BLT YaY!!!

[bluechic03]

DH, DS (10 months), and I just got back today from a wonderful trip to the world We had been talking about DVC for the last few years but finally pulled the trigger and bought into BLT! We only did 125 pts...we want to stay within our budget and looking through the guides it seems like we can do everything we want! Especially since they gave us the full 2010 points I am a little nervous though since it is still a lot of $$$ up front..but this was DH and mine 5th trip together so I think it will definitely pay for itself soon....has anyone used points for other places than Disney???? Just wondering how this works and how difficult it is????? BLT is just BEAUTIFUL

 

[Nancy F]

HOME!!! You are going to love it there. We just got back Weds. and can't wait to go back in April. We bought in Jan. and got the points for 09 too. Really comes in handy.
Nancy

 

[DVC Mike]

Congrats!

 

[ChiSoxKeith]

Congrats and welcome home neighbor!!!

 

[EeyoreEma]

Congrats, and welcome home neighbor!! We're going on our 1st trip home Monday, and I'm so excited!

 

[briangib]

Congratulations and welcome home.

 

[bluechic03]

Thanks Everyone! What a nice warm welcome Do any of you have any tips for me? I'm still trying to figure the whole program out....What's all the talk about wait listing????

 

[bluechic03]

Congrats, and welcome home neighbor!! We're going on our 1st trip home Monday, and I'm so excited!

Have FUN! It was REALLY cold when we were there!

 

[nolanboys]

Thanks Everyone! What a nice warm welcome Do any of you have any tips for me? I'm still trying to figure the whole program out....What's all the talk about wait listing????

You can use the waitlist if your dates are unavailable when you call, or if you have a reservation at a resort, but want a different one and it is not available. You are allowed 2 waitlists. So, for example, if you booked your trip at BLT and then at the 7 mo mark wanted to switch to BWV and it was unavailable, you could waitlist there. There are 3 categories of rooms - standard, preferred garden/pool and preferred boardwalk. You could pick 2 of those and waitlist them to see if they become available for your stay. Or if you had a vacation planned at BLT and then wanted to add a couple of days after the 7 mo window opened up and they weren't available, you could try and book them at another DVC resort and then waitlist at BLT so you didn't have to switch resorts. Again, you can only waitlist 2 requests (so only 2 of standard, lake, or mk view).

We are new members as well, so i am trying to figure out everything as well. You also mentioned about trading out. Most people do not view trading out as a good use of points, especially if it is with RCI. The avlue just isn't there. It's OK to do once in a while, but not a regular basis. Hope this helps.

Congrats! Planning is half the fun!

 

[DisneyBelle99]

Congratulations! We are new DVC members, too! Bought at BLT after 20 plus trips to WDW for me! Hubby has less, since I did 2 solo trips when our older son was in the College program, and then a full time employee.
Welcome Home!

 

[Alan_BLT_2009]

HOME NEIGHBOR!

DH, DS (10 months), and I just got back today from a wonderful trip to the world We had been talking about DVC for the last few years but finally pulled the trigger and bought into BLT! We only did 125 pts...we want to stay within our budget and looking through the guides it seems like we can do everything we want! Especially since they gave us the full 2010 points I am a little nervous though since it is still a lot of $$$ up front..but this was DH and mine 5th trip together so I think it will definitely pay for itself soon....has anyone used points for other places than Disney???? Just wondering how this works and how difficult it is????? BLT is just BEAUTIFUL

 

[AnnaS]

Congratulations and Welcome Home!!!!!!!!

 

[jstarcze]

Welcome Home and Congratulations from Mickey, Goofy, and Me!

 

[HappyHappy]

Home. Two words that always makes me HappyHappy!

 

[bluechic03]

Awwwwww thanks again everyone! The DVC already feels like a family! The whole RCI thing is when we want to travel outside of the US? I think we will use it once in a while (every few trips or so) but why does everyone think its not a good value????

 

[DVC Eric]

CONGRATS !!!!!!!!!!

 

[ToddyLu]

It is not a good value sometimes because the "point cost" of those trips can be high. You also have to book well in advance to get a room, say at a popular place--then it may not be up to DVC standards as far as room/resort ammenities. Now again this is what I have read on the boards, not personally experienced. So if you want to use your points out of DVC it may take your 2-3 years worth of points to do so, then you will need to plan well in advance.

I think when I was looking into a trip to Ireland with ABD, it was 400 points per person and we only have 210 points each year. That is expensive in points.

But you will have HH, VB, GCV and now Aulani to get you into several nice areas. There is also talk about a resort being built in Wash DC. Those you could waitlist at 7 months and have an easier chance of getting in and will know what to expect.

 

[bluechic03]

Congrats and welcome home neighbor!!!

Thanks and I'm originally from Chicago and a HUGE White Sox fan! Go Go Go Go White Sox!!!

 

[bluechic03]

It is not a good value sometimes because the "point cost" of those trips can be high. You also have to book well in advance to get a room, say at a popular place--then it may not be up to DVC standards as far as room/resort ammenities. Now again this is what I have read on the boards, not personally experienced. So if you want to use your points out of DVC it may take your 2-3 years worth of points to do so, then you will need to plan well in advance.

I think when I was looking into a trip to Ireland with ABD, it was 400 points per person and we only have 210 points each year. That is expensive in points.

But you will have HH, VB, GCV and now Aulani to get you into several nice areas. There is also talk about a resort being built in Wash DC. Those you could waitlist at 7 months and have an easier chance of getting in and will know what to expect.

Wow that is a lot, I guess I was looking at just the room type exchanges (not the adventures by Disney) which some look like you could get for around 160/wk and the hotels looks REALLY nice (like the grand mayans) thanks for all your tips!!!

 

[kristie03]

Welcome Home Neighbor!! You will LOVE your DVC...we joined almost 2 years ago (YEA!!) and have not traded out except for the cruise line....