A few questions:
How much would it cost to take a week every year in June at Animal Kingdom (if I were to buy into
DVC)? How ,high are the annual fees for AKL? I am trying to make sense of DVC....it seems like there is no benefit, when you factor in your loan payment and maintenance fees (unless you pay cash) + you still have to buy tickets. Thanks!
Here are the benefits as I see them.
1. If you are happy staying in a hotel room then stick to the resorts. If you need more space (large family or teenagers who can't share a bed) then the math suddenly changes and DVC starts making more sense when compared to buying a suite or two rooms.
2. For the reason above the studios don't work for me. So the secondary benefit is the full kitchen the one and two bedrooms. Paying $60 per meal gets old for me.
3. Staying at the Aulani. I fell in love with this resort and I will be spending a lot of my points there.
4. Buying resale is a real money-saver with DVC and SSR is the best deal of them all if you are fine with staying there. I personally like the resort. It's golf course, spa and proximity to DTD make it a great non-theme park stay. AKL is third in the best deal on resale. It's a great property.
5. As others will tell you, it really is a better deal if you don't finance. That said, I made some changes in our finances that still made it a good deal for me. I dumped our trailer that costs me a lot and was not getting used. DVC is cheaper and will get used. Win-win. I don't know if there's something in your finances that is similar, but for me I was making that payment and spending a lot of money on lodging. Now, I'm only spending money on lodging. So, it is cheaper for me.
6. Have you stayed in a villa? I never thought that DVC would be good for us. Then my kids grew up and we're not fitting in a hotel room so well anymore. Once I stayed at a few timeshares, I was hooked on the extra space. Maybe renting some points will help you decide if it's really for you or not.
