Does DVC just not work for some people?

[Keurigirl]

So we're Disney people. We love Disney and go a couple times a year (DL &/or WDW). Recently discovered cruising with DCL and LOVE it. We went to the presentation of the DVC on the ship last week, but I just cannot see how it makes sense. For us, at least. I am guessing that it must just not make sense for some people?

I'd really like to say that we are DVC owners, but I am not sure it works for us. Any thoughts?

The biggest downfall is that we don't stay on property at WDW. We don't like it; we stay at Windsor Hills and love it there (in a 3 bdr. townhouse with private pool, and way better beds and linens than Disney). We'd rent a car and park at the parks even if we stayed on property, as we hate taking disney's shuttle buses. Our cost staying in a whole house off property is something like $125 a night on the high season, so considerably cheaper than the DVC points for a much better accommodation. Just for the maintenance fees a year we stay for almost two weeks in a house... so I'm not getting why we'd pay $20,000+ in addition to the yearly maintenance fee. Am I missing something?

 

[kamik86]

Yes, DVC is for those that want to stay on site (I do not like to drive, I do not want to drive on vacation.) and can book 7-11 months in advance most of the time. If either of those isn't you it doesn't make sense.

Now in your case there may be off site timeshares in the area that would work for you.

 

[k3chantal]

So we're Disney people. We love Disney and go a couple times a year (DL &/or WDW). Recently discovered cruising with DCL and LOVE it. We went to the presentation of the DVC on the ship last week, but I just cannot see how it makes sense. For us, at least. I am guessing that it must just not make sense for some people?

I'd really like to say that we are DVC owners, but I am not sure it works for us. Any thoughts?

The biggest downfall is that we don't stay on property at WDW. We don't like it; we stay at Windsor Hills and love it there (in a 3 bdr. townhouse with private pool, and way better beds and linens than Disney). We'd rent a car and park at the parks even if we stayed on property, as we hate taking disney's shuttle buses. Our cost staying in a whole house off property is something like $125 a night on the high season, so considerably cheaper than the DVC points for a much better accommodation. Just for the maintenance fees a year we stay for almost two weeks in a house... so I'm not getting why we'd pay $20,000+ in addition to the yearly maintenance fee. Am I missing something?

People buy DVC for a variety of reasons and I can only tell you mine.

1. We prefer to stay on property. We like the 'perks' of staying on property (the Magical Express bus, the early or late magic hours, the full immersion of Disney throughout)
2. If we had not purchased DVC, we would never 'treat' ourselves to that level of accommodation. We would stay at a moderate hotel.
3. Our membership is paid in full except of course the yearly fees. We like not having to cough up that much 'cash' every vacation. It's done and pre-paid.
4. The amount of points it takes to stay at a DVC property is basically set (the points can be moved around each year but can't change greatly) so when or if hotels are much more money ten, twenty years down the line, I am still 'paying' the same amount of points as I am now.
5. For us, (and this is where we differ greatly from other DVC owners on this forum) DVC has actually expanded our traveling experiences. We never would have taken a Disney cruise and probably never would have gone to Hawaii. So, it has actually 'mentally' freed us from thinking we could never do these things.

If you had asked us ten years ago if we would ever own any timeshare, we probably would have laughed at you. Our version of 'going to Disney' was driving to Disneyland, staying in some el cheapo motel across the street and staying two to three days with our 'big' dinner being at the Blue Bayou. Our first visit to Disney World was off site too. It is actually amazing we ever went back because had we ever had any sense we would have realized what a miserable trip that was. Florida was in a deep freeze and our hotel room was on the bottom floor and flooded. Our friends who went with us had a room where their shower did not work and we wondered why the hotel's restaurant was closed. At the end of the trip we asked the front desk what in the world was going on and they then decided to share that the hotel was being demolished the next day.

So DVC provides consistency too. Is everything 'always' perfect, no. But we know what we are getting into.

Don't stress about not 'getting it'. You have found a system that works for you. You probably would find DVC stressful for a while. There is a learning curve.

 

[chalee94]

For us, at least. I am guessing that it must just not make sense for some people?

exactly right.

if you are happy offsite, you can get accommodations much cheaper than DVC. i stayed at a very nice 2BR villa less than 10 minutes from epcot in may 2012...granite countertops, beautiful furnishings...for less than $350 for the week, tax included. even adding back some parking fees and letting go of the extra magic hours, you can't get close to that onsite.

DVC also works better for people who can plan well in advance...and for people who don't need daily housekeeping.

but people who don't "fit" really shouldn't feel left out. it's better to do disney in the way that makes you happy...

