Whats your current view of Disney/DVC?

[tidefan]

We still enjoy DVC, but after 17 years, how we use it has changed. Since our DD is an adult now, there isn't the same park focus that used to be there in earlier years. In fact, we have not renewed our AP for the first time (by choice, it didn't renew during COVID, but that was a different story). We will not be paying for FastPasses, so that's out, so if we go into a park, its just to enjoy it and perhaps ride the occasional ride (though HM is a staple that we try to not miss).

What we find is that our usage has changed. Instead of wanting to be near parks, we are enjoying the places that can be destinations unto themselves, mainly Aulani, HHI, and VB, however, lately, we have discovered CFW and have enjoyed both of our stays there immensely. We'll alternate with CFW/VB/HHI/Aulani for a few years with occasional park visits thrown in, but I do see a day coming where we downsize our membership, and until maybe the past couple of years, I never thought I'd say that.

 

[gsdweller]

Disney and DVC are still both great for us.
The reality is, there has never been a "Golden Age" for enjoyment at Disney. Back in the 80s 90s and 2000s it was much more laid back and less crowded, but the rides were not that great. Now the rides are great, and the crowds are big. We go mostly to Disneyland (superior in most ways) but spend time in Florida and Hawaii as well.
We have gone several times and never entered the Park.

 

[3 DD love princesses]

I still love going. I have noticed it’s harder to get reservations now compared to a couple years ago. Kids could take it or leave it. Nothing is pulling them to want to go like it used to. Missing school for trips is getting harder on them as they have gotten older. Plus sports schedules mixed in makes it challenging to plan months in advance. Parks cost have gone up like everything else. We enjoy just visiting the resorts some trips. Saves on park ticket costs. Festivals help since we all want to try new foods.

 

[tgropp]

I still value and enjoy my DVC. Problem with me is for the amount of park price increases and takeaways, the magic is nowhere near the Disney Decade of the late 80’s and 90’s. Park entertainment has decreased while ride breakdowns has increased. Park staffing cutbacks have not helped

 

[davidhr]

I love Disney/DVC in general. I prefer the current reservation system for dining/LLs.

I don’t mind the high prices in general, but for a few years I was feeling the prices were too high and the investment in improvements wasn’t followings those prices. I feel that’s changing now and I’m ok with that.

 

[Brian Noble]

It is entirely possible to enjoy the theme parks without doing any advance planning (modulo the AP park reservation requirement) and without buying any virtual queue products. Are you going to waltz up to TRON at 11:30 in the morning and walk on? Not unless you pay for it. But, that's not the only way to have a good time. And even the park reservations are often not a big deal for most of the year these days.

Think of it this way: What is the point of a WDW vacation? Is it to ride a bunch of rides? Or is it to get away from the day-to-day cares of life and possibly spend some time enjoying the company of friends and family? If it is the former, then (with apologies to Mr. Six) More Rides equals More Fun. But, if it is the latter, the rides are just the setting in which the action happens. And, really, they are just part of the stage, along with the resorts, the restaurants, the shops, etc.

I find that when I genuinely internalize this, my trips are SIGNIFICANTLY more enjoyable. I spend less time fretting, and more time just hanging out, goofing around, and enjoying myself. The vacation costs $X. Park tickets are just part of that total, and there is no inherent reason to squeeze every moment of value out of them.

The gift of being a DVC owner is that you know you can come back. Disney is very good at convincing us that our Vacations Are Ruined unless we do All Of The Things. Nothing has to happen this trip. Nothing is a must-do.

I tend to pick a handful of splurges each trip, and those change from trip to trip. One year I was with a group that was not going to be into sitting on concrete and waiting for a good spot for HEA, so I splurged on one of the dessert parties. Was it worth it? Not if I measure it by how much we ate or drank---especially because a few of us were either sober or under age. But it made it easy for us to all enjoy the fireworks together in a low-stress way, so it was worth every penny. For my trip in a month or two, I'm planning to buy the Premiere Pass for Studios on a sleep-in day, and myabe Multi Pass for a day in the Magic Kingdom, but the rest of the trip will be much lower-key.

I'm not really sure what Disney can do to drive DOWN demand for certain events and features.

There is a $imple $olution.

