Am I missing something -Need help

[frankiemom]

Hi I have been looking over the packet Disney sent me on the Disney Vacation club and going over the numbers. With the deals and discount codes Disney has been offering I do not see how the Disney Vacation CLub saves you any money. This was my math: dues x 40 years plus my purchase price divided by 40 This gave me what it would be per year for 40 years. WHen I did that I was finding that many places were cheaper (Grand Floridian, Polynesian, Yacht Club, Contemporary) using the Disney discount codes rather than joining the club! The codes for this time of year were for travel time from 7/4---8/24.

I an not trying to start a fight here but I was really very interested in joining but am not so sure. I know that the price of the rooms will go up each year but so too will the dues. What am I doing wrong or overloooking? Thanks for you help.

 

[RobDoc]

Your assumption is that the discounts available in this post-9/11 economy will be sustained for another 40 years. You are also apparently comparing the DVC point costs at those resorts instead of using the point cost to stay in larger, more comfortable DVC villas.

In most cases, even with the discounted rates available now, DVC stays will outperform those costs within a matter of 10-12 years by staying at DVC resorts in 1BR and 2BR villas.

Make sure you compare the DVC costs with the rates you are finding (also add in the 11% room tax- there is no tax when staying on points).

Enjoy!

 

[KNWVIKING]

Simplest reply is inflation. Our only variable is our dues,which are very stable. What will a nite at GF be in 10 years. Couple years ago when economy was booming & WDW was booked,how many REAL discounts did you see. You can't plan a vacation 1-2 years in advance gambling a great discount will be there. But I can, actually for the next 40.

 

[frankiemom]

Do the resorts included in the Disney Vaction club have housekeeping or is that extra?

 

[RobDoc]

Housekeeping services are provided every 4 days and most here report that they find that schedule quite adequate.

For those who require more frequent service, it is available as desired for an additional user's fee.

DVC villas are categorized as Home-Away-From-Home and all have access to washer/dryers at no cost. Some are in the 1BR and larger villas and provided near the pools for those staying in Studio units.

 

[PamOKW]

I know that the price of the rooms will go up each year but so too will the dues

The increase in dues has been nowhere near the yearly increase in room costs. Since 1993, OKW dues have increased 25%. If you look at the time period 1993-2002, the increase has been roughly 1%. Discounts or not, WDW rooms have gone up much more than 1%. Since 1997, the rack rate for a Regular season villa at OKW has gone up roughly 22%. At other times of the year, the increases have been even more dramatic.

It's true that comparing DVC costs to the 40% discounts that have been out there this past year makes the choice less clear cut. However, the past record is that discounts were difficult to come by and non-existent at some times of the year.

Not pushing you one way or the other, just trying to help in the decision-making process.

DVC also does not necessarily save you money. If you would ordinarily be spending amounts equal to a Value room (on or offsite), you may end up paying more for DVC but also getting a much more deluxe set-up. You'll probably breakeven or do slightly better than if you would be spending Moderate rates....once again for better accomodations. Comparing to a Deluxe, you can't help but come out ahead and still be staying in equal (if you are in a studio) or better (anything 1 bedroom or above) resorts.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Speaking only for myself here-
We have been Premium Annual Passholders for many years, and the PAP hotel rate (Poly, AKL, WL) in the off season has been very favorable to say the least.
DVC will cost us more $$$ than renting Deluxe Resorts. However, (and here is the BIGIE) our accomadations quality, vacation frequency, and overall "lifestyle" has improved by a lager percentage than the cost.
For us, it was more of a lifestyle change.

 

[Doctor P]

In general, DVC is a great deal if you plan to go to Disney anyway. At $80 per point, your total cost for points on a 150 pt. contract would be $12,000. This works out to $300 per year for 40 years. Add in your annual dues of less than $4.00 per point, and at maximum you are at another $600 per year for a total of $900 per year. Back out the room tax of 11% and your accomodation costs per year are approximately $810. Depending on the time of year, your 150 points will generally buy from 7 days to 18.5 days each year at an on-site DVC resort in a studio vacation home. Since most of the deals that have been offered by Disney even lately do not apply to the highest point periods (e.g., the week between Christmas and New Year's), generally you can get more than 7 nights out of the 150 pt. contract. Thus, a conservative estimate is $115 room rate per night, which compares favorably with most of the past special room rates and will generally not increase as fast as other room rates. Though I would not look on DVC as an investment, as a prepaid vacation plan its not a bad deal at all if you are interested in staying at the DVC resorts. If you are only happy staying at Grand Floridian or another particular deluxe resort, DVC points are not a cost effective way of taking such vacations.

