Should I purchase DVC

[tlk]

Hi, I am new to this site but not new to wdw. I have been looking into purchasing but I am not sure it makes sense. Are the discounts to the parks and to the restaurants equal to the new meal plan wdw is offering?

[jtopp]

If you go once a year or more, the dvc membership should pay itself off in about 7 years. We joined in 1997, and paid off in 2002, and am now looking to get more points. The offered discounts are minimal, usually about 10-15% off selected restaurants and activities. The biggest savings, and the reason you buy, is resort usage. You stay at some of the finest resorts and the hotel cost is negated. I am not sure how dvc compares to the meal plan, and I don't think it is designed to. However, DVC members are treated like gold at the resorts and the parks. It is a very worthwhile investment(and a lot of fun too!) Good luck!

[byoung]

The free dining plan was a good deal for the value resorts IMO, but if you paid rack rates for the other resorts I don't think it was a good deal. And who knows if Disney will ever do it again. :banana: :Pinkbounc :banana:

[canwegosoon]

Hi, I am new to this site but not new to wdw. I have been looking into purchasing but I am not sure it makes sense. Are the discounts to the parks and to the restaurants equal to the new meal plan wdw is offering?
there are DVC discounts I think 10% on lunches m-th(I forget because I have DDE), you can also get 100 of an AP, but I don't know if they will be continuing this discount.

DVC really depends on how you like to vacation. Are you fairly sure you will be going to WDW every 2-3 years? Do you like to stay at Moderates or Deluxes? Are you willing to trade off maidservice for a larger room, with the possibility for some meal prep in your room. Can you plan your vacations 7-8 months out? Are you flexible with your vacation plans?

I hate cooking on vacation...so I do not do it. But many people love getting the family together and having a wonderful time in a 2-3 Brm.(Could I be adopted into one if those famlies?) We like to stay in a Studio, since it is a better use of points right now.

There are some FANTASTIC packages out there...the dining ones are really hard to beat...I might consider banking my DVC points if something come out for our March trip.
Good Luck in your decision.

[Princess_Minnie]

We're thinking of buying into the DVC we absolutely love going to Disney every year, in fact we went 4 times last year. So I'm thinking that this would pay off for us. What I wanted to ask is if you're a DVC Member do you get discounts on tickets like other Timeshare places do? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!!! ::MickeyMo ::MinnieMo

[geffric]

there currently is a discount on Annual Passes for DVC.. Princess_Minnie you may want to consider posting over at the DVC board...

[huey578]

Hi, I am new to this site but not new to wdw. I have been looking into purchasing but I am not sure it makes sense. Are the discounts to the parks and to the restaurants equal to the new meal plan wdw is offering?
We are thinking about DVC too, we might take a sales tour when we go in 2 weeks. My main question woud be how much does it cost?? The dvd that Disney mailed me didn't mention price just points.

[tnhillbilly]

You call Disney back and ask for the same person you talked to before ( if you remember) or they can help you. Explain you have the first DVD and are now interested in cost, and what is open for purchase. This is where it is so different you haft to ask them, they are not pushing things on you. Here is a board you should read and post to talk to members that are very helpful. http://www.disboards.com/forumdisplay.php?forumid=28
I got all the information and am now saving for the purchase/investment.

[franw]

The only regret I have is that I agonized over joining for years before signing up. We go at least twice a year but I use our points for our son and his family. It is a legacy that I am leaving to them that I hope they remember me most for.
Our grandkids are little so the condo accomodations are wonderful. They also plan a trip every year since they have the points and always have a wonderful time.
You can get $100 off each annual pass as long as they live at the same address you do. You are able to stay in beautiful resorts with special entitlements and be treated like one of the family.
If you can swing it, I would strongly suggest taking the tour. The sales people are friendly and not pushy at all. The price keeps going up every year!

[Mister Incredible]

The ONLY regret I have about joining the DVC was that we didn't do it sooner!

[ainmama2001]

My advice is to rent points from a current DVC member first and see what the rooms and resorts are like before you make a decision. We were going to buy in but feel that renting points when needed is much easier and flexible.

[kowalchicky]

there currently is a discount on Annual Passes for DVC.. Princess_Minnie you may want to consider posting over at the DVC board...




Is there a message board for DVC members? What is the link?

Thanks

[ainmama2001]

You can look on this site...there is a whole section on DVC.

[WDWLVR]

Welcome to the DIS!

Here's a great source of reference. It is the FAQ from the DVC forum here on the DIS.

http://http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1571

It should answer all your basic questions and any others you have feel free to post the questions over on the DVC forum. Lots of great people to help you there.

[Greysword]

I would suggest taking the tour. The sales staff is very low key and no pressure at all.

All ears Net has a page about DVC:

http://allearsnet.com/acc/dvc.htm

They also have a chart that shows all of the restaurant discounts:

http://allearsnet.com/pl/disc_dining.pdf

Before I joined, I got a lot of good cost comparison info at Mouse Planet:

http://www.mouseplanet.com/dtp/dvc/2_Program/what_is_DVC.htm

Mouse Planet has some spreadsheets and narratives that compare the cost of buying into DVC with the cost of a Disney vacation over the 50 years without it.

Either way, I suggest you take the tour just to see what the talk is about.