 

[Anna114]

About 90% of what you wrote is us... we haven't been to Hawaii, yet, lol. I always get that sick feeling when my dues bill comes but then again we will have stayed on property for 13 days, this year, and it only cost $1,000 to stay at VWL in a studio.

People buy DVC for a variety of reasons and I can only tell you mine.

1. We prefer to stay on property. We like the 'perks' of staying on property (the Magical Express bus, the early or late magic hours, the full immersion of Disney throughout)
2. If we had not purchased DVC, we would never 'treat' ourselves to that level of accommodation. We would stay at a moderate hotel.
3. Our membership is paid in full except of course the yearly fees. We like not having to cough up that much 'cash' every vacation. It's done and pre-paid.
4. The amount of points it takes to stay at a DVC property is basically set (the points can be moved around each year but can't change greatly) so when or if hotels are much more money ten, twenty years down the line, I am still 'paying' the same amount of points as I am now.
5. For us, (and this is where we differ greatly from other DVC owners on this forum) DVC has actually expanded our traveling experiences. We never would have taken a Disney cruise and probably never would have gone to Hawaii. So, it has actually 'mentally' freed us from thinking we could never do these things.

If you had asked us ten years ago if we would ever own any timeshare, we probably would have laughed at you. Our version of 'going to Disney' was driving to Disneyland, staying in some el cheapo motel across the street and staying two to three days with our 'big' dinner being at the Blue Bayou. Our first visit to Disney World was off site too. It is actually amazing we ever went back because had we ever had any sense we would have realized what a miserable trip that was. Florida was in a deep freeze and our hotel room was on the bottom floor and flooded. Our friends who went with us had a room where their shower did not work and we wondered why the hotel's restaurant was closed. At the end of the trip we asked the front desk what in the world was going on and they then decided to share that the hotel was being demolished the next day.

So DVC provides consistency too. Is everything 'always' perfect, no. But we know what we are getting into.

Don't stress about not 'getting it'. You have found a system that works for you. You probably would find DVC stressful for a while. There is a learning curve.

 

[Brian Noble]

we don't stay on property at WDW. We don't like it; we stay at Windsor Hills and love it there

Unless you want to spend 2-3X as much to stay in a 2BR condo onsite, no, you are not missing anything. Some people think it is worth the premium, but many don't.

 

[Addicted to Dopey]

A lot of people will say that DVC is the best thing for an avid Disney fan, but there are also plenty of people who go to Disney a lot who will say it doesn't make sense. My husband and I fall into that second group...we go to Disney 2-3 times a year and sometimes stay on property, sometimes stay off, and sometimes rent dvc points from a trusted dvc owner. We thought about buying into dvc for a minute but just couldn't get past the initial 20 grand or more down payment. People might say oh i only pay $800 in dues a year and get a weeks worth of vacation out of it, but how do you forget about the 20 grand you initially paid, or are still paying as a second mortgage? That’s a big sum to just "forget about" lol. So don't feel bad if you just "don’t get dvc" because there are plenty of people out there just like you!

 

[Anna114]

People might say oh i only pay $800 in dues a year and get a weeks worth of vacation out of it, but how do you forget about the 20 grand you initially paid, or are still paying as a second mortgage? That’s a big sum to just "forget about" lol. So don't feel bad if you just "don’t get dvc" because there are plenty of people out there just like you!

I don't forget my initial layout.... I paid cash for all of my points. However, I wouldn't stay in such a great resort if I didn't have DVC, or as often. I don't think DVC is right for everyone, it wasn't right for me until my parents passed away. If you plan to keep your DVC for approximately 10 years you've generally gotten to the break even point of initial layout and your maintenance. About 2 years ago a disboard member did the math and posted it on the DVC section of the boards.

 

[Meggysmum]

DVC certainly doesn't work for everyone.

It works for us as we bought our DVC with a work bonus that would otherwise have disappeared into a miriad of smaller purchses that we wouldn't remember but now we have many years of vacations to look forward to for the cost of our dues. We have to book international flights so it is easy for us to book so far ahead and we like being able to vary our accomodation from a Studio to a 2-bed depending on who is holidaying with us.

 

[DougEMG]

Dvc works best for those people that want to stay on site, want deluxe accomodations and can plan 11-7 months in advance.

Wanting to stay off site is perfectly fine, not everyone likes/wants the same thing.

