RCI, the global leader in vacation exchange and part of the Wyndham Worldwide (NYSE: WYN) family of brands, recently announced an agreement with Divi Resorts that gives members at all five of its RCI^®-affiliated resorts in Aruba and St. Maarten the opportunity to opt for RCI Points Platinum memberships.

“RCI Platinum is a premium-tier membership option that opens up a world of vacation opportunities for our members,” said Gordon Gurnik, president, RCI. “Since its debut last year, the RCI Platinum membership has been met with positive responses from members who notice that their vacation experiences have been taken to a whole new level, which adds value to the products that affiliates like Divi Resorts offer vacationers.”

RCI members who join the RCI Points Platinum membership tier receive benefits including:

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RCI, the global leader in vacation exchange and one of the Wyndham Worldwide family of brands (NYSE: WYN), today announced a new affiliation with Festiva Sailing Vacations’ Western Caribbean destination in Cancun, part of Festiva Hospitality Group.

“We are thrilled to welcome Festiva Sailing Vacations Western Caribbean into the RCI network,” said Eugenio Macouzet, senior vice president of business development, RCI Caribbean. “The unique aquatic vacations that Festiva provides will be a tremendous addition to the diverse collection of vacation experiences we offer our RCI^® Weeks members.”

Festiva Sailing Vacations Western Caribbean charters all-inclusive luxury catamaran yachts throughout the Caribbean in places such as the British Virgin Islands, St. John, Cancun, St. Maarten and the Bahamas.  The Festiva Cruise Club, the membership division of Festiva Sailing Vacations, offers members access to charter vacations on any of the luxury yachts within Festiva Sailing Vacations’ fleet. Members enjoy 12 to 36 charter week vacations and have the option to choose a new destination each time they sail. They also can take advantage of special charter pricing for friends and family, and enjoy all the benefits associated with membership within the Festiva family of resorts.

The Festiva Cruise Club provides the ultimate option for those who love the excitement and relaxation of luxury, crewed yacht vacations without the hassles and costs associated with yacht ownership.

“We are very excited to be able to provide our members with the benefits and opportunities that RCI offers,” said Donald K. Clayton, CEO and founder for Festiva Sailing Vacations.  “RCI has over  4,000 resorts around the world, including everything from campgrounds to luxury resorts.  We’re glad we could provide this service to our community.” [/member]

Vacation Plans Now Include a Stocked Refrigerator Upon Arrival

Travelers booking a vacation suite at a Divi Resorts property in St. Maarten and Barbados through the property’s Web site can stock their room refrigerator at the same time.  The resort has started an online grocery service that delivers the order just before guests arrive. The service, handy for families and for guests on the go, first launched at Divi Little Bay Beach Resort, followed by a January 1 debut at the company’s two Barbados properties:  Divi Southwinds and Divi Heritage Beach.  The service is readily accessible on the home page of each of the Divi resorts.

The grocery service offers a selection of food for breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus snacks, beverages, and sun protection supplies.  Divi has made it easy to satisfy kids’ eating habits while away from home, stocking their favorite cereals, sandwich meats, and condiments, as well as a variety of juices and pizza.  Adults can advance order an in-room bar set-up, complete with Bloody Mary, Piña Colada, and Sweet & Sour mixes, a selection of recognized brand name liquor, beer, as well as fine wine.

The grocery store is located on premises at the Divi Little Bay Beach Resort (www.divilittlebay.com) and at the Divi Southwinds (www.divisouthwinds.com), for convenient restocking during a guest’s stay. The grocery at the Divi Southwinds serves the Divi Heritage Beach resort (www.diviheritage.com), a 22-villa property for adults in the exclusive St. James Beach area of the island.

The fully-furnished kitchens that are a feature of the suites at Divi Little Bay Beach Resort and Divi Southwinds have made these resorts a popular vacation choice for families and group travelers.  Now, with a fully-stocked refrigerator, the vacation truly starts the moment guests walk through the door.

