Three largest timeshare companies Hilton Grand Vacations (HGV), Travel and Leisure. Marriott Vacations WorldwideEarnings for the first quarter have been reported. Together, the two companies generated nearly $2.85billion in revenue.
Four things we learned about their results
1. Marriott Tours and Hilton Spend More, T+L Spend More.
Hilton Grand Vacations and Travel and Leisure both reported an increase in average spending for guests during the first quarter despite the fact that fewer people went on sales tours.
For Hilton, that measure – called volume per guest – jumped 15% to more than $4,100, while tour volume fell 4%. Travel and Leisure’s volume per visitor rose 6% to $2,212. Tours fell 1%.
Travel and Leisure Chief Financial Officer Mike Hug The company said that it saw signs of recovery in the second quarter. Hug said that the company saw a year-over-year increase in tour numbers in March.
Marriott Vacations went the other way. The company increased its tours by 1% and reached nearly 98,000. Volume per guest dropped 4% to $3.979.
Half of the decline [was] Due to an increase in sales by first-time buyers, owner sales have declined over the past year,” said CFO Jason Marino.
2. First-time buyers are filling the gap
First-time buyers are increasing as the number of repeat timeshare owners declines.
Marriott’s first-time customer sales increased by 6%. CEO John Geller This shift is good for long-term system health, even though our reported [volume per guest] This quarter.”
Hilton reported that 25% of their sales were from new customers. This was made possible by the opening of a new resort on Hawaii in 2026 and the introduction of Bluegreen Vacations’ Max membership program for owners. Hilton acquired in January 2024.
“Our Max members have our highest satisfaction scores across every ownership tenure,” said CEO Mark Wang. “We now have over 215,000 members of Max, with Bluegreen adding nearly 13,000.”
Travel and Leisure was acquired by Wyndham in 2021. It said that 7% of its new owner tours were a result of the Wyndham partnership.
If you want to know more about this, please contact us. Michael Brown 65% new buyers were Gen Xers or Millennials. This is a good sign that the product has reached a younger audience.
3. Demand remains steady
Brown, however, said that the demand for vacations has not decreased. Travel and Leisure reported that owners were waiting longer before committing, and the average booking period had fallen from 130 days to 116, but Brown insisted there was no drop. Brown said that resort bookings increased as the third quarter progressed.
Hilton and Marriott both reported that the demand for bookings was stable. Hilton says bookings are ahead of last years for the next 6 months.
Wang stated that “while we are aware of the wider environment and news flow we have not yet seen any significant shifts in demand indicators.”
Marriott reported that resort occupancy in the third quarter surpassed 90%, and 35% out of 265,000 tour packages were already activated this year. Geller stated that owner arrivals are improving throughout the year.
4. Brand extensions, loyalty apps, and loyalty programs are doing more work
As in-person tours are increasingly difficult, timeshare companies are increasingly relying on digital tools as well as brand partnerships to maintain momentum.
Travel and Leisure stated that 71% of searches now result in bookings. That’s a 22% increase compared to their website.
Brown stated that “the Club Wyndham application has now been download by nearly 100,000 owners or about 20% of our Club Wyndham customer base.” This is an increase from the 40,000 downloads we reported when last reporting.
Hilton has expanded its Max program and opened new sales locations in Bass Pro Shops, Great Wolf Lodges, and Great Wolf Lodges. “We believe that these initiatives will support our EBITDA.” [earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization] Wang said that cash flow targets should be met regardless of macro-environment.
Marriott soon will let owners book almost all 9,000 Marriott Hotels using points. Geller said that “all these initiatives help drive higher satisfaction for our guests and owners while lowering costs.”