 

[prplcrzy]

You should stay at one of the DVC resorts and then evaluate it to see if it is for you. If you don't mind a regular hotel room then it might not be for you. But if you like deluxe accomodations, try the DVC, you will see the difference. I don't look at DVC saving me money, I look at it as staying in a much better room than I would normally be able to afford for the same price.

 

[Michelemouse]

prplcrzy - I was going to say the exact same thing. The accomodations at DVC properties and the rooms at regular Disney resorts are like apples and oranges. There's just no comparison.

Also...here's the way I figure it. Say you buy 200 points. Those 200 points will cost a one-time fee of $16,000.00. Divide that by 40 years and you get $400.00, and divide that by the 200 points and you get $2.00. That's how much you pay per point over the life of your membership. Now add your dues of approx. $4.00 per point and it works out to $6.00/point. Now a studio rents for anywhere from 8-19 points, depending on the resort & season. That means you are, in effect, paying $48 - $114 per night for that room. You just can't get a deluxe room, on property, for anywhere near that. Plus, with a DVC studio you get the small kitchenette, which is a great plus, IMO.

Even with adding dues increases over the years DVC is still a great deal, IMO. Dues have gone up at a much slower rate than resort accomodations have. It's like locking in a price now but having it for 40 more years.

Hope this helps.

 

[chris1gill]

I calculate our room costs the same way Michelemouse pointed out. We purchased earlier in the game, so our point cost is 5.25 per point... again, calculating just like Michelemouse did... So, if a 1 bedroom villa is 18 points in the off season, I'm paying around 82.00 for a BWV standard view 1 bedroom... how can you beat that?

Obviously if you are going in high season, the numbers begin to go up, but even a 1 bedroom villa at 24 points adds up to 126.00/night... (Again multiplying our 5.25/point cost) of course weekend nights are much higher... If you are staying for 12 nights however it still averages out pretty well... 12 nights in the off season at BW in a standard view, checking in on a Sunday is 242 points, coming out to 1270.5 for 12 nights, slightly over 100.00 a night... And that's staying in a 1 bedroom villa... you could barely hope to get a moderate for that price...

 

[Richyams]

OKW Grand Villa for the cost of dues, oh my.

Afer breaking even a VERY long time ago, I get to stay in one of the very best, largest accomodations on WDW property.....a three bedroom Grand Villa at Old Key West for under $150 per night.....aint gotta hit me in the head with no tire tool....

 

[Mickmse2002]

Just another thought on this topic......

My wife and I sat through the DVC tour and presentation at the Boardwalk and were very impressed. We looked at the numbers and were enticed by the concept of "locking-in" our room rates until the year 2042. We decided not to buy as I was far too skeptical, I was looking for the catch (but never really found it).

Come a year later we were planning on going to Disney again and got out all the info on the DVC and re-thought the issue. This time we bought (losing the Magical Beginning benefit as we waited too long). Our decision to buy was based more on the idea that it "locks" us into taking family vacations more frequently then we probably would have else wise. When we paid cash for all our vacations we took them much less frequently because I can always find something else to spend money on.

The financial aspect of DVC is nice, the accommodations are awesome, but most importantly, the impetus to slow down, enjoy my kids while using my points is priceless. I only regret we didn't buy earlier.

 

[frankiemom]

Thank you for your replies. I just don't think it is worth it for our family. Many people talked about the deluxe accomodations you get with the Disney Vacation club. I stayed at the Grand Floridian in Apr and loved it-to me there is nothing much more deluxe then that. Our family is only a family of 3 so there is no need to invest in the 2 or 3 bedroom vacation homes. Also, having a kitchen in my villa is not important to me-we enjoy eating out while on vacation and also enjoy having housekeeping. With the discount I received this year 1 week at the Floridian was $1778 (including tax)--it would have cost me 335 points to stay there and when I figure out the price over 40 years the discount was actually cheaper then the Disney Club and the accomodations were incredible. I may not be able to get these discounts for ever but with everything that is going on now I think the travel industry is going to have to jeep the discounts coming for awhile because many people are hesistant to travel these days.

