Vero Beach: Good or Bad long term or short term?

[tvwalsh]

I guess Disney would say that they should never have built the Vero Beach Resort. The land was expensive, the upkeep is high, future expansion was cancelled, land was sold off and, most importantly, it has been the slowest selling of the DVC resorts. I own 170 VB points. (I also own 230 OKW and 50 HH) Does anyone have opinions on whether this resort (VB) will be a good thing to own in the next 2 years? 5 years? 10 years? 20 years? Will it always be "Mickey's Folly?

 

[mrsdon]

IMHO VB is a hidden jewel in the DVC line.
I love the resort. I love the ocean inn rooms. I love the closeness of the ocean. I have 250 VB points and I am very happy to have them.

 

[sgtpet]

I imagine Disney will sell the property at some point in the future.

 

[mbhoxsie]

I'd have to agree... My family loves VB...

True.. The land and land is the most expensive, but alot of that is offsite in the higher dues that they collect from members.

It's also true that expansion across the road was cancelled and land was sold, but IMHO, the resort is better off because of it... It makes it smaller and more intimate...

As far as DVC unloading the property, DVC cannot sell our interests... Maybe one day, VB might be managed by Hilton or more than likely Marriot as DVC has worked with them in the past, but we'd still have the right to stay there.. What we would lose is the ability to use points to stay at the WDW resorts without going through II, but then maybe we'd gain the option to use whatever resorts the new management company has.. Personally, I own at both VB and BWV, so I know that I more than likely will always have the option of staying on WDW property. Plus I wonder that if DVC does ever sell the management over to another company, if our contracts would still end at 2042??

That being said, I tend to think that DVC will keep the property... With SSR and EP in the works, the number of members will be going up and up, and booking VB will become harder and harder. The VB property rounds out the collection quite nicely for members. It makes the overall values of our memberships more.

 

[CaptainMidnight]

Many CMs own at Vero as an option to get away from WDW for a while. I don't think it will be sold. Vero helps other DVC sales by letting members know there is an alternative to WDW only vacations at a reasonable point price. I'm also glad the land across the road was sold, I wouldn't have like to stay on the non-ocean side of the resort. Why sell, when the resort is sold out and dues pay for upkeep, there's no financial loss to the resort. Why tick off loyal customers who spend lots of $$$ at Disney? There's not a good reason to sell.

 

[ncligs]

I doubt DVC would ever sell VB, I think a "hurricane" would have a better chance of affecting VB owners than a sale.

We have 200 VB points to go along with our 300 OKW pts, so we would still have access to on-site at WDW,in case of a sale or "hurricane damage".

I think if you have any plans to make a make a reservation during peak times or want a "Beach Cottage" you will have to have the 11 month window to get them. We love the non-commando type atmosphere at VB.

 

[Richyams]

Many CMs own at Vero as an option to get away from WDW for a while.

When I did the HH tour, they were pushing HH, the CM told me that "He owned at HH, most of the sales staff did, the dues are lower and you can use the points anywhere you want!"

I guess the standard lie refered to VB when you toured.

 

[mbhoxsie]

Wouldn't it be possible that since most CM's already live and work in the Orlando area that they would want to own at both ??

 

[PamOKW]

I don't know that I've ever seen anything that indicates that Vero is a disappointment to Disney. I think what Disney did decide was not to go whole hog into the timeshare/hotel business. Vero and HHI were their first offsite properties and they may have realized that running a hotel chain was not something they wanted to get into. If they had gone ahead with the offsite plans, I think they would have more aggressively marketed the resorts to non-Disney people and probably would have increased sales.

I don't think they lost any money on Vero. If anything, the land they sold probably appreciated considerably over what they paid for it. That area has seen more development than when Disney began 10 years ago. Sales at Vero were slowed because of the continued building at WDW. But, it did continue to sell. There are many happy Vero owners and there are many people who enjoy the Vero/WDW or Vero/cruise comb.

And, I agree that if I were a CM at WDW I would prefer to have a vacation place away from "work".

.....didn't we just have a very similar discussion?

 

[ncligs]

Originally posted by PamOKW
Sales at Vero were slowed because of the continued building at WDW. But, it did continue to sell. There are many happy Vero owners and there are many people who enjoy the Vero/WDW or Vero/cruise comb.

Very well said Pam.

 

[stonewall]

CM's that I talked to either owned at VB or HH, none at WDW itself. This may be generalizing, but the older ones seemed to prefer VB and the younger HH. Could this have to do with the activities offered?

 

[CaptainMidnight]

Originally posted by PamOKW
I don't know that I've ever seen anything that indicates that Vero is a disappointment to Disney.

.....didn't we just have a very similar discussion?

Yep. For some reason, Vero owners are repetitively put in the position of defending thier resort from resort bashing, threats of it selling and dissassociation with WDW DVCs, and supposedly "lying" CMs .... yawn.....no new info here....

Vero owners, enjoy your wonderful vacations. Non-Vero owners, come visit our beautiful resort when you want a break from WDW, that's what it's for, to provide nice reasonable point options for all DVC owners desiring a beach vacation now and then. If it's not for you, no problem, that's why we have nice choices.

 

[KNWVIKING]

VB is a great resort and I don't know why DVD would ever need to sell it. It will eventually sell out and as long as owners continue to pay their dues,it should be self sufficant. Why sell ?!?

I won't ever need to buy points there because I would never stay there during peek seasons and I'm very confident the 7 month window will work fine for me.

I do wish they could improve the food at Sonya's, or maybe a more accurate statement: Wish the food quality would remain consistant. Too many posts of "terrible" to "great" food.

My sales guide never lied to me.