Choice of DVC Resort

[ByWm]

My wife and I are considering an initial purchase in DVC, but we are uncertain where to buy. Here are our thoughts about the various Resorts:

Beach Club: walk to Epcot, boat to MGM, access to great pool not available to other resorts, very popular so may be difficult to stay there if it is not your home resort. Negative: no 3-bedroom units

Boardwalk: walk to Epcot, boat to MGM, pool is great for kids, some units have great views, adjacent to Boardwalk nightlife, shops, etc. Negative: may be noisy

Old Key West: Larger units, on average fewer points required to use, no interior corridors so may be quieter, convenient parking, second-largest Resort so may have more last-minute availability (so maybe it doesn't need to be our home resort), relatively low dues ($4.24/point in 2006). Negative: not within walking distance of any attraction

Saratoga Springs: 12 years longer membership than any other Resort, lowest dues ($3.98/point in 2006), largest Resort so tends to have more last-minute availability (so maybe doesn't need to be our home resort), attractive discount currently, boat to Downtown Disney, nice gym. Negative: No full-service restaurant on site (yet)

Wilderness Lodge: closest to Magic Kingdom (boat), smallest Resort (136 units) so has less availability, health club. Negative: No 3-bedroom units.

Hilton Head: very popular in summer so availability limited then if it is not your home resort (and many local attractions close the rest of the year), children's program for ages 3-12, workout room. Negative: ?

Vero Beach: busy in summer, oceanside, cheapest current purchase price. Negative: not much to do in the area, highest dues ($5.26/point in 2006) probably due to proximity to ocean, may be difficult to resell?

We would be interested in your thoughts, additions, corrections, etc

Thanks,
ByWm

 

[bobbiwoz]

How often do you think you would be renting a 3 bedroom unit? If often, then I would reconsider OKW, it has the most, and they are the most reasonably priced pointwise.

Bobbi

 

[ByWm]

Does OKW need to be my home resort in order for me to be confident of booking a 3-bedroom unit?

ByWm

 

[spiceycat]

Does OKW need to be my home resort in order for me to be confident of booking a 3-bedroom unit?

ByWm

Yes!

there are only 36 of them and they go pretty fast - most of the year.

Now you could probably get one in Sept or May - maybe even Jan or Feb - but I won't count on the rest of the year without the wait list.

well maybe the summer months too....

with HH and VB you are taking a chance that you can trade into the WDW DVC resort when you want too. If you like to go during the food/wine festavial, thanksgiving, Dec 1- 18 - you are taking a BIG chance.

if you know that you will never want to go to WDW during this time then buying offsite is fine!!!

of course that is one of the most fun times to go to WDW - lots of DVC members are there!!!!

 

[dianeschlicht]

Actually, OKW does not have 36 GVs, but has 27, and yes, you will usually need the 11 month booking window to get one.

 

[Daitcher]

You've really got a good grip on the pros and cons of each resort. Let me throw this into the mix. SSR with the extra 12 years has to be looked at very closely. The other resorts still have a good resale value right now. My best guess is that in another 8-10 years those resorts will be selling for maybe half to 3/4 of what they are now. How many people will pay top dollar for a timeshare with only say 25 years of use when in all likelyhood a new resort will be selling? I know Disney tries to keep the resale values up with ROFR so resales don't hurt new resort sales. How much longer can they realistically do this? They exercise ROFR because they know thay have a waitlist of people ready to buy. As the older resorts near the middle of there 50 year period less and less people will want them. This will mean Disney exercising ROFR far less. This may be meaningless you to you if you intend to keep the contract for the duration. I,however, like knowing that for the foreseeable future my SSR contract will have value if I decide to sell. Good luck with the decision.


DAVE

 

[shellbelle1971]

Great post. One negative (IMO) you didn't include on HHI is higher annual dues cost.

 

[J and R's mom]

Great question. I'm grappling with some of the same issues.

We own at SSR and purchased it back in 2003 before it was built and before I knew of the DIS boards and DVC resale sites. Our guide told me that the other resorts were pretty much sold out and so-forth when I called so I didn't know to pursue resales...at the time. I thought SSR was my only choice.

