About to take the DVC plunge. Advice?

[disneynutz]

You are right. But the other poster to me made it sound as if booking at 7 months means disappointment. I just wanted to make it clear one can have great success at 7 months. I also did not have one particular favorite resort until GFV's came along, but I will not pay that steep of a price.

I see a VGF resale in your future!

Bill

 

[CMOORE185]

I see a VGF resale in your future!

Bill

Lol, maybe!

 

[DisSarahK]

DVC can be a wonderful purchase, as it has been for us, but given you can make it to DL more easily than FL would give me pause to purchase at AKV. If you still plan to visit DL more often, then as a couple of others have mentioned, buying into VGC gives you the ability to book there at 11 months, an act which at 7 months (should you buy AKV) will be difficult since as you say above, traveling at off-peak times will be eliminated. Further, though things could certainly change, studios at AKV currently are much easier to reserve at 7 months than at VGC due to its size. It does sound as though you have done some research, but this one issue is one that I would resolve before jumping in. Good luck!

I think there is some confusion. I would not buy at AKV or at any of the Florida properties. I'm looking at Aulani or the Grand.

 

[sleepydog25]

I think there is some confusion. I would not buy at AKV or at any of the Florida properties. I'm looking at Aulani or the Grand.

Obviously, I cannot read. lol My apologies!

 

[Apps]

I think there is some confusion. I would not buy at AKV or at any of the Florida properties. I'm looking at Aulani or the Grand.

I've booked at both the Grand and Aulani...really hard at the Grand at 7 months. If you do resale, you can break it up by doing 75 at Grand and 75 at Aulani and just borrow every other year to use 150 pts. (or 100 / 100 also).

My 6 and 3 year old really loved Aulani but when my kids get to 13 and 10, i see myself at Maui way more than Aulani. Just something to also consider

 

[disneynutz]

I have done a lot of research, but sometimes hearing people's real life opinions is worth more than the research. I talked at length with one DVC owner while at Aulani and the conversation was quite helpful.

We are a family of four and our children just turned 8 and 10. Currently we do Disney vacations every year--Disneyland, a DCL cruise (I know it is bad to use your points on a cruise), or (this year) Aulani. We love Disney and I am the biggest Disney lover in the family. It isn't something we do "just for the children" or anything like that.

We plan to use these points at Aulani and at Disneyland. I've never been to Florida/Disney World and although we may go at some point in the future, it definitely wouldn't happen very often. We live in the greater Seattle area so traveling to Hawaii and California is much more affordable and interesting to us.

We fell in love with Aulani last week and envision ourselves returning there many times in the future.

I have looked into resale and am intrigued by it, but my husband would prefer to buy direct from Disney. He isn't very good at verbalizing why, but I know he likes the perks they are offering right now--which, to me, would be off-set by the amount of money we would save buying resale.

edited to add: My daughter enters middle school in September (yikes!) and our abilities to travel at off-peak times of the year will be eliminated. Prior Disneyland trips have been in February and September--that won't be happening any more due to her school commitments.

You might want to consider renting a reservation from an owner and taking a WDW vacation. You don't have any interest in WDW but you have never been there. We grew up in California and only went to Disneyland until 1997. After vacationing at WDW we realized that WDW is a Disney experience with more options and you get more for less money compared to Disneyland. WDW is 43 square miles in size, Disneyland resort is less than 1.

Bill

 

[JeffR]

I think there is some confusion. I would not buy at AKV or at any of the Florida properties. I'm looking at Aulani or the Grand.

Before you spend the kind of money you are talking about, you should really read these posts a little closer. They are giving you very good advice.

Due to the cost and distance, Aluani will likely always be available in a 3 month window, and so it doesn't matter as much if you don't own here. Owning at a high-demand resort that you never intend to visit might seem a little silly now, but it won't 15 years from now.

As someone who has owned for 15 years (and who just got back from Spring Break at Alunai on a 3 month booking), my advice is to buy at the highest demand resort you can find, especially if you expect to spend most of your time in the next decade on Oahu.

 

[lymaniii]

We just barely took the plunge ourselves. We bought at Grand Floridian even though it's pricey. For us it was 1) because we are a family of 5 and there are few resorts that allow 5 in a studio, and 2) the size of that resort is so small and the location so good that having the 11 month window will be necessary.

We ended up buying 2 contracts at 100 points each because we may end up selling one a few years down the road. I personally believe that the resale value for Grand Floridian will stay higher than others (due to being flagship resort, size, location, etc.)

For those reasons I like the advice to get Grand Californian if you can with better flexibility to get HI on short notice.

Best of luck!

 

[DVC Doctor]

Buy a resale at Hawaii especially if you can find one that is locked in with the lower dues.

