Is DVC Getting Too Big ???

[trogan]

Is DVC getting too big.During a recent trip to WDW we noticed a big marketing push for DVC ,Disneys so called best kept secret.There are kiosks and advertisements all over the parks and buses.It seems to me that as DVC gets larger it is going to be harder and harder to book resorts at the 7 month window.Several castmates told us that the Contempory wings are going to be converted to DVC and also the treehouses at the Disney Institute could also become DVC.Does anyone know if there is a maximum number of DVC resorts and or points Disney plans for. When purchasing DVC be sure you like your home resort the most as that is going to be the resort you are most likely to stay at during busy times.We have 200 points at VWL which we feel is the best resort in DVC and would not mind staying there each visit.

 

[dianeschlicht]

No secret! The Contemporary rumor has been pretty strong this past year. The treehouses are adjacent to SSR, and I thought they were going to be torn down and the site incorporated into SSR, but I might be wrong.

 

[PamOKW]

The Treehouses are special circumstance. They are built in Inland Wetlands and are subject to all kinds of legal restrictions as to what can be built. The existing structures are grandfathered but if they are knocked down chances are Disney may not be permitted to build anything at all. Latest rumor I heard is some refurbishing of the existing buildings -- make that an extensive rehab. Not sure if they'll become part of DVC but it would seem to make sense.

Every time DVC grows, there's concern about what that "means". To date, I've only seen positives. While it's sometimes tricky to book a non-home resort, it's still certainly possible. Of course the best guarantee is to buy your favorite and be sure to book it 11 months in advance. Owning a particular resort doesn't really matter if you don't plan until the 7 month window opens.

 

[bicker]

This is why it is so important to buy where you plan to stay the most. When you buy into DVC, you're really-and-truly buying into your home resort -- be sure you're happy with that selection, and not buying into one resort, expecting to always be able to stay at other DVC resorts.

 

[minnie33]

My DH and I recently returned from Disneyworld. We, too, noticed a greater push for DVC. I have heard the rumors circulating about making Contemporary a DVC, but this is the first I have heard about the Treehouse Villas.

I think, only my opinion, is the reason they are pushing DVC is because there are timeshares to sell. In the past DVC had few to sell, because most spaces were bought. Now with Saratoga Springs, there is plenty to sell.

Just my thoughts.

 

[crisi]

I don't think so, but I'd rather see the resorts all developed to be about the same size - preferrably 200 - 300 units (VWL is too small - SSR too large), with multiple themes and locations. This would help balance the supply and demand for non-home resorts (i.e. SSR as a larger resort has more owners than VWL as the smallest resort. Even if they both want the other resort at the same proportion, SSR owners are going to be less happy the VWL owners). However, more variation means higher costs -plus there are only so many resorts that they can add DVC to and keep it what it is - and I understand why this isn't the priority for DVD.

 

[Blue&Gold]

Theoretically, DVC can never get too big... There will always be the "right" number of rooms for the points sold. Now that doesn't mean that folks will always have the flexibility they currently have. The biggest cultural shift would come if DVC changed its bylaws to restrict owners to their home resorts or changed the booking windows. One important issue to remember is that as "co-owners" we all should want every single point available on the market to be sold... That shares the costs over the greatest possible number of owners. Yes, different resorts have different maintenance fees, but some of that cost is simple overhead for Member Services, etc.

 

[Cruelladeville]

As a BWV owner, I think DVC is already too big, because my resort is usually difficult to get into at the 7 month window. In general, though, I agree that if the different resorts had balanced sizes of about 200-300 units, DVC could continue to grow indefinitely.

Diane and Pam--SSR is building next to their check-in on the site of the old fairway villas. The area next to the old fairway villas are the treehouse villas, which are, at this point, abandoned. They haven't even picked up all the trees from last year's hurricanes. An article in the paper said that Disney had applied to trade wetlands. Apparently, Disney wants to make another wetlands elsewhere on-property, so they can rebuild on the treehouse villas site.

I, too, noticed the campaign about "Disney's best-kept seccret". It's not very well-kept, though, if 100,000 of us know about it!

 

[doubletrouble_vb]

I think DVC could grow some more...but only if most of the growing is done in close proximity to park access. SSR is a very large resort that isn't in close proximity to park access and it will put a strain on the 7 month window on those resorts that have it (BWV, BCV, VWL). Building at the Contemporary could help relieve that strain as would building on to say...the Polynesian or in the parking lot of MGM or in some type of proximity to AKL.

Or maybe a shift in concept to build more offsite locations with a more favorable onsite exchange rate with the regular Disney resorts rather than other DVC's.

 

[Chuck S]

I think most folks saw that the 7 month window would be harder and harder to book as DVC grew, the boards have always said "buy where you want to stay". I really don't see a problem, unless you've bought the "wrong" resort for your personal preferences.

 

[tjkraz]

The reasoning behing the "best kept secret" slogan is simple: The most common complaint among new members is "I wish I'd have known about DVC / bought into DVC sooner."

Admit it--most of us walked past those kiosks a dozen or a hundred times before even giving DVC a second thought. Most consumers reflexively cringe at the word "timeshare."

DVC is just trying to get the word out. Is it overkill? Yeah, I personally think it is. More and more kiosks...a dedicated channel on resort TV...magazine ads...email ads...blah, blah, blah. As a member, I get a bit tired of seeing it. But it must be accomplishing a goal...

