Question for all you regular WDW goers

[csmommy]

I am curious as to why WDW regulars have chosen not to become DVC members. My DH & I are considering it, & we wanted some opinions in case there was something we hadn't thought of. I have been reading up on the DVC board, but wanted to get some non-DVC member input.

Thanks!

 

[safetymom]

We go a lot but don't want to be tied down to payments.

 

[dahess]

I personally don't think it's a good deal. We would feel obligated to go to WDW more then we do now.

 

[clutter]

with just two of us in our family, dd and me, and using AP rates when we go (we buy passes every other year and try to do two trips), DVC would probably be too expensive. Then there's the fact that my dd is 6. Even though she recently asked if I'll still go to WDW with her when she's big, I don't see us going as often as she gets older. Our vacations will be seeing the US, maybe some Europe, etc. Can't swing both!!!

 

[Desnik]

DH and I have gone over this so many times! We even started the purchase and later cancelled. Our reasoning was we wanted to buy where we would stay most often, WDW. Our favorite DVC is BWV. You can only buy it through resale and we aren't too comfortable with buying that way. We also like to stay at deluxe resorts. We love staying at the GF, but if you are a DVC member it is not the smartest way to spend your points. If we were DVC'ers we would feel like we had to stay at one of the Villas to get our monies worth. We do go every year, but we buy AP's and usually get a good discount. I personally don't like having another monthly payment, I don't have enough cash to just pay in full for the 200 points we would buy. Also, once you are paid up on your loan, if you go that route, you have dues every month, and the contract expires in 2042.

Who knows, we still might do it if we can put down a big down payment. Now that we have 2 kids, we do need more space. Those are just the reasons we haven't done it yet. I think everytime we go, the resort part of our stay would already be paid for, but I'm just not ready yet to add another monthly payment to my bills

 

[SamanthaL]

We just put a huge down payment on a house and have one mortgage to pay. I cannot see adding another payment at this time. Maybe someday but with a new baby on the way it will be some time before our next trip. However by then we will be that much closer to 2042 so the deal gets less and less appealing.

 

[PamNC]

We thought about it and actually did the tour and talked to a representative at the Boardwalk.

We didn't do it simply because we wanted to sell our house and buy a bigger house and a farm. So, we did.

That needed to happen first. We'll consider it in the future. I've never been a proponent of timeshares and I know this isn't a typical timeshare scenario...or is it? Anyway, I'm just not ready to do it and I'm not sure exactly why. How does it pay for itself and when? I'm not convinced yet. We like to go so often that I would need tons of points - and it gets pricey.

PamNC

 

[BrianD]

There are a few reasons we have not done it:
-In addition to the purchase price, you have to pay a few hundred dollars every year for dues.
-We like to stay at different resorts, and as someone else mentioned, the most economical way to use your points is at a DVC resort.
-I don't like the idea of having to use more points on the weekend, or moving to another resort on the weekend.
-(This may seem silly to some) When I travel, I kind of like the whole hotel experience, and along with that comes getting housekeeping service at least once a day. I know at a DVC resort, full-service housekeeping only comes once or twice for the whole trip.
-We've started going to WDW several times a year, and with DVC I'd have to purchase a TON of points to equal that.
-We get great resort rates with AP.

Believe me, I'm constantly looking for an excuse to hook up with DVC, as I love all things Disney, but it just doesn't seem like the thing for us.

My opinion is that DVC would work best for families of 4 or larger, who travel to WDW once a year, every year. Then, I could it see it making sense.

 

[ChairborneRangr]

I don't like the concept of timeshares at all for me.

I am not a prophet. How do I know if next year, we can afford to do WDW. I'd rather take it 1 year at a time and use APs or RENT points from someone else.

We don't buy RVs and we don't buy timeshares. Our family likes to stay flexible. $11,000+ is a lot of green to lay out for a time limited asset that is purely out of the entertainment budget.

Hope this helps...

 

[madge]

we are eligible for very reasonable rates (SoG/Govt employee) and we very rarely spend the several hundred dollars yearly maintenance on our total room costs. (does that make sense?) We also use www.afvc.com quite often, and at $249 for 7 nights, we don't see the necessity in owning a timeshare.

we are seriously considering a RV purchase at some point, though.

