POLL: Will you buy Poly DVC?

[sleepydog25]

Not directed at any one person, but I love the general sentiment of I would never buy there but I'm going to book there as soon as booking opens up, which seems pretty common here I hadn't thought of this angle; that's an astute observation. My wife will attempt to pick up a one-night reservation when the non-DVC owners' booking window opens as she wants to check it out. However, we've no interest in purchasing there given we prefer 1BRs and storage space.

Great video. First time I really got a feel for the room. I was very taken back by the amount of space taken up by the odd 1.5 bathrooms complete with walk-in shower with bench. Odd duck for a Studio. The rest of the room felt cramped despite obviously undersized furniture -- literally an inch between the wall/side table/bed/side table/sofa/wall. Was wavering on buying since I would only stay a couple nights a year -- decision really hinged on 7 mos. availability, but now I'm both convinced I wouldn't want to stay there based on the size of the living space for a family of 4 (given the 1.5 baths take up more than half the depth of the unit). Out of curiosity, have you stayed in a VGF studio yet? It's a similar setup in that it has a split bath, lacks much storage, and feels a bit crowded. We stayed there a few nights this past summer and loved the room and view (lagoon), but felt cramped the entire time.

That said, regarding our agreed sentiment of "to each his own", I'm honestly not sure who they are going after with these Studios now. Despite being the "largest studio" in DVC they squandered most of that space with an odd duck 1.5 bath (which most 1bdrms don't even have > 1 bath). At first I thought they are catering to Poly die hards who refuse to stay anywhere else Me, either! I do think they figure the die hard Polyers, Polyites, Polylovers will buy there, and that thinking may yet prove to be successful. However, similar to your thoughts, I don't feel as though this was an adequate conversion for our particular tastes, especially given the point totals needed and the buy-in price point. We will definitely take our chances in the future at attempting the occasional overnight stay there within the 7-month booking window.

Like what you said. . .

 

[gdrj]

However, beyond that, I have some basic issues with PVB.

First off, the studios are all in buildings that are 30-44 years old. I know they've most likely been completely gutted and the foundational structures are probably fine, but I just have an issue paying so much for a gutted hotel that old when compared to VGF. Is there not a greater probability of issues over the next 50 years when you start with structures that are already so old? Perhaps not.

As far as gutted hotel, I will say when i was at Poly, rooms were totally gutted with floors down to dirt with new concrete poured.

 

[gdrj]

This rehab is the end of an iconic era for me!!!

After 43 yrs. of visiting WDW (every year) and always staying @ the Poly (now Hawaii longhouse)...even after I bought DVC, I'd spend a few days just for the memories...
It was wonderful waking up early in the AM...pull back the drape...open the slider and seeing the castle and hearing music coming from the MK as room service delivered my coffee.

...the "DESTRUCTION" of the instantly magnificent tropical feel of the Ceremonial House Lobby...or should I say "Honey I shrunk the waterfall feature"... (replaced by SEATING/CHAIRS??? WHAT??)....
.... those "Bungalo's" that detract from the Hawaii (consierge) Longhouse views @ $550+/nightly
....the new non-Poly/island feel room decor.....

Buy Poly??? H_ _ _ NO !!
At least the GF was done right...and MAGNIFICENTLY!! Stayed there in Oct and it was GORGEOUS and still had the Victorian feel!!!!
Kudo's to those imagineers...who were certainly NOT the same ones that did the Poor Poly!!

I'm not a fan of the new water feature. BUT I truly did not care for the old dark lobby and the massive water feature.

I might be in the minority but I truly like the makeover. Brighter colors. Lots of seating which I think was very much needed, being able to see from front to back of lobby and much grater sunlight in lobby, and I was not a fan of the smell of the water. For me the Poly is much improved but I fully understand those with emotional attachments to the old lobby.

 

[rfc0001]

I hadn't thought of this angle; that's an astute observation. My wife will attempt to pick up a one-night reservation when the non-DVC owners' booking window opens as she wants to check it out. However, we've no interest in purchasing there given we prefer 1BRs and storage space.

