Renting Points DVC

[DZLVR]

Has anyone rented points from DVC to make your stay more affordable esp on the larger rooms? The websites promoting it make it sound like once you rent them the reservation is in your name but you are treated like the every day guest, but they are promoting themselves so of course they make it sound easy. Pro's Cons's?

 

[LisaCM614]

I rented points and owned the reservation. No problems - loved having a kitchen. That was in WDW not DLR. Very few rooms/ villas in DLR. I will do it again for sure

 

[Cinderpamela]

Davids is a highly recommended company for renting DVC points.
Take a look at this thread about the pros and cons of renting points it may help you:http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3241596

The member makes the reservation for you, in your name, and you are basically a "guest" of theirs staying on their points. Thus you get their parking perks. You dont get DVC discounts though, as you are not the member.
DVC Member Services will only talk to the member, so you can't call them up directly and make changes or add on things, that is something the member has to do for you.

The big thing is the cancellation of a reservation... with DVC cancelling is very difficult and can cause the member to completely loose those point, thus cancellation is not an option, so be very sure that you can make this trip... or take out trip insurance. It is not like a hotel where you can cancel your reservation with enough notice given and have no penalties.

I am not sure what you mean by "treated like an everyday guest"? Yes you are treated like a guest of the resort... no biased against or for DVC... is that what you are wondering?

If you are looking to rent points for the Villas at the Grand Californian just know that the availability for this resort is very hard to get (the resort over all is large, but the actual DVC wing of this resort is not very big, so there are a lot of people competing for not very many rooms)... especially if you are going during a more busy time of year. It is recommended that you start the process at 11-8 months ahead of time.

 

[blackjackdelta]

We have done it a couple of times, if you are set in your times and dates, and you can even find points now at the 7-12 month mark then I would recommend giving it a shot. Yes it is less expensive for larger rooms, was very convienent for us with the kids, had great views and the reservation is your name, but requests still have to go thru the owner unless you use Davids.

Good luck,

Jack

 

[jlindley9]

I can't recommend renting enough. It's important to find a good person who owns DVC. I was lucky to find someone the first time when we went to WDW in 2012. We have also rented from her for an Aulani trip last month and we just booked a stay at the Grand Californian for November.

Each DVC owner has one (or some times 2 or 3) home resorts. They are able to book at those resorts up to 11 months in advance. All DVC owners are able to book at any DVC resort starting at 7 months in advance. As the others have said, since the Grand Californian has so few DVC rooms, you need to book as far in advance as possible. We booked right at the 7 month window and all the studio rooms were already booked for 3 nights midweek in November. I imagine trying to book during the summer or holidays would require you to find someone who has the Grand as their home resort and can book at 11 months out.

We have a big group going in November and would have needed 3 standard rooms, which right now on the Disney website would be $4700 total for 3 nights. Instead, we are getting a 2-bedroom villa and a 1-bedroom villa, each one with a kitchen, for about $3200.

Different owners have different cancellation policies, so you would need to check with them. There are certain rules from Disney as to what happens to the points when a reservation is cancelled. If it is cancelled far enough in advance, like 30 days I believe, the points go back to the owner. Again, check with the owner on their policy.

Before you rent, you probably want to ask for references, people the owner has rented to before. David's Vacation Club Rentals is a sponsor on the DIS and they take some of the risk out of the equation, but they are also more expensive than potentially renting directly from an owner. Still, something to look into.

If you have any other questions, let me know. Good luck!

 

[hjgaus]

Has anyone rented points from DVC to make your stay more affordable esp on the larger rooms? The websites promoting it make it sound like once you rent them the reservation is in your name but you are treated like the every day guest, but they are promoting themselves so of course they make it sound easy. Pro's Cons's?

What website is this?
Also, what do you mean by "treated like the every day guest?"
I think other than getting FREE self parking for your stay using points as a perk, the service received from all CM's should be the same as any other
guest. Staying at a villa is ALL about having more SPACE and the EXTRA convenience such as washer/dryer in room and a full/well stocked kitchen to use if needed! It's not like your getting the celebrity treatment.... unless you PAY extra for it!!! We don't getting DAILY cleaning service (again unless you pay xtra)! Although that's okay by me if the trade off means more space than the average hotel room!
Love my DVC!!!

 

[sleepymouse]

We recently rented points from David's. Our reservation is for a studio in December. We are not getting any extra space (but gain a microwave) than we would with a hotel room but the cost is 50% less than a standard view room. Also, all the studios have at least some sort of pool or park view so we are really saving even more when compared to equivalent hotel room. Super excited for our holiday stay!

