DVC! Yes or No?

[Mark099]

Wow! Thanks for all the input.

After staying at the Pop for 15 nights and visiting the AS resorts this past trip I don't think the value resorts are for us, completely. I did some recommended reading last night -- particularly in the financial analysis area -- and found a few more answers. If the cost is equivalent to paying for moderates than I think I can live with that. A 1BR villa seems appealing to us now -- especially since we had some sleeping issues (when the lights and TV were still on) with our 5 yr old sharing the same room. Although, we did learn a few tricks towards the end that we may consider trying a studio, at least, once more before going to a 1BR.

We tend to travel in low season to beat the crowds. September and early October are our favourite times. This time we didn't travel in low season because we got the CDN dollar at par deal so it only cost us $2000 US for 15 nights at the PC and 15-day ultimate park hoppers for the 3 of us.

Before this, we planned on visiting Disney every two years anyway. However, we planned on alternating visits to WDW and Disneyland. On the years we don't go to Disney we would travel to places like Hawaii or take a cruise. Adjusting our plan to go to WDW more often than Disneyland is not unreasonable for us to consider. We tend to fly to Florida on air miles, anyway, and we can easily accumulate enough miles to travel every two years. This means our travel costs are virtually zero.

 

[Disney Doll]

Here's the basic deal, at least as figured out by DH & I!!!

We bought from Disney in 1997, and got 200 points with OKW as our home resort. We bought based on the fact that we KNEW we would want to go to WDW at least every other year. We bought from Disney directly because they had a 10 year loan, so that's what we took, because it had the lowest payment. We actually paid the loan off in about 3-4 years, but we liked the idea of having a low payment that we were REQUIRED to make, and paying more toward it when we were financially able to do so. Pretty much every month we put more toward it so it got paid off more quickly.

The second contract we bought in 2002 for 230 points, again with OKW as our home resort. This one we bought visa The Timeshare Store, because the price was right, we got through ROFR, we had the cash to pay for it, so we didn't need the loan aspect that buying directly from Disney offered.

My DH, who is a realtor(actually now manages a real estate office)looked at this thing every which way fronm Sunday until he practically drobve me insane, trying to find a negative, a quirk, an "Aha! I knew it was too good to be true!" thing and he couldn't find one, so we bought.

We have never regretted our purchase. We visited WDW at least once, and sometimes 2-3 times/year, usually stayed in a moderate, used codes to get discounts and deals etc. For us, it made sense. It has changed the way we vacation. It has made us slow down when we are at WDW and relax, take advantage more of the other amenities besides the parks, because we don't feel the need to "commando tour", because we knwo that since we own DVC, we'll be back. You don't have to come up with that big "chunk" of money to pay for your accomodations, which is usually the biggest single expense. I like having a unit woth more space, I like having the washer/dryer, and the ability to make a nice relaxed breakfast in the room instead of having to rush out in the morning, I like being able to have some snacks in the room, I like if we are travellig with others that we have some space to "spread out", I like that there are DVC resorts located in various areas of WDW, so if you like woodsy and serene, you go to VWL, if you like busy & in the center of the action, you go to BCV/BWV, if you like laid back and tropical, you go to OKW, if you like quaint, you go to SSR.

DVC is probably some of the best money we have ever spent. Feel free to PM me with questions.

 

[Mark099]

Originally posted by barb45
This year I traded our points for Hawaii (before I discovered this board - otherwise I would never have done it). We will be going in November so that is water under the bridge. I don't think I will ever do that again - the DVC resorts are by far the best value. I could probably have booked this place with cash for a lot less than I could have rented my points for.

Hi Barb,

I don't think you made a bad decision. One/Two BR condos in Hawaii are expensive. A minimum for a 3-4 star place would be in the $220-500US/night range. Even in a very nice complex, the standards from unit to unit can vary significantly because the units are individually owned, furnished, and maintained. We stayed in a studio for 3 nights in Kapalua, Maui this past January before moving to the Westin Maui for a conference. The complex was very nice, but the unit we were given was significantly less nice than some of the others available. Our cost was about $150/night after taxes.

I would hope that time share properties are better kept and maintained with less variation from unit to unit.

 

[Mark099]

Thanks again for all the input!

We actually purchased a DVC membership at SSR before we left WDW. Two reasons that made us act (other than being Disney lovers) were...

1) we could not do the transaction while home in Canada, and
2) we could opt out within the first 15 days

After spending the past few days reading and talking it through again, and again, with my wife I am 90% certain we will keep our membership.

I think we can make the DVC work well for us. With 2 yrs worth of points we could stay 4 nights at Vero, take a 3 night cruise, then head to SSR for another 5-7 nights. Depending on our cabin and room choices we could possibly stay at SSR longer. This sounds like a lot of fun for the 3 of us and will likely be our first DVC reservation.

The one concern I have is with what is going on with the selling of reservations. There are some who appear to be profiting from their membership by making peak season reservations and then attempting to sell them for a premium. This could make booking a vacation difficult for others especially if they cannot book 7 or 11 months out. Fortunately, we tend to travel in the low season and hope this practice will not affect us.

 

[tjkraz]

Originally posted by Mark099
We actually purchased a contact at SSR before we left WDW.

 

[Mark099]

Originally posted by tjkraz

We actually purchased a DVC membership at SSR before we left WDW.

Better?

 

[jodifla]

Mark099, I think you'll be happy with your decision! We joined back in 96 and continually congratulate ourselves for being so smart. Even if you decide not to do the parks each trip, the resorts are wonderful in themselves (Vero, too. We hope to try HH next May.)

Once you spread out in a one bedroom, it's hard to go back (not impossible, but....) Even the studios are pleasant because of the microwave and refrigerator, which help cut down dining costs.

Also factor in that now you'll be able to travel with friends and family!! We LOVE that aspect of it. Makes trips so much more fun for us.

 

[Mark099]

Originally posted by jodifla
Mark099, I think you'll be happy with your decision! We joined back in 96 and continually congratulate ourselves for being so smart. Even if you decide not to do the parks each trip, the resorts are wonderful in themselves (Vero, too. We hope to try HH next May.)

Once you spread out in a one bedroom, it's hard to go back (not impossible, but....) Even the studios are pleasant because of the microwave and refrigerator, which help cut down dining costs.

Also factor in that now you'll be able to travel with friends and family!! We LOVE that aspect of it. Makes trips so much more fun for us.

Our thinking is we would spend less time in the parks. We have seen everything now and will likely only spend 3-5 days in the parks on future visits. Our past trip was 15 nights/14 days at the Pop. We had an UPH for the length of stay and spent an average of 6 hours in a park 13 of those days. The only day we didn't enter a theme park was on the day we went to SSR and became DVC members. That day we spent 5 hours at SSR and the evening at DTD.

I am thinking you are right about the 1BR. Our daughter had sleepy issues this past trip and a 1BR would have prevented that. We still may try a studio at first, but everything will depend on how long we want to stay and whether or not we want to burn points (because they'll expire) or conserve them (so we can bank some for future use).

We hope to have family with us from time to time. Two of our 5 trips have included my parents, but they are too old to handle such a trip now. Two of the five have also included my two sisters and their families -- though only once at the same time. Each time we had our own rooms at either the POR or CBR. Kitchen and laundry facilities would have been nice.