KevinS
Reged: 07/23/03
Posts: 3406
Loc: Boston
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Thanksgiving has always been, in my view, a sweetspot on SBH - late enough to avoid most of the hurricane risk, low season rates, a holiday for which I have no obligations, and close enough to Winter to count as a Winter vacation.
As someone who has moved beyond groups and group-villas, I usually travel only with my wife, or occasionally am additional friend. I am used to the practice of renting a multi-bedroom villa at a less-than-multi-bedroom rate if I only need a fewer number of bedrooms - often a great deal.
I have rented through WIMCO/Sibarth since 198Iforget. I have been on SBH for Thanksgiving every year since, with the exception of 1999, the year of the fortuitously-timed Le Select Jubilee, which brought me in (and out) before the Thanksgiving hurricane.
This year I am unusually late in planning a Thanksgiving trip. Upon reviewing the WIMCO website, I was surprised to find a new phrase in every villa listing that I looked at - "No Breakdown Over Thanksgiving". Upon calling WIMCO, I discovered that the phrase means that you pay the maximum rate for the villa - if it is a 3BR and you only need 2BR then you still pay the 3BR rate. If it is a 3BR and you only need 1BR then you still pay the 3BR rate.
I see a new 'Thanksgiving Season' being created here, which may well eliminate the 'Thanksgiving Sweetspot'. I will find a way to deal with the change, either by paying the money, shifting my travel dates, or renting different villas, but I'm not particularly happy.
I'm curious as to other renter's thoughts on this policy change - an attempt to move some the Christmas/New Years/high season season no-breakdown policies into the low season Thanksgiving period. I'm also curious as to whether or not other renters have pushed back and sought a waiver on this policy. Have other villa rental agencies implemented a similar policy?
Just curious...
Kevin
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gregb
Unregistered
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In researching wimco villas for an upcoming thanksgiving trip i noticed that some villas will not be rented on a breakdown basis for thanksgiving--i just assumed that this was always the case and not a new wimco trend that may be an attempt to create a new middle season pricing between the low and high season.
Wimco may indeed may be trying to raise villa prices for a new middle season with thanksging week as the testing ground to see if the higher pricing will stick--a long-time st barts visitor has reminded me that a while back wimco caught a lot of heat and resistance when highest season rates over xmas and new years were drastically increased, by 4 or 5 times.
I have not noticed that any other villa rental agencies currently impose a no-breakdown-rate over thanksgiving.
Edited by gregb (09/21/03 07:24 PM)
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Tom M
Reged: 02/03/03
Posts: 302
Loc: Cincinnati
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I'm going to be on the island from 11/20-12/2 staying at Villa Sunlight (a three bedroom villa), rented from St. Barts Properties, using one bedroom for the low season rate of $1,575/wk. So no change on their part.
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