As for the question of whether DVC is getting too big...I don't think that can ever happen. More resorts means more variety for all of us. All we were ever promised is a 4 months booking advantage at our Home resort. Those who can work within those confines will see no difference whether there are 90,000 DVC members or 190,000.

 

[LeftCoaster]

Printed on the Disneyland Fastpasses: Heard of Disney;s Best Kept Secret? While waiting for your fastpass time, go visit the Disney Vacation Club kiosk.

 

[dianeschlicht]

I guess I don't feel the advertising is out of proportion to the way it was in the past. All those things (the TV channel for DVC in the rooms, the kiosks, the advertising in buses etc) were around long before we purchased in 1997 too. I think Disney is starting to realize that the DVC folks are becoming a big factor in a way to fill the parks at "off" times. There used to be NO ONE around the parks the first 2 weeks of December, but DVC has helped make that time of year viable on the WDW "books". I think DVC has been a huge boon to the continued success of the WDW parks, and I think they will milk it for all it's worth.

 

[JimMIA]

I don't have an opinion on the relative size of DVC, other than it's obvious that continued growth in membership will increase the importance of home resort, especially at the smaller resorts.

However, I'm sure overall expansion of DVC makes sound economic sense to Disney...especially when compared to alternative investments like building new hotels or theme parks. The hospitality industry is very seasonal, and also very sensitive to the business cycle, so investing in some aspects of it are much more risky than others. Anybody can build a cheap hotel a few miles down the road, and when the business cycle turns down, theme park vacations are one of the first things occasional visitors are likely to cut back on. We've all heard the rumors that Disney is done building hotels.

DVC, on the other hand, creates a large pool of people who are likely to visit at least once a year, no matter what. Plus, when we visit, most of us probably stay longer, we're more aware of what's available and therefore more likely to do things like behind-the-scenes tours, Segway, better dining, special events, etc. We've all seen the posts which say DVC saves money on lodging, but overall many owners spend more now than they did before they joined.

As far as regular seasonality, all you have to do is look at two time periods to see the effect of DVC -- Food and Wine, and early December. Both formerly doldrums, now you can't find a room anywhere! That works for Disney.

Also, I think the entry of respected names like Disney, Hilton, Marriott and others, plus the flexibility of points-based systems, is radically changing the timeshare industry. I'm sure there are still a lot of con men still around, but I think many average folks lose their fear of timeshares when they see big, reputable companies coming into an industry. I've had friends buy vacation homes specifically because they were afraid of timeshares, and now a lot of them are starting to reevaluate.

With all that, I think DVC will remain one of Disney's best investment alternatives for some time to come.

 

[CarolMN]

......(snip)..... All we were ever promised is a 4 months booking advantage at our Home resort. .....

Actually, we were only promised a 1 month booking advantage at our home resort. By contract, Disney has the right to reduce the current window to as little as 1 month. Sure hope they never do that. I'd like an even longer window at my home resort.

I don't think DVC is too big - however, I do agree that as it grows larger, there will be increasing competition to get into the smaller WDW resorts at 7 months. As crisi says, those who own at the smaller resorts will (as a group), probably be more satisified with their ability to get reservations at non-home resorts than those who own at the larger resorts. It will be easier to get into the larger resorts than into the smaller ones at 7 months - it's just about the numbers!

Best wishes -

 

[vascubaguy]

Of course one other factor is the number of points needed to stay at particular resorts. As more and more people buy into new DVC resorts, they will notice the appeal of staying at OKW, or the standard views at BWV where the number of points is much lower. I'm still a bit shocked at the cost of the Grand Villas at OKW compared to any other DVC resorts!

 

[dianeschlicht]

Of course one other factor is the number of points needed to stay at particular resorts. As more and more people buy into new DVC resorts, they will notice the appeal of staying at OKW, or the standard views at BWV where the number of points is much lower. I'm still a bit shocked at the cost of the Grand Villas at OKW compared to any other DVC resorts!

That has already started happening! I know it has made us realize we must book at 11 months.

 

[spiceycat]

sorry I haven't seem anything like they did when it was new - early 90's.

It was billboards, magazines, TV ads, the maids were paid to made that the channel you watched when you turned on the TV. they did away with that for a while - I heard it is back.

I read about it in the Disney magazine before I saw anything at WDW.

Disney now knows that DVC will work!

I don't think Disney will made more villa than WDW resort rooms. Remember we can rent our points to non-owners. Disney doesn't want that much direct competition.

of course few DVC member do rent. but still if DVC gets enough members it who become a problem.

 

[mowog]

I think when BWV,VWL and BCV were selling out there were no "ready" properties for sale. This probably decreased the presence of sales booths etc untill SSR was close to opening. Now with SSR building the push is on again so advertising and sales presence is very prominent.

 

[Granny]

Is DVC getting too big..

I don't argue with those who indicate that certain resorts may be more difficult to book at the 7 month window in the future as DVC grows. That's just mathematics as Crisi has pointed out often in posts of this nature.

What seems to be getting overlooked is that as DVC grows, so does our influence. I don't doubt at all that Disney looks at this growing membership and wants to continue to keep the members happy to keep returning to WDW (or VB & HH) year after year, often multiple times per year.

Look at the growth in member perks such as the AP pass. No longer are the DVC members looked at as a small niche of die-hard, "going to WDW no matter what" kind of group. They see big numbers of people who will spend time in parks, taking specialty tours and cruises, eating and buying souvenirs.

No, I don't think DVC is getting too many members. I think that can only help us as a group to be watched and marketed to with increased perks.

Just my opinion. YMMV.