 

[disneydentist]

It depends on what you want out of your accomodations. I you want deluxe every time, then DVC might be the best way go. This assumes that the deluxes you prefer are also the ones the are part of DVC. If you're just as happy at a moderate or value resort then it's a tougher call. I once saw a spreadsheet, don't ask me where because I don't remember, that showed how long it would take you with annual trip at all three resort levels. Here's my spin: 150 points (really enough?) @ $75.00/point = $11250.00. Let's assume that you pay up front. Let's assume that you could get a 10% return on it. (Before anyone jumps on me check stock symbols AWF or TEI.) Non-compounded return ~ $1125 year. Less taxes: $843.75. Plus cost of maintenance ~3.50/point x 150 points = $525.00. "Real cost" for the year: $525.00 + $843.75 = $1368.75. This is simplified since it doesn't allow for inflation of rooms cost or maintenance fees and the Numbers are approximate since I didn't take the time to look them up again right now. It also doesn't allow for the compounding of your investment. Anyhow, it would cost you roughly the equivalent of $1368.75 to spend a week at a deluxe resort. This is a good deal. Especially since room rates are like to rise faster than maintenance fees. However, a moderate @ $100 x seven nights = $700. No comparison. We're very happy at a moderate and are staying at the Polynesian since we were displaced from POFQ. For us the moderates offer the best bang for our buck and have enough room for the four of us. JMO.

 

[*Fantasia*]

I'd rather use the money for my kids' education. Besides, we usually stay at the value resort...so buying into DVC will actually cost us more. We are only a family of three and so we don't need that much space.

Let's say we got an excellent discount $49 at the AS, let's say for 5 nights...this will only cost us only about $250! And even if the cost is $99...this means that it will only cost us $500 for 5 nights and that's it. We are not tied into paying anymore for that stay...or for that year.

Also, I don't want to pay something if I may not use. Our trip may vary, we may go yearly or every other year. And I would hate to put up my money if I'm not using the place or their amenities.

 

[CamColt]

We have thought of it, but it didnt seem to be the best choice for us. If I had a 3rd child and was forced to stay in the more expensive resorts then maybe it would be a good idea, but with just the 4 of us, we are more than happy staying at ASMO. The resort is the cheapest part of our trip, so getting that taken care of wouldnt really help us much. If park passes were included then I probably would do it.

 

[Disneefun]

Originally posted by CamColt
If park passes were included then I probably would do it.

This is pretty much our reasoning too. If we got park passes, it would be great and we'd probably come out ahead. But with just the two of us, we do just fine at the values and moderates (only occasionally do we splurge on deluxe). We're hardly ever in the room so don't need a lot of space or kitchen.

We did the tour once and talked to the reps. a few times, but we just figured out that, for us and the way we like to travel, we come out ahead buying AP's & using that discount. Plus, as others have said, we just didn't want to be tied to payments or feeling like we had to go to WDW each year. And even though you can use your points elsewhere, we just felt that we'd rather be free to go and stay where we needed to. Plus I agree that the contract expiring in 2042 was a big disadvantage. That would be at the pesak of our retirement years, just when we could get the most out of it. If they discontinued it, or didn't offer a chance to renew or whatever, we'd be out of luck, just at the time when we would be most able to sit back and enjoy it.

We still talk about it from time to time, but for now it's gone uner the heading of "Things to think about should we ever win the lottery."

 

[DrTomorrow]

My wife and I are new ENDIs - Empty Nesters w/Dual Income, so we've got the money, but DVC just wasn't for us. Why?

1. Timeshares in general just rub me the wrong way. Just a personal feeling.
2. When we travel, we like the whole vacation feeling. Timeshare/renting a house means dishes to wash, sinks to clean, etc., and I wouldn't enjoy my vacation as much if I had to sit there and watch my wife do all that.
3. We'd feel much too obligated to do Disney as much as possible to maximize value. We already had a minor issue with that: we'd purchased to PHPs for use this fall, next MLK and next fall - then the FTP came out. Since they are PHP vouchers, good forever, we booked FTP and will activate them next year. But if I knew I HAD to do Disney that often, it'd start to bug me.
4. Associated with that is the desire to go somewhere on a whim, not always plan 6 months in advance.

As a final note: We also go to Las Vegas enough to consider a timeshare, but the same considerations made us decide against that too.

