Why did you purchase DVC over purchasing Hilton or Marriott timeshare ? It looks like every other timeshare is wayyyy cheaper than DVC by the 1000s$

[FrancisK7]

So I spent a few hours yesterday looking into other timeshares and ended up feeling extremely disappointed.

Lots of the properties I was interested in (Xcaret Arte, Impression Moxche, Impression Isla Mujeres) are only available through memberships that basically give you nothing but a discount on rack rates. So you are prepaying discounted vacations in advance. No way to resell that membership, it's not a depreciating asset, it's not even an asset.

DVC appears unique on the market.

First because historically resale contracts have appreciated over time. And second because demand for Disney is so high you can easily rent your points at a profit the years you do not go or use your timeshare, so you are not locked into going once or twice a year not to lose out. There's absolute freedom.

My recent acquisitions were so good I can absolutely treat them as investments, and they are even good investments.

 

[limace]

Yes, I think the consensus on TUG is that the memberships mostly in Mexico are not a good idea. A really great service folks offer there on the TUG boards is a “where should I buy”-folks put where they want to go, when, how flexible, how much money they want to spend and members give ideas-and sometimes the idea is don’t buy, you’d be better off renting there. Just like DVC, my advice is “research until your eyes bleed”.

 

[supercarrie]

Thanks for the thorough explanation. I guess I’ve always equated the slimy timeshare sales with the quality of their resorts, which clearly isn’t the case.

Now I’m having the opposite thought that even with the lack of resale value, I’m surprised more DVC people don’t choose the flexibility of MVC or whoever else, since they can use their points nearby WDW and also around the world. We know the only place we’d visit again and again and again will be Disney and want to stay at the same places is DVC but when I visit other cities, even places I’ve already been, I usually like going to different hotels and experiences and I don’t normally travel reliably you’re predictably enough for other timeshares. But for so many other families, doesn’t it just have more usable value from that standpoint to go with a different timeshare system, specifically if you can use points and not fixed weeks?…But I guess that’s what this thread is for

We stay in a variety of different accommodations when we travel domestically and internationally, so didn't want to be locked into using a timeshare and staying at whatever specific (no matter how lovely) resorts in a specific system. Additionally, we use credit card points for most of our non-Disney travel.

WDW is the only location where I know I will want to stay in their branded deluxe level property consistently.

Additionally, one thing I actually value is that DVC ends at a set date. I am not locked into it for a lifetime.

 

[NY Pirate Princess]

DVC isn't right for everyone, even some current owners.

I bought a small resale contract expiring in 2042 last year in the spring of 2023. After numerous trips to WDW in cash rooms and dvc rentals I can stop pretending that I will get over it. I won't. Now I know I must go until I am too old to easily go every other year. I am always free to buy more or sell what I have.

I am also a Hilton girl. I have no problem using Hilton points with cash to stay wherever, whenever I want. Cancel for free, no commitment, no need to die to get out of it.

 

[Starport Seven-Five]

The difference is a sub $200 per night hotel room or a sub $100 per night two bedroom condo. More often for us it is a sub $100 condo. We've stayed in $35 a night two bedroom condos with timeshare ownership. The good thing is, you can do the same with DVC using Interval International getaways.

This is assuming the chain you buy into has a location in the city you're traveling to. Looking at Marriott/Hilton it would be true for most major cities but could become a challenge when traveling to a lower tier city like Savannah or Columbus.

I'll have to look a bit more at them to see if we would see those same savings on the type of trips we take.

 

[limace]

I also say the getaways (not point exchanges) you can get through II with your DVC membership can be a good way to explore. For instance, my daughter will be going to college in Southern California and I’m going to book some stays in Marriott Palm Springs resorts-2 bedrooms for about $100 a night.

 

[jodifla]

For sure, but you don’t have to be a DVC member to stay at deluxe resorts. You can pay cash or rent points. I’ve been going to Disney for 50 years, not having DVC wasn’t going to keep me away. lol

Or maybe you weren’t replying to me?
[/QUOT

 

[Brian Noble]

Wow, you turn your head for a day, and things blow up.

I'm not really concerned about resale value, to be honest.

I am 100% in this camp. When I evaluate a timeshare purchase, I do so from the assumption that the resale value will be zero. If the purchase still makes sense, I consider it. Any salvage value is found money.

Note that DVC can still make sense under these assumptions. The break-even point is farther in the future, but it exists.

are there not any transfers or upgrades in points that need to occur in order to be able to use them sometimes?

Not as far as I know. There are some "internal" exchanges for which that's true. For example, a Wyndham owner who wants to book a stay at a WorldMark resort can only use points purchased from the developer, and pays a modest exchange fee. But, that's sort of like the old BVTC days when DVC owners could book at e.g. Manhattan Club or the Club Interwest resorts directly--those aren't Disney resorts, but there is a special exchange agreement between them.

