March 1, 2021

PBV Updates – February 2021

paradise

Dear Members,

In order to keep our members current on Resort issues, starting this month, we will have a weekly “briefing”. If there are any significant changes or nothing new to report, we will advise accordingly. With this in mind, this update will double as the basis for this week’s Resort update and also the February monthly review.

The renovations of the rooms on the third floor of Phase 1 and the hallway are finished and pictures have been posted on our website (check the pictures in the model room section on the Home page) There are still some small details to be finished, but the rooms are being used by our Members and Guests already and the feedback has been extremely positive.

Preparations are underway for the renovations of the second floor and hallway of Phase 1 and as soon as we have a definite start date, it will be shared.

Many members had been asking about the future of Chalet Suisse – a restaurant much loved by our Members – and the latest information is that it will re-open on Monday, March 8th, 2021.

On Thursday, February 16, 2021, Aruba received its first shipment of 11,700 vaccines. Aruba is first focusing on Health Care workers and 60+ people with a medical condition first and after that, the rest of Aruba will have access to the vaccination which is on voluntary basis.

In an effort to make it easier for our guests to get a test before returning home – especially residents of or intransit through the USA, Aruba has established multiple test centers in Resorts or close to the tourist centers of the island. For our Paradise Beach Villas members, the closest test center is at La Cabana, right next door. For other test sites and their opening hours, please click on the following link: https://www.aruba.com/us/traveler-health-requirements/covid-test-in-aruba

COVID-19 Curfew still in effect, as are the standard safety rules: Mask, Wash, Distance! and even though the vaccine has reached Aruba, keep in mind that all the COVID-19 Safety Rules are still in effect: Wear a mask, wash your hands as often as possible and keep your social distance of at least 6 feet.

Starting in the month of February, we increased the number of our social media posts to be more in touch with our members – many of whom who are not able to travel as yet. Hope you enjoy them.

Related to communication with our members, while Facebook and other similar social media platforms are good tools for certain types of public messaging, some information requires a different and more targeted approach. In this regard, we are pleased to advise that by mid-March, we will announce the details of how shareholders and members of Paradise Beach Villas can access a secure section on our website where we will post items of specific interest for them.

For members from week #11 to week #27 in 2020, whose travel plans were curtailed because Aruba’s was closed to visitors, we were able to offer up to 2023 for affected members to redeem those weeks. There was a total of 1800 weeks involved and at the end of 2020, 9 weeks were redeemed. For 2021, we currently have only 60 weeks confirmed by members who were affected. As you can see, this is only 69 weeks and, if this present pace continues, there will be enormous pressure to satisfy the remaining 1700 plus weeks in 2022 and 2023. We understand that COVID-19 situation is still uncertain but if you are able, we want to encourage you to use your redeemed week as soon as possible to get rid of the backlog.

Best regards from the Paradise team and stay safe until we can welcome you again at the Resort.

Dear members,

Following up on the report involving the issues with the occupants of room 127 over the weekend, this is a report.

First and foremost, we extend a sincere apology to the members who were negatively affected by the nuisance caused by the occupants of #127 over the weekend and ask that you communicate to myself or Freddy if there are any additional observations or comments. In the process of this investigation, we interviewed the Security staff who were on duty, looked at call logs and spoke to other staff members and resident guests and following are our findings:

• The Resort has always rented vacant rooms in an effort to generate additional income. This is the normal practice by our sister Timeshare Resorts and, in the present COVID-19 economic downturn, any additional revenues that can be generated is very welcome.
• It was found that Security on duty was at fault and, when their efforts to control the behavior of the occupants of #127 and their invitees proved unsuccessful, they should have immediately contacted Walter, who is in charge of Security. This happened only after the situation had worsened.
• The occupants were indeed local renters who booked the room via a call to our Reservations Department.
• Because of their behavior, they have been permanently prohibited from returning to Paradise Beach Villas in the future.
• There was no damage to the room or its contents.
• The Police could and should have been called since the COVID-19 regulations controlling the amount of persons congregating in a public place and possible violation of the curfew were also in play.

We have rules and regulations governing the behavior of our in-house guests – which includes members, guests, renters and exchangers – which were not followed and for this we sincerely apologize. Our shortcomings have been addressed with the Security staff concerned and the appropriate disciplinary action will be taken. We will also include additional training on how to handle similar incidents should they arise in the future. If the Security staff on duty had performed appropriately, this matter would never had escalated to the level that it eventually reached.

It should be clear that this action is not targeted at local members because for many years, we have Aruban owners and Aruban nationals who rent annually, who abide by our rules and do not cause a nuisance to other Resort residents or staff. The behavior of these specific individuals go against our House rules which are applicable to ALL patrons of Paradise Beach Villas.

Once again, please accept our sincere apologies for this lapse in our procedures which are being reviewed for further controls specifically as they relate to non-members.

The Management