Wyndham Vacation Rentals adds Home Exchange to the offering
January 16, 2013 • By Wade
Home exchanges are a great option for cost effective family vacations. Expenses are nominal and you are saving thousands of dollars versus hotel rates. They come with lots of added amenities and offer lots of vacation options —from resort-style villas to ski condos, and swanky city lofts. It did not surprise me when RCI took notice and launched programs similar to a traditional home exchange.
Wyndham Vacation Rentals, part of the Wyndham Worldwide family of brands, launched Wyndham Home Exchange; a program that would allow “homeowners of vacation rental properties to trade weeks at their rental property for access to accommodations at more than 4,000 RCI affiliated resorts around the world.”
Wyndham clearly sees the growth of this segment and wants to be a part. Similar to our company 3RD HOME, the new Wyndham program administered by RCI, the world’s largest vacation exchange company, gives “Wyndham Vacation Rentals homeowners access to additional vacation options by allowing them to deposit unused weeks of their choosing at their rental property.”
It’s a way for owners of vacation homes to see the world and get added utility. That being said, I do believe that Wyndham will attract a different customer than 3RD HOME. They will appeal to vacation homeowners that perceive going to a timeshare as a good option for them. But, that is not necessarily the case for all second homeowners.
In short, Wyndham will attract a mass audience, probably not the luxury second homeowner, who wants to visit properties of the same caliber as their own, as well as host like-minded individuals.
All told, the fact that Wyndham is allowing vacation homeowners to exchange into RCI is further evidence of the value and growth of home exchange to second homeowners.
Wade Shealy
Founder, CEO, and Chairman