When using Wyndham points for Wyndham resorts, points are points. Likewise for WorldMark Credits in WorldMark.

our favorite place in the whole world Aruba

A good friend just stayed at one of the MVC Aruba resorts in May. She really enjoyed it!

my understanding has always been that they’re also not maintained well because there are so many hotels to take care of in respective systems so there just isn't always the budget for the necessary maintenance

The hotel system and the timeshare system within a brand are in principle different financial entities---and in most cases they are different in practice as well. The needs of the hotel side do not directly impact the timeshare side, and vice versa.

That's no different from the DVC vs. Disney hotel structure. Upkeep and maintenance for the DVC resort componets are paid for out of Member Dues, not Disney's hotel budget.

I guess I’ve always equated the slimy timeshare sales with the quality of their resorts, which clearly isn’t the case.

Exactly---sales is one segment of the company, and resort management is another. Wyndham resorts range from pretty good to really great, but their sales organization could be charitably described as predatory.

I have never, not once, attended a timeshare sales pitch in almost 20 years as an owner. It's gotten to the point that when I talk to the "parking pass people" (i.e.: the body-snatchers) I tell them that I want to keep my perfect record intact. The last guy I did this with--at Wyndham Shearwater/Ka Eo Kai--was actually quite nice. But he was flabberghasted that I'd never been to a pich meeting. "I don't think I've ever met an owner who has never done a tour."

doesn’t it just have more usable value from that standpoint to go with a different timeshare system, specifically if you can use points and not fixed weeks?

This is largely why our first purchase was a points-based timeshare, but not DVC. We were not convinced we would want to return to Just Disney that often. Again using Wyndham as an example, they have more than 65 different resort locations within the Club Wyndham system proper, and many of those locations have more than one resort.

We stay in a variety of different accommodations when we travel domestically and internationally, so didn't want to be locked into using a timeshare and staying at whatever specific (no matter how lovely) resorts in a specific system.

I don't think any single purchase would satisfy any family's total vacation needs. We've used our timesahares for many great vacations, but we've also done other things---a week in an apartment in the 14th arr in Paris, a half-dozen different DCL cruises, many weeks at VRBO-like homes in the Outer Banks, etc. I just got back from a business trip to Tokyo to which I added a few days at a ryokan in the Ginza district--a bargain given the current JPY/USD exchange rate!

Owning timeshare does not mean never vacationing any other way, just as owning DVC doesn't mean you are forbidden from traveling elsewhere.

Columbus

Why would anyone ever want to do that? #GoBlue

 

[CarolynFH]

Disney Vacation Club is a timeshare?

No, anyone who spends much time on these boards realizes it’s a cult.

DVC has a 7yr/14yr refurbishment cycle and I just assumed the pandemic set them on a slightly delayed course for the past few years.

DVC’s 7/14 is a fairly recent change. It’s a huge improvement vs “eh, whenever” which seemed to be their prior policy.

The original policy was soft goods refresh every 12 years, full refurb every 24! The 7/14 wasn’t implemented until 2016, and BWV, which was already 10 years old, got a refresh that included the single Murphy beds in the studios, leading to increased occupancy and increased wear and tear there. Then Covid came along and delayed SSR, Poly and VGF jumped ahead of BRV, and first thing you know, BWV is getting its first full refurb at the age of 28! Yes, I’m bitter!

 

[jodifla]

The other timeshares are scammy. The hard sell tells you all you need to know.

But a simple turn around the internet will find hundreds if not thousands of people who want to ditch their Sheraton, Hilton and Marriott timeshares.

We bought 30 years ago, about a month after we toured. We bought in at 150 points, so we knew we wouldn't be overloaded with points .. but we added on later once we understood how much we enjoyed it.

We could STILL sell our points for more than we paid for them. STILL. After 30 years.

Name another timeshare where you can do that.

 

[CastAStone]

Why would anyone ever want to do that? #GoBlue

Oh no Brian.

But a simple turn around the internet will find hundreds if not thousands of people who want to ditch their Sheraton, Hilton and Marriott timeshares.

I think the biggest problem other timeshares have is that they’re so poorly differentiated. If your big selling point is that you have the newest, sexiest property in like Marco Island or whatever, that will only be true for a year or two, and in 10 years you’ll be like the 8th newest property and look pretty much the same to an outsider as the 5 immediately before and after you. And that’s bad for resale value.

But to be fair, a quick turn around the internet will also find 1000+ DVC owners trying to sell their timeshares.

 

[tx911]

No, anyone who spends much time on these boards realizes it’s a cult.

 

[Brian Noble]

But to be fair, a quick turn around the internet will also find 1000+ DVC owners trying to sell their timeshares.

Exactly. The supply in a resale market is largely a function of how many owners there are in total, because most owners sell for the same reasons, independent of the name of the timeshare brand: divorce, getting too old to travel, kids out of the house, loss of a job, or some other fundamental shift in travel patterns. Most timeshare owners are pretty happy with their ownership. And why wouldn't they be? Vacations are great. Sure there is always something to grumble about, but when isn't that true?

Where that runs into trouble is that timeshare is a product that is sold, not bought, and the number of people who independently want to commit to (a fraction of) the upkeep and operation of a vacation condo is small. DVC benefits from the fact that the Disney Parks offer a nearly unique experience---and that experience is captivating for enough people to generate organic demand.