I am glad that all of you are happy with your decision and enjoy disney-that is all that matters--the magic! Thanks for your help.

 

[yesdisneyfool]

Only you can make a decision whether DVC is for you and your family. For us, we like going to Disney at least once a year. After DVC we are able to increase the number of visits (spreading points and taking shorter trips). This seems to suit us today.

We use to stay at a value resort, but once we got the feel of a deluxe "Home away from Home" resort, we were able to enjoy are visits even more.

DVC is not for everyone. Make your decision with informed information and you can get plenty of that here.

Best of Luck and have a magical stay during your next visit.

 

[OKWKirt]

For me, like many others, it is the fantastic accomodations. Every time I go to OKW in a one or two bedroom, while the family is sleeping and I'm with my coffee in hand sitting on the couch with my feet on the coffee table (I hope you all don't mind me doing that) I keep telling myself it just don't get any better than this, unless I'm on sitting on the big deck with the beautiful view. There is only one BIG problem with DVC - you get soooo spoiled that you can never stay in a regular hotel room while on vacation.

 

[yesdisneyfool]

Originally posted by OKWKirt
There is only one BIG problem with DVC - you get soooo spoiled that you can never stay in a regular hotel room while on vacation.

You'll get no argument here.

 

[PamOKW]

With the discount I received this year 1 week at the Floridian was $1778 (including tax)--it would have cost me 335 points to stay there

You are correct that joining DVC to stay at the GF is not a sensible decision. The option to stay at the WDW resorts is there to provide variety for DVC members and not make them feel that they are prevented from staying at resorts they may have enjoyed in the past or looked to forward to staying at in the future.

I'm assuming you are talking about a summer vacation stay. You could spend 1 full week in a one-bedroom at BWV, BCV or VWL for only 270 points. At OKW or a standard view at BWV it would be even less.

Very few of us here use the kitchens for anything more than breakfast and snacks (wine & cheese, cocktail hour etc.) but it sure is nice to have. There are also the large bathrooms, jacuzzi tubs, 2 TV's, living room, balcony, etc. , etc.

I would take the time to look at the models when you are at WDW. If you plan to return to WDW fairly regularly, I'd also take advantage of a good rate at any of the DVC resorts and give it a try. It's something that is very hard to describe to people. I was very skeptical as well....until I really took a look at what was being offered.

 

[invalid_char]

Frankiemom,

Interesting, we were in the same position as you last year. Love the GF (monorail, spa, tea) and were on the fence regarding DVC. At the time, we only had one child.

Our second child, due in August, is what tipped the scales toward DVC. With two, we knew we'd want the option of having them sleep in a separate room.

We also do not like to cook when at WDW. However, we found that it was simply more convenient to make and pack lunch, and often eat breakfast in our room, than to try to fight the crowds in the parks for lunch or take up valuable time being served breakfast every morning. So having the kitchen is a real convenience, even if we won't need the full amenities to cook dinner.

Having two kids also raises the laundry issue and being able to pack less because of the in room laundry facilities was also a real plus.

And as much as the convenience of the monorail can't be beat for the Magic Kingdom, we decided that it was more important to us to be near Epcot in the evening than MK during the day. We are pretty beat at night and want to enjoy Illuminations and the excellent variety of dinner options the Epcot area offers. We are in no mood to deal with any crowds or transportation after Illuminations (which we love). We just want to stumble back to our rooms and crash.

And frankly, with the exception of the California Grille, we are not too thrilled with the restaurant options in the GF area.

The last thing for us was that our daughter absolutely loves the pool at the Beach Club. So on days when we don't feel like doing the parks, we know she will still be just as excited.

And, lastly, as others have mentioned, you really can't expect that the discounts you now see will last once the economy is out of recession. And if you look at the economic history of our country, we are out of recession much more often than we are in recession. So I think there is still an econcomic advantage to DVC.

Anyway, as I said at the beginning, I can see how your decision is less clear cut if you LOVE the GF and have only one child. Maybe you should have another child to make your decision a little easier ... JUST KIDDING, OF COURSE!

 

[frankiemom]

invalid_char,

Thank you for your reply. It is nice to know that you understand why we are going back and forth with this. Maybe you are right------maybe it is time for another child! But anyway thank you for replying and I am glad you were able to make a decision. Enjoy the magic!