Need Advice- Bidding on DVC Auctions on ebay- Good idea or not?

[LaLa]

Okay, hope I am posting this on the right board, but I just need a little insight from my fellow DISers.

We are not DVC owners but are currently looking into planning our next trip to the World. Yay!

We're checking out our accomodations options now. DH was on ebay the other night and came across a ton of people auctioning off various time slots at DVC hotels. Just wondering what the low down on this was. I know better than to buy our actual Disneyworld tickets from ebay because they might not work at the gates and I am not going to risk that.

Anyway, the auction seems like a great deal if we can get a time slot that would work at a decent price but I'm just kinda hesitant.

We know absolutely zilch about this kind of thing and we're just looking for some input.

Is this something common among DVC members? If so, what should we look out for? Do we have to be DVC members to be able to stay there, even if we won the auction? Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!!!!

 

[mikesmom]

It's not really "common" if you count all the members that never rent out their points. It's not that out of the ordinary, though. I just rented out some points because DH wanted to cancel a trip in order to go to a conference and there was a conflict.

I don't know what constitutes a "good deal" for you. If you are trying to beat the cost of an offsite Holiday Inn or the cost of the Values, it probably won't be a good deal. If you want Deluxe rooms onsite at considerably lower than Disney would charge you, I would suspect you will get that. It's really a good deal if the member renting out their points already has a reservation confirmed for a specific time period that is difficult to get (like Christmas week). If so, you will not only get better than rack rate, you will be getting a room that would otherwise not be available.

 

[boatboatboat]

I have scanned the e-bay DVC offers. The ones i have looked at seem to be a wonderful value. Most save the person over 20% on a deluxe room.

 

[CarolMN]

You might also consider renting points from a DVC member who posts points for rent here on the DIS via the Rent/Trade Board.

Even if you don't use the Rent/Trade Board to rent a DVC resort vacation, it's a good idea to visit that Forum anyway and read all of the "Sticky" threads at the top. It will give you some idea of what's involved in the process as well as some of the risks.

You do not have to be a DVC member to stay at a DVC resort.

Best wishes -

 

[5wdwfans]

I did this through e-bay last fall and saved about half on the boardwalk villas. My seller was very helpful and was square trade verified. If the seller is square trade verified it will say so on the auction. I had to pay the whole price up front but every thing worked out and had a nice stay. My seller did have all postive feedback on other disney dvc stays.

 

[rogerram]

you mgiht find better deals on the rent/trade board. Most ebay deals usually seem to run much more money.

 

[jmhazlett]

I agree - You will find a much better on the rent/trade board than on ebay.

 

[boatboatboat]

you mgiht find better deals on the rent/trade board. Most ebay deals usually seem to run much more money.

Good advice.

The price per point on e-bay seems to be around 17 dollars per point.

You could pay $12.75 a point here and STILL be saving 25% from the e-bay price.

Keep in mind that at 17 per point at e-bay you are still saving money vs paying cash for a stay, so a price of $12.75 (25% discount from ebay) is a very good deal.

Good luck........

 

[bdb7607]

Good advice.

The price per point on e-bay seems to be around 17 dollars per point.

You could pay $12.75 a point here and STILL be saving 25% from the e-bay price.

Keep in mind that at 17 per point at e-bay you are still saving money vs paying cash for a stay, so a price of $12.75 (25% discount from ebay) is a very good deal.

Good luck........

baby steps, baby steps, baby steps....

 

[LaLa]

Thanks everybody for your informative replies. I did check out the Rent/Trade Board and thanks for the link CarolMN. Seems like there's lots of info over there and I will have to do plenty of research it seems.

Let me just say that we have gone the last three years in a row and payed for a rack rate MYW week long package at a moderate each time. We are currently considering going again and are looking into different options. DH ordered the DVC DVD the other day from Disney and we are considering possibly buying into DVC. Not sold yet but we are not dummies and realize that for what we have paid over the last three years, we could almost have had it paid off. But that's another thread altogether.

Anyway, boatboatboat (sorry but I gotta ask.....why boatboatboat? )mentioned points. I know everything is based on points, but how do I determine how many points I will need over a week? I'm sure there are many variables to this question. But if someone could post a link that would outline what determines a point, I would greatly appreciate it.

Thanks again everybody. Keep 'em comin'!

 

[dvc_john]

how do I determine how many points I will need over a week?

The number of points needed per night depend on resort, type of unit (studio, 1br, 2br, etc), date, and weekend vs weekday.

Click on the 'DVC Point Charts' at the top of this page. From there, you can figure out how many points you need based on the points charts. Or click on the 'point calculator', enter your resort, dates, and unit size, and it will tell you how many points you need.

 

[firecracker]

I will be a dissenter to most of the other posters. Depending on where you stay and how willing you are to wait for a good deal, I think eBay is the way to go. We are staying in a studio at OKW in 2 weeks for $94 per night--$472 for 5 nights!

According to the point chart, our stay "costs" 11 points per night for a total of 55 points. If I'm fortunate enough to find someone on the rent/trade board with points at $10 each, that's $550. I'm a cheapskate, so every penny counts for me!

JMHO