Questions, Questions and more questions... can this get anymore confusing?

[GrUvGrL]

We just got back from our vacation on Monday and ended up taking the DVC tour out of curiosity. Generally we stay at the value resorts because we have been traveling with 6 people the past couple times, and allthough we get the 2 adjacent, connecting rooms, I really like the ease of having the 2 bathrooms, park tickets, mousekeeping and the quick service dinning which contributes for a stress free vacation. I'm really wondering if this DVC thing is for us.

How easy is it to book? I see people reporting no space left for certain resorts, is that because they maybe booking to close to vacation time?

My guide told us that the home resort is just a "physical address" for contract purposes, but that we can book at any of the resorts listed for DVC members (in the booklet) including 500 plus resorts world wide... is this true?

Why would there restrictions on where you can use your points? Rumour is that as of August 19th or so, you can no longer use your points to book cruises, is this true? If so this really was a plus for us as we have never gone on cruise and our guide was really selling us on this.

I have been reading about people having regrets about which home base they purchased in because their children have outgrown the clown slide or they are getting bored staying in the same place every year. But, if you can book at any resort, why is this even an issue?

Are there any advantages or disadvantages of buying smaller contracts? If you do buy smaller contracts can you combine your points even if your home base is not the same for all? Can you combine your points for one reservation if you go this route?

I also have read that there is no mousekeeping, I mean this would be no means a deciding factor for me, but with 2 teenage kids I wanna go on vacation and enjoy myself and rest, not clean house. Do any of the DVC resorts offer mousekeeping and do DVC members apply for free dinning when it is offered?

If I were to just rent points from someone, would i need to have an on-going membership?

Sorry about the amount of questions, but I came home elated over DVC and I am now reading and struggling to find the pluses, not to mention confused.

<--- this has been me ....

 

[Deb & Bill]

DVC is probably the most expensive time share out there. You do better booking your home resort at 11 months out and then trying to see what might be available at 7 months out. Some times of the year, there is nothing or little to nothing available at 7 months out.

You must plan your trips. Trading out isn't that cost effective and you may be waiting for that perfect trade for a long time. Not to say it won't happen, but plan on using your DVC points at DVC resorts.

Right now I see lots of members planning on using their points at Aulani, but I'm gonna bet that it will be difficult at 7 months out.

If you stay seven nights or less, you get your towels replaced and trash removed on day four. If you stay eights nights or more, you get a full cleaning on day four and trash and towel service on day eight. If you want more frequent or higher level cleaning, you are given the opportunity to pay for it. It is not cheap.

Free dining is a way for Disney to fill hotel rooms that would normally be unoccupied. Since DVC villas are already sold, there isn't any opportunity to get free dining while staying on points. You can pay rack rate like the other guests and get free dining anywhere you can, but not with points stays.

Smaller contracts tend to be easier to sell when the time comes. Larger contracts are more difficult.

Right now, you can rent a reservation from any member who offers and stay in a DVC resort for less than you would pay directly through Disney. But with the 45% off on AP stays right now, that may be debatable.

 

[CarolMN]

We just got back from our vacation on Monday and ended up taking the DVC tour out of curiosity. Generally we stay at the value resorts because we have been traveling with 6 people the past couple times, and allthough we get the 2 adjacent, connecting rooms, I really like the ease of having the 2 bathrooms, park tickets, mousekeeping and the quick service dinning which contributes for a stress free vacation. I'm really wondering if this DVC thing is for us.

How easy is it to book? I see people reporting no space left for certain resorts, is that because they maybe booking to close to vacation time?

Probably. All DVC reservations are subject to availability. At your home resort, you can make a reservation up to 11 months prior to desired check in. If you are booking anywhere else, the earliest you can make a reservations 7 months prior to arrival. For some times of the year and/or certain villa / view types, availability is very limited at 7 months.

