Diamond Resort Group is a privately owned company. Started in the late 70?s it began in Las Vegas with the Jockey Club which is now sold out but is still managed by the company and currently is one of two timeshares on the Las Vegas strip. Diamond the added to there arsenal of Las Vegas timeshares two more properties Polo Towers and Carriage house.
Diamond was started by Steven Cloobeck and is still currently held by him. As of now Diamond has in the works a new Vegas property in which the ground breaking should begin shortly and it will hopefully be completed in late 2004 early 2005 if everything goes as planned.
Diamond known for there world class service and decoration blew the competition out of the water in 2000 with the adding the villa?s at Polo. The Villa last year won a national award for interior design.
English: Night Panorama of the Las Vegas Strip, fe...
English: Las Vegas Strip Bellagio Caesar's Palace
English: Las Vegas StripThe Villas at Polo Towers. (Info found at TimeSharebeat.com) Security: The doors to the villas (they are heavy doors) have deadbolts that lock automatically (do NOT step outside without your key-card!) In addition, there is a privacy lock button on the door handle that you can push to lock out the master and guest key-cards. An in-room safe is available to keep your valuables secure, as well. AND there is no way anyone is going to be able to "balcony hop" from another unit to yours, so don't even worry about it.
In the living room of the 2-bdrm lock-off there is a BIG screen TV that is interactive. It utilizes an "ABC" system, wherein you press the A or B or C on the left side of the remote control to access a guide to Polo towers, the TV channels or movies/games and the internet (there is a remote control keyboard, complete with joystick). Way cool, and the picture is sharp, too. The same system, with more normal sized TVs, is installed in the master bedroom and the studio side of the lock-off.
Also, in both living room and the studio lock-off: a VCR, AM/FM radio/tape deck/CD player. Nice sound. You can bring your favorite music with you if you're so inclined.
Because little things mean a lot: the water pressure is very good. If you're an experienced traveler you know this can be important in lots of little ways. The shower works like a charm, with your favorite water temperature easily reached and maintained. And the whirlpool jets in the master bath's shower/tub will definitely massage away any stresses you may have brought with you. (There's a wall phone in the master bath, too, right near the commode and one of the his-and-hers vanities-- so you never need to miss a call.) Note that in the studio portion of the lock-off there is a shower only-- but what a shower! Marble, room enough to move around, with a clear glass shower door. Very lovely, and everything works the way it should. There are plenty of towels in both baths, and they are big and thirsty and soft.
Noise: There were other guests on the floor while we were there, but we might as well have had the entire floor to ourselves. In other words, the individual units are well insulated and you can't hear the neighbors-- and they can't hear you.
Storage space: There's lots of it. Closets, drawers, shelves. You can stow away everything you bring without any problem.
Necessities: In both the 1-bdrm and the studio portions of the lock-off there is a hair dryer, iron and ironing board. Leave your own at home. Both sections also have a microwave (and coffee maker, etc., of course), and the 1-bdrm section has a full kitchen with everything you need, while the studio includes a small but roomy refrigerator along with the microwave.
OK. The furniture, etc. As in the lobby, the décor in the villas is distinctly Italian in flavor, reminiscent of the Tuscany Region. Earthy tones with touches of gold, plush fabrics, granite countertops, hand-picked artwork, and inlaid Italian marble all add an unmistakable "touch of class." (The décor of the lobby and villas was personally selected and meticulously placed by President and CEO of Diamond Resorts Stephen Cloobeck and interior designer Merilee Elliott.) The furnishings are casually elegant, yet comfortable and functional. Somehow, the height of couches and tables seems just right whether you are short or tall (how did they do that?) The main living area includes what looks to be an elegant wardrobe, with beautiful wood panels. Surprise! It's a Murphy bed in disguise, much more comfortable than a sofa bed and lovely to look at when it isn't in use.
In the studio portion, the Murphy bed hides behind the sofa. You would think it's only a nice painting on a regular wall, but it's not. Just reach up and pull that whole "wall" down-- you don't even have to move the sofa (just take the pillows off the sofa's back) or the coffee table. Voila! It's sleepy time! In this world you can have big and dramatic or you can have smaller and exquisite. You can have Los Angeles, or you can have Venice, Italy. These units are not huge, at 1,103 square feet for a 2-bdrm lock-off, but neither are they cramped. They are just the right size, and intimate. They are Venice.
Now that we have learned all about the Villa?s at Polo lets get to the actually company more in detail. The have there home office based right here in wonder Las Vegas Nevada. They actually share there building with there exchange company Interval International which handles all there exchanges. As an added bonus anyone who is a Diamond owner has the option to join the I.C.E. Gallery which I believe is an cruise discount company or something of the like. As far as everything Diamond has to offer location wise its extensive do to there terms with Interval although you can also have access to a few other properties which Diamond has develop one of there other very well known and recognized is Kona Reef in Kona Hawaii. Kona Reef is sold out and being only managed by Diamond so therefore is usually booked in advance but still it gives owners a change of pace for the Las Vegas market.
Diamond markets in many different way there main marketing is in Las Vegas only. This is prevalent because well everything else is sold out. Diamond uses the draw of Vegas show tickets and free rooms to get you on the tour of the property. They offer a few different forms of this. One is through O.P.C. is almost every strip casino, a very noticeable strip hotel; telemarketing though is Polo?s biggest pull. Working former in what was so kindly called there owner?s referral program we phoned people to offer complimentary Vegas vacations. I made the mistake of using the word free once Big NO NO!! The way the program works is people call owners as for friend?s names then extend the trip to friends with the requirement they must tour the property with a spouse. If not they are charged full rack rate which is insanely high. Once the owner?s friends family etc. tours the owner is given $50 cash to use towards maintenance fees.
The other telemarketing is cold calls used to get people to pay a nominal administration fee in return they are given a room and few show tickets and some buffet tickets. Again there is a major catch though you must tour with your wife or they get you with the rack rate.
In order to contact Diamond resorts just walk into there Decatur office if you are looking for a job right to the right of the entrance is the H.R. office mainly open from 8:30 to 3:30. The desk lady there Pam is very nice and she will assist you in getting hired and or applying for a job with the company. Every Sunday Diamond runs many ads in the paper here in Vegas as well to find marketers.
Well Diamonds future looks be nothing but going up from here. From what I have seen or heard in employee meetings they will soon be building the Château a French Theme expensive upscale resort right between Polo and Carriage house literally locking there hold on an entire block of the Vegas strip in stone.
Personally I feel the management at diamond is very well run and the company is nice to work for. If you work for them you do receive benefits although I do not believe they offer a 401k at this time. Diamond really has no competition that is relevant in the Vegas market only because they are own the strip although I do not know how Hiltons new strip plan will affect Diamond.
In closing I would like to say I do agree with a lot of what Diamond has planned and the way the company looks to be going the one thing I do have issues with is there marketing but I guess everything must have a dark side in timeshare it seems to be the marketing that is the major flaw of the company.
Las Vegas Strip
Las Vegas Strip at night with the Aladdin (now Pla...