If you were me... What would u do?

You'd have enough points to make your vacations work from year to year - buy the resort you want.

If it were a matter of not being able to buy enough points to make the resort you want work, then buy the points you need to vacation somewhere else. That isn't where you are.
 
We stayed at SSR in October in Congress park. In the second furthest building from the pool. Besides the Tree House Villas and the two buildings in Carousel area it is one of the furthest walks. It did not take more than 5-6 minutes to walk to the pool. It was a very short walk to the bus stop less than 1 minute. The walk is a lot less than going to Be Our Guest from the gate at MK. Plus with all the food we eat, walking is needed. I have never stayed at OKW, so I can’t speak from experience, but I’m staying there in April. I have also stayed in AKV Kidani. Most rooms are a long walk to get to the bus. Good luck with ROFR.
 
Last edited:
Rough one! We went with option 2 and bought SSR and AKV points. When we purchased our plan was to go during off times because we could travel whenever we wanted to. Then I got a teaching job! Turns out our points still work just fine for switching at seven months, and the summer has lots of 7 month availability. We’ve owned since 2012 and have stayed everywhere at WDW except CCV. Our favorite resort is BWV, but so far I don’t regret not owning there as I have been able to switch there at seven months fairly often. We also found we love SSR and often choose our home resort over other resorts. As we spend more and more time at the resort we love the two feature pools, extensive resort activities, and convenience to Disney Springs.
 
we are Disney nuts. We are buying into DVC resale. I have done all my research even visited most of Disney resorts on past trips. Knowing what u know now already having your membership, would you......

Purchase a contract at a resort you like for just enough points to make your vacations work from year to year. Because it's your top pick and have 11 month window there.

Or

Purchase more points (due to the price being cheaper) at a resort that is not your top pick but if you had to stay there you would totally be ok with if you had to stay there. taking into consideration we travel during the summer months rarely ever during the fall.


Ok so option 1 less points at an Epcot resort

Option 2 more points at old key west ( roll the dice on a room at 7 month window at BWV BLTor bCV) with the understanding it may not happen every year.

We made a decision we decided to go with option 1, I put an offer in on A listing at Boardwalk this morning. So it's official we started the process. Last night we discussed the different resorts and my husband is against buying in were we would need a car just to get around the resort. I agree with everyone else too I'm not paying all this money not to stay where we like to be. It defeats the purpose. So fingers crossed! Let's see what happens
BWV is a good choice if one plans to use the standard view. I don't see enough info to make a good recommendation in case your current options falls through. What villa size, time of year and how many points are you looking at?
 

The offer I put in this morning was for 150 Pts at BWV 150 /17, 150/18 150 /19. I would pay closing and dues. I offered $98 the countered that was offered was they "had" an offer for $107 so if I wanted it I needed to offer at least $112. I kind of felt funny about what they were doing to the poor person who offered $107. Rubbed me the wrong way so I let it go. Look I get it all about the game but if I someone offered $107 either take it or say no don't leave them hanging.

Honestly I would go with a contract at BWV for around 150 Pts but I keep toying with other resorts like AKL (stayed there loved it) we could probably swing more points around 175 Pts or OKW around 200 Pts.

I am a teacher my career will it be changing so I can't really take off any time that is not during vacation time so we can only travel in the summer. We prefer longer trips 7-9 days it's just easier with the kids. We would really only travel in the summer month. Short trips are not for us. We did an April vaca never again! Lol
 
I am a teacher my career will it be changing so I can't really take off any time that is not during vacation time so we can only travel in the summer. We prefer longer trips 7-9 days it's just easier with the kids. We would really only travel in the summer month. Short trips are not for us. We did an April vaca never again! Lol
A 150pt contract will get you between 7 and 10 days during July/August in a studio (depending on view), so this assumes you are only interested in studios.

If BWV is where you want to stay, you need to buy there.

