Official Secrets of OWNERS (please) Four Seasons Aviara Thread

[zentraveler]

As far, as I know there has always been a list of recommended/suggested resorts at least since 2005. FSRC gave me with the list when I asked about the II arrangement years ago.

Interesting Alwaysonvac. I remember asking about this repeatedly (or at least for some guidance about this in particular places) and was always given the impression that using the gold and silver symbols was our only real option.

 

[zentraveler]

Years ago, the answer was no.
SFX stated that they don't take FSA studios but again that was years ago.

I looked over their properties and they did not seem to offer any advantage over II, nor did they seem to be a good adjunct (i.e. no significant amount of non-overlapping properties). Am I missing something?

 

[GregGH]

I waited a day or so to see if anyone else might mention the couple of owners e-mails received .... quite a few points of interest I thought.

-glad to see Florian get a nice promotion within Four Seasons - I am sure the new General Manager ( Demi Ortega ) will have the same/similar pleasant way --the staff have such polish and attention to detail. You can really see this if you are there during a quarterly board meeting as a way to meet then you recognize then much easier in the day to day actions.
-annual dues seem reasonable all things considered ..these increases seem consistent for the past 4 years given the inflationary pressures on things like power, etc
-have asked Peter Pun for 2010 ( and 2011 if available) details on 'overdue' owners ..he has been very forthcoming with data in previous years ... and it is important for the HOA to keep this sad issue under control for the benefit of remaining owners. There have been some interesting threads on MB for other chains and the problems of overdue owners and the problems it places upon balance of owners to pay all the bills.
-renovations ... since we finally added granite and stainless to our house - interesting to see a completed unit when we are down there in winter months. Stop by for a drink ... I am the one walking the Golden (there late Jan thru Mid March)
-saw mention (have 'Aviara set on Google alert) of sand being moved from lagoon to various beaches ...including our 'dog beach' Ponto Beach.
-anyone seen any mention on how town of Carlsbad is handling their annual budgets? This 'debt de-levering' we are all in - tough times for all. It is such a pretty town when compared to so many others in USA.

Greg H

 

[zentraveler]

I waited a day or so to see if anyone else might mention the couple of owners e-mails received .... quite a few points of interest I thought.

-glad to see Florian get a nice promotion within Four Seasons - I am sure the new General Manager ( Demi Ortega ) will have the same/similar pleasant way --the staff have such polish and attention to detail. You can really see this if you are there during a quarterly board meeting as a way to meet then you recognize then much easier in the day to day actions.
-annual dues seem reasonable all things considered ..these increases seem consistent for the past 4 years given the inflationary pressures on things like power, etc
-have asked Peter Pun for 2010 ( and 2011 if available) details on 'overdue' owners ..he has been very forthcoming with data in previous years ... and it is important for the HOA to keep this sad issue under control for the benefit of remaining owners. There have been some interesting threads on MB for other chains and the problems of overdue owners and the problems it places upon balance of owners to pay all the bills.
-renovations ... since we finally added granite and stainless to our house - interesting to see a completed unit when we are down there in winter months. Stop by for a drink ... I am the one walking the Golden (there late Jan thru Mid March)
-saw mention (have 'Aviara set on Google alert) of sand being moved from lagoon to various beaches ...including our 'dog beach' Ponto Beach.
-anyone seen any mention on how town of Carlsbad is handling their annual budgets? This 'debt de-levering' we are all in - tough times for all. It is such a pretty town when compared to so many others in USA.

Greg H

Thanks GregGH. I had seen the emails come through but had not gotten to reading them with any care so appreciate the "executive summary". The problem of overdue owners is certainly one that needs attention as financial pressures are so inherent in all of the systems within which we operate.

zentraveler

 

[zentraveler]

Four Seasons By Invitation Loyalty Program

Just read a thread about this on FlyerTalk. Am assuming the FS Owners are not included since I did not get an invitation. Anyone know about this??

 

[Kagehitokiri2]

i presume there are some long time owners here?
i was told by a former aviara owner that FS ended the program they had for aviara owners several years ago.

there is also "Guest Profile" which is a related thing

and a post on FT mentioned "Members Card" with 350 members in North America - might include some full ownership residence owners?

 

[GregGH]

the fun things you can find --when you set google alerts ...

http://www.tonyshl.com/fourseasonsaviara.htm

In case you are longing to buy one or more of the pieces of furniture from Aviara ... really looking forward to 'someone' posting some pic's of the NEW IMPROVED renovations ... or you guys have to wait til Jan 29th for our 6 weeks of exploring and we will post.
Greg

 

[gblotter]

We have stayed at Aviara three times in the past - either on exchange or rental from owners. We absolutely love the place - service and facilities are top notch.

