COVID Quarantine Update for Top Five Timeshare States

Timeshare travelers looking to plan a getaway in time for the upcoming Labor Day holiday have options as the summer season winds to a close. The good news is that, of the top five states that have timeshare resorts, only Hawaii still has a mandatory statewide COVID quarantine requirement in place for inbound travelers. These states collectively represent nearly half of all timeshare resorts in the United States:

• Florida – there is no statewide COVID quarantine mandate for travelers coming to Florida. However, state officials are asking that vacationers check with the local county that they are visiting to see what local protocols are in place. To our knowledge, there are no county-specific quarantine requirements in any county in Florida.
• California – even with all of the attention California has received lately regarding local COVID restrictions, there is no statewide quarantine mandate in place for the state. California officials have left it up to local jurisdictions to regulate travel requirements, and there is an excellent website listing the local travel websites in the state for travelers to check. The site is https://www.visitcalifornia.com/now/find-local-covid-19-information-these-california-travel-sites. 
• South Carolina – no statewide quarantine restrictions are in effect for travelers looking to vacation in the Palmetto State, including popular timeshare destinations Myrtle Beach and Hilton Head Island. COVID protocols are in place such as the wearing of masks and social distancing requirements, but travelers are free to move around as they please.
• Hawaii – last week, the Governor extended the state’s 14-day quarantine mandate until October 1. All inbound visitors must quarantine for 14 days upon arrival. Officials are preparing to lift the restriction in October in favor of requiring travelers to provide a negative COVID test upon arrival, with the test taken within 72 hours of arrival.
• Nevada – the state of Nevada has been open for weeks without a quarantine restriction, and the latest information can be seen at https://nvhealthresponse.nv.gov/. Information specific to Las Vegas can be seen at https://www.visitlasvegas.com/covid-19-updates/.  

In addition to these states, Massachusetts features several timeshare resorts mainly on Cape Cod and in the western Berkshire mountains. The state still has a 14-day quarantine requirement in place, but that can be waived if visitors can show a negative COVID-19 test result taken within 72-hours of arrival into Massachusetts.

Dominican Republic Recovery Plan

The Dominican Republic has emerged over the last several years as a significant player in the Caribbean timeshare industry, with vacation ownership resorts in places such as Punta Cana and Puerto Plata. As with all other Caribbean islands, the DR closed this spring as a result of the COVID pandemic.

The country reopened on July 30, requiring all inbound visitors to provide a negative COVID test result upon entry as well as preregistering with the country before arrival. However, president Luis Abinader Corona announced a tourism recovery plan this week, the details of which you can see by clicking here.

What is interesting is that the DR is planning to implement a rapid response diagnostic breath test for COVID-19 at the end of September. Once this is in place, they will remove the requirement to provide the negative test results. Such breath tests have been in clinical trials across the world for much of the summer, recently being implemented in a hospital in Lyon, France. Should this be implemented in the DR, it could be a game-changer for widespread testing for the disease.

Slight Change for the Bahamas

Visitors are still required to quarantine for 14 days at their own expense upon entering the Bahamas, but the quarantine location has changed. Visitors previously were required to stay in a government facility during their quarantine period, but now they can stay at resorts such as timeshares, hotels, rented accommodations or even boats.

Timeshare Resort Openings

Apart from the weekly information provided regarding COVID-related closures, we suggest that visitors planning to travel to areas along the coasts of Louisiana and northeast Texas check with their resorts for the latest status in the aftermath of Hurricane Laura.

Below is the latest news regarding branded timeshare resorts:

Bluegreen Vacations – Bluegreen Club La Pension and The Marquee in New Orleans are under a weather advisory following Hurricane Laura’s landfall in western Louisiana. The only Bluegreen timeshare resort closed is still Pono Kai Resort, which is due to reopen on September 30 when Hawaii COVID quarantine restrictions are expected to be lifted. For more information please go to https://www.bluegreenowner.com/featured/travel-advisory-resort-status.

Capital Vacations – Sea Palace in St. Maarten and Coral Sands on Grand Cayman remain listed as closed, even though St. Maarten is open to visitors but under COVID protocols. Sea Palace is currently available for online bookings so owners should check directly with Capital for the latest details. Cayman is scheduled to reopen on October 1. Please click on https://www.capitalvacations.com/covid.php for the latest details.

