I am not excited by this at all but if its makes some money for Hyatt, good for them. Has anyone sold their Polo towers? For more TPG news delivered each morning to your inbox, sign up for our daily newsletter. They lost a discrimination suit in 2004 and were forced to accept gay and lesbian couples as guests. Apple Leisure Groups portfolio has exploded from nine resorts in 2007 to approximately 100 properties by the end of 2021, and there is an additional pipeline of 24 executed deals with a large number of additional hotels in development. Hyatt Hotels has completed its previously announced deal to acquire leading luxury resort-management services, travel, and hospitality group Apple Leisure Group (ALG), which will notably enable the hotel company to double its global resorts footprint through the addition of ALGs AMR Collection brand portfolio, comprising approximately 100 hotels and resorts operating in 10 countries. I guess people are ignoring the elephant in the room. What they are not telling you amidst all those marketing marveling and chanting of how great Hilton is, and how much they did a study looking at all the problems and complaints that diamond owners had worn their vacation packages, is that they are effectively FORCING diamond owners to buy Hilton points and convert over to the new HVG system. There has to be something we can do legally. Its recommended to use a Licensed, Bonded, and Insured closing company. They're Days Inn Level resorts that happen to be on the beach. For a full view HGV's position on the acquisition, see this presentation made for investors. Appeal to a new type of customer? My husband started having health problems and we were not able use the HGV! He also has roots in Silicon Valley, where he directed public relations and marketing programs for high-tech companies. Had my owner's update in Feb 22. These places are NOT luxury. Maintenance should also be lowered because the community of properties are a smaller selection. I stayed at Zotry Paraiso de la Bonita Riviera Maya last May. One, Some shocking numbers have been recently shared by the U.S. Travel Associations Project Time Off, in the 2017 report titled The State of the American Vacation. I need to get out of this contract. It is hard to trust anyone now.. Like all of you, I was cohersted into signing the contract. According to Hyatt, the company is currently working to determine how the World of Hyatt program and ALGs Unlimited Vacation Club properties can bring added value and unique loyalty benefits to their respective bases. The goal, the statement said, is for the integration to happen in 2022 so World of Hyatt members can start earning and redeeming points at more than 100 new properties through the program. -Zoetry: luxury that kids can stay at but targeted to adults-only What's funny is the crooks running this timeshare want $20K from HGVC owners to use Diamond Properties, but then they also want $20K for Diamond owners to use HGVC properties. @ Christian -- Did they, that's interesting, as I don't think I've heard that before? We walked out of "update" today and so did others. The AMR Collection checks that box, specializing in unlimited luxury all-inclusive experiences like gourmet a la carte dining and many amenities and perks usually not associated with all-inclusive resorts. We knew for a while that Hyatt was looking to acquire a hotel brand in order to grow in Europe. I for one am super-excited about this. I have paid enough to this timeshare crap. I have acquired a lung disease that prevents me from traveling, they do not care about debilitating health issues. Once we pay off the loan can we sell it back. As a point of comparison, in 2018 Hyatt acquired Two Roads Hospitality (which brought us brands like Alila and Thompson) for $480 million. Do you have a list of all ALG's properties? Bask Bank Review: My Go-To Savings Account. Having the additional booking methods and travel agent access, as TrvlGuru pointed out, probably sold this deal, but these resorts are the Short of buying Excellence Resorts or Velas Resorts, this is probably the best purchase they could have made to increase their luxury A-I portfolio (save for Sunscape). One of the most notable changes is that Hilton has adjusted ClubPoint values to be 160% higher than before. Should not our contacts be canceled and money returned? 2. As I said at the time, this acquisition is likely to be quite polarizing, with some consumers being super excited, and others being totally indifferent. They are pressuring us to buy as well and Im refusing. For others, its probably quite a bit less exciting. Experience the all-inclusive, adults-only Hyatt Vivid Hotels & Resorts. The long-term success of the acquisition, analysts told us, will depend on HGV's plan to integrate Diamond's mid-level resorts into HGV's high-level resort portfolio while upgrading the overall customer experience of Diamond owners into HGV's culture. To play devil's advocate, maybe that's the point? Were platinum members and pay outrageous yearly maintenance fees. We appreciate your continuing updates to keep us informed. Our passionate members who share a commitment to consistent, quality time away. Then I read somewhere that Hilton wont accept sales made through the timeshare companies and that sales had to go through Hilton resale department. 