My guide told us that the home resort is just a "physical address" for contract purposes, but that we can book at any of the resorts listed for DVC members (in the booklet) including 500 plus resorts world wide... is this true?

Yes, but it's not the "whole" truth. It's always subject to availability (see above) and what you want, when you want it may not be available at 7 months. That said, many here report success booking at 7 months or sooner.

Why would there restrictions on where you can use your points? Rumour is that as of August 19th or so, you can no longer use your points to book cruises, is this true? If so this really was a plus for us as we have never gone on cruise and our guide was really selling us on this.

The best value of a DVC point is using it to stay at a DVC resort. Members are not guaranteed that they will always be able to use their points for non-DVC resort stays. If you plan to do so, you may end up disappointed. It's best to buy the number of DVC points that you anticipate needing for stays at DVC resorts.

I have been reading about people having regrets about which home base they purchased in because their children have outgrown the clown slide or they are getting bored staying in the same place every year. But, if you can book at any resort, why is this even an issue?

It's availability. Your points are no good if there isn't a room available where you want to be at 7 months.

Are there any advantages or disadvantages of buying smaller contracts? If you do buy smaller contracts can you combine your points even if your home base is not the same for all? Can you combine your points for one reservation if you go this route?

You can't combine points from different resorts until the 7 month window. You can only use points from the resort you purchased at 11 months. But you can use banking at borrowing to get up to three years of points to use in the 11 month window.

I also have read that there is no mousekeeping, I mean this would be no means a deciding factor for me, but with 2 teenage kids I wanna go on vacation and enjoy myself and rest, not clean house. Do any of the DVC resorts offer mousekeeping and do DVC members apply for free dinning when it is offered?

You may get additional housekeeping for a fee if you wish. Many members come to like not having Mousekeepers in their rooms. It's not a big deal to make a bed or throw a load of towels in the wash while you're out enjoying the day. Free Dining is not available to DVC members staying on points. Free Dining is a promotion meant to fill non-DVC resorts. (It's not even free since yo need to buy tickets and usually have to pay rack rates for the room. It's just another way to package a discount. People are attracted to the word "Free").

If I were to just rent points from someone, would i need to have an on-going membership?

If you rent, you do not have any control over the reservation until you check in. That's stressful for some. You have only limited ability (if any) to cancel after booking, but if you don't commit to a reservation far in advance, you may have trouble getting the dates and room you prefer. That said, with renting, you have no dues and no long-term commitment

Sorry about the amount of questions, but I came home elated over DVC and I am now reading and struggling to find the pluses, not to mention confused.

<--- this has been me ....

Ask away - and wlecome to the DIS DVC Forums.

 

[grafxgirl]

How easy is it to book? I see people reporting no space left for certain resorts, is that because they maybe booking to close to vacation time?

My guide told us that the home resort is just a "physical address" for contract purposes, but that we can book at any of the resorts listed for DVC members (in the booklet) including 500 plus resorts world wide... is this true?

It is definitely easy to book at your "home" resort because you can book 11 months out. You do have the option of booking at a different resort, but I think that is only at 7 months out. We've never had an issue getting into our home resort, even booking at less than 11 months out. We're at the Beach Club.

Why would there restrictions on where you can use your points? Rumour is that as of August 19th or so, you can no longer use your points to book cruises, is this true? If so this really was a plus for us as we have never gone on cruise and our guide was really selling us on this.

Found this explanation in another thread regarding this. "OK, just got off the phone with MS. The policy has not changed at all. The problem is the policy itself. DVC has only been allotted only so many cabins for booking on each cruise. This has always been true in the past. A cruise could have availabilty, but if the DVC allottment was gone you couldn't book with points. This has always been the case. We have had it happen a couple times to us in the past. The major problem here is that ALL DVC allotted cabins up to October of 2011 are now completely booked. Plus, I was told that there is very little available for the remainder of 2011. So if you are planning to book in the fall/winter of 2011, you better do it soon."

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2537773&page+3

I have been reading about people having regrets about which home base they purchased in because their children have outgrown the clown slide or they are getting bored staying in the same place every year. But, if you can book at any resort, why is this even an issue?

Maybe they just aren't adventurous enough to try other resorts, or maybe they are just comfortable with the familiar surroundings of their home resort? We chose the Beach Club because it does have a lot of appeal to our kids DD6 and DD3, yet it is a "tropical, relaxing atmosphere for adults who want to visit without the kids.

I also have read that there is no mousekeeping, I mean this would be no means a deciding factor for me, but with 2 teenage kids I wanna go on vacation and enjoy myself and rest, not clean house. Do any of the DVC resorts offer mousekeeping and do DVC members apply for free dinning when it is offered?

DVC members cannot use their points to book a vacation and receive free dining. The only way to get the free dining is to skip using your points for that trip, and pay out of pocket like everyone else. As for no mousekeeping, I don't find that I have a lot of house cleaning. We just throw the dirty dishes in the dishwasher on our way out to the park, toss our clothes in the washer/dryer once halfway through our trip, and toss our wet towels in the dryer on our way to the park so they are dry when we get back. If I need someone to come empty our trash or send extra toiletries up to the room at some point, I just call or stop by the desk downstairs and let them know.

 

[Deb & Bill]

.... If I need someone to come empty our trash or send extra toiletries up to the room at some point, I just call or stop by the desk downstairs and let them know.

You only get this service on day 4, day 8, etc. You can't just call and ask for extra shampoo and stuff. You can get extra trash bags, toilet paper, paper towels, but not shampoo, conditioner, soap.

 

[PoohNFriends]

How easy is it to book? I see people reporting no space left for certain resorts, is that because they maybe booking to close to vacation time?

Getting the room, resort, and dates you want is usually easiest when you are booking at the 11 month mark of your home resort. However, even that does not guarantee room availability - for example there are only 5-two bedroom equivalents for AKV concierge so no guarantee you will get 1 at 11 mo mark.
As time goes on the popular rooms (BCV, MK view at BLT) fill up quickly. Also the time of year you travel will make a difference - busier times (F&W) will obviously fill up quicker than slower times (most of Jan. thru President's Day weekend).

My guide told us that the home resort is just a "physical address" for contract purposes, but that we can book at any of the resorts listed for DVC members (in the booklet) including 500 plus resorts world wide... is this true?

Partly true, it is a physical address for your contract and you can try to book at other DVC resorts, however, as stated above and by PP's there is no guarantee what you want will be available when the 7 month mark comes for you to book at your non-home resort. You can also book thru the other Collections (other WDW resorts, DCL, Adventures...) however it takes alot more points to book 1 week at Poly (for example) than 1 week at a DVC resort so this is usually not considered a good use of your points.

Why would there restrictions on where you can use your points? Rumour is that as of August 19th or so, you can no longer use your points to book cruises, is this true? If so this really was a plus for us as we have never gone on cruise and our guide was really selling us on this.

There are restrictions on where you can use your points because when a member uses their points to book a cruise (for example) DVC will pay $xxx.xx to DCL based on the # of points you used and DVC needs to get that $$ back by renting out your equivalent points as a cash reservation. And like grafxgirl posted from another thread only so many DCL rooms are allocated for members to use points. Everyone is waiting on something official, but it seems for that time frame the demand of point paying members has exceeded the supply DCL set aside for many cruises. However, some members have reported being able to make a points reservation in this time frame so still some limited availability left. It is possible that any resort or cruise may not be available to use your points at in the future.

I have been reading about people having regrets about which home base they purchased in because their children have outgrown the clown slide or they are getting bored staying in the same place every year. But, if you can book at any resort, why is this even an issue?

Again, see above. Easier to book at your home resort at 11 months than another resort at <7 months.

