How did you choose your home resort? Second guessing

[Caren]

We bought at BLT for proximity to the Magic Kingdom. As it turned out, we never did really warm up to it and fell in love with OKW. We wound up adding on at OKW to get booking advantage when we want a grand villa and use our BLT points mainly at OKW.

 

[TomD]

My first contract I bought I disregarded everyone's advice and did not buy where I wanted to stay. I bought based on priced. It was at SSR in 2005 while we were staying at BCV on rented points. After staying there we decided we did not like taking a bus to every park. So we walked over to our guides office and bought were we wanted to stay...BCV

 

[PoohsFan1]

We own at both SSR and BLT, we first purchased into BLT when we became members in 2010. We liked the convenience of being able to walk to MK, the fact that it is part of a monorail resort, and that the contract was to expire much later then other resorts. Then this past November we decided to add on and wanted to do so at SSR because the p/p was very reasonable (looked into buying more points at BLT, but the p/p was way out of our price range). Before buying into SSR, we hadn't stayed there before, but did do so on our January trip and fell in love with the resort. We loved the decor, the secluded feeling it gave, and the all around atmosphere of the resort .

 

[stitchlover]

We asked ourselves if for some strange reason we were NEVER EVER able to transfer at the 7 month mark which resort would we always be happy to stay at? Our answer was Animal Kingdom and that is our home resort.

 

[DizBub]

When we bought we were unaware of resale. Only choices were BLT, AKV and SSR (Treehouses). When we asked about all the others they told us they were sold out. Went with BLT mainly because of MFs and location. Plus we figured we would need the 11 month booking window. Thank goodness we purchased and added on at a very cheap price compared to what they want now. YIKES!!!

We got a Feb UY because that's what they gave us, we knew NOTHING about UYs. We really learned all that we know now by reading all the information posted here and on other boards. VERY helpful. Too bad we didn't have all the "facts" before we took the plunge. That said, I'm not unhappy with BLT as our home resort. Now that we are adding SSR resale, it makes it even better.

 

[graueMaus]

We bought at SSR due to price and amenities available to us now and when the kids are grown and gone. The buses are not a big deal to us, in fact that is our primary mode of transport around WDW when we drive down. What we liked about SSR was the following:

1) Not BLT (not our style)
2) proximity to DTD as we tend to spend at least one full day there;
3) Spa on Site;
4) Golf course and practice facility in your backyard;
5) Easy to get offsite, we have relatives in Orlando and St Pete and use this as a base of operations to visit with family, also closest to offsite groceries and malls in the area as well as other attractions besides Disney
6) THV was the same cost as SSR 2BR (changing in 2013, I believe)


We plan on buying points at HHI or AKV at some point, as we have stayed at both and have enjoyed wonderful. Probably HHI as we will always go there (and it is halfway to Orlando for us).

AKV was very close, but at the time cost much more Direct than SSR.
Now that we are familiar with the resale market we will probably go that route for our next purchase.

 

[DebbieB]

When I bought, the only WDW choices were OKW and BWV. I had stayed at OKW and liked it and had stayed at Beach Club and loved the area. At that time BWV resales were few and far between (1999), there were OKW resales for less than BWV direct. My BWV decision was based on having the home resort priority there and it was a great choice, I always got what I wanted at 11 months and never had an issue getting OKW at 7 months.

 

[bnk1120]

We own at VWL, but have enjoyed trying out other resorts. Last summer we booked a last minute trip and SSR was the only thing available. My husband was very reluctant to stay there, but we wound up falling in love

DH and dd both ASKED to stay at SSR this summer, so I didn't even check to see if anything else was available. We plan on adding on there and will be perfectly happy if that is all we can get.

So many things will change for you over the life of your contract. I would recommend buying somewhere that you know you enjoy now. See how DVC works for you, try some other resorts, and then add on.

DVC has been money well spent for my family! So many happy memories!!!

 

[ELMC]

I like a variety of resorts so I do not want to stay at the same one every year. Everyone says to buy where you plan to stay the most. We are a middle class family so we take this purchase very very seriously. I had thought of buying 2 small packages at 2 different resorts or keeping all our points at one so we can do a 2 bedroom every other year. and a studio or 1 bedroom in between years. So I am thinking around 200 points total. 120 or so for the studio one year and 250 for the 2 bedroom at SSR springs every other year.

What would you do?

There are so many different reasons to choose a resort. You need to figure out what is most important to you and use that to guide your decision. The saying "buy where you most want to stay" is true, you don't want to be forced to stay somewhere that you hate.

