In the airline industry, a tailwind is a good thing. A tailwind generally helps an aircraft get to its destination smoothly and often ahead of schedule. Mark Waltrip, chief operating officer of Westgate Resorts, likens his company’s timeshare success to a pair of tailwinds.
“The renewed emphasis on experiences over consumer goods and the upcoming generation’s willingness to embrace the sharing economy,’’ Waltrip said.
“Timeshare is the original sharing economy. Today it’s not uncommon to see people sharing cars and all sorts of items that a decade ago would have seemed out of place. But now people recognize the value in having wonderful experiences and access to things, but only paying for the portion they use and sharing the rest of the expense with others. We believe that puts the industry in a great place looking forward. We are incredibly bullish on the future of this industry.’’
Orlando-based Westgate Resorts is at the forefront of that industry. The largest privately held timeshare company in the world and one of the largest resort developers in the U.S., Westgate Resorts, founded in 1982 by David Siegel, the company has seven Orlando resorts and 22 themed destination resorts nationwide. Its portfolio includes more than 14,000 luxury villas and hotel rooms popular vacation destinations such as Orlando and Cocoa Beach, FL; New York City; Park City, Utah; Las Vegas; Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, TN; Myrtle Beach, S.C; Williamsburg, VA; Branson, MO; and Mesa, AZ.
“We like to say that we have a diverse set of experiences that we offer, but we also offer a consistent level of service and quality,’’ Waltrip said.
In 2022, the company launched the World of Westgate (WOW) Loyalty Program, an exclusive program that rewards Westgate owners and hotel guests with perks and privileges at no added cost.
“Each of our resorts is focused on creating a unique experience that is authentic to the location,’’ Waltrip said. “When you visit Westgate River Ranch (near Cocoa Beach), you experience being a Florida cowboy or cowgirl. At Westgate Smoky Mountain, the log cabins and scenic vistas should give you the feeling of staying inside a national park. In Vegas, we want guests to feel as though they have the glitz and amenities of a large Las Vegas casino resort, but with the friendliness and approachability of a small boutique property.
“Our goal is to immerse our owners and guests in the uniqueness of the city or place that they are visiting.’’
How do Westgate timeshares differ from the competition?
“First, we focus on theming our resorts from the daily activities programming to the initial resort design and the costuming our Team Members wear,’’ Waltrip said. “We load our properties with amenities such as water parks, restaurants, walking paths and as many experiences as we can. When the planning process is done our goal is to ensure that a guest can visit for a week and not have enough time to experience everything we’ve created for them to enjoy. Second, we tend to build large villas with units as large as five and six bedrooms with the hopes that families will travel and vacation together. Many families’ best memories are on vacation and our goal is to create the villas that create that opportunity.’’
The company continues to look for opportunities. Waltrip said Westgate has already committed to “significant expansion’’ in the Smoky Mountains with several new buildings commencing construction in early 2023. This month the company will complete a $50 million renovation of our East Tower at Westgate Las Vegas.
“I think it’s fair to say we have plans to continue future development in all three of those markets. There are a number of destinations and places we are looking at we have completed extensive due diligence and are in the planning stages.
“We believe our company is positioned extremely well for the surge leisure travel demand. We know that in 2023 consumers will continue to travel, but will look for value in the dollars they and our spacious villa-style accommodations make us ideally suited for vacationing families. Since 2020 we’ve invested hundreds of millions of dollars into the quality of our product, enhanced resort amenities and technology to make the Westgate experience even easier.’’
Photo Courtesy of Westgate Resorts
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