# Timeshares Near Great Adventure in NJ



## twinmommy19 (Apr 15, 2013)

Any thoughts on why there are none?  Williamsburg is a TS haven.  Well compare the two:

Busche Gardens vs. Great Adventure (BG is a bit nicer - but not by that much.  GA has a nearby sister waterpark similar to Water Country USA)

Williamsburg is within 2 hours of DC.  NJ area is within an hour of Philly and under an hour and a half from NYC.

Williamsburg is within 30-50 minutes of Virginia Beach / Chessapeake - Great Adventure is within a half hour of Belmar / Long Branch / other Jersey Shore areas.  Also about an hour to Atlantic City (gambling).  

I really think there are just so many Tri-State residents who live in high rise style buildings that would buy up 4 bedroom type units within an hour and a half of where they live (like the ones in Williamsburg).   So much upside.

Okay - so NJ doesn't have the culture that Colonial Williamsburg has, but being within an hour of both Philly / NYC kind of offsets that.


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## SMHarman (Apr 15, 2013)

But with the land cost, permit cost who'll buy at the price they need to ask?
We are used to an hour in the car commuting. An hour drive from the shore or city is no hardship.


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## northovr (Apr 15, 2013)

it's hard to find a hotel near Great Adventure we normally stay in a hotel near philadelphia Jersey side about 50 miles from the park 

Dan


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 16, 2013)

> But with the land cost, permit cost who'll buy at the price they need to ask?



I don't believe that area is alarmingly higher priced than most other areas where there are timeshares.  A Hyatt / Hilton type property (with large unit offerings) would do very well there.


> We are used to an hour in the car commuting. An hour drive from the shore or city is no hardship.


 
Agreed - the hour drive to GA is very doable, so much so that many families buy the season pass.  I'm not suggesting people would buy a timeshare simply to avoid this drive.  I think people would buy because there simply aren't very many (if any) nice summer vacation spots in the Tri-State metro area and GA is a place that families in the metro NYC / Philly area like to go to.  The nice places that do exist cost an arm and a leg (rentals in the Hamptons / Jersey Shore).  Marriott has one property about 20 minutes away from Atlantic City and that place does very well simply because it's nice and close.  BlueGreen's Hersey property does well too.   GA is even closer to the metro NY / Philly area than these places.  Put in a nice timeshare with good amenities (nice gym, tennis, basketball, jogging tracks, nice pools, etc.) offer bonus time and usage right to owners and they'd have no problem selling.  Repeat - places like this do not exist in the Tri-State area.  The hotels in the Poconos are the closest option and most of those just aren't that nice.  Cape Cod and Ocean City are far, and even still those properties are mostly converted motels - not resorts IMO.


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## tschwa2 (Apr 16, 2013)

I think it is too seasonal of an area unless there a nearby ski mountain.  You are not going to get enough people willing to buy let alone pay MF's for Nov-April.

Niagra Falls would be a nice place for a summer timeshare too but apparently no one believes it would be enough interest year round for a timeshare.


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## vacationhopeful (Apr 16, 2013)

bonk2boy said:


> ..  Put in a nice timeshare with good amenities (nice gym, tennis, basketball, jogging tracks, nice pools, etc.) offer bonus time and usage right to owners and they'd have no problem selling.  Repeat - places like this do not exist in the Tri-State area.  The hotels in the Poconos are the closest option and most of those just aren't that nice.  ....



Yee, did YOU forget *Wyndham Shawnee Resort in the Poconos* with 6 different HOAs?

Indoor pool and 2 outdoor pools and gym and big activities schedule - 4 seasons?

Jersey Shore is very seasonal as is Jackson Twp, NJ. And Jackson Twp, NJ is not near the casinos.


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## MichaelColey (Apr 16, 2013)

We noticed the same thing.  Even the nearest hotels are 10-15 miles away.

We're trying to find something close to Six Flags Great Adventure that will accommodate 6 on a reasonable price.


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 16, 2013)

Most of the Shawnee properties aren't very nice.  There is one that is new and is supposed to be nice.  Ive never stayed at that one. The others are just ok.  They are not much closer to mount airy than jackson is to atlantic city.   And for a gambler, AC would be a much better draw.  

There are no east coast properties like the ones in Williamsburg with 3/4 bedrooms.  They don't exist.  Places like Kings Creek, Colonies or the Wyndhams, I mean.  There is an off season at most time shares.  Just because Williamsburg has colonial landmarks, doesn't mean people are rushing to visit there in the winter either.   But a place within an hour of NY and Philly that offers large units would sell itself.   Almost doesn't matter that there is nothing to do in the winter.  What does Hershey PA have in the winter?   How about the Berkshires in the offseason?


