OK DVCers............a question............

[Verandah Man]

I vote yes, we are point conscious, and we enjoy spending every one.

Ditto here!!!

 

[arcruiser]

Very point conscious!

(ya gotta be when you only have 30!)

 

[gjw007]

Like many of the other with smaller contracts, point conscience. With 160 points, enough to stay for my week-long trips in the DVC hotel rooms (studios) but not enough to stay in what I prefer, the 1-bedrooms. A little borrowing works but there will come a time when I have borrowed all the next years points (4 or 5 years down the line).

 

[IsAreWasWereAm]

I'm very point conscious. It was DH that decided to stay in 1BR for just the two of us. He won't be making the ressies anymore!

 

[Verandah Man]

It took me nearly an hour yeaterday trying to decide how to best use our points for this coming year, now that it appears as though I will be retiring by the end of 2005 and moving to Florida. We cancelled our trip to California and decided to use the points that we were going to use for the Paradise Pier Hotel and use them for a six night stay at Fort Wilderness in August. Our Spring Break trip next month will now be just a time to take it easy and check some things out in Florida to help get us ready for the big move.

 

[Beca]

I am VERY points conscious!! DH lets me do "all the planning" with one caveat..he doesn't want to move during vacation. That being said...I DO all the planning. So, in Dec., we arrived on a Fri, and stayed in a studio for 2 nights (I figure...the day we arrive, I am NOT cooking. We usually do a char. bfast the first morning we arrive to "kick-off" our trip, and while we are "fresh and rested"...we are seldom in our room, and not yet needing laundry) So, staying in a studio when we first arrive seems like a really good deal to me!!!

Then, when we change rooms, we take dd to her fav. restaurant (Wendy's!!!), and go shopping at Walmart. Then, we check into our new 1-bdrm, and "get going back in the parks". I TOTALLY didn't mind this last time...dh was not so sure, but bottom line...I do the booking. I'm thinking "if" we get our BCV points, maybe the day we switch would be a good day for dh and dd to do SAB while I go shopping. Maybe then he wouldn't mind the change as much!!! But, when I can save 20-30 points...I hope we will be doing this for a LONG time (at least until I can have more points to keep!!!)



Beca

 

[Deemarch]

But I don't avoid weekends, stayed the highest point week of the year, will cruise on points at a later date, BUT DH and I stay in a studio.

Don't want a kitchen, don't want a separate bedroom, would like a washer/dryer but not for twice the points.

So I guess we all do what we gotta do!! You're not really getting an answer, are you, bongo59?

 

[Doug7856]

My wife is a teacher. When we go in the summer we stay Sunday to Friday. When we go during the school year we have to do weekends. We got two tips this way last year (7 nights total) and still banked 30 points. So we are point conscious but use weekends when we have to. We have 185 points -- enough for now.

 

[Blackunicorn]

Hmmm...guess we're a little bit point conscious. We go over how many points we'll be spending on what several times before we come up with the final plan, but we also use our points at places like DL without batting an eye, even though it's not a good value for our points.

 

[loribell]

I would have to say I have not been point conscious at all. From our very first trip I used three years worth of points and have been borrowing ever since. Several times I even stayed at non DVC resorts on points instead of going to the trouble of renting. Now I wish I had rented for those stays instead and paid cash for the rooms. It sure would have used a lot less points.

Oh well, I am planning an add on. Hopefully we can do it this month to get in before the price increase. Plus when I win the lottery I will buy all I could ever possibly use.

Lori

 

[Johnnie Fedora]

We plan every point carefully, including the renting out of points to make other Disney exchanges affordable. We plan usage around pass activation in order to maximize that. We have moved, but usually to change resorts for fun and not to save weekend points. We are leaning toward more 12-13 day trips rather than the shorter stays. This past year we stayed 37 DVC nights, about three were member cash.

 

[Deesknee]

count us on being point conscious. We have 270, but with a family of 6 that doesn't leave many options if we want to go every year.

 

[MrTerrorChair]

My DW and DS have gone on two cruises and two vacations (BWV) since 2001 on 210 points a year. We've stayed in a studio during the average times of the year and cruised in the summer. We've done a lot of "point management" in order to pull these vacations off. We've actually out of points for 2005 because of our cruise last year.

