DVC Points for DCL

[Wilver]

Anyone have any opinions on using points for a Disney cruise? Also share your reasons.

Thanks!

 

[Deb & Bill]

It takes a whole lot of points to do a Disney Cruise. Plus you have to pay the $95 fee. Should you decide to cancel, you cannot use those points for DVC accomodations or RCI accomodations. You'd have to use them at a non-DVC Disney resort or Adv by Disney.

That said, we used points for a 4 night cruise many years ago and enjoyed it. It was nice not having to shell out a whole bunch of money for the cruise.

 

[adminjedi]

We have analyzed the costs, and it simply costs less to pay cash for the cruise. A basic perspective, is your points at current cash analysis value probably average $9-11 per point. Using your points for DCL is about a $5 per point value.

Plus, we use our points for all of our other onsite vacations. Perhaps in the future, if we are unable for some reason to use all of our points a couple of years, it certainly would be better to "waste" them on a cruise rather than lose them!

 

[Inkmahm]

There's no reason to ever pay too much for a cruise by using points OR to lose your points because you can't use them all. You can always rent them to a non member or do a transfer to a fellow member for cash.

 

[lovinpoohbear]

It all depends on the points for your sailing date etc. I had extra points banked. I am going Easter Week on the Dream 2011, to pay out of pocket, for four people, it was $3600 and change, I used 228 points and still have points to stay at WDW for 4 nights.
I never had thought that I would use points for a cruise, But it really worked out great for my family.
Can't wait for April 2011!!!!

 

[Sandisw]

I think that if you are willing to go through the process of renting your points or transferring them to another member, you can come out a bit ahead cost wise than simply using points.

However, this requires time and knowledge, IMO, and something that not everyone is comfortable with. I know we are not and don't plan on doing that.

I have looked at the charts and think that using points to cruise, at least once in a while, is not that bad of a deal.

We decided that if we ever wanted to cruise, we would use our points. We purchased them to do yearly vacations and didn't want to have to worry about OOP expenses in the future.

For us, the convenience of using points and not having to come up with the money is what matters to us. If the cruise takes the place of our WDW trip that year, which in all honestly it would, then for us, it would make no difference if I am using X amount of points for the cruise or the same amount of points for WDW trip.

 

[Dean]

Anyone have any opinions on using points for a Disney cruise? Also share your reasons.

Thanks!

Look at specifics for your situation. Using points will normally return around $6-7.50 pp compared to early booking discounts. Given this reality I would only use points that I couldn't use otherwise and couldn't rent out.

 

[CarolAnnC]

It all depends on the points for your sailing date etc. I had extra points banked. I am going Easter Week on the Dream 2011, to pay out of pocket, for four people, it was $3600 and change, I used 228 points and still have points to stay at WDW for 4 nights.
I never had thought that I would use points for a cruise, But it really worked out great for my family.
Can't wait for April 2011!!!!

Many have reported the favorable comparison with the Disney Dream points chart for 2011 versus paying cash. Nice to see some bargains for DVC'ers! Have a great cruise!

 

[MrsG]

I think that if you are willing to go through the process of renting your points or transferring them to another member, you can come out a bit ahead cost wise than simply using points.

However, this requires time and knowledge, IMO, and something that not everyone is comfortable with. I know we are not and don't plan on doing that.

I have looked at the charts and think that using points to cruise, at least once in a while, is not that bad of a deal.

We decided that if we ever wanted to cruise, we would use our points. We purchased them to do yearly vacations and didn't want to have to worry about OOP expenses in the future.

For us, the convenience of using points and not having to come up with the money is what matters to us. If the cruise takes the place of our WDW trip that year, which in all honestly it would, then for us, it would make no difference if I am using X amount of points for the cruise or the same amount of points for WDW trip.

Very well said. We know it may not be the most cost effective use of our points, but we have used them many times for cruising. We look at it this way, DH and I sailed the Med and Baltic, one on points, one on cash. It would have been very difficult to do both on cash. We did the Eastern Caribbean and will do Alaska for $95, both of us on points. We did an ABD on points. For us, it's easier to pay our dues monthly and not worry about renting, etc. Again, that's how we choose to do it and it works for us. I also understand other points of view. I guess that's what makes the world go round!

 

[tink too]

We're cruising soon using points. We wanted to cruise on DCL anyway, knew it would replace our main family vacation, and didn't want to attempt renting our points out.

This way, all 3 of us get to cruise using points only and we get to round our vacation off with 5 nights in a 1 bed villa, too.

If we'd paid cash for the same vacation, we would have had less time at WDW post-cruise and would have lost a lot if points.

I know that it may not be the "best $ value" etc, but for us it is the best value for getting a quality vacation together!

However, our cruise next year is being paid cash as we did not buy our DVC points just to cruise.