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## tschwa2 (Apr 16, 2013)

Most of these were built in the 70's, 80's or early 90's by the 2000's TS developers knew they couldn't sell out and sustain areas without a longer season.  Williamsburg does do tree lightings and colonial Christmas activities and even Busch Gardens opens up for Christmas town so while not four season it does have a longer season.  Hershey is great but there is just that one resort and it too was built awhile ago and even though the summer demand is high no one mentions it as a possible place for additional timeshares even though apart from Hershey, Pennsylvania Dutch country has its own draw of vacationers.


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## billymach4 (Apr 16, 2013)

Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson NJ? Timeshare? 

The location is in the middle of no where! Why would anyone want to build a timeshare near Great Adventure. There is nothing nearby worth visiting. Also it close to a large military base. Ft Dix, McGuire AFB, and Lakehurst NAS. Yes where the Hindenburg crashed and burned!

So the further north you get then you are into Metro NYC, Further SW near Philly, South is Atlantic City!


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## vacationhopeful (Apr 16, 2013)

:ignore:





billymach4 said:


> Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson NJ? Timeshare?
> 
> The location is in the middle of no where! Why would anyone want to build a timeshare near Great Adventure. There is nothing nearby worth visiting. Also it close to a large military base. Ft Dix, McGuire AFB, and Lakehurst NAS. Yes where the Hindenburg crashed and burned!
> 
> So the further north you get then you are into Metro NYC, Further SW near Philly, South is Atlantic City!



It is NOT Jackson, NJ --- it is Jackson Township, NJ which is a rural destination of area of ground with no town or central village. Great Adventure was basicly designed as a drive thru safari like in Africa. AKV with their invisible fences achieved a much better visitor experience --- can't believe the number cars damaged at the Great Adventures drive thru --- or the number of critters who escaped. The amusement park was a *repeat visitor experience* - which was recognized and grown larger over the safari experience. 

Plus, air conditioning in cars was an option during the early years of Great Adventure - many families quickly realized it was way too hot to drive thru with the windows up - and not losing Grandma to the lions.


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 17, 2013)

> The location is in the middle of no where! Why would anyone want to build a timeshare near Great Adventure. There is nothing nearby worth visiting. Also it close to a large military base. Ft Dix, McGuire AFB, and Lakehurst NAS. Yes where the Hindenburg crashed and burned!





> So the further north you get then you are into Metro NYC, Further SW near Philly, South is Atlantic City!



Honestly - we are BIG TIME skiers.  But there is a heck of a lot less near places like Wyndham Bentley Brook that have done just fine as timeshares in the northeast.  Ski season in the Berkshires is 3 months max if you are lucky.  What about the other 9 months?  The offerings in the north east for vacationing (forget even timesharing - how about just hotels in general with nice outdoor pools?) are extremely lacking.  Let's go back to Williamsburg for a minute.  Does anyone honestly think that Colonial Williamsburg is drawing tons of vacationers there in the offseason?  

GA is 30 minutes from the Jersey Shore (Belmar area and similar distance to Sea Side Heights which the state intends to completely rebuild from Sandy).  If a developer built somewhere in between these 2 locations a TS could easily be positioned within 15-20 minutes of GA, the waterpark, the Safari, and the beach.  Gambling within a 40 minute drive.  NYC / Philly within about an hour.  A resort could choose which of these locations to offer shuttle service to and from.  As a previous poster pointed out, there is a lot of country land in Jackson Township.  Land is also pretty darn cheap there.  Would be easy to buy up a large space.  Put in tennis, basketball, jogging trail, nice fitness center, shuffle board, pools, etc.  Maybe put in ice skating for the winter and a tubing hill.   But be smart with the unit layout.  Large units would draw.  It's all about supply and demand.  Villas @ Fairway is the ONLY place within 2hrs of metro NY that offers decent 3/4 BR units and Bushkill certainly doesn't offer more attractive vacationing than a location within 15 minutes of Jersey Shore / GA.  To my knowledge, every other remotely decent TS in the northeast that offers 3+BRs requires you to purchase 13 weeks (the ski places).   If I'm wrong about this - someone please let me know.  I've been researching large units for our family within driving distance from where we live.  Williamsburg seems to be our closest option.