We are considering the purchase of a Platinum (Summer) week on the resale market, but I have a question.

Is it possible to use our platinum week to reserve in the non-platinum season if we so desire? Is this allowed, or must we stay within the summer season? Sometimes we may want to try for a Spring Break week (although I understand those reservations may be difficult to get for single-week owners).

 

[tschwa2]

13 month reservation

If one owns a week at Aviara and a week at Troon that lined up, could you make a 13 month consecutive reservation or do they have to be at the same resort?

Also why are there so many more Aviara weeks on ebay and rarely do I see the Scottsdale weeks?

 

[GregGH]

Both questions really good! ( blotter & tschwa2 ) - we need to attract more Aviara owners here to ANSWER them .... both are tough for me to answer. Owners ...come on -- a fun place to meet.

Greg

ps- sent e-mail to owners.avr (at) fourseasons.com on the troon-aviara weeks combine - great question
ps- one has to 'assume' a platinum week can get any week ... but that damm word 'assume' again.... so how hard are spring break weeks to get in March ... vs weeks say in April ?? ( we only know Mid Jan thru Mid March and Oct from our past travels.
ps- 132 units at Aviara ( I think ) ...so approx 6800 week units .... how many room units .. certainly has to be a lot less ...

 

[Kagehitokiri2]

i see one figure saying 44 units for scottsdale

mostly fractional at scottsdale, arent there few timeshare?
no fractional at aviara
scottsdale probably has more full ownership than aviara

FS scottsdale was originally supposed to manage adjacent detached villas, but it didnt happen

 

[Steve]

i see one figure saying 44 units for scottsdale

mostly fractional at scottsdale, arent there few timeshare?
no fractional at aviara
scottsdale probably has more full ownership than aviara

FS scottsdale was originally supposed to manage adjacent detached villas, but it didnt happen

You are correct that there are 44 villas at Four Seasons Scottsdale. However, none of them are fractionals. They are all weekly timeshare villas.

The ownership base is a lot more stable at Scottsdale than at Aviara. I think there are a couple of reasons for this:

1) The resort is newer so there are fewer people needing to sell.

2) The hotel is still a Four Seasons.

When you also consider that there are only 1/3 the number of villas as at Aviara, it makes sense that there would be fewer resales at Scottsdale.

Steve

 

[Steve]

If one owns a week at Aviara and a week at Troon that lined up, could you make a 13 month consecutive reservation or do they have to be at the same resort?

Also why are there so many more Aviara weeks on ebay and rarely do I see the Scottsdale weeks?

Having owned at both Aviara and Scottsdale for several years, I have been told that, unlike Marriott, the weeks must be at the same resort in order to obtain the 13 month reservation preference.

For example, I was not able to line up my platinum Scottsdale week and my gold Aviara week in order to get the 13 month reservation window for prime March weeks in Scottsdale (even though the seasons overlap). That benefit was limited to owners who owned 2 or more Scottsdale weeks.

Steve

 

[Steve]

Is it possible to use our platinum week to reserve in the non-platinum season if we so desire? Is this allowed, or must we stay within the summer season? Sometimes we may want to try for a Spring Break week (although I understand those reservations may be difficult to get for single-week owners).

No, this is not possible via reservations. You can only book a week within your home season. Platinum owners cannot book gold weeks.

If you want a gold week, you have to place an exchange request and pay an exchange fee. If you bought from Four Seasons or a preferred reseller, you can try to exchange internally through Four Seasons or you can try to exchange through II. If you did not buy from a preferred reseller, then you can only exchange through II.

Steve

 

[alwysonvac]

Just some additional information to add to what Steve already said above

From the Four Seasons Residence Club Newsletter - http://www.fourseasons.com/interlude/2011_M11/article_18494.html

RES CLUB 101

FSRC Booking Windows
13 months before the desired arrival date, multiple week owners (owners who own two or more weeks in the same season and same Home Project) may request a concurrent or consecutive reservation in the full unit type owned.

12 Months before the desired arrival date, owners may request their Home Project in the season they own for their full unit type for 7 nights, or may utilize the Double Usage or Split Week option.

10 months prior to arrival, Club Members may utilize the Club Exchange option and request reservations in either their owned season at Aviara or Scottsdale, or a lower season.

6 months prior to arrival, Club Members may utilize the Club Exchange option and request reservations in a season that is one seasons higher than their owned season.

 

[alwysonvac]

You are correct that there are 44 villas at Four Seasons Scottsdale. However, none of them are fractionals. They are all weekly timeshare villas.

