Sheraton Poipu

All,

Jack and I spent yesterday down at Poipu Beach snorkeling and boogie boarding, and drove past the Sheraton Poipu that is being partially converted to timeshares. I am very interested in this property because it has potential to be a great addition to our timeshare collection. We like Poipu Beach alot and Marriott Waiohai only has 2BR units. I am hopeful that the Sheraton will be a significant addition.

Alas, I am concerned about this property. The lone positive is that it sits on a great beach, but most other features are more in line with a 1970s era hotel that was densely packed onto a property, versus the type of stunning landscaping and views that we have here at WPORV. The buildings are densely clustered together, the hotel property flows poorly, and the hotel pool is very simple. This really is just about the beach.

I will be curious to track this property as it develops and see if Vistana finds a way to redevelop the property to provide some of the on-site amenities it currently lacks (and renovates the existing hotel). There is land available where the parking lot and luau grass sit now, and I hope they use it for amenities, not more units.

I hope that time will prove that this post was too hasty and that the planners understand the property weaknesses and will work around them. This could be a successful Marriott Maui Ocean Club hotel conversion, or a less successful Marriott Kauai Beach Club conversion. We will see.

The real winner for me on this trip is that WPORV is absolutely spectacular.

Here are some pictures of the existing Sheraton Poipu property:

Luau lawn, looking towards the only ocean view (ocean is not swimmable there)




Timeshare pool



Representative feel as you walk through the property and hotel -- this really bothered me




Beach in front of hotel



Hotel pool



View to beach from pool



One crazy kid



Best,

Greg

Are there existing timeshares on this property?

Sorry, double post

Hope it ends up nicer. Remember it takes a while for landscaping to come in. WPORV looks nicer now than 2009. I agree - people who poo-poo WPORV - have sensibility issues. Of course, the winter is another story...
WPORV summer
Poipu winter
sounds great...

bizaro86 said:

Are there existing timeshares on this property?

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Not currently, but the buildings away from the ocean were transferred to VSE for future conversion to timeshare units.

Greg, thanks for the post, pictures and your insights. We felt the same way when we stopped by a few weeks ago. It will be interesting to see how VSE converts the units and what they do with the open bit of land.

Glad to hear you guys are enjoying the Princeville resort. Beautiful place.

Best regards.

Mike

mjm1 said:

Not currently, but the buildings away from the ocean were transferred to VSE for future conversion to timeshare units.

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Wasn't the whole property transferred to VSE? They only plan to convert those away from the ocean. I read that perhaps the property next to the ocean is not owned by VSE, but they still manage the hotel as a Sheraton.

dioxide45 said:

Wasn't the whole property transferred to VSE? They only plan to convert those away from the ocean. I read that perhaps the property next to the ocean is not owned by VSE, but they still manage the hotel as a Sheraton.

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VSE is the timeshare branch of the former Starwood Company, so I don't believe they will be managing any hotels.

The hotel branch of Starwood is in the process of being transferred to Marriott.

So, in theory, Marriott will be managing the Sheraton Hotel at this location, and VSE will be managing the timeshare units.

dioxide45 said:

Wasn't the whole property transferred to VSE? They only plan to convert those away from the ocean. I read that perhaps the property next to the ocean is not owned by VSE, but they still manage the hotel as a Sheraton.

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That's my understanding. But like St John the timeshare conversion happens in phases.

In a recent thread, I posted a quote from a news article, and it said that only the units across the street would be converted to timeshare units - not the whole resort.

DeniseM said:

In a recent thread, I posted a quote from a news article, and it said that only the units across the street would be converted to timeshare units - not the whole resort.

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Bit like the hill people in St John were initially or one tower of Steamboat

I really hope that the Sheraton Poipu will turn out to be GREAT once converted and everybody will go there because I love Princeville :whoopie: