Luxury Travel Ecosystems: Yachts, Jets, and More

What does the future of vacation ownership actually look like? In this episode of Voices of Vacation Ownership, Gaetan Babin sits down with Michael Finn, Chief Development Officer of Blue Water Group, to explore how the industry is moving far beyond traditional timeshares — into a world of yachts, private jets, and curated luxury experiences.

Michael shares how vacation ownership is evolving into a full lifestyle ecosystem, the opportunities this creates for high-end clientele, and what it means for the industry's next chapter.

If you're watching the future of luxury travel take shape, this conversation is where it starts.

Voices of Vacation Ownership is part of CRTA, Furthering vacation ownership in Canada and throughout the world. Learn more about CRTA and the benefits of being a member here: https://canadianrta.org/#

Transcript

SPEAKER_01 0:00

This episode is brought to you by Hamla Kampani, the first vacation ownership project on the northern coast of Ecuador.

SPEAKER_00 0:11

This is Voices of Vacation Ownership, the only public house where the vacation ownership industry's top executive speaking openly about what's really driving the business forward. Hosted by Dave Hen Baden, the president and speaking of the Canadian Resort and Travel Association. Each episode digs into the trends, challenges, an opportunity shaping our industry. One conversation at a time. Let's go.

SPEAKER_01 0:42

Hi everyone, I'm Gaitan Baben, and welcome to Voices of Vacation Ownership. It's where we speak with leaders shaping the future of our industry. Now each episode focuses on ideas that strengthen performance, enhance the owner experience, and basically move our industry forward. Today I'm joined by Michael Finn. Michael is the chief development officer of Blue Water Group. It's a company operating at the intersection of private aviation, yachts, real estate, high-end travel experiences. Blue Water is part of a growing shift in how travel is being structured, not just as individual trips, but as connected, lifestyle-driven ecosystems. And because of the future of vacation ownership may not just be about where people want to stay, but how they move, access, and experience the world. So, Michael, thank you so much for being part of this podcast.

SPEAKER_03 1:44

Thank you very much for having me here. This is kind of exciting, and uh I like the direction and everything that you're going, and what you said makes a lot of sense. I love the term intersection, just in that, you know, we're always in an intersection. There's always something. If we can bring different things together, we've got so many more options and what we can do with it.

SPEAKER_01 2:03

Well, we've known each other for quite a while. You actually uh even got me at the Ritz Carleton one time in Orlando playing golf at that famous golf course. Uh we've had some great times, great conversations over the year, but you're also, well, and also very well respected within the industry because you bring a new kind of a new angle into it. Private yachts. Uh how does that kind of fit within the whole vacation and ownership?

SPEAKER_03 2:26

It's actually a great question, but it it's about, we talked about intersection, but it's really the evolution of what we're doing. We're no longer is our industry about places, it's about experiences, it's about opportunities to see things and do things that you normally wouldn't think that you did. A lot of our industry brethren have brought in amazing opportunities with VIP experience with concerts. Um I've got a high-end uh client that did a um a safari with Hall of Fame tennis players in Africa, and they actually built a tennis court at the base of Kilimanjaro. And so people are paying, you know, good money to be there, but these are the opportunities, whether they be aspirational, inspirational, or whether people can actually do it, that we really want to focus in with Blue Water. You know, when you're dealing, you know, normally you don't think of yachts and planes and things when you're thinking of vacation ownership. Um, but those opportunities are out there and to be able to put it out there for people and give them the opportunity to see things like that is is a lot of fun. If you've ever seen the look on somebody's face, you know, after they've just taken a, you know, a week cruise through the Bahamas or something, it's pretty amazing.

SPEAKER_01 3:47

Well, um on another podcast, uh we had Rob Webb, which you pretty well everybody in the industry knows. Yeah, phenomenal, phenomenal man. And we're talking uh the initial concept of timeshare when it first started, and when Crystal De Hahn and John Dehan went RCI with the station wagon and the box, and where you own a week, you trade a week, and that was timeshare. That was it. And I look at today, and especially what Blue Waters brought into the program, now you got yachts, you got private experiences, F1, you know. I mean, it's gone a long way. So, how how have you seen that change happen and transgress over the years?

