those Dvc members with only 150 points

[PaulaMurf]

We bought in in 1996 - and were fine, till baby made 3 - after once in an OKW 1BR I could not go back to a studio...LOL, spoiled brat that I am.

Since we go in December or January, the whole week in a 1BR at OKW is only 160, so we usually add a day/subtract a day each year. (meaning, this year, we will stay 7 nights, next year - 6 and so on.) For us, its been working perfectly.

Paula in CT

 

[athenna]

How exactly do you get six nights with no weekends? I would love to know your secret))))

DAVE

The trip this month is 6 DAYS, 5 nights (Sun-Fri.)
The trip in Nov is 7 days, 6 nights (that includes a Fri night, Sun-Sat)

 

[darner]

while on the surface having more than 150pts seems like fun, we enjoy taking non-DVC vacations too much. With more points than 150 I think we'd feel either too tied to taking DVC trip or we'd splurge too much on accomodations (not making most of the points)... plus don't want to deal with the hassle of trying to rent or pay the dues on the extras...

our contract has been paid off for a good number of years so spending to buy more points doesn't equate to a good use of our money for us...

We typically go for a week in a 1-bdrm every other year or 18 months so we are regularly banking and borrowing as needed... and we have used points at DL and at a CC hotel.

 

[SoCalKDG]

I have a huge contract of 150 points . Since I can only make one trip per year currently(due to vacation days and the cost of airfare - I'm in California) 150 seems like a good amount.

I'm leaving in a couple days for 5 days at BWV, then 2 days WL, then 2 days VWL for 98 points in a studio. This is 2004 points. January 2006 I'll be in a 1 bedroom for 9 straight days(194 pts) using 10 banked 2004 pts, all my 2005 points and borrowing some 2006 points(34). Next vacation after that would be in 2007, using balance of 2006 pts and balance w/ 2007 pts. I'll probably continue booking 1 bedrooms after that. 150 can work very nicely, even in a 1 bedroom.

Now I would like to get 50 more points so I can have a different home resort, which I would use every 3rd year. Haven't decided which resort yet(most likely BCV or VWL), maybe this coming vacation will help me decide.

 

[CharlesTD]

We started off with 150 and we thought it was fine but after 2 trips and having to borrow for the second one we bought more points. We realized after we should have bought 200 or more to start.

 

[Desnik]

We just bought 150 points and were able to do the following on the 150 points for this year.
Vero Beach in June, Inn ocean view 4 nights weekday. BWV studio in Nov. 5 nights weekday, SSR studio 2 nights weekend.
Right now this works for us. DD is 7 and DS is 2 so a studio fits us well. We figure we can get 2 trips a year with 150 points. We'll just borrow if we need more to stay in a 1bd room and such. Later on when the kids are older we will add on to have enough points for larger rooms.

 

[quentina]

Are you able to manage on this amount? Do you wish you had gotten more points to begin with. How many days vacation can you take with this amount? Nancy

We would get 2 weeks out of our 150 points. I would do studio stays at whatever resort was available. I have since added on however, that is only because of taking family members along.

150 points is a great start.

Kim

 

[gharrer]

Thanks for all of your comments. 150 points seems doable under certain conditions. Some of you have it down to a science! Nancy

 

[PatMcDuck]

We got by with 150 points for many years (1995 OKW). We banked at first, and went every other year. We are a family of 6, so we need a 2BR. That worked well, we could not afford to travel to FL every year. Now, we have 200 points. We come every year, once, and stay in a 2BR for only Sun-Thur. We don't really WANT more points. We now LOVE staying onsite at Universal. So, we do 2-3 nights there (Fri/Sat), then come down to our BCV for Sun-Thur (we sold the OKW and re bought BCV). For us, a perfect vacation. Some years we book a diffferent Disney hotel on cash for Fri/Sat. That is fun too.

My kids are almost grown now, and that means we will not need more points; also we would like to relocate to FL at some point. So, again, our 200 is just fine. (IF we had alot of disposable income, we might feel differently and would buy more of course!)

 

[Alphatexana]

We bought 160 points at WLV last year, figuring that would enable us to get a 2br at WLV during just about any time of the year for a full week if we used two and 1/2 years points. We live in Texas so we thought we'd only be coming every 2 or 3 years. Well that plan didn't even last through our first trip! By the time we were headed for home after our first DVC I was calling (with DW's permission) to add on another 50 points so that we could be sure to have a 2br every two years. We're happy with that (for now) and are headed back to OKW this summer to use our newly acquired points (also after borrowing from next year's points).

I'd suggest you buy only what you know you will use...it isn't too hard to add more points later.

Good luck.

 

[crazywig]

here's what we've done on our original pts.


we bought 170pts in oct. 2003. june use year.