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## wackymother (Apr 17, 2013)

We really like the 3brs at Villas at Fairway. You can't buy one of those without buying a quarter share? I've seen them on eBay, very occasionally. 

How about the Berkshires? Are there 3brs at Oak n Spruce?

Where are you?


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## SMHarman (Apr 17, 2013)

tschwa2 said:


> I think it is too seasonal of an area unless there a nearby ski mountain.  You are not going to get enough people willing to buy let alone pay MF's for Nov-April.
> 
> Niagra Falls would be a nice place for a summer timeshare too but apparently no one believes it would be enough interest year round for a timeshare.



That's why I think you are getting so much more 1/4 share sales in the NE now.  You are getting a quarter of the great ski weeks and a 1/4 of the wet spring.  How you then use them is up to you and places like Killington will take them back into their hotel inventory and rent for you, but as a resort you are not selling someone on a ski week or a spring week or a fall week, you force them into three of all of them.


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 17, 2013)

The actual 3BR/4BR units at Villas @ Fairway are pretty nice.  The property itself is not very nice though in my opinion and I'm pretty sure the units do not lock out.  The hotel area where you check in is very gross (although I will admit our family had fun in their Chucky Cheese like arcade).  Their gym was pretty nasty and the outdoor pools looked just okay (we went in the winter).  Bushkill is a rundown area, and other than that flea market, you pretty much have to go all the way to Tannerville to go shopping (they have the outlets, etc.) but it's over a half hour away (and not highway driving).  I would never buy there because we don't golf and the outdoor amenities just aren't that nice to justify the 2 hour drive in the summer.  If Hershey Park or GA were located right next door it would be a different story.  We liked visiting in the winter as a weekend getaway but would not want to own a whole week.  Besides, the trading power in the Poconos is lousy in the winter.   

I've never been to Oaks & Spruce but it's not gold rated and doesn't look so nice in the pictures.  That said, we are not a hiking type family, so I don't think the Berkshires would be our choice location unless you were talking about a ski in / ski out property in the winter.  Unfortunately the Hunter properties all require the quarter share.  Also - I would only buy a unit that locks out which I'm pretty sure they don't have.


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## wackymother (Apr 17, 2013)

You're right about Villas at Fairway. Grounds not very nice and amenities run down. We like the area, but I can understand not caring for it. And the 3br units are not lockoffs. Edited to say the outdoor pools are pretty nice.

Oak n Spruce Presidential units are magnificent, or were the last time we were there, in about 2009. Not sure if they have 3brs, though.


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 17, 2013)

> That's why I think you are getting so much more 1/4 share sales in the NE now. You are getting a quarter of the great ski weeks and a 1/4 of the wet spring. How you then use them is up to you and places like Killington will take them back into their hotel inventory and rent for you, but as a resort you are not selling someone on a ski week or a spring week or a fall week, you force them into three of all of them.



This is true and makes perfect sense up in the mountains of the ski resorts.  With global warming, ski season is shrinking down to 2 / 2.5 months (with December and March not being guarantees of snow).  Unless your an avid hiker, the rest of the year, the mountains of Vermont are not worth the 3+ hour drive from any tri-state location for most.  Sure - these resorts have golf, but there's golf everywhere.    

Great Adventure, on the other hand, opens at the end of March and doesn't close until the end of October.  There would be an offseason from November through mid-march, but I don't see why this is different from the offseason in Williamsburg, Hershey, Branson, etc.  What do these other locations offer in the winter that a new resort near GA couldn't have?  Put in a nice indoor pool, work out facility, game room, offer some crafts activities, maybe put in an ice skating rink and your set.  A nice, large unit within an hour of NYC / Philly would not sit in inventory with an exchange company very long at any time of the year.  That's not even accounting for the holidays in the offseason range - Thanksgiving, Christmas, MLK, Presidents, etc. perfect for quick family trips.


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## MichaelColey (Apr 17, 2013)

If anyone does have any suggestions of affordable, higher-capacity accommodations near Six Flags Great Adventure, I'm interested.  I've found a few hotels that I think might be okay, but nothing really great.


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## SMHarman (Apr 18, 2013)

bonk2boy said:


> This is true and makes perfect sense up in the mountains of the ski resorts.  With global warming, ski season is shrinking down to 2 / 2.5 months (with December and March not being guarantees of snow).  Unless your an avid hiker, the rest of the year, the mountains of Vermont are not worth the 3+ hour drive from any tri-state location for most.  Sure - these resorts have golf, but there's golf everywhere.