SPEAKER_03 4:24

It's funny you say that because when I originally looked at some of the questions you had put together and some of the guidelines, I'm thinking to myself, you know what? When I first got in the industry, longer than I care to remember ago, the first question we'd ask people is, where do you want to go? Well, that's not the question anymore. What do you want to do? You know, what type of experiences do you want? How would you like to take your family to see, you know, an amazing uh Hamilton in New York? How would you like to do a Napa trip and check out all the wineries and things like that? It's it's those kind of experiences that bring people together and that really make things memorable. It's not about just sitting in a condo, here's your key, we'll see you in seven days, you know?

SPEAKER_01 5:10

Well, you know, the industry started as you get one week, and there's your week, and you can enjoy for the rest of your life. And once you die, your kids can, and when your kid died, their kids can. That model, I wouldn't say is totally broken, but it's certainly shifted a lot, and our product has evolved from let's make it floating so they're not coming in the same week, and that then, well, you can exchange it, and then you can go somewhere else, and then let's create a point system and let's get it with value. But where is this all going? Are people really buying an asset today, like it's called vacation ownership, or are are they buying uh a program or a a membership that gives them experiences that may change from year to year?

SPEAKER_03 5:53

I kind of feel like you almost answered your own question in there. Just because what we're looking at here, look at the biggest players in our industry. You know, you've got Marriott, you've got Hilton, you've got Hyatt, you've got Disney, you've got travel and leisure, you've got some amazing companies. And what are they focused on? They're focused not only on being a brand, but it's a lifestyle. You know, and I've always thought if you're truly gonna get the most out of what you're doing, you've got to make it a lifestyle. So you can touch these people, not just one week, as you say, a year, but year-round. You know, hey, do you want to get away for a nice little weekend getaway? The Cherry Blossom Festival in DC, you know, do you want to, you know, um, you know, go on a city cruise? Um, there are a lot of opportunities that we do in addition, and a lot of benefits that we're adding. And that's why combining what we've done with vacation ownership over the years and travel clubs, and now what we're trying to do with Blue Water, giving an elite level where people, you know, give us a call and hey, I, you know, I need a, you know, I need a plane to get me to St. Thomas. You know, we can charter that for you. You know, um, I'd like to, I've got a a good friend of mine that's a member with us, and you know, he wants, he's gonna, he's gonna lease out a high-end residence, um, take one of our yachts, so he's got his family for four days in that, three days he's gonna take the yacht through the Bahamas. Um, I mean, it's just an amazing experience.

SPEAKER_01 7:32

But private aviation, which you you touched on, has always been looked at as a very luxurious item, and average person doesn't just rent a jet. And the one time I had an opportunity to fly in a private jet, I thought this is gonna ruin me for traveling for the rest of my life. It does.

SPEAKER_03 7:47

I mean, that's you're sitting in this soap, especially getting through customs and all, but yes.

SPEAKER_01 7:51

Amazing. You come outside, the limbo's waiting, it's just I said that's it. Now I'm I'm ruined for life. Um, but is it becoming a little bit more mainstream? Is it more attainable than it was in the past?

SPEAKER_03 8:01

Well, just look at what's happened in the past few weeks with TSA and everything else. There are a lot of people that have the ability to fly private that are more interested in doing that now because they don't want to go through the headaches of going through the airport and everything. You fly up, you come. Now, to answer your question, it's becoming more accessible too. I mean, yes, we have G4s, we've got uh Challenger, we've but we also specialize in these things called very light jets. They're called vision jets. Honda makes a similar jet. And as one of my private equity guys calls it, it it's kind of like an SUV that happens to fly. You know, so you can fit four people in it. You can um, you know, uh put a couple sets of golf clubs and everything else, and you know, the the it's only about a 700-mile radius, but it gets you where you want to go. It's a great opportunity for somebody to get from Atlanta to the Bahamas like that, and it's not that expensive because the cost of that is probably about three to four times less than it would be for a normal private jet for something with, you know, eight people like a G4 or something on that.

