one more ?

[spacegirlbobbie]

my husband and I are looking for the long term benefits world passport, adventures by Disney and lots of cruises... also looking forward to the Hawaii resort

I want to start doing things outside of wdw and dl (mom was a dvc member since 93)

do you think dvc is worth it for those listed things. I would like to get out and see the world and have little weekend trips to other place beside disney world (even if i love it)

 

[Tara]

my husband and I are looking for the long term benefits world passport, adventures by Disney and lots of cruises... also looking forward to the Hawaii resort

I want to start doing things outside of wdw and dl (mom was a dvc member since 93)

do you think dvc is worth it for those listed things. I would like to get out and see the world and have little weekend trips to other place beside disney world (even if i love it)

Everyone uses their membership differently and each person defines "value" differently. That said, DVC points are best used at DVC properties. IMO it isn't advisable to buy into DVC unless you are going to go to WDW (or DVC properties) at a minimum of every 2-3 years. Cruises, Adventures by Disney and using points for Disney resorts that aren't DVC is point-expensive, and unlike DVC resorts*, the point cost for these vacations goes up every year.

If you want to do non-Disney vacations, my advice would be to only buy enough DVC points to go every other year. That way you aren't sinking so much money into DVC that you feel locked in.

*Points at a DVC resort don't typically go up. If you take the total possible number of points at one resort, it cannot change, although they can reallocate points in a way that changes individual night/week point values. There was a reallocation announced this year, taking effect in 2010, in which all resorts saw weekend night point values drop (mostly) and weekday night point values rise (again, mostly).

 

[Lynne M]

No, DVC is not a good value for ABD and cruises. You'll find the points required for ABD are outrageously high; the points required for a trip range from 304 to 600 PER PERSON. Cruises are also quite high. There's also no cap on the point costs for out-of-DVC options, so they go up every year. You'll almost certainly pay less by just making a cash reservation.

For exchanges into RCI, you'll find that you can buy timeshares for a fraction of the cost of DVC that you can exchange into those same resorts.

Almost any use of your points outside of DVC resorts will require a $95 exchange fee.

Most people buy DVC to use at the DVC resorts, and it can be a very good value for that use. I'd recommend that you buy only the points you need for your stays at DVC resorts, and either pay out of pocket for your other vacations, or find a timeshare that's a good trader on the resale market.

 

[JLitfin]

If you want to travel the world than buying DVC points might not be the right program for you. We own both DVC points in order to travel to WDW and stay on site at the DVC resorts (best use of points), plus we own a Marriott timeshare in order to travel to other vacation areas other than just WDW. We feel we have the best of both worlds, DVC pts for our WDW vacations and the Marriott system for our other vacation areas.

If I were you, I would only purchase enough pts for an every other year WDW vacation and than purchase another timeshare whether a Marriott or another brand on the resale market that's a good trader for your other vacations. I mention a good trader because not all timeshares are good traders and it would be disappointing if you want a certain vacation and can't get the exchange you were hoping for. Continue to research and decide what's best for your family. You might also want to check out Tug, lots of information on timesharing. www.tugbbs.com

Good luck.

 

[backyardponder]

DVC sales people push world passport and cruises in their sales presentations. Like many others on these boards, I don't see value in using DVC points for these, although I may sometime in the future if I have extra points.

On cruises: since we cruise without kids, we aren't attracted to Disney Cruises. There's lots of competition in the cruise industry and lots of great deals out there on higher end cruise lines.

John

 

[ssawka]

I think there are 2 schools of thought on using points at places other than DVC resorts:

1. It is not a good value to use DVC points anywhere other than DVC resorts.
2. We already have the points, so might as well use them.

We are brand new owners, so I'll see which one we favor. We are thinking of going on a cruise in a few years, but I think I might try to rent out our points and pay cash. The different travel sites on the web seem to have better deals than booking directly from Disney.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Another problem with using DVC points for non-DVC vacations. If you have to cancel, you can't use those points for a DVC stay. You have to have a non-DVC stay. So if you have to cancel that Hawaii vacation, you may lose the points totally or will definitely not be able to use them for DVC.

Find a more trade-worthly timeshare than DVC. It's too expensive to trade out constantly.

 

[5forDiz]

There is $95 exchange fee for booking outside of DVC resorts ( exception iirc would be DL resort hotels ) and if you need to change that reservation another $95 is charged. Some members will rent out their points and use that $ to pay for non-DVC trips but then you have to be willing to contend with handling the rental reservation for someone & receiving payment, etc.