In a new move among Destination Clubs, Exclusive Resorts has just opened its own members-only resort at Peninsula Papagayo on the north Pacific coast of Costa Rica. This exclusive peninsula offers a wealth of luxury amenities and access to Costa Rica's amazing wildlife.

Exclusive Resorts just announced an enhanced collection of services for its members. The services include travel assistance, premier rental car and air transportation access and medical advisory services.

The most popular article on the Wall Street Journal yesterday was the write up on the amicable split of Tim and Edra Blixseth. One afternoon, over a bottle of wine, they mutually agreed on who got what.

The Hideaways Club has just raised £15m ($29m) and is looking to purchase its initial properties across Europe. The locations under review include Spain, France, Italy, Morocco, Switzerland, Greece, Cyprus, and Crete. The plan is to buy properties in the $1.5m to $2m range.

With the announcement yesterday BelleHavens follows the trend in the Destination Club industry of having backing from a billionaire. In this case the funding comes from Ray L. Hunt and his Hunt Realty Corporation.

The continued consolidation in the Destination Club industry saw another merger last week, when Quintess combined with The Leading Residences of the World, to create a club with nearly 300 members and 49 homes in 26 destinations.

For new members who join before the end of 2006, BelleHavens is offering complimentary lifetime "Friends and Family Passport". The Passport allows members to offer their membership days to any friends and family, without the member being present and without any restrictions to immediate family members.

The membership levels being offered are shown in the table below:

Just when it looked like Tanner & Haley's members and properties were going to join up with Ultimate Resorts, along comes Joe Ricketts (founder of Ciel and Ameritrade) with a $108m offer. This is $10m more than last weeks offer from Ultimate Resorts. So it's going to be interesting to see where Tanner & Haley ends up.

Preeminent Global Experience, LP (PGE), the parent company for Ciel, is offering all Tanner & Haley members the opportunity to join Ciel, with Legendary Retreat Members receiving a membership with no membership deposit. PGE will also form a New Club for all the other T&H members.

These two clubs announced their merger today and have 10 homes valued at an average of $6 million each, plus a luxurious 90-foot motor yacht. They are very much at the super luxurious end of the Destination Club industry.

American Express cardmembers can now get up to one million membership rewards points when they join Exclusive Resorts. This recently announced special promotion runs through 31st January 2007 and the number of points varies with the membership level that you purchase. The one million level is awarded for an Elite Membership.

In another sign of the increasing transparency that's coming to the Destination Club industry, Lusso Collection announced today that all of the interests in its properties will be held by subsidiary LLCs owned 100 percent by the club.

Lusso is one of the clubs that is now highlighting it's annual independent audit and in addition provides members:

As the Destination Club industry consolidates, Ultimate Resort is buying most of the assets of Tanner & Haley, which filed for Chapter 11 about 4 months ago.

This is good news for the whole Destination Club sector and a tidy end to the bankruptcy filing. Tanner & Haley started the whole sector when they were launched in the late 1990s by Rob McGrath.

T&H members should be pleased that their club properties will keep going and that they will be offered membership in Ultimate Resort on special terms. The newly enlarged Ultimate Resort will be the second largest Destination Club behind Exclusive Resorts.

A new Destination Club has recently launched with a primary focus on the Asian market but also with properties in France, Italy and the UK. The Banyan Tree Private Collection has an initial joining fee of $120,000 and annual dues of $3,000, which give 7 days of usage. Members can then buy additional multiples to increase their days.

Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts, a niche resort developer and operator in Asia-Pacific is the manager of the Club. Members can currently use several villas at Banyan Resorts in Asia.