Abstract
Many resort owners view the operation of their amenities as a necessary expense that must be incurred to improve the market-ability of the resort's rental program. In fact, a well-designed club-membership program can turn those amenities into a profit center instead of a loss leader. Recreation clubs have been incorporated successfully into several types of resorts, especially golf resorts, whereby club members pay for privileged access to the resort's facilities. A resort club can also be structured as a vacation club, whereby members can stay at the resort a certain number of days or weeks each year. The resort-club concept needs to be tailored to the particular resort and its locale; no single plan can be used for all resorts. Before planning a club-membership program, a careful analysis of the target market must be made. A program may be easy to implement and market in a residential-resort community, because the resident neighbors represent a readily exploitable market. As an example, the Boca Raton Resort and Club reorganized its club program with promising financial results.
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