TravelGuy

PwrShaft,

I have plenty of snappy responses for you, but ... quite frankly I just don't have the time.

3DH

Thanks... I am humbled and honored!

From some of the HCC posts in comparison to what I have seen/found on PE, I was assuming that the PE homes might be closer to the action (bars are, of course, considered in the term "action" )

I'll take what I can get! And, I make a mean mocha martini!

Yes, there are a few of those there... and they tend to like telling people to "search rather than post", while it would be just as easy to simply answer the questions of new members!

Actually, no... thanks for the tips!

Absolutely!

__________________
"Boutique" is better! Another extremely satisfied LUSSO member!

TravelGuy

I’ve failed to see where anyone has provided viable answers to the following questions I’ve raised about Private Escapes:

New Properties
PE (Premiere) – I only remember Watercolor, Fla from last year and don’t know of any new properties this year. Anyone have more info on this??

Destination Club Association Net Asset Test
Private Escapes – I can’t find anything about PE completing a Net Asset Test even though their President is head of the DCA. Did they post for last year? Did they post for this year? Do they have enough assets to comply?? Are they able to cover only the minimum of 70% of customer deposits or can they cover 100% of customer deposits like High Country Club?

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?

The Failure of “The Merger”
We all know that this has been extremely miss-handled. Should we all assume that it will now fail? And should we start asking the question about the fate of Private Escapes as an ongoing concern since this Merger appears to be somewhat unlikely at this point?

I’ve ruled out Private Escapes as a candidate for a SECOND DC MEMBERSHIP at this time due to the above questions and other red flags on their continued biz viability. Hopefully, someone with better intel on PE can answer these questions.

I realize these are harsh questions but I believe they are fair questions to ask and deserve answers. After all, if this was High Country Club that was being questioned ... they would be held to a much higher standard than this!

Desties

TG, I'll answer as best I can.

As for the new properties for Premiere, Watercolor and The Link in NYC may have been the only two new purchases (unless I'm missing one as well), though there were several new seasonal rentals (Orlando, Deer Valley, Marco Island) added.

This doesn't mean that these are the only new properties available to Premiere members, since the 7 days of reciporicity can be used at the 5 new Pinnacle properties last year, and the new Platinum additions (Bend, Breckenridge, bigger Link condo, Watercolor, Tuscany). We have received updates on upcoming properties as members, though that isn't public so I shouldn't mention them here.

As for the DCA net asset test, I think that is required to maintain DCA membership. I don't recall an update on that, though I imagine that Private Escapes and Ultimate Resorts may have held off on that until the merger is complete instead of providing an update that will be obsolete.

And, yes, the merger is taking a brutally long time. No one expected it to take this long. I wouldn't necessarily call the merger "Failed" or dead, since as recently as earlier this month you had UR pointing to a closing by the end of the quarter in the college alum press release.

Is it frustrating that every projected deadline gets stretched further out? You bet. Are both clubs so consumed with the merger that they aren't adding new properties at a pace befitting the new member additions? It's probably a common complaint, though I'm still getting healthy availability in picking out future treks.

As for the member resignation process, it's the same 3-to-1 ratio as most clubs. Being put on the list doesn't mean that there is someone ahead of you -- though I'm sure your friend can ask about that. It's simply about waiting for three new members. The "up to six months" part is probably just there so your friend doesn't expect to be cashed out immediately. It should be sooner, maybe a lot sooner, but chime in when your friend is cashed out because I'm sure it's an aspect of DC life that doesn't get discussed much here.

DCTraveler

A clarification on the reciprocity argument -- I am quite sure that you are NOT allowed to use reciprocity at any City/Metropolitan location (e.g., NYC, Miami, Chicago at this point), but correct me if I am wrong.

smtravelor

Reciprocity IS allowed at PE city properties.

Kagehitokiri

not sure why you would not call and ask these questions...

only the 4th point is an opinion, and not really answerable.