 

[Pesky]

We recently rented points from David's. Our reservation is for a studio in December. We are not getting any extra space (but gain a microwave) than we would with a hotel room but the cost is 50% less than a standard view room. Also, all the studios have at least some sort of pool or park view so we are really saving even more when compared to equivalent hotel room. Super excited for our holiday stay!

This! Cinderpamela pretty neatly summed up the pros and cons. The no cancellation thing was the driving force behind getting some trip insurance for us. But I loved the proximity and the kitchenette. We ended up eating breakfast in our room every morning and had space to store healthier snacks to take with us into the parks like ziploc bags of cheerios and apples. It was cheaper staying in a studio than getting the regular room. I found the suites (1bdrm, 2 bdrm, etc.) got a bit pricey for me.

 

[DZLVR]

Thanks for all the responses, I was looking into David's esp since the points for 2 nights at GCH is cost compareable to PPH. I'd save $300 off just going through Disney. I am still trying to fit in a quick trip right before our trip to San Diego in May hoping to cash in that my boys last day of school is the 22nd fingers crossed before the rush of "normal" summer break starts. If I can find or he has some last minute options although I thought of looking into a Fall or Late Winter for a longer stay.

I was just wondering if there were other issues to go through when going this route, when I asked about being treated like every other guest. We've stayed at the GCH twice before and love it and this quick trip was 1 day in CA only and the GCH would be very convienent.

 

[hjgaus]

Thanks for all the responses, I was looking into David's esp since the points for 2 nights at GCH is cost compareable to PPH. I'd save $300 off just going through Disney. I am still trying to fit in a quick trip right before our trip to San Diego in May hoping to cash in that my boys last day of school is the 22nd fingers crossed before the rush of "normal" summer break starts. If I can find or he has some last minute options although I thought of looking into a Fall or Late Winter for a longer stay.

I was just wondering if there were other issues to go through when going this route, when I asked about being treated like every other guest. We've stayed at the GCH twice before and love it and this quick trip was 1 day in CA only and the GCH would be very convienent.

No other issues to go through as a DVC guest!! Just a warm greeting of
"WELCOME HOME...." from the CM as you pull up to the front driveway gate to the CM bell hop who brings up you luggage!

PS. I kinda looked @ booking times for you and your last minute did not look too promising but your other choices look slightly better! (not suppose to give out any specifics on this board)

Good luck with David's rentals and enjoy!!!

 

[FireflyTrance]

I looked into renting at the GCH but there was very little availibility for the next 7 months. Like others have said, make sure to do it way way in advance, being flexible on dates will also help.

 

[sleepymouse]

When booking my December trip, I sent in the request and there was no availability. I then gave David's a call and checked availability close to my dates. I was able to get something one weekend later than originally planned. Worked out fine for us.

 

[Czardas]

This is my first experience renting points and I used DVC Rental Store. There service has been brilliant. Unlike David's, they don't ask for a $100 deposit when putting in the request.
We asked for a studio as first preference but I took the 1 Bedroom villa as that was all I could get. Now I'm glad that I have that instead.
We have also been able to get the owner to put in room number choices, so fingers crossed.
4 weeks to go and very excited.

 

[Dismomlongstreet]

We are considering renting a 1 bd at AKL through the DVC rental Store. Checked with Dave's first but they didn't have anything available on or around our dates. Anyone used the DVC rental store? Haven't found much on them.

 

[momma2]

We used 'The DVC Rental Store' for an Aulani stay last July. We worked with Lauren and we're very happy with the service. She checked in with us a few times leading up to our stay (reminder for full payment, follow up for any special requests, etc). I wouldn't hesitate to use the agency again.

 

[sleepymouse]

We are considering renting a 1 bd at AKL through the DVC rental Store. Checked with Dave's first but they didn't have anything available on or around our dates. Anyone used the DVC rental store? Haven't found much on them.

If David's said there was no availability, then it wouldn't matter if you contact another agency or individual. There is simply no availability. If there were availability, but they did not have the available points to make the reservation, then it would be worthwhile to look elsewhere.

 

[Cinderpamela]

We are considering renting a 1 bd at AKL through the DVC rental Store. Checked with Dave's first but they didn't have anything available on or around our dates. Anyone used the DVC rental store? Haven't found much on them.

As sleepymouse said.... if its a matter of the rooms all being booked then going with another agency wont help.

You did not say how far out in advance you were trying to book. With DVC rentals you need to be booking at 11 months to 7 months out mark.... after the 7 month mark the availability gets very spotty, unless you are going during a DVC slow time of year. DVC slow times can be completely different from traditional hotel slow times, some of the busiest DVC times are when the rooms cost the lowest amount of points, or when there is a RunDisney event, or WDW Food and Wine, ect.

