DVC Availability over Marathon Weekend

[rmgreenesq]

I posted this question in the WISH Events board, and one of the members over there suggested I post my question here.

I'm interested to hear from DVC members and runners about DVC accommodation availability over marathon weekend. I live in Southern California. I ran the Disneyland Half Marathon last month, and got hooked. I signed up to run the Wine and Dine Half and the Walt Disney World Half in Florida. I just wrote Disney a couple of big checks for the accommodations, park tickets, and dining.

I was thinking that if I made a habit of traveling to WDW to run, I might want to purchase some DVC points in order to pre-pay the accommodation costs. But if DVC rooms were tough to come by that weekend, it would not be worth it.

I'd like to hear opinions from runners who have tried to use their DVC points or successfully used their DVC points to obtain a room at WDW over marathon weekend. Since the both the Marathon and the Wine and Dine Half Marathon finish at EPCOT, I was thinking about buying DVC points at the Beach Club or Boardwalk Inn. I'd prefer a short stagger back to my room versus a long monorail or bus ride.

Thanks in advance for any/all opinions.

Rick

 

[starry_solo]

As long as you can find someone to rent you the points within the 7 month 1 day window to 11 month window (that they will have at BCV or BWV) - so you have that extra window that non-BCV and BWV owners don't have - it should be okay. But the problem is, do they release marathon dates that far in advance? having never run one before, I don't know.

 

[Sandisw]

For the most part, booking during the 7 - 11 month window, will yield you what you want for that time of year.

If it would be something that you would not be reserving until a few months in advance, then I would say DVC won't be a good option.

 

[jekjones1558]

Food and Wine time is tough to book at BCV and BWV, so it would be very important to book as soon as you can and and more than 7 months out. I think there are several other running events at WDW now, but if you are wanting to do the January marathon, that is also becoming a very popular event. It won't be as hard to book as the Food and Wine time, but in the past couple of years people have posted about having to waitlist for rooms during the January marathon. So, once again, I would want to book more than 7 months out. Renting once would be a good trial run (hehehe) and then, if you like the Epcot area, buying at BCV or BWV would be a good idea, IMHO. Then you could book at 11 months or shortly thereafter and be assured a room for your runs. Good luck in your races and your decision.

 

[rmgreenesq]

But the problem is, do they release marathon dates that far in advance? having never run one before, I don't know.

Yes they do. The WDW Marathon is the weekend before ML King's Birthday Weekend in January. The Diz Half Marathon is the Sunday of Labor Day weekend (no room required for it as I'm a SoCal native and Disneyland is a 20 minute drive). The Wine & Dine Half recently moved to November. I registered for the Wine & Dine Half in March which is more than 7 months in advance.

Does Disney sell DVC points to EPCOT area properties or am I headed to the resale market? I'm headed to the Beach Club next month for the Wine & Dine. Would it be worth my wile to stop in at the DVC people there or would I be wasting my and their time?

Thanks for all your replies thus far.

Rick

 

[jekjones1558]

Yes they do. The WDW Marathon is the weekend before ML King's Birthday Weekend in January. The Diz Half Marathon is the Sunday of Labor Day weekend (no room required for it as I'm a SoCal native and Disneyland is a 20 minute drive). The Wine & Dine Half recently moved to November. I registered for the Wine & Dine Half in March which is more than 7 months in advance.

Does Disney sell DVC points to EPCOT area properties or am I headed to the resale market? I'm headed to the Beach Club next month for the Wine & Dine. Would it be worth my wile to stop in at the DVC people there or would I be wasting my and their time?

Thanks for all your replies thus far.

Rick

Yes, Disney does sell points for BCV and BWV, but they will cost a lot more than resale. The only real difference in buying from Disney is that the points they sell can be used for things like trading out through RCI, but most people here will tell you that trading out is not a great use of points. The other advantage of a direct purchase is that it is a done deal, no waiting around (resales take 2 months or so from start to finish). If you are staying at BCV you will get a feel for that resort and you can check out a model room at BWV (right next to Big River Grill). There have been tons of threads on these boards on BCV vs. BWV, so if you do a search you can read what people think are the advantages of each resort.
Oops, just noticed that you are staying at Beach Club, not Beach Club Villas. The rooms and location in the resort are different, FYI.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I posted this question in the WISH Events board, and one of the members over there suggested I post my question here.

I'm interested to hear from DVC members and runners about DVC accommodation availability over marathon weekend. I live in Southern California. I ran the Disneyland Half Marathon last month, and got hooked. I signed up to run the Wine and Dine Half and the Walt Disney World Half in Florida. I just wrote Disney a couple of big checks for the accommodations, park tickets, and dining.

I was thinking that if I made a habit of traveling to WDW to run, I might want to purchase some DVC points in order to pre-pay the accommodation costs. But if DVC rooms were tough to come by that weekend, it would not be worth it.

I'd like to hear opinions from runners who have tried to use their DVC points or successfully used their DVC points to obtain a room at WDW over marathon weekend. Since the both the Marathon and the Wine and Dine Half Marathon finish at EPCOT, I was thinking about buying DVC points at the Beach Club or Boardwalk Inn. I'd prefer a short stagger back to my room versus a long monorail or bus ride.

Thanks in advance for any/all opinions.