Are there any advantages or disadvantages of buying smaller contracts? If you do buy smaller contracts can you combine your points even if your home base is not the same for all? Can you combine your points for one reservation if you go this route?

Many will recommend to split a big contract into 2 smaller contracts - instead of buying 1-300 point BLT contract you can split it into 3-100 point contracts. If you even need to sell for any reason, it will be easier to sell a smaller contract than 1 large one. You could combine your 3-100 point contracts to make a reservation at your home resort at the 11 month mark. However, if you own 2 different contracts at 2 different resorts you cannot combine those until the 7 month mark.

I also have read that there is no mousekeeping, I mean this would be no means a deciding factor for me, but with 2 teenage kids I wanna go on vacation and enjoy myself and rest, not clean house. Do any of the DVC resorts offer mousekeeping and do DVC members apply for free dinning when it is offered?

The only time you get daily housekeeping thru DVC is when you stay AKV concierge, otherwise it is as PP's have stated.

If I were to just rent points from someone, would i need to have an on-going membership?

Not sure what you mean by on-going membership but a point rental is done between you and the member, Disney does not get involved in the rental transaction at all. It is a one time rental where the member makes a reservation for you and you pay the member an agreed upon $ per point. But you can rent from the same member multiple times or from multiple members over time as you feel comfortable doing so.

Sorry about the amount of questions, but I came home elated over DVC and I am now reading and struggling to find the pluses, not to mention confused.

The more questions you ask to get the best understanding the better. It is too much time and $$ to put into it if you don't know how or find out you can't get good use of it. So keep asking away...

 

[Sammie]

The bottom line with DVC is basically all you are guaranteed is booking your home resort at 11 months, any perks offered can be taken away at anytime.

You can purchase daily housekeeping but no it is not offered with your room.

Free dining is not offered to DVC members using their points for stays. If interested in free dining you would have to pay cash for that.

Also realize that DVC peak times for booking does not always correspond to Disney parks or Disney resort peak times. Some of the most difficult times to get DVC are early December and during the Food and Wine.

DVC will not always work well for those that can't plan ahead. As stated at times 11 months is needed to get what you might want. At 7 months you might be left with what is left over, not what you wanted.

 

[ToddyLu]

You will get a lot of info here on the boards. Like you my DH and I were doing values every year until we purchased last year. Our main reason was that we had decided after annual trips since 2002, our plans for Disney would continue to be a yearly obsession. You know how you get to that point in life where you want the Bose Sound System and leather interior? I reached it at 41 last year. So DVC was a way for us to afford to stay at AKV (our dream resort) every year for 47 years if we chose.

Now I booked our 2 SV studios for this 12/01-12/10 on Jan 2 this year and got exactly what I wanted. I hope to plan a trip this Dec (when DH gets his vacation schedule for 2011) for a trip in March or May. I am going to try for AKV, but will be happy staying anywhere. It will be obviously less than 7 months until my reservation so I will take what I can get and go into it knowing that. Once you have decided that Disney will be a recurring destination for you...DVC changes your perspective on staying there. It becomes more about the resort than the Parks...most of the time. I mean we loved staying at Pop but would generally stay longer in the Parks and come back more exhausted in the late afternoon. Now that I can see animals out the window from our room, we actually enjoy being at the resort and not running around the Parks the whole time.

You can get a lot of good info off the Internet about any topic...but keep in mind it is your vacation and what someone else does or has an opinion of is not YOU. I take from here lots of info about policies, resort events or accomodations, etc....personal comments or opinions not so much.

The info here has been invaluable to us as we go foward. I wish you the very best and know you will make a great decision for you family.

 

[javamom]

We just got back from our vacation on Monday and ended up taking the DVC tour out of curiosity. Generally we stay at the value resorts because we have been traveling with 6 people the past couple times, and allthough we get the 2 adjacent, connecting rooms, I really like the ease of having the 2 bathrooms, park tickets, mousekeeping and the quick service dinning which contributes for a stress free vacation. I'm really wondering if this DVC thing is for us.