Desties

Yes. The restrictions on reciprocity are that it cannot be during peak holiday periods and that the total number of reciprocal reservations in any quarter for any given property cannot exceed 10% of the available nights (to make it fair for the members within that particular club).

You may be thinking about the metropolitan property restriction during the preview membership (where reciprocity isn't allowed to begin with), that limits preview members to no more than three nights of NYC a year.

LTTravel

Another point about the resignation process.

The problem with being a three tiered club is that with the 3 in 1 out policy, I am sure that applies to your tier only(I don't know for certain but suspect this). So there have to be 3 new premiere members who joint before 1 premiere member can resign. You may get several new members in the other tiers before you get the three in your tier.
I am not 100% sure of this policy but it would make sense. Otherwise the member to home ratio would get screwed up.

Now that I think about it. What happens when members upgrade to the higher tier? That may also mess up the member to home ratio. For example, assume you have 60 members and 10 homes in one tier and 60 members and 10 homes in the higher tier. 12 members upgrade, so now you have 72 members and 10 homes in the higher tier and 48 members and 10 homes in the lower tier. It is easy to buy new homes but it is difficult to get rid of the older homes. Now I am confused. Maybe someone could ask PE?

DestiFan

Merger will be completed shortly. The merger was not handled well from a communication perspective, but 99% of the issues were not management's fault. The capital markets completely collapsed from a debt perspective (let alone collateral backed by real estate) and that has led to a very long and complicated negotiationg process with the lender. That, although unfortunate, was not the fault of the clubs - just terrible timing. See the multiple LBOs that are stuck in process still...

The good news is post-merger, the Club will be very strong...and I believe it will be announced any day now. I still believe that the 3-Tiered system offers incredible value and options unlike other clubs.

TarheelTraveler

TravelGuy - I've always heard good things about PE, so I'm curious as to why your friend is resigning. Is the reason related to the club or for personal reasons, for example?

Desties - Are you happy with PE on the transparency of the finances?

Bourne

I personally consider reciporicity feature to be an "added value" from reservation's perspective.

Having new properties being added to sister clubs that can be booked within the limitations of reciporicity rules is not the same as a new club property. It translates into ~36 nights per year limited by 9 per quarter without peak holiday being available. Even with all the properties added to other clubs, it does not total up to 300+ days i.e. a new property.

I am not against the reciporicity clause. I think it is great and the rules around it are designed to protect the members who actually paid the price for usage at that level. But it does not replace adding a property within the same club.

__________________
The Nile is a river in Egypt......

Desties

On the member website, members are a click away from requesting the club financials from CFO Karen Siwek. A summary of the audited financials (as of year-end 2006 -- 2007 isn't on the the site yet) is also available immediately on the site.

I haven't felt the urge to request the latest financials, but PE certainly makes it easy to check them out if you want to do so. The member website includes things like board meeting minutes, club performance (through the end of 2007, for now), and other club-only information.

It may be the transparency with all of these metrics that has kept me from actually requesting the latest financials, but I have no complaints on that front.

TarheelTraveler

That really is pretty good. I wonder how other DCs compare. Seems like it might make for an interesting thread.

DCTraveler

Sorry, but I think you are still mistaken about Private Escapes reciprocity at Metropolitan residences.

The difference in Resort and Metropolitan residences is defined here:

"Metropolitan Residences are those determined by the Club to be located in major cities and include locations such as New York City, Chicago, Rome, and Paris. Resort
Residences are all other locations."

The reciprocity rules are defined here -- note that they are specifically limited to Resort residences (which means they exclude Metropolitan residences).

"iii. Reciprocal. Premiere Club Members may reserve Platinum Club or Pinnacle Club
Resort Residences subject to the following terms:"

You are correct that the Preview members are not allowed to use Metropolitan residences. Also, regular members are limited to 10 nights per Metropolitan residence per year.