Membership in a destination club or residence fund gives members access to a collection of luxurious vacation homes around the world, in upscale locations. In addition, members enjoy a wide variety of personalized services and resort amenities. Why should you consider joining a destination club or residence fund?
1. Variety
If you purchase a second home as a vacation home, you'll feel compelled to return to the same place again and again, because you've made a large investment in the home. This can get old pretty quickly, especially if you like to experience new and exciting destinations. Read more about destination clubs compared to second homes here.
A destination club gives you access to wonderful homes in stunning geographical locales across the globe. Perhaps you'd like to spend time relaxing on a tropical beach, or at Christmastime you might prefer heading off to a home in a winter wonderland with the ski slopes at your door. A destination club or residence fund allows you to fulfill nearly every travel desire in style, with lots of options for marvelous places to stay.
2. No Worries
If you own a vacation home, you'll be responsible for maintenance and repairs, but with a destination club or residence fund, this is yet another worry you can take off your mind. Vacation home owners might be dealing with issues such as storm damage for coastal homes or frozen plumbing for mountain homes. In a club, the staff takes care of all maintenance and repair issues, letting you simply relax and enjoy vacations with family and friends.
If you're used to renting a vacation home, you'll be aware of the concerns that you can have beforehand. Is the home properly maintained? does the wifi work? is it really close to the beach? do the pictures truly reflect the home? When you join a destination club, these worries and concerns disappear. The clubs maintain a high level of quality assurance over the homes' interiors, maintenance and service, often standardizing some of the fixtures to make vacations more comfortable and relaxing.
3. Service
A large chunk of time is often spent planning a trip including flight arrangements, transportation and other activities that vacationers may want to take part in during their holiday. A destination club allows members to enjoy all of the benefits of a vacation without the hassle, by helping with pre-trip planning and even making flight arrangements and organizing ground transportation.
Every detail is taken care of so that the member doesn't have to worry. Prior to their arrival, the kitchen is stocked with the member's preferred groceries and beverages, while living areas are filled with books, games, entertainment and fresh flowers – all according to the member's requests.
Members are treated to the best of concierge services, with a local concierge readily available to arrange for tickets and reservations for activities. Your reservations for exclusive restaurants can be taken care of, or a tee time at the golf course arranged. Do you want a party organized for a celebration, or would you like to hire a personal chef? The local concierge can arrange nearly anything that will make your trip as enjoyable, memorable and trouble-free and as possible.
4. Reconnecting With Family
Hard working executives and other professionals have likely spent the majority of their time pursuing a successful career, and find it hard to squeeze in time with family or friends. Joining a club is a way to commit to travel and enjoy the time spent with family before the years pass by too quickly. Membership in a club or fund will help you create unforgettable memories of travel with friends and family.
5. Lots of Space
Destination club and fund homes provide plenty of space with lots of room to stretch out, relax and entertain. Even in big cities accommodations include typical floor space of around 1,500 square feet in 2 or 3 bedroom apartments, and rural or beach retreats with more land may have up to 6,000 square feet with 4, 5 or more bedrooms.
6. Privacy
Compared to hotels, guests will enjoy much more privacy without the common areas of a typical hotel. Scenic and beachfront retreats are typically surrounded by beautifully landscaped gardens that are secluded enough to offer a true sense of privacy. Both the seclusion and spacious nature of these homes are perfect for large and extended families as well as groups of friends who all vacation together.
7. No Guilt
Those who own a second home often feel obligated to spend all of their vacation time at their home – ultimately defeating the purpose of a vacation in the first place, which is to reduce stress and not add to it.
Vacation home owners have probably spent a lot of time and money on their getaway home and end up feeling guilty by not spending time there. With a destination club or fund membership, there is no guilt factor forcing members to be tied just to one property. To use the cliche, for club members, the world is literally their oyster.
These are some of the key reasons we've heard over the years. But destination clubs are not right for everyone. For some, the commitment of time or money does not match their families vacation lifestyle and so other travel options are better suited for them. To balance things out, here are the top 5 reasons not to join a destination club or luxury vacation club. Download the SherpaReport Guide to Destination Clubs & Residence Funds for a full overview and assessment of the different clubs.
