Embarc letter from HGVC - Some small news

[dayooper]

Saw this thread on a letter to the Embarc owners over on the DRI Forum. It has some small insights into the relationship between HGVC and Embarc

Some Highlights

• HGV has recommended that Embarc be rebranded as Hilton Grand Vacation properties and the Embarc board approved the change, but the name change still must be approved through Hilton Hotels
• HGV will pay for the branding change while each resort will be responsible for keeping to HGVC standards
• Options are being looked for Embarc owners to access HGV properties and vice versa, but the costs for access are still being worked out.

This is as good of news as I can get from this acquisition. The Embarc properties are what interest me the most! Hopefully the cost to access the properties (both Embarc and HGVC) aren‘t prohibitive. While it sure seems that this would happen, it was mentioned in the letter that there was a relationship prior to DRI purchasing Club Intrawest/ Embarc.

 

[GT75]

Wow, that is great news. I like HGVC approach. I agree, this is what interests me also.

 

[Sandy VDH]

Same here, there is a limited number of Diamonds that interest me (Santa Fe), but other than that I want an Ontario option back in since the Wyndham offering decided to sell the resort out right, therefore no Wyndham option anymore.

 

[dayooper]

Same here, there is a limited number of Diamonds that interest me (Santa Fe), but other than that I want an Ontario option back in since the Wyndham offering decided to sell the resort out right, therefore no Wyndham option anymore.

Have you been to Blue Mountain (I think that’s what it’s called) in the summer? We are not skiers, but that property looks really nice. I can see us spending a couple of days in Toronto then traveling up for a week or so at Blue Mountain.

There’s a couple of DRI resorts (Kauai, Tahoe, Los Cabos), but the Embarc resorts look much better to me.

 

[Smclaugh99]

Saw this thread on a letter to the Embarc owners over on the DRI Forum. It has some small insights into the relationship between HGVC and Embarc

Some Highlights

• HGV has recommended that Embarc be rebranded as Hilton Grand Vacation properties and the Embarc board approved the change, but the name change still must be approved through Hilton Hotels
• HGV will pay for the branding change while each resort will be responsible for keeping to HGVC standards
• Options are being looked for Embarc owners to access HGV properties and vice versa, but the costs for access are still being worked out.

This is as good of news as I can get from this acquisition. The Embarc properties are what interest me the most! Hopefully the cost to access the properties (both Embarc and HGVC) aren‘t prohibitive. While it sure seems that this would happen, it was mentioned in the letter that there was a relationship prior to DRI purchasing Club Intrawest/ Embarc.

That is fantastic news. I loved having access to Club IntraWest before it was acquired by Embarc/DRI and stayed at the Whistler property a couple times and loved it. More ski resorts, please!

Sean

 

[Sandy VDH]

Have you been to Blue Mountain (I think that’s what it’s called) in the summer? We are not skiers, but that property looks really nice. I can see us spending a couple of days in Toronto then traveling up for a week or so at Blue Mountain.

There’s a couple of DRI resorts (Kauai, Tahoe, Los Cabos), but the Embarc resorts look much better to me.

Yes, Blue Mountain / Collingwood / Wasagua Beach are all great summer places to visit. Wasagua is the world largest freshwater Beach. The beach is nearly 9 miles long. The Main Bruce Trail (550 miles long) is a great hiking path, it winds its way along the top of the Niagara Escarpment, from Niagara falls up to Tobermory. Plus there are a bunch of associated trails off that. You are not far from the beaches on Lake Huron Side, or from the Georgian Bay side. If you are a diver there is Fathom Five Marine Park in Tobermory, but it is dry suit or wet suit even in middle of summer.

There is plenty to do and the summers are nice, but that will also be high season as Canadians all like to get their vacations in from May to September.

I would highly recommend it.

I grew up in London Ontario, I dated a guy in Collingwood for a while.

 

[dayooper]

Yes, Blue Mountain / Collingwood / Wasagua Beach are all great summer places to visit. Wasagua is the world largest freshwater Beach. The beach is nearly 9 miles long. The Main Bruce Trail (550 miles long) is a great hiking path, it winds its way along the top of the Niagara Escarpment, from Niagara falls up to Tobermory. Plus there are a bunch of associated trails off that. You are not far from the beaches on Lake Huron Side, or from the Georgian Bay side. If you are a diver there is Fathom Five Marine Park in Tobermory, but it is dry suit or wet suit even in middle of summer.