4 Days/3 Nights. My husband then got very upset and said, why didnt they offer this to begin with.? By adjusting the value of ClubPoints, the numbers more easily map to the points values used by Diamond Resorts. Are you looking at the right group, Ben? On paper, the HGV buyout of Diamond appears to be a big win for HGV and a muddled ending for Diamond, which was bought by Apollo Global Management (an investment fund) in 2016 for $2.2 billion. If you do a Class Action or anything to get our money back please let me know. Maybe they see the Covid writing on the wall for cruise lines and know that all-inclusive vacations will appeal to To play devil's advocate, maybe that's the point? 5302. $1,899 Per Stay. After I got upset and said it criminal my sales associate disappeared, and he manager offered us the same membership for 30k . I'm not sure the properties are even worth the annual maintenance fees let alone the additional buy in $ they want1. They are offering us 4.25 a point. All and all I eventually added it all up and the amount we had invested was astounding! #2, request a transition out of ownership, but my cost would be 2 years of maintenance fee ($13K), plus $1K for every contract where we bought extra points (5). Hyatt has spent a huge amount of money on this acquisition. Secrets Mallorca Villamil Resort & Spa now joins the Hyatt portfolio, SUNSHINE STATE SEES STARS: The Michelin Guide comes to Florida, SHANGHAI DISNEY SUDDENLY SHUT OVER COVID CASE. There are a ton of very amazing properties here. Pritzkers lose interest and Hyatt will be gone (acquired) - regardless of any acquisitions. Think of it this way, before yesterday Hyatt had 100 less properties than they do today. Bens generally biased against all-inclusive (which is a great option for aspirational middle class consumers, in particular.) He is also a timeshare owner and member of RedWeek.com. This merger should have just expanded the placed you could go, but instead turned into a money grab from the timeshare crooks. Editorial Disclosure: The editorial content on this page is not provided by any entity mentioned herein. I feel like I was sucker punched during my owner's update. ML, Thank you, Jeff, for your analysis. Enjoy a day by one of the pools or practice your swing on the course. to all of you! The addition of ALGs properties will immediately double Hyatts global resorts footprint. Ben's "meh" headline was kinda "meh". Diamond Club Members beware! If nobody signs up, then they will be forced to go back to the drawing board. Aug 15 (Reuters) - U.S. hotel operator Hyatt Hotels Corp (H.N) said on Sunday it entered a deal to buy resort company Apple Leisure Group from its private-equity owner KKR & Co (KKR.N) and travel-and-leisure specialist KSL Capital Partners for $2.7 billion in cash. These are not the Royalton properties under the Marriott umbrella. If so please reach out to me as I too would like to seek legal justice in this matter. This compensation may impact how and where products appear on this site (including, for example, the order in which they appear). One of Diamond Resorts flagship properties, Mystic Dunes Resort features an on-site golf course and restaurant. What do you make of Hyatts acquisition of Apple Leisure Group? Leisure travel has recovered more quickly than business travel. Both Hilton and Diamond are trying to screw the owners out of another $20K. Hyatt spent $2.7 billion acquiring Apple Leisure Group, and it's nice to see the group's 100+ all-inclusive properties increasingly being added to the World of Hyatt portfolio. On the surface they say, oh we let you guys have a grandfather clause and if you want to remain in diamond, you can BUT, the caveat is, they are going to strip all the diamond resorts locations except for about 16 that are in the trust OUT of your diamond resorts system with the proclamation that even those resorts are subject to change at any time thusfor diamond owners who already spent thousands and thousands to own and are comfortable with the system and properties they have access to, must either spend a minimum of between 20 and 40 thousand dollars to purchase the minimum point allocation of 4500 points to convert their diamond ownership to hiltons HVG brand, or have their diamond ownership devalued down to 16 resorts, most of them the crappiest in the diamond portfolio save 4 or 5. I, too, am waiting to join a class action suit. Ehhh. We are Gold members of Diamond and made the horrible mistake of paying the fees to to include Hilton HGVC. I'm a gold member in diamond. At adults-only Secrets Resorts and family-friendly Dreams Resorts, rooms average $300 and $225 a night, respectively. Yep, they first offered me 4500 points and a cost of $16,000, then 2000 points for a cost of $8,300. Love Hyatt, but had high hopes for a different acquisition. I told him no. The customer is still right, and we still have choices. So I decided rather than just giving our HGV property back for $0.00, I would try going through HGV resale. The deal will quintuple the number of Hyatt-owned resort properties in Mexico from nine to 46, and greatly expand the companys footprint in the Caribbean from five properties to 27. So in other words, Hilton acquired diamond to take all its resorts to feed to their members, while locking diamond owners out of them, and forcing all the diamond owners to buy their more expensive project. What have we gotten from that? I do not fit the creteria. This is an update to note that this agreement has now been finalized, and we have more of a sense of when World of Hyatt members can expect to benefit from this. They tell me we have to upgrade, ( purchase another property) or we will never be eligible, even though we already own 2 properties. Then when hotel operators decide they're going rogue, there won't be much Hyatt can do about it. In mid-August 2021, Hyatt announced a major acquisition. Why are diamond fees more than double that? I wonder if Hilton will dramatically increase my value and if I could sell it in the future for more than is offered now. Miles of pristine beaches, tiny island keys and underwater reefs surround the boundaries of this southeastern peninsula providing the quintessential vacation destination where an inland oasis offers high energy adventure with endless amusement parks, entertainment and shopping extravaganzas.A stones throw away from the clear blue waters of the Atlantic, Ocean Beach Club offers a quiet, relaxing atmosphere to come back to at the end of the day. So when January was coming close I decided to lower the $$ amount we would do. Try calling any of the other numbers and getting a number for that departmentit is non-existent and no one will give it to you or if they do it's an invalid number. This acquisition locks Hyatt into a hot emerging market (maybe not to Bens bourgeois taste) and lowers Hyatts exposure to business travel which in the age of Zoom may *never* recover (at least proportionally). The companies provided no guidance on what happens to those pre-paid vacation packages after HGV completes the buyout of Diamond Resorts. They will promote that its a no pressure friendly meeting to answer any questions when in fact its just their opportunity to squeeze more money out of your wallets! Previously, there were only a few upscale/luxury all-inclusives you could use Hyatt points at. Is it even worth paying for it or letting it go, the maintenance fees is no joke. The logic given was incomprehensible, as usual. By 2019, the split had shifted to 57% fee-based earnings. Have they not been welcoming to LGBTQ couples, or? I have the same situation as Lorna posted in the previous comment. The acquisition adds 100 hotels and resorts across Europe, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America to Hyatt's portfolio - including all-inclusive resorts from AMR Collection brands like Secrets Resorts . We had the displeasure of attending our owners update yesterday here at Polo Towers so we could learn all the wonderful benefits of the Hilton merger. Nothing. As of June 30, 2021, the Company's portfolio included more than 1,000 hotel. Then fractional ownership of condo for example would have to divide say $300 a month for the HOA and here guessing $300 a month on utilities this is $600 a month and $7200 a year. Our team of experts are ready to answer your questions about timesharing and the timeshare industry. This is a big letdown because the one thing I don't like about Hyatt is its small footprint. I am a Diamond silver owner and I just went through a Hilton Update presentation. My husband and I owned HGV for more than 10 years. I have a deed at Lake Tahoe Vacation Resort but use Diamond points. People are being really funny when accusing Ben of not understanding how expensive or exclusive this or that all-inclusive property is. Most helpful comments ( as chosen by the OMAAT community ). Theres nothing cheap about what they sell. The HGV Max program will fail. I have kids, I'm a globalist, and we love all-inclusives in the Caribbean, so this is an ideal acquisition for customers like me. Youll find all the comforts of home while enjoying the resorts amenities, including an outdoor pool and hot tub, childrens pool and fitness center. We left without signing anything and Im very confused on what to do next.. The $4.7 billion acquisition of ILG's shares, due to close by the end of the year, adds 250,000 more owners to the Marriott network as it assimilates the owners, assets, and 40 resorts held by the Westin, Sheraton, and Hyatt timeshare chains, Interval's vast exchange network, the VRI management company, the Aston hotel chain (primarily in We are so glad that we did. But it was better than paying to get rid of the money pit! Compare the cost in points or miles to cash, and see which option is best. I had truly hoped that Hilton would prove to be a more ethical corporation than we experienced with Diamond but unfortunately weve found that the greed just changed names! They do not have anything listed that tells you all of the fees you will pay for every type of transaction you will make but they want