Just Back from Member Homecoming!

[Johnnie Fedora]

Originally posted by WDWLVR
Well said - I couldn't agree more!

 

[MarkRG]

Mr Fedora I will quote you exactly.

Originally posted by Johnnie Fedora
Most DVCers have visited WDW numerous times and have a familiarity with WDW that gives us the ability to comment on topics like these w/o actually being there.

Being one of those DVCers who have been going to WDW for a very long time, and many more times than I suspect you have, I will point blank tell you that you are qualified to comment on exactly zero unless you have been to these events.

Go ahead, rolleyes at me too. I for one and am frankly sick of your snide comments because you have a beef with DVC and take every opportunity to bash it over what is an unrelated issue, and try to mask that bashing in some 'cause' that you then claim is to help.

I am also completely insulted at your insinuation in your sig line:

Moo...If you oppose the cash cow treatment

 

[goofy4wdw59]

Originally posted by Muushka
I so agree with jarestel's opinion. Please, give me the whole story, not just the good. When all you hear is the good, expectations go way out of whack. I prefer to make an informed decision based on all information available.

I agree Muushka and others--totally agree with jarestel's post. That was what I was feeling when I posted.

IMHO, some folks seem to think they are the only ones that can speak for DVC. (Ya know...get over yourself...take a chill pill). Everyone is qualified to have an opinion, like it or not. After many, many trips to WDW, I'm so very glad to be a DVC member.
I can say personally, when you know Johnnie Fedora, you gotta love him ...and I know he loves his DVC.

By the way, the only "beef" Johnnie has with DVC is the cash cow...MOOOOOOOOOO!!!

 

[MarkRG]

Exactly where did I say either of those things? Go put words in someone else's mouth. And I am entitled to my opinion too. And I do my best to avoid putting personal biases in them. And no, his cause and I suspect yours all revolves around the magical number of 5 which is a forbbiden subject here anyhow. But next time think a bit that there might be some people who can't even make it 3, much less 5. Something I don't regret, but I do get tired of the sob stories from the people who can.

And frankly, I fall back to my first statement, Disney is first and formost a buisness. Not freebieland. We got our 'deal'.

Our deal is a stay in a resort that is even superior to a deluxe resort, for a price that will remain fixed for the life of the contract.That is frankly the only 'deal' I expect. Any others will be pleasant surprises.

 

[Johnnie Fedora]

I wish I'd known I could have received such a thorough diagnosis of my condition via webboard, I would have skipped all those years of therapy.
(Note for the humorly -challenged: this is a joke)

Please put me on your ignore list. Otherwise, as Bart would say: Don't have a cow....man.

 

[Muushka]

Originally posted by MarkRG
Snip.....And no, his cause and I suspect yours all revolves around the magical number of 5 which is a forbbiden subject here anyhow. But next time think a bit that there might be some people who can't even make it 3, much less 5. Something I don't regret, but I do get tired of the sob stories from the people who can.

OK, I give up. What is the 5 and what is the 3? And why is it a forbidden subject? Sheesh, and I thought I had a handle on all the DVC lingo!

 

[MarkRG]

I would gladly use ignore if it elimiated all evidence ignored person posted.

The numbers are numbers of family members in this case. 5 is the number of people you cannot put in a single DVC room of 1br or smaller. The exception being the 5th can be under 3.

 

[SimbaCub]

Some good friends of mine attended MH and had a blast. The only "negative" comment was the fact that EPCOT had only 2 rides open and they don't like either of them. . . However, they said the MK night was AWESOME. They were 1 of the lucky 7 families to win the 7 night vacation!! I cannot wait to hear about their trip when they go.

They felt bad for the CMs and DVCers on Thursday due to the weather but as they said, nobody can control the weather.

From what others here have had to say, I'm sure it was a great time but for me I couldn't justify the cost at this point. I hope DVC does more of these but with a lower price so more of us can enjoy special events.

SimbaCub

 

[wdwstar]

we just got back from MH and we had a great time, we met alot of discers (HEY) and dvc members(HEY) and we enjoyed each dvc event with exceptions to the heat and a few corky things dvc did, but all and all it was great to be home .

 

[goofy4wdw59]

This is getting too wacky for me. There's obviously some issues here and I'll just leave it at that...
(so much left unsaid)...

 

[DrTomorrow]

Went to MH. Stayed at home resort SSR.

Met a lot of great people at the DIS DVC MH meet (whoa, acronym overload!).

SSR is wonderful. It met and exceeded our expectations.

MH had it's plusses and minuses, but we're glad we went - there can only be one Founders Day at our home resort.