How often do you go? Yearly, every other?
Are you happier with 2 rooms, or would you like a 2BR unit instead with kitchen and laundry?

How easy is it to book? I see people reporting no space left for certain resorts, is that because they maybe booking to close to vacation time?

My guide told us that the home resort is just a "physical address" for contract purposes, but that we can book at any of the resorts listed for DVC members (in the booklet) including 500 plus resorts world wide... is this true?

I have been reading about people having regrets about which home base they purchased in because their children have outgrown the clown slide or they are getting bored staying in the same place every year. But, if you can book at any resort, why is this even an issue?

Yes, they may be trying to book too close to travel time, or during a peak season (which can be different that the general Disney peak times), requesting a certain size of unit etc..

Home resort is important in regard the booking window for these peak times and resorts. Home resort members get an 11-month window, everyone else can book at 7-months.

If you want to travel at peak times, with a certain resort preference, you should buy at that resort.

Why would there restrictions on where you can use your points? Rumour is that as of August 19th or so, you can no longer use your points to book cruises, is this true? If so this really was a plus for us as we have never gone on cruise and our guide was really selling us on this.

It is the general topic that renting out your points will garner you more buying power for that cruise, than using points. But you can use your points. They are currently messing with inventory for DVC bookings, so there may be some temporary (or not) difficulty with this. I would not buy DVC if you are mainly looking to use points for cruises. Your best point values will always be at DVC resorts, everything else, less so.

Are there any advantages or disadvantages of buying smaller contracts? If you do buy smaller contracts can you combine your points even if your home base is not the same for all? Can you combine your points for one reservation if you go this route?

Smaller contracts are easier to sell, if you decide that you don't need as many. Also, it's easier to Will them to people as a part of your Estate. If there is one contract, for instance, siblings would need to coordinate sharing it, if it were left to them.

Of course coordinating multiple contracts is something to consider as well.

I also have read that there is no mousekeeping, I mean this would be no means a deciding factor for me, but with 2 teenage kids I wanna go on vacation and enjoy myself and rest, not clean house. Do any of the DVC resorts offer mousekeeping and do DVC members apply for free dinning when it is offered?

DVC members do not get DAILY mousekeeping. You get a Trash and Tidy on the fourth day, and a Full Clean on the 8th day. You can pay extra, if you want DAILY.

However, I personally adore the washing machine. Just toss stinky teenager clothes in as you come and go from the room, and no mess to be smelling. Easy peasy!

No "free" dining. The "free" dining is a direct result of paying rack rate for the room. Since DVC members don't pay rack rate, there's no free dining.

You can add the Dining Plan, but it will not be free.

If I were to just rent points from someone, would i need to have an on-going membership?

No, you do not need a membership to rent points. You need to rent from someone that you trust, and they have to trust you. In the end, you have to decide whether this is a transaction that you are comfortable with.

Sorry about the amount of questions, but I came home elated over DVC and I am now reading and struggling to find the pluses, not to mention confused.

<--- this has been me ....

I am sure it has been said already. But the rule of thumb is:

If you are already paying at least moderate rates and going yearly, then you may be a candidate.

Since you are buying 2 value rooms, this MAY apply to you. It depends upon the way that you would PREFER to travel MOST of the time.

 

[GrUvGrL]

I Think I have made my decision!!

Thank you all so much for responding. I love the disboards, cause everyone is always so informed and always willing to share their experiences and knowledge!

As much as I love Disney, I REALLY want to travel the world when the kids get older and (shhh we don't have to pay for them - or take them), just DH and I. I feel that I can find better deals by going online and doing some research on these worldly trips and get a better deal then paying points with dollars. (For instance, next year we are going to Portugal (hopefully go through Spain to France to Disney for a week, but we'll see), year after that, 4 people at Disney World. Year after that, a big family vacation at Disney World, and year after that Brasil for the world cup)

So here is my decision:
I will be buying one or 2 small 100 - 150 point resale (Hopefully, because it's cheaper, but I have not yet done any digging to find out the pros and cons).