Vermont has a lot to do in the summer and some great towns etc.  Also ski season at a place like Killington will probably run until Late May this year.  Global Warming means you now get freak short and freak long seasons.


bonk2boy said:


> Great Adventure, on the other hand, opens at the end of March and doesn't close until the end of October.  There would be an offseason from November through mid-march, but I don't see why this is different from the offseason in Williamsburg, Hershey, Branson, etc.  What do these other locations offer in the winter that a new resort near GA couldn't have?  Put in a nice indoor pool, work out facility, game room, offer some crafts activities, maybe put in an ice skating rink and your set.  A nice, large unit within an hour of NYC / Philly would not sit in inventory with an exchange company very long at any time of the year.  That's not even accounting for the holidays in the offseason range - Thanksgiving, Christmas, MLK, Presidents, etc. perfect for quick family trips.


What does Williamsburg have?  Other stuff to do.  Hershey, not so sure, Branson?  But Great Adventure is a day trip, maybe 2-3 if you took in the park and the animals leisurely.  What else after that and why not stay nearer that what else (AC, The Shore etc).


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 18, 2013)

> What does Williamsburg have? Other stuff to do. Hershey, not so sure, Branson?



What other stuff?  That's what I'm asking.  I'm not buying that boat loads of people are traveling just to spend a whole week in Colonial Williamsburg.  It's too cold to do outdoor things in the winter in Williamsburg too.    




> But Great Adventure is a day trip, maybe 2-3 if you took in the park and the animals leisurely.



Great Adventure is a place, like Busche Gardens, that COULD be a day trip, and most choose to do it that way because there are no nice places to stay nearby. 
I'm sure would probably allow for split weeks / nights as the TSs in NYC do.  So a family that owns a week could choose to do 2 weekend trips instead per year.

But GA has a sister waterpark a mile or so away that is similar to Water Country USA.  For locals in NJ, Staten Island, etc. many choose to buy the season pass as their "summer beach club".  The Tanger Outlets are also pretty close by.  The location is a fabulous base location for trips to both NYC and Philly for a family coming from out of town.   



> What else after that and why not stay nearer that what else (AC, The Shore etc).



It's very expensive to rent a decent house by the shore (and you have to bring your own sheets, etc.)  There are no nice hotels other than a couple Inns and one very expensive place in Long Branch that gets terrible reviews on trip advisor.  

To each their own, but IMO Atlantic City just doesn't count as a beach trip.  It's smoky, seedy, and not family oriented at all and the beach there is not nice.  That said, your NICE TS options are still extremely limited even if you add AC to the mix.  
There's a Marriott TS nearby (20 minutes away from AC) which has very nice grounds and is packed in the summer.  Another location that doesn't have much to offer in the offseason but still does well simply because of the limited choices of nice east coast places.  There is also a Wyndham in AC,  which probably is also packed in the summer - but the grounds are small.  The type of place I'm suggesting would be a completely different type of trip (I'm suggesting building a large place like the ones in Williamsburg with tons of on site amenities).











The beaches are just nicer and a lot less seedy at other places along the shore.  So yes - a nice resort located 15 minutes from the nicer part of the Shore Beach and 15 minutes from GA ought to be a prime location.


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 18, 2013)

> Vermont has a lot to do in the summer and some great towns etc. Also ski season at a place like Killington will probably run until Late May this year. Global Warming means you now get freak short and freak long seasons.



On this point - I don't disagree that Vermont has more options in the offseason than a place in NJ would.   But Vermont is 4.5 hours from the Tri-State area and 2.5+ hours from metro Boston.  Forget the exchange fee, it's more that it's not even worth all those hours of driving for a weekend trip while the kids are still in school.  Forget the summer - what about September, October, November, May and June?  The foliage season is pretty, yes, but most folks traveling for the foliage are not families that require TS accommodations.  Bed and breakfast places serve those travelers well.  

A nice place within an hour of metro NYC and Philly would not sit in inventory at any time of the year.  Families would pay the exchange fee just to have 2 days in a large unit with on site activities.  There could be nothing around and it wouldn't matter if the place was nice.


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## tschwa2 (Apr 18, 2013)

But timeshares aren't really built for weekend stays.  They are extended stay pluses.  It is bad enough having to sell 50-51 weeks per unit but it would be even more difficult to to have to sell 150  "2-3 day stay packages".  Wyndham and Hilton are the only timeshare companies that have points system that are really partial weeks friendly.  And both like other timeshare companies are moving into taking over existing projects/developments vs building new ones.  In order to make it at all feasible a timeshare at GA would have to have a nice indoor waterpark.  And places like Great Wolf that do have to charge a lot for winter and holiday weekends and the summer.