Hope this helps,
Erick

 

[Simba's Mom]

We just joined DVC last year, after 12 non-DVC trips. Why didn't we do it earlier? Just never got "round tuit", mostly. Also, I (thought) moderates were fine and I loved searching for bargains (codes) for accomodations. Besides, joining DVC would mean no more daily housekeeping. But last year I got displaced when POR closed for a period of time and said "Hey, I bet DVC doesn't ever close! Let me take the tour." So it was just lack of motivation to change the way things were. Now I wish some one had given us reason to get "round tuit" earlier.

 

[MELSMICE]

We didn't join DVC for the longest time for many reasons that many of you have posted:

--We wanted to stay at the other resorts
--We didn't want to incur the expenses
--Didn't want to "do dishes" & "wash towels"

& many other things that you have all mentioned.

We finally decided to join after a trip on rented DVC points for these reasons:

--We have decided that Disney is our favorite vacation destination.
--We have decided we will continue to enjoy other resorts by splitting our stay between a regular resort w/ a code & our DVC resort.
--Once our DVC is paid for, with the exception of dues, we will not be paying for those accommodations for the next 40 years. The costs of the other resorts will go up.
--We have 5 in our family & really, really enjoyed the amount of room we had in a 2BR.
--As our DD's get older they may move away from "home" or my DH & I may retire somewhere where they are not. We felt that DVC will give us the opportunity to "treat" our DD's & their families to great vacations some day.

I think it's all a personal decision for everyone. We waited a long time to purchase until the time was right.

 

[csmommy]

Thanks for all your input.

We are a family of 4, DS is 8 & DD is 4 1/2, who normally vacation in a small rented house on the Cape, Montauk, or RI. So I do cook & clean-up on vacation anyway. Once every 2-3 years or so we splurge on a Disney vacation. It would be nice, I think, instead of going to the shores, to be able to go to WDW, Vero Beach, or HH & stay where its not so buggy, with limited maid service, nicer accomadations, & the Disney touch.

Some of you said you wanted to be able to go places other the WDW. Did you know you can, with your points go to many very nice hotels, even one at Atlantis? Would this sway you?

 

[MELSMICE]

csmommy - It sounds to me that if you could afford it you could probably get the minimum amount of points & be able to take a very nice vacation every few years.

BTW - we also vacationed for about 10 days at the beach every year when our DD's were younger. It was a nice vacation because they really enjoyed playing in the sand & that's about all they wanted to do. Honestly, it was more of a vacation for my family than it was for me though. It was so much work shopping, packing, unpacking, cooking, cleaning, packing again, unpacking at home again & then doing laundry. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it & it was the right thing for us to do when they were younger.

We still continued to take WDW vacations, but they were shorter than our current ones & many were offsite !! As our girls got older we realized that the 10-days at the beach had run its course. We began taking longer WDW vacations & just short weekend trips to the beach.

We finally decided that WDW was really where we wanted to make our family memories & that's when we joined DVC. We still do the beach for weekend trips & really enjoy it.

We purchased an OKW resale in Dec. 2002 & I currently have 3 trips planned with our pts. One this Nov. & next April with our DD's & One without them in Oct. which they don't know about yet They're going to have a fit.

We have 3 DD's so we need the 2BR units which are more points. When just DH & I go we will be staying in a studio at the BW. It looks as if you can get a studio for your family of 4 unless you really wanted larger accommodations.

FYI - We bought the resale through The Timeshare Store & got one with points that were banked, so I looked at it as getting bonus points & those are the ones we are using for our Nov. trip.

Anyway, sorry this is such a long post, but if you are thinking about DVC, it's a good idea to get all the information & opinions you can.

 

[csmommy]

Originally posted by MELSMICE
BTW - we also vacationed for about 10 days at the beach every year when our DD's were younger. It was a nice vacation because they really enjoyed playing in the sand & that's about all they wanted to do. Honestly, it was more of a vacation for my family than it was for me though. It was so much work shopping, packing, unpacking, cooking, cleaning, packing again, unpacking at home again & then doing laundry. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed it & it was the right thing for us to do when they were younger.

That exactly how I feel! Its fun, but work. DVC seems to be less work, & I know the accomodation. Sometimes when you rent a house you do not really know what you are getting.

We actually have a call into The Timeshare Store so we will see.