There is plenty to do and the summers are nice, but that will also be high season as Canadians all like to get their vacations in from May to September.

I would highly recommend it.

I grew up in London Ontario, I dated a guy in Collingwood for a while.

Yes, that looks amazing! I live ~ 1 hour west of the Blue Water Bridge and spent a few nights between the ages of 19 and 21 in Sarnia. How far of a drive from Sarnia is Blue Mountain?

I‘m very familiar with the Great Lakes (even cliff dived into Lake Superior), so the Lakes will never surprise me. Looking at the pics of the Embarc resorts, they look so luxurious. I hope the entrance into the new membership (they hinted at that as well in the letter to Embarc owners) isn’t so large it prevents those that don’t purchase direct not to access.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

I hope it costs no more than a reservation fee to access.

 

[CanuckTravlr]

This is very encouraging news. We will be glad to potentially have access to the Embarc (formerly Intrawest) properties once again. When we bought into HGVC they were a significant factor in that decision, since HGVC had no other Canadian locations (and still doesn't). We were very disappointed (as were a couple of friends who owned at Club Intrawest) when DRI purchased them.

We will enjoy being able to use them at places like Blue Mountain, Mont Tremblant, and Whistler, plus they had (still have?) a location at Palm Desert, California that we looked at, but never got to. And if the border ever closes again, at least we will have some locations here we can use. I am surprised that HGVC has not created an urban location (similar to Chicago or NYC) in either Toronto or Vancouver, or even Montreal.

P.S. - A gentle correction to the spelling of Wasaga Beach (no "u").

 

[CanuckTravlr]

...I live ~ 1 hour west of the Blue Water Bridge and spent a few nights between the ages of 19 and 21 in Sarnia. How far of a drive from Sarnia is Blue Mountain?...

It's roughly a 4-hour drive, wheels rolling, no stops, from the Blue Water Bridge to the Blue Mountain Resort. It will vary a bit, depending upon the route you choose and how much traffic there is (e.g. weekend vs. weekday). The routes are mostly secondary highways, so much more scenic and interesting than just driving along the 401.

 

[Sandy VDH]

It's roughly a 4-hour drive, wheels rolling, no stops, from the Blue Water Bridge to the Blue Mountain Resort. It will vary a bit, depending upon the route you choose and how much traffic there is (e.g. weekend vs. weekday). The routes are mostly secondary highways, so much more scenic and interesting than just driving along the 401.

The drive up HWY 21 through a bunch of the Lake Huron beach communities could be a nice one. Grand Bend, Bayfield, Goderich, and Kincardine are all nice little beach towns that are busy in the summer.

 

[GT75]

Obvious to me anyways is what are going to be the booking windows for Club Interwest/Embarc into their resorts & into current HGVC resorts and also the other way around. It needs to be fair to both groups. We are use to our "Home Week" (12-9 months) and "club season" (<9 months) booking windows. Hopefully, Club Interwest/Embarc also has something similar where they can book their normal resorts at 12-9 month mark (or whatever it is) and then during the club season (< 9 months) we can book each other. To me that is fair and I believe would be beneficial to both groups. @dayooper, please post if you find out any more details. I would assume that HGVC would give thorough fair well thought out equitable offer to both groups.

 

[dsmrp]

I hope the point values for booking Embarc properties will be reasonable compared to other HGVC locations.

We liked the Whistler resort.
Hope the Mexico resorts are included, just for another option.

 

[dioxide45]

I hope the point values for booking Embarc properties will be reasonable compared to other HGVC locations.

We liked the Whistler resort.
Hope the Mexico resorts are included, just for another option.

What were the point requirements like back when Club Intrawest had an agreement with HGV?

 

[dsmrp]

What were the point requirements like back when Club Intrawest had an agreement with HGV?

Sorry I don't know. I hope someone else can answer. Intrawest got sold to Diamond not long after I got my HGVC account.

 

[Talent312]

I believe that C-I resorts had point requirements like standard HGVC resorts.
They were treated in the directory as being equal to standard affiliates.
Use of the full H-G-V brand/standards suggests they'll have on-par treatment.
.

