I ♥ TIMESHARE! OTE’s Valentine Wish for Timeshares everywhere!

With Valentine’s Day upon us and as couples think about how to declare their love for each other, OTE (Organisation for Timeshare in Europe) is as focussed as ever on ensuring that consumers are able to love timeshare.

OTE, the industry trade body for timeshare, is dedicated to promoting the very best the timeshare industry has to offer and to making sure that consumers are aware of the wealth of fabulous timeshare holiday options out there.  

If owners who have already fallen in love with their timeshare are anything to go by, this is a true affair of the heart!   An on-line survey of owners in 2006 found that 93% felt that timeshare offers a better experience than other self catering holiday options.*

This Valentine’s Day, OTE is calling on anyone who loves going on holiday to find out more about timeshare.  To help them on their way, it has devised five top timeshare romance tips to aid them in their courtship:
 
1)Avoid Blind Dates.  Find out as much about your future love as you can.  Use the internet to do some research:  www.ote-info.com is a great starting point and companies who are members of OTE sign up to its code of conduct. 

2)Do some ‘checking out’.  Timeshare resorts will frequently offer Inspection Visits – essentially a value for money weekend – where you are invited to see timeshare for yourself and attend a sales presentation where you will find out more.  There is no obligation to make a long term commitment!

3)Think about living together first.  Many resorts also offer a Trial Package which, if affiliated to OTE, will give you similar rights of timeshare use (including cooling off periods etc).  The membership lasts just two or three years and it’s a cost effective way of ‘test driving’ timeshare.

4)What about a pre-nup?  It is vital to know what your rights are.  Timeshare is well regulated under European law, which requires full disclosure, written contracts and cooling-off periods.  OTE members are subject to even tighter controls through its code of conduct.
 
5)Watch out for love rats. OTE works alongside a number of relevant consumer and enforcement bodies (including the Office of Fair Trading and European Consumer Centres) and the police in Spain, collecting evidence about fraudulent activities so the authorities can take appropriate action. Fraudulent activity is now nearly always associated with ‘Discount Travel Membership Clubs’ or ‘Holiday Clubs’ which are NOT timeshare and are more like a holiday booking service.
More about OTE:

OTE represents the majority of timeshare companies in Europe which are responsible for some 65-70% of all timeshare sales. These include major hospitality groups such as De Vere, Hilton, Sol Melia, and large independent timeshare developers, namely the Petchey Leisure Group, Club La Costa and Seasons Holidays.

We are able to comment on timeshare or holiday club issues that may emerge in the news and have spokespeople ready to answer questions you might have. If you would like to speak to someone at the OTE then please contact Sue McNicol on 020 8398 6192 (THIS NUMBER IS NOT FOR PUBLIC USE).

For OTE’s Public Relations Office in the UK, contact:
Sophy Norris/Will Brewster
Flagship Consulting
020 7 886 8440
Sophy.norris@flagshipconsulting.co.uk or will.brewster@flagshipconsulting.co.uk

* OTE surveyed European timeshare owners and received over 30,000 responses. The results showed that: 
• 96% say it is a better experience than other self catering holidays
• 97% say it’s as good as or better than staying in an hotel
• 93% of timeshare owners say that timeshare compares favourably with other holiday types
• 67% say timeshare is good value for money compared with other holidays they have taken in         the past
• 76% of European owners (a total of 1.45 million households) are pleased with their         decision to buy timeshare
• 71% would recommend timeshare to others