advice on buying in

[annhad4]

Hi Everyone,
I've been quietly reading for a couple of months, trying to decide if we should take the plunge. We are a family of 6 and go to Disney a couple of times a year, so buying into DVC makes sense, but we never plan more than 2 months out. The question is...will we be able to book 2 months out if we buy into the DVC? Some of the posts are a little scary, reading about booking 11 months out, we could never plan that far ahead. Any of your wonderful advice will be appreciated.
Thank you!

 

[dianeschlicht]

That really depends on a couple of things. Mostly...what time of year you usually travel, and what resort you want to mostly stay at. If you always want to go the first two weeks of December or over any major holiday time, WDW Marathon week, or Food and wine festival, then you might be relegatted to waitlisting if you are particular about which resort. If the resort doesn't matter to you, then go ahead and try for whatever you can get. Just be aware that about 2 months out, excess inventory CAN be turned back to CRO for them to sell, so that makes for a little bit of a glitch if you aren't planning at least more than 60 days out.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Two months out could be very iffy. At 60 days, any left over inventory from DVC is given to CRO to sell.

WDW is getting busier and busier. More and more non-members are finding out about renting a reservation. Enter that into the equation and it makes it even harder. Plus, with 6, you will have to get a two bedroom villa, which also may be more difficult.

DVC really requires planning and it doesn't sound that that is something that you are able to do. You may hear from several members that they were able to get a room a few days out, but that is really in the minority. Even if you don't care where you stay and would be find with OKW and SSR all the time, it could still be difficult to get your two bedroom villa. More and more you hear about people who could get two nights here, three nights there and waitlisted for the others.

 

[annhad4]

Thanks for the quick reply. Looks like I may require an organizational intervention if we plan to visit Disney again. Wish me luck! We really aren't that picky as long as we're on property, but I do love to go the first 2 wks in December and the first week in March. Though, I did notice on the last trip (2 wks ago) that it was more difficult to get reservations for Table service and we've never had trouble in the past. This is all food for thought. I guess if we made reservations in advance and did need to change we could put the points in holding. Couldn't we? Also, we never go for more than 5 days at a time.

 

[Granny]

Unless you have jobs that make it difficult to know when you can take time off, I think you can cure that "planning paralysis" of yours!

You already know approximately when you like to go, so book your December and March trips 11 months in advance at your home resort. Switch them to another resort at 7 months if you like. You can cancel up to 31 days prior to your reservation without putting your points in a restricted basis.

If you cannot plan more than 2 months out due to jobs, etc then I'd say that DVC is iffy for you.

If you are choosing to delay your bookings until that timeframe, then a little planning adjustment in your mind and DVC could work very well for you. I'm thinking with your frequency of travel to WDW, and 6 in your party....well, DVC should be a great fit for your family if you can just pick up the phone in January for that December trip!

Good luck!

 

[Lesley]

One factor no one has mentioned yet is weekends. Do your trips tend to be long weekends? DVC will be less of a value for you if you always need to stay on a Friday and Saturday night.

Many members do join based on the number of points for a full week and don't really look at the higher number of points needed for weekend nights.

As far as booking 2 months out- I've had pretty good luck with short notice, even booking at VWL, but I've also heard "nothing but OKW available". Be prepared to stay at the larger resorts (OKW, SSR) most of the time if you absolutely can't plan farther in advance.

 

[annhad4]

That's hilarious! "Planning Paralysis" that's exactly what I have! The other factor is with the kids. All are still in school and we don't have the next years school schedule untill August (Christmas Plays, recitals, etc.), which makes it a little tricky to schedule in January for the coming December. We do usually travel over a long weekend so the mention of buying enough points to cover a Friday and Saturday is very helpful (I didn't think of that). I appreciate the advice so much because I really do want to make this work, it will just take a little more thought and "planning". And I haven't even gotten to the question about buying a new contract or a resell, so stick with me people. Thanks again!

 

[Granny]

We do usually travel over a long weekend so the mention of buying enough points to cover a Friday and Saturday is very helpful (I didn't think of that).

Yes, Lesley made an excellent point. If you anticipate your trips to be primarily long weekends, then the value of DVC goes down pretty dramatically as Friday and Saturday night point requirements are much, much higher than weekday nights.

If you know your usual travel patterns, look up the point requirements on the point charts to see how many points you'll need. If it is mostly Friday/Saturday nights, DVC will be an expensive option for you I'm afraid.

 

[eporter66]

The question is...will we be able to book 2 months out if we buy into the DVC? Some of the posts are a little scary, reading about booking 11 months out, we could never plan that far ahead. Any of your wonderful advice will be appreciated.
Thank you!

In my personal experience, time of year is the key. We usually plan our vacations in advance, so the 11 or 7 month window works for us.

But, in the last year I planned two quick trips, and with a little flexibility I was able to book. Obviously they were not the most popular of times (January for both trips), but I was able to book within a 6-8 weeks of my stay.

Obviously holidays, special events and other issues happen. And if you are flexible with the choice of resort it might work. My concern for you would be the that to do this on a regular basis might become difficult. DVC seems to work very well for those who plan ahead, but last minute stuff you really need to be very flexible, and probably understanding when you cant get what you want.

E

 

[SFLTIGGER]

Just wanted to put my 2 cents in!
We bought last year and are in heavean You did not mention what room accomodations you have been doing for 6 people, but if you have not seen a 2 bedroom villa at a DVC resort..... Wow.
IMHO, sounds like it would be a great fit for your family providing the cost in managealbe and you can get over the Planning thing (we did sign in May and booked trip for Labor Day week at VWL and then later booked a weekend at OKW (on a couple weeks notice) ).

 

[crisi]

Thanks for the quick reply. Looks like I may require an organizational intervention if we plan to visit Disney again. Wish me luck! We really aren't that picky as long as we're on property, but I do love to go the first 2 wks in December and the first week in March. Though, I did notice on the last trip (2 wks ago) that it was more difficult to get reservations for Table service and we've never had trouble in the past. This is all food for thought. I guess if we made reservations in advance and did need to change we could put the points in holding. Couldn't we? Also, we never go for more than 5 days at a time.

You need to be really careful of your use years.

Our use year is April - which means if we don't want to use our points and want to bank all of them, I need to call by October. From October to the end of the year, I can bank progressively less proportionally, until eventually, I can't bank them at all.

So six months ahead, I need to know if I'm going to use the points this year or not. You don't sound like you'll know that.

Then if I make plans, and change them - lets say we want to go it March and "oops" have to cancel. My use year ends March 31st. I have to use those points by March 31st or I lose them.

DVC is good for planners. It isn't good for people who want (or need) spontenaity in their lives.