And while everyone is entitled to an opinion of an event, I tend to value the opinion of someone who actually attended. Think about it: if you want an opinion of an outdoor concert, wouldn't you prefer one from someone who was there, as opposed to someone on their tippy-toes trying to peer over the fence?

 

[Regina]

Reg,
Please check out my previous post if you need to know why I feel I can comment on this topic w/o having attended.

Originally posted by Johnnie Fedora
Shhhhhh. If Disney reads these boards, this would be the one comment they take to heart. Look for the next three-day member event to cost $897.

There's the previous post. I don't get where this is the basis for the comment that appears above, but apparently you do.

Here's the difference, you never attend a single event, yet you feel the need to comment ad nauseum. No one is saying that negative comments are taboo, but they certainly have more merit when they come from those who actually go to the DVC events.

We've all seen some not so nice comments directed at some of the DVC resorts. You can't help but go "huh??" when you find out that the person making the nasty remarks never stayed there. At that point, you recognize that they simply have an axe to grind.

I still take the stand that those who actually go to the events are the ones who are qualified to assess both the good and bad.

 

[Johnnie Fedora]

Originally posted by dvcreg
[/i] There's the previous post. I don't get where this is the basis for the comment that appears above, but apparently you do.

Sorry for the confusion, I wanted avoid quoting myself. I'm not refering to that post (which was meant to be funny), but the one on the top of page 5.

Many opinions get expressed about DVC topics for which many members have not experienced. "The slide at OKW thread" is one that comes to mind. Lots of opinion there, w/o a single splash having been made.

Hope there are many more events, I may meet you at one. However, given the nature of some posts and nasty PMs I've received, I may not wear my "Johnnie hat". That way it would be unlikely anyone would be able to pick me out from the crowd...I would not be carrying my axe grinder or "Down with Disney" picket sign. I too will be carrying my AP, wearing my Disney shirts, pins and Mickey ears, and I might even be giggling at Miss Dee Vee Cee....Johnnie

 

[dcfromva]

MH had it's plusses and minuses, but we're glad we went - there can only be one Founders Day at our home resort.

DrTomorrow,

That sums up my opinion of the event, too.

While it may not have been perfect, I do hope they have more events in the future. (And I can't say I wouldn't mind a lower price ). It would have been great if they could have also had an a la carte pricing in addtion to the entire package. I know some folks couldn't stay for the entire event. But, overall I am glad I went to this event.


-DC

 

[crusader]

Just wanted to say that the MH was excellent! My compliments to the many great people who worked to make this event so great.

I'm not sure about the cost concerns I'm reading here.

For $299.00 we were given a two-day park hopper with a plus feature for Disney Quest or Pleasure Island; One of the best viewing areas for Illuminations I've ever seen complete with desserts, coffee and juice and after hours access to Mission Space and Test Track; an unforgettable evening at the Magic Kingdom complete with a parade; food; and 27 open attractions; and a great food fest at DTD with live entertainment and a tour of the new resort.

Add to that the many gifts delivered to our rooms everyday and the truly outstanding level of service........ what a fantastic deal!

Member Homecoming was a pure class event and I hope they consider it again.

 

[JudithM]

Originally posted by MarkRG
And frankly, I fall back to my first statement, Disney is first and formost a buisness. Not freebieland. We got our 'deal'.

Our deal is a stay in a resort that is even superior to a deluxe resort, for a price that will remain fixed for the life of the contract.That is frankly the only 'deal' I expect. Any others will be pleasant surprises.

Where are you at the annual condominium meetings each year? A member did get up at an OKW meeting several years ago & expressed basically this same thought. Disney promised us a room (studio - GV), not lots of perks, cruises, homecomings, discounts, etc. The latter is for our enjoyment. I am glad there are DVC CMs working to get us these extras, but they were never guaranteed to us..

 

[JudithM]

My husband & I did attend Member Homecoming last week & had a very good time. Due to a family obligation the previous weekend, we were not able to get to OKW until Tuesday.

We bought the MH tickets to celebrate our anniversary. Mickey & Minnie left us a singing message on our phone. Plus Cinderella & Prince Charming sent us an autographed photo & balloons. Thank you to the MS CM & the front desk CMs who heard me say it was our anniversary!

Yes, there were a lot of guests in the area to watch Illuminations, & yes, it took awhile to figure out where the drinks & desserts were, & yes, the catering CM told me they had no more napkins, but did that spoil our evening at EPCOT? Heck, no! We enjoyed the finger food desserts - I have always liked rice krispie treats & husband would eat just about anything with chocolate! I stood by a catering CM supervisor until more lemonade was brought out. I was also able to get cold water & ice at the coffee table. And we love the view of Illuminations from that location. We left during the stage show because it got too warm for us. Dee Vee Cee was fun for some good laughs!

