Do you own DVC and a camper?

[3girlsfun]

As ya'll know we have been shopping for a camper, and we are still shopping for a camper. We have also been looking at DVC. We will not make any decisions super fast, as we are going to pay cash for either our new camper or DVC. (Or pretty close to all cash). So, I was just curious, any one on this board own DVC, and also camp?

I guess I am referring to camping at the Fort, because I know I would still want a camper to use on other trips.

I don't know how this DVC thing came sneaking and and clouded my judgment about everything...?

 

[AuburnJen92]

back when we were looking at a MH, we went through this discussion...we said hmmmm, what can we use more, the MH or DVC?

for us it was the MH...since we could not do both, we went with what we could tailgate with at college football games, go to state parks and also enjoy disney...

DVC couldn't do that, although it could offer other things that just the MH couldn't...our priorities were with the above mentioned, so we bought the MH

I still do not regret the decision one bit.

 

[MommaluvsDis]

We have DVC and are about to buy a camper. It will be GREAT to camp on points. We've used our points and stayed in the cabins a couple of times. Keep in mind that there is the $95 fee for using outside of a DVC resort.

 

[mikmouse]

We have DVC and are about to buy a camper. It will be GREAT to camp on points. We've used our points and stayed in the cabins a couple of times. Keep in mind that there is the $95 fee for using outside of a DVC resort.

We own DVC and a fifth wheel camper.

We use our points for a resort in Feb/Mar, usually during Princess 1/2 Marathon week and stay for a week.

We ALWAYS use our camper at Fort Wilderness in Nov/Dec, usually over Thanksgiving or the week after Thanksgiving. Only do Thanksgiving if all the family will join, so it's mostly the week after Thanksgiving. We do not use points for camping. Usually the week after Thanksgiving is one of the lowest rate times, and we always at least get the AAA discount, so a week's stay is pretty reasonable.

Love it!

 

[dblr]

We have a 39' 5th wheel and also own DVC and we love both, we have never been able to get a site on our points but have used the SSR for a couple of trips and also HHI loved both resorts. I do get almost 8 weeks vacation a year so that helps us use both but we do camp more then use our DVC.
I think if you use your points @ FW for a site they wave the $95 fee but not sure about the cabins. If you can swing the cost of both do it it will just take some planning to get the most out of them each.

 

[MommaluvsDis]

Yes, there is a $95 transfer charge when staying in the cabins on points.

 

[5stljayhawks]

We already own a camper. Here is my comparison for 250 DVC points @ $112 & $3.67 per pt year maintenance the total cost was coming up at around $62,000 over a 30yr time frame.

My family travels to the FW every two years or so for 2 wks at a time. At the peak rate this is currently $2K per trip for the campsite. There were two major reason we decided not to go with DVC 1st- we don't foresee see the trips to Disney increasing frequency and then in the off years we normally travel to WY or another destination and didn't want to get tied down into one home spot.

I also looked at buying DVC on the reseller market. Cost per point is around $80 or so and can save you some upfront cost, but you still have to pay maintenance around $900 per year for 250 points.

 

[Minnie&Mickey]

We own DVC and have a motorhome. We bought into DVC back in 1996 and we have really enjoyed it. Last year we bought a motorhome so that we could bring our dog with us on trips (my mother, the best dog sitter ever, had passed away and we couldn't bear to put him in a kennel). Sometimes we have been successful using our points for a campsite, and other times we haven't. I feel like using points at the Fort is a pretty good deal, but since it is considered an "exchange" there are some rules that have caused some issues for us.

 

[rksbb]

Love my DVC and my camper...so far haven't stayed in the camper at the Fort, but still use it just about every weekend closer to home. We have exchanged our points for stays in the cabins and that works out great too. No regrets on either one

 

[docbrown]

We are DVC members and own a MH. We have been at FW for Thanksgiving and Xmas. We either use the points for quick weekends at DVC resort or we rent our points out and do a cash reservation for the fort, the advantage to it is 1. availability, you can do your reservation way in advance for a cash reservation; 2. cancellation policy, if you cancel your reservation on points, your points don't go back in your account because the fort is not a DVC resort but an exchange, and your points have to be used by a certain time or you loose them.

 

[clkelley]

From what I understand, they DO NOT charge the $95 transfer fee for point reservations at the campsites (if you can get them at all). I understand it is VERY difficult to get campsite reservations on points.

 

[bradisgoofy]

We are DVC owners since 2000. We have only used points once at FW and had no trouble doing so that time. ($95 transfer fee is not charged for FW) Since then we pay cash because we use our points for other visits. We just added BLT so we now have 850 points, so you can see we love to go to DVC resorts. I must say in the 10 years of DVC membership we have never borrowed points or had to bank more then 50 unused points, each year. I know those terms may not mean anything to you unless you have taken the DVC tour. I believe the tour is a must for a new buyer, but that does mean you need to buy direct from DVC, just take the tour so you understand how points work. We go to WDW twice an year and take our kids and their families with us once during those visits, again, you can see why we have so many points. Being in GA. you are a day drive away so travel costs would not be a big factor. But we are in Michigan and it takes 2 and 1/2 days to get to FW at a high cost of diesel fuel. We just did a FW stay in May and that will probably be our last visit in the MH because it would have been cheaper to fly down "first class" then what it cost in diesel fuel. Now, if money was no object, or I lived as close as you, I would ALWAY prefer to stay at FW, because we love our MH, with all our own stuff, and we can take the fur kids with us.

 

[dfchelbay]

We own DVC and a motorhome, and love them both. It's so inexpensive, points-wise, to stay at the Fort. We stay at the Fort on points several times a year. To stretch our points out, sometimes we stay on points Sunday through Thursday and pay cash for Saturday and Sunday. Saturdays and Sundays costs more points per night than Sunday through Thursday, especially during peak times/holidays. It's a pretty good deal to stay for fourteen days straight and only pay for 3-4 of those days, depending on when we leave the last Saturday. You will also get an annual pass discount with your DVC too.

 

[Donna]

This is the 4th year in a row I have used points for staying at the fort (we are here now). Never once have I had a problem getting a site on points! We usually call 11 mos, out though, since that is what we are used to with dvc. It may get harder to get if you try for it last minute. I was so happy when they decided to waive the fee for campsites.

 

[mikron]

We have owned a motorhome since 1995 and DVC since 2004. We stay at Fort Wilderness 2 to 3 times a year and at the resorts about the same. Some times we have stayed at both on the same trip.