You've proven my point -- people who say "I would never stay in a bungalow", "there are no 1bdrms", "the points are too high", "the price is to high", etc. then turn around and says "oh, but I want to book there as soon as it opens up". It's like badmouthing McDonald's or Walmart despite people frequenting both in droves. The reality is people will want to stay there, and if the studios sell out at 7-11 mos., they'll want to stay there even more, and be forced to buy Poly points to do so -- in which case you are best off buying now when the points remaining on contract are at their highest -- 52 years, price per point (which only goes up) is at it's lowest, and knowing resale won't be any cheaper than the prorated initial offering price (as VGF has proven).

Out of curiosity, have you stayed in a VGF studio yet? It's a similar setup in that it has a split bath, lacks much storage, and feels a bit crowded. We stayed there a few nights this past summer and loved the room and view (lagoon), but felt cramped the entire time.

I have not, and I've since reformed my opinion, which was admittedly an uninformed knee jerk reaction. I've since calculated the bedroom sq. ft. of all DVC WDW Studios, and realized Poly is second to OKW in Studio bedroom size (excluding bathroom/hallway. I think it just threw me off because it's a Queen sofa, two side tables, etc. -- e.g. more/bigger furniture than a typical Studio. I'll reserve final judgment until I see it in person. That said, I'm not a Studio person, so it may just be my frame of reference for my reaction was a 1bdrm.

Me, either! I do think they figure the die hard Polyers, Polyites, Polylovers will buy there, and that thinking may yet prove to be successful. However, similar to your thoughts, I don't feel as though this was an adequate conversion for our particular tastes, especially given the point totals needed and the buy-in price point. We will definitely take our chances in the future at attempting the occasional overnight stay there within the 7-month booking window.

At the end of the day, Poly will soon be the only WDW DVC resort actively sold and available, so I think it will continue to sell, and Studios will continue to be popular system wide as DVC member try to stretch their precious points. I don't think the decision to build all Studios was a bad one as a result. That said, it still feels like a decision that doesn't make anyone happy -- Disney is all about making Walt's dream accessible for everyone, which means options for everyone. Trying to force everyone into a one-size fits all (plus a Bungalow which fits the 1%), just isn't a very Disney-like decision. I hope Disney really thinks through the inevitable VWL conversion and makes options available to make them more accessible for all consumers. One idea would be to make variable length contracts -- e.g. have the option to buy 25 years contracts at 60% of the price of 50 year. Poly is actually a great value per point since it includes 52 years per point right now, but many folks don't want 52 years of points. I'll be 90 by then and doubtfully be coming to Disney as much as I am now. So despite the great value it's a steep upfront cost, even if you sell the remaining points 30, 40 years down the road to recoup the investment.

 

[colleen costello]

I don't think saying "I would never buy there" is "badmouthing" the resort at all! I could not be more thrilled about Poly DVC, and am careful to check in on Tikiman's Page daily for updates. But my family of four always books a 1-bedroom unit, and Poly points are really expensive. While I would LOVE to stay there, I will be happy to use the wait lists and see what happens. And I will only "splurge" very occasionally. So even though I believe I will love the new DVC component of this favorite resort, buying points and then having to juggle them for a once-every-three-year stay (in a room thats tinier than we enjoy) seems foolish. One of the joys of DVC is that you CAN enjoy all the resort occasionally, no matter where you own your points.

 

[bobbiwoz]

When can non owners try to book? I do want to stay there before deciding to buy or not. However, Christmas time at Disney is one of our favorite times to stay, and I do not think the Poly does Christmas very well, I think we will probably not buy, but who knows? Never thought we would own BLT for the same reason, but we have definite times we just have to stay there!

 

[dwight16]

got my phone call from a 407 number yesterday for sales.....shocked they wanted 160 per point and you need 180ish points for a week! same level as VGF and the kicker over 6 dollars per point in maintenance. so you need to spend 28,800ish plus 1000ish on maintenance even a full rate of 400 a night for a poly room for 7 days is 2800 a year take out the 1000 for maintenance and your left with 1800 a year of real use......that would take you 16 years to break even! i mean who in their right might would do that man i cant wait for this investment to pay off in 16 years lol

 

[sleepydog25]

When can non owners try to book? I do want to stay there before deciding to buy or not. However, Christmas time at Disney is one of our favorite times to stay, and I do not think the Poly does Christmas very well, I think we will probably not buy, but who knows? Never thought we would own BLT for the same reason, but we have definite times we just have to stay there!