SPEAKER_01 9:13

See, if you look at the profile, which I'm sure you you understand of an actual vacation ownership person, which is not the person that's looking at necessarily uh buying a whole cottage as it's not on their budget, maybe not the big fancy motorhome. And they look at vacation ownership as a model that says, no, we'll have access to prime real estate, get uh uh a great reduction in price, great savings, and and almost like a guaranteed experience. So when you attack attach something like Blue Water to that model, because of a fairly conservative member, I mean, um, what is the most attractive component you offer that they are it can't be the jet. I mean, what's the number?

SPEAKER_03 9:54

The jets in the the yachts are my favorite. I mean, we literally had an executive committee meeting on two of our yachts, and we just spent a few days together, brainstorming, coming up with ideas, but at the same time, swimming with sharks, going swimming with the pigs, uh doing all the things you do in the Exumas, and um, you know, that kind of stuff is is pretty amazing to have that opportunity. Um, but back to your point, bringing it to the masses, I remember I learned years ago when I was kind of surprised. I was with Starwood and you know, who is now Marriott, and we had the St. Regis Club we were opening up in uh Vail. Colorado. Yes. Yep. And we were out in Colorado, and I grew up in the industry with your little pad of paper and your rent versus own and that kind of thing. And I said, well, how are we gonna get to a rent versus own scenario when you know I mean these things are thousands of dollars a night? Well it it kind of got reversed. Like you were talking about people who, even if they can't afford a six million dollar villa in Vail, they don't want to. They they're only gonna use it three, four weeks out of the year or something. So we sold fractional ownership. We had such pent-up demand for it when we did it, uh, we met our budget in the first six weeks of opening, you know, because people saw the benefit. Why should I pen six million when for, you know, a couple hundred thousand, which sounds like a lot of money, but it's a value to them, and they see that value.

SPEAKER_02 11:32

On the stunning coast of Ecuador, something extraordinary awaits. The first registry collection project in South America, a destination where luxury meets nature, where every sunset feels exclusive, and every moment is designed to inspire. Welcome to Jumba Campaign, where you always want to come back.

SPEAKER_00 11:59

This is Voices of Vacation Ownership, the only podcast where the vacation ownership industry's top executive speaks openly about what's really driving the business forward. Hosted by Dave Henball, president and CEO of the Canadian Resort and Travel Association. Each episode digs into the trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping our industry. One conversation at a time. Let's go.

SPEAKER_01 12:29

So, you know, there's basically two types of people. There's people that say, for the price of that one good glass of wine, I can get a whole bottle. And then there's the person say, Well, I'm not gonna drink that bottle. I want, if I'm gonna have a wine, I'm gonna have the one glass of nice wine. So less quantity, much higher quality. Is that a model that applies to your business?

SPEAKER_03 12:49

It does, but I'll also say that that person is sometimes on both sides of that. So someday they might be home and uh find uh, you know, a nice bottle of Orange Swift or whatever, at you know, $40 and a nice bottle, but they're out and they they have a special opportunity, and yes, they might want to try something that's uh, you know, $100 a glass, you know. So, you know, we all kind of take those opportunities, but the key is to cherish the opportunity when you get it. When you get that opportunity to sit with a good friend and have a nice glass of wine and have a conversation like you and I have had over the years, you know, that's what's fun. That's what makes these kind of experiences, that's what makes it into a lifestyle.

SPEAKER_01 13:32

You talk to our members, which has always been the source of for me, where should we go? Because members' experiences, they basically tell you what the industry's got to shift in one way. And what they tell me is is mostly is if it wasn't a vacation ownership in our family, we never would have gone there. We never would have stayed in that kind of place, we never would have experienced that kind of event that otherwise was just not feasible for us. And because of vacation ownership, it made it possible.

