Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific (Wyndham timeshare) is expanding in Western Australia with the acquisition of the former Broadwater Resort & Spa in Dunsborough, Australia. The Timeshare Blog quoted Barry Robinson, president and CEO of Wyndham Vacation Resorts Asia Pacific, as saying, “The Broadwater Resort & Spa aligns perfectly with our Asia Pacific inventory expansion plan and will provide much needed standing inventory for our owners.”

The conversion of the Broadwater creates Wyndham Vacation Ownership’s second Australia timeshare resort in the western part of the country, with the Wyndham Vacation Resort The Outram Perth, being located approximately 162 miles (or 261 kilometers north) of Dunsborough.

Both areas are renowned for their wineries, beautiful beaches and water sports, especially snorkeling and scuba diving. The islands off the coast of Perth are charming locales where the residents live without automobiles and travel primarily by bicycle. These islands are also the only place in the world you will find quokkas in their natural habitat.

Confused about quokkas? I didn’t know what the little critters were either until I did my research.

A quokka is an interesting marsupial that looks remarkably like a cross between a house cat, a rat, and a kangaroo. Today the quokka is a protected species, and continues to survive in acceptable numbers.

If observing unique species of wildlife is not your idea of Australia vacation excitement, Perth itself is quite cosmopolitan with excellent shopping areas, restaurants, and nightlife that vacationers sometimes compare to Paris.

In Dunsborough, the newly converted Wyndham timeshare resort will offer beachfront vacationing, a pool, day spa, wedding chapel, tennis, and excellent dining.

The Wyndham timeshare brand includes 15 resorts in the Asia Pacific region, with timeshare resale and timeshare rentals available at many locations.

Check out this YouTube video to learn more about Australia’s quokka.

It’s Monday, and for many people it is the first day back at work after a long holiday weekend that probably involved overeating, too much football (hey, maybe there’s no such thing as too much football), and perhaps too much time with relatives and in-laws.

I thought you’d appreciate something on the lighter side.

Last month Travelodge UK published the results of a study they did that involved guests in 310 Travelodge Hotels. The study, conducted by OnePoll in July of 2007, involved 3000 British adults and here’s what it found.

The number of hotel guests who sleepwalk has increased sevenfold over the past year, and 95 percent of the sleepwalkers have been male and nude!

I can honestly say, it has never really occurred to me that a measurable number of hotel guests sleepwalk, such that they leave their (presumably locked) hotel room and wander into the corridors or lobby. Nor has it ever occurred to me that so many Brits don’t own pajamas.

The study went on to say that, the sleepwalkers often asked the hotel desk clerks one of the following questions:

• Where is the bathroom?
• Can I check out, as I am late for work?
• Do you have a copy of today’s paper?

After over 400 incidents of sleepwalking in their hotels this past year, with over 360 of those being by nude hotel guests, Travelodge has issued a training memo to employees on handling the matter, including advice to keep a stock of towels in the reception area to preserve guest’s dignity.

Sleep expert Chris Idzikowski, from the Edinburgh Sleep Centre says: “Sleepwalking is a serious disorder that can develop for a variety of reasons. It can be triggered by a stressful lifestyle, sleep deprivation, alcohol abuse or not breathing properly during the night.”

Now, aren’t you glad you read the Timeshare Owners Blog today?

You’ve had a good laugh. You have an interesting bit of information to share with your coworkers, and most importantly, you will never again spend a night in a hotel, motel or timeshare resort without your pajamas.

And for more information on great timeshare resorts where you can enjoy a good night’s sleep, visit Sell My Timeshare NOW and learn about the excellent opportunities in timeshare resales and timeshare rentals.

Family, football, turkey, pumpkin pie…whatever Thanksgiving Day means to you, I hope you are getting a chance to enjoy it. So as I take time to reflect on the past year, I want to share with you my own reasons for giving thanks.

I am thankful for my beautiful wife and wonderful children. Family gives us roots, strength, comfort, and that very special spot on this earth where one can relax and experience the blessing of giving and receiving love. When you are with your family, wherever it is, you are home.

I am thankful that I live in a world where a person like me, with a dream and the commitment to work hard, can build a business that is solid, rewarding, and serves its customers well. Sell My Timeshare NOW was little more than a great idea four years ago. Today, we provide the livelihood for nearly 100 people in Dover, New Hampshire; Orlando, Florida, and a few other venues across the US.

I am thankful that some very talented and hardworking people have committed their skills, wisdom, and work hours to helping me build and grow Sell My Timeshare NOW. The people with whom I work are not just employees and friends—they are my extended family.

And finally I am thankful that I live in a country where my vote counts, and where I am not only permitted the privilege of voting, but I have the right to speak out about how I vote, why I vote, and even tell others how I think they should vote. Everyone from Hollywood to Hoboken is free to express their opinions in this country and the rest of us are equally free to listen to them or ignore them as we see best. That’s an incredible amount of freedom. It’s proven to be one worth fighting for, one worth dying for, and absolutely one worth being thankful for.

