DVC or HGVC?

[Nursejilly]

Okay, first off we love Disney! We are looking at buying a timeshare and also have toured HGVC at International drive. We loved the place too. My question is: what are the benefits to DVC (such as exchange program for other non-Orlando vacation spots?) the obvious perks of DVC to me are the local, theme, etc. We plan to visit Disney about every other year and choose some other vacation spot other years. I want to make the right decision so some advice would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Jill

 

[Doug Wolfe]

Hi Jill....

I own Disney Vacation Club...and plan on purchasing HGVC in the next year or two.

If you are interested in exchanges I would lean toward HGVC. I think they have better options.

If you are interested in mostly staying at Disney, I would go with DVC. I have found DVC to be an excellent timeshare program in the 4+ years I have owned it. We use the DVC resorts at Orlando. Also, we stayed at the DVC resort in Hilton Head, South Carolina in 2005 & loved it. This year we are staying at the DVC resort in Vero Beach, Florida right on the ocean. For me DVC is one of the best things we have ever done.

I am looking at HGVC for trips to different places outside of Orlando & Florida.
My neighbor owns on International Drive and loves it. I will probably buy HGVC on the Las Vegas strip because the annual costs are lower than Orlando. Although I will probably never stay there when I go to Vegas because I can get such good deals at the casino/resorts. I will just use Vegas as my home resort and book vacations elsewhere.

There is a gentleman by the name of Dean on these boards who is #1 when it comes to questions like these. I would be sure to take a look at some of his posts!

 

[Nursejilly]

Doug, thanks for the reply! We are still leaning heavily toward HGVC although i will be a little sad about not getting to stay at a disney property. According to the salesperson we talked to at Hilton, they are breaking ground for another HGVC resort closer to disney near Ruby Lake. I am not sure exactly where this is in proximity to disney but it would be nice to have another resort to choose from down the road. I will be sure to look at posts for the fellow you mentioned. We are definitely new to all this and would love any further advice.
thanks again,
Jill

 

[NYMomof4]

I own DVC and my sister owns HGVC-I am very lucky to have stayed at both I have stayed at HGVC in Las Vegas and Miami Beach, which were both great. My sister stays at their Orlando based HGVC when in Florida and likes it but has not liked the repeated owners meetings to offer more points-that's her honest response. As an example-she was extremely skeptical when my DVC guide called my room for our 1st DVC trip in Feb., assuming it was like her experiences. He called to say welcome home and have a great trip!LOL For me, I like the fact that DVC has never pressured me to buy more. In fact, if you read these boards, you will find that addonitis is often a problem for current DVC owners who choose to add points on their own. I chose DVC because we love Disney and only want to stay onsite in Orlando. Anywhere else-it doesn't matter, but DVC is best for those that will want to stay at DVC most of the time.

Now, between my sister and I, we have the best of both worlds I think. The ideal situation would be to own at both for the amount of points that you might need for your vacation plans. Resales offer lower buy-in points, so keep that in mind as another option. I wish you luck with your decision-both are great choices!

 

[Nursejilly]

Thanks for the response! I sure would like to get my sister to buy DVC and then we too could have the best of both worlds!! I think that the most often we would go to disney would be every other year. Thanks for the input!
Jill

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Just my opinion.... but there is just no substitute for an on site Disney resort.

I hope you make the right decision!

MG

 

[littlestar]

Jill,

Go read the tug (timeshare users group) discussion boards. It's a board just like the DIS boards dedicated to timesharing. Do a search. There are numerous posts about people buying into HGVC, price, home resort, etc.:

http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/

If you buy resale at HGVC, and a smaller DVC package (enough to go every other year), you might be able to buy both and have the best of both worlds. We just bought our first Marriott week and I probably read posts on tug for six months before I finally made up my mind what to buy.

Good luck.

 

[CarolMN]

I agree with littlestar - buy just enough DVC to visit Disney every other year or even every third year. USe the HGVC for trades elsewhere.

FWIW, unless you are very flexible with unit size and can travel in January, May or September to WDW, it is difficult to trade in to DVC. You almost have to check II evey day to do it even then.

There are probably more timeshares in Orland than anywhere else in the world. It is relatively easy to trade into Orlando, so you may want to buy elsewhere.

Doyour homework on TUG before you commit to anything.

Best wishes -

 

[rocketriter]

I'm another Doug who owns at BCV, and I agree that DVC is unbeatable for Disney locations. I wouldn't think of staying at another Orlando timeshare. A "small" investment of 150 points, spent every other year, will give you wonderful accomodations on Disney properties. As for trading, while you can trade your DVC points (we've done so and will again, but carefully), you're better off trading points from another timeshare that you bought at resale. But don't buy those points from the developer or you'll take a terrible depreciation hit the moment you sign!

 

[phyllisnnj]

Definitely do your homework using the Timeshare User Group (TUG) Boards.
Learn about the various fees, booking windows at your home resort and other resorts within the system, seasons, length of stay requirements, checkin date requirements, etc.

We own both and we are happy with both. We've use our DVC pts for DVC stays and our HGVC pts for HGVC stays (Hawaii, Florida & Las Vegas). I like the flexibility of both systems.

I suggest picking a vacation club that works best for you and includes the places that you want to go to on a regular basis. Timeshare Exchange Companies never know when or if timeshare owners are going to trade their weeks. For the most part, availability depends on owner deposits and trading power. If owners don't deposit the week that you're looking for you won't get it.

Note: HGVC deals with RCI (not Interval International). Most of the better timeshares (including hotel based timehares) seem to be associated with Interval International. However HGVC is associated with another exchange company called SFX which deals with top resorts in both RCI and Interval International.


Good Luck

 

[phyllisnnj]

My question is: what are the benefits to DVC (such as exchange program for other non-Orlando vacation spots?) the obvious perks of DVC to me are the local, theme, etc.

