Steve Young Comments On Ultimate Escapes Membership

By: Destination Club News
Date: May 13, 2010

To most, Steve Young is known as a three time Super Bowl Champion, two time NFL MVP, and Hall of Fame quarterback. To Ultimate Escapes Chairman Richard Keith, he is also a friend and long-time club member. The two recently got together in one of the club's two penthouses at 1600 Broadway in New York to discuss Young's take on the destination club experience now that he has been with the club since 2005, just months prior to his Hall of Fame induction.

"My experience has been pretty flawless to be honest with you," remarks Young regarding his time with the world's second largest destination club. "We put you to the test. We come and go very quickly and we don't always plan six months in advance. It is always helpful when you can but when you look short term, (Ultimate Escapes) has always been able to work with me. We turn things very quickly. We move with our family. We have kids and adults and other groups and friends and the accommodations continually are being tested by different ways I do that."

"I would be the perfect guy to see the breadth and width of what you guys do. I say that because I am grateful," Young adds. "I think you take it as a challenge and something that you enjoy meeting. That is what I have enjoyed over the past few years. Being one of those guys that doesn't mean to be such a challenge, ends up being that way, and it is fun to see that you have met that in spades, including this trip as we sit here today."

As touched on by Young, destination club members have access to a collection of vacation properties around the world. This surplus of residences allows travelers to make reservations far in advance or just days prior to departing. Intentionally underutilized, most properties are vacant roughly 30% of the time, unlike timeshares that approach 100% occupancy.

Young would also go on to comment on the services provided while in residence, speaking of the New York local host taking them down to Times Square and providing an insider's perspective to the destination. "That's the experience," he notes.

The combination of an on-staff travel planner to assist members with their pre-travel needs, including generating itineraries and making airline reservations, and a local host who stocks the properties with requested grocery items and remains on-call for any in residence needs, is one of the reasons that nearly all clubs receive satisfaction scores well over the 90% threshold.

The destination club industry counts several thousand members and billions in real estate holdings, but the concept is still unknown to most affluent travelers. If you would like to learn more about the benefits and risks of membership, request a complimentary copy of our Destination Club Guide.