Have a wonderful holiday and please take time to reflect on all the reasons you have for giving thanks.

I can’t think of a better day of the year to write about Boston timeshare resorts and timeshares in the area around Salem, Massachusetts.

In case you have forgotten that page in American history, witch-hunting hysteria reached its peak in the US in 1692, in the city of Salem, MA. About 20 people—men as well as women—living in the area around Salem were either hanged or stoned as witches, while hundreds of others were imprisoned, suspected of witchcraft.

I presume the only witches you will run into today in that charming corner of New England will be wearing costumes and face paint and thrusting out open bags or plastic pumpkins, demanding treats. The fact is, any day of the year is a fun time to visit Salem; the city has done an excellent job turning it’s illustrious past into tourism dollars. But if you ever have the chance to spend Halloween (or any time in October) in Salem, you are in for a special treat.

From candlelight ghost tours to nightly cemetery visits, the city of Salem pulls out all the stops to celebrate a haunted Halloween.

And for taking advantage of one of the best Halloween celebrations in the country, a Boston timeshare is the perfect unhaunted place to relax.

Last week, Timeshare Perspective Magazine won the Innovative Marketing Award at OTE. Awarded during the European Timeshare Business Forum 2007, the voting process included some four hundred representatives of the European Timeshare Industry.

Great job Timeshare Perspective! Your magazine is barely 2 years old yet you have already carved out your spot in the world of timesharing with your fabulous layout, timely news, and reliable content.

Timeshare Perspective Magazine has grown from 300 subscribers in 2005, to more than 5,000 subscribers today, with thousands more people reading the magazine online. But according to Paul Mattimoe, president and CEO of Perspective International Ltd., “This is only the beginning…”

Sharon Mattimoe, co-creator of the magazine and chief operations officer says, “We know our regular advertisers like what we do, but to have a large proportion of the European Industry also vote for us, lets us know that we are on the right track for the future and delivering what we set out to deliver-a credible independently global B2B industry magazine.”

Congratulations from all of us at Sell My Timeshare NOW and the Timeshare Owners Blog.

In yesterday’s Timeshare Owners Blog, I mentioned the use of Segways at theme parks, and the current battle over this issue in Orlando.

If you have physical challenges, you probably already know a good deal about the Americans with Disabilities Act, (ADA). The law was passed in 1990, and implemented in 1992. It was written to protect the rights of anyone with physical limitations or disabilities. The Fair Housing Amendments Act (FHAA), (and several state law counterparts of the ADA) help to further define the terms of public accessibility.

US timeshare resorts constructed after January 1993, should fully comply with the ADA and offer timeshare units that are handicap accessible. They must also offer handicap accessibility to the facilities and amenities of the resort.

Timeshares for use by people with disabilities must be sold or rented at the same rate or price a timeshare owner or timeshare guest would pay for a comparable timeshare unit at the same resort. Even though the extra features in a handicap accessible timeshare unit add to the construction cost of the timeshare, these costs cannot be passed on to the individual.

However, even at resorts constructed after 1993, the number of specially equipped timeshare units is limited, so if you require a handicap accessible timeshare unit, the further in advance you make your vacation plans, the more likely you are to be able to reserve a unit that meets your needs.

Timeshare resorts built prior to 1993, must comply with the law through the: (1) the removal of architectural barriers and, (2) the provision of auxiliary aids and services to the disabled. Remember that interpretation of this law can vary from resort to resort, and to some degree can only be applied on a case-by-case basis. Certain facilities at some timeshare resorts simply cannot be adequately changed or retrofitted for complete accessibility by everyone.

To learn more about the Americans with Disabilities Act, visit the website for the Department of Justice in Washington, DC. To learn more about the options to buy timeshare, sell timeshare or rent timeshare, visit the website for Sell My Timeshare NOW.

Last week, SeacoastOnline ran an article about Sell My Timeshare NOW. Here’s part of what they had to say about us, “Sell My Timeshare NOW is among the many Internet-based companies speaking out loudly about the Nov. 1 expiration of the Internet access tax moratorium.

…Although the company has a storefront at its Dover corporate office, it primarily reaches its customers via the Internet. Last year, SellMyTimeshareNOW.com presented over $233 million to timeshare owners who wanted to sell timeshare or rent timeshare they no longer used. An Internet access tax could hit this timeshare resales and rentals company with a double-whammy, subjecting it to new taxes while also adding new taxes on the company’s customers who need Internet access to reach it.”

The article captures our feelings precisely here at Sell My Timeshare NOW. As businesspeople and as individual consumers, we don’t want to pay taxes for internet access. We don’t think you want to either.

