Disney Vacation Club Pros and Cons

[maryblanchard49]

I am considering to join DVC can anyone tell me if it is worth it? Pros and Cons? Please and thank you.

 

[Stargazer65]

Welcome to the board, that's a big subject. I'll start with one each:
Pro: Good if you want to vacation frequently at Disney and stay in a deluxe resort on property.
Con: It can be more expensive than other options for vacationing at Disney such as more value oriented hotels and resorts.

 

[PalmettoPath]

Is it worth it questions (for anything really) are more of a discussion with personal preferences and opinion overlayed than a definitive answer. So while it may be worth it for us, it may not for you. Having said that, here is why we still love DVC after 13 years in the program. We visit Walt Disney World three weeks per year (ever since it opened) and stay in Deluxe Disney resort hotels exclusively. We joined DVC because for us, paying rack rates for those rooms (including Club Level) was quite expensive versus the value we get from DVC ownership. So if you travel frequently to WDW or other Disney destinations, then you can do some math to see how it adds up for you. There are other nice touches as well. For example we go to Disney's Vero Beach Resort every summer, and love visiting Disney Aulani as well. We stay at the Grand Californian when visiting DLR. The only "cons" is that it can be challenging to get rooms sometimes at certain resorts at the seven month window (non-home resorts), but if you act right on the seven month window, you can usually get what you want. Despite all the noise around DVC changes and so on, we still get great value out of our DVC ownership versus paying rack rates for rooms (which we still do occasionally). We waited to join because we love the Magic Kingdom resort area, so once BLT opened, we joined up. We do love how flexible the points system is, allowing you to use your investment across numerous properties and for different room sizes.

 

[MICKIMINI]

Perhaps you can enlighten us on your situation like family size, time of the year you travel, whether you prefer studios or larger villas, etc?

The knowledge is here and I agree with @Stargazer65 it is a really BIG subject and we could write books on the subject and not get to where we can help you LOL!

For the record I go back to 1996 when we bought OKW and we currently own both direct and resale contracts.

Good luck!

 

[Wedgeout]

For me the biggest pro side is that even though a lot is paid upfront, there is that prepaid feel for the resort stays. Checking out with $0.00 as the balance is great. I wouldn’t have had the overall financial opportunity to stay at a deluxe resort without DVC.
Con part is DVC travelers have their own popular seasons and point usages. At times, there is competition getting a perfect resort stay reservation match to your plans.

 

[cruisehopeful]

Pro: ALways something to look forward to.
Con: Spend way more money doing Disney focused vacations than other types of vacations.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Con - if you have specific travel desires you need to plan well in advance
Con - add-on-itis is totally real

Huge pro - lots and lots of happy Disney memories in great properties

 

[bakerworld]

IMO DVC has worth if the intent is to stay for at least 15 years - the average length of membership being 10 years. There are several cost analysis' that insist 7 to 9 years are needed to recoup the initial cost of membership. We only use our points at Disney - the cruises are out of pocket and we've never traded into other TS entities. We're thinking that we'll sell our two long term contracts in 5 to 6 years and keep the contracts that ends in 2047 until they expire.

PRO: holding the room cost at current value.
CON: due usage the rooms are WORN.
We joined knowing that DVC is only the cost of the room so travel, tickets and food still are a large expenditure. We find the DVC Homes are nice resorts on their own.

PRO: More room when used with family
CON: family = larger villas = point suckage = shorter vacations.
We joined for us. While we've shared our membership with family - progeny and siblings - mostly it's only ourselves who use the membership.

 

[Boopuff]

With our family growing, we would now need 3 rooms, but a villa is so nice, we can all be together. Also the cost of 3 rooms (even value) makes Me shudder!

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

With our family growing, we would now need 3 rooms, but a villa is so nice, we can all be together. Also the cost of 3 rooms (even value) makes Me shudder!

There are definitely cheaper ways to do Disney but the villas sure are comfortable.

We went to VGC earlier this year. Spent a few nights in a 1BD and then switched to a cash pay room. After the 1BD we were like “ugh. That’s it???” in a $1000/night hotel room.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

There are definitely cheaper ways to do Disney but the villas sure are comfortable.

We went to VGC earlier this year. Spent a few nights in a 1BD and then switched to a cash pay room. After the 1BD we were like “ugh. That’s it???” in a $1000/night hotel room.