Right now at exactly the 7-month mark (July 29-Aug 5):

Standard View - (108 points/7 nights) - 2 of 7 days available, 2 consecutive days
Boardwalk View - (132 points/7 nights) - 3 of 7 days available, 0 consecutive days
Garden/Pool View - (132 points/7 nights) - Available

Without the 11 month booking window, even during the summer, the 7 month entry will likely require a waitlist under present conditions. I can only imagine this will tighten with Star Wars land opening in 2019 and Epcot renovations in the years subsequent to that, Riviera notwithstanding.
 
The offer I put in this morning was for 150 Pts at BWV 150 /17, 150/18 150 /19. I would pay closing and dues. I offered $98 the countered that was offered was they "had" an offer for $107 so if I wanted it I needed to offer at least $112. I kind of felt funny about what they were doing to the poor person who offered $107. Rubbed me the wrong way so I let it go. Look I get it all about the game but if I someone offered $107 either take it or say no don't leave them hanging.

Honestly I would go with a contract at BWV for around 150 Pts but I keep toying with other resorts like AKL (stayed there loved it) we could probably swing more points around 175 Pts or OKW around 200 Pts.

I am a teacher my career will it be changing so I can't really take off any time that is not during vacation time so we can only travel in the summer. We prefer longer trips 7-9 days it's just easier with the kids. We would really only travel in the summer month. Short trips are not for us. We did an April vaca never again! Lol
I'd buy the least you'd be happy with. I wouldn't buy OKW to get more points, I'd buy SSR if that was the goal and I was OK staying there part of the time then try other resorts most of the time. Long term SSR will be cheaper than OKW and will avoid the 2042 transition issue that adds significant risk IMO. If I specifically wanted BWV most of the time though, I would not buy SSR and try to get in there, esp if you're OK with standard view at BWV. The difference in costs for SSR staying at garden view compared to a BWV purchase for standard view isn't that much over the long haul. OTOH, buying BWV and then using the points mostly at the 7 month window will be a lot more expensive long term. For summer, I think you're safe owning SSR (or OKW) and will likely be able to get something at every resort over time including studios & 1 BR. Studios will be more difficult in general unless the demand shifts by a reallocation. Since you have kids, I'm assuming at least 2. I do think you should plan for a 1 BR at some point for 2 (if 3 or more, a 2 BR) so you might do one purchase now in the 150-200 pt range then a 25 point add on retail. It's possible that a combination of points for say BWV & SSR (or similar) is a good long term goal so you could do part now and then decide later if the goal is still a good one. I'd only do that for a full sized contract up front around 150 though.
 
we are Disney nuts. We are buying into DVC resale. I have done all my research even visited most of Disney resorts on past trips. Knowing what u know now already having your membership, would you......


Option 2 more points at old key west ( roll the dice on a room at 7 month window at BWV BLTor bCV) with the understanding it may not happen every year.

I was in the same position as you about a month ago.... I wish I would have waited until my Xmas stay at BWV before I made my choice. I don't think I wouldn't have bought GF, but I would have weighed a few more options with Toy Story and Star Wars opening over the next couple of years. That short walk to Epcot and HS is going to be a huge benefit over having to wait with the crowds for buses that may be stopping at more than one resort. I'll probably just rent points at BWV for a couple of trips at 11 months to make sure I can go when I want.

But back to the original quandary. I could have bought 200+ points at several resorts for my budget, and since I don't mind going to WDW during off-peak times I could have been happy with any time. Then I considered that my mom has always hinted about staying at GF and that as my life circumstances change, I would enjoy just staying at the resort or spending special weekends or trips there that I might not be able to get at 7 months out. So I followed the advice that lots of people posted. Buy where you want to stay.

I think the lure of buying SSR or OKW at $80/pt and then being able to stay at BLT or VGF where others paid $140 to the new pricing of $200+ helps
rationalize the settle for less resort to get more points, with the hopes of getting that "killer" deal on a stay 7 months out. Now I'm a deal/sale/clearance rack kind of guy and I was fighting this thinking, but finally made the choice not to gamble on not getting exactly what I wanted or what gave me the best chances of getting what I wanted. You should definitely consider length of contract, contract points, points available, maintenance fees (now and with some future predictions) and possible resale value/potential if you need to sell in the future.