04 use year
june 04 - 65pts BWV bw view studio sun-thurs
jan 05 - 45 pts BWV standard studio sun-thurs

banked 60pts

05 use year
sept 05 - 222 pts BWV standard 2br sat-sat
jan 06 - 150pts BWV bw view 2br sun-thurs (using the last 8pts of '05 use year and borrowing the rest from '06. still leaving 28pts in the '06 use year).

it certainly isn't hard to add pts later! we just added 50 more pts this week and booked a last minute trip at SSR for next month

 

[Rpsemont]

We bought 150 points last year knowing that it probably wasn't enough, but it's a good start. we'd love to add on but have to wait for finances to allow that. I am avoiding 1BR's like the plague, because I know the minute we stay in one DH will never want to go back to the studio. We usually travel as 3 adults and one child because BIL comes along. DD (10) sleeps on an airmattress on the floor. We usually change accomodations for the weekend, and even after just closing in Nov ended up renting points for a couple days.

 

[rchristiansen]

We only have 100 points- through a resale...we stayed in a 1 BR last year just to splurge, and will be in a perpetual state of borrowing. However, we don't think we need the 1BR. We realized we didn't "need" the extra amenities of a 1BR like a stove and washer/dryer. Also, I really wanted the whirlpool tub, but I didn't use it once while we were there. So we're just going to stay in studios from now on. We can only go once a year so this is fine for us.

 

[JimMIA]

The real question is not how others manage with 150 points. The real question is what are your needs?

How often will you go to WDW? Every year? Every other year? Five times per year?

How long will you stay? 2-3 days? A week? Two weeks? Two weeks every other year?

And finally, what sized accommodations do you need? We live in Miami, a three hour drive, so we plan on making a series of short trips. YMMV, and if so, you may want larger accommodations for longer stays. We will only have 3-4 people most of the time; you may have 12.

Answer those questions as accurately as you can, and the number of points you need will be pretty evident.

 

[crisi]

You forgot when will you travel. Those of us that can travel in September or January stretch points a lot farther than people who want to go over Christmas or Easter.

There are some other "how do you work it" tricks though. Short a year....rent some points. I'm considering having my family "rent" enough points to stretch our trip from Sunday - Saturday to Saturday - Saturday. I'll find someone to transfer them into the account. Personally, I'd rather rent the 60 points I'll need for $700 than spend a few thousand on points. And making your family "suppliment" by renting a few points can give them some ownership (and make sure they are less likely to stiff you). Banking and borrowing can work, but you need to be comfortable managing banked/borrowed points.

 

[Dopey Sharon]

We have 150 BCV points. We go once a year. We have stayed in a 1BR @ BWV in early November 2003, a 2BR @ BCV in June 2004, a 1BR early November 2004 and will be staying in a GV @ OKW this December. We have only stayed Sunday - Friday, which is usually how long we go away anywhere.

We are using 180 points for the GV, so I will be borrowing 30 points from next year, leaving me 120 points...more than enough for our stay next year.

 

[caskar]

We have 150 points - not enough, never is. But really, we stay in a studio and pay for the weekend with cash so we get 12 days a year at BCV(wow) and we still have some points left to bank. We have stayed in a two bedroom with my parents but right now a studio is all we really need. We aren't in our room much as there is so much to do at WDW and we have been there over 20 times.

 

[wscato]

My wife and I have 150 points. We can get two trips a year out of them by going Sunday - Friday and have maybe 1 -3 points left. We always stay in a studio.

 

[PKS44]

We have 150 points and don't forget the trick (which I believe I discovered) of maximizing points by scheduling your stay at the end of your USE YEAR and into the beginning of the next USE year...this gives 150 point owners up to 600 points (if you want to use 4 years' worth of points) for one trip...for us we have not used this yet...but we may to get a bit more than the oft quoted 450 points total...

SO far we have done:
THUR/FRi SAT SUN Studio in 2001 (OKW)
THUR/FRi SAT SUN A 2BR and a studio (BWV) 2003 (took my in laws and my parents)
Reserved a one night studio for some friends 2003 (VWL)
10 nights BCV in 2004
and for our next trip:
(have not decided yet)
either 6 nights in spring 2006 or 12 nights in summer 2006 (1BR--hard to go back to studios once you have done a 1BR)

 

[Paula H]

We have 150 pts. at VWL - we bought them in April 2001. With banking and borrowing and taking advantage of the "cheap" seasons, we've done the following since April 2002:

6 nights in a 1 bedroom at Hilton Head in Sept. 2002
6 nights in a 2 bedroom at VWL in May 2003
7 nights in a 1 bedroom at VWL in Dec. 2004
Just booked: 3 night Wonder categ. 6 (cash of DD) and will be making ressies for a 1 bedroom BWV for Dec. 2005.

Sure, we always say we need more, but like others have said, we like to vacation at other places, too. Also, as the kids get a little older and pulling them out of school becomes an issue, we won't be able to go to WDW at lower point times - at that point we'll probably do an add-on. But, I've been impressed with what we can do with a 150 point contract.