After crunching numbers, I figured for my small family of 4, getting a room at say POP, and having tickets and the meal plan suits us best. And yes I know that the meal plan may or not be offered when we go, but I will be making sure to book only with an available meal plan.

I will save my points on small contracts and get a family suite for a week once every 2 or 3 years for all our family (extend the invitation for Family and even if 2 more people show up... it's still a good deal) Good news is... even if I ever decide to change my mind... I can still buy a larger point contract, or a couple more smaller ones.



Thanks again folks - You guys rock \m/ oo \m/

 

[DebbieB]

You only get this service on day 4, day 8, etc. You can't just call and ask for extra shampoo and stuff. You can get extra trash bags, toilet paper, paper towels, but not shampoo, conditioner, soap.

You can call for extra service, but you have to pay for it. There is a toiletries package you can purchase. From the member website:

Housekeeping Services
Trash & Towel Service
For stays of seven or less nights, Trash & Towel Service is provided on day four, regardless of whether you're using Member-discounted cash, Vacation Points or a combination of both.

With Trash & Towel service, Housekeeping will:

•Empty trash and replace liners in trash bins.
•Provide fresh bathroom linens.
•Replace shampoo, facial soap and bath soap.
•Replenish facial tissues, paper towels and toilet paper.
•Replenish coffee, sugar, cream and sweeteners.
•Replenish dishwashing liquid, dishwashing detergent, sponges and laundry detergent as needed in one-, two- and three-bedroom Vacation Homes.

Full Cleaning Service
For stays of eight or more nights, Full-Cleaning Service is provided on day four and Trash & Towel Service is provided on day eight. After that, the cycle begins again on day 12, regardless of whether you're using Member-discounted cash, Vacation Points or a combination of both. With Full-Cleaning service, Housekeeping will provide everything included with the Trash & Towel Service, plus:

•Change the bed linens.
•Vacuum and dust the Vacation Home.
•Clean the bathroom(s).
•Clean the kitchen/kitchenette and wash the dishes.

Pay As You Play
With Pay As You Play service, you'll be provided with the following amenities free of charge at the start of your stay. After that, you may purchase more for the following fees:

•Toiletries Package, $5.00 - 1 facial soap, 1 bath soap, 1 shampoo, 1 conditioner, 1 shower gel
•Coffee Package, $3.00 - 1 package of coffee, 8 sugars, 8 creamers, 8 artificial sweeteners
•Towel Package, $6.00 - 4 bath towels, 2 hand towels, 4 washcloths, 1 bath mat
•Laundry Detergent (only in One-, Two-, and Three-bedroom Vacation Homes), $1.00 - 1 box

Additional Full - Cleaning Rates:
Studio/Inn Room - $30.00 per day requested
One-Bedroom - $45.00 per day requested
Two-Bedroom - $60.00 per day requested
Three-Bedroom - $75.00 per day requested

Additional Trash & Towel Rates:
Studio/Inn Room - $15.00 per day requested
One-Bedroom - $20.00 per day requested
Two-Bedroom - $25.00 per day requested
Three-Bedroom - $35.00 per day requested

Note: Rates are subject to change

 

[Deb & Bill]

...I will save my points on small contracts and get a family suite for a week once every 2 or 3 years for all our family (extend the invitation for Family and even if 2 more people show up... it's still a good deal) Good news is... even if I ever decide to change my mind... I can still buy a larger point contract, or a couple more smaller ones.



Thanks again folks - You guys rock \m/ oo \m/

You can't use DVC points for the All Stars Family Suites, if that is what you intended. Make sure you plan on using your points for DVC resorts and not for other trips because it won't be cost effective and you need a long lead time to get what you want. And it still might not happen.