Best of luck, and hopefully you will be home soon...
 
It's personal preference, of course, but for my family, being a 5 min walk from Epcot is priceless. Plus we generally love the feel of the Crescent Lake resorts. Feel at home there. Besides easy access to 2 parks, the boardwalk is a nice relaxing environment. Between Boardwalk and Yacht & Beach, there are plenty of dining options. (We own at BCV for the pool and being a bit closer to Epcot -- love it!) we also own at BLT for similar reasons...easy walk to MK and easy access to resorts on Monorail loop for other dining experiences.)
 
It goes both ways and you have to decide what you'd be least unhappy with. You can pay more money for a home resort only to find out that you're not in love with it and want to stay elsewhere. Or you can pay less money for a home resort and find that you don't love staying there either and can't really find availability where you want to stay. Or, going back to the drawback of option 1, are you going to feel badly that you used your "expensive" BWV points to book at another resort at the 7 month window, when you could have done so with "cheaper" SSR points?

I've read a lot of "buy where you want to stay" in this forum, which is actually what we did with our contracts. But there's another school of thought, buy where you wouldn't mind staying. In that case I would strongly recommend SSR over OKW due to lower dues and longer contract length.

That being said, we own at BWV, BLT, and VGC. We book at 11 months and don't care whether we could have chanced it at the 7 month mark or not. So a lot of what I said in this post is just playing devil's advocate, trying to get you to think about the possible outcomes. In the end, do what you feel is right. Good luck! :)
 
we are Disney nuts. We are buying into DVC resale. I have done all my research even visited most of Disney resorts on past trips. Knowing what u know now already having your membership, would you......

Purchase a contract at a resort you like for just enough points to make your vacations work from year to year. Because it's your top pick and have 11 month window there.

Or

Purchase more points (due to the price being cheaper) at a resort that is not your top pick but if you had to stay there you would totally be ok with if you had to stay there. taking into consideration we travel during the summer months rarely ever during the fall.


Ok so option 1 less points at an Epcot resort

Option 2 more points at old key west ( roll the dice on a room at 7 month window at BWV BLTor bCV) with the understanding it may not happen every year.

We travel in the summer as well - teachers - an we just did option 2 in Oct. (but at SSR). I chose #2 because we wanted a 1 bedroom and the more points offered the flexibility to get that almost anywhere for our needs. I later learned - on these boards - that the availability of 1 bedrooms is much more loose than for studios, though. When I booked our first trip to AKL, I found that information to be true. I had my pick of 1 bedroom for AKL, BWV, and BCV in July for a week. Therefore, my answer only applies of you, too, are interested in 1 bedrooms and not studios. The studios at that time were mostly gone.
 
Not an easy decision! We’re going with a hybrid approach - bought at CCV direct because we absolutely loved it and want to stay there while Christmas decorations are up, but are also in the process of buying SSR resale so we can have “play” points for non-CCV trips and stay at various resorts over time. Since we rent a car anyway and love Disney Springs, we would still be happy staying at SSR for the trips we don’t book elsewhere.
 
As countless others have said, buy where you want to stay. If you're like me and love each DVC location at WDW for different reasons, buy where you get the most bang for your buck. Buy where you are getting the most years, and price per point. I own OKW Extended. I love it there and often split a stay to change things up but if I stay there for typical 10 day trips, I'm totally happy. If you are restricted to vacation times, and must have a certain location/really don't want to be elsewhere, don't gamble. Buy at that resort at the best deal you can.
 
