Does home resort matter if you never go there?

[rscott]

I'm trying to get a better understanding of home resorts.

Let's say I always want to go to BLT, but for whatever reason go with something other than BLT (and plan to keep it until the deed ends).

If that was the case, would it matter which resort I bought as my home resort? From my understanding, with any other resort, I could book at the 7 month mark, and so it shouldn't matter much which I got. Am I right in my thinking?

Related, let's again say I always want to go to BLT (and plan to keep it until the deed ends), but would never know when my trip would be until 6 months before I took it -- would there be any advantage to any home resort (BLT included this time) over another?

 

[princesscinderella]

I'm trying to get a better understanding of home resorts.

Let's say I always want to go to BLT, but for whatever reason go with something other than BLT (and plan to keep it until the deed ends).

If that was the case, would it matter which resort I bought as my home resort? From my understanding, with any other resort, I could book at the 7 month mark, and so it shouldn't matter much which I got. Am I right in my thinking?

Related, let's again say I always want to go to BLT (and plan to keep it until the deed ends), but would never know when my trip would be until 6 months before I took it -- would there be any advantage to any home resort (BLT included this time) over another?

If you only plant to book 6 months out you might end up very disappointed in own DVC if you plan to book week long stays or more. If you only plan to so smaller getaways and are flexible on your dates than buying what we refer to on the Dis as SAP(sleep around points) will work but it can be tough to book in the fall. It can be done but is a lot more work than buying where you want to stay most of the time and booking in the priority window.

 

[MICKIMINI]

The best strategy for buying SAP is to book at 11 months at your home and then switch at 7 if possible. Depending on availability, you may end up at your home resort, so best to not dislike it. If that happens, you can waitlist and stalk availability to try to piece together you reservation.

I did it at 7 months for a 9 night OKW (one of our homes) studio for a family member that decided to join us over Halloween. It took about 3 weeks to get it done. It might be stressful and time consuming for you.

We have multiple contracts which give us lots of opportunities. I like having options and it is no big deal handling numerous contracts. You don't need to buy all the points you want/need in your life in one transaction! Good luck!

 

[CastAStone]

I'm trying to get a better understanding of home resorts.

Let's say I always want to go to BLT, but for whatever reason go with something other than BLT (and plan to keep it until the deed ends).

If that was the case, would it matter which resort I bought as my home resort? From my understanding, with any other resort, I could book at the 7 month mark, and so it shouldn't matter much which I got. Am I right in my thinking?

Related, let's again say I always want to go to BLT (and plan to keep it until the deed ends), but would never know when my trip would be until 6 months before I took it -- would there be any advantage to any home resort (BLT included this time) over another?

The problem with your thinking is that the DVC rooms people want the most are sold out at 7 months (many are sold out the day they become available). So if you buy OKW to save money and try to trade into BLT Standard Studios you’ll be disappointed 99.9% of the time. If you try to trade into BLT 1 bedroom theme park view rooms you may have a shot.

Buying to book at 6 months is a terrible idea unless you want to stay in a 1 bedroom at Old Key West in July.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

If you never expect to be able to plan more than 7 months out, buy at Saratoga Springs. And buy more points than you think you'll need. You'll have a hard time finding Standard View Studios and other high-demand room types.

 

[Sandisw]

If you know you want BLT, then you should buy there so you are not disappointed at 7 months.

As already mentioned, if you will always book less than 7 months, it won’t matter where you own. But it won’t change that getting BLT could be difficult.

Sometimes, there is a huge difference booking 7 months vs even 6 months.

From mid September until mid January, it’s busy for DVC and most people book their home resorts at 11 months. Near park resorts go during home resort time and switching at 7 months could be dicey.

 

[Matty B13]

Also, if you plan on booking 1 bedroom units your odds are much better after the 7 month mark.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

The problem with your thinking is that the DVC rooms people want the most are sold out at 7 months (many are sold out the day they become available). So if you buy OKW to save money and try to trade into BLT Standard Studios you’ll be disappointed 99.9% of the time. If you try to trade into BLT 1 bedroom theme park view rooms you may have a shot.

Buying to book at 6 months is a terrible idea unless you want to stay in a 1 bedroom at Old Key West in July.

I'm sorry but this is such an over-the-top exaggeration. MOST resorts have some type of Studio availability at 7 months, outside of October/November/December.

(Disney could fix the October/November/December issue by appropriately adjusting their price seasons, but every time they try, the membership throws a temper tantrum.)

 

[Pens Fan]

Take a look at these charts. They are a bit old - updated in 2019 - and do not reflect the current pandemic induced glut of points in the system - but they will still give you an idea of how hard it can be to book another resort at the 6 month window at certain times.


https://www.disboards.com/threads/p...-bd-charts-september-2019-2-bd-added.3689931/

There is a reason you will read "buy where you want to stay" so often.

Good luck.

 

[Marionnette]

I'm trying to get a better understanding of home resorts.

Let's say I always want to go to BLT, but for whatever reason go with something other than BLT (and plan to keep it until the deed ends).

If that was the case, would it matter which resort I bought as my home resort? From my understanding, with any other resort, I could book at the 7 month mark, and so it shouldn't matter much which I got. Am I right in my thinking?

Related, let's again say I always want to go to BLT (and plan to keep it until the deed ends), but would never know when my trip would be until 6 months before I took it -- would there be any advantage to any home resort (BLT included this time) over another?

There is no home resort advantage for booking inside of 7 months. At that time, all points are considered to be equal and can be used at any resort with the exception of recently purchased resale points being unusable at RIV.

Which isn't to say that your choice of home resort is immaterial. Some resorts have contracts that expire before others. Some have historically higher annual dues than most DVC resorts. Those factors should be considered.