Everyone is different. Just know what YOUR priorities are. We like to maximize the number of days we spend. If that means we have to go to smaller rooms, that's what we do because it's OUR priority. We also love to use our points to Cruise. It's truly a value as food and entertainment come with the points (not just the room).

So, more than worrying about how point conscious you are, think about how "experience" conscious you are, make your priorities, and then...enjoy!

 

[Alexander]

We just bought 220 points and I'm trying to figure out how to squeeze our vacations out of them. Next year will be tough because our school break is always the third week of April and next year it's Easter.

We only stay in studios because there are three of us and I hardly cook at home, so I'm surely not going to on vacation. I don't mind using the laundry rooms, so that's not an issue for us either.

So I'm trying to decide, pay cash for the weekend and get an extra four or five nights in February, or skip February, use the points for April, and add a Friday to our week in August. Oh my, the decisions. I guess I should have bought more points. Maybe when the trees begin to bloom again, they'll have some dollar bills on them!

PS--Caskbill's planner is the nuts for sorting all of this out! A huge thank you for all of your work!

 

[idratherbeinwdw]

Like many other posters I am concious of my point use (have 250)--but only to a certain degree. I never stay on weekends, always arrive Sunday and check out Friday. I don't enjoy WDW on weekends anyway, (esp the parks) too crowded for me.

However when I go with my 2 kids I will stay in a 2BR so my kids and I can each have our own sleeping space. I snore, so no one wants to sleep with me. One daughter likes to sleep with the TV on, the other doesn't, so they don't sleep well if they sleep together. One BR's are enough space for us during the day, but if I want everyone to get a good night's sleep (and be in a good mood during the day) a 2BR is in order.

If I go alone or with a friend a one BR is fine. I have not stayed in a studio, since one of the main reasons I became a DVC member was for larger accommodations and for all the amenities the 1 and 2 BR's have.

I'd love to only go during the lowest point use times, but I like to go every six months (at the minimum), and to avoid big crowds that usually means splitting my time between low season (Oct or Sept) to a season that uses more points (end of April or anytime except Memorial day in May). It works out perfectly if I go alone or with a friend to a 1 BR std at BWV in the spring Sun-Fri (120 pts), and then go again in the fall with my daughters Sun-Fri to a 2BR std at BWV (interestingly enough also 120 pts). I end up with 10 points left over.
(But if you look at my counter it didn't work out that way this year because I am taking kids to both trips. I had to rent 30 pts, but I don't plan to do that again).

:

 

[rayelias]

EXTREMELY point conscious.

We only have 100 points, and with careful planning, we're able to get 3 vacations, 5-6 days (4-5 nights) a year in a studio.

If not for being "frugal" with points, those 100 points could go in a night or two!

 

[Muushka]

Both my husband and I are point conscious. We splurge by staying in a 1 BR for just the 2 of us, but it's Sun thru Thurs and we also plan our trips based upon AP acrivation/expiration. We do enjoy switching resorts for the weekend. Makes things more interesting.

 

[travelbug]

I'm definitely point conscious, since most of my vacation time usually falls during peak times. Points obviously disappear quickly at peak times, so I keep an eye on every single one of them. I book standard view as much as possible when I go to BWV, and sometimes I've changed to an onsite hotel for the weekend. I'm generally happy with how far my points (375) have stretched so far.

 

[DeeDeeDis]

I'm aware of how we use all our points but only because i want to go as much as possible.

DH, not a clue. I tell him when i've booked a trip and ask if he wants to go. Took him last december he loved it so much wants to go next year and stay near epcot in a 2 bedroom cause he wants to bring his sister this year. When i told him i didn't know if we had enuf points he told me that I could figure it out, cause i was good at that, just let him know what days in Dec we were going and where he was staying

we're in a 2br, standard bw, Dec 9th to 15th

 

[Gail & Joe]

I am very point conscious because we only have 170 points. We also stay in a studio since it is only the two of us right now. This way I can get one week in early June and two weeks in December. I also pay for the Friday and Saturday (with the DVC discount) in the middle of our December trip. As soon as we can afford to add on we will. If only we could win the lottery.