can someone give me the real life costs

[stitchaholic]

your absolutely right , i would only need about 220 points to start off ....
off to find out the limitations of resale vs direct now

 

[Missyrose]

your absolutely right , i would only need about 220 points to start off ....
off to find out the limitations of resale vs direct now

If you purchase resale you cannot use your points for Concierge Collection, Disney Collection, DCL or Adventures by Disney.

You CAN, however, still trade out through RCI.

But the best value for your points will always be using them to stay at DVC resorts. Many very knowledgeable on the boards have said Disney did them a favor by restricting their resale points because using them for the restricted options are very poor points values.

 

[stitchaholic]

If you purchase resale you cannot use your points for Concierge Collection, Disney Collection, DCL or Adventures by Disney.

You CAN, however, still trade out through RCI.

But the best value for your points will always be using them to stay at DVC resorts. Many very knowledgeable on the boards have said Disney did them a favor by restricting their resale points because using them for the restricted options are very poor points values.

This is my issue , I will want to be able to move around , try different locations , cruise ..... so i'm not sure resale is a good bet for me , unless what you are telling me is I can get around it using RCI , I do not necessarily need to cruise DCL , I am ok with Carnival or RCCL .....
Can I get good value out of resale and use those points to trade with RCI locations ?

 

[crisi]

There aren't cruise offering through RCI.

Disney's arrangement with RCI provides a very limited subset of the RCI resorts, and no direct access. You'd probably be better off buying a different timeshare and trading into Disney than buying DVC and trading out.

 

[Missyrose]

This is my issue , I will want to be able to move around , try different locations , cruise ..... so i'm not sure resale is a good bet for me , unless what you are telling me is I can get around it using RCI , I do not necessarily need to cruise DCL , I am ok with Carnival or RCCL .....
Can I get good value out of resale and use those points to trade with RCI locations ?

You can't get good value trading out of DVC period. DVC is an expensive timeshare to begin with (and has expensive MFs). Trading out through RCI will almost always mean trading down in terms of quality of the lodging.

The point values for the various options that resale contracts are restricted from are terrible. If you look at the point charts, you'd see that the point totals you'd need for those options are astronomical, there's often limited availability and there's no cap on how much those options can rise from year to year.

The basic tenant of making a decision to buy DVC is this: Buy DVC if you plan to primarily to use you points for DVC. Anything else is not a wise use of your money/points.

 

[bwvBound]

There aren't cruise offering through RCI.

Well, there are - but not through the DVC/RCI relationship. DVC members aren't missing much on this count. I've never found RCI's Cruise exchanges to be a good trade.

 

[Lynne M]

This is my issue , I will want to be able to move around , try different locations , cruise ..... so i'm not sure resale is a good bet for me , unless what you are telling me is I can get around it using RCI , I do not necessarily need to cruise DCL , I am ok with Carnival or RCCL .....
Can I get good value out of resale and use those points to trade with RCI locations ?

You're describing a one-size-fits-all vacation club, and DVC isn't that. I'm not sure that exists. RCI isn't a way to book any kind of vacation you want (cruises, etc); it's a way to exchange among timeshares. And you don't even have access to all of RCI's resorts through DVC, just a limited selection of them.

When you buy DVC, whether it's direct or resale, you're purchasing the right to stay in DVC resorts. All those other exchange options are just perks, and they're subject to change (or being taken away completely) at any time.

Buy the number of points you need to cover your stays at DVC resorts. Remember that you can bank and borrow to accumulate points. So, let's say you'll want to do a stay at WDW that costs 300 points, every other year. You buy 150 points, bank your points in the year you don't go to WDW, and that gives you 300 points to use ever other year.

As timeshares go, DVC is very expensive. For people who really, really want to be on Disney property and in villa-style accommodations, it can be a good deal, compared to paying cash for a villa. But for the kinds of 'other' vacations you're looking for, you can find much, much better deals outside of DVC. Cruises, for instance. You can find terrific deals on RCCL and Carnival cruises. Using your (expensive) DVC points to pay for that is like paying Lexus prices for a Corolla.

 

[stitchaholic]

You're describing a one-size-fits-all vacation club, and DVC isn't that. I'm not sure that exists. RCI isn't a way to book any kind of vacation you want (cruises, etc); it's a way to exchange among timeshares. And you don't even have access to all of RCI's resorts through DVC, just a limited selection of them.

When you buy DVC, whether it's direct or resale, you're purchasing the right to stay in DVC resorts. All those other exchange options are just perks, and they're subject to change (or being taken away completely) at any time.

Buy the number of points you need to cover your stays at DVC resorts. Remember that you can bank and borrow to accumulate points. So, let's say you'll want to do a stay at WDW that costs 300 points, every other year. You buy 150 points, bank your points in the year you don't go to WDW, and that gives you 300 points to use ever other year.

