HELP! Where to stay May/June

[sab53085]

My boyfriend and I are taking our first trip to WDW together May 28-June 4th (Gaydays). I've been plenty of times but have always stayed offsite/DTD area but this was when I was younger and with family. He is 22 and I'm 26 - we'd love to stay onsite and not have to worry about renting a car. I'm sold on all of the perks staying onsite and am also contemplating the DDP (but don't know if it's really necessary). I found a good deal on Expedia for the Dolphin including flight for $1700. Only downside to this would be no Dining Plan. Any suggestions for me on where I should stay?

 

[OrlandoMike]

Have you looked into renting DVC points?

 

[sab53085]

I've read about people doing that but I honestly have no idea what it means! Can you fill me in please?

 

[greenkai3000]

It's really up to your own personal taste. You definitely want to stay near one of the parks. I personally love the Animal Kingdom Lodge. Great decor, very nice rooms, amazing staff, very comfortable beds, nice amenities, and you can usually find great deals for that hotel. Boma , one of my favorite restaurants is there too. It's also the "newest" of all the deluxe hotels.

 

[OrlandoMike]

I've read about people doing that but I honestly have no idea what it means! Can you fill me in please?

First of all look over a point chart to determine where you would like to stay and to determine how many points you would need.

http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-vacation-club/DVCpoints.shtml

You can rent from a trusted friend who is a member, or go through a trusted site like this one.

http://www.dvcrequest.com/

It's not always the best option, but it is something to look into....

Good Luck!

 

[TagsMissy]

I would honestly reassess if you really need the Dining Plan... I have not stayed at Swan of Dolphin but I have heard great things about the hotels!

Last year for Gay Days we did a split stay of 5 nights at Boardwalk then 5 nights at Bay Lake. David's rentals is a great place if you have never rented DVC before, he is BBB accredited and you have the security of working through a well established broker.

I suggest checking out photos of the different resorts and determine what your budget is and go from there. If you stay at a Disney resort and that includes rented DVC you can use DME from the airport which is great. Just know with a rented DVC vacation you don't have flexibility as you would with your own booked reservation at a resort.

To date we haven't stayed at resort at Disney that we haven't enjoyed but we also select places that appeal to us.... Either way have a great trip, we had a blast last year at GD and are planning on returning for 2013~

 

[LuJoy]

An upside to staying at the Swan or Dolphin is that you can get Starwood Points for the stay -- a definite perk.

 

[unfreshdiva1]

Swan and Dolphin are both wonderful hotels. Close enough to walk to Epcot and/or DHS and not have to deal with crowded disney buses (yet you can take bus to Magic Kingdom and Animal Kingdom when you want to visit those parks).

 

[sab53085]

I looked into renting DVC points at dvcrequest.com and it costs $1600 for the length of my stay (123 points @ $13/point) at Bay Lake. Does this seem right? This seems very cheap to me considering it's $500/night if you book through Disney. I realize those are rack rates but this seems very inexpensive.

 

[OrlandoMike]

I looked into renting DVC points at dvcrequest.com and it costs $1600 for the length of my stay (123 points @ $13/point) at Bay Lake. Does this seem right? This seems very cheap to me considering it's $500/night if you book through Disney. I realize those are rack rates but this seems very inexpensive.

Membership has its rewards!

And unfortunatly, because of the economy, many members are having to "share" their rewards.

But once again, just make sure it is a reputal site or DVC member.

 

[M4travels]

As Mike stated, a DVC rental is a great way to stay. You do have to remember, however, that the rental of the vacation is a private transaction between you and the renter. Disney will not get involved if there are issues AND you will not be able to contact DVC member services; the DVC owner is the only one who can contact them. It becomes are very trust-oriented relationship.

We have rented out our points a couple of times and have had great success; many DVC members have. In reading some of the accounts, however, if you are a hands-on, I-need-to-be-in-control-of-all-things-Disney type person, you may quake a bit at first. For many it is hard to let someone else have the "power." You also do not receive daily Mousekeeping with a DVC stay; you can add that on if you need/want it, however.

