TS Today - Creating a Vision for the Future of Vacation Ownership Issue #96 Nov/Dec, 2007 | Page 9

TimeSharing Today Page 9 Nov/Dec, 2007 Two Hawaii Exchanges on Kauai and Molokai By Linda and Wayne Sanders II, Akron, OH My wife and I decided to try one of the other exchange organizations that are periodically reviewed in TimeSharing Today magazine. Our home resort in Hawaii recently offered a low-cost lifetime membership in a company called Hawaii Time Share Exchange (HTSE), so we accepted their membership offer and set out to exchange for two weeks on different Hawaiian islands. When we called HTSE in August with our request for a week on each of Kauai and Molokai for the following summer, we were immediately given a one-bedroom at the Lawai Beach Resort on Kauai for our requested week in July, but nothing was available at the time on Molokai. Within a month, however, our request for Molokai was filled with a one-bedroom unit at Ke Nani Kai on the west end of the island. Those requests being filled so quickly in the very desirable Hawaiian Islands was a pleasant surprise after so many years of unfilled requests in II. We later upgraded to a two-bedroom unit on Molokai without too long of a wait. The Lawai Beach Resort is close to the well known resort area of Poipu on the south shore. Drive time from the airport varies between 20 and 45 minutes depending on the traffic. The Lawai Resort is comprised of three buildings of units, with each building having its own swimming pool. The resort faces the ocean, but is separated from the very small beach by a two-lane road. Our unit was typical of most one- bedroom timeshares. Our bedroom had a small sink in the room - a nice touch! There is a couch/bed in the living room to sleep two additional people. The bathroom had lots of shelf space; a closet off the hallway held a washer and dryer. There is no air conditioning, however, but it is rarely needed. Opening the transoms above the entry door or in the bedroom, and opening either the sliding doors onto the lanai or the transoms above the sliders creates a cooling breeze in the unit. Our unit overlooked the pool, which created noise from both the people swimming and the waterfall in the pool. This noise drowned out the much more pleasant sound of the ocean, but the waterfall was turned off at night. Other noise came from the ubiquitous wild chickens and roosters which populate the island. Every morning at 6:00 you can count on being awakened by the “residents.” This cityboy didn’t appreciate that on his vacation. The resort has a much-needed parking deck, and on the top of the deck are a Kalalau Valley on Kauai cafe, small gym, miniature golf and tennis courts. The lobby has a small general store with just the necessities, but many grocery stores are within a mile. Across the street from the Lawai is the upscale Beach House Restaurant, which we tried once for a sunset view over dinner. The morning of our first full day on the island, the resort hosted an orientation breakfast with a very informative discussion on what to do on the island. Before the discussion, each guest was given a list of activities that would be discussed. During the discussion, guests checked any activity they would like www.tstoday.com for back issues, message boards, Resale Value Tracker and much more