About Divi Resorts
Divi Resorts is the vacation expert of the Caribbean with a collection of nine premium resorts on six stunning Caribbean islands. With vacation stays as well as full and fractional ownership, the resorts provide myriad vacation pleasures from relaxing on white sand beaches and indulging in spa services to embarking on scuba diving adventures and perfecting one’s golf swing.  For more information on Divi Resorts call 1.800.367.3484, or visit www.diviresorts.com.  The Divi Resorts logo is the Service Mark of Divi Hotels, Inc.; its use represents the group of resort companies owned by the registrant or operating under the registrant’s Divi Resorts brand.

A number of positive trends that reinforce the appeal of the Caribbean market to both existing and potential vacation owners are being shared with delegates at the annual Caribbean Marketplace conference by Interval International, a leading global provider of vacation services.

First and foremost, members are visiting the region in increasing numbers and U.S. resident leisure travelers who have indicated an interest in purchasing some form of shared ownership in the next two years also chose this market as a top destination of interest.

“Member demand for vacation exchange and resort rentals in the Caribbean is strong and we continue to affiliate new projects throughout the region,” said David C. Gilbert, executive vice president of resort sales and marketing for Interval International. “In today’s environment, shared ownership offers resort developers a compelling business model with multiple profit centers and higher occupancy levels than hotels. In the case of mixed-use projects, it also provides the potential for cost-saving operating synergies and reduced marketing costs.”

Interval reported that bookings into the Caribbean increased approximately nine percent from January through November 2009, as compared to the same period in 2008. This is particularly encouraging in light of the global economic downturn that adversely affected overall arrivals to the Caribbean over the past year.
Additionally, interest in the region among U.S. resident leisure travelers considering a shared ownership purchase is significant. According to the Future Timeshare Buyers: 2009 Market Profile, the Caribbean is one of the preferred international destinations of choice among U.S. resident leisure travelers interested in purchasing vacation time in the next two years, as approximately eight in 10 (78 percent) indicate they want to vacation in the region.

In 2009, Interval expanded its resort network in the region through numerous affiliations, including Windjammer Landing Villa Beach Resort & Spa in St. Lucia, Gold Coast Aruba, Dawn Beach Club in St. Maarten, and Grand Laguna Beach and Los Altos in the Dominican Republic.

Los Altos, a residential resort located within Casa de Campo —a 7,000 acre mixed-use development considered one of the finest resort communities in the Caribbean — has affiliated with Preferred Residences™, Interval’s hospitality branded membership and exchange program for luxury shared ownership resorts.

Dawn Beach Club marked the entrance of Columbia Sussex Corporation, one of North America’s leading independent owners and operators of resorts and hotels, into the shared ownership industry.
Interval International is a longstanding supporter of the region through its strategic alliances with the Caribbean Hotel & Tourism Association and the Caribbean Tourism Organization, as well as through its conference sponsorships, including the Caribbean Marketplace in San Juan, Puerto Rico.

Interval International operates membership programs for vacation owners and provides value-added services to its developer clients worldwide. Based in Miami, Florida, the company has been a pioneer and innovator in serving the vacation ownership market for more than 33 years. Today, Interval has a network of approximately 2,500 resorts in more than 75 countries and offers its resort clients and about 2 million member families high-quality products and programs through offices in 26 cities in 16 countries. Interval is an operating segment of Interval Leisure Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: IILG), a leading global provider of membership and leisure services to the vacation industry.

Interval International, a leading global provider of vacation services and an operating segment of Interval Leisure Group (Nasdaq: IILG), today announced that Dawn Beach Club in St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles, has joined its vacation exchange network. The project was developed by Babitbay Beach Development Corporation B.V., a related company of Columbia Sussex Corporation, one of North America’s leading independent owners and operators of resorts and hotels.

