Best Bang for the Buck - NEWBIE with 160 pts.

[cloudybluedream]

Okay I just signed up and I really want to know what the best vacations you've done for 160 points. I'm still trying to understand all the borrowing and all, but right now all I want to know are some good example trips anyone else has taken for 160 pts.

I am still trying to figure out how I can do a more conservative trip one year and then take more extravagant trip another year to stretch out the points.

If anyone can layout their vacations based on a 160 pt membership that would be great. Our party includes 2 adults and 1 child.

Also after reading some of the other posts I get really confused with all the Acronyms. Is there a dictionary?

 

[4mcbjCtr]

How many people will you be traveling with?

 

[cloudybluedream]

I guess it does help to tell you who's in our party It would be 2 adults and one child.

 

[deej696]

The best bang for the buck with DVC is travelling during the week and staying in a Studio. Its the fewest number of points that way, which obviously increases the number of nights you can go. Not sure where you are located, but we are only an hour from WDW, and we go for 1 or 2 nights a month and we only have 180 points. If I lived further away, I would plan for Sun-Thurs night stays, which would probably allow 3 visits a year or so with the same number of points, assuming you dont go spring break or Christmas week. When you start jumping up into weekends and 1 bedroom's then you are using a ton of points, and cutting down the number of nights you can go. Cruises or exchanges for non-Disney vacations are not usually the best "bang for the buck" as well, because of the high number of points needed. Welcome to DVC and to the DISboards.

 

[chalee94]

Okay I just signed up and I really want to know what the best vacations you've done for 160 points. I'm still trying to understand all the borrowing and all, but right now all I want to know are some good example trips anyone else has taken for 160 pts.

i haven't stayed this long, but you could go for 14 days straight in a studio at OKW (or slightly longer in an AKV value studio, if you own there)...during the cheapest season, like the 1st 2 weeks of dec when the decorations are up.

if you avoided weekends, you could stay for 20 nights...but that can get a little tricky...

Also after reading some of the other posts I get really confused with all the Acronyms. Is there a dictionary?

yes, there is:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1660743

 

[TenThousandVolts]

Do you own at AKV? SSR? or other?

I own exactly 160 points and follow the same logic as you- One great trip on the odd years- then a conservative trip in the even years.

Example:
Year 1: one week in a standard studio early Dec. at AKV: 83 points
BANK 77 points into next year.
Year 2: 12 nights (m,t,w,th,f,s,s,m,t,w,th*) at BCV studio (or BWV or VWL) in summertime: 203 points
BANK 34 points

Now- as long as you are staying in studios you can get a lot out of a 160 point membership.

*staying 12 nights with 5 weeknights before and after the weekend will minimize your weekend point spending for long trips.

 

[hakepb]

We're booking a Savanna view studio at AKV for our next trip.
It sounds like a Savanna view may make the Studio stay more exciting.

Our last trip was a 1BR value view at BWV. Resorts with lower points categories can give you a better "bang for the buck"

 

[ldo]

endless options--but the most obvious "saver" options include choosing Studios--but if you bought to have more space and luxury, then, of course a 1 BR. Next, Sun-Thurs are 1/2 price points of weekends. OKW gives you 2 queens in a studio and costs less points. Also, avoid peak times (Christmas and Easter, which cost more points).
I would suggest 1 trip of 5 days Sun-Thur. in a studio to get you started to see how you like it----then another trip of 5 days Sun-Thurs. in a 1 BR at a different resort and then you can compare.
Ex. 5 days studio OKW in all but peak times 8-11 points (so 45+/- points for 5 days), 1 BR AKL 5 days 20-25+/- points, so 125 points. So, about 170 +/- points.
I don't know where you are from, but if travel is significant time/cost making a 5 day trip unfeasible, some go to a hotel or studio (if they were in a 1 BR) for the weekend to save points for trips lasting more than 5 days.

 

[cloudybluedream]

Do you own at AKV? SSR? or other?

I own exactly 160 points and follow the same logic as you- One great trip on the odd years- then a conservative trip in the even years.

Example:
Year 1: one week in a standard studio early Dec. at AKV: 83 points
BANK 77 points into next year.
Year 2: 12 nights (m,t,w,th,f,s,s,m,t,w,th*) at BCV studio (or BWV or VWL) in summertime: 203 points
BANK 34 points

Now- as long as you are staying in studios you can get a lot out of a 160 point membership.

*staying 12 nights with 5 weeknights before and after the weekend will minimize your weekend point spending for long trips.

I own at Saratoga Springs. We live in California and visit Disneyland often. We went to WDW in 2004 and really enjoyed ourselves. Any suggestions for Euro Disney and other vacations that aren't Disney themed?

 

[Mrs Hobbes]

We are based in the UK and own 160 points at AKV. We haven't done our first trip 'home' yet, that's happening in Feb next year.

