I think we're going to buy into DVC

[Kurby]

Should have looked sooner - didn't know this section was here

On with my post

Well we got all our questions answered last night - mostly questions about how it works being Canadian.

I think we're going to buy AKL. 160 points for now and see over the next few years if we need more or can live with 160

This is a big step but we go down every other year and sometimes every single year

i think what helped us make up our minds was when we did the math and even if we renewed an ap every year and didn't use it next year it is still cheaper then getting a new one every 2 years or buying a 10 day park pass then a 2 day park pass since we have always gone for 10 - 12 days and never less. We drive down so we make it worth our while and stay as long as we can.

Right now we have 1 child who is only 17 months old so staying in a Studio for the next 8-10 years works for us and should we need a 1 or 2 bedroom later who knows we may have bought 50 - 100 more points by then.

i love that it's not your typical time share because i like the idea of one year going to VT instead or Hilton Head for a week on our way down to visit Patrick's aunt and uncle and nip in for 2-3 days at "Home"

not that it makes any difference but I was a bit surprised to find out there will be a $350 us fee on closing which adds over $400 CDN but at least we know it before we sign.

What i really like is that we can bank our points from this year, use them next year, bank next years points and use them with 2009 and take my parents on a cruise for their 50th anniversary.

i guess we just have to wait for our DVC contact to come back later this week to get the process started.

oh how exciting

 

[alldiz]

Congrats...Welcome Home
Kerri

 

[Maistre Gracey]

i think what helped us make up our minds was when we did the math and even if we renewed an ap every year and didn't use it next year it is still cheaper then getting a new one every 2 years or buying a 10 day park pass then a 2 day park pass since we have always gone for 10 - 12 days and never less.

I think there may be a flaw in your thinking here. Can you explain this a bit further?

Than again, it could be a flaw in MY thinking!..

What i really like is that we can bank our points from this year, use them next year, bank next years points and use them with 2009 and take my parents on a cruise for their 50th anniversary.

Be prepared to purchase more points!!

MG

 

[MommaluvsDis]

Don't forget that you can only bank points for 1 year at a time.

 

[Kurby]

ok - my thinking is that if we went this year we would only be useing about 149 points so we would bank 11 for next year, when next year comes and we use 149 we are using the 11 from this year and 128 from next year and bank 32 points for 2009 then in 2009 we could have 160 +32 for 192 then borrow 2010's 160 for 362 points for the cruise and maybe buy more depending on how long we want to go for. is that right? can i do that?

second with the ap - someone said the ap was $125 off the regular pass then only $90 to renew - is that right too?

 

[tobidisney]

We own DVC, love it....if there is anything you think I can help with let me know.

PS. Banking points??/ Heck we always seem to have to borrow!! lol

We just got back from HHI and LOVED it

 

[Kurby]

is there anything you wish you had known before you bought.

like last night i was really reading some paper i got and found out there is a $350 closing fee (gotta love fine print) but no one every talks about that

is there anything you say - humm wish i had know that before (not that you wouldn't still buy in just would have been nice to know before)

it's a bit harder since we're canadian and can't go as often as we'd like (maybe that's a good thing or we'd need 1000 points easy LOL)

we haven't even been to any of the "tours" since we never seem to have enough time when we are there.

i know i wish we had bought in even 3 years ago when we got married but hey at least now we're about to and can get 50 full years instead of buying into boardwalk and only geting 35 years.

 

[LisaS]

someone said the ap was $125 off the regular pass then only $90 to renew - is that right too?

The AP discounts for ages 10+ are: $100 off a regular AP, $125 off a Premium AP (theme parks + water parks), $90 off the renewal of a regular AP, $109 off a PAP renewal. According to this chart: http://www.allearsnet.com/pl/apass.htm, a new pass with the DVC discount will cost approx $356 (incl. tax) and a renewal will cost approx $324 (incl tax).

