thinking about it.........

[ohMom]

and I have a couple questions up front:

1) what are benefits (besides price) of buying resale?

2) how many years will my points be valid? if I buy resale am I buying into that contract and take on their end date?

3) where can I find a pt calculator for DCL?

4) do you find you spend less on food, souveiners, etc knowing you'll be going back soon?

5) where would I see what other resorts are included in DVC? beyond WDW

TIA -- i'm such a newbie on this!

 

[Pa@okw95]

You will get the same end -date that the contract you buy has which for most is 2042, SSR has a end date of I belive to be 10 years longer. I am not going to go in a long song and dance here about your question about spending less money except to say I have made 17 trips to WDW since becoming a member, sometimes going as much as 3 times a year from CT. Going to WDW for me is an expense, I eat at the best places, etc, so I spend far more money than I would have because I go more, then there are my guests that cost me also, their tickets to the parks, and some food, I don't pay for their transportation and most of their meals, but park tickets for guests can get expensive. I would say that you will go more and spend more than you would without being a member. Most people say it is a savings, I say it is an expense, but the accomodations are great, the food is great, and so is the weather. Using your points for other resorts is not really a good deal, if buy do not buy for that, buy at the resort you want to stay at in WDW.

 

[DisneyBill]

By purchasing resale you are able to buy the resort where you will most want to stay. DVC is only selling SSR at present.
You will assume the same end date of 2042 upon buying resale. There isn't to my knowledge an available DCL point guide on these boards, however they do change each year and cruising via points requires alot of points.
Have you called DVC and asked them to send this information? They will give you current cruise point schedules. Other DVC resorts outside WDW are Hilton Head Island & Vero Beach. Been to www.disneyvacationclub.com ?

 

[donald@home]

1) what are benefits (besides price) of buying resale?
Disney is only selling SSR at this point. All other resorts are sold out and are only available via resale. So that is the only other advantage, besides a lower price.

2) how many years will my points be valid? if I buy resale am I buying into that contract and take on their end date?
All contracts (except for SSR which has a new end date) expire in 2042 no matter if you bought from Disney or via resale.

3) where can I find a pt calculator for DCL?
The cruise line points change each year. You have to wait and see what the increase is from year to year.

4) do you find you spend less on food, souveiners, etc knowing you'll be going back soon?
Personally, I don't buy as many "OH I MUST HAVE IT NOW" souveiners because the trips are not once in a lifetime (more like three times a year), and eating breakfasts, most lunches and a dinner or two using the full kitchen in the one bedrooms and larger save a bunch of money on food. But yes, because we go more we spend less more often. Every one is different on this.

5) where would I see what other resorts are included in DVC? beyond WDW
The only DVC resorts are Old Key West, Boardwalk, Villas at Wilderness Lodge, Beach Club Villas, Saratoga Springs and off property at Vero Beach and Hilton Head. You can of course stay all over the world through other programs associated with DVC. Contact a DVC sales rep if you haven't already and ask for information. All of the programs and resorts will be included.

 

[mikesmom]

The advantage to resale (besides the obvious cost) is that you may be able to get a resort that Disney has sold out of. If you would prefer to own (and thus have a 11 month reservation window) at Boardwalk, Beach Club, Wilderness Lodge or Old Key west, then resale is your only option.

On the question of whether you spend less, I am one of the people who does spend less because we have DVC. I can prove it - married to an accountant and you can be sure we know EXACTLY what is spent on a vacation (don't get me started).

Anyway, we always travel with a couple of teenage boys (now 21, but the principal is the same). We spend way less on food and snacks. We stock the kitchen with sodas, fruit, bottled water, ice cream, etc. I make a grocery stop and get rolls, deli meats, cheese and salad fixings. I make up nice deli sandwiches, tightly wrapped and the boys can grab snacks or sandwiches on their way to the parks or whenever they are hungry. It has cut way down on the expense of food in the parks. We still make 2 PS reservations per trip, the rest is food in the room. Even the restaurant meals work out better as you have a fridge for leftovers. Often the meals are large enough to have leftovers for the next day. Most of the grocery type expense I would be spending at home anyway - these boys need to be fed!

We buy way less souvenirs, also. We know we will be back, so "stuff" to commemorate the trip is not needed. We do tend to get a family photo each year.

 

[ohMom]

thank you so much for all the replies!!

i have requested the Disney info on line and they have called me twice already!! That's ok -- i'm not sure we are ready to take the plunge and don't know if SSR is the way for us. But I appreciate the knowledge of price increase in just one week!

I'm a bit overwhelmed with the idea of maintenance fees and taxes?? We would probably go once every 2-3 threes for now; until DDs are out of school (6th/1st) b/c we usually take them out of school and that's becoming harder as oldest gets into higher grades.

and I will admit I really really look forward to dining out at Disney and though I understand the practicality of eating in the villa, I don't know if I can resist the temptations! I'm sure I'd find a way if I know I'll be coming routinely until i'm in my 70s or 80s!

one more question -- how much discounts do DVC members get on park admission? can you buy tickets for guests traveling with you?

 

[dianeschlicht]

Originally posted by ohMom
thank you so much for all the replies!!

i have requested the Disney info on line and they have called me twice already!! That's ok -- i'm not sure we are ready to take the plunge and don't know if SSR is the way for us. But I appreciate the knowledge of price increase in just one week!