As countless others have said, buy where you want to stay. If you're like me and love each DVC location at WDW for different reasons, buy where you get the most bang for your buck. Buy where you are getting the most years, and price per point. I own OKW Extended. I love it there and often split a stay to change things up but if I stay there for typical 10 day trips, I'm totally happy. If you are restricted to vacation times, and must have a certain location/really don't want to be elsewhere, don't gamble. Buy at that resort at the best deal you can.
Few new buyers actually know where they want to stay most trips long term but many think they know. I can't tell from the OP if they have enough experience to make an informed decision or just an emotional one. It's literally a $10K decision in this situation, usually significantly more when you consider the dues long term. I'd agree that it is not worth the compromise if one can afford it (to me that's pay cash) and truly has the experience to know where they want to stay long term, but most simply don't have that information at the time of purchase. IMO far better to buy lower like SSR and have to adjust later than the reverse. Or better still if one needs a volume of points, say more than 300, buy in the 150-200 pt range then give it a try and adjust accordingly. SSR will be the best value for WDW, BLT will likely be next so if one isn't happy with SSR and is leaning toward a MK resort esp, BLT is often the best choice for that situation. AKV will be next from an overall value standpoint.
 
I'd buy where you want to stay. I bought at BLT having never even stepping foot in there, but we LOVE the CR so much. I've got 3-4 DVC trips in the books and I can honestly say I made the best decision. We have loved each and every stay there. This year I also added on at PVC and I love that too for different reasons. I would be very happy staying at one of these two places all the time. I would not be happy having to book at SSR or OKW every time and then worrying for 4 months whether I could get what I "really" want. But that's just me.
 
True, we're flexible travelers who paid cash for DVC rooms many times before buying in. By that time, we had stayed or visited monorail, Crescent, and Springs so, we knew what we liked. We love each resort for different reasons and are ok to wait for 7 months then see what's available and plan accordingly. Looking back, we should have bought direct at BLT for $95 per point in'11...still kicking myself! Ah, hindsight...
 
I am more for "buy where you don't mind staying".
DVC has 9 resorts at WDW (10 if you consider CCV and BRV different enough). Are you sure you don't want to try them all? If you stay in all resorts at least once, it would take 9 years to visit them all. And by that time at least two or three more will open (Riviera is due to open in 2019). If you buy BWV it's probably because you want to stay there all the time. If that's for you then it's the best strategy. But to try other resorts over time, SSR is unbeatable. In 12 years time, when you'll have visited all of them, you might find your favorite one. If it's BWV, you can sell SSR which will have 25 years left on the contract and buy BWV which will have 13 left and price will probably be much lower by then. You might even be able to do the switch at no cost.
I've booked a few weeks ago a studio for the summer for a renter and I had a choice of all resorts: BCV, BWV, Poly, BLT, CCV (i didn't look for VGF). except for the night of the 4th of July. I could have booked even BWV standard! If you think you may want to try different resorts and you're not sure you want to spend all your vacations at BWV for the next 25 years, then SSR is a better choice for the summer period. If we speak of Autumn, then it's a completely different story.
 
True, we're flexible travelers who paid cash for DVC rooms many times before buying in. By that time, we had stayed or visited monorail, Crescent, and Springs so, we knew what we liked. We love each resort for different reasons and are ok to wait for 7 months then see what's available and plan accordingly. Looking back, we should have bought direct at BLT for $95 per point in'11...still kicking myself! Ah, hindsight...
We all have moments where we would have been better off making different decisions, both directions. A large portion of my point is that this is a big decision with zero's on the end. IMO it's far better for one to never buy where DVC made perfect sense than to buy when they shouldn't or to make a poor choice on their purchase, and almost no one fairly new to DVC have the sufficient knowledge/experience to make an informed decision. Fortunately, at least currently, if one buys resale and has made a choice that ends up being a less than perfect one, they can adjust for a loss of around 10%. Part of the issue, and part of the reason I think most everyone fairly new to DVC and Disney on property should underbuy if they're not sure based on knowledge/experience (not emotions), is that Disney is such an emotional purchase situation. The chances one is going to spend $45K at say VGF and be willing to sell and rebuy, are extremely low, even if that would be the best choice. So they'll likely keep VGF and try to use it the way they want. Once they're in that situation it may indeed be best to hold on and go forward but the loss over buying say SSR in that situation on say 300 points is approaching $20K and the cost to adjust maybe $4K. There is a big advantage to those looking at a larger points purchase of say over 300 points where they can buy a full sized but smaller contract in the 150 range and give it a try for a couple of years then adjust by simply buying the rest at something that might work better or give them their best options. For those looking to do so resale then add 25 points, as most should buying currently, it might be better to wait on the retail add on until they're worked out their preferences because they can then target their add on to further bolster their best usage.
 