On Thursday, Sept 27, Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee Chairman Daniel Inouye, a Hawaii Democrat, pulled the Internet Tax Freedom Extension Act from a list of bills scheduled to be amended and approved that day. Inouye was quoted by Grant Gross of IDG News Service, as saying, "further negotiations are warranted."

You will probably never have an opportunity to get all those existing taxes removed from your phone bill and other communications services, but here’s a chance to speak out and put a stop to the internet access tax before the current moratorium expires.

Are you ready to start paying taxes for surfing the net?

How about a tax when you send or receive e-mail messages on your cell phone?

Or taxes because you are a telecommuter, who saves the planet a little bit every day by being one less automobile on the highway during rush hour.

Sell My Timeshare NOW doesn’t think much of the idea either.

Currently, a ban exists that (1) prohibits taxation of internet access; (2) prohibits double taxation (which is taxation by two or more states or entities on a product or service bought over the internet); and (3) prohibits discriminatory taxes that treat internet purchases differently from other types of sales.

The moratorium, or ban on an internet tax has been in place since 1998. In 2004, Congress extended the ban. But on November 1, 2007, that ban expires.

According to a Reuters news article, “Internet service providers say the price of internet access could rise by as much as 17 percent if the moratorium on state taxes were allowed to expire.”

Most of us recognize that the internet is the most powerful communication and education tool in the world and has potentials that we have only just begun to tap. Because of internet access, you have at your fingertips, an instant connection to news, health information, financial resources, global research, friends, family, strangers, and the vast worlds of sports and entertainment. No one is too geographically isolated, too time-constricted, or too young, old, or impaired to benefit from the endless fountain of renewable information that flows not minute by minute but nanosecond by nanosecond via the world wide web.

The internet brings you images of natural disaster on the other side of the globe, videos of your grandchild sent moments after her birth, and vital information your doctor needs to accurately diagnose your illness.

Why would anyone think it is a good idea to make internet access more complicated, more costly, or even inaccessible?

If this issue matters to you, contact your United States Senator or representative to Congress and speak up. Urge him or her to do more than reinstate the moratorium. Let’s ban this tax permanently.

You may recall that last week I shared with you the fact that Sell My Timeshare Now is celebrating our fourth year in business.

In our Timeshare Owners Blog I told you that we now have four years of incredible hard work and incredible company growth behind us. Today we are the leader in helping people who want to sell timeshare connect with those who want to buy timeshare or rent timeshare.

It’s been an amazing four years. Even though we are also a bricks and mortar business, most people come to Sell My Timeshare NOW via the internet.

We keep our internet strategists working in high gear to stay on top of the best ways to make it easy and efficient for timeshare owners to sell timeshare and for people who are ready to start enjoying great vacation deals to buy timeshare resales.

The photo of me cutting the company “birthday” cake proves that we do occasionally take a little time off to celebrate our accomplishments.

I am also adding a You-Tube video that has nothing to do with the Sell My Timeshare NOW celebration, but is one of the most remarkable things I have ever seen. This video will give you a whole new perspective on where computers are taking all of us.

The video is a little long - about 6 minutes - but I encourage you to watch it. Stay with it all the way to the end. It will have you thinking about internet-based businesses in a whole new way.

Did you notice anything different about the Timeshare Owners Blog last week?

Our goal with the blog has always been to bring you news, advice, insights, and opinions about the timeshare business and timeshare resale industry. We want the Timeshare Owners Blog to be a place you come, not only when you want to buy timeshare or sell timeshare, but when you want to learn more about the opportunities of timeshare rental, timeshare resorts, and the range of opportunities and options associated with vacation ownership.

If you are a regular reader of the Timeshare Owners Blog, you know that we don’t just write about timeshares only, but we also provide you meaningful news about travel, vacationing, and the hotel and leisure industries, as well. And none of this will be changing at the Timeshare Owners Blog!

What has changed is that we have started bringing you the timeshare vacation news—not just four times per week—but now on a five and often six-times per week schedule.

You can expect to learn more about all that’s good (and not so good) about timeshare sales, timeshare exchange, timeshare promotion, and generally what’s hot and what’s not in this business. Along with the industry news, we will go on sharing travel tips, and talking about real estate, sports, social trends, weather, and current events that we know are also on your mind and part of your life.

When I started writing the Timeshare Owners Blog, now more than two years ago, our company, Sell My Timeshare NOW was still very new. And while I founded this company because I a saw a genuine need to help improve and expand the way people buy, rent and sell timeshare, I don’t know that I ever realized how responsive and enthusiastic people would be to both our business and our blog.

Thank you to the thousands of readers who visit our blog each week. Your readership tells us that you like what we are doing. So in response, we are now providing you more timeshare news and timeshare views, more often. And more reasons to read the Timeshare Owners Blog!