DVC Rental vs booking on site regular room

[izzy25]

So our family is in the beginning stages of planning our Disney Trip for next October 2016 and I'm trying to decide if we should rent a room through the DVC points rental vs booking a value/moderate resort. We are looking to stay on grounds this time. We stayed off site last year in a beautiful condo but we traveled with my parents and it was nice having the room. This time it's just myself, my husband and our 8 year old daughter and I want to do on site.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I've never stayed in anything but a moderate resort.

Thank you in advance!

 

[LSUfan4444]

I am also a family of three and my wife and I think renting points for a studio at a delux resort is a MUCH better value than renting a moderate for roughly the same price. A value is the way to go if trying to save money but the proximity, walking distance to parks, service, dining options, etc. are all better at deluxe resorts. Plus, you get a kitchenette (microwave, etc.)

Staying at the boardwalk and being able to walk to/from two of the parks is what we've leaned to the most through the years

 

[izzy25]

How far in advance do you need to book for a DVC?

 

[rpb718]

I believe you can start in Nov 2015 to book for October 2016.

 

[TeamSy]

The further in advance you book the better option you have at getting your preferred resort. Usually the window is 7-11 months I believe.

I think renting points are completely worth it from a budget perspective. You're going to pay moderate prices for a studio at a deluxe resort. The main difference is you have to pay up front and housekeeping is additional ($30 per day for a studio). With the significant savings it has always been worth it to us. Thus far we've rented points at SSR, BWV, GFV and AKL. We've never had a bad experience and seriously, you cannot beat the price!

 

[magicaldisney]

A few things to know about renting DVC.

First you are technically renting a reservation, not renting points. This means that the owner has complete control over the reservation until the minute you check in. There have been horror stories of people showing up and the reservation was cancelled. These are very very FEW, but out there. The rental is almost always a final transaction with no refund policy so you pay whether you go on vacation or don't. This means you need to be very sure about your vacation plans. If you will add a dining plan you will need to pay for the owner for it and the owner will have to add it to your reservation. Free dining can not be used with a DVC reservation.

As for the timing. The type of room you want and where you want to stay will determine when you need to be ready. The soonest any reservation can be made is 11 months prior to the check in date. I would start doing some research on which resort you would like to stay at.

You cant rent a reservation privately through a member or pay slightly more per point and go through a third party. When we need to rent out points we use a third party. Not only does it help protect you a little more, but it also protects the owner, because there is also a risk on our end.

 

[magicaldisney]

I also want to add that studios only have one bed and one pull out sofa, unless you get a reservation at Old Key West where the studios have two beds. Daily mousekeeping is not provided with a DVC reservation (don't knock it until you try it, it is wonderful).

If you have more questions about a particular resort, let me know.

You will find A LOT of information on the DVC forums.

 

[I'mfarfaraway]

We are renting points for a second time and after pricing things out we definitely feel like we are getting a great value. We don't care about having a housekeeper come in everyday, and wouldn't be able to afford to stay in a deluxe otherwise. We did have to pay up front months ago and couldn't change the dates but we knew that upfront and were certain we could go. We used Davids and some resorts have a premium added on if you want to book them as soon as they are available. Other do not.

 

[CMNJ]

Just an FYI based on your dates (Oct 2016)-this is an extremely popular time of the year for DVC members to travel. If you decide you definitely want to go this route and want a MK/Epcot area resort you should plan to book as early during the home resort period (7-11 months) as you are able. Some room types may actually book up right at/
or shortly after the 11 month window opens so if you are thinking you want standard rooms at BWV/BLT or value at AKL because of the lower cost you would need to book as soon as the 11 month window opens. We are new DVC owners and could not get any studio category at BWV (our home resort) for our October week when we got our points 8 months out-when the 7 month window opened our choices for the week were PVB, AKL, OKW, and SSR. We snagged PVB but it booked immediately once the 7 month window opened (like within a minute of online booking opening). By next March there will be more PVB owners utilizing the home booking period and less rooms avail for other DVC owners to book when the 7 month window opens for Oct

 

[I'mfarfaraway]

How far in advance do you need to book for a DVC?

Depends where you want to stay and what type of room. I think that you most likely could get into Saratoga with very little lead time but some of the others you would need to act when they come available at 11 months out.

 

[Sphinx610]

Renting is great! Go for it!
You can rent from a company like David's or DVC rental-store and you won't have the problem pp was talking about w canceling and horror stories. I have heard those too- and they do happen. That's why private rentals are a lil riskier. My MIL rented via Davids last fall and got what she wanted at a decent discount. However, you can get amazing deals W private rentals. We rent from a person I met on mouse owners .com I got references, googled her- the works lol she was legit. She gives us a payment plan and a contract and all.
We rented from her last fall and paid about half price for a BW studio Villa. We have young kids so it doesn't matter if they're sleeping on a pull out couch. They would sleep on the floor if it meant staying close to the WDW parks. Lol we booked BW 11 mos out to the day w a person whose home resort was BW. If their home resort is other than where you want to stay, you can book 7 mos out. Ex: you want BW but their home resort is SSR- you have to wait til 7 mos out and at BW you may not get your choice. So the key to private rentals is renting w someone legit whose home resort is your choice resort at 11 mos out.

I would recommend renting- you save so much! Value prices for deluxe villas. You can't beat it. Plus you can save even more $ off the disney direct ticket price by buying the tix off a 3rd party site like Undercover tourist or AAA. So even though it's a la carte, and a little more leg work; you're saving way more than you would by taking advantage of the room discount.