SPEAKER_03 14:03

Well, and I'll tell you not to bring up a sore subject, but I can remember back at 9-11 when 9-11 happened, and a very sad time in our history. And there was a large resort right down the street, you know, over a thousand villas. They were operating after 9-11 at like an 11-12% occupancy rate. Okay. Our projects for Marriott and others were still operating at a 70-80% occupancy because these people knew they had the vacation, it was a guaranteed vacation for them. I mean, some of our brethren have called it, you know, vacation insurance. But it makes sure that every year you get that opportunity, you put it on, and you get the opportunity to be with your family or take the types of vacations that you want to do with the people you care about and have some amazing opportunities. And that's what we're trying to enhance on and take to a different level. Like I said, they could be aspirational or inspirational, but it's nice to have them there, you know.

SPEAKER_01 15:03

Does Blue Water work directly with the developer and the clubs, or is it more of an independent membership?

SPEAKER_03 15:10

It's it's a little bit more independent right now, but our our growth is to give this as an opportunity for other um other clubs, other brands to bring in, just like uh, you know, there are a lot of companies right now from Inspirado to Third Home to others that latch on to those um in a good way.

SPEAKER_01 15:34

But they cater to a high-end clientele.

SPEAKER_03 15:37

And those are the type of clientele that we want to work with. What we found is we call it our four pillars. Okay, so our four pillars are gonna be our aviation, are gonna be our um our yachts and marinas, it's gonna then go to luxury residences and then experiences. So these are our four pillars. And the nice thing about it, even with another business we have, the people that we're talking to are usually ultra high net worth, you know, which is a high number. But again, we give the opportunity for somebody, it's you know, it's not always that somebody, you know, somebody might have a little extra cash and they want to try something a little bit different. They but we give them that opportunity. So it's there, it's fun, it's something that uh people can really uh get excited about.

SPEAKER_01 16:24

Well, and I think that's the real benefit of our industry. You know, sadly the media is doesn't always understand the components of our industry. They still think us timeshare, you buy a week and you're stuck at the same resort all the time. And you know, the good news don't make the news as much as the bad news, but there's over 10 million families in the United States alone that own vacation ownership. Um, Canada's numbers are increasing every year, and not just in Canada, but Canadians are buying in the States, they're buying in Mexico, they're buying in the Caribbean. They're looking for a place that suits suits their model. So when you're looking at looking at a client, I know you're looking at a a more affluent client, but within the vacation model, is a developer kind of find a a um a partnership with you in some ways to offer their clients a even better opportunity and experience?

SPEAKER_03 17:16

No, a hundred percent I agree with you. And it is it's a fair amount, might even be eighty percent, about education and people understanding. But what I have found in my career is that when I get on the phone with an owner uh or a club member or anything like that, really what the happiest owners I have are the ones that use it and use it consistently every year. They know they know how to do it. One of the things I I sat with our resort operations person at Starwood years ago, and I was kind of talking to them about their hiring process and how they tiered who had the people, and you would think your natural thought would be well, on customer service, we're gonna put our best people with our highest end customers. And he said, No, absolutely wrong. We're gonna put our best people with our new owners, people that don't understand it yet. Okay, these higher-end people will actually teach my people how to use it because they're using it, they're out there getting that opportunity and having fun with it.

SPEAKER_01 18:13

Experiences um my son and I are a big F1 fan. Is there anything Blue Water offers that compliments?

SPEAKER_03 18:21

Well, we have done some things with F1. We're down, uh we actually did some things with Art Basil. Um actually reminds me, I just got a message from somebody from F1 that wants us to uh look at a couple things because they actually incorporate the marina things into it, especially in Monte Carlo.

SPEAKER_01 18:36

Or or uh in uh Monte Carlo.

