Villa Castellamonte del Mare, an exclusive five-star ultra-luxury villa in the Dominican Republic now has a reciprocity partnership agreement with Ultimate Escapes. Members of the destination club, will have exclusive reciprocity access to this 15,000 sq. ft., fully-staffed villa located high atop a sea cliff on the Dominican Republic's beautiful North Coast.

Villa Castellamonte is the most recent partner to participate in the Ultimate Escapes Reciprocity Program. The partners are affiliated developers and owners in participating five-star resorts, who commit weeks of use of their luxury residence in return for similar access to Ultimate Escapes' destinations. The other reciprocity partners include the Folio Collection properties on St John and St Barts and Capella Pedregal in Cabo san Lucas.

"We are excited to add yet another spectacular partner resort to the Ultimate Escapes Reciprocity Program," states Jim Tousignant, CEO of Ultimate Escapes. "Partnerships such as Villa Castellamonte enhance the choice of destinations and residences available to our members, and additionally provide our partners with a great benefit for their owners."

Located within the prestigious gated community of Orchid Bay Estates, Villa Castellamonte del Mare, or "little castle on the hill by the sea," has a unique beachfront location with sweeping 220-degree views of the Atlantic Ocean. Guets have access to every luxury service and amenity the North Coast of the Dominican Republic has to offer.

Designed to evoke "Tuscany in the Caribbean," Villa Castellamonte provides the ideal setting for romantic destination weddings, large family gatherings or corporate retreats. A full-time staff of butlers, chef, maids, laundresses, gardeners and security and maintenance professionals ensure every detail is handled. The expansive property accommodates up to 16 adults and features eight air-conditioned suites with en suite bathrooms, hand-painted frescos and murals, state-of-the-art audio-video systems, custom-designed gaming tables (billiards, poker, shuffleboard, foosball and more) and a fully equipped fitness center. Spacious terraces directly overlook the private pool, the manicured tropical gardens and the Atlantic Ocean.

Outside, the "zero-entry" swimming pool has a sunning peninsula, swim-through tunnel and diving rock. Additionally the property includes a PGA-quality, four-hole putting and chipping green (a full game can be enjoyed at the nearby Playa Grande Golf Course) and a special spa kiosk where guests can enjoy top-of-the-line spa treatments. Within the town of Cabrera, Villa Castellamonte is conveniently located near popular tourist destinations such as Cabarete, Sosua, Puerto Plata and Samana Bay.

"We are confident Ultimate Escapes' members will thoroughly enjoy access to Villa Castellamonte and our owners will love the flexibility and variety of Ultimate's portfolio of other beautiful homes in 45 resort destinations," states Jason Matthews, managing partner of Luxury Villa Collections, the owner of Villa Castellamonte. "We look forward to this being a very successful partnership for both parties."

The eight-bedroom/10-bath villa will be used by one Ultimate Escapes member family in its entirety per week it is reserved. The villa is also available for third party rentals and so provides an interesting financial comparison of joining a destination club compared to renting luxury villas. The rental rates vary from $18,200 to $37,500 per week plus a 12% gratuity fee. Ultimate Escapes memberships vary from initial fees of $70,000 and annual dues of $8,000 to $450,000 initial and $45,000 annual. Our earlier article compares destination clubs to second home ownership.

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