 

[lark]

I have a couple of questions about this -- is the inventory exactly the same for points reservations as cash? There's a cruise on dream that we want to book, but only the most expensive cabins are available. Second, do use years work exactly the same when using points for a cruise, just that there's not home resort priority, etc? Thanks.

 

[Dean]

I have a couple of questions about this -- is the inventory exactly the same for points reservations as cash? There's a cruise on dream that we want to book, but only the most expensive cabins are available. Second, do use years work exactly the same when using points for a cruise, just that there's not home resort priority, etc? Thanks.

No it's not, though there is some overlap. DCL reserves the right to black out if they want. Generally DVC can only book a certain number of cabins, normally around 10% if I am told correctly. Also, the charts only go from cat 11-4. I know some have reported being able to book 3 even though not on the chart, I'm not sure about 12. I don't believe that 1 & 2 are normally available on points but it may vary and it never hurts to ask. Bottom line is it's likely that some cabins are not available and that a given cruise may be available on cash but not points. However, they don't block certain cabins for each, it's just a numbers thing.

 

[Inkmahm]

It all depends on the points for your sailing date etc. I had extra points banked. I am going Easter Week on the Dream 2011, to pay out of pocket, for four people, it was $3600 and change, I used 228 points and still have points to stay at WDW for 4 nights.
I never had thought that I would use points for a cruise, But it really worked out great for my family.
Can't wait for April 2011!!!!

Which cruise and which category of stateroom? Are you paying for the 4 people with DVC points in full? I'd be shocked (but pleasantly surprised) if the 228 points vs $3,600 cash is an apples to apples comparison.

 

[Dean]

It all depends on the points for your sailing date etc. I had extra points banked. I am going Easter Week on the Dream 2011, to pay out of pocket, for four people, it was $3600 and change, I used 228 points and still have points to stay at WDW for 4 nights.
I never had thought that I would use points for a cruise, But it really worked out great for my family.
Can't wait for April 2011!!!!

Maybe the points have changed or you didn't pay all 4 on points. When I run the numbers for the 3 night cruise I get a min of 220 points for the 3 night cruise ending Easter. That lowest option is 2 adults cat 11C and 2 infants. I didn't see any combo I could come up with 228 points for 4. If you assume one child in the 3-5 range and one in the 6-12 range, I get 253 points for cat 11A, the lowest showing available on icruise which I used for cash comparison. That same cruise for a cat 11A goes for $2350 (same assumptions as 253 pts) today or around $8.90 per point after you adjust for the $95 fee. Using the same assumptions, the 4 night leaving Easter priced today would be around $3100 for 4 (same assumptions) and 422 points, that's around $7.10 pp return. I think once you get up around $9 pp the cost issue becomes less a factor though there are additional risks and complexities using points over cash and of course, other decisions and related issues if you have the points but don't use them. The other issue is it appears that DVC is giving you the under 2 y/o price for a 2 y/o and this could affect results for someone with one or more 2 y/o. All cash items I looked at included all fees, taxes, etc.

 

[CarolAnnC]

The other issue is it appears that DVC is giving you the under 2 y/o price for a 2 y/o and this could affect results for someone with one or more 2 y/o. All cash items I looked at included all fees, taxes, etc.

Disney Cruise Line structures their pricing for Age 2 and Under, which is also called Under Age 3. This is due to the fact that their children's programming begins at age 3 and nothing is included for under age 3 as far as that goes. The under age 3 pricing takes into consideration taxes, port fees, etc. which are charged regardless of age, hence the small amount.

A family certainly can sail with two children under age 3, as long as there are 2 adults in the room. This is due to the fact that the first two passengers in the stateroom will be charged adult pricing, regardless of age. So, if there were one adult and two under age 3, then they would be charged for two adults and one infant.

 

[Dean]

Disney Cruise Line structures their pricing for Age 2 and Under, which is also called Under Age 3. This is due to the fact that their children's programming begins at age 3 and nothing is included for under age 3 as far as that goes. The under age 3 pricing takes into consideration taxes, port fees, etc. which are charged regardless of age, hence the small amount.

A family certainly can sail with two children under age 3, as long as there are 2 adults in the room. This is due to the fact that the first two passengers in the stateroom will be charged adult pricing, regardless of age. So, if there were one adult and two under age 3, then they would be charged for two adults and one infant.

I haven't looked at it from a usage standpoint, however on both icruise and the DCL site, there is a differentiation between under 2 on icruise and infant on DCL which lists 2 separately. Maybe there isn't actually a charge difference for a 23 m/o vs a 2 y/o but the listing suggested there was. I thought maybe I had come across a situation that would swing the pendulum in favor of using DVC points for a cruise, guess not.

 

[CarolAnnC]

I haven't looked at it from a usage standpoint, however on both icruise and the DCL site, there is a differentiation between under 2 on icruise and infant on DCL which lists 2 separately. Maybe there isn't actually a charge difference for a 23 m/o vs a 2 y/o but the listing suggested there was. I thought maybe I had come across a situation that would swing the pendulum in favor of using DVC points for a cruise, guess not.