For us, the most important criteria was being able to walk to the parks. So we wanted to choose locations that we could book 11 months out and guarantee that we would be able to walk to the parks when we stayed. So we bought 150 BWV and 100 BLT. That way we have two home resorts that we can book at 11 months and do a split stay. (And we were tied between liking BCV and BWV so we went with BWV because it was much less expensive).

Good luck making your decision!

 

[John Lesley and Sam]

BCV was the location selling when we decided to join, and I'm so pleased we did, we love the location. Epcot is great, you can walk to Hollywood studios, and we love getting the monrail to the Magic kingdom.

We have since added on at AKV, but I find having two contracts a pain, and wish I'd just added points to our BCV contracat.

 

[pmaurer74]

BCV was the location selling when we decided to join, and I'm so pleased we did, we love the location. Epcot is great, you can walk to Hollywood studios, and we love getting the monrail to the Magic kingdom.

We have since added on at AKV, but I find having two contracts a pain, and wish I'd just added points to our BCV contracat.

do your contracts have different UYs? This is one of the questions I have. If you have two contracts at different resorts and the same UY are your points pooled together?

 

[dbs1228]

do your contracts have different UYs? This is one of the questions I have. If you have two contracts at different resorts and the same UY are your points pooled together?

Yes and no to answer your question, if you have 2 contracts, same UY, at different resorts you can pool your points at the 7 month window to make a reservation. At the 11 month window your points for your home resort is all you can use. We own at BLT and SSR and have reservations for NYE - we booked THV (SSR) for the 1st 3 nights at 11 months out and booked 6 nights at BLT GV for NYE week. I am planning to try to switch to AKV for the 1st 4 nights at the 7 month window and canceling the THV/ 1st night in the GV and using 2012 points from each contract to get the reservation.

 

[pmaurer74]

so if you booked at 11 months all you have available is the points at that resort banked, current and borrowed you cannot use your other resorts points until 7 months? I thought all that mattered were the points available when you check in not at the time you made the reservation... do I have that wrong?

 

[k3chantal]

Even though we thrilled with our home resort (AKL); there is 'something' about WL. Perhaps because it was our first trip using our vacation points and we have only stayed at the villas there and perhaps because it reminds me of the Grand Californian. We are from California and it is easier to get to DL.

Anyway, I love the Wilderness Lodge; I love the boat ride to MK when you stay there.

Interestingly enough, during a split stay between AKL and OKW, my family did not care for OKW even though the rooms were bigger. Personal opinion of course and perhaps it was 'decor'.... there are many people who love OKW.

As much as this decision of where is important, do remember that you will want to use your points to go to other places. So far we have been to Vero Beach, stayed at the Grand Californian, had a seven day trip to Kauai Hawaii, and experienced a 7 day cruise on the Disney Wonder. All things, we would not have done if we were not members of DVC.

So the amount of points you purchase is extremely important and making sure that you are purchasing points that can be this flexible is vital too (resale points have restrictions).

Good luck!

 

[mdsd8700]

For us it was end date and then location. When we could finally afford to buy DVC and pay cash we didn't feel the contact dates were long enough. Most were 2042 and those that were longer were not located where we wanted to be. Once BLT opened it still took us a year to purchase and we did so without ever seeing a BLT room other than pictures on line. We are thrilled we our purchase and love BLT. The length of the contact means we will be able to take our grandchildren

 

[chipdale74]

We bought into SSR (which was the only available at the time). I agree with you on the decor at WL. I actually love the decor at SSR and we have stayed at numerous rooms and resorts. BW is also similiar in theme (soft pastels). SSR is a great resort because you can walk to downtown plus the pools are very nice. You have to be happy with what you choose because that will be the resort you are able to get into 1st before any of the others. Good luck with your decision!

 

[Missyrose]

so if you booked at 11 months all you have available is the points at that resort banked, current and borrowed you cannot use your other resorts points until 7 months? I thought all that mattered were the points available when you check in not at the time you made the reservation... do I have that wrong?

You have it wrong. You can only use points from your home resort at the 11-month mark. So if you have a BLT and an AKV contract, you can use the BLT points at BLT at the 11-month mark and the AKV points at AKV at the 11-month mark. But you would have to wait until the 7-month mark to use AKV points toward a BLT reservation.

 

[gkrykewy]

We bought into DVC when AKV became available, because we already loved AKL. Easy choice.

 

[gatorgirl02]

I just wanted to say that I appreciate everyone's feedback on why they choose their home resort and will definitely keep it all in mind as I make my own decision. Thanks for sharing the knowledge!

 

[pmaurer74]

I just wanted to say that I appreciate everyone's feedback on why they choose their home resort and will definitely keep it all in mind as I make my own decision. Thanks for sharing the knowledge!

Me too. Thanks everyone!