Where did you use your points the very first time, and why?

[kboo]

We will be planning our first stay as BLT owners over presidents week 2018. We want to save some points for another trip over thanksgiving, so we're looking at a studio if we stay at BLT. But I've heard the BLT studios are really small, and we will have a 6 year old and a 2 year old. DH wants our "first" owners' stay to be at our home resort, though I'm wondering about the size of the studios. Wondering what other people did, and why?

 

[TCRAIG]

We will be planning our first stay as BLT owners over presidents week 2018. We want to save some points for another trip over thanksgiving, so we're looking at a studio if we stay at BLT. But I've heard the BLT studios are really small, and we will have a 6 year old and a 2 year old. DH wants our "first" owners' stay to be at our home resort, though I'm wondering about the size of the studios. Wondering what other people did, and why?

Our first trip was a 1br at OKW. Mainly because they were the first DVC, had the largest rooms and cost the least amount of points...having stayed at all the WDW DVC (except Poly - there's just me and the Hubs but we don't like studios - not enough space) being our first stay -OKW will always feel like 'home' to us - it's still the Hubs favorite

 

[Jelly563]

We already had a cash reservation booked when we added on additional days (poly). They were able to combine them, so we did not have to move. I dont understand the drama about studios because a hotel room always feels like a hotel room to me. I could not tell the difference between 396 sq ft vs 319 sq ft. I do know Poly wastes a LOT of extra space in the one bathroom. If you bought BLT then book BLT. You will prob spend most of your time in MK anyway (since the kids are young) as they grow out of it you can slide over to the Epcot side.

 

[jekjones1558]

If you can make a stay at your home resort work, stay there. I think there is a bond that develops with that first stay. As the years roll by, you may find that the 11 month window becomes very important during busy DVC seasons. Feeling happy to be at your home resort, when switching to another doesn't work out, is very comforting.

 

[miTnosnhoJ]

Our first stay was at Poly for Christmas, because we bought at VGF and Christmas was already sold out that year at VGF (was already in the 7 month reservation period.) Poly was great, and we could see our "home" from there.

Poly studios are pretty large, for a studio.

 

[lovin'fl]

We bought 200 OKW resale in the spring of 2006. Got use of our points around end of May. Booked a trip for third week in September of that year the very day we got use of our points. We are a family of 5 and our kids were 7, 7 and 9 at the time and we wanted to bring my mom. So we got a 2BR at BWV. We wanted BCV but it was not available. At that time there were only these resorts for DVC: OKW, BWV, BCV, VWL and SSR. All of which had studios and 1BR that slept 4 at that time. You could, and still can, book 5 in the 1BR but had to bring towels and airbed and sheets for 5th. After that first DVC stay, we would go as family of 5 and get a 1BR and bring airbed for DS. Until 2011, when we began getting 2BR. Now, with kids all about to be in college and being busy, we do many studio trips with 2-4 family members.

DH and I did a BLT studio. It is small. But your kids are little still. It's smaller than a regular hotel room and similar to a cruise ship cabin, if you have been, but a little larger than a cruise cabin due to the galley kitchen which you don't get on a cruise cabin. I like the layout with that galley kitchen because you can do make up in the mirror there while someone is in the shower. Also allows for more storage and ability to have some meals in room. The pull out is small but your kids are small still. My twin DDs-18, almost 5'9", share a bed at hotels all the time and would kill each other if they had to share the BLT pull out.

EDIT TO ADD: We did not stay at our home OKW until 2009....3 years after buying. We also added points at other resorts since...BWV as it became a fave and we like Food and Wine trips and HHI after a lovely stay there. So all the resorts are good and you will get to your home resort eventually. I now use BWV and HHI to book strictly there at 11 months and use my OKW all over at 7 months.

 

[crisi]

Our first trip was in 2003 (or around there) in a BWV Boardwalk View two bedroom with our two kids, my mother in law and her sister. We own BWV.

Why? Because in our previous cash trip, my parents were able to join us for a few days - and the joy grandparents get out of seeing young kids at Disney is truly precious. My mother in law would have never afforded it on her own, and wouldn't have gone without company. With four adults and two children, a two bedroom was needed, and since we were able to reserve eleven months out, we picked at Boardwalk View room.

We've stayed at three other DVC resorts since then (VWL, BCV and HHI) - and BWV is still home.

We've never stayed in a studio.

 

[bumbershoot]

Bought bay lake just after we could have been on the original members fountain (which has a massive typo that apparently no one official has caught). So, mid 2009.