 

[PetePanMan]

After many years of DVC and a parks first focus with kids, we are now in a new phase of life …retired with adult children and one new grandson.

We still enjoy the resorts, restaurants and atmosphere but have far less interest in parks, rides and attractions. We still enjoy parks but the costs are almost getting silly and , as a result, the value just isn’t there for us anymore. Trips to Italy, Spain, Japan etc. do not cost much more. We will likely continue to bring family for parks focused trips but these will be less often (every 2-3 years)

We are now doing more resorts only trips that combine pools, patio time, , restaurants, trips to beaches / springs, etc. along with the odd special Disney nights (e.g. MVMCP etc.).

We absolutely love Aulani and will continue to go there even more frequently in the future ( If you haven’t gone, you really should try it. It’s amazing).

 

[DonkeyHoTay]

...the rides are just the setting in which the action happens. And, really, they are just part of the stage, along with the resorts, the restaurants, the shops, etc.

I find that when I genuinely internalize this, my trips are SIGNIFICANTLY more enjoyable. I spend less time fretting, and more time just hanging out, goofing around, and enjoying myself. The vacation costs $X. Park tickets are just part of that total, and there is no inherent reason to squeeze every moment of value out of them.

This is exactly my philosophy every time I visit. I am well past the point where I need to squeeze every dollar out of my theme park tickets. Sometimes I just hang out at the resort pool and do nothing all day! Those are usually the best trips for us. I have noticed the full kitchens in the villas have led to less resort/theme park dining and the nice dinners out are that much better when we are snacking and light cooking in the villas.

 

[lowlight]

Disney- still love it, still too expensive, still going 1-2 times a year for the foreseeable future.

DVC- I dipped my toes into renting from other people for an extra trip last year and it was so easy and so cheap that it (along with other things) broke the DVC illusion for me. I really wish I tried renting before purchasing. I think a lot of people do mental leaps to justify how owning makes sense (and for a small percentage it definitely does), but renting really removes all the barriers and stress. You get 11 month priority at every resort, you don’t have to go every year or rent your points out, and someone books the room and date for you, you can find rentals for a little more than dues would be on the points, so what more could you ask for? I think DVC has caught onto this with what we’ve seen from the Cockroach Trust documents, and may offer something like that in the future, but again, why buy the cow when you get the milk for cheap with renting?

 

[Chili327]

Disney- still love it, still too expensive, still going 1-2 times a year for the foreseeable future.

DVC- I dipped my toes into renting from other people for an extra trip last year and it was so easy and so cheap that it (along with other things) broke the DVC illusion for me. I really wish I tried renting before purchasing. I think a lot of people do mental leaps to justify how owning makes sense (and for a small percentage it definitely does), but renting really removes all the barriers and stress. You get 11 month priority at every resort, you don’t have to go every year or rent your points out, and someone books the room and date for you, you can find rentals for a little more than dues would be on the points, so what more could you ask for? I think DVC has caught onto this with what we’ve seen from the Cockroach Trust documents, and may offer something like that in the future, but again, why buy the cow when you get the milk for cheap with renting?

I'm curious what you paid per point and what dues are similar?

 

[Miffy]

WDW: Still love it. Still love going there and being there. It's my escape from the real world, like living inside a fairy tale. There are things I miss--like free FP+ and DME--but their absence doesn't destroy my enjoyment. We now stay at POFQ instead of AKL most of the time, but that's okay.

DVC: Never purchased this. The time was never right and now I wouldn't. Bounceback is a good deal and we take full advantage. Also, I've always preferred the flexibility of a plain old room-only reservation.

 

[lowlight]

I'm curious what you paid per point and what dues are similar?

I forget what the 1BR worked out to be, roughly 11 dollars a point. There are deals all the time on Facebook and other places if you really take the time to look.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

IMHO not so much DVC, but rather Disney has slipped.
They use to raise the bar for the theme park industry. They are still on top, but instead of them raising the bar, they are doing minimal to keep their heads above water as others excel.

Examples:

- Remember the Poly..?? The beautiful waterfall in the lobby, and if you go back far enough, they had live exotic birds to go along with it. Remember the lush stream in back of the Great Ceremonial House, now replaced with a putting green?? (Movie area).

