Originally posted by iluvtink
All this information is great. Y'all are wonderful!
This is what I have gleaned from your posts ... if we are dead set on staying at the Beach Club Villas, for example, it would be wise to buy at the Beach Club to better our chances of getting space there when we want.
In the interest of being ABSOLUTELY clear, owning at BCV means that you have exclusive booking priviledges for the period 11-8 months before your travel dates. When the 7 month window opens, all bets are off. Every single member can book any vacancies at any resort. We may just be saying the same thing in a different manner, but I just wanted to be clear given your "getting space there when we want" comment.
If we are flexible and can be happy anywhere, it would be better to buy a re-sale at, say, OKW at a lesser price.
I'll agree with that. The only other alternative I would consider would be SSR. With current promotions, you can get 49 years at SSR for $85 per point. A resale at OKW will get you 38 years for about $70 per point, plus closing costs and possible some maintenance fees. Just depends on whether you want to pay more for those additional years on the back end.
Do those of you who own Vero Beach or HH have trouble finding a spot at a non-home property at WDW in the summer - say a studio or one bedroom?
I don't own at either, but I'll try to answer. Vero and HHI owners get the same 7-month window at all resorts. Be careful of Vero. Points at VB can be had pretty cheaply on the resale market, but maintenance is much higher than any of the on-site WDW properties.
Regarding summer bookings, it's my understanding that the summer months are one of the easier times to book DVC accommodations. DVC memebers tend to gravitate to the low point seasons, along with some of the "event" time periods like the Food and Wine fest in the fall.
I also believe that One Bedroom accommodations are among the easiest to book. Based upon what I have read, studios tend to fill up first, followed by 2Bs, many of which are lockoffs requiring an empty Studio AND a 1B in order to book.
We can book any property except non-home DVC properties 11 months in advance, but places like Hawaii are tough to get. We can even ask for those properties a couple of years ahead of time? I'm understanding that only the non-home DVC properties have a 7-month window.
Your DVC comments are correct. Regarding other locations like Hawaii, there are a couple of different ways to do that. DVC has it's own exchange properties. Those, I believe, you book right through DVC. They have point values for each destination. You call MS and book just like a DVC resort. However there is a booking fee of like $95.
As Cruelladeville mentioned above, using points for stays at non-DVC resorts is not generally considered an "economical" use of your points. When you get a copy of the
point chart (see my comments below), you'll see what I mean. Generally speaking, you can get a One Bedroom at a DVC resort for LESS points than a standard room at a non-DVC hotel like the Grand Floridian or Poly. Even though the DVC and non-DVC resorts fall under the "Disney" umbrella, DVC is a separate entity and has to negotiate point trade values with the other resorts. Frankly, those trade values are not very good.
Many DVC members will occasionally pay cash to stay at other WDW properties to get their "fix" rather than using points.
Rather than going through DVC, you can also use your points to trade timeshare weeks through other organizations. I don't know a whole lot about this process, so I'll just stop there.
If we want to buy a re-sale, Disney has a ROFR and we might not get what we want. I'm curious how long it takes from when you decide to buy a re-sale 'til Disney gives you the thumbs up or thumbs down?
Correct. DVC's decision is based entirely upon the financial terms of the deal. If you happen to have a contract grabbed by ROFR, painful though it may be, the best course of action is to simply find another contract and make a new offer for $1-2 more per point. The only thing you really lose here is the time you spent negotiating with sellers.
DVC has 30 days to decide. Sometimes it happens quicker--other times they take the full 30.
My last question is, where is all this information in print? I haven't been able to find it in the package provided by the Disney Guide (yep, they talked to the kiosk person, and then to a real Guide.) I'd love to put on my reading glasses and read all the small print, if I could just find it!
Call DVC on Monday morning. They will have your names in the computer (based upon your husband's tour) and they can put you in touch with the Guide that gave the tour. Tell him you lost / never got the materials, and they will mail you a new set. You should get a 15-20 minute video that briefly outlines the program, DVC resorts, and other resort options for trade. IMO, it's a really informative video. I never would have gotten my wife to read all of the printed materials, but after seeing the video she was ready to buy.
You'll also get a lengthy, full-color book that details the point "costs" for different room types / seasons at the DVC resorts. It also lists the other hotels to which you can trade and basically everything else about how the program works.
Good luck, and don't be afraid to ask more questions.
iluvtink
