Hyatt Lake Tahoe sold - what happens to the Hyatt High Sierra - HRC, Incline Village Nevada?

[mindy35]

To be clear, I am not an HRC owner. I am a local and live in Incline Village, w/in walking distance of the resort. I do own SVO/Vistana, which are deeded weeks, managed by Westin and overseen by a Vacation Owners Association. I am unsure how the contract works with HRC so forgive me.

The Hyatt LT, which is a centerpiece in this high mountain lake resort town, was sold last Fall to the owner of a huge, porfolio of hyper luxury hotels in CA, HI and who knows where? Word is that he has BIG plans for the property and will be overturning every inch of the existing resort. Rumor is that he will turn over management to a higher end, more luxury division of Hyatt.

My question is, what happens to the Timeshare portion of this property? As with other hotels and resorts, it is currently just being managed by Hyatt Hotels but will that change? Did the sale of the hotel include the TS units as well?

There are 2 different cottage areas - one is up near the main part of the Hyatt Hotel and another set across the road, on the lakefront. Are they both part of the High Sierra TS? Are they deeded and owned by the timeshare owners? What happens to those individuals who own this property as their HOME resort? Is there an owners association that must vote and approve all that goes on there? If the cottages are engulfed into the new resort, is this property removed from the HRC inventory?

Just curious how the change in ownership of the main hotel changes the TS property it's attached to.

TIA

 

[grevas1]

The cottages across the street by the Lone Wolf lodge are not Hyatt Residences.

 

[mindy35]

The cottages across the street by the Lone Eagle Grill are not Hyatt Residences.

Really? Interesting. Thanks for the info.

 

[wilma]

The cottages across the street by the Lone Wolf lodge are not Hyatt Residences.

It's the lone eagle restaurant not a lodge.

 

[dioxide45]

My question is, what happens to the Timeshare portion of this property? As with other hotels and resorts, it is currently just being managed by Hyatt Hotels but will that change? Did the sale of the hotel include the TS units as well?

Probably something similar to what has happened with Kauai Beach Club which had a Marriott branded hotel along with a Marriott Vacation Club timeshare The hotel has changed brands now to Sonesta. Both still co-exist and have a common elements sharing/ownership agreement. It is unclear who actually owns the common elements, but they are probably part of a larger master association. Marriott Vacation Club guests can still use the amenities at the resort.

Now, something else could happen here like happened with Marriott Fairway Villas. The colocated hotel was sold and I think as of now, there is no longer shared facilities. The owners and guests staying at Fairway Villas can use the resort amenities at Fairway Villas. Nothing changes really. Timeshares are owned by the owners and managed by the management company. In this case, it would seem to be managed by Hyatt Residence Club. I would expect no real impact on the timeshare owners with the sale of the hotel to another owner. Very few hotels are actually owned by the company that owns the brand. The hotel owners just licenses the hotel brand name and in some cases has the hotel company manage the property. In some other cases the hotel company doesn't manage the property and is is really just a franchise agreement.

 

[mindy35]

The examples you mentioned are quite helpful, thank you.

We had stayed at the Kauai Marriott when it was was originally being converted into Timeshares from the the opulent Westin Kauai Lagoons Resort. We were also there about 6 months ago in 2021. It is the shell of it's former self and I remember our vist also prompted the discussion "what if you were an owner here?" Marriott is basically a points system now (so no "home" resort) and the breadth of their other property options might mean it not as big of a concern as it would with HRC?

Another example I can think of is the Four Seasons Residences at Aviara. The "colocated" hotel is now a Hyatt but since it has been maintained as an upper tier resort it is still considered a Top rated destination.

In the HHS instance, what the new owner is proposing is investing an exorbitant amount of money and what looks like years of basically rebuilding the entire property (no judgement one way or another as to whether this is a good or bad thing). One can only assume that this will be an upgrade rather than a downgrade as in the Kauai Marriott case.

Will the owners of the HRC have assessments &/or be responsible to keep up financially with what is planned for the sister property? What will a stay during the multi year overhaul of the main hotel be like during that time? Will they have access to the beach/pools, etc.? Without the Hyatt's assets, not sure what visiting those villas will have to offer?

I don't know the colocated contract HHS had with the former HLT or whether the new owner is forced to/elected take over that contract. For ex., when Westin spun SVO to Vistana, the access to the Westin benefits were maintained. And..............mind you, this is just a guess based on reviewing the other properties in the new owner's portfolio, I am not sure an adjacent Timeshare is in the new property's vision?

Maybe an owner of that property can chime in here?

 

[alameda94501]

The examples you mentioned are quite helpful, thank you.

We had stayed at the Kauai Marriott when it was was originally being converted into Timeshares from the the opulent Westin Kauai Lagoons Resort. We were also there more 6 months ago in 2021. It is the shell of it's former self and I remember our vist also prompted the discussion "what if you were an owner here?" Now, Marriott is basically a points system now (so no "home" resort) and the breadth of their other property options might make it not as big of a concern as it would be with HRC.

Another example I can think of is the Four Seasons Residences at Aviara. The "colocated" hotel is now a Hyatt but since it has been maintained as an upper tier resort it is still considered a Top rated destination.

In the HHS instance, what the new owner is proposing is investing an exorbitant amount of money and what looks like years of basically rebuilding the entire property (no judgement one way or another as to whether this is a good or bad thing). One can only assume that this will be an upgrade rather than a downgrade as in the Kauai Marriott case.

Will the owners of the HRC have assessments &/or be responsible to keep up financially with what is planned for the sister property? What will a stay during the multi year overhaul of the main hotel be like during that time? Will they have access to the beach/pools, etc.? Without the Hyatt's assets, not sure what visiting those villas will have to offer?

I don't know the colocated contract HHS had with the former HLT or whether the new owner is forced to/elected take over that contract. For ex., when Westin spun SVO to Vistana, the access to the Westin benefits were maintained. And..............mind you this is just a guess , based on reviewing the other properties in the new owner's portfolio, I am not sure an adjacent Timeshare is in the new property's vision?

Maybe an owner of that property can chime in here?

Not an owner at HRC High Sierra, but as an owner at HRC Highlands Inn we've stayed there many times. What I had heard earlier is that the two properties are quite distinct. As a family, we've never really visited that neighboring Hyatt Regency as High Sierra has its own pool, grills and rec house. I agree access to the beach is important, although I'm not sure a new developer can exclude High Sierra from still getting access to Incline Beach.

What I did want to say is that the association at HRC High Sierra has always seemed to be independently minded and strong stewards of their maintenance fees, since that resort sold out years ago. We at HRC Highlands Inn are about 20% still Developer owned and the difference shows. I'd trust that association at Incline Village to navigate whatever comes up, it's a fantastic resort for our family.

 

[ivywag]

I suspect that nothing will change. The High Sierra pays the hotel for all of the privileges. Additionally, there is a big off-season for that hotel and the timeshare owners who are there during that off time spend money at the hotel. I think that it’s a win-win for both.