How Many DVC Points for a Cruise

[MintJulep]

Hello Everyone,

My husband and I just got back from our first Disney cruise and we absolutely fell in love with the Disney Magic!!

While on the cruise we attended a DVC presentation. We are interested in signing up for the program, but we will probably go through a reseller.

Since we really enjoyed cruising, and are planning on going next Oct. I was wondering if anyone knew how many points it takes for a 7 day cruise in a Cat. 9 stateroom?

I have looked everywhere and I can't find the info.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

 

[Disneycouple99]

Anywhere from 159 to 182 points for the first 2 people for the 7 night Westeren Caribbean cruise.

 

[arthur06]

Oct 8th and 22nd cruise are listed on the chart as 157-179 per adult for the Eastern 7 nighter.

Oct 1st, 15th and 29 are listed on the chart as 159-182 per adult for the Western 7 nighter.

And Oct 2, 9, 16, 23, 30 are listed on the chart as 143-166 per adult for Mexican Riviera 7 nighter.

 

[Deb & Bill]

While you can use points for Disney Cruises, it's better to use those points for DVC lodging. The number of points required is not relatively fixed like at the DVC resorts. That number is negotiated annually and has been known to rise dramatically.

 

[thepops]

Rumor has it (heard it from a tugboat driver) was that they were just going to make it "a boatload" and leave it there.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Rumor has it (heard it from a tugboat driver) was that they were just going to make it "a boatload" and leave it there.

Well, that's pretty official. We all know not to trust those bus drivers (especially the ME drivers), but the boat captains, you can trust them all the time.

 

[JJZMgailey]

We're thinking about buying a resale contract before all the changes happen and I'm wondering if anyone would be willing to look up how many points (approx) it would cost for a 5 night cruise on the Dream in October(ish) of 2012? Our family always travels in a large group, we're 6 adults + 2 kids. Just trying to get sort of an idea. TIA

 

[mb168]

I've got a book you can have Jackie.

 

[JJZMgailey]

I've got a book you can have Jackie.

Very cool!! Thanks a bunch!!

 

[Deb & Bill]

We're thinking about buying a resale contract before all the changes happen and I'm wondering if anyone would be willing to look up how many points (approx) it would cost for a 5 night cruise on the Dream in October(ish) of 2012? Our family always travels in a large group, we're 6 adults + 2 kids. Just trying to get sort of an idea. TIA

I may be wrong, but I though 2012 was booked up through December?

 

[tjkraz]

While on the cruise we attended a DVC presentation. We are interested in signing up for the program, but we will probably go through a reseller.

Better do it quick. Resale purchases after March 20 are permanently ineligible for using points toward disney cruises.

We're thinking about buying a resale contract before all the changes happen and I'm wondering if anyone would be willing to look up how many points (approx) it would cost for a 5 night cruise on the Dream in October(ish) of 2012?

There are no 5 night cruises in October 2012.

To get a decent ballpark estimate for any cruise, take the full cash price as shown on disneycruiseline.com and divide by 7. That should be pretty close to the number of points required.

I may be wrong, but I though 2012 was booked up through December?

I believe it's only through certain dates in 2011. When the you-know-what hit the fan last fall they weren't taking any more bookings through the end of September '11. Could be further out than that by now.

 

[CMOORE185]

I believe it's only through certain dates in 2011. When the you-know-what hit the fan last fall they weren't taking any more bookings through the end of September '11. Could be further out than that by now.

I just booked a cruise on points for October 2011.

 

[CMOORE185]

To get a decent ballpark estimate for any cruise, take the full cash price as shown on disneycruiseline.com and divide by 7. That should be pretty close to the number of points required.

This method actually works very well, I have found out that you usually get a value between 7 and 8 dollars per point. I know renting will get you a little more, but is not worth the hassle to me.

 

[Lynne M]

Hello Everyone,

My husband and I just got back from our first Disney cruise and we absolutely fell in love with the Disney Magic!!

While on the cruise we attended a DVC presentation. We are interested in signing up for the program, but we will probably go through a reseller.

Since we really enjoyed cruising, and are planning on going next Oct. I was wondering if anyone knew how many points it takes for a 7 day cruise in a Cat. 9 stateroom?

I have looked everywhere and I can't find the info.

Any help would be greatly appreciated!!!

If you're planning to buy DVC solely or mostly to use points for cruising....I'd strongly recommend that you don't.

Cruising is considered an exchange outside of the DVC system; there's a $95 fee every time you book.

Point costs for Disney cruises are re-negotiated with DCL every year, they can and do go up frequently. There's no limit on how much they go up. You could buy in this year, and within the next few years, not have enough points to cruise.

Availability of cruises to DVC members is controlled by DCL. They can (and have) sharply limited availability. A lot of people who wanted to book last fall got a nasty surprise when there were suddenly no cruises available. For months.

If you plan to use your points mostly at the DVC resorts, with only occasional cruises, then DVC can still be a very good value, as long as you're aware of the restrictions I listed above. But if you're mostly interested in using points in places other than the DVC resorts....I think you'll want to reconsider.

ETA: Emphasizing tjkraz's very important point: If you still want to buy, be aware that resale contracts purchased after March 20 will not be able to use points for DCL.