- Remember the parade at Epcot, Tapestry of Nations? How about the Fife & Drum at the US pavilion?
Remember “Ladies & Gentleman, Boys & Girls…”?

- Remember Cinderella Castle actually had a mote?

- And my personal favorite, Pleasure Island. Specifically the Adventurers Club (best Disney attraction ever, but it happened to be a bar). Also Comedy Warehouse.

There are many more….
It’s truly sad.

 

[PoohBears#1fan]

For the first time in 23 years I'm feeling a little fed up with it, the paid add ons, haven't helped, but the main thing for me is that how the UK (and presumably other non US members) are made to feel like 2nd class members.

We're not eligible for MMB (not that I'd be paying for it anyway, but still it's another kick in the teeth) - although this seems to depend on which CM you speak to.
No referral rewards - and yes I understand there are tax implications for this.
Can't pre order Magic Bands
Can't book LLs in advance
Can't book ANY events in advance without downloading a VPN.

The exchange rate isn't in our favour at the moment either so that's also not helping, I'm actually thinking of selling one or two of our contracts.

It upsets me as there's a LOT of negativity amongst UK members every time there's something new that we're excluded from and I always try to remain positive as we've had so many wonderful years of memories from it.

 

[McCrae]

My planning really hasn't changed much over the years. I mean, we'd have made dining reservation and FP+ reservations anyway, This isn't really different, with the excption of having to 1) make an AP park reservation and 2) with LL you have to pay for the FPs.

We always had to decide what park on a given day to make the dining and FP+ reservations. Now it is just the extra step of reserving a park day.

I was under the impression that you no longer need to reserve a park day if you have park tickets for the dates of your trip and are staying in a DVC property. Have I got this wrong?

 

[McCrae]

For the first time in 23 years I'm feeling a little fed up with it, the paid add ons, haven't helped, but the main thing for me is that how the UK (and presumably other non US members) are made to feel like 2nd class members.

We're not eligible for MMB (not that I'd be paying for it anyway, but still it's another kick in the teeth) - although this seems to depend on which CM you speak to.
No referral rewards - and yes I understand there are tax implications for this.
Can't pre order Magic Bands
Can't book LLs in advance
Can't book ANY events in advance without downloading a VPN.

The exchange rate isn't in our favour at the moment either so that's also not helping, I'm actually thinking of selling one or two of our contracts.

It upsets me as there's a LOT of negativity amongst UK members every time there's something new that we're excluded from and I always try to remain positive as we've had so many wonderful years of memories from it.

I am from the U.K. and some of your concerns are not correct. If you are a DVC member you can book LL’s in advance, you need to call member services.
You don’t need a VPN to book events. Any problems call member services.

Most of the benefits you pay for in MMB are provided as a free add on when you buy Disney tickets in the U.K.

 

[Chuck S]

I was under the impression that you no longer need to reserve a park day if you have park tickets for the dates of your trip and are staying in a DVC property. Have I got this wrong?

Annual Pass Holders still need Park Reservations, daily dated ticket holders do not.

 

[xdan0920]

As far as DVC goes I am real negative right now on lack of availability which imo is directly related to commercial spec renting (not opening another debate just stating my opinion)

Careful, thread will be shut down.

 

[Chuck S]

For the first time in 23 years I'm feeling a little fed up with it, the paid add ons, haven't helped, but the main thing for me is that how the UK (and presumably other non US members) are made to feel like 2nd class members.

We're not eligible for MMB (not that I'd be paying for it anyway, but still it's another kick in the teeth) - although this seems to depend on which CM you speak to.
No referral rewards - and yes I understand there are tax implications for this.
Can't pre order Magic Bands
Can't book LLs in advance
Can't book ANY events in advance without downloading a VPN.

The exchange rate isn't in our favour at the moment either so that's also not helping, I'm actually thinking of selling one or two of our contracts.

It upsets me as there's a LOT of negativity amongst UK members every time there's something new that we're excluded from and I always try to remain positive as we've had so many wonderful years of memories from it.

Not ALL US Members can get referral rewards, many states do not allow it.

 

[PoohBears#1fan]

Not ALL US Members can get referral rewards, many states do not allow it.

Oh really? I didn’t realize that.