Club Wyndham – Wyndham timeshares in San Francisco are scheduled to reopen on Monday. Most Hawaii resorts remain closed through the end of September when Hawaii COVID quarantine restrictions are due to be lifted. Only a handful of Wyndham resorts are listed as closed, so please go to https://clubwyndham.wyndhamdestinations.com/us/en/covid-19-information/list-of-impacted-resorts for more details.

Diamond Resorts – The five Diamond timeshare resorts in Hawaii are now showing a September 30 reopening date. Marquis Villas Resort in Palm Springs is still slated to open on September 30 while October 29 is still the reopening date for the Alhambra Villas in Kissimmee. Please visit https://www.diamondresorts.com/covid-19-update for the latest information.

Disney Vacation Club – Disney timeshare owners have a new short-term perk. For the first time, visitors to central Florida can personally inspect the actual rooms in DVC resorts such as a Cascade Cabin at Boulder Ridge Villas at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge or one of the famed bungalows at Disney’s Polynesian Villas. Want to check out a 3-Bedroom Grand Villa at the Grand Floridian? Now is your chance.

Visitors were previously restricted to looking at models because of the high occupancy at DVC timeshares. Now, Disney is allowing guests to check out units up close.

As far as COVID-related resort closures, Grand Californian in Anaheim and Aulani in Hawaii are still closed with no official reopening date announced. Online rental bookings for Grand Californian are still available beginning September 16. Disney timeshare resorts elsewhere in the DVC network are open. Please go to https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/ for more details.

Divi Resorts – Divi Flamingo Beach Resort in Bonaire is due to reopen on Monday. Because of Barbados’ change of COVID policy, now requiring a 14-day quarantine for inbound visitors, Divi Southwinds Beach Resort is closed until October 2. Divi Carina Bay in St Croix remains closed for renovations, although the USVI is closed to prevent the spread of COVID. Divi timeshares in St. Maarten and Aruba (including Divi Aruba Phoenix Beach Resort) remain open. Please click on https://www.diviresorts.com/news.htm for the latest information.

Grand Pacific Resorts – Indian Palms Vacation Club is still scheduled to reopen on October 1. The rest of the Grand Pacific timeshare resorts are open. Please visit https://grandpacificresorts.com/resort-reopening-updates/ for further details.

Hilton Grand Vacations – Still no reopening dates are listed for the 10 Hilton timeshare resorts that remain closed. Those are The Quin Central Park by Hilton Club, The Hilton Club – New York, the Residences by Hilton Club, Hilton Grand Vacations Chicago Downtown/Magnificent Mile and the six remaining Hilton timeshare resorts in Hawaii. The rest of the U.S.-based Hilton timeshares are open, so for more information please go to https://www.hiltongrandvacations.com/en/travel-alert.

Holiday Inn Club Vacations – Holiday Inn Club Vacations timeshare resorts are all open, per COVID protocols. Please click on https://holidayinnclub.com/safe-travels/resort-updates for further details.

Marriott Vacation Club – Marriott Vacation Club Pulse at The Mayflower, Washington, D.C., is now open. Marriott’s Frenchman’s Cove on St. Thomas is closed through September 18 due to the COVID-related closure of the U.S. Virgin Islands. Marriott’s Waikoloa Ocean Club is still closed 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 and resort COVID protocols, go to https://hub.vacationclub.com/resort-updates/.

Vistana Signature Experiences – Westin St. John Resort Villas remains closed until September 18 due to the USVI COVID closure to visitors. All other Westin timeshares and all Sheraton timeshare resorts remain open.

Westgate Resorts –Westgate Leisure Resort, Westgate Blue Tree Resort, Westgate Palace Resort and Westgate Towers Resort are still closed until November 19. Westgate New York Grand Central and Westgate Tunica Resort are closed with no announced reopening date. All other Westgate timeshare resorts are open. For more details, please go to https://www.westgateresorts.com/coronavirus-travel-advisory/ .

WorldMark – WorldMark timeshare resorts in Hawaii remain closed until September 30 when the State of Hawaii expects to lift its COVID travel quarantine restrictions. WorldMark San Francisco remains closed until February 21, 2021. All other resorts in the WorldMark timeshare network are open. Please visit https://www.worldmarktheclub.com/news/covid19_impacted_resorts.shtml for more information.

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