 

[dayooper]

I hope the point values for booking Embarc properties will be reasonable compared to other HGVC locations

What were the point requirements like back when Club Intrawest had an agreement with HGV?

They were slightly more than standard, if I remember correctly. Here’s a post from 2013 from our very own @Talent312 listing the points for one of the Embarc/Club Intrawest resorts (Temblant in Quebec). I think the points for all of the Club Intrawest resorts were similar if not the same.

C-I cannot be booked thru the HGVC website. You have to call.
Availability during the high-seasons is limited, but keep calling.

Point requirements vary widely. At Temblant, Quebec...

Holiday: Weeks 7-8, 10, 12, 29, 51-52
Unit .... Mon-Thu .... Fri-Sun .... Points/Week
1 BR.... 672 ........... 1,344 ...... 6,720
2 BR.... 874 ........... 1,747 ...... 8,737

Platinum: Weeks 3-6, 9, 11, 25-28, 30-35
Unit .... Mon-Thu .... Fri-Sun .... Points/Week
1 BR ... 512 ........... 1,024 ...... 5,120
2 BR ... 666 ........... 1,331 ...... 6,657

For more information, see the Members Guide: www.2013clubprogram.com/
.

 

[dayooper]

Obvious to me anyways is what are going to be the booking windows for Club Interwest/Embarc into their resorts & into current HGVC resorts and also the other way around. It needs to be fair to both groups. We are use to our "Home Week" (12-9 months) and "club season" (<9 months) booking windows. Hopefully, Club Interwest/Embarc also has something similar where they can book their normal resorts at 12-9 month mark (or whatever it is) and then during the club season (< 9 months) we can book each other. To me that is fair and I believe would be beneficial to both groups. @dayooper, please post if you find out any more details. I would assume that HGVC would give thorough fair well thought out equitable offer to both groups.

I absolutely hope that Embarc owners, along with DRI and us HGVC owners as well, get fair treatment in this acquisition. We all need to keep the rights we bought.

 

[alwysonvac]

HGVC and Intrawest ended their previous affiliation in March 2016 - https://tugbbs.com/forums/threads/hgvc-spin-on-losing-club-intrawest-affiliation.240616

Attached are the old Club Intrawest point charts from the 2013 HGVC Club Member Guide.
NOTE: The CI resorts weren‘t bookable online, and Panorama & Ucluelet weren’t included.

UPDATE : Also found references to some of the old Points charts on Seth’s website
Sandestin (link)
Zihuatanejo (link)
Tremblant (link)
Whistler (link)
Palm Desert (link)

 

[dayooper]

Thank you @alwysonvac!

 

[alwysonvac]

Here are the number of units based on the 2014 HGVC Disclosure Agreement

From the May 2014 HGVC Disclosure Agreement.

• Club Intrawest - Vancouver 29
• Club Intrawest - Sandestin 48
• Club Intrawest – Blue Mountain 53
• Club Intrawest - Tremblant 53
• Club Intrawest Palm Desert 60
• Club Intrawest - Zihuatanejo 66
• Club Intrawest - Whistler 113

UPDATE: Adding link to Embarc website - https://embarcresorts.com/embarc-resorts.html

​

 

[NOLA47]

I am so happy to see this acquisition moving along. I too enjoyed Club Intrawest when managed by Hilton. It was actually a major part of our decision to purchase additional points to allow early access to reservations each year. While I don't think the Sandestin property is of the same caliber as the HGVC properties I have visited, it is all about location and amenities that we enjoy so much. Hopefully, HGVC will come in and give it the little spruce up it needs to meet their standards. I was always surprised that HGVC did not have a resort in the Destin, FL area. Maybe they always had this idea in their back pocket to acquire one of the existing resorts. I'm happy we are finally headed in that direction.

 

[bizaro86]

Thanks for posting those! I'm assuming Panorama will be included this time. Maybe if its considered a "less desireable" location the required HGVC points will be less. We go to Panorama every summer and the embarc is one of the nicest buildings there.

 

[dayooper]

Thanks for posting those! I'm assuming Panorama will be included this time. Maybe if its considered a "less desireable" location the required HGVC points will be less. We go to Panorama every summer and the embarc is one of the nicest buildings there.

What/Where is Panorama?

 

[alwysonvac]

What/Where is Panorama?

Added link to Embarc website on post #21 above.