 

[goofystitchfan]

Mintjulep they offered the best discount on the cruise rate while you were on board. We were on the Wonder in November (did not use our points) and while on board rebooked using cash. Once we got to land we changed over to use our points (for the first time) which was also discounted. Not sure that I would use our points everytime, but it was a nice option for our upcoming trip. We are a family of 4 if that makes any difference. I would rather use points for a stay before and after the cruise.

 

[MommaluvsDis]

Whether you use points to cruise or not is totally up to you. Many don't like to do it because it takes a lot of points to cruise but keep in mind that the cruise points include your food too.

Stay at Disney on points and you either have to cook in your unit, pay cash for food, do the dining plan etc.....

I personally love cruising on my points. I make one call, pay my $95 and I'm done. To each his/her own.

PP's are right, though. If you're planning on buying points mainly to cruise or even to cruise from time to time, do it before March 20 as all resale points from that point on are ineligible for cruise usage.

 

[mm80507]

Just wanting to reiterate...you are all saying that buying into DVC after March of this year will eliminate the possibility of using points ever again to cruise, or just for this particular year?

 

[Lynne M]

Just wanting to reiterate...you are all saying that buying into DVC after March of this year will eliminate the possibility of using points ever again to cruise, or just for this particular year?

If you buy through a reseller, you will not be able to use those points to cruise, ever. For the life of the contract.

If you buy direct through DVC, you will be able to use points to cruise.

 

[tjkraz]

Whether you use points to cruise or not is totally up to you. Many don't like to do it because it takes a lot of points to cruise but keep in mind that the cruise points include your food too.

Stay at Disney on points and you either have to cook in your unit, pay cash for food, do the dining plan etc.....

I personally love cruising on my points. I make one call, pay my $95 and I'm done. To each his/her own.

PP's are right, though. If you're planning on buying points mainly to cruise or even to cruise from time to time, do it before March 20 as all resale points from that point on are ineligible for cruise usage.

IMO, the real issue is the intent behind the purchase. Under every scenario I've ever looked at, I think it's foolish to buy DVC points with the intention of using points for regular cruises. The numbers just don't add up.

We have a cruise reservation for February 2012. 3 nights on the Wonder for our family of 4 in a Cat 5. Disney Cruise website is showing a rate of $1878 currently for our itinerary. (I used a rebooking discounts so my rate is actually lower than that.)

According to the point charts, that cruise would cost 282 DVC points. If I had booked it using my BWV points, the 2011 DUES ALONE on the points (at $5.46 per point) would total $1539. Then you add the $95 booking fee for $1634.

Booking with points "saves" (and I use that term very loosely) a total of $244 off of the cash price. Results will vary depending upon purchase price and resort dues, typically owners are either paying a premium to join (BLT and other direct purchases) or have premium dues (Vero, HHI, BCV, BWV, etc)

There's really no way to justify spending $60-120 per DVC point--when they are earmarked for cruises--just to "save" a couple hundred bucks on the fare.

Booking through DCL is no more difficult than DVC. It's just a phone call and a credit card deposit. DCL isn't subject to the cabin inventory limits applied to DVC. And you don't have to pay the entire fare at once--those booking a cruise on a combination of points and cash must pay the cash at the time of booking.

All of that said, I have no problem with anyone who views sailing on points as a "yeah, maybe someday" perk. If someone uses points for DVC resorts for 10 years and then wants to skip a couple years to cruise, I have no qualms with that.

But in today's DVC economy, better to buy fewer points and use them for resort stays only. All of that up front money doesn't do much to defer the future cost of cruises.

 

[CMOORE185]

IMO, the real issue is the intent behind the purchase. Under every scenario I've ever looked at, I think it's foolish to buy DVC points with the intention of using points for regular cruises. The numbers just don't add up.

We have a cruise reservation for February 2012. 3 nights on the Wonder for our family of 4 in a Cat 5. Disney Cruise website is showing a rate of $1878 currently for our itinerary. (I used a rebooking discounts so my rate is actually lower than that.)

According to the point charts, that cruise would cost 282 DVC points. If I had booked it using my BWV points, the 2011 DUES ALONE on the points (at $5.46 per point) would total $1539. Then you add the $95 booking fee for $1634.

Booking with points "saves" (and I use that term very loosely) a total of $244 off of the cash price. Results will vary depending upon purchase price and resort dues, typically owners are either paying a premium to join (BLT and other direct purchases) or have premium dues (Vero, HHI, BCV, BWV, etc)

There's really no way to justify spending $60-120 per DVC point--when they are earmarked for cruises--just to "save" a couple hundred bucks on the fare.

Booking through DCL is no more difficult than DVC. It's just a phone call and a credit card deposit. DCL isn't subject to the cabin inventory limits applied to DVC. And you don't have to pay the entire fare at once--those booking a cruise on a combination of points and cash must pay the cash at the time of booking.

All of that said, I have no problem with anyone who views sailing on points as a "yeah, maybe someday" perk. If someone uses points for DVC resorts for 10 years and then wants to skip a couple years to cruise, I have no qualms with that.

But in today's DVC economy, better to buy fewer points and use them for resort stays only. All of that up front money doesn't do much to defer the future cost of cruises.

I agree with everything you said, though I have use points to cruise twice in my 10+ years of using DVC. My most recent booking is a 3 night cruise in a category 5E verandah room for 166 points for two of us. Although running the numbers it is not a great use of points it sure feels good getting back on the cruise for 166 points and only a $95 cash outlay. I do agree that purchasing points to cruise a majority of the time really does not save enough money to make it worthwhile.