you to agree to it and opt In. Unwind amidst the natural beauty, soak in the warm summer sun poolside, enjoy the on-site fitness center or explore Great Smoky Mountains National Park on a daylong hike. The credit card offers that appear on the website are from credit card companies from which ThePointsGuy.com receives compensation. Option 3, was buy an extra 4500 points for $20K to be grandfathered into the unknown HGV plan. Bottom line. All they want is money. Warning: Your web browser is out of date. My name is Mike Schultz, if you would like more information on how to relinquish your rights with the company or at least obtaining a free assesment, or to have more information on how much is your contract worth in todays market give me a call 872-266-2666 ext. Beautiful white sand, sparkling blue waters, sunny skies where else can you find all of this but in Saint Martin/Saint Maarten in the Caribbean? I will say this again, how does this acquisition by Hyatt affect Choice Hotels. Not sure I like this. Hyatt didn't buy a hotel portfolio, they bought a tour and travel agent company. I think both of those are factually correct? I wish they would add more European regular hotels though. We got suckered into these timeshares as well. Increase in Brand value and footprint, yes! Go look at the Zoetry in Isla Mujeres or the one in Riviera Maya and let me know if those are still "cheap" to you. I agree with everyone that they are going to try to squeeze us out, but one thing we all have are % deeds in those proprieties, I don't see how they can sell them, if we own them? Now are asking me to buy into Hilton and I thought I have already bought into a time share that says I can travel the world and now I have limits. LEARN MORE. Polo Towers/ The Club paid for & deeded owners is higher annual maintenance fees. Stay connected with the latest travel, aviation, and credit card news. Hyatt expects to sell $3.5 billion of hotel real estate over the next three years, including $1.5 billion worth of properties this year. These all-inclusives also compete directly with the cruise industry, which may take years to return to it's previous dominance, so I think it makes great financial sense for Hyatt to make this move. $249 Per Stay. owning time share properties is very stressful. The maintenance once I am not happy with has means of renting out rooms to collect money and those can be used toward maintenance and utilities etc. I am Diamond member since 2007 and last year even upgraded to a platinum membership status. View Vacation Offers Meet the Family They're our caring colleagues, our friends. I'd go there in a heartbeat on points if I could. Was looking at wedding venues for a gay wedding in Mexico and read nothing but praise for the Secrets location we looked at (Playa Mujeres). Does being fully vaccinated exempt me from travel restrictions? I planned to use the reminder of my Choice points for booking one of those properties in Mexico or Jamaica. I'm looking at you, Waikiki Centric of Cheap Owner. Interval International has over 2,500 resorts in over 80 countries around the world that are part of their exchange program. The Blue Diamond properties set to convert to the Autograph Collection portfolio include the Royalton Riviera Cancun Resort & Spa, Hideaway at Royalton Riviera Cancun , Planet Hollywood Beach. your thoughts? When the transition is complete, HGV's management team, headed by CEO Mark Wang, will run the combined company. This is a very unfair deal and we were all kept in the dark by Diamond resorts and now Hilton's grand scam is being unveiled. + Get 15,000 Hilton Honors Points. Adding this with my initial investment this is crazy. 1 | 2. How will Hilton buying Diamond affect owners of both clubs? You complainers need to quit yer bitchin'. I have been trying to call people and fill out forms to have people call me for more information. We were told that, if we didnt upgrade to HGVC, wed be left with shrinking inventory and rising maintenance fees. Advertiser Disclosure: Some links to credit cards and other products on this website will earn an affiliate commission. By the way, your comment about CheapCarribean.com shows you ignorance. By the way, your comment about CheapCarribean.com shows you ignorance. Recently was told that Diamond properties would be refurbished by Hilton. Today Hyatt Hotels Corporation announced that it is buying luxury resorts operator Apple Leisure Group (ALG) for $2.7 billion in cash. I think Ben is correct, I would never stay at an all inclusive resort either, ( remembering Club Med ) hes merely pointing out a new business acquisition which in itself is great news. I have been approached by PEMEX to buy my 30K Diamond points. The primary reason for this change is because Hilton wants to make it easier behind-the-scenes to integrate the club vacation clubs with one shared booking system. A year from now, or so, all vestiges of Diamond Resorts will likely disappear from marquees and lobbies as HGV absorbs Diamond resorts and rebrands them as part of a new Hilton entity, called Hilton Vacation Club. Resorts across all companies have had issues with this in