Most regional theme parks weren't built to keep families busy for a week, one or two days during a week long stay at most. 

Just like I wouldn't recommend staying in Williamsburg if DC is where you want to visit just because there is a timeshare that is available and cheap in the off season .  I wouldn't want to stay in Jackson Township if I wanted to visit NY or Phl.


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## wackymother (Apr 18, 2013)

I think what they really need is a decent family-oriented hotel, like a Residence Inn, near Great Adventure.


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## SMHarman (Apr 18, 2013)

bonk2boy said:


> What other stuff?  That's what I'm asking.  I'm not buying that boat loads of people are traveling just to spend a whole week in Colonial Williamsburg.  It's too cold to do outdoor things in the winter in Williamsburg too.


http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g58313-Activities-Williamsburg_Virginia.html

You are also an hour away from Richmond
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attractions-g60893-Activities-Richmond_Virginia.html

The region is the destination.  For 6FGA NJ the park is the destination.  

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Six_Flags_Great_Adventure
Warner LeRoy planned a 7 park complex (I guess the NJ Disney).


> An amusement park, a safari park, a show park, a floral park, a sports complex, a shopping district, and a campground with beach and stables.[2] His proposal also included plans for hotels, which were connected to the parks and could be reached by boats, buses, a sky ride and/or a monorail.



So you have to ask who owns the land that you would build on near there, probably 6FGA.  And then when you look at the likes of Great Wolf and the room rates etc why have 6FGA not built out hotels connected to the property etc.  They probably have the land, the ability to work out package deals internally etc but are equally likely to have run the numbers and decided occupancy rates and ARPU is not sufficient.


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## MichaelColey (Apr 18, 2013)

wackymother said:


> I think what they really need is a decent family-oriented hotel, like a Residence Inn, near Great Adventure.


Exactly.  There are a couple within 20 miles, but nothing really close.

Has anyone heard of Laurel Pond?  It's a couple miles away, and is $115-230/night.  For us, it would be cheaper to stay at the Residence Inn.


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 19, 2013)

I suppose Residence Inn would work too.  Just doesn't seem there are many nice places with large units in the tri-state area in general.  My point was really that I find this surprising for an area where so many people live in high rise apartments so the idea of a quick family trip to stay in a nice large condo style resort would figure to be appealing.  

Then again - Minerals has 3BR units and that place doesn't even bother to keep the units up.  It's really a shame as Vernon has skiing in the winter, and is a golf haven for spring / summer / fall.  Plus they have a waterpark there too I think.


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## MichaelColey (Apr 19, 2013)

With Six Flags being the primary attraction, I can see why it wouldn't be that appealing to timeshare developers.  Six Flags is very seasonal, and people aren't going to spend a week there.  An all-suite hotel would be much more suitable, but even then it's going to be hard to fill most of the year, so I'm sure the hotels are focusing on other areas that would be more profitable.


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## SMHarman (Apr 20, 2013)

MichaelColey said:


> With Six Flags being the primary attraction, I can see why it wouldn't be that appealing to timeshare developers.  Six Flags is very seasonal, and people aren't going to spend a week there.  An all-suite hotel would be much more suitable, but even then it's going to be hard to fill most of the year, so I'm sure the hotels are focusing on other areas that would be more profitable.


As others have said, a http://www.greatwolf.com/ style would work but why spend the money developing something like that when you would be cannibalizing the market in PA 2hr north.


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## twinmommy19 (Apr 21, 2013)

I don't think they would need to worry about competing with the Poconos.  The business they would get would mostly be families who planned to go to GA anyway.  If there was a full service hotel there many families would stay over a couple nights rather than doing the day trip.  Also - there is a difference between a 1 hour drive for a weekend trip and a 2+ hour drive.    

I still think there would be ways to make a TS work.  A points based system would work very well there (I don't mean like Marriott points, but an internal points based system like the one Kings Creek started in Williamsburg).  There are other smaller scale points systems that this location would suit well.   Remember that unlike most locations, the "extended shoulder" season in this case would be almost as attractive as the prime season for those planning a weekend only visit.  May, June and September are warm enough to swim and very close for a weekend trip.  April and October swimming is not possible, but GA is still open.   There is also apple / pumpkin picking nearby which many families do in October.


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