View from our balcony & outdoor tables

Last winter my family invited me to come stay with them in the Marriott Plaza Andaluza, a vacation club resort in Spain.

Besides its location, what I loved most about it was the inclusive property details and furnishings. This is the sort of resort that caters to the large family on vacation as much as they cater to the romantic couples. There are many white hill towns to see and coastal areas to explore, this location worked perfectly for sight-seeing in Southern Spain.

There are multiple outdoor pools of differing sizes and styles. One we walked by was clearly meant for watching over the little ones, while another was set back from the beach front and overflowing with beach chairs pointing directly into the sunlight, perfect for sunbathing. Read More »

The Colony Beach and Tennis Resort on Florida’s Longboat Key announced this week that the resort will close on Sunday, September 27, 2009. Water and power will be shut off to the 237 condo hotel units, the pool will be closed, housekeeping will cease, tennis courts will be inaccessible, and there will be no front desk service or maintenance services. The only exception will be the resort’s restaurant and a few units owned by members of the Klauber family, which took over the resort from original developers in 1972.

Aerial view of the Colony Beach and Tennis Resort

Each of the units were originally sold as fractional ownership, with owners buying a 1/12 share that allowed them to use the units for 30 days each year. Time not used by owners was placed in a pool and rented to the general public by the resort management company, which was paid a management fee by the condominium association. Over the years, the management company spent millions of dollars to maintain and restore the facilities of the resort. In better times, the firm apparently Read More »