Nope, whether it is points or cash, DCL charges according to Under age 3.

 

[Anal Annie]

It all depends on the points for your sailing date etc. I had extra points banked. I am going Easter Week on the Dream 2011, to pay out of pocket, for four people, it was $3600 and change, I used 228 points and still have points to stay at WDW for 4 nights.
I never had thought that I would use points for a cruise, But it really worked out great for my family.
Can't wait for April 2011!!!!

WOW - that's REALLY low!! What category cabin did you book?

We blew 397 points for a 4 night cruise for just 3 ppl in a Cat 10 in July of 2008!!! A CAT 10 for only 4 nights!!!! We are "points challenged" with only 250 points so that sucked down about 1 3/4 years worth. THAT was a poor decision that we will NOT repeat!!! We also did a 3 night back-to-back along with the 4 night that we paid cash for - approx. $3,000 for just the 3 nights!! For our Med cruise next summer it would take 616 points for the 7 night for all 3 of us (in a Cat 10). That's ALMOST 2.5 years worth!! A Cat 5C would eat up 1,050 points (which we don't even HAVE)!! Meanwhile, with our rebooking discount from our last cruise we have a Cat 5C booked for $4,378. The Cat 10A price was about $3,738 after their recent price cuts - that's what we orig. booked but then upgraded after they cut the prices in June. We know with the proper planning that we can get 14 nights of vaca a year on our 250 pts. at DVC resorts. So if we used points for this cruise, we'd have a lesser cabin and would basically use 2 years worth of points for just 7 nights as opposed to getting 35 nights of vaca on land (2.5 years worth). It was a no-brainer for us to go back to paying cash to cruise!!

The cruises have really come down a lot with the introduction of the Dream I guess. But personally, we'll cruise on cash in the future. I DO think we get a lot more bang for our point on land!! Just my 2 cents from our personal experiences.

PS (Now if we had received extra one-time use points as an incentive of some sort for an add-on or something then I think that's a totally diff. way of using them and would be fine blowing them on a cruise! As long as they're not coming out of my regular annual point allotment cruising is a fine way to use them!)

 

[Inkmahm]

Maybe the points have changed or you didn't pay all 4 on points. When I run the numbers for the 3 night cruise I get a min of 220 points for the 3 night cruise ending Easter. That lowest option is 2 adults cat 11C and 2 infants. I didn't see any combo I could come up with 228 points for 4. If you assume one child in the 3-5 range and one in the 6-12 range, I get 253 points for cat 11A, the lowest showing available on icruise which I used for cash comparison. That same cruise for a cat 11A goes for $2350 (same assumptions as 253 pts) today or around $8.90 per point after you adjust for the $95 fee. Using the same assumptions, the 4 night leaving Easter priced today would be around $3100 for 4 (same assumptions) and 422 points, that's around $7.10 pp return. I think once you get up around $9 pp the cost issue becomes less a factor though there are additional risks and complexities using points over cash and of course, other decisions and related issues if you have the points but don't use them. The other issue is it appears that DVC is giving you the under 2 y/o price for a 2 y/o and this could affect results for someone with one or more 2 y/o. All cash items I looked at included all fees, taxes, etc.

I tried to do the same thing and couldn't come up with any combination of adults/kids for either the 3 night or 4 night at Easter for 228 points or $3,600 cash, especially not for the same cruise. I'm hoping that I'm just not seeing it because that would be a great deal.

 

[Anal Annie]

Maybe the points have changed or you didn't pay all 4 on points. When I run the numbers for the 3 night cruise I get a min of 220 points for the 3 night cruise ending Easter. That lowest option is 2 adults cat 11C and 2 infants. I didn't see any combo I could come up with 228 points for 4. If you assume one child in the 3-5 range and one in the 6-12 range, I get 253 points for cat 11A, the lowest showing available on icruise which I used for cash comparison. That same cruise for a cat 11A goes for $2350 (same assumptions as 253 pts) today or around $8.90 per point after you adjust for the $95 fee. Using the same assumptions, the 4 night leaving Easter priced today would be around $3100 for 4 (same assumptions) and 422 points, that's around $7.10 pp return. I think once you get up around $9 pp the cost issue becomes less a factor though there are additional risks and complexities using points over cash and of course, other decisions and related issues if you have the points but don't use them. The other issue is it appears that DVC is giving you the under 2 y/o price for a 2 y/o and this could affect results for someone with one or more 2 y/o. All cash items I looked at included all fees, taxes, etc.

I'm with you - I don't see how she possibly booked 4 people on an Easter cruise for only 228 points with the point charts that are posted on the website! It is 220 for the first 2 people alone in the 11C.