Newbie ?? How do you know how many points you need ?

[tinkertastic]

Oh I just hate to ask a silly question but I'm new to all of this and was just wondering if someone could clarify the point system and how you find out how many you need.

 

[Wendy1953]

Look at your Vacation Planner, each hotel is listed with different types of rooms for all of the "seasons" (Value Season, Regular Season & Holiday Season)...it will tell you how many points per day you need for each day of your stay within those "seasons", Multiply the points per day by the number of days and you have how many points you need.

 

[DisneyPhD]

We got 170 when we joined DVC. We thought we could do a studio one year, a one bedroom the next. However since joining we are in a constant state of borrowing and wish we had a little bit more. (I think 220 to 250 would be great.) For us more wouldn't be good because more points means more dues.

However I really wish we would of got the "right" amount when we just joined.

So good question, ask away and review your own perosnal needs more. Good luck.

 

[CoolDisneyCat]

We wanted to be able to go for a week in a 2 bedroom once a year during Jan, so we got 300 points.

Figure out when you want to go, what size unit you need and how long you want to stay each year. Look up the points needed and you will have your answer or at least a starting point.

 

[cobbler]

When we joined we bought 220. This will give us a one bedroom at any of the DVC resorts for 7 full nights without having to move on the Fri/Sat. during the seasons we will travel. It will give us 6 nights almost every season except premier which we would never travel anyway. I don't want to move and I don't care that it costs more points on weekends, its more about convienence.

We also knew we didn't want to do studios so we got enough to do one bedrooms.

Ideally I would eventually like to be able to spend 2 full weeks down there so I will add on another 230 points someday.

 

[pumpkinboy]

We had good advice from our Guide, who recommended that we start fairly small, and simply add-on as we determined we needed more points. She talked us down to 240 on the initial BWV contract; then once we had figured things out a bit more (1 year on), we added on 65 more; then the followiong year great incentives came and we bought 130 SSR and another 60 at our BWV home = 495 points by now. Since we have a wheelchair-bound child, WDW is really the only easy vacation, so we are now going 2-3 times per year, staying in 1-2BRs and buying APs. Our most recent APs got us 4 WDW trips (all DVC) and 26 park days.

I'd say ask your Guide for guidance on this issue, provided you have a good one (ours is wonderful! PM me if you'd like her number). If you don't have a Guide who will give it to you straight, you may want to change Guides. As a fallback, of course, I'd recommend starting with the 150 minimum and adding on from there.

Good luck!

 

[crisi]

Whatever you do, buy a larger contract in peices - that way you can sell off bits as your needs change.

 

[lovinthemouse]

I Think it really boils down to studying the book to find out what you will use. What stage of life are you in at this time. What kind of accomodations will you want to use. How often you will go and stay each time. There are lots of things to consider when buying. Good Luck

 

[spiceycat]

here is the current points charts
http://www.wdwinfo.com/disney-vacation-club/DVCpoints.shtml

you can probably figure out how much you will need from this - remember that SSR is the only one current being sold. If you want one of the others you must go through resale. resale you don't get a choice. You buy what is offered.

 

[tinkertastic]

Thanks for all of the info, It's always great to get different points of view,
We still havn't made a decicion but were getting closer.

 

[Hibernians]

Tinker - Have you talked to a guide yet ? I just joined (about 2 wks ago) and the nice thing was that they gave me my 2005 points right away, even though I am not using them unitl 2006. I'm not sure if you're aware of this; its sort of like getting "free" points, anyways it gives you a nice cushion. This helped me decide on a lower number. I went with 170 instead of 220.
Basically I take my first vacation in Fall 2006 w/340 points in the bank(I intend to use 200);leaving me with a great springboard to 2007 and beyond.
I actually sat down and "planned" vacations for the next 5 years; planning on when my family would go and for how long and at which resort - I'm sure people are laughing at planning this far in advance, but it works for me. I've already marked my Boston-Orlando airfare for next Fall (158 RT direct). I figure in 2010 I will have 5 DVC years under my belt and can then plan out the next 5 years.

Good Luck

 

[BCVOwner2002]

The number of points you purchase is really a personal issue. Will you be going once a year? Will you stay during weekends when points are more? What size unit will you need? What time of year do you usually travel?

When we purchased in 2002 we started with 270 points. This gave us a full week in May at BCV. I know some people move on the weekends to save points but this seems to be more of a hassle for us.

Annmarie

 

[nezy]

Just when you think you have enough..they pull you in w/incentives!

Initially we got we thought we would need to give us 5-7 days/yr. (170)for our 1 trip to WDW. Well, we have since added on 2 small add ons for various reasons. (Kids get older, need more space, in-laws travel with us, wanting 11 month option at certain resorts).
So I would suggest start with what you would need for the time of yr., the unit size(studio, 1br, 2br) and # of days that you plan to stay in your home away from home. I agree w/ "chunks" of points instead of one big point purchase.

 

[JimMIA]

The right number of points depends entirely on your family size, the type of unit you will want, the frequency and length of your stays, where you stay, and what seasons you visit. In other words, there is no cookie-cutter answer -- each of us has to figure it out for ourselves.

Two of the above comments are especially good to keep in mind.

• Starting small and adding on is much better than buying points you don't need. You can add on directly through Disney in increments as small as 25 points (50, if you need financing)
• Crisi's idea about multiple smaller contracts being better than one large one is right on target. If your plans change a few years down the road, smaller contracts are always easier to sell than large contracts.