1 pro and 1 con about DVC!

[eporter66]

Pro : Going to Florida/WDW every year is a nice break for us New Yorkers - extends our summer, and spending time at WDW is something we love.

Con : No real value outside of a WDW vacation. But we knew that going in, so for us this is not a con. If our DD grows bored of DVC, I would gladly use it for golf vacations with a few buddies. We might start going every other year as well - roll our points and get a bigger place, or stay longer. Right now DVC works for us.

 

[melk]

Pro: the accommodations...great!

Con: hate paying those annual dues.

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

Pro: no pressure to commando the parks, because we will be back real soon.

Con: the fact that there is no easy online booking tool tonsee availability. The people at member services have always been nice but I would love to be able to book / check availability online myself.

 

[mecllap]

Pro(s): The conveniences of being onsite in really nice lodging, plus having in-room food prep and eating (saves time and money) (also handy laundry).

Con(s): The initial expense and commitment to long-term costs (it's a luxury, not an investment).


I sometimes travel by myself, sometimes with DGS, and sometimes with DD and DGS -- so the variety of rooms and ways to use DVC is nice. I have stayed in several other timeshares -- some much nicer, and some not so much. Definitely hard to go back to a hotel/motel stay after timesharing.

There's tons of advice scattered in the DVC section of the Disboards -- you can find some to support all different points of view about whether DVC would work for you (or not).

 

[Robin"D"]

Pro(s): flexabilty/lifetime of vacations/memories/ownership

Con: not doing it sooner in our life

ok one more Pro: (one word) : DISNEY!


Robin & Angel "D"

 

[dbs1228]

Pro: Being able to bring friends and family to Disney when they otherwise may not be able to afford to go.

Cons: Not buying sooner and spending 15 years worth of CR since we kept thinking our 3 DD's would eventually not want to go - silly me, DH and I still want to go who were we kidding!

 

[El&Asmom]

Sorry but I thought about the main con for our family: besides the cost of the room at WDW which we have "prepaid", there are the costs of the actual vacation. The park tickets will end up costing us a fortune over the next 40 years. If we had a timeshare in HI or other locale, the main cost would be the airfare after the timeshare purchase. DVC is an expensive timeshare, but the costs of going to WDW every year is very high as well, even with the room paid for.

 

[silmarg]

Pro - Disney vacations for the next 40 yrs

Con - I will give u my DWs con.... not having the room cleaned each day / having to make your bed when on vacation...

 

[Robin"D"]

Pro - Disney vacations for the next 40 yrs

Con - I will give u my DWs con.... not having the room cleaned each day / having to make your bed when on vacation...

That's funny My DW said the same thing.....

 

[ddoconnell]

Pro: like previous posters it is the accommodations that we otherwise would not get to enjoy.

Con: Not buying earlier. My 24 year old son still wants to go whenever we plan a trip! So I can't see us ever worrying about it not being used.

All kidding aside....you have to look at this as a luxury and that you are pre-paying for your villa....not as a way to get a bargain vacation. We have never had a moments regret and are at this moment considering adding on again, but it is still a luxury and that is how we treat it.

Good luck with your decision!

 

[Deb & Bill]

My wife and I are trying to decide if the DVC would be worth the investment. A lot of the "Cons" on here talk about how expensive it is.... do you pay monthly on the points or how does that work? Just curious... thanks in advance for anyone who can help me out... or PM me if you prefer not to post.

Thanks

You can't look at this as a monetary investment. You'll wind up spending more on the travel to, the tickets, food, etc than you would if you didn't own DVC. All DVC ownership gets you is lodging year after year as long you pay the ever increasing member fees.

 

[rmcildw2m]

Pro - As a member you will always be staying in a deluxe resort
Con - waiting to long to join

 

[csharpwv]

For us the Pros and Cons change literally on every trip.

So far the biggest Pro - VACATION - VACATION - VACATION!
Here is a list of the trips we have taken using DVC (we bought PAP's):
January 2009
7 Nights at Saratoga Springs with my wife's Parents, sister, sister's friend, and the two of us in a 2 BR - with PLENTY of room!

December 2009 Trip
1 night VWL (Studio - at the last minute we decided to leave a day early)
1 night BLT (Studio)
3 night Cruise on the Wonder (Ocean-View)
6 nights to AKL - Jambo House - Savanna View

May 2010
7 nights at Hilton - Downtown Disney (used Hilton HHonors Points)

September 2010
5 nights Old Key West - planned only a few weeks out (we got really cheap airfare! $300 for the two of us r/t)

December 2010
7 nights at the Boardwalk Villas
7 nights on the Disney Magic

We will have been to WDW 4 times in a calendar year - and we can't wait to plan our NEXT adventure! I'm pretty sure we are going to book a cruise while we are on our upcoming 7 nights on the Magic.

the biggest CON - it will make you want to live in Florida! HAHA

We have both been scanning job posting for Florida - but then again - it wouldn't be as much fun if we LIVED there - it wouldn't be much of a vacation.

We always travel in the Low or Moderate attendance seasons - so we get great park time - and always have SO much fun..... and we don't even have kids! LOL

However - we can't wait to take my brothers and their families!!!

 

[StevesBLT]

Pro: Cost-efficient, at least as long as you're willing to stay in Disney resorts (and not trade out) for a number of years.

Con: Limited flexibility, such as 11 and 7 month booking windows and not being able to trade to other timeshares efficiently.

Good luck!

 

[noodle7729]

Pro: yearly deluxe level disney vacations

Con: lack of mousekeeping ( i have to admit that our room gets very untidy very quickly with a 2 year old and we missed the mousekeeping on our last trip to the AKV)

 

[Tink6666]

Pro: Many years of family vacations & memories

Cons: Only getting to go once a year...not able to affords more points!!!

 

[walkdmc]

Pro: It ensures Disney trips for years to come.

Cons: The compulsion to add-on, and before you know it, you've bought enough points that you are committed to going to Disney every year (which is fine by me, but the rest of my family, not so much).

 

[jkfreeman33]

Pro - could never afford the price of a 1 or 2 bedroom for a week. We enjoy the parks at a slower pace since we know we will be coming back. It's hard not to like Disney.

Con - even with the room paid, it is still expensive to go to Disney. The park passes are a killer now that they have an expiration date on them. Getting the type of room you want at the resort you want isn't easy if you don't call at the 11/7 month date. You really have to plan a year in advance to get what you want. The monthly maintenance fees keep going up every year, which I guess we should expect......

Have never regretted buying at the BW, but I think you are kidding yourself if you think Disney will now be a cheap vacation. Nothing about Disney is cheap!!

 

[corpcomp]

Pro - Getting to stay in a higher end resort and not killing ourselves going to all the parks.

Con - DS 15 now likes Universal rides better because they are more extreme. The con is the cost of one day at Universal is an additional $210.

Disney needs to buy Universal and blend annual passes.

 

[skelfbsfb]

PRO: Being able to stay at a resort that we could not normally afford.

CON: Not buying the correct amount of points in the first place.