“We are very pleased that a hotelier of Columbia Sussex’s stature recognizes the opportunities that shared ownership offers, and has entered the industry with such a luxurious product in St. Maarten,” said David Gilbert, executive vice president of resort sales and marketing for Interval International.

Ideally situated on the island’s southeastern shore, the property includes three-bedroom, two-bath oceanfront condominiums with spacious floor plans. The 1,800-square foot units feature elegant contemporary furnishings and warm teak finishes. Each has a fully appointed kitchen with stainless steel appliances, satellite television and Wi-Fi, and an oversized patio or balcony.

“We are thrilled to be offering consumers an opportunity to purchase a vacation interest at our beautiful resort in one of the Caribbean’s most popular vacation destinations,” stated Joe Yung, director of development of Columbia Sussex. “When you combine ownership at Dawn Beach with Interval International’s high-quality programs and products, you have a very attractive value proposition.”

St. Maarten is the smallest island in the world to be shared by two nations, the Netherlands and France, creating a European vibe with a Caribbean flair. With more than 300 restaurants, the island offers a diverse cuisine that appeals to everyone. For water enthusiasts, scuba diving and snorkeling facilities are located throughout the island, which boasts an extensive marine biodiversity and unique underwater dive sites such as the H.M.S. Proselyte, a notable British frigate which sank in St. Maarten’s waters in 1801.

Further reinforcing the value of ownership, new purchasers will be enrolled as individual members of Interval International, as well as Interval Gold®, its upgraded membership program. This gives them the opportunity to exchange their accommodations for those at other resorts in Interval’s worldwide network, as well as the ability to relinquish their resort weeks toward the purchase of cruise, golf, and spa vacations. They also will enjoy an extensive menu of benefits, including discounts on resort Getaways, ShortStay ExchangeSM, access to a personal concierge service available 24 hours a day via phone and e-mail, complimentary Hertz #1 Gold® membership, and worldwide hotel and dining discounts.

Interval International operates membership programs for vacation owners and provides value-added services to its developer clients worldwide. Based in Miami, Florida, the company has been a pioneer and innovator in serving the vacation ownership market for more than 33 years. Today, Interval has a network of approximately 2,500 resorts in more than 75 countries and offers its resort clients and about 2 million member families high-quality products and programs through offices in 26 cities in 16 countries. Interval is an operating segment of Interval Leisure Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: IILG), a leading global provider of membership and leisure services to the vacation industry.

SPI Software recently struck an agreement to provide timeshare software to Dawn Beach Club in St. Maarten, West Indies. SPI Software’s Orange Systems Marketing, Sales and Finance modules were chosen to operate the project, which is being developed by Babitbay Beach Development.  Boutique Club, LLC. is providing marketing and sales execution for the project (Boutique Club, LLC is an exclusive consulting group that works with owners and developers of distinctive, luxury assets to create full service lifestyle real estate products.)

“We recommended SPI Software because of the strength of their software technology and their 30-year track record and demonstrated experience in vacation ownership resorts said Boutique Club President Jay DiGiulio. (DiGiulio comes from a 25-year career spent in the interval, fractional ownership and real estate development industries, having worked in senior level executive positions with blue chip hospitality companies such as Hilton, Starwood and Marriott.) “SPI Orange software is an excellent product that interfaces easily to other systems. In-house marketing campaigns will be created from the property’s reservation system, facilitating organized marketing to guests.”

“Babitbay’s developer operates several resort area hotels that are excellent candidates for addition of a vacation ownership component,” said SPI Director of Sales Matt Brosious. “Dawn Beach Club will be their first project, and we are honored to have been chosen to assist them on this and future developments.”

Resort or vacation club operators wishing to see a demonstration may contact SPI Sales at 305-858-9505 or by email to sales@spiiinc.com.