 

[ELMC]

DVC is a great product and in many cases there is a lot of value to owning. But value is specific to the owner and what they are looking to achieve. From the sound of it, your priorities are not met by a DVC purchase. No big deal and you're certainly not missing anything, it's just not a good fit. But it's great that you could recognize that during the sales presentation!

 

[Keurigirl]

People might say oh i only pay $800 in dues a year and get a weeks worth of vacation out of it, but how do you forget about the 20 grand you initially paid

That's exactly the part I can't figure out. We can get a week's worth of housing for $800 too, and it's actually nicer than what Disney does at their resorts. And I didn't have to shell out the $20,000 for it.

About 2 years ago a disboard member did the math and posted it on the DVC section of the boards.

Do you happen to have a link to that?? I'd love to see it.

I really should clarify that I am not being negative or ragging on folks that have purchased into DVC. I really honestly was wondering why I could not make it work for us! It's nice to hear that it doesn't work for everyone and that I'm not just missing something.

We are snobby travelers, actually; and most of the time stay in nicer hotels than Disney offers. That is a big reason we stay offsite at Disneyworld - not only is it cheaper, but it's better accommodations. Disneyworld is just so big to us (since we do mostly Disneyland) that it doesn't matter to us whether we are onsite or off site.

 

[chalee94]

Originally Posted by Anna114
About 2 years ago a disboard member did the math and posted it on the DVC section of the boards.

Do you happen to have a link to that?? I'd love to see it.

i can tell you it compares DVC stays to onsite wdw deluxe hotel stays...so it's not comparable if you like staying offsite.

it is neat staying onsite at wdw - away from the real world - with disney transportation waiting to take you anywhere in wdw...i can leave my car parked for days at a time (although i do like going offsite for some of my meals as the DDP dumbs down many of the menus onsite) but you do pay a premium for that immersion...

 

[cmwade77]

You are correct, it is not for everyone, nothing is. In our case, we figured out how much we were spending on hotels on our average Disney World vacation and thanks to the incentives we got when we signed up, it worked out that we would hit our break even point in only three Disney World vacations! So, for us, it made sense, based on our preferences, but again, this is not the case for everyone.

 

[BestDadEver]

I am having a hard time wondering ,why you think anything would be good for everyone . No matter what the product .

 

[Dean]

So we're Disney people. We love Disney and go a couple times a year (DL &/or WDW). Recently discovered cruising with DCL and LOVE it. We went to the presentation of the DVC on the ship last week, but I just cannot see how it makes sense. For us, at least. I am guessing that it must just not make sense for some people?

I'd really like to say that we are DVC owners, but I am not sure it works for us. Any thoughts?

The biggest downfall is that we don't stay on property at WDW. We don't like it; we stay at Windsor Hills and love it there (in a 3 bdr. townhouse with private pool, and way better beds and linens than Disney). We'd rent a car and park at the parks even if we stayed on property, as we hate taking disney's shuttle buses. Our cost staying in a whole house off property is something like $125 a night on the high season, so considerably cheaper than the DVC points for a much better accommodation. Just for the maintenance fees a year we stay for almost two weeks in a house... so I'm not getting why we'd pay $20,000+ in addition to the yearly maintenance fee. Am I missing something?

DVC would make no sense for you because it's only reasonable to buy to stay at DVC options, those other potential options like DCL are a poor value for owners so buying would not be reasonable to use for anything else but DVC. Another option you might consider is the possibility of an off property timeshare. What you might pick up is that you'll generally have more amenities, better pools,more activities and compared to many townhouses, even nicer accommodations for some of the timeshares. Plus it might be cheaper still depending on your choices.

 

[Keurigirl]

I am having a hard time wondering ,why you think anything would be good for everyone . No matter what the product .

Well, not everyone, like I said in my post "for some people". We're such Disney lovers and go so often that it seems like it should make sense for us. I'm constantly getting told that we should be DVC owners. So I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't missing something in all my calculations. In a way, I kind of wanted to be wrong, because I sure would like to be part of that club! But honestly, I did the math and for us to stay at a similar accommodation onsite, the yearly maintenance fees alone are more than what we pay offsite. And given that there will always be maintenance fees that go up at about the same rate as the hotel pricing, it will almost always be cheaper for us to stay offsite.

And as far as offsite vs onsite, I know there is a big debate about it, which I don't want to create here. It's personal preference. I personally don't feel immersed any more staying onsite than I do offsite at Disneyworld because everything is so spread out. And I don't like taking the disney buses. So to each their own.

 

[BestDadEver]

I dont think it's a good idea if you have no intrest in staying on site . I find the value in getting to stay in better rooms then I normally would.

