, 03:49 PM   #9
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

Quote:
Originally Posted by 3DH View Post
Are you speculating that the lengthy wait is "industry-wide", and would be similar in all clubs, or was it that PE and UR were undergoing the transition to combine and people were skeptical to join at that point? (I don't know exactly when you chose to leave...)
More the latter. Let me only address what I know. When I got on the list (early Nov) I did not know where in the queue I was (they wouldn't say) and I was given an estimate of mid-Jan to see my money. While I was told that the delay in getting out (early June) was due to merger uncertainty slowing (halting?) new members, I had no way of verifying this. I quickly realized that an exit is to a degree an act of faith because short of a lawsuit how could I find out if I was being treated fairly. I'll leave it to others to decide if their club provides transparency on exit. And if you don't know you should ask. Because once you make the mental leap to exit your perspective (mine anyway) changes dramatically: it became about getting my money back not my future vacations.

Last edited by DC Skeptic; 07-01-2008 at 04:27 PM.
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Old 07-01-2008, 04:58 PM   #10
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

With ER, no one has ever had to wait for a refund at least till now, but I cannot tell you about the future. In fact ER has often had a waiting list. But according to ER, no one has ever had to wait for 3 in 1 out to get their refund. But I am sure there is a process which may take one to two months to process the refund.
The problem with 100% refund policies [I don't know if you had an 80% or 100% return policy] is that as soon as someone gets cold feet, they want to pull out. ER will tell you that it is the 80%[now 75%] rather than 100% refund policy which is one of the reasons they have not had problems with refunds. In one way it provides operating funds for sales and a better balance sheet, and secondly it makes members think more than once before resigning. A 100% refund policy makes you more likely to join but it is double edged sword, it also makes you more likely to resign. Either 80% of current price[up to some maximum] or 100% after a set number of years may be more of a balanced refund policy. I must say however, that Lusso, which I think is well run and a boutique club, has been able to buck the problem up until now.


I agree that there were probably issues with PE and UR because of the delayed merger. I don't have any numbers, but based on what they said, once the merger was finally imminent, sales seemed to have increased. I just think that they have to get organized with a diffuse product and diverse membership to keep the momentum going.
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Old 07-01-2008, 05:07 PM   #11
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

I checked on Halogen to see what the site said about the number of people on the resignation list and that data is not listed for UE. Assuming the info. on Halogen is correct (i.e., that they were given correct info), most of the clubs don't appear to have anyone on a resignation list. It seems like Halogen ought to put a WND (would not disclose) for UE rather than just leaving that line out. Interestingly, same with Portofino. Hopefully, the two are nothing alike and UE can get their sales going and be a solid competitor to ER. It does seem like things have gotten going again with the merger done.
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Old 07-01-2008, 05:34 PM   #12
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

Quote:
Originally Posted by LTTravel View Post
I agree that there were probably issues with PE and UR because of the delayed merger.
While 7 months may seem like a long time to get a membership refund, I am not aware of any Destination Club with long waiting lists of resigning members.

Perhaps we can all agree on what a reasonable time frame should be and I will start a new thread for this discussion.
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Old 07-01-2008, 05:42 PM   #13
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Default Re: Ultimate Escapes e-mail 6-19-08

Quote:
Originally Posted by LTTravel View Post
I agree that there were probably issues with PE and UR because of the delayed merger. I don't have any numbers, but based on what they said, once the merger was finally imminent, sales seemed to have increased. I just think that they have to get organized with a diffuse product and diverse membership to keep the momentum going.
This may be some relavent info...

Quote:
Originally Posted by Bourne View Post
However my comments regarding the membership numbers were based on the following facts...

1. It is common knowledge that PE bough approx 390-400 members into a 1200 member Ultimate Escapes merger. UR had approx 800 members before the merger. According to Halogen Guides, that breakup of 400 members is approx...

Premiere - 217
Platinum - 148
Pinnacle - 26

2. When I did my due diligence in Nov-Dec '06, PE Premiere was around the 175-180 mark. That means PE added a net total of 35-40 new members in the past 18 months.

3. Since the summer of '06 when PE Premiere added four new properties, the only new one has been the Links at NYC. Then again, keep in mind that Charleston is being pulled out i.e. effectively sold.
Quote:
Originally Posted by travelguy View Post
Member Resignation List
Private Escapes – A PE (Premiere) member that I’m familiar with has recently notified PE that they are resigning their membership and requested a refund of their membership deposit. They were informed, by e-mail, that they would be placed on the resignation waiting list and would have to wait up to six months for a refund. Why the long wait?
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