About Boutique Club
Boutique Club, LLC is an exclusive consulting group that works with owners and developers of distinctive, luxury assets to create full service lifestyle real estate products that preserve the authenticity of each property while maximizing its value. The team can design and implement all aspects of sophisticated marketing and sales programs and ensure execution by hiring, training and staffing each project with high performance teams and provide assistance in design, development, public relations, financing, legal registration, and related development services. Their lifestyle-focused private club environments and exquisite developments make their properties the finest in the marketplace.

About SPI
SPI provides major developers of vacation ownership (timeshare, fractional, private residence club and others using either traditional or points-based usage strategies) with its .NET-based software as either an enterprise suite of software called Orange Systems, or in specific modules to handle marketing, sales, property management, finance, maintenance fee and receivables servicing, centralized reservations or Website access operations. Founded in 1978 and based in Miami, FL, SPI can be reached at 305-858-9505, sales@spiinc.com or www.spiinc.com.

SPI Software is pleased to announce that the Caravanserai Beach Resort, located on St. Maarten, has selected SPI Orange Systems software to manage timeshare sales, owner receivables servicing, reservations, and property management operations.

According to Matt Brosious, Director of Sales, ” We are pleased to be have been selected by the Caravanserai Beach Resort, who joins an expanding number of resorts, who see the immediate benefit of implementing SPI Orange Systems software for timeshare sales, resort management and owners servicing. Of particular benefit is that everything including management reports is ready to go, thus facilitating a rapid implementation in days or weeks, not months or years.”

Thomasina Sorton, who manages timeshare operations at the Caravanserai Beach Resort and recently visited SPI’s training center in Miami, adds “The SPI Orange system is really fantastic, it manages all aspects of our timeshare business and it is so easy to use. We are really happy with our decision to implement SPI.”

Resort or vacation club operators wishing to see a demonstration may contact SPI Sales at 305-858-9505 or by email to sales@spiiinc.com.

About Caravanserai
The Caravanserai Beach resort combines the allure of classic elegance, Caribbean hospitality, and superb service and embraces an intimate atmosphere of luxury and comfort. Located at water’s edge at the pulse of the entertainment district on the Dutch side of the island, this full-service resort captivates the beauty of St. Maarten. Following a multi-million dollar transformation, the resort celebrates its 40-year renaissance with a host of new facilities and services including the addition of a state of the art gaming facility – the Dolphin Casino and multiple restaurants & bars.

About SPI
SPI provides major developers of vacation ownership (timeshare, fractional, private residence club and others using either traditional or points-based usage strategies) with its .NET-based software as either an enterprise suite of software called Orange Systems, or in specific modules to handle marketing, sales, property management, finance, maintenance fee and receivables servicing, centralized reservations or Website access operations. Founded in 1978 and based in Miami, FL, SPI can be reached at 305-858-9505, sales@spiinc.com or www.spiinc.com.

Timeshare software company Systems Products International (SPI) Orange Systems’ reservations system was recently selected for Oyster Bay Beach Resort by its developers, Pearl Development, Inc. and sister company Ansley Associates, Inc.

“We turned to SPI because we wanted the best timeshare reservations system,” says Michael Dolente Esq., partner at Pearl Development. “Until this point, we had outsourced reservations, but when we decided to bring it in-house, we looked for software that would be flexible and timeshare-oriented. SPI’s system will enable us to easily track our members’ use of their resort privileges, record and retain their contact information and ensure they’ve paid their monthly mortgage and annual maintenance fees prior to leaving the property.”

“Oyster Bay Beach Resort is situated on a very picturesque and secluded promontory in St. Maarten and is a very popular destination, requiring a robust reservations system,” says SPI Director of Sales Matt Brosious. “We are very pleased to have been selected as their software provider.”

About Oyster Bay Beach Resort & Pearl Development, Inc.
Pearl Development, Inc. – developers of Oyster Bay Beach Resort (www.oysterbaybeachresort.com – was founded in 2003 by Partners Michael Dolente and Josh Gold, who are also principals of Ansley Associates, Inc., a lender specializing in niche financing, including real estate and timeshare development. Oyster Bay Beach Resort, located in St. Maarten, Netherlands Antilles,Caribbean, is a timeshare resort of 138 units.