 

[ccigliano]

The more I think about the question, the more I agree with the post that said before you buy anything, take a trip to WDW. While you say that you will only visit DL and Aulani, once you take a trip to WDW that may change. Since DL points are so expensive and you do get some much more bang for your buck at WDW you may regret not purchasing in Florida at another resort that you love where the points and dues are less. You may want to buy at DL and say BLT (or another WDW resort) and split your stays to FL to every other year. Good luck.

 

[ELMC]

We fell in love with Aulani last week and envision ourselves returning there many times in the future.

This statement is a bit of a red flag to me. I don't know of many people who visit Hawaii and don't fall in love, or even profess a profound desire to return again and again. I felt the same way about St. Lucia when I first went there fourteen years ago. Totally loved everything about it. Looked at buying a timeshare there. Didn't, and I'm glad I didn't because I haven't been back since.

Typically I recommend DVC to someone who has a history of vacations to DVC properties. Better to establish the pattern first than to buy in anticipation of a pattern that does not materialize.

I have looked into resale and am intrigued by it, but my husband would prefer to buy direct from Disney. He isn't very good at verbalizing why, but I know he likes the perks they are offering right now--which, to me, would be off-set by the amount of money we would save buying resale.

I would try to get him to verbalize why. The perks are all sizzle, but you're right in that for many they don't compare to the real meat, which is the cash you can save by buying resale.

edited to add: My daughter enters middle school in September (yikes!) and our abilities to travel at off-peak times of the year will be eliminated. Prior Disneyland trips have been in February and September--that won't be happening any more due to her school commitments.

You're most likely going to need to own at VGC. Direct has a wait list of up to a year and resales come up somewhat frequently but are expensive. I would think very carefully about where you buy, because as others have said it does not make sense to use very expensive VGC points to stay at Aulani or at WDW resorts. I would consider buying enough VGC points for your stays there, and buying at another resort for your Hawaii trips [AUL resale if you want the comfort of the 11 month window or SSR for inexpensive points to book AUL at 7 months].

Good luck with your research and your decision!

 

[Firepath]

You might want to consider renting a reservation from an owner and taking a WDW vacation. You don't have any interest in WDW but you have never been there. We grew up in California and only went to Disneyland until 1997. After vacationing at WDW we realized that WDW is a Disney experience with more options and you get more for less money compared to Disneyland. WDW is 43 square miles in size, Disneyland resort is less than 1.

Bill

Totally agree with you Bill! We all grew up in So Cal and thought DL was great until we tried WDW. Later when we moved to the Northwest (before DVC) we priced a one week vacation at DL vs. WDW. Flights, lodging, and transportation were all less in Florida. Since it was cheaper for us to go to WDW, we rarely go to DL anymore. DVC points go a lot further at most WDW resorts, and nonstop flights from SEA to MCO on Alaska Airlines will get you there pretty fast.

 

[BestDadEver]

I have done a lot of research, but sometimes hearing people's real life opinions is worth more than the research. I talked at length with one DVC owner while at Aulani and the conversation was quite helpful.

We are a family of four and our children just turned 8 and 10. Currently we do Disney vacations every year--Disneyland, a DCL cruise (I know it is bad to use your points on a cruise), or (this year) Aulani. We love Disney and I am the biggest Disney lover in the family. It isn't something we do "just for the children" or anything like that.

We plan to use these points at Aulani and at Disneyland. I've never been to Florida/Disney World and although we may go at some point in the future, it definitely wouldn't happen very often. We live in the greater Seattle area so traveling to Hawaii and California is much more affordable and interesting to us.

We fell in love with Aulani last week and envision ourselves returning there many times in the future.

I have looked into resale and am intrigued by it, but my husband would prefer to buy direct from Disney. He isn't very good at verbalizing why, but I know he likes the perks they are offering right now--which, to me, would be off-set by the amount of money we would save buying resale.

edited to add: My daughter enters middle school in September (yikes!) and our abilities to travel at off-peak times of the year will be eliminated. Prior Disneyland trips have been in February and September--that won't be happening any more due to her school commitments.

If I were you I'd be looking to buy points at the grand Californian. It's next to imposable to get a room on points at the VGC at 7 months from what I hear its hard to get at 11 months . I am pretty sure Aulani will be easy to get into being its big and not near a park . Also it sounds like you want to be in DL more then anywhere else .

Something to consider is buying direct will allow you to use points for the DL resorts if say you can't get VGC , it might be worth the extra money to be able to have that option if you are mainly going to be in DL . Plus I am pretty sure the direct price is pretty close to the resale price for vgc .

 

[skier_pete]

We just bought points in Florida (still waiting for ROFR ) but I put together this list that tells me if I wanted to buy or not.

