DVC Question---please leave here

[boxer]

I hope this doesn't get bumped to the DVC board, as I want opinions of everyone on this issue, and not just DVC members-----we are really thinking about getting into that vacation club, but I want to know the pro's/con's of such ownership?

I would probably buy 200 points, and try to vacation during the 'slow' DVC seasons. I can't see renting anymore than a 1-bedroom villa (or studio), and don't plan on staying anywhere except Saratoga Springs or Old Key West.

We literally just got back from vacation, so I'm trying to guage some experienced comments. TIA.

 

[Kick Save]

You'll likely be directed to the DVC boards, and you should head over there and read up as much as you can. There is a lot of info there on the pros and cons of ownership. It's really going to boil down to personal choice. If you go every year, it can save you money over the long haul.

One suggestion would be to rent points for your next trip and look at them first hand. We did that twice before buying.

 

[MiknMinMouse]

Pros ~ way too many to list. We've loved having our DVC membership.

cons ~ it's not really cost effective to use your points to try other resorts so you don't always get to try new places (if you use your points to get the most out of them) Although you could buy like 100 - 150 points and use them every other year and on the years you don't use your points book on a different resort and pay.

For instance this year all of our points were tied up for a family vacation so we booked into the Poly. But as the previous poster said, I'd read the DVC board for more help.

 

[mrsltg]

I've rented points twice and loved both experiences. We will not, however, be purchasing DVC. Dh is against it because of the maintenance fees and expiration of ownership. I am a diehard Disney fan and would love to purchase anything with the name "Disney" in it which automatically disqualifies me from this very expensive decision! I will say you should look into resale as opposed to buying new. When I was attempting to convince Dh to give up on our childrens' college funds to instead purchase DVC, I found that resale was a good bit cheaper. I also recommend renting points first.

Good luck with your decision!

 

[cobbler]

Well you will definatly get more answers on the DVC boards, this is more for theme parks. And the best advice really will come from DVC members, we are honest and will tell you the pros and cons.

Some of the pros are - not having to worry about accomodations
Having better than deluxe accomodations
Saving money if you stay at least moderate (but moreso deluxe) and travel at least every other year

Cons- Well it can cost more because you will find that having those "free" accomodations you will want to take trips more. Add an AP to that mix and its just downright dangerous LOL!

 

[missminniemouse]

We are DVC members with a home resort of Old Key West. We love it. The kids love OKW and don't like it when we stay anywhere else. On our last trip, all of our points were tied up for a Disney cruise, so we stayed 2 days before the cruise at Pop Century and 3 days after at Coronado Springs (DH had a meeting there as chance would have it.) You get really spoiled by the spacious accommodations at DVC resorts. For us, a one bedroom is great because we're not big breakfast eaters. We can grab something quick right in our room and get going in the morning. One of the problems we had at Pop this last trip was dealing with the crowded food court in the morning. Having a washer and dryer right in the room is the other plus we enjoy a lot. Usually I'll throw a load of clothes in the washer before we leave in the morning and throw it in the dryer when we return at night, so it's ready to be put away before we go to bed. Makes packing for the trip a whole lot easier...less clothes to carry along.

On our last trip, the kids insisted on going over to OKW even though we weren't staying there just so they could see the renovation at the main pool area. We've also stayed at the Villas at Wilderness Lodge and the Boardwalk Villas. We only had studio units at both of those places, but it still worked out fine for us. We had a small refrigerator and microwave, so breakfast was easily covered. We rarely spend a lot of time in our room during the day. If we do come back to the resort, it's to change clothes and head to the pool.

We usually travel during the cheapest point seasons and it's worked out well for us. This year we'll be going the week before Thanksgiving and leaving the day after Thanksgiving. We'll be at OKW, so the kids will be really happy.

Some people will complain that the bus service at OKW isn't the best. We've had that experience before as well, although not often. Usually the buses run pretty regularly. My DH likes to rent a car anyway when we're there and drive to all the parks except MK, so the bus issue isn't normally an issue for us.

We have 270 points and have been able to save points until we have almost a whole 270 to bank. That is the time that we've booked a 7 night Disney cruise using our points. That sure was nice to pay only a $75 exchange fee and have the entire cruise paid for for all 4 of us. That included 2 staterooms and one of the kids listed as an adult, since we had another friend going with us and wanted more space. We had 2 adjoining category 10 staterooms and it gave us a lot of space...plus 2 sets of bathrooms, which worked out really well for us. So, there are other advantages to DVC membership than just going to WDW.

The one year we had extra points left that had been banked the year before, so they had to be used. We spent a night at a very fancy hotel only an hour and a half from our home that we probably would have never gone to otherwise. This isn't the best use of points, because it takes a lot of points to do these exchanges, but it worked out well for us that year. At least we had an option to use our points rather than losing them.

We've enjoyed having DVC over the years...DH is so spoiled by it that when my mother wanted us to use a timeshare she has that is not on Disney property, DH said "No." He doesn't want to give up the advantages of being on Disney property...EMH and Disney transportation being two of them. If there is anything else I can answer, just ask!

