All of the free stuff we got at Aulani last week

[Paul Stupin]

That's like saying you felt embarrassed you paid less by buying resale. That's a good thing.
ie -They're just checking. Never anything to be embarrassed about.

Agreed! That said, I asked what was taking so long, and the woman replied, “some of the points were bought from someone else,” ie, not Disney, and the tone with which it was said implied it was a somewhat shady maneuver, like maybe I bought them in a shadowy back alley from a drug dealer.

I was more amused than annoyed, but her opinion of resale points, not that I cared at all, was crystal clear. Maybe she was new and didn’t have a full understanding of how the system works.

 

[J-Dog]

Just my unpopular/unsolicited/unwanted opinion, but I just don't see the appeal of the "free" stuff. Almost all of it is cheap and all of us have multiple of some form of all of this stuff from DVC already. I personally wouldn't have bothered to take any of that - it's just more junk to lay around my house when I get back.

 

[VGCgroupie]

Just my unpopular/unsolicited/unwanted opinion, but I just don't see the appeal of the "free" stuff. Almost all of it is cheap and all of us have multiple of some form of all of this stuff from DVC already. I personally wouldn't have bothered to take any of that - it's just more junk to lay around my house when I get back.

I love my coasters. I actually need more. We have used our backpacks several times. My husband refuses to wear the hat though The promo magnets and stuff I agree we can do without.

 

[J-Dog]

I love my coasters. I actually need more. We have used our backpacks several times. My husband refuses to wear the hat though The promo magnets and stuff I agree we can do without.

I've never used the coasters, but I could see the usefulness.

I have multiple DVC backpacks that we use occasionally, but the cheap Aulani backpack has never been used. Never bothered to take anything else home.

Those hats look like something that my 78 year old dad would wear.

 

[VGCgroupie]

I've never used the coasters, but I could see the usefulness.

I have multiple DVC backpacks that we use occasionally, but the cheap Aulani backpack has never been used. Never bothered to take anything else home.

Those hats look like something that my 78 year old dad would wear.

Yeah the hat material is golf style so my husband was a hard pass. We actually got a 2nd backpack at VDH so it's probably a West Coast backpack and the WDW people are extra jealous I can say I like it more than my gold cooling towel I got for buying direct.

 

[Skywalker3]

Thanks for this thread. I wouldn't have known to go down to the DVC desk for all these goodies otherwise. We did get a message on our in-room phone, but we usually don't visit DVC desks, etc , always think they'll be pushing more points on us.
I do wish we'd made it to the Monday member night, but we got to the hotel late, and were out making our Costco/Target runs, and just settling in.
No idea if we'll use the hats, but we did use the sling thing already while there, so that's come in handy, and magnets are our collectible of choice when we travel. Fridge, mini fridge, file cabinets, all covered in them.

 

[Paul Stupin]

Thanks for this thread. I wouldn't have known to go down to the DVC desk for all these goodies otherwise. We did get a message on our in-room phone, but we usually don't visit DVC desks, etc , always think they'll be pushing more points on us.
I do wish we'd made it to the Monday member night, but we got to the hotel late, and were out making our Costco/Target runs, and just settling in.
No idea if we'll use the hats, but we did use the sling thing already while there, so that's come in handy, and magnets are our collectible of choice when we travel. Fridge, mini fridge, file cabinets, all covered in them.

You didn’t miss much with the member night. It’s a thinly veiled sales pitch hidden behind, if I remember correctly, a trivia game or a singalong. I think there might be a character there too. I thought all the good cheer was a bit canned.

 

[AstroBlasters]

You didn’t miss much with the member night. It’s a thinly veiled sales pitch hidden behind, if I remember correctly, a trivia game or a singalong. I think there might be a character there too. I thought all the good cheer was a bit canned.

I don’t envy the guides there. If someone has not done ANY research then you are selling a product that is priced relative to some steep hotel rooms. But…. if they do any research on resale or subsidized dues then it is a STEEP mountain to climb.

Also, the high dollar make it very hard to
sell it to visitors in Asia and Oceania.

Nearly 20 years ago I covered Hawaii as part of an outside sales territory. Many of my clients said they got nearly half of their business from people visiting from Japan.

 

[Paul Stupin]

I don’t envy the guides there. If someone has not done ANY research then you are selling a product that is priced relative to some steep hotel rooms. But…. if they do any research on resale or subsidized dues then it is a STEEP mountain to climb.

Also, the high dollar make it very hard to
sell it to visitors in Asia and Oceania.

Nearly 20 years ago I covered Hawaii as part of an outside sales territory. Many of my clients said they got nearly half of their business from people visiting from Japan.