We enjoyed walking right onto Mission Space; getting photos with some characters; having more desserts & cold drinks, etc. We were in line for Test Track when it stopped for several minutes after 11 p.m., but we talked to other DVC members in line. We talked to other DVC CMs before leaving about midnight.

Wednesday morning we took our preview tour of Saratoga Springs. I was in an ECV & the tour guide in the group apparently didn't realize I was with him. No problem ... we had a map, a camera & just took our time looking around & getting some photos.

We met some more DVC members at SSR who were part of MH including my sister's best friend's cousin. We just started talking & one thing led to another & oh my gosh another example of what a Small World it really is! We met a single DVC member (on the DIS) who attended MH & spent time that afternoon with him looking around the resort, having lunch, etc.

Wednesday evening was lots of fun, too. We were in line at Peco's Bills for dinner after Wishes & got to talking to the couple behind us (also on the DIS). We shared a table for dinner & then hung out together for the rest of the evening. By the time we got to dance on Main Street there was a group of us who had all been strangers at the beginning of the day! Who knew we would have so much fun?! Another night where we didn't get to bed before 2 a.m.!

Thursday morning we slept in. There was no way we could get to the bus stop by 9:15 plus a CM the night before told me the Mears busses probably could not accomodate the ECV. We took the first boat from OKW to SSR Thursday morning.

We looked around again, met up with some folks from the night before & then headed to DD for lunch. By the time we arrived about noon there were not many lines for the food. These samplings from all over DD were wonderful! Some day we are going to Bongo's to eat! I cannot imagine having to sit in the black chairs in the heat for the Thursday morning activities. We were sorry we missed some of it, but we really needed some sleep!

Would we go to another DVC event? Yes, in a heartbeat!

Hello to all the wonderful new friends we met last week!

 

[badelves]

Originally posted by disneychick05 It is not like me to make a decision to spend $299 and not know exactly what I am getting for the money. However, I am a sucker for Disney so DH and went for it.

Same thing for us! We are new owners- bought into SSR back in September, and added on when we heard that the points would be going up in price. We were so excited to be a part of DVC, and even more excited to attend the 'Grand Opening' of our home resort. We had just purchased APs for 2 adults and 1 munchkin, so the price of the MH tickets was an issue for us. We decided as this was a once in a lifetime opportunity that we would just 'go for it', and we all started collecting that loose change in our pockets! Did we have fun? Yes, especially MK night. Were we disappointed? Yes, because on the other days there weren't as many things for DD (4) to do. I know that many will say that it really wasn't 'kid friendly', but I'm wondering why they sold tickets for the younger set then? I hate to start my 2nd post on this board with everyone flaming me, but I guess that I thought that DVC was all about families. If I'm wrong, I totally stand corrected, but that was one of the big reasons why we bought into SSR in the first place. It is a place where we can all be together as a family, and at this point in our life, we aren't ready to vacation without DD yet. If I had thought that I would have to keep her entertained on the 1st and 3rd day, I probably wouldn't have collected that loose change for those tickets. (I would have saved it for golf for DH and Mickey Ears for DD- LOL!) I will have to say that all of the CMs were wonderful- so much interaction with DD that it made us smile. (But we usually get that without paying extra!) I'm not disappointed in DVC itself, I think that I will just wait until the itinerary for the next event is spelled out in black and white so that I know that everyone in our family will really have a ball.

 

[WDWLVR]

badelves - first welcome to the DIS. Second Welcome Home as a DVC Member.

I'll be the first to admit that Member Homecoming was not the most kid friendly event. DH and I don't have kids so it wasn't an issue for us. Other members with children were kind of split. Some brought their kids with and some left their children with others for the events.

The Member Cruise which we also went on was a lot more kid friendly but for some reason many parents choose to cruise without their kids. Maybe that's why this event wasn't as child focused either.

DVC is for everyone - families, singles, empty nesters. I hope over time they will develope more and more events and that some of those will have more of a children's focus.

My suggestion is that you write a letter to Jim Lewis at DVC and tell him what you liked about the event and what you didn't. If you have any suggestions of other more family/kid friendly events I'm sure his office would love to hear them.

 

[Muushka]

Originally posted by badelves

Snip.... I think that I will just wait until the itinerary for the next event is spelled out in black and white so that I know that everyone in our family will really have a ball.

Yes, that is exactly what I complain about. DVC's promises of a great time, but no facts. Sorry, I don't hand out $598 for 2 people unless I know exactly what I am getting.

I will be quiet now. I promise.