Officials of the renowned resort company announced last week that the planned two-tower 550-room expansion at The Hilton Hawaiian Village will be entirely timeshare units. Shared vacation ownership has become a fast-growing sector of the lodging industry.
The move comes at the heels of the success of the Grand Waikikian Tower, a timeshare projected completed in 2008 inside the Hilton Hawaiian Village. With the Waikikian tower having recently surpassed USD 1 billion in sales, officials believe it is only logical to look into getting more timeshare opportunities while the demand remains strong.
At a news conference announcing the project, Hilton’s Senior Vice President of Development for America Ted Middleton said, "This expansion will give us enough product to sell well into the next decade."
The first tower, a 37-story building with 300 units, will be built on the site of a bus-loading area along Kalia Road. Construction is slated to begin in 2013. Meanwhile, construction on the second tower, a 25-story, 250-room building on the site of the current shopping area beside the resort's parking garage, is projected to start five years later. Swimming pools and retail space will also be included in the two towers.
In recent years, hotel companies have been adjusting their room mix to include a larger share of timeshare units. Shared vacation ownership memberships give hotels higher occupancy rates, and therefore a more steady revenue stream, even during off seasons, because these units are prepaid.
Similarly, the Disney resort being constructed at the Ko Olina Resort will have a combination of 480 shared ownership units and 350 traditional hotel rooms. Kyo-ya Hotels & Resorts says the refurbishment of the Princess Kaiulani Hotel in Waikiki will also have shared ownership units.
There has been a sharp rise in Hawaii’s shared vacation ownership industry over the past decade. From about 4,815 units in 2002, there are now more than 8,000 units today.
"Timeshare obviously is one of the growth areas for the state," said Joseph Toy, president and chief executive officer of Hospitality Advisors LLC, a local visitor industry consulting firm.
"Previously most of the timeshare inventory had been concentrated in Kaua'i, and indeed we're now seeing the expansion of the timeshare market to the other islands."
The move comes at the heels of the success of the Grand Waikikian Tower, a timeshare projected completed in 2008 inside the Hilton Hawaiian Village. With the Waikikian tower having recently surpassed USD 1 billion in sales, officials believe it is only logical to look into getting more timeshare opportunities while the demand remains strong.
At a news conference announcing the project, Hilton’s Senior Vice President of Development for America Ted Middleton said, "This expansion will give us enough product to sell well into the next decade."
The first tower, a 37-story building with 300 units, will be built on the site of a bus-loading area along Kalia Road. Construction is slated to begin in 2013. Meanwhile, construction on the second tower, a 25-story, 250-room building on the site of the current shopping area beside the resort's parking garage, is projected to start five years later. Swimming pools and retail space will also be included in the two towers.
In recent years, hotel companies have been adjusting their room mix to include a larger share of timeshare units. Shared vacation ownership memberships give hotels higher occupancy rates, and therefore a more steady revenue stream, even during off seasons, because these units are prepaid.
Similarly, the Disney resort being constructed at the Ko Olina Resort will have a combination of 480 shared ownership units and 350 traditional hotel rooms. Kyo-ya Hotels & Resorts says the refurbishment of the Princess Kaiulani Hotel in Waikiki will also have shared ownership units.
There has been a sharp rise in Hawaii’s shared vacation ownership industry over the past decade. From about 4,815 units in 2002, there are now more than 8,000 units today.
"Timeshare obviously is one of the growth areas for the state," said Joseph Toy, president and chief executive officer of Hospitality Advisors LLC, a local visitor industry consulting firm.
"Previously most of the timeshare inventory had been concentrated in Kaua'i, and indeed we're now seeing the expansion of the timeshare market to the other islands."
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