As timeshares go, DVC is very expensive. For people who really, really want to be on Disney property and in villa-style accommodations, it can be a good deal, compared to paying cash for a villa. But for the kinds of 'other' vacations you're looking for, you can find much, much better deals outside of DVC. Cruises, for instance. You can find terrific deals on RCCL and Carnival cruises. Using your (expensive) DVC points to pay for that is like paying Lexus prices for a Corolla.

I understand these very well put points , and Disney resorts are where I can envision taking most of my vacations , I guess what I am exploring put more clearly is this

being a Disney nut but wanting occasional options such as the caribean , cruises , mexico , Cali and eventually Hawaii and Europe , woud it be better to go directly through DVC so I can take advantage of being able to use my points on DCL or world passport collections as Disney seems to have resorts everywhere

or

buy resale and when I want other options try to trade for RCI resorts since there are limitations on resales

or

buy a time share through RCI and trade into Disney resorts when i feel the need .... ( this one makes me sad for some reason , I want to be part of the magic)

 

[KingRichard]

I understand these very well put points , and Disney resorts are where I can envision taking most of my vacations , I guess what I am exploring put more clearly is this

being a Disney nut but wanting occasional options such as the caribean , cruises , mexico , Cali and eventually Hawaii and Europe , woud it be better to go directly through DVC so I can take advantage of being able to use my points on DCL or world passport collections as Disney seems to have resorts everywhere

or

buy resale and when I want other options try to trade for RCI resorts since there are limitations on resales

or

buy a time share through RCI and trade into Disney resorts when i feel the need .... ( this one makes me sad for some reason , I want to be part of the magic)

Do a search for points charts and you will see that 300 or less points(we only have 150) will not get you to any of these others countries. You could use 3 years of points but when you factor in the cost of 3 years points again it doesn't make sense.

You can use your points in Hawaii and Cali, Hilton Head and Florida coast(all DVC resorts) with no restrictions.

 

[Lynne M]

I understand these very well put points , and Disney resorts are where I can envision taking most of my vacations , I guess what I am exploring put more clearly is this

being a Disney nut but wanting occasional options such as the caribean , cruises , mexico , Cali and eventually Hawaii and Europe , woud it be better to go directly through DVC so I can take advantage of being able to use my points on DCL or world passport collections as Disney seems to have resorts everywhere

or

buy resale and when I want other options try to trade for RCI resorts since there are limitations on resales

or

buy a time share through RCI and trade into Disney resorts when i feel the need .... ( this one makes me sad for some reason , I want to be part of the magic)

I'm a lot like you....most of the time my vacations are to Central FL, but sometimes I like to go other places. Europe, cruises, other cities in the US. But I don't use my DVC points for those other things, because I've found that a) I can do it much cheaper booking on my own for cash, or b) it costs a lot more points than I have, or c) what's available for booking with points doesn't match up with my travel plans - not in the right city or country.

Since I got to FL at least once a year, I've only rarely had trouble using my 150 points. Once, I rented out some I hadn't used. A couple of times, I've banked points. If I ever decided that I wasn't going to use my points at all that year and didn't want to bank, I wouldn't hesitate to sell the whole year's allotment of points to David's and pocket the cash - which would pay for a pretty nice vacation.

I guess I'd question why you're assuming all of those 'other vacations' would have to be booked with your DVC points?

 

[crisi]

I do the same thing Lynne does - we use DVC points to vacation at Disney (for us, every other year) and the flexibility of cash for all our other vacations - including Hawaii since 1) Aulani wasn't open when we went and 2) I have no desire to vacation on Oahu.

Don't drink the kool aid - DVC is a business transaction between you and Disney and for some people it works - and for some it doesn't - but it isn't magic, for Disney its a business and they treat it as such. If you treat it as an emotional investment while they treat it as a financial arrangement - you'll find yourself unhappy.

 

[dsanner106]

It is all about getting the most for travel dollars you already intend to spend. We stay in deluxe resorts we would probably never stay in otherwise for the money we spent normally for our disney trip in a regular room. We only wish we had purchased sooner and had more years while the kids were younger to use the points.

Drew

 

[Deb & Bill]

I do the same thing Lynne does - we use DVC points to vacation at Disney (for us, every other year) and the flexibility of cash for all our other vacations - including Hawaii since 1) Aulani wasn't open when we went and 2) I have no desire to vacation on Oahu.

Don't drink the kool aid - DVC is a business transaction between you and Disney and for some people it works - and for some it doesn't - but it isn't magic, for Disney its a business and they treat it as such. If you treat it as an emotional investment while they treat it as a financial arrangement - you'll find yourself unhappy.

There are some pretty smart DVC owners on these boards, but crisi and JimMIA are two of the most "here's the facts" posters. Listen to them.

 

[Lynne M]

Don't drink the kool aid - DVC is a business transaction between you and Disney and for some people it works - and for some it doesn't - but it isn't magic, for Disney its a business and they treat it as such. If you treat it as an emotional investment while they treat it as a financial arrangement - you'll find yourself unhappy.