Jamaica for a while, but Secrets has had no issues as a brand as far as I know of. But today we send the letter of cancelation of that contract. Check back for the latest news on the World of Hyatt expansion. In addition, theacquisitionwill also bring Hyatts brand into 11 new European markets. This integration is now almost complete. Curious as to what they all are. Now I'm selling my HGVC property. How is this sane? 5 Days/4 Nights. This gives members the ability to earn and redeem points at all kinds of new properties. Tucked away on the secluded coastline of Conejos Bay, Secrets Huatulco Resort & Spa offers the ultimate escape for serenity and romance. Great for short trips with affordable pricing in great central locations. + Get 15,000 Hilton Honors Points. Plus I asked if there will be reduced number of resorts for Diamond members then what was sold to us is no longer valid. LEARN MORE Show more This change will begin with the following 5 Diamond Resorts: If youd like to get more information regarding how this integration will affect you on the resale market, please feel free to fill out a contact form. He's at their Silver level and his maintenance fees are $2300. They bought a whole new business model. People generally love Hyatt but say they lack the number of hotels in comparison to Marriot, Hilton and IHG. For consumers who like all-inclusive properties, this is great news. In the near future, I'm guessing that HGV will only drag us diamond owners thru the mud a few more times before it's all said and done!!! I wish I had added it up before. 3) Folks like Ben should just focus more on cash bookings at high end, independent and 3) Folks like Ben should just focus more on cash bookings at high end, independent and boutique hotels. Meanwhile, WoH members dont see a reasonable benefit imho. Hyatt Buys Apple Leisure Group, 100+ Hotels, Hyatt buying Apple Leisure Group for $2.7 billion, How Hyatt explains Apple Leisure Group acquisition, resorts will be integrated into World of Hyatt in 2022, Hyatt was looking to acquire a hotel brand, Thompson Central Park New York Launches Upper Stories Concept, Hyatt Sells Alila Ventana Big Sur For $150 Million, Please view our advertising policy page for additional details about our partners, An expanded footprint in luxury and resort travel this acquisition is expanding Hyatts presence in luxury leisure travel, as it will double the number of resorts Hyatt manages, and will allow Hyatt to offer the largest portfolio of luxury all-inclusive resorts in the world, Major expansion in Europe this will grow Hyatts European footprint by 60%, and will allow the Hyatt brand to enter 11 new European markets, An expanded platform for growth ALGs developer and owner base will expand Hyatts relationships with committed partners in key complementary geographies, Hotel owners will benefit owners of Apple Leisure Group resorts will have access to a much broader collection of brands (in other words, we could see some of these hotels rebranded under one of Hyatts existing brands), along with the backing of Hyatts global distribution, sales, and marketing, More options for World of Hyatt members its expected that these, This will expand Hyatts end-to-end leisure travel offerings ALG Vacations is one of the largest package tour providers and leisure travel distribution platforms in North America, so Hyatt could get more into the package holiday business, This allows Hyatt to grow its asset-light strategy ALG is asset-light, and with Hyatt continuing to sell real estate assets, the company hopes to increase the percent of revenue generated from fees, This reflects that Hyatt is looking to grow in the leisure market, which is logical at this point, given that its anyones guess when business travel will get back to 2019 levels, This is a huge purchase Hyatts market cap is $7.3 billion, and this is a $2.7 billion acquisition, so proportionally this is almost like when Marriott purchased Starwood, The heavy focus on all-inclusives is going to be polarizing some people love all-inclusives (especially those with families and those who like hanging out at resorts), while others dont enjoy this type of vacation, I think it might be a stretch to suggest that all/most of these properties are luxury resorts, as Id say most of these properties are more mid-range, Assuming theres not a major rebranding of existing resorts, Hyatt is getting worse than Marriott here in terms of the number of hotel brands it will have, Browsing Apple Leisure Groups portfolio, theres not a single hotel that jumps out and me and makes me say I cant wait to stay/redeem points here! (which isnt to say I wont stay at one, but its not like when Hyatt acquired Two Roads Hospitality, and I suddenly saw a dozen hotels I desperately wanted to stay at), I really wish Hyatts acquisitions were a bit more strategically focused for consumers in terms of growing on its core value proposition; while Im not a huge IHG fan, I love how IHG wanted to grow in the luxury space, and then acquired Kimpton, Regent, and Six Senses, all of which are great brands (gosh, I would have loved if Hyatt acquired Six Senses instead!