Trading DVC for other resorts?

[DisneyKidds]

Who has used their DVC to trade for vacations outside of Disney? Where have you gone, how did it work? Does DVC trade thru Interval International, RCI, neither, both? I don't know much about timeshares.

We are considering DVC and other timeshares and I am curious. We vacation mostly at WDW, but it would be nice to go skiing once and a while .

Thanks for any thoughts.

 

[Ed T]

We have used our points on the cruise twice, we have used points for 4 nights in London at the Dorchester Hotel. This hotel is one of the top 10 in London, it was fabulous.

I know members that have used their points in Colorado and Utah to ski.

I sent you a private message so click on the pm button to pick it up.

Ed
DVC 1994

 

[dianeschlicht]

We are using points for an exchange to Hawaii in April. It was very easy and cost us only 160 points for a 1 bedroom with 2 baths.

DVC trades through II and do the trade for you.

 

[Luvmyfam3]

We are using our points for a trip to Tanque Verde in Arizona. It is a dude ranch and it includes our meals and all activities (horseback riding, tennis, guided hikes, kids program, etc.). We ended up needing one more day and it cost us $600 for one extra night!!! I can't imagine how much it would have been if we had paid cash for the whole trip!! We are leaving Thursday. Yea!!!

I'll let you know how it was when I get back! I love DVC!!!

Kim

 

[Dean]

If timeshare trading is your goal, you would be better with something other than DVC. There are too many restrictions and too high of a cost to do this on a regular basis. Same would go with the other points options like the cruise, other WDW hotels, etc. We'd love to have you as a member but you need to know what DVC is good for and what it's not. IT'S FOR STAYING AT A DVC RESORT and it works great for that. Cost effective and flexible if used appropriately. good luck.

 

[Werner Weiss]

Dean is an excellent source of information about timeshare trading. I agree that DVC is best for people who want to stay at DVC resorts.

However, it is possible to get excellent value from Interval International exchanges -- but it takes some advance planning, homework, and luck.

You handle II exchanges through DVC Member Services. II transactions are always full seven-night weeks (unlike Concierge Collection or Disney Collection transactions). If you pick the right timeshare resorts, you can get a week that really is comparable to a week at at DVC -- or better!

One of the DVC members on this board, Anita Williams, posted that she got a May week in a studio at the Four Seasons Resort Club Aviara in Carlsbad, California, for 55 points. That's a great value. The Resort Club shares facilities with the Four Seasons Resort Aviara, where rooms start at around $400 per night in the off season. (May is off season in Southern California.) Just 55 points for a whole week, not per night!

On the other hand, I'm sure there are cases where DVC member have given up hundreds of points for a 2-bedroom timeshare condo that don't begin to offer the quality or location that DVC members are accustomed to from stays at DVC resorts.

The points needed for Concierge Collection (deluxe non-Disney hotels) or Disney Collection (Disney hotels in Florida, California, and France) seem too high to me. But there are plenty of people on this board who have been very happy with the opportunity to use DVC points to spend a few days a hotels such as the Plaza in New York or the Broadmoor in Colorado Springs.

Finally, you can book the Disney Cruise Line with DVC points through the Disney Collection. That's what we're doing! This will be our first use of points outside a DVC resort. We're spending fewer than 600 points for a 7-night cruise that would otherwise cost more than $6000 (cash price with the early booking discount). Our only cash cost is the money we're spending anyway for annual DVC dues, the $75 transaction fee, and the tips on the ship (plus optional cash expenses such as wine and excursions).

 

[Dean]

Now that I have more time and Werner has expanded on what I wrote, let me explain a little. There are certainly certain items and exchanges that might be a good value. There are likely some 20 or 30 timeshare that would be worthy of a DVC trade and if you throw out Marriott, the number dwindles to around 10-15 or so. The reason to not count Marriott is that your standing in line behind ALL of the Marriott owners, even those that have off season weeks would be ahead of you. The points exchanges and actually the II exchanges are definitely not something to count on. The DC points saw a dramatic increase in points this year, at a time when there are great discounts. Obviously neither the discounts nor the exchange program itself can be counted on for the long haul.

I would suspect tht the upper cost cabins on the DCL would come closest to being an even swap but certainly wouldn't be a savings. No way would I pay $6000 for a cruise for 4 to the Caribbean and I wouldn't pay 600 points either unless I wouldn't be able to use them or rent them instead. Cruises typically discount the lower cabins much more than the upper ones and DCL is very high in cost anyway compared to other comparable cruises.

You can also use DVC for exchanges in the last 60 days prior to travel using a studio for a larger unit. There are however significant limitation to trading DVC. Besides the high cost of DVC and the high points for the trade, II trading is limited to only about 10% (roughly) of their resorts, you can't get a bonus week and you can't trade up in unit size nearly as well as directly through II. Also no wish book through DVC. The pluses are that you can do a request first and only give up if you get something, do it 2 years out and do have great trade power. You also don't have to pay a yearly fee and the trade fee is only $75 compared to $124 and $144 (I think that's the new price).

My original premise still stands. DVC is not appropriate when a major goal is trading, whether it's II or the ancillary points usage. Too high of a cost and many of the perks are both expensive and not guaranteed. Even in Werner's example, it's only a break even situation of cash vs points. Buy DVC only if staying at DVC resorts is the main reason you're buying and the other items are unimportant to you and will be used rarely.

 

[Merilyn]

We have traded to the Newport Beach Villas in CA. We have used point to stay at the Plaza in NY and the Jefferson in Washington. We plan on other trades as time goes on. We had a very nice 2 bedroom condo at Newport and it faced water. It is on a bluff so we were not on the water but could see it from our room. The Jefferson and Plaza are both very nice and great locations for sightseeing.

 

[tibia56]

I have exchanged for a week to be used in Jan.'02. The DVC promotional literature implies that exchanging is quite easy and straightforward. That was not my experience. Through this forum, I belatedly discovered that anything less than 12 months advance notice is considered as being "short notice." The more desirable properties tend to have poor availability. I have been told that mysearch was too narrow, because I wanted a beach condo on the Gulf of Mexico, but only considered Destin and Panama City (I didn't want to drive the extra 450 miles to reach a resort in Tampa, Sarasota, or Naples areas).

Exchanging is an option, but there are quite a few caveats that are not readily apparent.

RGS

 

[Caskbill]

Don't forget there are other ways to use your points other than the DVC resorts or going through an outside exchange.

For example, use points to book on the Disney Cruise Line.

Also, a few years ago, we used points to stay at Disneyland Paris, France. And that even included tickets into the park.