 

[ZerasPride]

You have received some great info so far. DVC can be a great "investment" in your family's enjoyment of their Disney vacations. If you are going to go to Disney anyway, it can be a good way to prepay for those vacations. As others have listed the benefits of owning are way too many to list and a lot of them (at least for me) are more intangible "feel good" benefits like just knowing you "own" a piece of the magic (and btw, it doesn't bother me one bit that my contract will expire at a certain point because I don't want to leave my son the obligation to pay for maintenance fees for a vacation property he may or may not want after I have passed off the scene).

I would say one of the biggest disadvantages to owning this or any timeshare is that you have to be a big planner when it comes to your vacations - of course your mileage may vary but this is our situation. We just bought a house and will close on May 19. Our last day in our rented place is May 31 and I would love to spend the first two weeks of June puttering around my new house. Instead we have a week long trip to Disney planned for mid-June. Normally I would be climbing the walls with excitement over an upcoming trip but reality has set in and I want to spend this time working on my new place but since our use year is August, it would be hard to reschedule this June trip. If we were paying cash for the trip, I'd be tempted to just cancel the room reservation and eat the cost of our plane tickets so we can putter around our house. I guess we could try to rent out our points but I'm not really into all that.

My point is that you need some flexibility to own DVC and be willing to do some planning ahead of time. Normally this would not be a problem booking a trip 7-11 months in advance but time and unforeseen occurrence happen and there are circumstances when owning a timeshare takes away from flexibility when real life kicks in.

I do love being a DVC member but we have our membership on the selling block right now because our lifestyle is changing and we are questioning whether DVC will continue to fit into our future plans. I guess you view that one as a pro or a con to membership. If you find yourself needing to sell your interest in the future, you might break even or come out a bit ahead.

Someone once said that DVC is a decision you make with your heart and not your head. In my particular family's case, I totally agree with that statement. I will say I have not regretted it one bit and DH has even agreed that "one day" when we get used to making mortgage payments and settle other financial obligations, we can look in the resale market - so I'm happy about that.

 

[boxer]

thanks for the help......this is the type of responses I was looking for.

 

[DrTomorrow]

We're DVC owners and love it!

A few cons - or, perhaps, caveats:

1. The farther ahead you can plan, the better; 11 months is great!
2. DVC is not really that good for 'long weekend' trips
3. It is best to use your DVC ownership at DVC resorts; while going outside - either to non-DVC Disney resorts, or elsewhere in the program - is less beneficial.

Be well!

 

[JimC]

Pros:

Great one bedroom villas at a price roughly equivalent to moderate resorts.

Other perks that may change but greatly enhance the value such as AP discount, shopping discounts, meal discounts, and the like.

Active market for resales.

Flexibility of the DVC points system -- size of accommodations, length of stay, time of year, resort and the banking/borrowing options.

Cons:

Should have the upfront purchase price in cash.

DVC yields the best value if you can plan in well in advance and rarely need to cancel at the last minute.

Weekend premium for points (good reasons for this but it still ranks as a con for me).

Exchanges are not the best value for your points in most situations.

Must manage your contracts to avoid losing points.

RTU (right to use) contracts -- at the end ownership reverts back to Disney.

 

[crisi]

Its a committment to Disney. You CAN use points other places, but since that isn't a good value, most people use the points for Disney. This is great if you have a long term track record as a fan, but it IS possible to get burned out on Disney. And it IS possible that your kids will want something different as teenagers.

The other thing about the committment is its there in good times and bad. In bad times, a regular Disney fan can scale back their trip to a Value or offsite, or postpone or cancel it entirely. A DVC member needs to at least pay the dues, even if you don't travel. You can rent your points, but that may turn out to be more emotionally difficult (as well as a bigger logistical problem) than you think.

It only sometimes saves money over the long term. Sometimes, what you discover is that the kids having their own bedroom is WONDERFUL and your teens won't share the hideabed anyway that they were so thrilled with at four. Or that since you have points, you might as well take your parents and put them in the second bedroom.

Don't get me wrong, we love our DVC, but I wouldn't do it if I hadn't already had ten years of a Disney flirtation - and, in our case, only bought enough points for every other year trips. As well as having the money to be able to pay cash up front and the income so dues - and the trip itself - isn't a burden. Unlike other Diser's, DVC is one of the first assets I'd dump if I had hard times.

 

[OneMoreTry]

Only buy if it won't stretch your budget.

It's cheaper then comparable higher-level WDW accomodations, but not as inexpensive as staying at economy or even moderate resorts. Elimination of most WDW resort discounts makes DVC more attractive, but if you buy an AP, then you get a discount on the non-DVC resorts.

Con is that using your points at the non-DVC resorts is very inefficient. So staying at the Poly would quickly eat away points and you wouldn't reap much benefit.

You recoup value at 5 to 7 years or so. You recoup it faster if you don't use points on Fri and Sat nights. (Sometimes we pay cash for weekend nights to save points. DVC members USUALLY get a 25% discount at DVC resorts but that IS NOT GUARANTEED and frequently not available until about 60 days in advance.)

Don't buy if you're not gonna visit WDW a lot.

BEST pro for us is the resort at Hilton Head which is fairly close to home and a wonderful place. This was a surprise we got after being members for several years.