Disney or Marriott?

[neiman5]

After just returning from Hawaii we are trying to finalize our descision on what is going to be our first timeshare (Vacation club). We are super impressed with both Disney and Marriott and want to go with one of the two. Maybe even a program equal to an every other year with both. Curious to hear from families that may own both or have owned Marriott and have sold and bought DVC. We have 3 children (8,6,2) and live in SF Bay area of California. We have been researching for the last 18 months and are anxious to make a decision...but careful. Any help would be greatly appreciated. We have also spent alot of time on the TUG2.net website. Great information learned there as well as on this site. We thank the person(s) who took the time to establish sites like this. Thanks in advance.

PS...what is up with these South African TS...any opinions?

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Hi, neiman5. I know absolutely nada about any other timeshare other than DVC. I can say that if you plan to spend most of your vacations at WDW, than DVC can not be beat. It is flexible, and just as important, you have the on-site magic. I am sure Marriott puts out a nice product, but personally, I MUST have the Disney theming as well as that Disney touch. In my opinion, you just can't get that at an off-site resort.

Good luck with your decision, and feel free to ask questions......

 

[doubletrouble_vb]

Okay I don't own Marriott but...my feeling is that if you plan to vacation in new locations go with Marriott. DVC gives you the best bang for the buck when used for DVC unit.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Geeze, I got so wound up and excited about DVC, I forgot to say... If you are NOT going to vacation at one of the six DVC resorts most of the time, than perhaps another option is better for you. Many here are certified Disney nuts, and don't take a lot of 'other' trips.
Trading once in a while is okay.....

 

[NancyDVC]

I only own DVC. According to many people DVC is best for staying at Disney resorts while Marriott is better if you want to have more diverse vacations in a wider choice of resorts.
We have been DVC members sice early 1992. About 7 or 8 years ago I received an invitation to a Marriott vacation presentation. They did not specify what it was about but offered Macy's gift certificates and "Marriott dollars" for listening to a brief presentation at a Marriott near my home. My co member and I went. We listened to a very nice presentation about the Marriott Vacation Club. The deal was to stay at their Hilton Head resort (which was sold out) at a very nice rate while agreeing to listen to a presentation about a new resort that they were buliding at HH. It was low key and nicely presented.
When the 'hostess' at our table asked what we thought we said that we already owned a 'timeshare' and were not interested at that time. When she told us how much better Marriott was than any other timeshare we finally broke down and told her that we already owned at Disney. That did not slow her down. She did not seem to know anything about DVC. When a more experienced representative came by to answer any questions the first rep said that we were already owners elsewhere in a manner as if to indicate that we would be much better off with Marriott. I specified that we owned at Disney and this second person said "Oh, I guess that they aren't interested. But thank you for coming." We took our gift certificates and left. That was before anyone really knew about DVC.

 

[Dean]

I own both DVC and Marriott and feel I am well versed in both. The answer totally depends on how you will use it. DVC is a long way away from you. Will you go every year or every other year? There are several Marriott choices for your location. These include Newport Coast, CA desert, HI (Kauai, Oahu and Maui) as well as Utah, CO and the like. There are other quality timeshares as well but I am partial to these two companies. I might vote for a combination of the 2 if you can swing it, maybe with less DVC points (maybe 150). If you will do much trading, consider Marriott first. Good luck.

 

[mzzbuzzlightyear]

I also own DVC and Marriott, and love both of them. I haven't traded out with DVC and I probably will never trade out. For me, DVC is for use at WDW...although at the end of May, we will be going to HHI!!! While there, however, I will check out the Marriotts on the island.

If you only want to go to WDW, I would suggest that you buy DVC, If you want to go to all of the other attractions in Orlando, perhaps Marriotts would be best...but, like Dean, I feel that, if possible, divide your $$$ between Marriot and DVC.

Good luck,
June

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by mzzbuzzlightyear
I also own DVC and Marriott, and love both of them. I haven't traded out with DVC and I probably will never trade out. For me, DVC is for use at WDW...although at the end of May, we will be going to HHI!!! While there, however, I will check out the Marriotts on the island.