 

[jimandami]

Renting is great! Go for it!
You can rent from a company like David's or DVC rental-store and you won't have the problem pp was talking about w canceling and horror stories. I have heard those too- and they do happen. That's why private rentals are a lil riskier. My MIL rented via Davids last fall and got what she wanted at a decent discount. However, you can get amazing deals W private rentals. We rent from a person I met on mouse owners .com I got references, googled her- the works lol she was legit. She gives us a payment plan and a contract and all.
We rented from her last fall and paid about half price for a BW studio Villa. We have young kids so it doesn't matter if they're sleeping on a pull out couch. They would sleep on the floor if it meant staying close to the WDW parks. Lol we booked BW 11 mos out to the day w a person whose home resort was BW. If their home resort is other than where you want to stay, you can book 7 mos out. Ex: you want BW but their home resort is SSR- you have to wait til 7 mos out and at BW you may not get your choice. So the key to private rentals is renting w someone legit whose home resort is your choice resort at 11 mos out.

I would recommend renting- you save so much! Value prices for deluxe villas. You can't beat it. Plus you can save even more $ off the disney direct ticket price by buying the tix off a 3rd party site like Undercover tourist or AAA. So even though it's a la carte, and a little more leg work; you're saving way more than you would by taking advantage of the room discount.

While I also love renting points, it's not exactly accurate that you don't have to worry about problems if you use a broker. Earlier this year, 2 different people had their reservations cancelled that had been booked via David's because the DVC owner evidently didn't pay their dues or there was a mix-up with their dues. Granted, those people did get a refund but the room they had booked at 11 months out for F&W was not available so they had to switch to a moderate I believe.

 

[Fall1]

We have rented for over 10 trips from a private renter and never had a problem! It is a great way to be able to stay deluxe!

The only negative I can think of is that you have less control if you have to cancel your trip for any reason.

 

[patrickpiteo]

We have rented for over 10 trips from a private renter and never had a problem! It is a great way to be able to stay deluxe!

The only negative I can think of is that you have less control if you have to cancel your trip for any reason.

I have rented out points over the last 10 years with never a problem and you will find 99.99% of the others do not either. Do some research. Visit the DVC rental board. Its a great resopurce...

 

[ariane37]

We also love renting points and are doing so again for our Nov. and Jan. trips - it'll be our 7th and 8th times I believe. We rented through David's once and it worked out fine, all other times were private rentals. DH just did a lot of research beforehand as to what to look for re: "fake" rentals, acceptable methods of payment, etc. Luckily it always worked out for us but yes, you do have an element of luck when using a private owner. We are now using someone recommended to me by a fellow dis'er and we do not have to pay in full up front. He also allows cancellations/changes/refunds up to a certain point. We've stayed deluxe when not renting points but value-wise it makes so much more sense to rent points! For our Thanksgiving trip, we're staying in a studio at BWV for just under half of what we'd pay if we booked through Disney No daily housekeeping isn't such a big deal at all; if I feel the need for a cleaning, the fee for a day is still worth renting!

 

[awilliams4]

If you would like to give a Deluxe a try...renting will save you tons. And historically, there have been very very few issues renting. If you go through a broker, it may make you feel more at ease as they will not give the owner all your cash until you check in.

You may also enter your last name and ressie number on the Disney site and you will be able to see/verify your reservation exists.

Best thing here is you are planning ahead enough to where you may be able to get into most of the DVC resorts. Certain resorts, room choices and times of year will still be almost impossible to get via renting though but there are many resorts to choose from. RENT!

 

[awilliams4]

October 2016? You might, just might be able to get a BLT Studio Standard View at only 15 points per night Sunday through Friday morning!!! I am a BLT owner and rented through David once and right at 11 months, a renter got my points to get a Standard View Studio using my points.

 

[Sphinx610]

While I also love renting points, it's not exactly accurate that you don't have to worry about problems if you use a broker. Earlier this year, 2 different people had their reservations cancelled that had been booked via David's because the DVC owner evidently didn't pay their dues or there was a mix-up with their dues. Granted, those people did get a refund but the room they had booked at 11 months out for F&W was not available so they had to switch to a moderate I believe.

Wow. Ok that stinks. At least they didn't lost their money...

 

[DekrRini]

I rent points a couple times a year from the same DVC owner. I'll admit that I lucked out because I didn't know enough to check references or anything, but it all worked out great. It would be a good idea to get travel insurance just in case something happens and you can't make the trip. I had to stay at Pop once after renting points and I just didn't like it. I guess I got spoiled. I've stayed at BCV and AKV and love them both for different reasons. The ambiance and animals are so cool that it outweighs the buses. Being within walking distance of Epcot is my favorite thing about BCV. In 2016, I'm renting points for BWV for SWW (which I hope and pray still happens in 2016). It looks like a great resort as well.

 

[patrickpiteo]

I rent points a couple times a year from the same DVC owner. I'll admit that I lucked out because I didn't know enough to check references or anything, but it all worked out great. It would be a good idea to get travel insurance just in case something happens and you can't make the trip. I had to stay at Pop once after renting points and I just didn't like it. I guess I got spoiled. I've stayed at BCV and AKV and love them both for different reasons. The ambiance and animals are so cool that it outweighs the buses. Being within walking distance of Epcot is my favorite thing about BCV. In 2016, I'm renting points for BWV for SWW (which I hope and pray still happens in 2016). It looks like a great resort as well.

LOL once you go deluxe you never go back..
For us it's the one bedroom over the single room. Even though it's the two of us the one bedrooms are awesome. Whirlpool tub two bathrooms.. Yes you get spoiled ...