 

[MichaelaF]

We rented points for VWL last October and had a great experience. Few bullet points:

-We wanted a 2BR villa for a week, and tried to go through David's first. They were very prompt and helpful, but they didn't have the points available for us to book it. (I was booking 9 months in advance at the time, but 2BR for 7 nights is a lot of points. They suggested coming back around the 7-month mark when more points opened up, but we were very worried the rooms would be booked by then.)

-After checking with a few private owners who were renting here on the Dis boards, we finally found an owner who not only had enough points, but was WONDERFUL and so friendly. I loved working with her!

-I mentioned this elsewhere on the boards and I got lots of choice words from DVC owners, but the upkeep on the DVC properties isn't as impeccable as the regular properties (even if they are at the same resort). Just because of how ownership and timeshares work, they do not get updates as often as the regular resorts do. So we were slightly surprised by some things looking a little threadbare and worn, a few things looking dated in comparison to the same resort's regular rooms. It was very clean and nice, and I still think very worth the money for the size of group we had to stay on property. And I would definitely do it again. And this doesn't apply everywhere - obviously newer properties like GF and BLT aren't going to suffer as much from it. I don't know specifically about GCV, but I would IMAGINE they are kept well, since it is the only DLR DVC property.

But I did wish I'd known that before I went. (*takes cover from angry DVC owners*)

-As others have said, it is very hard to rent points for GCV. I'd recommend trying to rent a week or two BEFORE the cut off (10 months for home resort owners). At this point, I would be surprised if anyone could get any points to stay there in 2014, unless it were last-minute, someone needing to dump points due to a cancellation or something.

-I do think that, unlike WDW, there are some other decent, affordable options around DLR for larger groups to stay in off-property. That's not the same as staying at GCV, I know! But if push comes to shove, there are some decent options nearby. For a large group (6+) I would definitely look at some of the properties on Airbnb. They have some walkable-distance, full house or condo properties that are affordable. You may also be able to rent points from Worldmark owners, which has a property within (longish) walking distance from DLR, and offers up to 3BR villas.

 

[bbeagle]

We rented a GCH 2-bedroom villa in February 2014 from David's. Wonderful experience!

We were hesitant at first - how do we manage to get a room with a view of the park, a kitchen, balcony, on Disney property, free self parking, no taxes, all for HALF the price of a 1-bedroom small hotel room at the GCH? (We had 2 parties and split a $664/night 2-bedroom suite - cost $332/night INCLUDING TAXES per family. The going rate for a single room with no view, no kitchen, etc. was $550/night PLUS 20% taxes = ~ $650). We both had our own private bedrooms with showers and bathrooms, with locking doors, with a middle kitchen/living room area which was so relaxing. We watched World of Color from our rooms half the nights we were there (6 nights).

It sounded too good to be true, so I researched it a LOT over a period of a month. I read these boards here, and many other message boards. I asked an aunt who was a DVC member about it as well.

The Pros:

* You're treated as a DVC member - YOUR name is on the room reservation, the person who booked the rental in your name is never mentioned, nor on any Disney paperwork that I saw, just YOUR name.

* You get the DVC perks like free self parking (saved us $15 a day!).

* No taxes or fees added to your hotel room (vs. about 20% in taxes for a hotel reservation) - the price you paid long before is the final price.

* Amazing rooms with a very good chance of getting an amazing view vs. a regular room where you might not

* Great location within GCH guaranteed, luck of the draw with another regular hotel room.

* FULL kitchen with full-sized refrigerator, stove, oven, microwave, large seating area, pull out couches. Our 2-bedroom sat about 10 people in the 'living room'.

* Washer and Dryer

The Cons:
* You need to know your travel dates more than 7 months out. Call David's at 8 months out, and they will work to get the reservation at EXACTLY 7 months out. (For the GCH, there aren't many people who rent GCH points, so it's tougher to get a reservation at 11 months than 7 months when ANY points can be used for the reservation)

* You need to pay in FULL at that time. If you're booking through Disney you don't pay right away.

* If you're a worrier, you might worry that the person who made your reservation changed or cancelled it. You can't see the GCH reservations online like you can at the WDW resorts. Going through someone like David's is less of a worry, because you'll get your money back if someone ever does that, and David's says nobody ever has.

* Can't cancel the reservation.

* No maid service. Can pay for it if you like, or order additional towels, etc. for a price, otherwise you need to wash your towels in the washer/dryer inside the suite.