Bahamas About-Face, Disney Update and More – Just Another Day About COVID

The ban on Americans by the government of the Bahamas has now been rescinded, now allowing visitors from the United States into the country. Bahamian government officials have done an about-face from a policy instituted on July 17 banning U.S. visitors from the country due to an increase in COVID cases in both countries.

The catch – everyone must quarantine for 14 days at their own expense reportedly in a government facility, so don’t expect Bahamas timeshare owners to head to the islands anytime soon.

Cayman Compulsion?

The Cayman Islands remain closed, with reopening scheduled for September 1. However, there is a unique development regarding wearable technology that could be a precursor for visiting other countries in the near future. 

Cayman government officials are working with a U.S.-based tech firm called BioIntelliSense to provide visitors with a wearable device called a BioButton. The device monitors areas such as skin temperature and heart rate in order to detect possible early COVID symptoms.

Visitors agreeing to wear the device would self-quarantine in a residence of their choice, presumably including timeshare, for five days, whereas visitors not wearing the device would require a 14-day quarantine in a government facility. If this is successful, it could mean the expansion of using such tech gadgets in other countries.

Disney Timeshares Are Good To Go

Disney released a statement this week that may have caused some confusion for Disney timeshare owners. In the statement, Disney announced they were delaying the reopening of some Orlando-based hotels, with Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa given a September 21 date and Disney's Polynesian Village Resort slated for October 4.

However, upon closer inspection, the timeshare components of these resorts remain open and are unaffected by the announcement concerning the hotel operation of these resorts. Click here to read the update from Disney.

Good News for Florida Bars

While Florida continues to be in the crosshairs when it comes to COVID cases (and an approaching tropical storm this weekend), bar patrons were given a glimmer of hope by the state government. Bars have been closed since June 26 when COVID cases began to increase, with several bars being targeted by the state as contributing to the increase.

However, state officials announced that, starting Friday, they will begin consulting with bar owners to begin formulating plans to reopen watering holes across the state. This is good news for timeshare resorts, especially Orlando timeshares, which continue to balance the challenge of operating a resort with the amenity closures that come with a COVID response.  

Timeshare Resort Openings

Not much has changed when it comes to the status of branded timeshare resorts across the U.S., with the vast majority of resorts remaining open as we move into August. Many school districts in Florida have decided to delay starting their school year until late August, which may mean a short-term boost in tourism-related activities in the state.

Information regarding specific resorts can be seen below:  

Bluegreen Vacations – Club associate resort Pono Kai Resort is still on track to reopen on August 31, to coincide with Hawaii’s expected relaxing of its 14-day quarantine restrictions on September 1. Otherwise, all Bluegreen Club resorts and Club associate resorts remain open. For more details regarding Bluegreen timeshare status and amenity restrictions, please click https://www.bluegreenowner.com/featured/travel-advisory-resort-status.

Capital Vacations – As stated above, Grand Cayman is planning to reopen on September 1, which is good news for Coral Sands (Grand Cayman). Coral Sands and Sea Palace (St Maarten) remain closed, but St. Maarten is expected to accept flights from the U.S. beginning Saturday. All other Capital timeshare resorts are open so for more information please go to https://www.capitalvacations.com/covid.php.

Club Wyndham – Reopening for Wyndham timeshare resorts in San Francisco has been extended to August 16 with Wyndham Hawaii timeshares pushed out to August 31. A few additional Wyndham timeshare resorts remain closed but the vast majority are open. For more details please visit https://clubwyndham.wyndhamdestinations.com/us/en/covid-19-information/list-of-impacted-resorts.

Diamond Resorts – Crescent Resort on Miami Beach is set to reopen on Thursday, but Alhambra Villas is now extended to September 3. Marquis Villas Resort and five Hawaii resorts in the Diamond timeshare network are still scheduled to open on August 31. All other Diamond timeshare resorts in the U.S. are open. For more information please click https://www.diamondresorts.com/covid-19-update.

Disney Vacation Club – Most Disney timeshare resorts continue to operate, with resorts in Orlando, Vero Beach and Hilton Head operating under COVID requirements as are most other timeshare resorts. Still no news about the possible opening dates for Aulani or Grand Californian, and Disneyland remains closed as well. The Downtown Disney District in Anaheim is open, but that’s about it when it comes to Disney’s California attractions. Please go to https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/ for more information.

Grand Pacific Resorts – Grand Pacific timeshare resorts are all open with the exception of Indian Palms Vacation Club, scheduled to open on September 1. For more details please visit https://grandpacificresorts.com/resort-reopening-updates/.

Hilton Grand Vacations – Kohala Suites by Hilton Grand Vacations Club and The Bay Club at Waikoloa Beach, both on the Big Island of Hawaii, are both scheduled to reopen next week. Hokulani Waikiki by Hilton Grand Vacations Club is listed as open but the other six Hilton timeshare resorts in Hawaii are closed. Hilton timeshares in Chicago and New York City remain closed, with the exception of West 57th Street by Hilton Club. All other U.S.-based Hilton timeshares are open, so for more information please click https://www.hiltongrandvacations.com/en/travel-alert.

Holiday Inn Club Vacations – All Holiday Inn Club Vacations timeshare resorts are now open, with some amenity restrictions per COVID protocols. For more information, please click on https://holidayinnclub.com/safe-travels/resort-updates.

Marriott Vacation Club – No status changes to report from last week, as the reopening for Marriott Vacation Club Pulse at The Mayflower, Washington, D.C., is still scheduled for August 9. Marriott’s Waikoloa Ocean Club is still closed with no stated reopening date, as are Marriott Vacation Club Pulse San Francisco and Marriott Vacation Club Pulse New York City. All other U.S.-based Marriott timeshare resorts are open. For more information, go to https://hub.vacationclub.com/resort-updates/.

Vistana Signature Experiences – All Westin timeshare and Sheraton timeshare resorts remain open, while abiding by COVID-related restrictions.

Westgate Resorts – November 19 remains the opening date for the time being for Westgate Leisure Resort, Westgate Blue Tree Resort, Westgate Palace Resort and Westgate Towers Resort. Westgate New York Grand Central and Westgate Tunica Resort remain closed with no announced reopening date. The remaining Westgate timeshare resorts are open. Please go to https://www.westgateresorts.com/coronavirus-travel-advisory/ for more information.

WorldMark – Crotched Mountain Resort is still scheduled to reopen on Monday. WorldMark San Francisco is looking to an August 16 opening date, with most WorldMark timeshare resorts in Hawaii set to open August 31. Overall, the majority of the 92 resorts in the WorldMark timeshare network are open. Please go to https://www.worldmarktheclub.com/news/covid19_impacted_resorts.shtml for the latest details.

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