Yeah. Let’s just say that my kids have a warped sense of what is “normal.” But it is very easy to get used to nice things.

 

[chalee94]

I am considering to join DVC can anyone tell me if it is worth it? Pros and Cons? Please and thank you.

DVC is a niche product that works best if you intend to visit WDW every year and stay onsite at deluxe resorts (or possibly moderate resorts if you compare with OKW and SSR). If that is you, then do some searches and get to reading.

Resale prices have held up pretty well but while that is never guaranteed, if you buy in and decide it's not for you, you should be able to recover most of your purchase cost.

If you purchase directly, sometimes there are neat perks that work out - such as Moonlight Magic (free exclusive evening hours for DVC owners), free drinks and snacks in an air conditioned Epcot lounge and possibly AP deals (thought that is a sore topic at the moment). The perks would not be valued highly by me, but some people have different opinions. A lot depends on the discount available if you purchase resale (which can save you thousands but will take longer to close on the deal.)

The big con is that DVC is very very expensive (but again, so is staying onsite at WDW deluxe resorts) and while it can be used for other non-WDW options, the value is only really there when compared to onsite WDW stays for cash.

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

The other advantage of buying direct is that resale DVC points *may not* be able to be used at future resorts. Right now riviera is the only one with these restrictions in place but DLT probably will and Poly 2 is unknown.

I don’t care about the free drinks but I do want to be able to stay where I want.

 

[macman123]

Con - if you have specific travel desires you need to plan well in advance
Con - add-on-itis is totally real

Huge pro - lots and lots of happy Disney memories in great properties

Why is addon-itus a con ? (Says the guy who intended to have 500 points and ended up with 3,500)

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

Why is addon-itus a con ? (Says the guy who intended to have 500 points and ended up with 3,500)

 

[theMoreDisneytheBetter]

Why is addon-itus a con ? (Says the guy who intended to have 500 points and ended up with 3,500)

My problem is that I WANT more points than I have vacation enough to USE, but we don’t want to be bothered to rent them out. So no CCV envelope though I keep looking at it.

 

[Brian Noble]

Pros and Cons?

The primary advantage of DVC---or, for that matter, of any timeshare---is that vacations are prepaid and use-it-or-lose-it. This tends to make vacations a priority around which you plan other things, rather than the other way around. For instance, I am quite sure I have not saved money by owning timeshares, because I take many more vacations than I would have if left to my own devices.

We bought our first timeshare about 15 years ago now, when the kids were in grade school. The youngest graduated from Michigan last week. We took a ton of fantastic family vacations, at Disney and elsewhere, while they were growing up. I wouldn't trade even one of those trips.

 

[kanerf]

There is a vast difference between staying in a well appointed timeshare vs a hotel room. There is simply more room to spread out and most units have at least a partial kitchen. You are also very close to some of the parks in many cases. The theming of many of the resorts is also over the top and quite an experience for the first timer.

You should compare the costs of staying at one of the DVC resorts and paying cash and then compare that to the cost of buying in over say 10 years time. Keep in mind that the cash price will generally increase over time as will the DVC dues.

 

[Flynn's Gal]

My only regret is not buying in sooner. I dismissed it out of hand for fear of the cost. Typically, I only have my daughter with me so that factors in to my pros and cons.
Pros:
*Staying at deluxe resorts that I never had before. Even with the wear on the oldest rooms, I still love them over the budget hotels where we used to stay.
*Having prepaid accommodations for decades.
*Enjoying the resorts without worrying that I'm wasting time that we could be in the parks because I know we're coming back. It really eases the stress of trying to fit everything in.
*Having, at the least, a kitchenette in the room. Full kitchens (rather, full-sized fridge) even better.
*Being able to use points at so many different places.
*DVC resorts are desirable so renting out points is fairly easy to do.

Cons:
*Annual dues come every year.
*DVC consumes my brain now like Gollum. Points, my points, I need more points. Gotta make spreadsheets for points. What's the latest DVC news on Disboards, FB, YouTube??? J/K ...kind of.
* The costs of travel, food, and fun (park tickets, merch, etc) can add up if you don't budget well. Disney is expensive.
*Competing for room categories, especially when you aren't experienced with how quickly the highly sought after rooms can go or with walking reservations. I've haven't been in that competition so far, but I've heard the anxiety and frustration from others who post about it.

 

[maryblanchard49]

Thank you all for your feedback. What are the best months to plan your vacation for if your a DVC Member?