And don't forget....there are two other views at BLT - lake and Magic Kingdom!

(And you may be able to get up to the Top of the World lounge and meet one of the best bartenders at WDW!!)

Michael

P.S. Make that THE best bartender!!!

 

[TagsMissy]

FYI there's probably little to no chance to get a Standard View at BLT at this point for the upcoming Gay Days. I had to book mine right at the 12 mos mark for GD earlier this year to get the Standard. We tried to add a day to the end a couple days after booking and no luck.

 

[sab53085]

FYI there's probably little to no chance to get a Standard View at BLT at this point for the upcoming Gay Days. I had to book mine right at the 12 mos mark for GD earlier this year to get the Standard. We tried to add a day to the end a couple days after booking and no luck.

Do you think it's possible to get any resort by renting points if I book in a few months? We still have a while to save!

 

[TagsMissy]

Of course I don't have a magic ball but as long as it's not too last minute you will find a pretty big selection of options available for either a DVC rental or a regular rooms that time of year. There's just certain categories that will be tight/not available -- Boardwalk view room at Boardwalk, Beach Club, Standard view at BLT, value and concierge Animal Kingdom.

Sit down with your partner and determine what you want to spend and what appeals to you in terms of theme then you'll know your goal of what you'll need to save and we'll be able to give you pointers if you want. Nothing worse than getting your heart set on say, a value dvc studio at Animal Kingdom but not realize those are like gold and hard to get.

HAPPY PLANNING!

Edited to add:

Sometimes David's Rentals has specials on 'last minute' bookings. Now with DVC last minute can be considered 6 months in advance sometimes hahahah

 

[L&Lfan]

My boyfriend and I just got back from a week at the Dolphin. We had a blast and you couldn't beat the price. We had an Epcot view room on the 6th floor and it was fantastic. One week at the Boardwalk or Yacht or Beach Club would have cost us another grand for the same week (10/16-10/23).
We either walked or took the boat to Epcot and DHS and took the bus to MK and AK.

 

[dmwang9]

Before I bought into DVC, the Swan/Dolphin were my go-to hotels on site. I loved the location (I love the Boardwalk area, with both Epcot and DHS within walking distance), and the Heavenly beds are, um, heavenly.

If you're worried about not having access to the DDP, one alternative that I've used in the past (thanks to an idea from the WDW Today podcast folks) is to take the money I'd have spent on the DDP and put it on a Visa gift card instead. Then I'd pay for all the food using that card. I wound up spending only about 75% of what the DDP would have cost on food, which meant that I got to blow the rest on souvenirs.

 

[sab53085]

Before I bought into DVC, the Swan/Dolphin were my go-to hotels on site. I loved the location (I love the Boardwalk area, with both Epcot and DHS within walking distance), and the Heavenly beds are, um, heavenly.

If you're worried about not having access to the DDP, one alternative that I've used in the past (thanks to an idea from the WDW Today podcast folks) is to take the money I'd have spent on the DDP and put it on a Visa gift card instead. Then I'd pay for all the food using that card. I wound up spending only about 75% of what the DDP would have cost on food, which meant that I got to blow the rest on souvenirs.

That is such a good idea! I am gonna try that! I'm really leaning towards the Dolphin if the price is right when we have enough money saved.

 

[ConcKahuna]

The DTD Resort hotels are nice too. You can get deluxe resort amenities at moderate/value resort prices!

You also get all of the same amenities as staying at one of the Disney-owned resort, except for Magical Express and Extra Hours (the Hilton does get EMH though).

www.downtowndisneyhotels.com

The Holiday Inn is the best one there (and ranked in the top 10 in Orlando by it's guests on TripAdvisor.com )

The Palace is also the on-property host hotel, and is a short walk from any of the other hotels, if you choose to go to any of the parties.

 

[sab53085]

Time to get into serious planning mode! Any other advice would be appreciated!