How to calculate a week

[KigerKat]

DH and I went to a DVC presentation yesterday, and are seriously considering it. We love Disney, and we are currently on our 4th Disney World vacation in the past 5 years. We went to Disneyland this past December and have 3 more trips to the World coming up this year. While we don't have children yet, we can't wait to share our love of Disney with our future family.

We usually stay at Pop Century, but I am super excited about the deluxe accommodations at the DVC resorts. The only downside is that as DVC owners, we would no longer qualify for free dining.

We are smart enough to know that we should check resales and compare prices before making any final decisions. I am really liking some of the prices and options on the DVC Resale website! DVC ownership looks much better when it's 40-50% cheaper than purchasing direct through Disney!

Finally for my question: When looking at the point charts for a week, what if our vacation overlaps two different seasons? Specifically, we are looking at Wilderness Lodge 8/25-9/04. The Dream Season is 8/16-31 at 120 pts/week and the Adventure Season is 9/01-9/30 at 107 pts/week. I'm not sure how exactly points would be calculated, since we would be staying for a total of 10 nights. Can someone explain this to me?

Thanks!!

 

[chalee94]

Finally for my question: When looking at the point charts for a week, what if our vacation overlaps two different seasons? Specifically, we are looking at Wilderness Lodge 8/25-9/04. The Dream Season is 8/16-31 at 120 pts/week and the Adventure Season is 9/01-9/30 at 107 pts/week. I'm not sure how exactly points would be calculated, since we would be staying for a total of 10 nights. Can someone explain this to me?

Thanks!!

a week = 7 consecutive nights (2 weekend + 5 weeknights) within a season.

it's that simple.

for 10 nights, add up each night within each season.

(you don't get a discount for booking a week and you don't get credit for starting in a cheaper season.)

so 7 nights in dream season = 120 pts + 1 adventure weekend nt (16pts) + 2 adventure weeknights (15 + 15) = 120+16+15+15 = 166 pts for those 10 nts.

 

[KigerKat]

Just as a general observation, do the studios get booked as quickly as the villas? As I am browsing through the threads on this page, it seems like availability can become an issue but maybe for villas more than studios. Since we don't have children, a studio is all we would need. I just want to make sure that we don't have to be one of those families that has to start booking ASAP, even if it's not a peak season.

 

[Missyrose]

You calculate how many points a trip will take by adding up the number of points for each night. The weekly numbers you see on the point charts are just there to show what a week in each season in that villa would cost. For instance I'm taking a trip to BWV that crosses two seasons (January 26-February 2): So my point breakdown looks like this:

Adventure Season
Jan. 26 -- 16
Jan. 27 -- 15
Jan. 28 -- 15
Jan. 29 -- 15
Jan. 30 -- 15
Jan. 31 -- 15

Choice Season
Feb. 1 -- 17

Total 111 points

Also, here's my favorite DVC point calculator, you can compare multiple resorts for one set of dates.

Edited to add: We're in the same boat as you, we're two adults who love Disney. We knew we'd like to bring our future kids to our favorite place, so we bought into DVC.

 

[chalee94]

Just as a general observation, do the studios get booked as quickly as the villas?

studios probably book up first...along with dedicated 2BRs. 1BRs typically book up last as they have (more or less) the same max occupancy as a studio but cost more.

I just want to make sure that we don't have to be one of those families that has to start booking ASAP, even if it's not a peak season.

timeshares in general work better if you can plan in advance. if you can book 10-11 months in advance, DVC will work great most of the time...if you wait till 3-4 months out, you will probably wind up frustrated more often than not.

...even if it's not a peak season.

what is "peak season?"

early dec isn't too bad for the parks in general, but DVCers tend to book it early as a disproportionate number want to go during that period due to low pts and great decorations. so that can vary...

there are enough pts per resort to allow every DVC owner to stay during the year. but if villas go unbooked, that may no longer be true. if you wait too long and wind up losing pts for no value, that can be a risk you take...

 

[Missyrose]

Just as a general observation, do the studios get booked as quickly as the villas? As I am browsing through the threads on this page, it seems like availability can become an issue but maybe for villas more than studios. Since we don't have children, a studio is all we would need. I just want to make sure that we don't have to be one of those families that has to start booking ASAP, even if it's not a peak season.

Like Charles said, there are a few things you need to keep in mind when deciding if DVC is right for you.

First, slow times at the parks don't often translate to DVC and vice versa. While the parks are at their busiest during the summer months, DVC villas tend to fill up and remain full from the end of September through the holiday season. So it takes some getting used to changing what you think of as "slow periods."

Second, DVC works best when you can plan far in advance. The ideal planning for DVC members is to book your trips at your home resort 11 months out (when the home resort window opens) and if you want to switch to another resort, you do so at seven months before the trip.

Booking closer than that will require flexibility about dates and which resort at which you can stay. The resorts with direct access to the parks (BLT, VWL, BWV and BCV) usually fill up quickest, with AKV, OKW and SSR having more availability in the 3-4 months before trips.

The best advice any of us can give you is to be honest with yourselves about your vacation habits and whether you can book far enough in advance to enjoy the benefits of DVC. And if you choose to buy, buy a home resort that you'll always enjoying staying at if other resorts aren't open for your trips.