I am more for "buy where you don't mind staying".
DVC has 9 resorts at WDW (10 if you consider CCV and BRV different enough). Are you sure you don't want to try them all? If you stay in all resorts at least once, it would take 9 years to visit them all. And by that time at least two or three more will open (Riviera is due to open in 2019). If you buy BWV it's probably because you want to stay there all the time. If that's for you then it's the best strategy. But to try other resorts over time, SSR is unbeatable. In 12 years time, when you'll have visited all of them, you might find your favorite one. If it's BWV, you can sell SSR which will have 25 years left on the contract and buy BWV which will have 13 left and price will probably be much lower by then. You might even be able to do the switch at no cost.
I've booked a few weeks ago a studio for the summer for a renter and I had a choice of all resorts: BCV, BWV, Poly, BLT, CCV (i didn't look for VGF). except for the night of the 4th of July. I could have booked even BWV standard! If you think you may want to try different resorts and you're not sure you want to spend all your vacations at BWV for the next 25 years, then SSR is a better choice for the summer period. If we speak of Autumn, then it's a completely different story.
The chance of getting shut out completely if one is reasonably flexible (most with DVC aren't even when they say they are) and plan ahead at least 7 months out is very low. IMO one can try ALL options over time except the most in demand ones of AKV value/concierge, VGF standard, BWV standard/3BR if they're fairly flexible. OTOH, if one is set on staying at VGF 80-100% of the time in a standard view villa, they'll have to own there but they also need to know that even owning there isn't a guarantee unless they buy a fixed week that fits their plans.

There are ways to improve one's chances of success. They include learning the system, planning ahead, possibly have modestly more points, being OK with a 1 BR when they only need a studio, using the wait list efficiently and simply being flexible. Maybe one has to stay at SSR next year when they wanted something else but you'll eventually get VGF, BWV, BCV, and the like. AKV, Poly, OKW, and SSR will be much easier to get routinely and I suspect Riviera will fall somewhere in between like the WL resorts.
 
My approach was we wanted to stay at BWV the next 2 years no matter what and had a $10K budget for those 2 trips. We bought 60 points at BWV direct and purchased discounted APs. So far we are in for a little over 12K but we still need food....so I'm guessing we will be out 15K instead of 10K. So, the way I see it, we paid 5K for our membership. If we don't use our points at BWV after this, that's ok. They expire in 25 years, that's ok. They served a specific purpose, we "got in" and we will see where things go from here.

Not starting with a large sum of points and keeping dues low was a priority. If things work out, we will probably add on at a MK resort (likely BLT or CCV) but for now, we aren't heavily invested and can reevaluate after we've used our membership a couple of times.

We are very interested in staying SSR and OKW for more laid back trips, so if things go the way we "imagine" and we buy another home resort, we figure after our 2 initial trips, our rotation will be BLT or CCV / OKW or SSR / BWV. The OKW or SSR trips can be on combined points at 7 months from the other 2 home resorts. I know a lot of people would rather buy the "cheaper" resorts and gamble on getting others at 7 months, I would rather know I can stay at my "harder to get" home resort when I want to AND stay OKW and SSR when I want to even if I'm using "expensive" points for that.
 
Last edited:



















DIS Facebook DIS youtube DIS Instagram DIS Pinterest

Back
Top