I believe it is Feb 25.

 

[colleen costello]

I called. February 25th for stays beginning April 1! Good luck to us all.

 

[bobbiwoz]

I believe it is Feb 25.

I called. February 25th for stays beginning April 1! Good luck to us all.

Thank you!

Will connecting studios be available to book? I have a 2 bedroom at BWV for my girlfriends stay in May....I would give up the convenience of BWV for Flower and Garden to stay at the Poly!

 

[sleepydog25]

Thank you!

Will connecting studios be available to book? I have a 2 bedroom at BWV for my girlfriends stay in May....I would give up the convenience of BWV for Flower and Garden to stay at the Poly!

That has been a topic of debate on a couple of threads. I don't know that anyone has a definitive answer about that yet. There isn't a separate booking category for connected studios, but that doesn't signal they won't do connecting reservations. I suspect when the booking begins, Member Services should be able to answer that question. Perhaps, someone else knows definitively by now.

 

[bobbiwoz]

That has been a topic of debate on a couple of threads. I don't know that anyone has a definitive answer about that yet. There isn't a separate booking category for connected studios, but that doesn't signal they won't do connecting reservations. I suspect when the booking begins, Member Services should be able to answer that question. Perhaps, someone else knows definitively by now.

I have asked that question on the Member page in the discussion of the Poly villas. If I get an answer to that there, I will post it here.

 

[dsnydaddy]

Well, like some, I think that some things could have been done better. But I do think that the sheer number of studios means that at 7 mos availability will not be a problem.

 

[lawgator]

We're hoping to going to get a 50 point add on for an occasional weekend studio stay a night or 2 a year (maybe NYE if we're lucky). It works for us since we only live a couple of hours away.

 

[Guapy]

Just bought 80 pts to add to our 160 AKL points! Ready to book the first trip!!!

 

[sleepydog25]

Hardly scientific, but at this point, the numbers have remained steady for the length of this poll. Roughly 7-8% of voters have said they would definitely buy PVB, while over triple that--25-26%--say they definitely won't. The largest group, coming in at about 47%, say they likely won't buy. If you tally the "yes/maybe" group and then the "no/likely not" groups, you have a disparity of roughly 14% to 72% or a 1 to 5 ratio. I wonder if DVC's research showed a better ratio?

 

[MinnieMouse100]

We plan to buy about 150 points to add to our 200 at SSR. We love poly, have stayed there many times cash and honeymooned there, so it's definitely an emotional not a financial decision for us. We decided 150 because it allows up to use 1 yr of points to stay in a studio or 3 yrs worth if we want to occasionally stay at a bungalow.

 

[dizfan]

Just bought 80 pts to add to our 160 AKL points! Ready to book the first trip!!!

Congratulations!

 

[disneynutz]

Hardly scientific, but at this point, the numbers have remained steady for the length of this poll. Roughly 7-8% of voters have said they would definitely buy PVB, while over triple that--25-26%--say they definitely won't. The largest group, coming in at about 47%, say they likely won't buy. If you tally the "yes/maybe" group and then the "no/likely not" groups, you have a disparity of roughly 14% to 72% or a 1 to 5 ratio. I wonder if DVC's research showed a better ratio?

Since the PVB plan is to sell to new DVC owners, I don't think that they are concerned with what existing owners think.

Bill

 

[beer dave]

Hardly scientific, but at this point, the numbers have remained steady for the length of this poll. Roughly 7-8% of voters have said they would definitely buy PVB, while over triple that--25-26%--say they definitely won't. The largest group, coming in at about 47%, say they likely won't buy. If you tally the "yes/maybe" group and then the "no/likely not" groups, you have a disparity of roughly 14% to 72% or a 1 to 5 ratio. I wonder if DVC's research showed a better ratio?

Interesting. I like math.... There are currently about 63 million points in ownership throughout DVC...... I think at WDW only---(excluding Aulani, VB, and HHI)(I think) With Poly adding 4 mil, the percentage of Poly points to total points is about 6 %. If the DVC owners on this site are an accurate representative of the entire group, then there will be one to two percent who cannot buy Poly but wants to. Depending on how many points each buys. And adding the new purchasers.... It seems Poly will sell out fairly quickly.