When you purchase a new pass, the one-year period starts the day you activate it but a renewal picks up where the old one left off. So depending on your travel dates, it is often a better deal to purchase a new pass rather than renew the old one.

For example, let's say your current pass expires on June 30, 2007. Your next trip is scheduled for early Dec. If you renew your AP, it will expire June 30, 2008. If you purchase a new AP and activate it on, say, Dec 9, 2007 it will be valid through Dec 9, 2008. So in this case, renewing an AP saves a little money but you lose 5 months of use over purchasing a new one.

Also, the AP discounts are a great perk but have only been in effect a couple of years and could be discontinued in the future so you shouldn't base your purchase decision on them.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

When you purchase a new pass, the one-year period starts the day you activate it but a renewal picks up where the old one left off. So depending on your travel dates, it is often a better deal to purchase a new pass rather than renew the old one.

This is the point I was driving at.

MG

 

[Kurby]

LOL we're not investing 16000 to get a discount on the ap LOL

it's just a perk - a nice perk but not the reason we're buying DVC

i didn't realize the renewal just carries over - thought it had to be started like the original pass - my thought was too good to be true.

 

[CarolMN]

..(snip)...i didn't realize the renewal just carries over - thought it had to be started like the original pass - my thought was too good to be true.

Believe it or not, it used to work that way - the renewal didn't start until you exchanged a voucher for the pass. WIsh it were still that way, LOL.

 

[LisaS]

LOL we're not investing 16000 to get a discount on the ap LOL

That's not what I meant. I was referring to the comment in your original post about "doing the math":

i think what helped us make up our minds was when we did the math and even if we renewed an ap every year and didn't use it next year it is still cheaper then getting a new one every 2 years or buying a 10 day park pass then a 2 day park pass since we have always gone for 10 - 12 days and never less. We drive down so we make it worth our while and stay as long as we can.

It sounded like the AP discounts helped you make up your mind that DVC made sense for you. Since you are new here, I just wanted to be sure you were aware that these discounts are a relatively new perk and are not guaranteed to continue in the future.

 

[chalee94]

...then borrow 2010's 160 for 362 points for the cruise and maybe buy more depending on how long we want to go for. is that right? can i do that?

one small risk here. the points needed for cruises are not as consistent from year to year as points needed to stay at the DVC resorts.

hopefully it won't change THAT significantly in 2 years but you should be aware that you might need more points than the 2007 cruise cost.

 

[Kurby]

That's not what I meant. I was referring to the comment in your original post about "doing the math": It sounded like the AP discounts helped you make up your mind that DVC made sense for you. Since you are new here, I just wanted to be sure you were aware that these discounts are a relatively new perk and are not guaranteed to continue in the future.

I did think that it was part of the DVC and I also thought that the rendeal didn't happen until you went down and did the initial first day on it but the math was done on the hotel rooms only since we always buy the dining plan now and tickets for the length of stay - having an annual pass even at full cost will still be less then trying to get 14 days in passes.

 

[DutchsMommy]

FYI on the APs - not sure if you collect airmiles? If so, you can purchase MYW passes using airmiles (approx 1600 for a childs 5 day MYW base) and then upgrade at WDW to an AP with your DVC discount (have to show DVC card and ID). When we purchased SSR I had the cost (approx $16 000 cdn) put on our airmiles mastercard, which earned me about 1300 airmiles which is almost enough to get the MYW pass - so basically I got a free pass which I will use to upgrade to an AP. Another thing you might consider is the dollar - it is fairly strong right now, but if we go into the toilet again the annual dues are going to 'cost' alot more depending on the exchange rate. You could hedge that by having a USD$ bank account which you credit when the xchange rate is good. You then use those funds for your annual dues.

 

[mikeandkarla]

Which airmiles card are you speaking of? I have two - Delta Skymiles American Express & US Airways Visa. Can I exchange airmiles for Disney park tickets or am I misundertanding you? Thanks for your response.

 

[sillyguys]

I'd like to know the answer to the airmiles question as well. Thanks.