Poconos Picks?

[longtimer Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close longtimer]

We live about on hour away from the Poconos and would love to have a TS that's close by for a quick get away during the summer months. 20 years ago, when we first started looking at TS, all the Poconos resorts had a very bad reputation, so we stayed away. I've heard that many are now in disrepair. Does anyone out there own in the Poconos? Any recommendations out there? For those of you who are happy with their TS, what are the maintenance fees like? Thanks so much for all of your help and suggestions!
PS - Our alternative is to purchase a vacation home. However, I hate to have a place that's going to be vacant for the bulk of the year, other than an extra weekend getaway once in a while.

[wackymother Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close wackymother]

I don't own in the Poconos, but we've vacationed there many times. Definitely, definitely, DEFINITELY do an exchange into the resort you're thinking of buying BEFORE you buy. In some areas you can buy sight unseen; not in the Poconos.

That said, the 3brs at Villas at Fairway are supposed to be spectacular. I've never stayed in one myself. They are supposed to be way above the quality of the 2brs, 1brs, and studios there and at Villas at Treetops. Supposed to be a lot of good activities there, too.

At Shawnee, the nicest units are Ridge Top Summit 2brs. I think there are also some Presidential units just coming online there, too, which are supposed to be nice. Lots of pools, indoor and out, and lots of activities. What I like about Shawnee is that there are lots of older original owners, which gives it a little bit of a clubby quality. I don't know if they still do it, but they used to have a karaoke night every week and owners would come from miles around to sing and see their friends.

A place we like very much is Quail Hollow Village, which is out in Drums (the far western part of the Poconos). Large, comfortable, clean units looking out over a beautiful lake. Very relaxing, more of a natural feel than Shawnee. No amenities to speak of, though--a small indoor pool and a lake beach and boat rentals, and that's about it.

If you do buy, be sure to get the reddest of red seasons, either high summer or a very solid ski week like week 52 or week 7.

HTH!

[bookworm Member Find all posts View Profile Close bookworm]

We've stayed in several places. At this point I would recommend Willowbrook at Lake Harmony. The two bedrooms can be split into two one bedrooms. The location is good, the units are very nice and there is a lot to do on property. The activity program has many options. I've seen them for sale and the MFs were very reasonable, especially for a lockoff that could become two individual weeks. These units are plentiful in II and I have never had trouble exchanging in. We will be there in late June.

A second, almost equal, choice would be Wyndham points which can be used to book the brand new units just built at Shawnee. This is a great option if you want to go for 3 or 4 nights during high season or 2+ nights in the off season. I used a small handful of points to book four nights for April spring break week. The flexibility is great and the pictures look nice. We will be seeing the real thing shortly. The only downside is it does require a fairly large number of points for high season (eg. summer) for an entire week in a two bedroom. The MFs on this would be higher than Willowbrook. Plus, there are limited numbers of units open at this point and reservations go very fast. You can use Wyndham points from any resort, but the preference period for those owning directly at Shawnee can make it difficult for anyone else to reserve the most prime weeks (eg. 26 or 52). So far we haven't had a problem, but we had to book 10 months out.

[wackymother Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close wackymother]

We've stayed in several places. At this point I would recommend Willowbrook at Lake Harmony. The two bedrooms can be split into two one bedrooms. The location is good, the units are very nice and there is a lot to do on property. The activity program has many options. I've seen them for sale and the MFs were very reasonable, especially for a lockoff that could become two individual weeks. These units are plentiful in II and I have never had trouble exchanging in. We will be there in late June.

I forgot about Split Rock! Bookworm, can you explain about the different areas there and what you think about them? The Galleria and another (older) area (I can't remember the name) exchange through RCI; Willowbrook exchanges through II.

[longtimer Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close longtimer]

Thanks for all your suggestions. Before we even consider another TS, we will probably stay a night or two at some of these places to see what they are like and what they have to offer.