Good luck!

[justloveit]

We belong to DVC and it has enhanced our vacations tremendously. The accomodations are so comfortable, we never get that cramped motel room feeling. It really feels like our second home. The resorts are beautiful. We visit at least 2 times a year. :flower:

[ainmama2001]

The tour is WONDERFUL and the videos and materials they give you are so helpful after you get home. They are totally NO pressure. We loved them when we were looking.

[I LUV DVC]

We have been members since 1993 and love it. Use it every year and have also done the cruise with our points

[Eeyoreluver]

ainmama2001, I have also been interested in DVC. I did not realize I could rent points from DVC members. Could you give me some more info about this? We normally stay at the value resorts, because we feel we are only in the rooms for a short amount of time. I have never even seen the inside of the rooms that the DVC offer. I would rather rent first to see if that is something to really consider.
Thanks

[kowalchicky]

Before we became DVC members we took a tour. It didn't take that long and they also gave us 4 fast passes to use. We heard so many wonderful things about the DVC that we couldn't resist and bought into in 2003.

[lark]

I think there are two issues. One is the financial and one is the psychological/emotional.

If you would have to finance a large portion of the purchase or would not use it every year, I would say it's not worth it financially, unless you can honestly see yourself going 30 years from now. I don't want to antagonize people who love DVC, but those who say it "pays for itself" in some short period of time (people like to say 7 years) are, imho, looking at it incorrectly. If you wanted to buy 200 points, and you buy them resale, it costs you about $17,500. Over those 7 years, you will pay $5,000 to $6,000 in maintenance fees. If you borrowed some of the $17,500, you will also pay interest. So that's an out of pocket cost of $23,100 to as much as $28,000 that will come out of your pocket in 7 years. For $28,000, you could rent the same 200 points each year for 14 straight years.

Now, the non-financial factors are a whole different story. You own a piece of the magic. You get to always be planning a disney vacation. You feel like you have a home, and not just some rented room. You don't need to deal with rental agreements or people you don't know. Etc. These are real things of considerable value -- maybe even priceless for some.

I guess here is the only advice -- DVC is, at its core, a timeshare. Timeshares are grossly misunderstood and can be really bad choices for some. At a minimum, do not open your checkbook until you are absolutely certain you understand things like use years, renting your points, maintenance fees, ROFR, etc. Only then can you decide whether it's right for you. Then think about things like whether you'll want flexibility in future years to spend your dollars on a monorail resort, etc.

They are a wonderful idea for many, but they are not for everyone. Take your time. Don't feel rushed. Avoid pithy descriptions like "prepaid vacation," which are really salesmen's terms that, while perhaps not misleading, don't actually capture the whole idea. You can easily rent points this year and then decide next year -- while you might view those as dollars you could have spent on DVC, when you realize you didn't need to pay MFs this year, and didn't need to put up a big payment, you'll realize that it's ok to be a penny foolish to be a pound wise. Timeshare sellers make a lot of money from impulse buyers -- just remember that timeshares are like buses -- there's always another one coming down the street.

[jackmac]

In a word YES. DVC has been the best purchase that we made. We have had many great family times and many great times as a couple (wife and I). We have 2 boys that were going to college when we bought and it has worked out great in terms of having a quality vacation. My wife and I have enjoyed going to WDW every october by ourselves. This year we also went to Vero Beach and loved it. Of all of the things that I have talked my wife into over the years this is the best, followed closely by High Def TV.

[micki7337]

My wife and I purchased DVC back in June of 2001. We love it. It gives us the oppurtunity to go to WDW as much as we choose to. It also allows us to take our family and /or Friends with us to WDW. It is a wonderful investment. Everyone that we talk to that owns DVC says the same things. One thing else that is great is that the prices for accomidations do not rise at all your points stay the same so you theoretically buy at what ever price you bought in at. SO my recomendation is to buy and enjoy.

I hope this helps.
::MickeyMo ::MinnieMo

[keishashadow]

If you don't want to make such a huge investment/finance; resale is a viable option. One of the boards's sponsors has a link with currently available properties. Explore the DVC boards, a wealth of info.

You can start out with a minimum purchase of 25 points (if you can find such a contract); can buy @ sold-out resorts & you can add on 25 point multiples w/DVC in the future.

If you only need a studio, value season, each year; you can own a piece of the magic @ certain resorts w/an initial buy-in of 40 points; 25 if you'd bank & go every 2 years...Good Luck.

[go cowboys]

We bought DVC last month and made will make our first trip as owners in November. I have to say it is the easiest transaction I have ever done. We bought Saratoga Springs, from Disney. I got 250 pts and Disney gave us about $2000.00 toward our downpayment of 20%. I financed through them. Its 10% (approx) which makes my payments around $225.00 a month.

We debated about buying resale or from Disney and went with Disney because the incentive was so good we were able to pay about the same price per point and they back dated our "use year" to February. That means that we get our 250 for 2005 and then get our 06 points in Feb. Sometimes with resale you do not actually get the points to use for several months. We were able to book our vacation before we even closed on the deal.

I absolutely recommend the tour and our rep was Brandon Duke. He was nno pressure and super easy to work with. We also got 100.00 to spend at the parks just for touring.

PM me if you want any more info about my specifics.