But having said that, DVC is not generally a good idea for people who cannot plan 7+ months in advance. You are likely to end up with a choice of 3 of the larger resorts most of the time, or split stays at the other resorts the rest of the time. It is an especially bad idea if you are eying studios for your visits as they can be difficult to book at the most popular resorts at <6 months out.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

There is a reason you will read "buy where you want to stay" so often.

Very few people purchase DVC because they want to stay at the same single resort every year for the next 50 years.

But having said that, DVC is not generally a good idea for people who cannot plan 7+ months in advance. You are likely to end up with a choice of 3 of the larger resorts most of the time, or split stays at the other resorts the rest of the time. It is an especially bad idea if you are eying studios for your visits as they can be difficult to book at the most popular resorts at <6 months out.

If you plan at 6 months out and you LIKE Saratoga and Old Key West, there's nothing wrong with that.

 

[KTownRaider]

If you always planned your stay within 7 months, there would be no advantage to buying in at a higher demand resort like BLT. Owners who have sleep around points (SAP) and bought at more cost effective resorts will have the same access to BLT as you do- even as a BLT owner. The $ per point premium that you're paying to be an owner at BLT is expressly for that 8-11 month window.

If it were me, I'd just make a placeholder reservation at BLT at the 8 or 9 month mark and see how your plans unfold knowing you can always cancel (being mindful of course of banking deadline and <30 day cancellation rule). Renting a BLT room from a current owner is another option- less commitment and more flexibility.

 

[Wiltony]

Very few people purchase DVC because they want to stay at the same single resort every year for the next 50 years.

Of course, but you should always be happy to stay where you own in case your alternative location ends up being booked at 7 months. "Buy where you want to (or would be very happy to) stay" still holds true.

 

[Marionnette]

If you plan at 6 months out and you LIKE Saratoga and Old Key West, there's nothing wrong with that.

There's nothing wrong with either of those resorts. But if you consistently plan to book inside of 6 months, then it's important to realize that you are unlikely to get a full week at most of the other resorts because anyone who wants to switch from their home resort to one of the smaller resorts will have done so at 7 months. SSR, OKW and AKV tend to have availability longer only because they are larger and not because there's something "wrong" with them. I didn't intend to imply that there was.

 

[Wiltony]

There's nothing wrong with either of those resorts. But if you consistently plan to book inside of 6 months, then it's important to realize that you are unlikely to get a full week at most of the other resorts because anyone who wants to switch from their home resort to one of the smaller resorts will have done so at 7 months. SSR, OKW and AKV tend to have availability longer only because they are larger and not because there's something "wrong" with them. I didn't intend to imply that there was.

Yeah the wife and I own at BLT but stayed at OKW recently and absolutely loved it. I only ever hesitate to stay there because transportation to/from isn't as awesome and I feel like I'm not getting as good of a value by using my higher-cost BLT points for my stay.

 

[BillPA]

You dues are based on your home resort. They range from the low $7.xx to near $11 a point.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Yeah the wife and I own at BLT but stayed at OKW recently and absolutely loved it. I only ever hesitate to stay there because transportation to/from isn't as awesome and I feel like I'm not getting as good of a value by using my higher-cost BLT points for my stay.

OKW is such a trade-off with transportation because it has one of the worst bus situations on property, but it also has the most convenient parking on property (outside of Fort Wilderness).

There's nothing wrong with either of those resorts. But if you consistently plan to book inside of 6 months, then it's important to realize that you are unlikely to get a full week at most of the other resorts because anyone who wants to switch from their home resort to one of the smaller resorts will have done so at 7 months. SSR, OKW and AKV tend to have availability longer only because they are larger and not because there's something "wrong" with them. I didn't intend to imply that there was.

Understood. My main point was that DVC can still be a workable option even for people who will be planning 6 months out, as long as they're happy at those other resorts.

Given the price per point, maintenance fees, and contract expiration dates, the math almost always says "buy at Saratoga Springs if you won't be using the Home Resort booking window."

 

[zavandor]

When you go is as important, if not more, than where you want to go. From the last week of September to marathon week end in January it's very difficult to book at 7 months any resort other than SSR and OKW. And sometimes even those have very little availability and go shortly after.
The rest of the year at 7 months it's possible to get a studio (excluding race week ends and some holiday like 4th of July) at almost all resorts: VGF and CCV are very difficult year around (and VGC in California)
Availability for 1BR is much better, with very good chances at any resort at 7 months outside the fall and sometimes even in the fall.
However, I agree with people who said that if you cannot plan at least 7 months in advance there is a very high risk of being disappointed.

 

[davidl81]

So I would say if you are able to book right at 7 months (to the day) you generally will have some choices on resorts for a vacation. It may not always be BLT standard view etc, but there will be OKW, SSR, AKV, and generally a few other resorts open at 7 months. As long as you are a little flexible it will work out okay. Like others have said, if you only want to stay at one specific resort, then buy at that resort and book at 11 months.
We very very rarely book at 11 months out, we have had good success at booking right at 7 months staying at every resort in the DVC portfolio (except RIV). But once you get to within 6 months etc I would fully expect to only have SSR open and maybe AKV. Rooms go very quickly after the 7 month mark.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

When you go is as important, if not more, than where you want to go. From the last week of September to marathon week end in January it's very difficult to book at 7 months any resort other than SSR and OKW. And sometimes even those have very little availability and go shortly after.

Keep in mind that the points charts are not set in stone. Disney can (and, per the membership agreement, *MUST*) balance demand throughout the year. They should be pricing their seasons so rooms are equally easy/hard to get at 7 months in October as they are in July.

The fall is severely under-priced in terms of points-per-night right now.