Destination clubs, residence funds and luxury travel clubs provide their members with access to multiple luxury vacation homes, located all over the world. The homes are typically multi-million dollar residences, and are sited in major cities, at beaches, in mountains and leisure locations.
Membership of the clubs is an alternative to buying a second home. The clubs are sometimes also compared to, or even mixed up with, private residence clubs, but there are several key differences between the two.
If you're just starting out learning about the clubs and funds read the overview and the glossary. Then you can start to compare them in the comparison table. One way to financially compare them is using a cost per night calculation and we've provided downloadable spreadsheets for these calculations. Here are the top reasons to join a club, but they are not for everybody and here are the reasons not to join.
And for a real in-depth look at the clubs, their homes and services, comparisons to alternatives and questions to consider before joining, download our Guide for Prospective Members.
The map shows some of the main destinations where the clubs have homes. Click on the markers to see the actual homes.
The latest news and research on the clubs is included below.
The new Equity Platinum Fund will acquire 20 luxury vacation residences, each with a value between $2 million and $3 million. Some of the target locations for the new fund include Cabo San Lucas, the Bahamas, Deer Valley, Hawaii and West Palm Beach.
It's been a while since we saw some details on the types of people joining destination clubs. So we recently reached out to several clubs to get a picture of the sort of people who are becoming members. Here's a run-down on the answers that we received, together with some earlier data.
As a Luxury Residence Fund, Equity Estates is different from some other destination clubs. Members of the club are actual investor-owners in the properties that they visit, so the concierges are responsible for both the travelers and the homes. As a result, the concierges hold a dual title of Personal Travel Concierge and Destination Manager. Regular responsibilities include budget management, handling repairs, maintenance, and improvements, as well as coordinating the specific needs of each traveler.
Our downloadable guide, "Destination Clubs: A Guide for Prospective Members" is now in it's eighth annual edition. This free, in-depth report explains the features and benefits of destination clubs, reviews the industry's leading destination club companies, and is a valuable tool designed to help prospective members make an educated assessment about joining a club. With the evolution of these companies, including several new destination clubs, as well as new programs and services, the newly updated guide is a must-have for all luxury travelers.
Of all of the benefits of destination club membership, one of the most intangible is the services provided by the club concierges. Available to assist with just about any request that members have, these concierges have fulfilled many ordinary and extraordinary requests throughout the years. Destination M, a Canadian equity destination club, offers private concierges they call Mbassadors. These Mbassadors have extensive knowledge of the local area and are available to help with virtually any and all members' requests.
Recognizing the trend toward "glamping" (glamorous camping), Exclusive Resorts has announced a strategic partnership with Airstream 2 Go, offering fully-outfitted Airstream trailer rentals including GMC Yukon Denali tow vehicles.
Inspirato, which has just reached under 8,000 members, recently announced that they have secured an additional $20 million in growth financing. The funding, which was raised from new investor W Capital Partners and existing investors Institutional Venture Partners and Millennium Technology Value Partners brings the total funding raised by Inspirato to $70 million.
After selling out its first fund, Premiere I, last year the equity destination club has launched a new fund which is buying $1m+ vacation homes for its owner members.
Inspirato with American Express, a destination club with more than 6,200 members, has just added 17 vacation options to their signature collection. The signature collection includes Signature Residences, Signature Stays, Signature Experiences, and Signature Tickets, and the 17 new offerings span all four categories.
This equity destination club has a very strong investment focus, in which it buys distressed vacation properties, and revamps them to add value. The fund has just bought two new homes in Florida and Hawaii.
Destination club Inspirato with American Express has grown very rapidly since its launch in 2011. Its members have exclusive access to a collection of luxury vacation homes and can participate in members-only experiences and VIP events. SherpaReport talked to founder and CEO Brent Handler.
Rocksure is launching two new US funds. The Manhattan fund will buy apartments in New York City and the Liberty fund will buy apartments in 6 US cities. Investors in the funds can use the apartments during the life of the funds.
When deciding whether or not to join a destination club, prospective members often compare investing in a second home, to purchasing a destination club membership. For many years, SherpaReport has been hearing the reasons travelers choose to join these clubs rather than buying a second home. A new study by Exclusive Resorts shows a similar set of results.
This Calgary based equity destination club is unique, in that it is the only club owned and managed by its member shareholders. M's board of directors is comprised of M shareholders who over see the strategic, tactical and financial direction of the club. SherpaReport recently caught up with General Manager John Beckel.
The luxury residence fund, or equity destination club, Equity Estates launched its second fund last year. We caught up with founder and CEO Philip Mekelburg to talk through the funds and what it means to be an investor in Equity Estates.
Quintess Collection, a leading destination club, is celebrating their 10-year anniversary by announcing additional special partnerships, more luxury residences, and unique adventures.
One of the largest destination clubs, Exclusive Resorts, has recently started to allow members to resell a portion of their memberships. This change was one of a group of enhancements that the club introduced earlier this year as part of its 10th anniversary.
We are launching a new series of interviews with executives from various destination clubs. Our first interview is with Rob Vaka, Chief Giving Officer of G2G Collection. While G2G Collection was founded in 2013, Rob was previously with Equity Estates.
The Canadian equity destination club has just acquired two 3,000 square foot, three-bedroom homes in The Rocks Luxury Residence Club in North Scottsdale, Arizona.
For the members of the equity destination club, Equity Residences, there are now dozens of new destinations to choose from. The clubs homes join the global network of luxury residences in Elite Alliance. This includes destinations around the world, such as Napa Valley - California, Florence - Italy, Southampton – Bermuda, Great Exuma – Bahamas, Cabo San Lucas – Mexico, Deer Valley – Utah, La Quinta – California and Sedona – Arizona.
Destination club Exclusive Resorts has recently expanded their Gateway travel card to members in the United States. Previously available only in Canada, Gateway is similar in structure to a jet card. The Gateway Card offers travelers the option to purchase from three to twenty-one travel days over a three-year period. The travel options include the entire portfolio of Exclusive Resorts' homes - over three hundred, multimillion-dollar homes with two to five bedrooms in seventy-five different destinations.
Both of these UK based clubs have continued to grow and expand over the last few years. Both offer fully serviced vacations at luxury villas, residences and city apartments. So how do they compare to each other? Read on....