What changed?

[jerseyduke]

Since OKW open, what has changed?

Direct Vs. Resale....direct has some ways to use points that "DVC can take away at any time"...have they taken anything away? Have they added things?

Just curious as to what has changed over 20 years...

 

[Mickbee]

Since OKW open, what has changed?

Direct Vs. Resale....direct has some ways to use points that "DVC can take away at any time"...have they taken anything away? Have they added things?

Just curious as to what has changed over 20 years...

- Resale: Several years ago Disney revoked the right (right term?) for resale contract to use points for the Disney Collection, Adventure Collection and DCL cruises

- The DVC Golf card went away

- Early on there was a some sort of a free park pass incentive

I'm sure there is more I'm not recalling.

 

[Deb & Bill]

They tore down the Commodore House at OKW (sales office) and built Bldg 62, 63 and 64 with elevators.

They readjusted the transfer rule back to one transfer in or out a year (it was that way in 1997 when we bought, people started doing multiple transfers in and out - plus the home resort and UY was kind of lost in the shuffle).

Added several resorts. Deleted a few - Eagle Pines for one and reduced the size of VB.

Changed from RCI as the trading company to II, then back to RCI.

Started nearly yearly point adjustments from many years of no adjustments except for Easter.

Took out the sales office at BWV and added new villas.

Tore down Disney Village and built SSR, plus added the sales office there.

Changed a vice president of DVC to president of DVC back to vice president of DVC.

Increased the size of the sales staff.

Limited the number of contracts a single person could be an Associate member on.

 

[Mickbee]

Ohhh... they also modified the banking options. Previously there were multiple windows/percentages to banking deadlines throughout the year. This was modified to a single banking window deadline per year.

 

[crisi]

Perks have changed numerous times. When we joined there was a discount on the length of stay passes - now the discount is on the AP - the old discount worked better for us, but the new one works well for a lot of people.

We got free valet parking for a number of years.

I have heard that in the early days of OKW, the decor was homier - I hear that the towels weren't white and there were knicknacks - that sort of thing. But towels and knicknacks get stolen.

You used to be able to pool hop anywhere - pool hoping has become more and more restricted with each new resort, and it wouldn't surprise me if it were done away with all together.

When the dining plan was first released, it was only available as part of a package with a room - not available to DVC - that was changed about a year later.

 

[Simba's Mom]

Well, one big change was that they built that D**** pool slide at OKW! I remember it happened shortly after we became members and one day when we walked in to the Gurgling Suitcase and politely said "Hello" to the man sitting next to us, he spent the next 15 minutes or so chewing our ear off about the "terrible" decision DVC had made, "they didn't even ask us","actually they did ask us and we said we didn't want it but they built it anyways", etc. Undoubtedly his biggest change for the negative. I know the prices per point have more than doubled, keeping values up!

 

[com_op_2000]

Free passes to the parks from the time we bought in '93 till 12/31/99. We had park hopper passes good for all parks for 1/2 the maximum number of people in a room (IE: Studio - 4 people, 2 passes; GV - 12 people, 6 passes)
Dropped free valet parking at BWV and DVC did this without any advanced notice. One day you found the cost of valet parking on your room tab and you never knew that it was coming.

 

[rcchello]

. We had park hopper passes good for all parks for 1/2 the maximum number of people in a room (IE: Studio - 4 people, 2 passes; GV - 12 people, 6 passes)

All the parks that existed when the offer was made. Disney Animal Kindom was not included. Animal Kingdon opened in 1998.

 

[vakamalua]

The biggest change has been decreasing availability and the need to plan as far out as possible. Also, with the large and increasing number of adults with no kids along, there are really no down times at the DVC resorts.