Vacation ownership, long associated with older generations and a pushy sales process, is getting a fresh reputation among younger travelers. New research from ARDA, the vacation ownership trade association, shows Millennials and Gen Z are embracing the model as a flexible, high-value way to keep travel central to their lives.

According to ARDA’s latest Owners Report, Millennials and Gen Z now account for 58% of all owners and 76% of recent purchases. Younger owners are more likely than older generations to view the product as a good value before and after buying, report higher satisfaction, recommend ownership to others, and express interest in upgrading.

‘Thirty years ago, you needed to convince people that they wanted to go on vacation,’ said Jason Gamel, president and CEO of ARDA. ‘The new generations, Millennials and Gen Z, want a vacation. That’s a very important point. Now, it’s just a matter of where and how.’

For Meghan and Crosby Brackins, Millennial owners with Marriott Vacation Club, the value became clear on a trip they might not have taken otherwise. ‘Having the ability to travel halfway across the world with our baby, parents, and sister, to Hawaii was a dream come true,’ said Meghan. ‘Allowing my parents, who are typically homebodies, the chance to travel and make memories with their grandchild was priceless for us. We couldn’t have made that trip happen without vacation ownership.’

The shift is partly generational. Younger travelers already see vacations as essential, not optional. They are also familiar with the product through real stays, not abstract sales pitches. ‘They start understanding the value of having more space, with kitchens, multiple bedrooms and bathrooms, and resort-style amenities,’ Gamel said. ‘By the time they’re making a decision about timeshare, they’re already educated about the product.’

For younger families, extra space can make a trip practical at all. The Brackins said ownership helped them move from traveling as a couple to traveling as new parents, with room to bring grandparents along. ‘Marriott Vacation Club has grown with us,’ they said. ‘We’ve gone from optimizing the studio and one-bedroom spaces to the two- and three-bedroom suites so that we can bring grandparents along to help with the baby as we travel and to make memories alongside us.’

Daysy, a Millennial Hilton Grand Vacations owner, finds membership more relevant as her children grow. ‘Family comes first, and work will always be there,’ she said, describing membership as a way to make more room for shared time away.

The emphasis on space and consistency arrives as travel affordability is under pressure. Hotel rates have risen, family travel costs more, and younger travelers seek ways to protect the trips they prioritize. ARDA’s 2026 State of the Vacation Timeshare Industry report found the U.S. timeshare industry generated $10.7 billion in sales volume in 2025. Occupancy averaged 79.9%, compared with 62.3% for U.S. hotels, according to CoStar data cited in the report. Rental revenues reached $3.3 billion, up 20% from 2022.

For owners, the value is personal. ‘When we became young owners, we felt the benefit of being able to take our businesses to new regions without the hassle or unpredictable headaches of vacation rentals or standard hotels,’ the Brackins said. ‘We didn’t need to worry about cleanliness, safety, or having enough space.’

Gamel noted younger owners respond to the economics, especially as lodging costs rise. He described vacation ownership as a potential hedge against inflation for owners who have paid off their purchase and travel largely on annual maintenance fees.

The generational shift is most visible in how willing younger owners are to recommend the product. Among Gen Z owners, 92% rate their overall ownership experience positively, 91% rate their primary home resort highly, and 93% praise frontline service levels. Nearly all Gen Z owners, 94%, say they would confidently purchase again knowing what they know now.

That satisfaction translates into advocacy. Four out of five Gen Z owners actively recommend timeshare ownership to friends, relatives, and colleagues, while Millennials report an even higher recommendation rate at 85%. ‘If you look at that rate of eight in 10, almost nine in 10 saying they’d recommend it, that’s a pretty strong endorsement of the product,’ Gamel said.

The Brackins show how advocacy emerges from practical use. They describe themselves as more impulsive travelers, comfortable using points strategically. ‘We love to ‘play the game’ of it all,’ they said. ‘We love seeing how savvy we can be with our points, learning the ins and outs of the websites and booking hacks to optimize our time.’

For the industry, younger travelers point to a product aligned with modern travel behavior. They value flexibility, want more space for friends and family, are sensitive to rising costs but committed to travel, and recommend products that deliver consistently.

For Daysy, membership brought ‘the ease of planning a vacation’ and encouraged her family to take at least three trips a year. Gamel said the fit is partly rooted in the sharing economy. ‘There’s a real acceptance of the sharing economy,’ he said. ‘For younger travelers, the idea of owning a slice of a resort can feel like a natural extension of the shared access models they already use.’

Vacation ownership’s future depends on how well the industry responds to these younger owners. They bring a clearer sense of what they want from travel: more control, more room, more flexibility. As this generation grows, their influence may reshape the category far beyond the U.S., including in emerging markets like Brazil, where travel remains a priority for young families.