This is SO important, and something every potential DVC buyer should read. DVC isn't 'being part of the magic'. That's a marketing line. It's just a alternate way to pay for your lodging. It's a business arrangement, no different than a car lease or a service contract on your refrigerator.

Yes, the vacations you take with DVC will hopefully be a lot more fun and interesting than a car lease or a new fridge. But it's important to remain clear-eyed about what you're buying.

 

[ToddyLu]

We purchased 210 points at AKV in 2009--direct from Disney. We were not aware of such a strong resale market and at the time no banks locally were giving out second mortgages. We committed the ultimate DVC/Dis board sin...

We purchased direct. We do not want to travel outside DVC so resale makes sense for us if we add-on. Again as others have mentioned. DVC changes the way you visit WDW IMHO. We only did values prior to DVC and now that we have access to villas we stay at the resorts more--we also try to go twice a year now, which means APs. Our APs we try to stretch over two trips in one year.

Do not pay attention to any "perks" I assure you they come and go--you are only really gauranteed a stay at your home resort.

1 night to stay near Biltmore in North Carolina would hvae cost me 70 points a night. A trip to Ireland for one week with Adventures by Disney-400 points per person. Aint gonna happen. We pay too much for this luxury and we bought it to enjoy at WDW--which we do.

It is our splurge and we treat it as such and we also pay the price to do so...but that works for us. You really need to decide how committed you are to Disney. For us we will not miss a single year--we knew that going in and that was the main reason we purchased our points.

 

[ToddyLu]

It is sorta like the traveler who commits to at 30 foot fifth wheel to camp all over the USA---they are making an expensive commitment to that lifestyle. We have a Disney Vacation Lifestyle devoted to going at least yearly.

Oh, and DVC is a way for a fire fighter and nurse to afford to go to WDW and stay in deluxe accommodations. We would never pay to stay on the monorail line. So we pay to see animals off the balcony--DVC is what has given us that opportunity--paying cash for it--never!!

 

[Missyrose]

I do the same thing Lynne does - we use DVC points to vacation at Disney (for us, every other year) and the flexibility of cash for all our other vacations - including Hawaii since 1) Aulani wasn't open when we went and 2) I have no desire to vacation on Oahu.

Don't drink the kool aid - DVC is a business transaction between you and Disney and for some people it works - and for some it doesn't - but it isn't magic, for Disney its a business and they treat it as such. If you treat it as an emotional investment while they treat it as a financial arrangement - you'll find yourself unhappy.

Crisi, like always, hits the nail directly on the head. If you will visit Disney every year or every other year, DVC may work for you.

Disney uses the other perks of traveling to other places as marketing tools to make the world seem wide open to new DVC members. The reality is that it isn't. The selection of what's available beyond DVC is limited and costly. So as Lynne and Crisi said, look into buying the least number of points you would need via resale and take the money you saved by NOT buying direct and put into savings to pay for trips to other places.

 

[ELMC]

Just as with investments, if you are considering a timeshare you should have a diverse vacation portfolio. DVC puts itself out there as being all things to all people, but nothing is further from the truth. As many of the posters have said, DVC excels at helping you stay on property. Every other aspect of vacationing it is pretty weak at. If you want to take other vacations you should buy another timeshare system in addition to DVC, pay cash for those stays, or rent out DVC points to fund the trips. And remember this, although DVC refers to itself as "deluxe", the deluxe accommodations within other timeshare systems are much nicer. Use your DVC for stays at Disney...its great for that. Don't try to make it something that it isn't, because you'll probably end up being disappointed.

 

[stitchaholic]

I'm a lot like you....most of the time my vacations are to Central FL, but sometimes I like to go other places. Europe, cruises, other cities in the US. But I don't use my DVC points for those other things, because I've found that a) I can do it much cheaper booking on my own for cash, or b) it costs a lot more points than I have, or c) what's available for booking with points doesn't match up with my travel plans - not in the right city or country.

Since I got to FL at least once a year, I've only rarely had trouble using my 150 points. Once, I rented out some I hadn't used. A couple of times, I've banked points. If I ever decided that I wasn't going to use my points at all that year and didn't want to bank, I wouldn't hesitate to sell the whole year's allotment of points to David's and pocket the cash - which would pay for a pretty nice vacation.

I guess I'd question why you're assuming all of those 'other vacations' would have to be booked with your DVC points?

Brilliant , sell the points to pay for vacation elsewhere , so simple yet it completely went over my head , strange as I have rented from DVC owners several times

This is why I love these boards , so many great points of view , you guys really opened my eyes in ways a sales team never would .
I just love my Disney vacations , and it isn't so much about the parks anymore , as my last experience in a value was completely disheartening to me , I realized that where I stay is what makes my vacation , we just stayed at AKV kidani in October and I am already longing for another visit to the house of mouse , I can't break away .....

 

[crisi]

Note that renting out your points isn't without risks either. You may find it harder to find a renter than you'd hoped. You might find checks bounce or you have to chase payment. It is possible that DVC could hold you liable for unpaid room charges or damage to the room that your renters leave behind.