Our 1st trip as DVC members was back in Nov/Dec 2005. We stayed at BCV and LOVED it. We did go over to SSR and tour the property but, sadly, were disappointed with the resort (our opinion) because of how HUGE the property was (we don't drive or rent cars while we're there) and we prefer a "hotel" feel to an "apartment" feel. We also prefer being closer (within walking or boating distance) to the parks as is the case at VWL, BCV and BWV. So now we're trying to decide whether to sell our SSR and buy one of the other resorts resale or keep our SSR (because of the 12 extra years) and add-on at another resort.

So it comes down to your preferences, needs and tastes. I recommend touring each of the on-site properties (if you haven't already) and choosing which one feels nicest to you.

There's also the possibility of buying mulitiple contracts...say 150 points at SSR and then 150 points at one of the other smaller resorts. Smaller contracts are always easier to sell later if the need ever arrises.

Good luck and best wishes on your decision.

P.S. Don't forget about the DVC at the Contemporary Resort rumors.

 

[shantay1008]

We purchased at SSR in 2004...after staying at the Beach Club, I just wanted to be part of the party! You'll find a lot of people who love SSR, and maybe it's because they really WANT to love it since it's their home resort. I mean, maybe they're not really trying to compare it to Beach Club or Boardwalk...they're just enjoying it for its own sake.

I can't imagine not enjoying ourselves at SSR, but, just to be safe, I booked half of our coming February vacation at Beach Club. I did the thing where you call every day right at the seven-month window to book, and honestly didn't have a problem getting a two-bedroom for the days we wanted. Coming from Wisconsin, our optimal winter escape time is late-January to mid-February, so we don't have to worry about competing to get into rooms, which may be more of a concern for people who want to go to WDW in the summer or during holidays.

When we can afford it, we might add on at another resort or at SSR, but for now, I look at it as having the best of both worlds: part of the time we'll be at a "city" resort (BCV or Boardwalk, depending on where we can get in at the 7-month window) and part of the time we'll be at the "country" resort (SSR).

Sometimes it's tricky to figure out what to do based on other people's opinions. For example, in a very nice posting earlier, the member said that they didn't like the apartment feel and preferred the hotel feel. But for us, with four children 7 and under, it's heaven to have that "home" feeling and really dig in and feel like we live there. Now when my husband and I are alone at WDW in a kazillion years, it might be a completely different story

 

[ByWm]

Well, we took the plunge! Bought at SSR. The F&F incentive program just seemed too good to pass up. Have already scheduled 3 nights in VWL starting Jan 31. Depending on how our usage goes, we may be back in the market for points in the future!

 

[Muushka]

Well, we took the plunge! Bought at SSR. The F&F incentive program just seemed too good to pass up. Have already scheduled 3 nights in VWL starting Jan 31. Depending on how our usage goes, we may be back in the market for points in the future!

Well, may I be the first to say Welcome home!!

 

[athenna]

Congratulations and Welcome Home, Neighbor!!

 

[cobbler]

Congrats to you!!

 

[shellbelle1971]

Congratulations & WELCOME HOME!!

Michelle

 

[Disney Doll]

Does OKW need to be my home resort in order for me to be confident of booking a 3-bedroom unit?

ByWm

Pretty much. The 3 BR grand villas go pretty quick, especially at OKW, because they are HUGE!!!!!

We own 2 contracts at OKW. At the time we were purchasing, only OKW & BWV were available. The others hadn't been built yet...this was 1997.

Anyhow, DH & I toured OKW & BWV, and while we love the location of BWV, we liked the fact that OKW had bigger rooms, cheaper per point purchase price and cheaper point costs for the units. We decided that since, in general, we travel at oddball times of the year, we prrobably wouldn't have huge issues with booking pretty much wherever we wanted at the 7 month window, and we liked OKW enough to not mind if we could never stay anywhere but there, that we'd buy at OKW. We have never regretted our decision. What I usually do is book a trip at OKW at the 11 month window so I am sure we have somewhere to stay, then if I want to change at the 7 month window, I try and change. If nothing is available, I go on the waitlist. Except for one time, I have always had thew waitlist come through. I just waitlisted for a 2 BR at BWV in October during the F&W Fest, and we got it.

 

[CALNEVA DISNEYFANS]

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