SPEAKER_03 18:37

Monte Carlo, I know. Well Monte Carlo. That's like the Super Bowl, you know. I mean, that's uh that's a great opportunity, and there's some great things there. But um, yeah, no, it's fun. Uh our friends at Hilton and you know have done a great job with those. And I'm sure other people will look at those and other opportunities, but it it brings about so many other things, even you know, there could be different levels of what kind of engagement you want in these experiences. Um, you know, I got friends who love to go to the Super Bowl and don't even go to the game, they enjoy everything around it, you know. I got another friend who's going up to the Masters next week, and he doesn't even have tickets to get in, but he knows Pepsi and he knows all the people to talk to and where to get in. Those are the kind of experiences, too. It doesn't always have to be, you know, the Super Bowl.

SPEAKER_01 19:26

Well, Michael, you've been such a refreshing face in the industry as we've seen it evolve because as we started the industry with a very restricted and and constricted product, um it's evolving to more more not only more transparent, but so much more flexible, giving people not only accommodation, because we started as an accommodation platform, but it's kind of definitely shifting towards experience. And then so when we saw you come in within the industry, and now as the talk is, have you ever used any of Blue Water's uh asset, it becomes a a a fun topic.

SPEAKER_03 20:02

No, it it definitely is, and and the other thing too is we bring those ultra high network people into the opportunities to do other things, you know, and I even try to tell my people, you know, even people that own their own jet, you know, probably fly commercials 30, 35 percent of the time. So that's an opportunity. Um, I was just talking to uh a friend of ours, Jonathan, about priority pass and having that into the clubs where somebody could get to get to the airport early and spend some time, or if they have a long layover. Those are the kind of things that I really see in growing value um at different levels. There's tiers. So almost everything we do now is good, better, best.

SPEAKER_01 20:44

So from Blue Water perspective, uh to finish off a little bit is give me the services you offer. Obviously, the jet is always for me, the jet is that's always been the big, big bucketless dream, which probably will never happen, but having a jet is having a jet. But from the jet experience to the yacht, what are other services that you offer? What kind of experiences do you offer?

SPEAKER_03 21:04

Well, as I mentioned, you know, we concentrate on our four pillars, you know, which is the aviation, which is the nautical piece, which is your uh luxury residences and your experiences. Uh we are looking to build uh an ecosystem of our own in with a club and that type of thing, where now we get the opportunity to talk to people at different levels and give them the opportunity to, you know, do some things they never thought they'd be able to do. But also from a business standpoint, it's smart for us because we can organically grow our business. We can basically build our own pond, which we can go fishing in at some point for other things. And you know, what we don't have, we have partners that can help us with that.

SPEAKER_01 21:45

You know, people used to be so independent on our business. Now collaboration between government entities, law, um associations. And you attend all the events. What do you get out of these things?

SPEAKER_03 21:57

Well, it's just even like you know, the keynote a little while ago was excellent, and some of his things on branding, you know, it's one, you know, I I I always tell my people too, you know, and you know I've written a couple books and things, but I always tell my people when you look at a book or something, if you get five percent out of it, that's something, you know. And so I'm listening to this gentleman talk, and you know, I I understand testimonials. I wrote a book on referrals, I get all that. But he mentioned something about a founder's story. We don't have a founder's story, we could use a founder's story, you know, and have something like that. So just that one little pickup is something that I can use.

SPEAKER_01 22:35

It can be, it can be the smallest thing, but uh I'll tell you one thing to finish off is first of all. I want to thank you. Every time we talk, I get a little something out of it. But when we're in discussion with other people and the name Michael Finn comes up, first thing is really nice guy and fun what he brings to the industry. So I want to thank you for your time.

SPEAKER_03 22:54

Well, I appreciate that.

SPEAKER_01 22:55

And I want to thank you for listening at this podcast. Uh Michael is uh a phenomenal addition to the industry and offers experience that are may not be available, especially at the same cost. Um, if you'd like to have more information on it, please leave comments below. Uh Michael will be glad to respond to you. In the meantime, I wish you a great day, safe travels until the next podcast. Bye bye. This episode is brought to you by Hama Kampai, the first vacation ownership project on the northern coast of Ecuador.