You should only buy DVC if most of the following apply:
1) You like Disney enough to go at least once a year to maybe every other year.
2) You vastly prefer staying on property AND staying at moderates or deluxes and you have the money to do so.
3) You can regularly schedule your vacations at a minimum of seven months in advance and preferably 11 months in advance. (Last minute and DVC don't go great together unless it's 1 or 2 nights.)
4) You would be 100% satisfied with staying at the resort at which you own points, because sometimes that's all you will be able to get with that long in advanced booking.
5) You don't mind not having maid service in your room. (This is sort of a hidden piece, but it's odd to be staying in such a nice resort and not get the high quality service.)
6) You don't care about trading points outside the DVC family of resorts. Anyplace else is a sucker's bet.
7) Once you spend the initial money, you better understand that you continue to have to pay maintenance fees, and these fees will continually rise. DVC will never be paid off.
8) The biggest thing to me - you have to foresee that you will want to continue stays at Disney World (on property moderate/deluxe) for at LEAST the next 10 years or more. The advantage to owning DVC is not today. When buying resale, the advantage is out about 10-12 years. (It's closer to 20 years if you buy DVC new from Disney.)

If only a few of these items apply to you, it might be wiser to RENT DVC points.

The big one if you are looking at Aulani is that THAT is where you want to go. I agree with others - if you want to go sometimes to VGC and sometimes to Aulani, I would buy VGC. (The thought makes me wonder how much longer until they put more DVC in DLR.)

I would also recommend resale, but you definitely need to do the research to see what you are passing up if you do that. (Mostly the ability to trade points for less valuable other destinations.) An Aulani resale is running around $100-$110 per point versus Disney charging $150 per point, that's what $8000 savings on the far end?

 

[DisSarahK]

Thank you all very much for your thoughtful comments and insights. I really appreciate the time you took to respond to my questions--some of you multiple times! To the poster who suggested I read the responses more closely, please know that I read them all *very* closely.

With that said, we are *not* going to purchase Aulani at this time. I am now firmly on the side of purchasing only resale and I believe that we need to buy at the Grand as most of our trips are to Disneyland and not to Hawaii. Still, I'm not ready to pull the trigger on that purchase yet either.

Thank you for the advice to visit Disney World before making a decision, but due to my son's health concerns, that is not an option at this point in time.

 

[Dean]

Thank you all very much for your thoughtful comments and insights. I really appreciate the time you took to respond to my questions--some of you multiple times! To the poster who suggested I read the responses more closely, please know that I read them all *very* closely.

With that said, we are *not* going to purchase Aulani at this time. I am now firmly on the side of purchasing only resale and I believe that we need to buy at the Grand as most of our trips are to Disneyland and not to Hawaii. Still, I'm not ready to pull the trigger on that purchase yet either.

Thank you for the advice to visit Disney World before making a decision, but due to my son's health concerns, that is not an option at this point in time.

One doesn't have to read long on DIS to know I'm a big proponent of resale however, for VGC, I don't think the difference is nearly as much between retail and resale as for some situations. There aren't a lot of resale contracts and they tend to be stripped but often DVD doesn't have points either and runs a wait list. A loaded contract is likely to be no more than $20 or less pp different when looked at globally, not pocket change but not a dramatic enough difference to be the only factor. I'd simply look at both and then take what seems to fit best.

 

[littlestar]

I would be tempted to get on a waitlist with Disney for some Grand California points. I would possibly think about owning a combination of points. Maybe some resale points at SSR to use for booking Aulani.

 

[bdrobet]

Hello all. I am seriously considering DVC but I have a bit of a dilemma. I live only about 30 mins from VGC and would like to stay there. However the resale points there are about double what you might find at SSR. If I only want to stay a night or two at a time at VGC, how likely will I be able to book that at the 7 month mark or even say the 4 month mark? Any experience and/or input here would be appreciated.

 

[tasha99]

Hello all. I am seriously considering DVC but I have a bit of a dilemma. I live only about 30 mins from VGC and would like to stay there. However the resale points there are about double what you might find at SSR. If I only want to stay a night or two at a time at VGC, how likely will I be able to book that at the 7 month mark or even say the 4 month mark? Any experience and/or input here would be appreciated.

I was able to get 3 nights in a row at the 6 month mark--2 nights in a 1BR and the last night in a 2BR (rented the last part since I didn't have the points).

 

[Msmithmd]

Hello all. I am seriously considering DVC but I have a bit of a dilemma. I live only about 30 mins from VGC and would like to stay there. However the resale points there are about double what you might find at SSR. If I only want to stay a night or two at a time at VGC, how likely will I be able to book that at the 7 month mark or even say the 4 month mark? Any experience and/or input here would be appreciated.

Possible most times of year, especially one bedroom, right at seven months. Unlikely but not impossible below seven months- much of the year even a single day below seven months. This is about the highest demand versus capacity DVC in the system.

If you don't plan to book before seven months anyway, buy the cheapest points you can get (purchase plus maintenance). If you are able to book before seven months, I'd strongly recommend you actually own at VGC.

And if you like to book a day or two here and there on short notice for a quick trip, I'd strongly recommend you not own DVC at all. It is doable in Florida as long as you're not picky about which resort you will be at, but currently in California you would be disappointed trying to book last minute most of the time. This could change if DVC were to build more California capacity, of course.