«
»

Anatomy of a Timeshare Vacation: Part 3

I decided to exchange my timeshare to the San Juan Mountain and Golf Resort for several reasons; I’ve been wanting to explore that area for some time now, I could drive there, there is a Balloon AND Wine and Food festival that weekend and the golf rates at the 3 courses drop from $89 to $35 that week.

As I mentioned earlier, I like to drive so I’m looking forward to the 8 1/2 hour trip through Tuba City, the Navajo Nation and the Four Corners region from my home in Scottsdale, AZ.   If time permits I may take a day on my return to stop at Canyon de Chelly.

Canyon de Chelly

Canyon de Chelly

The San Juan Mountain and Golf Resort is new having just opened in June of 2009.  Interval International has rated it as a Premier resort, its highest category.  There are 20 units open now with room for 200 total at build out.  The timeshare consists of 2 properties; The Timbers, stand alone 2 and 3 bedroom homes and The Links consisting of 1,2 and 3 bedroom condos.

The Links at San Juan Mountain Golf Resort

The Links at San Juan Mountain Golf Resort

According to the website,

“The Links is a beautiful vacation ownership community located on the Pagosa Springs 27-hole Championship Golf Course. Guests and owners are within walking distance to shopping and dining. In the winter, the Links provides cross country ski-in/ski-out services on the groomed golf course track as well as downhill sledding in front of the building. Some of the extras include:”

  • Panoramic Views of the San Juan Mountains
  • Gourmet kitchen with stainless appliances, granite countertops, garbage disposal, and tile floors
  • Cable TV and High Speed Internet Access
  • Double insulated, sound proof common walls
  • Luxurious bathrooms with granite counter tops, walk-in shower, and garden tub
Living Room

Living Room

Even though I exchanged my timeshare at the last minute, I received a welcome letter from Peggy Davenport the resort’s Director of Guest Services in just a few days.  I called her to get some information on the resort and recommendations for activities and restaurants, and it was evident that she was not only enamored with Pagosa Springs but also with the resort itself.
I’ve done more than 50 timeshare exchanges and I’ve learned that an enthusiastic staff usually translates into much better vacation experience;   not only because of a warm and friendly staff but also the quality and care of the resort.  Happy employees do their jobs better.
I decided to talk with the resort manager since attitudes, good or bad, usually filter down from the top.  I left a message for Lonnie Lowe and when he called back my conclusions were confirmed.  Lonnie is one of the developers of  The San Juan Mountain and Golf Resort as well as the resort manager so his enthusiasm would be expected, but it went beyond that.
I could tell from our brief conversation that he wanted to create an overall customer/owner experience beyond that of normal timeshare resorts and more on par with the big boys like Marriott Vacation Club, Westin and Disney Vacation Club.  I’ll see when I get there.  Although the resort just opened in June and I expect the units and public areas to be pristine, I developed a critical eye about judging resorts from working at the Four Seasons.  So far so good.
***************************************************

Jeff Pierce, The Timeshare Expert, has taught thousands of timeshare owners the secrets to getting the best exchanges with both RCI and Interval International for over 21 years.

His two books, The Timeshare Exchange Bible – RCI Weeks Edition, and The Timeshare Exchange Bible – Interval International, are the only books of their kind in the timeshare industry and designed to help you  master at the very complicated art of getting good exchanges.

I would love to have you share your opinions and personal insights on this blog.

For 10 FREE videos on getting a better exchange in RCI and II, go to TheTimeshareExpert.com.

Join me on:  Twitter FaceBook LinkedIn

Tags: , , , , , , ,

This entry was posted on Saturday, September 5th, 2009 at 6:29 pm and is filed under My Timeshare Exchange Vacations. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.

Leave a Reply