Very steep! But my guess is that there’s a large subset of people who have no idea that either resale or subsidized dues exist, who get caught up in all the fun they’re having, and consider making a DVC impulse purchase.

Of course, Aulani is still not sold out, but I think the guides hope to take advantage of that mindset. Not nefarious…it’s just their job.

 

[TikiRob]

So you don't get gifts if you are "white card"? I've always picked up free DVC gifts on Cruise Line and sliders/magnets and such in the parks.

 

[Paul Stupin]

So you don't get gifts if you are "white card"? I've always picked up free DVC gifts on Cruise Line and sliders/magnets and such in the parks.

You have to have direct points to get the gifts. They’re somewhat meticulous when it comes to making sure.

 

[TikiRob]

You have to have direct points to get the gifts. They’re somewhat meticulous when it comes to making sure.

Surprising they hand stuff out to resale members on Cruise Line and in the parks but not at Aulani. I was thinking about adding on 500 points, but not if they are going to be snobs about the drawstring bags.

 

[Paul Stupin]

Surprising they hand stuff out to resale members on Cruise Line and in the parks but not at Aulani. I was thinking about adding on 500 points, but not if they are going to be snobs about the drawstring bags.

For what it’s worth, those bags are basically cheap and worthless! That said, you had to have known that owning resale points (which in most cases is the smarter purchase) doesn’t guarantee you giveaways intended for those who bought direct. You can’t take a savings of thousands of dollars and then be indignant that Disney didn’t give you a bag that I’d bet is worth less than a nickel.

 

[J-Dog]

Surprising they hand stuff out to resale members on Cruise Line and in the parks but not at Aulani. I was thinking about adding on 500 points, but not if they are going to be snobs about the drawstring bags.

I've never been on a cruise, but between the WDW parks and Aulani, I don't think there's any difference. Just depends on how strict and/or knowledgeable the CM is who's working at the time. At any of those places, you're not entitled to perks if you're resale.

 

[TikiRob]

For what it’s worth, those bags are basically cheap and worthless! That said, you had to have known that owning resale points (which in most cases is the smarter purchase) doesn’t guarantee you giveaways intended for those who bought direct. You can’t take a savings of thousands of dollars and then be indignant that Disney didn’t give you a bag that I’d bet is worth less than a nickel.

Thanks, Paul. I understand what I’m entitled to as a resale member, I don’t have any regrets, nor do I need any additional DVC swag. I was simply surprised that on every DCL cruise I was encouraged to stop by each day to scan my membership for a gift and have done the same at WDW yet Aulani managed this differently. No worries here.

 

[Paul Stupin]

Thanks, Paul. I understand what I’m entitled to as a resale member, I don’t have any regrets, nor do I need any additional DVC swag. I was simply surprised that on every DCL cruise I was encouraged to stop by each day to scan my membership for a gift and have done the same at WDW yet Aulani managed this differently. No worries here.

I have a mix of direct and resale, but all my Aulani are resale. When I asked for the free gift during a trip booked with my resale points (mistakenly thinking it would be something worth keeping), they did give it to me, but only after taking an annoying 10 minutes to confirm I had direct points while I just stood there awkwardly, and was made to feel like they thought I was trying to pull off some kind of scam. Ugh!

They also give you a cheap paper “passport,” which you can get stamped every day and learn a different Hawaiian phrase, providing you return to the DVC desk. Who would have thought they could come up with something even more worthless than the nylon bag? I also thought it was kind of an insulting, transparent effort to get me back to the sales office consistently. The “DVC Member Celebration” every Monday night is a thinly veiled sales pitch, but at least they give you a magnet. I believe that’s open to both resale and direct owners.

 

[AstroBlasters]

Thanks, Paul. I understand what I’m entitled to as a resale member, I don’t have any regrets, nor do I need any additional DVC swag. I was simply surprised that on every DCL cruise I was encouraged to stop by each day to scan my membership for a gift and have done the same at WDW yet Aulani managed this differently. No worries here.

Resale members get a generic pool band and direct and hybrid members get a special sparkly pool band.

Adults may not care…. but there has been a grandparent or two that wasn’t thrilled their grandchildren were not getting sparkly pool bands.

Maybe the rules will change if they ever sell out.

 

[Paul Stupin]

Resale members get a generic pool band and direct and hybrid members get a special sparkly pool band.

Adults may not care…. but there has been a grandparent or two that wasn’t thrilled their grandchildren were not getting sparkly pool bands.

Maybe the rules will change if they ever sell out.

For what it’s worth, I really like the sparkly pool bands.

 

[GrimGrinningGuy]

I rented points and got some bamboo coasters

 

[Agent 86]

I rented points and got some bamboo coasters

Were they in your room upon arrival?