I own 2 Marriotts at HH. One is on the other side of Shelter Cove from DVC, it's Harbour Pointe and I use it for trading. The other is on South Forest Beach Drive between Coligny circle and the gate for Sea Pines, it's called Grande Ocean and is the premier ocean front timeshare on HH. You may or may not know that the Sea Pines villas, Swallowtail and Spicebush are either no long Marriott's or will not be come 1 Jan of next year. There is a proposed new resort for Marriott that will be ocean front, sort of, check out the info while you're there. I can give you the name of a great resale rep there who will be very happy to give you tons of info even if just for educational purposes. She's also very straightforward and honest. Even if you have no intention of looking for a unit, she would be a great help to you.

 

[kem330]

Neiman- We own DVC but are seriously considering Marriott Maui. For us it is a question of distance and expense to get to Maui from Chicago. But for you, it is about the same distance either way. Marriott Hawaii properties and DVC are so difficult to trade into that it pays to own one or both. Marriott is more expensive to buy into Hawaii, but the maintenance fees are lower than DVC. For a prime week at DVC 2 BR, you would need 306 - 426 points. That's assuming you would travel at the holidays or spring break time. You can do an every other year for 155- 213 points. Maintenance would be about $4/point. The nice thing about DVC is you have the same benefits if you buy resale or direct from Disney, where with Marriott , you lose the hotel exchange ability on a resale.

 

[Nana Sue]

where with Marriott, you lose the hotel exchange ability on a resale.

quote from kem330

I too am an owner at both DVC and Marriott. I would like to correct what kem330 said. If you buy a resale from a Marriott owner you lose the ability to trade a year of your Marriott t/s back to Marriott for their reward points. You can buy a resale from Marriott and that would not be the case.

I love both my DVC and Marriott but as everyone has been saying, you need to decide where you want your vacation to be. DVC is basically for going to one of the Disney properties at WDW, Orlando or Vero Beach. Trading for anything else is not a great deal, even Disneyland or a Disney Cruise. People do trade all the time but generally the trade is not equal.

Marriotts are great t/s and if you want to vacation at various places, that's where you should put your money. It's hard to compare maintenance fees between Marriotts and DVC because the m/f are so different depending on location. Also, even with a great Marriott location you are not assured that you will be able to trade into DVC because those trades are pretty scarce. So, my advice would be to buy into both Marriott and DVC you won't be sorry with either one!

 

[kem330]

Sorry I didn't clarify- when I said resale I was referring to a source other than Marriott As for maintenance, I was referring to Hawaii properties specifically which run a little less than $1000 for a week. My understanding was the poster was looking at Hawaii properties vs DVC which is hard to compare. In Hawaii it is prime time year round (and even "primer" weeks 51 and 52) Where as DVC has more "seasons". So in comparing maintenance of an Hawaiian property, you would have to look at the cost of points for a prime week at DVC which would be premier or magic season. A week runs 306 (high season) - 426( Easter and Christmas - Ny's) for a 2 BR which equals out to annual dues of $1224 - $1704. The biggest difference is your buy in at Disney for those points is $25, 704 (prime) - $35,784 (holiday) for 39 years. Maui Marriott is $43,000 for 2 Br OV or $52,400 for OF (prime) or $64,200 for New Years week OV . Quite a bit higher buy in but it has no end date.

 

[stlrod]

I own both DVC and Marriott. There was a lenghty discussion on teh advantages and disadvantages a couple of years ago. Here's the link:

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?s=&threadid=83046

At that time, I did not own DVC. I now do. My next purchase will probably by Hyatt or Starwood.

 

[mzzbuzzlightyear]

Dean,
I would be interested in the name of the resale agent....Of, course I am not going to buy, I hope!!!

Do you think Grand Ocean is probably the best MVC when going with children? (Maybe I am on the wrong Board with these questions!!!LOL)

Thanks, June

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by mzzbuzzlightyear
Dean,
I would be interested in the name of the resale agent....Of, course I am not going to buy, I hope!!!