At some point in time, I thought FSRC stopped selling single weeks and only sold multiple weeks. For example SmartChoice Timeshare Resales has two week and three week resale packages for Scottsdale - http://www.timeshareaz.com/For Sale In AZ.htm#SCOTTSDALE_AREA

 

[Steve]

At some point in time, I thought FSRC stopped selling single weeks and only sold multiple weeks. For example SmartChoice Timeshare Resales has two week and three week resale packages for Scottsdale - http://www.timeshareaz.com/For Sale In AZ.htm#SCOTTSDALE_AREA

This is a good point. If I remember correctly, towards the end of developer sales, Four Seasons required a minimum two week purchase rather than selling single weeks. I never considered that a fractional, but I guess it could be considered such and could reduce the number of resales.

Steve

 

[Kagehitokiri2]

If I remember correctly, towards the end of developer sales, Four Seasons required a minimum two week purchase

very interesting, thanks

 

[Love2TS]

FS also running a gift card promotion

For a limited time, for each of the first 50 Four Seasons eGift Cards of $500 USD or more purchased, you will receive a separate bonus eGift Card in the amount of $50 USD.

Seen on their FB page.

 

[Love2TS]

The offer above is valid between 9:00 am EST on December 13, 2011 and 5:00 pm EST on December 15, 2011

 

[chibuilder]

If one owns a week at Aviara and a week at Troon that lined up, could you make a 13 month consecutive reservation or do they have to be at the same resort?

Also why are there so many more Aviara weeks on ebay and rarely do I see the Scottsdale weeks?

I think part of the answer lies in the fact that there are simply more units at Aviara than there are at Troon. The other is likely that the hotel at Aviara is now a Park Hyatt. We own multiple weeks at Aviara and still LOVE it. Always one of our best annual vacations. I have several friends who own at Troon and they prefer Aviara too. Nothing scientific here but I think there are more units and the hotel strife clearly impacted ownership perception at the Residence club and in my mind, those 2 things have always accounted for why there are more resales at Aviara. Again, nothing scientific.

 

[GregGH]

anyone see this offer --I did ( albeit too late )

Argyle Steakhouse Three-Course Prix Fixe Dinner for Two with Two Glasses of Wine $99

will have to pay attention ... looks like Hyatt is using this to boost activity ( I had someone mention the drinks and Tapas voucher which we grabbed earlier )

Greg

ps- thanks for the good answers from all ... sure might have thought that Platinum would trump gold and be usable for any time ... and the 'same location' .. when I first heard Perry mention how he uses some 'throw away location' to get a week head start at Marriott .. I just marvelled at the ingenuity of TUGers' ... oh well ....

 

[GregGH]

Going thru some bookmarks and remembered many wonderful hours wasted looking at California coastline ...from one end to the other ...

Here is link for Lagoon - Four Seasons in upper right hand ( north side ) of lagoon

Here is Dog Friendly beach Lots of parking for a $30 yearly pass and basic wash rooms as well ... There is ' the DOG beach' further to the south ... closer to San Diego

The couple who took these thousands of shots is retired software fellow who flies his own helicopter - a while back Barb Streisand took offence to his pictures as invasion of privacy - glad he won out in the end.

Enjoy on a winters day.
Greg

 

[Kagehitokiri2]

wow. wild stuff. the entire CA coast? lots of major properties.

all great stuff GregGH

 

[GregGH]

Hi to all
Down here for our winter stay. Trying the 'standard-slower' no charge internet ...seems to work ok for most ...noticeable gaps in youtube vid's but did a 'go to meeting/citrix' conference call and an iChat call - both were good audio and acceptable video quality. Allows me to not have to set up a router (did that last year) ...for all the stuff ( iPad - iPhone & laptop ). Now I have more money for wine ...

Have not seen an updated unit yet - meet a couple of owners meet at S'more night (a good place to meet others -we take some wine & plastic wine glasses and enjoy the dark chocolate) and they were impressed ... Osprey and #29-28 &27 done ... Summit (opens next week) and #17 thru 21 closed for reno ... we are in 26 and will move to 27 in 10 days as more close for reno's ... Workmen even working today ( Sat ) - but from our unit they are not heard.

Meet Demi Ortega ( new GM ) by accident - we are both walking our dog's ... assumed he was another owner ... he has a yellow lab.

Typically nice weather ...these guys who live here are spoiled ...
Regards
Greg H

ps- the internet issue was from this thread ...I forgot to mention it ( remembered I saw reply from eal ) .... http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=161830 In the past I would skip the slower FREE option --I think it is workable for me for present & future use.