Using DVC Points for Non-Disney Resorts Question

[sherilah]

Hello,

My husband and I just put in a resale bid on an SSR timeshare. We live in CA and recently took our 3 year old to Disneyland for the first time, and ended up going to the timeshare presentation. We were blown away by the presentation, but are now having second thoughts on our purchase. We have a few days to back out of the contract.

Here is my question: How difficult is it to book non-Disney resorts, such as resorts in Mexico, Hawaii, Bahamas, etc. We usually book our summer vacations 3 or 4 months in advance. We will MOSTLY be using our points at NON DVC resorts. I'm sure we'll do a few trips to WDW in our lifetime.

Should we back out? Our concern is that, since we will barely be going to WDW, will we be able to get into the non-disney properties w/o a problem? We usually stay at high end resorts, such as Four Seasons, etc...

Any thoughts would be GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!

Sheri

 

[rinkwide]

...Should we back out?...

Faster than a tick with a match to it's butt.

 

[sherilah]

Faster than a tick with a match to it's butt.

Can you give me the reasons why we should back out???? We've been going back and forth. The pending purchase was resale at a really good price....

Thanks!

Sheri

 

[Dean]

Can you give me the reasons why we should back out???? We've been going back and forth. The pending purchase was resale at a really good price....

Thanks!

Sheri

You must make your own decisions but getting good resorts during peak times is difficult and not guaranteed by any means. You usually have to wait list and don't know if you'll get it or not until a few months out or less. HI, Atlantis, Marriott's in general are esp difficult to get and you'll only be able to manage a 1 BR in most locations if you're lucky. The program could also change or be taken away tomorrow. If this is a key component of your plan I'd back out and get more info, possibly buying less points just to use at DVC.

 

[Sheribo]

If your primary goal is to book outside of Disney property, then I'd suggest another timeshare option. DVC works best, both financially and for getting the resort you want, when you stay on property. Many people will tell you that it's time consuming and frustrating trying to book trips to major destinations through exchanges. They are often disappointed.

We bought DVC so that we knew exactly where we would be spending our school break every year. We don't do the parks in March but love spending our days enjoying the sun (lots of snow here) and the quality resort.

 

[MAO]

Dean and rinkwide have pretty much said it all. To me, it seems that the number of resorts available outside of DVC have decreased over the years (I know they have in the area I was interested in, at least.) The number of DVC owners has increased, which decreases your odds since you'll potentially be "fighting" with others over the limited options.

I don't know that you'll get too many responses. Pretty much the consensus here is that your best bet, monetarily, is to use DVC points for DVC resorts. Anything else usually translates to being/feeling overcharged. If it's a really, really, really good deal and you can afford it, you might want to keep it. Just one "really" wouldn't be enough for me, though. ;-o

 

[moredisneyplease]

Not to metion inflation of those points at non DVC resorts. See, DVC will never/can never up the points for the stays at the DVC resorts no matter what happens to the market and how much the dollar inflates over the next decades.......... a 1 bedroom villa at BCV will cost the same amount of points in 30 years as it costs now

HOWEVER those non DVC sites can continue to boost the amount of points needed to stay there as inflation gets higher and higher. EX: if a non DVC resort requires 41 points per night right now it may very well require 82 points a night in 15 years. There is no way for any of us to know how absurd these non DVC usages are going to become over the years. (on a side note, i personally think some are already way too high!!)

If you arent going to stay at DVC for the majority of your vacations then i dont think that this is a wise purchase for you and your family. You might want to look into a different kind of timeshare thats going to take you where you want to go.

Good luck to you!

 

[browniemtb]

Faster than a tick with a match to it's butt.

I love it

As been said, DVC makes more sense to use at DVC resorts with an occassional trade. If your plans are to vacation mostly outside of Disney look at the Marriot.......probably cost less as well.

 

[MAO]

Just a clarification -- I believe that the total number of points for a week at a resort can't change, but the points needed for a specific night can as long as the adjustment is made in multiple places so that the total is not increased. The overall sentiment, however, is correct; unlike resorts outside of DVC, there is basically a cap on how much it's going to "cost" you to stay. If you go into the situation planning on using your points to stay outside of DVC you may very well find yourself in ten years without enough points to stay anywhere. For example, the 1999 points for a stay at the Royal Garden hotel in London, UK was 38 points a night for a "superior" room. Now it is anywhere from 52 to 64 points a night.

 

[Lisa P.]

If you want to travel to other destinations fairly often, look at other timeshare systems. There are fixed week timeshares with similar trade power to DVC that will cost only $2,000-$5,000 to purchase and carry annual fees under $600. These will trade at least as well as DVC. Feel free to email or PM me about some of these. This is a prime reason that DVC is not a great value as a trading ownership.