Do you think Grand Ocean is probably the best MVC when going with children? (Maybe I am on the wrong Board with these questions!!!LOL)

Thanks, June

I'll send you a PM.

 

[neiman5]

It is a little frustrating to get notified of a response to my thread and have the response have nothing to do with my question.

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by neiman5
It is a little frustrating to get notified of a response to my thread and have the response have nothing to do with my question.

Threads take on a life of their own sometimes. Essentially everything here is related to DVC vs Marriott which was the original question. If you insist that all responses be specific to your exact situation and nothing else, I think you're in the wrong place.

 

[pauld2]

Just went through this same decision. I have 2 small children, and wanted to lock-in some excellent vacations for years to come. Some background: I always want a 2 bedroom and I need to be able to travel in prime periods (and remember, I have 2 small kids).

Financially it became fairly simple: if you want to be on Disney property a lot than the high Disney price is worth it; if you want to trade a lot then certain Marriott properties have good value (and also are less expensive with lower maintenance fees than Disney). From a pure financial perspective, the trading of DVC properties into anything non-DVC results in a major loss of purchasing power, although the renting of DVC points can prove worthwhile.

I went with DVC over Marriott in the end because I was focussing so much with Marriott on my property's ability to trade into DVC. Having never owned a timeshare before, as the purchase decision went on the prospect of significant near term booking and trading hassles threatened to become a burden. Near term I want to go to Disney, so I just said "Do the easy thing and buy where you want to go" so DVC became the choice.

Eventually I may go into Marriott as well. Before I buy Marriott, I am going to rent a week at some point in one of their best places (like Grande Ocean in Hilton Head). Note, in my Marriott timeshare research it became apparent that many Marriotts do not rent for much more than their maintenance fees, even in prime seasons (i.e. Williamsberg) -> so I may never actually buy a Marriott, maybe just rent them. The rental of a DVC property however, even from an owner at $10 per point, is much more expensive than the maintenance fees.

Good luck in your decision.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

I responded earlier, but after reading other posts, I feel I may have something to add.
If you buy DVC now, while you want to visit Disney often, you could sell it in five to 10 years for close what you bought it for, then buy Marriott if you tire of Disney (I don't see how you could tire of Disney, but that's another thread). You can also likely trade into almost any Marriott periodically, either through the exchange process, or directly through someone.
But, if bought Marriott now, you likely will not be able to trade for DVC. Plus, if you bought Marriott, I'm not sure it would hold it's value as well as DVC if you decided to sell.
So, the logical conclusion: If you want to stay at Disney most of the time (but not all), buy DVC.

Dean and others- Am I correct about trading Marriot and DVC? It sure sounded good as I was typing!!!

Good luck with your decision......

 

[Dean]

Originally posted by Maistre Gracey
Dean and others- Am I correct about trading Marriot and DVC? It sure sounded good as I was typing!!!

Exchanging is an ellusive thing. No one can really tell for certain what's going to happen. I can say with some degree of certainty that trading into DVC is unlikely on a routine basis and that Easter and Xmas will not happen because DVC does not deposit those times. Off times can happen and do. This year is an enigma as the combination of more owners, the desire to try other things and the new exchange setup has sparked a wave of exchanging. This has created a relative excess of DVC units in II, go figure.

Marriott can actually be a better value than DVC because there's no functioning ROFR but they are different and must be evaluated on their own merits as they apply to the individual. The variability of Marriott is far greater than DVC. There are so many choices of resorts and times with Marriott and no information to know how any one will truly work for you. With DVC it's simply a matter of your home resort and use year as well as how many points.

I would never buy in HI unless I intended to use the resort MOST years, similar to DVC. Newport Coast is a good consideration for many on the West Coast.

 

[BCV23]

Does anyone know much or have an opinion on Marriott's Grand Residence Club? We had a mailing about a property in Lake Tahoe but didn't follow up because that is not somewhere we would vacation on a regular basis but it does sound more flexible than the regular Marriott timeshare.