I'm a bit overwhelmed with the idea of maintenance fees and taxes?? We would probably go once every 2-3 threes for now; until DDs are out of school (6th/1st) b/c we usually take them out of school and that's becoming harder as oldest gets into higher grades.

and I will admit I really really look forward to dining out at Disney and though I understand the practicality of eating in the villa, I don't know if I can resist the temptations! I'm sure I'd find a way if I know I'll be coming routinely until i'm in my 70s or 80s!

one more question -- how much discounts do DVC members get on park admission? can you buy tickets for guests traveling with you?

If you would only plan to go once every 2-3 years, then DVC is probably not for you.

DVC members don't get much of a discount on admissions. We can get a 10% break on the length of stay passes, but we never use that option, since it is more expensive than buying an annual pass and getting 2-3 trips in on one pass.

 

[pumpkinboy]

Originally posted by dianeschlicht
If you would only plan to go once every 2-3 years, then DVC is probably not for you...

I hate to disagree especially with the wise and thoughtful DianeSchlicht, but I think with banking and borrowing 2-3 yrs would work quite well, esp with a smaller contract (like 150 pts).

It will also whet your appetite, possibly leading to add-on-itis as you find yourself sucked into the swirling vortex that is WDW, and soon you'll need to go 3 times a year ! So if you want to keep it to every 2-3 yrs, better not buy DVC, bcs if you do, you'll need to hit WDW more and more often.

 

[ohMom]

personally I could go to WDW twice a year hands down no problem!

and with DVC I could see that in my future, just not for a few years. For now I would bank and splurge with my family (maybe even a cruise though I know that's not points spent wisely) and then have some solo/girlfriend/DH trips for things I would only dream of going to see like Food and Wine festival; Flower and Garden show, etc.

other problem is I live 20 hrs driving distance away or $250 per person airflight! darn!

still contemplating.........i really do appreciate the various input, times like these I have trouble seeing any other side then mine

 

[garylpn]

just beware of addonitis, we bought bcv 4/03, added on dec 03, jan 04 and am waiting out rofr for 2 additional resales, 1 okw, 1 bwv, we bought dvc because i retired 3 years ago and found it increasingly harder to keep from going down every 6 months, we did many trips to fw in our trailer but decided after cs for a convention we wanted resort experience more, we started out with 2x a year, now i went back to work 2 days a week per diem just so i can buy airline tickets every 3 months, plus more points allows us to upgrade to 1 bedrooms more often, we do save some on food, mostly breakfast, some lunches, but no dinners so far, we like the dining out at wdw, plus with watching our weight a concern we tend to snack on fruits a lot all day and have a large salad in mid afternoon, then late suppers

 

[kramer_clan]

We bought at BWV a few years ago. We spent around $13,000 on 240 points at that time. We did receive a cast member discount since I was a cast member at local Disney Store at the time.

We are using three years worth of points this June for a 17 night stay in a two bedroom villa at the Boardwalk. My family is coming down in shifts to share the magic. I recently checked that this 17 night vacation would have been over $13,000 if we would have paid cash. Even with the maintenance fees over the three years, it is a heck of a deal.

The maintenance fees were the one thing that turned my husband off at first, but he is the one that decided to add on 260 points at SSR when we were in Disney last September.

If you decide to go for it, good luck......you won't regret it.

Vicki

 

[Merilyn]

We bought in 1993 but would have in 92 had we know about DVC. We vacationed at OKW in a 2 bedroom and paid cash. We wanted the kitchen and washer/dryer option. It cost us a lot then and that was 10 years ago. They have only gone up and the taxes have too. We now stay in a GV which is a 1000 a night. We never could have afforded it without DVC. That is 7000 a week plus tax. I don't even know what tax is but I am sure at least 15%. With DVC we can go for 13 days a year for the cost of dues and the up front cost. I would say that is quite a savings and the cost of a GV will only go up. We have traded to other locations and had very nice times. We try to go to WDW once a year and trade off once a year. We are headed to OKW/VB in May and Williamsburg in Oct. Last year we went to OKW and HH. The options are endless. I would say that it may or may not work for you. It really is up to you and you vacation plans. When you get the info you can decide for yourself. You might even try renting points and try one of the locations before you buy. It will spoil you!!! There is nothing like hearing "WELCOME HOME".

 

[AJKMOM]

To GARYLPN,
Let me get this right, you are retired, work 2 days a week for airfare, go to Disney from New York 3 times a year, and have 3 beautiful dogs that need a kennel 3 times a year! WOW, that must be one heck of a well paying job! Need an assistant? Haha.

 

[crisi]

One of the problems I see with your plan is that it requires variable points.

We have a 150 point contract and go every other year. We use about 300 points every other year and stay in a two bedroom.

Should we decide to go every year, we would need to downscale our accomodations or buy more points. Since downscaling our accomodations isn't an option now (too spoiled), we'd need more points.

Once we bought more points we'd have to use them. So if we wanted to scale back again, we'd have to sell points (which is why, if you buy a lot of points, buy them in small contracts - you can't break up a contract to sell off unwanted points).

DVC is great if you are going to average the same number of points per year over the life of the contract (or at least while you own it). It isn't, however, easy to say "we will take one trip every other year for ten years, then take two trips a year.").