Our reasoning for buying 160 points is that with the cost of flights, tickets and spending money (we like to live well on holdiay!) we can only afford to go to WDW every other year. So our 160 point contract works really well for us. With banking and borrowing we have 320 points for a great vacation every other year

For our forthcoming trip we are really treating ourselves though - we are using our 160 developer points, current use year points and next year points to give us 480 points We are having 2 weeks in WDW world, our first 4 nights will be in a studio savanna view and then friends will be joining us for the remainder of our stay so we are then moving across to a 2br standard for 8 nights. Would have loved savanna view all the way through but the 2 weekends took lots of points

 

[dolphingirl47]

We also live in the UK and our 160 points buy us two weeks at OKW in a studio every year during the time of year we like to go.

dolphingirl47

 

[TenThousandVolts]

I own at Saratoga Springs. We live in California and visit Disneyland often. We went to WDW in 2004 and really enjoyed ourselves. Any suggestions for Euro Disney and other vacations that aren't Disney themed?

With Hawaii and Disneyland DVCs opening up soon- I think they will be great options for you. On the east coast we have Hilton Head (love it) and Vero Beach that are great values for point usage options.

Once you start looking outside of the DVC system, "bang for your buck" dwindles, but it is still nice to have options. Hopefully, as they expand DVC to include more offsite resorts- we will have enough options in and out of Disney so we don't get bored.

 

[dizplanner]

You wanted some examples of usage, so I will give you ours. We own 150 at VWL (Aug use year) and bought resale in Nov 2004.
We got full 2004 and 2005 points when we bought.

Trip 1 - mid March 2006 - Extended family trip with 9 people
Sat night - 3 studios at OKW - 81 points
Sun - Thurs nights - Grand Villa at OKW - 255 points
(we then moved to Universal for 2 nights and the other family to POR for one night)
Total 336 points - used 150 banked 2004 points, 150 2005 points and borrowed 36 points from 2006

Trip 2 - early Dec 2006 - Trip with husband
1 week in studio at VWL - 104 points
used 2006 points
(husband and I had annual passes with DVC discount - I also made a solo trip in Sept 2006 with free dining, but paid cash at ASMu)

Trip 3 - early May 2008 - Trip with daughter (leaving soon)
4 nights, Sat - Tues nights - studio at BCV - 68 points
Used 10 banked 2006 points and 58 2007 points

Trip 4 - Oct 2008 - solo trip (this is what I have reserved right now, may change)
5 nights, Sun-Thur nights - studio at VWL - 60 points
Use 60 banked 2007 points

Trip 5 - mid March 2009 - family trip - four people
6 nights, Sat-Thurs - 2 bedroom at VWL - currently only have Sun-Thurs reserved since I want to be sure of the October trip before reserving the Saturday since I would have to borrow to book it now - 200 points for Sun-Thurs, 75 for Sat
For the 200 already booked, 32 banked 2007 points, 150 2008 points and 18 borrowed 2009 points. If the October stays as is, I'll borrow an additional 75 points. Otherwise if I don't go in October, I'll use the 60 points from that trip and borrow only 15 points.
(plan to go to Universal for two nights after Disney)

My daughter and I will get annual passes on the upcoming trip (and apply the 1 day ticket I got with my free dining trip against it).

My son is now in college and my daughter will be in fall 2009, so I don't know if they will want to go on many more trips with us. So I may change from saving up for a two bedroom to going every year for a week in a studio - possibily with an extra trip now and then or a one bedroom stay. Although I still may space the trips so that I can get two or more trips off an annual pass.

 

[DVC Mary]

We're a family of 4 & usually rent studios. I don't really like to cook that much when I'm on vacation, so a small fridge & microwave is plenty for simple meals.

We buy our annual passes & get 2 trips w/in the 365 days, then we don't renew them. We wait until the following year to do it all over again--so we have them every other year but get 2 trips are year out of them. We also aren't afraid to borrow from next year's points to make a longer trip one year over the next.

We were lucky enough to do 4 trips w/in one year for 2007-2008. We had some banked points from when we cruised on cash & only went to the parks for 3 nights. Here are our recent point usages:


October 4 nights in a studio: 60 points

February 3 nights (one at GF & 2 nights in a 1 bedroom) : 100 points + I can't remember the large point splurge for 1 night at the Grand Floridian for my Mom's 80th b-day--we were lucky enough to be upgraded to concierge so those points were well worth it to see her enjoyment

June 7 nights (4 nights studio & 3 1 bedroom) : 150 points


My favorite trip was 7 nights in a studio for 134 points & then we moved to AK before it went DVC for 4 nights in concierge ( 2 nights w/ points I don't remember how much + 2 nights w/ an unusually large AP discount of around $220) That trip was great. Ending a trip at AK is wonderfully relaxing. We slow things down & don't go to the parks as much. We enjoy the resort fully & leave rested rather than warn out from too much park fun.



We usually stay in studios. We have sometimes paid for our weekend nights, if they were available w/ an AP discount or DVC discount, to stretch our points further.

We started w/ 150. Eventually though we decided that we just wanted more points & bought another 100 points.


Play around w/ the points calculator to help figure out what you can do. The beauty of DVC is it's flexibility.

http://www.wdwinfo.com/resort/dvcpoint.cfm

Welcome!