There's a current ebay listing that shows most of the WDW perks (see ebay item # 4464050309)

Beyond WDW, DVC offers

(1) Disney Collection which you can use your points for
- Disney Resorts in Florida, California, Paris, Hong Kong and Tokyo.
- Disney Cruise Line
- Adventure by Disney

(2) Adventurer Collection which you can use your points for
- Alaska Cruise on Holland America
- Backroads Biking or Multisport Trip
- Wineland-Thomson Adventures Costa Rica or African Safari Trip

(3) Concierge Collection which you can use points for
- Hotel/Resort stays at various locations around the continental US. It also includes resorts in Hawaii, London & Bahamas

(4) World Passport Collection which you can use points for
- exchanges through Interval International & Buena Vista Trading Company

A link to the number of DVC points required for each of the Collections above can be found here - http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1089453

fYI... Mousesaver has some general info concerning a DVC purchase and the overall benefits - http://www.mousesavers.com/dvc.html

 

[ascardino]

This thread is of great interest to me (as well as so many others). While trying to decide if I want to add onto my DVC I have been also looking at TUG and trying to make up my mind if I should be happy with my 150 SSR points and buy into something else like Starwood or Marriott.

Since DVC is my first and only timeshare purchase I really do not know where to begin as far as another company goes. From what I have read, buy Red and resale but as someone pointed out there is the choice between II and RCI. I have no clue how to narrow down what I would be happy with and what would constitute a good resale.

Anybody want to give me pointers....I am all ears.....

 

[Didney Daddy]

Buy just enough points to enjoy your planned Disney vacations. We are Disney addicts and cannot think of staying off property.

As to exchanges, though you have some flexibility I would recommend buying a minimum DVC contract and use the rest of the money on a off market time share purchase like Hyatt, Hilton, Marriott or Starwood. As other's have said, go to TUG for advice. Way too many considerations for me to enumerate here.

If you think DVC is complicated, wait till you start trying to figure out the rest of the timeshare world and it will make you appreciate the relative simplicity and flexibility of the DVC program for Disney vacations.

 

[CPTJAK]

I think tug is probably a better site for that question as this is DVC heavy

 

[CPTJAK]

Remember some resales don't include certain features (HGVC does Marriott does not, starwood does not, Hyatt does not)

 

[jmatias]

Hi Jill,

I highly recommend you visit TUG for tons of opinions on your question.

Our first timeshare purchase was with Marriott. Love it. Tons of great resorts. Next bought BWV then BCV and VWL.

Through TUG I learned how to maximize my trading options with Interval International and RCI.

Now besides our Marriott and DVC we own several traders to maximize our chances.

Good luck with your decision.

Jen

 

[disneydenisel]

Luckily, you are choosing between two very good programs, so you can't really go wrong. I like the idea of buying both ! Our first timeshare was a Starwood...we absolutely love it. I wish I could buy another! Then I fell in love with BCV last November and sold my piano to help pay for it. My sister owns HGVC points for Hawaii, and she stayed at International Drive last November while we stayed at BCV. I really loved the HGVC too, but we like being on site with our small children.

I'm currently looking at HGVC resales, and might sell a car to help pay for it . If you need a good resale agent, I can recommend one who sold me my DVC.

Good luck!

 

[phyllisnnj]

This thread is of great interest to me (as well as so many others). While trying to decide if I want to add onto my DVC I have been also looking at TUG and trying to make up my mind if I should be happy with my 150 SSR points and buy into something else like Starwood or Marriott.

Since DVC is my first and only timeshare purchase I really do not know where to begin as far as another company goes. From what I have read, buy Red and resale but as someone pointed out there is the choice between II and RCI. I have no clue how to narrow down what I would be happy with and what would constitute a good resale.

Anybody want to give me pointers....I am all ears.....

How to narrow down.......Decide on where you want to go on a regular basis then determine which well known companies (HGVC, Marriott, Starwood, etc) offers locations with their system that you want to go. Use TUG to learn about the Pros & Cons of each system such as how easy is it to internal/external trades to your desired locations based on any vacation time constraints, resale prices, fees, check in/check out dates, points vs weeks, etc.

Here are some TUG threads that might help you....
TUG Advice board - http://www.tug2.net/tugadvic.shtml
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=25226
http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=27206

HGVC vs Marriott - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=23574
Fairfield vs Marriott - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=21280
HGVC vs Hyatt - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20986
Starwood - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=24243
Worldmark - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=12340
Hyatt - http://www.tugbbs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=20202

 

[Cruelladeville]

No one here mentioned a MUST, before you buy anywhere, but you MUST check resales' sales(The Timeshare Store and TUG) before you buy. You need to see which properties return the best % of your investment. DVC is #1 of course, but if you are considering buying from the developer, you will need to know how much money you will be throwing away for any perks the developer will be giving you. Then decide: is it worth it? For some people, it is a definite YES, while others will say NO. We bought Marriott resale for $6000, when the developer was charging $20,000. The $14,000 difference would buy alot of tickets, so we gave up the ability to change in our week for airline tickets. We use Marriott to trade, but our DVC is definitely for Disney. We bought DVC for $56, and can sell for $85 now, our Marriott has increased about $1500, but we are happy with both places.

 

[RAMWDWFAN]

I own both DVC and HGVC and there are great things to say about both. Although the HGVC property is beautiful in Orlando, when I'm visiting Disney I like to stay on property. I have a small DVC membership (150 points) which works for me since I travel alone for the most part. My HGVC membership is used primarily for my Vegas trips. Another good thing about the HGVC membership is the price. You can get 3400 points on Ebay or TUG for less than $4,000.00 sometimes. The annual fee will run you about $650.00 per year though (Vegas).