 

[jennybdis]

My husband and I had a similar argument this past year when we were planning our trip. Previously, we had stayed in Windsor Hills in a 5 bedroom luxury home that was far nicer than a home where we typically stay at when we travel elsewhere for half the price. For this trip, after much arguing about his desire to stay on property and me running the numbers and showing him scenario after scenario where it was cheaper for us to stay off property in a luxury condo (we had decided to stay at Reunion Resort for this trip), he relented, and we booked Reunion Resort.

Well, in the meantime, we got a pin code, and then free dining came out, and well, since it was only going to be slightly more money to stay on property, I caved, and we changed our reservations from Reunion Resort to the Yacht Club, even though I will admit at the time to being a bit surly about losing three bedrooms and our king-sized bed for a single hotel room that we were going to cram our family of 5 into...

And, well, I guess I found the opposite of what you're saying to be true: I love staying on property. I don't mind the buses at all--I actually really liked that I could just park my car for the week and we could go anywhere we wanted in Disney. I loved being able to walk from our room into the back entrance of Epcot in 5 minutes. (Considering that we hit major traffic and congestion several days on the Irlo Bronson Highway where it took us 45 minutes to get from our Windsor Hills home to the park entrance, I would take a Disney bus any day over that headache to travel a few miles...) I loved hearing fireworks at night when we were swimming. I think the service and the welcoming feeling you get at a Disney hotel is unmatched. I loved being on the dining plan--and since that's not an option if you're not staying on property, that's something that I would miss having the option of getting if we were staying off-site again. I liked that I felt like I was on vacation rather than staying in someone else's house.

For us, *since we want to stay on property* it makes sense. In the end, I really didn't mind being squashed into our single-room Yacht Club hotel room, but as my kids get older, I don't think my boys are going to love sharing a bed, and they're all going to want a little more privacy than a single hotel room provides (and I still want that king bed that I would have if we stayed off property). If we want to stay on property, buying a resale contract with enough points to go every other year is about equal to 1 trip of paying rack rate for a 2-bedroom villa. (e.g., it would cost me $7500 to buy a one-week cash trip for a 2-bedroom villa at SSR, whereas I could buy a resale contract to allow me to make the same trip and stay in the same 2-bedroom villa every other year for about $500-1000 more.) To me, that's where it makes sense, even when you factor in the maintenance fees.

Yeah, we won't be staying in accommodations nearly as big as what we'd have if we stayed in Windsor Hills again, but to me, that's only one part of the trip. The experience, the service, the convenience and the perks are equally as important--if not more--than the size of the place where we'll sleep.

 

[castleri]

Well, not everyone, like I said in my post "for some people". We're such Disney lovers and go so often that it seems like it should make sense for us. I'm constantly getting told that we should be DVC owners. So I just wanted to make sure that I wasn't missing something in all my calculations. In a way, I kind of wanted to be wrong, because I sure would like to be part of that club! But honestly, I did the math and for us to stay at a similar accommodation onsite, the yearly maintenance fees alone are more than what we pay offsite. And given that there will always be maintenance fees that go up at about the same rate as the hotel pricing, it will almost always be cheaper for us to stay offsite.

And as far as offsite vs onsite, I know there is a big debate about it, which I don't want to create here. It's personal preference. I personally don't feel immersed any more staying onsite than I do offsite at Disneyworld because everything is so spread out. And I don't like taking the disney buses. So to each their own.

You are absolutely right - for us we stayed offsite for the first 7 trips we took to WDW and the traveling to and from the parks was a real drag if it was at park closing or sometimes early in the am. Not having to drive unless we want to is one of our favorite things about DVC. We actually like using the buses.
Being able to stay in anything from a studio to a 3 BR depending on the number of people with us is also a good thing. Our trip coming up in one month has us in a 1BR, 2BR, and studio over the course of 10 days because of people coming and going. We couldn't do that with just a week long rental. It works for us and because we bought in 1997 our initial cost for a direct purchase was less our cost per point plus our maintenance fee per point makes a studio cost about $90 or less for the one Sat night. A lot depends on how you look at it. After a couple of GV stays we had broken even on our original purchase compared to the rack rates but it probably took a couple more trips if you consider it based on discount rates.
If we were offsite we would also have to add in the cost of parking at a park each day to that total cost of the trip unless we had an annual pass.
I have no desire to stay in a value resort but some people find it wonderful. For you the way you like to stay offsite works and for us DVC works. There definitely is no one way fits all -