What other vacation destination has a discussion community that is as large and engaged as DISboards? And, that's before you consider that DIS is only one part of the Very Online Disney Ecosystem. The next largest thing I can think of is Cruise Critic, but that's for an entire industry, not one cruise line.

And, that's the difference in the DVC resale marketplace. The theme park fanaticism contributes to organic demand for ownership. Often, people cite this as a core advantage of DVC. But, to put it on its head, it is also a core disadvantage.

Brian, I hear you say, that's bananacakes. What is this crazy talk?

Most other timeshares have a supply/demand imbalance that is out of line with (and favorable to) the fundamental value proposition of ownership.

That means that if you buy resale, you can get a VERY VERY good bargain on a nice vacation destination---one that pays for itself within a few short years, and in many cases puts you in the black from the very first time you use it. The "terrible reputation" of most timeshares has nothing to do with the timeshare itself, but is about the sales organization.

Resale buyers never have to deal with that sales organization.

 

[AC168]

We own DVC and Marriott. I might buy Hyatt in the future. DVC is a very unique product. Marriott is more generic with a lot of locations and a pretty good product in my view. Hyatt is a bit more niche. Other timeshares are frequently great if you go there or in their system every year, but you might not want to after the first or second visit.

 

[Mirabell Rose]

The reason we bought at DVC versus others. We bought in 2010. I realize some things have changed, so this was per Disney 2010
1. None of the others could accommodate a child with special needs and a wheelchair like Disney could.
2. The level of service from cast members to make your stay unforgettable was out of the ballpark compared to the others, not to mention free transport to/from airport, luggage transported straight to your room, no need to haul through airport upon arrival and ability to check luggage at resort when heading home, no need to rent a car because of easy free Disney transportation system, groceries delivered to resort and held by bell services-even refrigerator items.
3. We live where it is cold in the winter and we knew we’d always be happy with Orlando for a week every winter - with many wonderful resorts to vary our stay at, with Disney parks, water parks, and multiple golf courses on site.

I remember the stay we decided to buy, we talked to a family who was there for their 5th year in a row. We asked them didn’t they think about going somewhere else the past 5 years. And they answered of course, but everyone in the family enjoys Disney, and it’s just so damn easy. And it was.

Villa reservation - check
Dining reservations without cancellation penalties 6 months out - check
Magic express reservations- check
Length of stay tickets because after the 3rd day it was like $10 more a day, and you could get as no expiration - check

It was so easy, and that’s what we wanted in a vacation. Fun. sun. Easy.

 

[Miffy]

Someone I know owns a timeshare at Orange Lake, which is either in or near Orlando. It has zero resale value. Literally. A couple of years ago this person wanted to look into getting rid of it and in order to do so, you have to sell it back to (it's called a "deed back") Holiday Inn. And you have to pay them to take it back. If they even will agree to this, which they don't always do.

At any rate, my friend decided to keep it--actually her husband did, since he likes to golf there--so this never happened. But doing some research, I learned that there are sleazy operations out there that will promise to sell it for you for a fee, but in fact they can't sell it either. It's worthless. And the deed at this place is in perpetuity.

I think DVC looks like a bargain in comparison.

 

[Brian Noble]

As an aside: That Orange Lake complex is quite nice. It more or less abuts Disney property to the west, though you'd have to come in via either 192 or Western Way to get from OL to WDW. My uncle and his family used to go there every year for a mini-snowbird vacation of about three weeks, though he eventually bought a vacation home a little farther out off US 27 near 192. He's a golfer, and liked the course (courses?) there; he played pretty much every day.

It's a good example of a property that is a stupid-good deal bought resale for $0. If you use it once, you've already gotten great value vs. renting a stay there. It's also possible to pass it on for little or no cost for someone else to adopt--assuming it's a decent time of year--at TUG or elsewhere.

 

[CastAStone]

The on site perks add value (and I’d argue a lot of value).

Adding to this, the changes to Genie+ / Lightning Lane just announced today add more value to DVC, as only on-site guests will have a realistic shot of prebooking certain popular rides.

 

[DougEMG]

Why did you purchase DVC over another timeshare company like marriott, Hilton, Wyndham. It looks like you can pay 5k for a week of points at Hilton grand vacation club unlike spending $20k+ for a DVC contract. I just purchased direct at Grand Villas and everyone I talk to thinks I’m insane to have spent over 50k on a dvc timeshare. Those people are owners of Hilton grand vacation club.

1. We want to vacation at WDW.
2. We want to stay on-site
3. We want to stay at deluxe resorts
4. We want to save as much money as possible while doing 1-3

Buying a different timeshare does do any of those. Plus most timeshares seem pretty sleazy and crooked to me.

 

[AdamsMum]

But to be fair, a quick turn around the internet will also find 1000+ DVC owners trying to sell their timeshares.

But not for $1.00
https://www.ebay.com/itm/3354317882...8QMPAK&hash=item4e194ae6b5:g:LLwAAOSwdJ5mDq9l