Then there are other timeshare systems, in which you could purchase a well-priced resale (points or week) for under $5,000-$10,000 and get reservation priority or II trading priority at resorts in your desired destinations. For info on these various systems (some points, some branded weeks) and general timeshare info, visit the forums at TUG - Timeshare Users Group and learn more before you buy.

For now, I'd definitely cancel your purchase contract. DVC is great for people who plan to use it primarily at DVC resorts. It will still be there if you decide that you really want it, after learning more and making an informed decision. HTH!

 

[SuzanneSLO]

We usually book our summer vacations 3 or 4 months in advance. . . .

Timeshares, including DVC, usually work best for those who can and will book many months in advance. Booking for DVC opens 11 months out and some room categories for some time periods will be sold out that very day. Other timeshares allow booking even farther in advance. The conventional wisdom is that you will maximize your chance of getting a trade to another timeshare (given the property you are using to trade) by making the request more than a year in advance.

While you can save money on many accomodations by using a timeshare, there is a "cost" compared to making cash reservations in terms of limited flexibility and greater inconvenience.

Best of luck in your decision -- Suzanne

 

[sherilah]

Thanks everyone for their replies. We cancelled our purchase and are now researching other timeshare opportunities.

You all helped us make our final decision and we are confident about what we decided to do!

Sheri

 

[drakethib]

Hello,

My husband and I just put in a resale bid on an SSR timeshare. We live in CA and recently took our 3 year old to Disneyland for the first time, and ended up going to the timeshare presentation. We were blown away by the presentation, but are now having second thoughts on our purchase. We have a few days to back out of the contract.

Here is my question: How difficult is it to book non-Disney resorts, such as resorts in Mexico, Hawaii, Bahamas, etc. We usually book our summer vacations 3 or 4 months in advance. We will MOSTLY be using our points at NON DVC resorts. I'm sure we'll do a few trips to WDW in our lifetime.

Should we back out? Our concern is that, since we will barely be going to WDW, will we be able to get into the non-disney properties w/o a problem? We usually stay at high end resorts, such as Four Seasons, etc...

Any thoughts would be GREATLY APPRECIATED!!!

Sheri

As a DVC owner and reading what you would want to use DVC for I would tell you it is not worth it. JMHO

 

[kfalsey]

it is also very hard to trade from a marriott into dvc. According to II almost impossible. In the Marriott system, Marriott has an advantage in II. In the Marriott system you must decide whether you want a timeshare as a good trader or one that is a destination resort that you will always go to. For instance, Hawaii, Koolina was last year the best trader, you can get at least 2 weeks for it, plus sometimes a bonus week. Marco Island is a good trader now, but is more of a destination resort, world wide will not be a good trader in the long term. Whereas Hawaii , Koolina in many of the contracts there is a guaranteed provision that you can get an extra bonus week if you trade it. I had called II last year and they told me which ones at that time had the bonus weeks. But, Marriott you can only go in on certain days and can only use your week. Can not go for 5 days, you use up your week. Marriotts are fancier than dvc inside, glass coffee tables etc. There has been many successful trades out of disney

 

[tomandrobin]

Thanks everyone for their replies. We cancelled our purchase and are now researching other timeshare opportunities.

You all helped us make our final decision and we are confident about what we decided to do!

Sheri

Great choice for you! Now head on over to tug2.net and spend the next couple months researching and reading about timeshares.

 

[littlestar]

You might find that with you only being able to plan 3 or 4 months out that a timeshare won't work for your family. Renting/cash may be better for your situation. You can rent from owners on Redweek.com - I think it costs about $15.00 to be a member.

 

[Dean]

it is also very hard to trade from a marriott into dvc. According to II almost impossible.

If you can do a 1 BR or less and avoid about 3-4 high demand weeks it's actually fairly easy to trade in to DVC and getting easier all the time.

 

[Lisa P.]

Littlestar is right, it's harder to make timeshares work for you when you tend to make your plans only a few months ahead. Most timesharers need to plan more like a year out, if they want to vacation when the masses want to vacation.

it is also very hard to trade from a marriott into dvc. According to II almost impossible.

My personal experience and that of many others on TUG - Timeshare Users Group do not bear this out any longer. It's almost impossible if you want to stay in a 2BR during Premier season or in a 3BR GV. But if you just want to stay in studios or 1BRs, with a good trade week and some flexibility regarding which DVC resorts are okay with you, it's really not that hard. 2BRs are even possible during offseasons. It used to be much harder but as the DVC Member numbers grow, so do the number of II deposits of DVC weeks.