Couple of Questions-Please help

[8disneyfans]

Hi
We went to the BLT event yesterday and needless to say it was amazing!!! But before we jump into a huge investement I have a couple of questions I thought you might be able to answer.

1. Does it matter where your "home" resort is? I thought you could stay at any resort.

2. What are the perks? Why should I do this? I read that you can not get free dining as a DVC member. So what are the perks besides staying in a Deluxe hotel?

That's all for now, I am sure I have a ton more I will be asking?

 

[Sandisw]

You get priority booking at your home resort. You can book reservations 11 months in advance at your home resort. At 7 months, your points are good at any of the DVC resorts and you can book reservations there.

Depending on when you go, what type of room you want, etc, there may not be availability at the other resorts. For example, getting a room with an MK view at BLT , staying at VWL in December or getting a room at one of the Epcot resorts during F & W (October) will be difficult if you don't own there and can't book during the home resort booking period.

Now, if you don't forsee yourself booking your vacations at least 7 months in advance, then home resort is less important as you will only be able to book what is available, regardless of where you own.

The biggest perk right now for DVC members, IMO, is the $100 discount on the AP. But, you should not buy DVC for its perks as they can change at any time.

We bought in to BLT because we have been going to WDW almost every year since 1994 and love the CR. Now that we can stay within walking distance to the MK, we are thrilled to be DVC members. While it will not be impossible to book there, I did not want to take the chance and now I know that I can book my entire stay, in what I want, at the 11 month window (we go in August).

Good luck!!

 

[Crystal_27]

1. Yes, it absolutely does matter where your home resort is because you can book your home resort 11 months before your trip, whereas you have to wait until 7 months before your trip. So, especially with the more popular resorts (those within walking distance to a park), or if you are going during a "peak" event or time (Food and Wine event, Flower and Garden event, holiday times), you are going to want your "home resort" advantage.

2. DVC offers a lot of perks by way of various discounts on restaurants, events and annual passes. There are too many to list, but the information should be easily searchable here on The DIS or on DVCnews.com. As to why you should join DVC, that's an entirely personal decision. There is a set group of people that DVC works for, and who will use DVC so that they are able to break even on the cost in about 7-10 years. If you travel to Disney once every year or two; if you like to stay in Deluxe accommodations; if you anticipate that you will continue to want to vacation at Disney in future years; if you have the means to buy in (either paying cash or financing) the high initial cost and can easily make the annual maintenance fees, DVC might be a good fit for you.

Do your research and make sure that you are 100% confident that DVC will be a good fit for you and your family. Happy DVC shopping!1

 

[chalee94]

1. Does it matter where your "home" resort is? I thought you could stay at any resort.

your home resort tells you 2 things:

1) how to calculate your dues (pts at VB have annual dues that are nearly twice as high as BLT)

2) when you can book - from 11 months out to 7 months+1day out, only owners can book their home resort. after that, points are points. (but your options may be limited).

2. What are the perks? Why should I do this? I read that you can not get free dining as a DVC member. So what are the perks besides staying in a Deluxe hotel?

it's best to evaluate DVC primarily as a means to locking in your accommodations cost. if you have a small family, a studio may be a good comparison to the other disney hotels. if your family is 5 or more, the options to have multiple bedrooms and washer/dryer, etc. may be more valuable.

during recessionary times (or low demand times like september), it may be cheaper to find cash deals like free dining. if the economy starts picking up, disney is more likely to do away with deals like that if they are no longer necessary to drive demand.

if you'd rather lock in a low price for a room, DVC is a good option. if you like hunting for deals (and think the economy won't improve any time soon), then you may be better off paying cash and passing on DVC.

 

[HannaBelle]

Okay...I am going to semi-hijack for personal gain!

What if we split our points between AKV and BLT. Are both considered our home resort? If we buy 300 points total...150 at AKV and 150 at BLT...do we have the ability to use all 300 points at the time of booking?

So, 11 months out I have the choice of booking AKV or BLT. OR...will it be 150 at BLT at the 11 month mark and then 150 at BLT at the 7 month mark?

I am sure this has been answered before, but all of my searches are not coming up with what I need!

TIA!

 

[8disneyfans]

Good question....glad you hijacked! Waiting to hear the answer.

 

[thepops]

the quick answer is yes and it depends. Yes both resorts are considered your home resort. As for using all 300 points at 11 months out, the answer is kind of. Strictly speaking you can only use the points (150) at the resort that are "their" home resort. But .. I'm assuming that you aren't going to stay in both resorts at the same time. So what you could do is use banking and borrowing to give that 11 month window at both by alternating years at the resorts. For example year 1 - bank the AKV points to year 2, and borrow year 2's BLT points to use for a 300 point reservation at BLT at 11 months. Then in year 2, use the 300 points you now have at AKV (year 1's banked points, and year 2's points). Then repeat for the next pair of years.

 

[chalee94]

OR...will it be 150 at BLT at the 11 month mark and then 150 [with AKV pts] at BLT at the 7 month mark?

ding. ding. ding.

this one is the winnah!

you can book BLT at 11 months only with BLT pts - they can be banked, current or borrowed (heck, you could even use transferred BLT pts from a BLT owner) but they have to be BLT pts.

the same is true for the other resorts...

 

[HannaBelle]

the quick answer is yes and it depends. Yes both resorts are considered your home resort. As for using all 300 points at 11 months out, the answer is kind of. Strictly speaking you can only use the points (150) at the resort that are "their" home resort. But... I'm assuming that you aren't going to stay in both resorts at the same time. So what you could do is use banking and borrowing to give that 11 month window at both by alternating years at the resorts. For example year 1 - bank the AKV points to year 2, and borrow year 2's BLT points to use for a 300 point reservation at BLT at 11 months. Then in year 2, use the 300 points you now have at AKV (year 1's banked points, and year 2's points). Then repeat for the next pair of years.

How smart!!! I love this idea. Thank you for the quick response.

We are actually going to split points with my 2 brothers and their families. It sounds like it would be easier to just stick with one location rather than having the option to "borrow" someone else’s points! lol

We love Disney, but we are not every year kind of people, so sharing points will be great! Both of my brothers have 3 kids so we have to get enough points for a one bedroom to sleep 5 and we all have kids in school, so we have to get enough points to cover the busier times of the year.