First points-usage was at grand Californian *hotel*. Where we learned that I don't like staying there. But we'd gotten developers points that needed to be used and it was my birthday during the "free on your birthday" year...

Second usage was OKW 2 bedroom hosting extended family.

It was only feb 2015 that anyone in the family stayed at bay lake. And it was just me (and my cousin). Same combo this feb. DH says he would someday like to stay there lol.

But even just with me and my cousin those studios are so small! The idea of my family of three staying there (especially since my 12 yo is man size) makes me claustrophobic. Especially the "farmhouse door" bathroom situation. Shudder.

It's a romantic idea, to have your first stay be at "your" resort, but if you do NOT do it you'll see how unnecessary it is. Especially if you're squashing 4 humans into that space.

 

[DisneyKeepsUsYoung]

Our first points stay happened to be at our home resort but only because we booked it 45 days out and SSR or OKW were the only options. We had a trip planned to universal but our contract closed earlier than expected and came with expiring banked points so we canceled the Universal hotel and happily stayed for free at SSR. We want to try out several of the resorts over the years so we'd have been happy anywhere. It was nice to learn so quickly that we love our home and made the right choice since we had never even seen SSR in person when we bought it.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

We bought SSR direct in 2008 when we were staying at Dixie Landings as it was at the time and our first stay was the following year at our home resort. We bought where we wanted to stay and although we were excited to try other resorts later ( part of the joy of DVC ownership ) our first time we just had to book our home resort!

Lots of add ons later .... We still enjoy our home resort on a round robin basis.

 

[sanibel93]

Our first stay was at OKW in a GV, we wanted the 3 bedrooms and the size was bigger than any of the other GV's.

 

[Murron]

As DVC owners, our first ownership was the Disney Vacation Club (aka Old Key West) 1992.

 

[Cruisin Spartan]

SSR. Bought in late April '16, used points at Thanksgiving. Not much else in the way of availability. We did enjoy the stay though.

 

[drusba]

BWV. We bought BWV first part of 1997 when there was only OKW and BWV at WDW. Had actually gone through the sales presentation and decided against OKW (then known as the Disney Vacation Resort) in 1992 because desired to be closer to park and have a resort with more hotel-like amenities. First reservation was for a BWV standard view two bedroom which we reserved for five days, two months after we purchased. In the sale negotiations, I informed the sales rep I would likely purchase but would do so at the time if, and only if, I could get that reservation for standard view for the time I wanted. The sales rep quickly arranged it.

 

[CarolynFH]

OKW and BWV were the only DVC resorts at WDW at the time, so our first stay was at our home BWV. We bought in November, closed & got our points in February (processing direct sales moved more slowly way back when, I guess) and immediately booked a 1-BR Spring Break trip for the following month, as well as a 3-night Disney cruise and 5 nights in a 2-BR for that Thanksgiving. (From then on, we were always borrowed ahead!)

 

[DMPicone]

Bought 100pts at Bay Lake Tower in 2014 and my first DVC stay was at the Grand Californian for 10 nights in September/October 2015. My second was a conversion for use in Disneyland Paris for 5 nights in October 2016. This November I'll finally be staying in WDW with points for the first time and have Bay Lake booked for 9 nights!

 

[mdelano4]

Our first trip was to home resort, SSR, for a couple of reasons. First, I felt like your husband, wanting to make first stay at home resort. We were familiar with the area, because we used a relative's time share and swapped into OKW a couple of times before. Second, we didn't have any experience anywhere else, so it seemed like the sensible place to start as owners.

Now, we swap out to BWV or AKV if we can, but if we can't, we have no issues going back to SSR. That said, we have a couple of friends who own there and have never been. Not sure why, but they will only stay elsewhere. To each his/her own I suppose.

 

[BillPA]

1st trip was at The Disney Vacation Club resort, later they changed the name to OKW. That was in 1993. Since then we have 50+ trips, staying at all but VGF at WDW, OKW is still our favorite, it's the only one that really has a "home away from home" feel.

 

[bobbiwoz]

We had a December cruise out of Miami. We had bought DVC that summer, and could not bear to be in FL and not use our new points. We were lucky to get a post cruise weekend at our beloved VWL, Dec 19, 2003! The first night of many happy ones!

 

[WDWNY]

We stayed in a standard studio at BWV for a night, checked out on Thanksgiving and moved over to Swan. We knew we were going to be staying at the swan for years because it was for work. since they don't offer free transportation from MCO, we figured out it was costing us less to stay there using $14 points than paying for the room at Swan that night and a $60-$80 car service from MCO.