Rick

We booked our VWL stay (two bedroom) at 10.5 months out (when the race dates were announced). Two years ago we booked OKW (one bedroom) about five months out. Two months later we tried to add another night at the beginning and it was sold out. We did get the one night at SSR. We waitlisted BLT when we booked OKW and the waitlist never came through.

You cannot stagger back to BWV or BCV after the race unless you have park admission to enter Epcot after you complete the race since the finish is in the parking lot. You'll have to take the event bus back to the resort. Same with the start. You cannot walk through Epcot to the start because the park is closed.

Finally, are you a DVC member already? If not, points are useless to you. A member has to make a DVC reservation with points that they have. You won't be buying points unless you plan to purchase a contract (like a real estate purchase) to use on an annual or biennial basis.

When New Year's falls on the weekend, the marathon is the next weekend. When New Year's falls early in the week, the marathon is usually the weekend after the one following New Years (like the race this year).

 

[rmgreenesq]

You cannot stagger back to BWV or BCV after the race unless you have park admission to enter Epcot after you complete the race since the finish is in the parking lot. You'll have to take the event bus back to the resort. Same with the start. You cannot walk through Epcot to the start because the park is closed.

Finally, are you a DVC member already? If not, points are useless to you. A member has to make a DVC reservation with points that they have. You won't be buying points unless you plan to purchase a contract (like a real estate purchase) to use on an annual or biennial basis.

Thanks Deb & Bill!

I've done the math and will be purchasing a Premiere Annual Pass when my Disneyland Annual Pass expires. That will get me admission to the parks in Florida, and between the cost of the ticket packages I bought for WDW and my Disneyland Annual Pass, the Premiere pass is cheaper.

As to points, I'm not a DVC member now. I'm contemplating becoming one. By buying a timeshare contract, I would be pre-purchasing the accommodation costs of the WDW hotel for marathon and/or Wine and Dine weekend for many years to come. I'm just not sure what the break-even point is. I'll be crunching those numbers once I get them.

Rick

 

[emlutz23]

We own at SSR, but we've easily switched at the 7month mark to OKW and BCV for the Marathon weekend in January. I think the busses on marathon day are great. We get to bypass all the car traffic in the morning on the way in. And then I can relax with my medal while someone else drives me back to my resort. the one advantage to BCV for the marathon was that it was very easy for family to see me run by w/o having to experience the chaos of the finish line.

 

[lilpooh108]

I posted this question in the WISH Events board, and one of the members over there suggested I post my question here.

I'm interested to hear from DVC members and runners about DVC accommodation availability over marathon weekend. I live in Southern California. I ran the Disneyland Half Marathon last month, and got hooked. I signed up to run the Wine and Dine Half and the Walt Disney World Half in Florida. I just wrote Disney a couple of big checks for the accommodations, park tickets, and dining.

I was thinking that if I made a habit of traveling to WDW to run, I might want to purchase some DVC points in order to pre-pay the accommodation costs. But if DVC rooms were tough to come by that weekend, it would not be worth it.

I'd like to hear opinions from runners who have tried to use their DVC points or successfully used their DVC points to obtain a room at WDW over marathon weekend. Since the both the Marathon and the Wine and Dine Half Marathon finish at EPCOT, I was thinking about buying DVC points at the Beach Club or Boardwalk Inn. I'd prefer a short stagger back to my room versus a long monorail or bus ride.

Thanks in advance for any/all opinions.

Rick

Wow...DH ran the Disneyland Half and immediately after wanted to sign up for the Wine & Dine Half...but it was already sold out!

I hope you get the Coast to Coast medal this year...good luck!

And we did check immediately after the Half was over to see if there was availability--there wasn't any.

I think the Wine & Dine is always on Veterans Day weekend, which sells out pretty far in advance. I think you'd probably have to book at 11 months if you own DVC.

**One thing to note---if you stay at the Beach Club the hotel rooms are more upgraded than the DVC units. Just FYI in case you decide to buy in there---the rooms are not the same.***

 

[rmgreenesq]

Wow...DH ran the Disneyland Half and immediately after wanted to sign up for the Wine & Dine Half...but it was already sold out!

I hope you get the Coast to Coast medal this year...good luck!

And we did check immediately after the Half was over to see if there was availability--there wasn't any.

I think the Wine & Dine is always on Veterans Day weekend, which sells out pretty far in advance. I think you'd probably have to book at 11 months if you own DVC.

**One thing to note---if you stay at the Beach Club the hotel rooms are more upgraded than the DVC units. Just FYI in case you decide to buy in there---the rooms are not the same.***

Thanks! I did something rather silly. I signed up for four half marathons before I'd ever run one. I signed up for Disneyland in January, Wine & Dine in March, WDW Half in May, and Surf City Half (my hometown) in August.

I finished Disneyland well below the cut off, so I'm half way to the Coast to Coast medal.

I'm staying at the Beach Club on the concierge level for the Wine and Dine. I'll ask the DVC rep to look at a Beach Club unit assuming there are any available.

Rick

 

[TheDVC3]

We are also runners and use our points to book Disneyland Half weekend. It's getting harder and harder to book for the weekend of WDW half outside of your home resort. BCV and BWV points will be hard to come by direct from Disney but you could get it through resale. I love knowing my rooms are booked for those busy weekends.