About SPI Orange Systems
SPI provides major developers of vacation ownership (timeshare, fractional, private residence club and others) with its .NET-based software as either an enterprise suite of software called Orange Systems, or in specific modules to handle marketing, sales, property management, finance, maintenance fee and receivables servicing, centralized reservations or Website access operations. Founded in 1978 and based in Miami, FL, SPI can be reached at 305-858-9505, sales@spiinc.com or www.spiinc.com.

Legendary La Plage receives refurbishment and upgrades following Hurricane Omar

An iconic fixture on the vacation ownership scene in St. Maarten for 24 years, Royal Islander Club La Plage, celebrated its grand re-opening on Saturday, February 14th.  The resort suffered damage from the passing of Hurricane Omar in October 2008 and has spent the past four months bringing the property back to its legendary status, while also adding several additional amenities.

“We are incredibly excited to showcase a new guest experience through this comprehensive and exciting renovation of La Plage,” said The Maho Group’s Managing Director Mr. Nicola Induni. “This renovation, spearheaded by our management and stellar maintenance team, underscores our dedication to St. Maarten’s hospitality community. Throughout 2009, Royal Islander Club will continue to improve resort facilities, exceed guest expectations, offer great vacation values and maintain both La Plage and La Terrasse to the highest standards.”

The new La Plage experience is enhanced by a variety of carefully planned upgrades for the ultimate in guest comfort. Redesigned units received dynamic new kitchens with modern appliances. Bathrooms boast marble countertops, while added mirrors and lighting increase the luminosity of the décor. As before, all units are adorned with tropical furnishings and design elements accented by woven wicker, bamboo and rattan, creating a soothing yet comfortable setting for vacationers.

As part of the revitalization, newly appointed bamboo furnishings and a vibrant paint palette have enlightened the resort lobby.  Other added amenities include a refreshed pool area with spacious new Jacuzzi so guests have a relaxing ambiance in order to socially connect with friends and family. One of the highlights of La Plage is the resort’s famed gardens, a project headed by Ms. Induni. Painstaking hours were spent choosing, plotting and planting the right tropical flora, accenting the spirit and sensibility of this Caribbean jewel. 

Setting a record in hospitality for holiday resorts across the globe, Royal Islander Club La Plage and La Terrasse have been conferred with the prestigious RCI Gold Crown Award for the 24th consecutive year. The award recognizes the highest level of excellence in a resort’s offering.

Acknowledging this achievement, Induni said, “Only 10% of RCI affiliated resorts worldwide received a Gold Crown Award for more than 10 consecutive years and receiving this distinction for the past 24 years is a reflection of our commitment to ensuring a consistent and world-class vacation experience for our guests.”

RCI’s Resort Recognition program ensures that its affiliate resorts adhere to the highest standards of accommodation and hospitality so that their members can enjoy exceptional holiday experiences. Evaluation for the Resort Recognition Program is based on member feedback and comment card ratings. In addition to being a recognition of the quality of the resort, the award also increases its worth and desirability for members.

About Royal Islander Club
Set on the edge of Maho Bay, the Royal Islander Club welcomes guests to St. Maarten with two timeshare and condominium properties: La Plage and La Terrasse. Secluded from the buzz of Maho Village, these award-winning enclaves form  “resorts within a resort.” Here visitors can lounge on private balconies, wander tropical gardens, and relax with family and friends in an exclusive setting (just 204 units combined). More than 40 restaurants and boutiques are just steps away. Royal Islander offers its patrons the best of all worlds: a dash of the island’s Dutch-French culture, intimate suites built to the highest European standards and immediate access to the hub of St. Maarten’s vibrant nightlife.  To reach the resort’s sales office, call 545-2388, ext 305 or email, ricsales@royalislander.com. Visit the resort’s new website at www.royalislander.com.