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$

[Chili327]

So people have an idea what a non-Disney Florida timeshare is actually like, this is what you get from a timeshare you can buy for “$1,” plus $1,200/yr fees. Or! Even better, the same thing but for ~$500/week through an exchange like RCI/II:

Where do the Friendship boats pull up to??

Nice Amenities & Lovely Views - but how far is the walk from there to EPCOT & Hollywood Studios ??

Too far for a couple bucks cheaper.

 

[Brian Noble]

This thread reminds me of one of my Frequent Flyer posts. For simplicity, I will cut-and-paste the important bits here:

For any WDW trip, there are three things one might want:

• To have a reasonable amount of space
• To spend a reasonable amount of money
• To be onsite

For most families, and for most definitions of "reasonable", you can have two of those three things. So, the first thing to figure out is which of those three is the most important. Once you've figured that out, you can decide which of the remaining two you can live without.

There is no right answer to these two questions: different people will make different tradeoffs. So no, there is no Friendship Boat that docks outside of, say, Wyndham Bonnet Creek, any of the three Marriott Palms, or Sheraton Vistana. But, in exchange, one can spend enough less on a 2BR condo to pay for the family's tickets, and have enough left over for some very VERY nice meals, and all within a drive to the theme parks not dissimilar to (or easier than) that from OKW, SSR, or AKV.

Some people think that's a more-than-fair tradeoff. Others would not even consider it at twice the price difference. And that's why Baskin-Robins has 31 flavors.

And that's just the question of "Disney vs. Non-Disney in Orlando" and it completely ignores the other Big Question in this thread, which is: Bro, if you didn't go to Orlando, did you even go on vacation? Some of us think the answer to that is an unequivocal yes. Others are not so sure.

 

[E2ME2]

Primary reason: about 50% cheaper (over time) to stay at Deluxe WDW properties.

Secondary reason: get a “free” Disney cruise every couple of years (using the DVC points swap via this board’s sponsor) using excess/unused DVC points.

For us, this secondary reason has become an equally valuable benefit to us as our primary reason that we bought in.

No regrets about DVC. In fact, we are constantly fighting the urge to add more DVC points!

Don’t fight it!
Buy Buy Buy

 

[intamin]

Coming back to this thread because I feel like I can speak a little more about what it’s like being off property on a more regular basis now that I’m a recent Orlando transplant (which is why I’ve been so quiet lately).. there are times like tonight when after leaving Epcot I’m like damn, I WISH I could just hop on the skyliner and go back to RIV or take the monorail from MK to Poly instead of having to go to TTC, find my car and then drive 20 minutes to our house. The magic is definitely different and even though I’m not staying in an off property timeshare, I feel like the feeling is similar. I still love the parks and Disney Springs but god I miss the convenience . That’s why we own DVC.

 

[RickNJane]

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.

On our first WDW trip in 97 we stayed at the Boardwalk Inn (Hotel Side) for a conference. On a whim we went to a DVC presentation and decided to buy. have not regreted it for a second. We have made many trips since then and have traded points for a stay at DLR Grand Californian. We have also used the exchange and stayed a RCI resorts. We have retired and so added on points at BLT and DLR. Staying on property is a huge bonus. Not to mention the DVC discount annual pass. Really hope they do that at DLR as well. That is a perk that no other timeshare can match.
We made great memories with our kids and now we continue the tradition with the grandkids.

 

[Cybertruck]

Coming back to this thread because I feel like I can speak a little more about what it’s like being off property on a more regular basis now that I’m a recent Orlando transplant (which is why I’ve been so quiet lately).. there are times like tonight when after leaving Epcot I’m like damn, I WISH I could just hop on the skyliner and go back to RIV or take the monorail from MK to Poly instead of having to go to TTC, find my car and then drive 20 minutes to our house. The magic is definitely different and even though I’m not staying in an off property timeshare, I feel like the feeling is similar. I still love the parks and Disney Springs but god I miss the convenience . That’s why we own DVC.

100% agree we moved 4 years ago and initially I thought we have trouble using all the our points. We are now in the market for more points. Waiting for Poly to go on sale with incentives. In 2025 we will need to borrow points to attend all the festivals plus the marathon in January.

 

[RichVIII]

10(ish) years ago we started going to WDW and stayed offsite. Mostly at places like the Hampton Inn near DS since it was cheaper on Hilton points which we earned with my frequent work travel. We rented a car. We drove. We tried to keep our daughter on the drive home so she would sleep through the night. It was fine. My MIL wanted to do a trip with us for her grand. We knew mobility would be an issue so we researched and landed on BCV or BLT for a one-bedroom. What she paid in cash for that trip could have easily bought us a nice contract. We fell in love with BLT and all things “on-property” and within a little over year had our first BLT contract. We have enough points to stay at Hilton or Marriott at this point but the benefits were worth the cost to us. Some of those benefits are now gone (Magic Express being our favorite). Our points have taken us to Aulani twice and some of the other off sites and many on-sites). I think we are in our next phase with trips becoming harder with school and sports but I feel like our usage will evolve (maybe one day we will not be in borrow mode). As Brian said best, what’s reasonable for everyone will very. What’s affordable (reasonable) for everyone will very. With limited time, we try in do what we can to maximize our time at whatever location (WDW or not).

 

[CarolynFH]

Wrong thread!

 

[tom1944]

The reasons I selected DVC over other timeshare options was being on Disney property worked best for my family. I felt more comfortable with my knowledge on how DVC worked and the potential pitfalls. To be honest I never felt comfortable that even after researching other timeshares I knew enough to be comfortable with the purchase.

 

[ldo]

We bought DVC because we wanted to visit WDW regulaly, at least once a year, and sometimes go multiple times a year for shorter trips. We have stayed at many of the Marriotts and HGVCs (Hilton), esp when we needed a 3 BR, and, while they are all very nice, we wanted to be on property-it is a big part of our vacation experience.
We were willing to spend (quite a bit) more as we feel there will be a decent resale value compared to other timeshares. [We have made money selling 2 DVCs-now pricing has dropped, but I do not see it dropping below 50% of our resale purchase price in the next 10 years for 2054+ properties].
We also have HGVC (home resort is at the beach) obtained at minimal cost, which we really like. We use it for the beach most years, but have also converted our week to HGVC points and stayed at other HGVC resorts. HGVC is an easy system to use.

 

[disneyfan123]

Personally, we never considered any other timeshares and I don't think we ever would. Disney, however, is different and we bought in because we planned to take regular trips to Disney World. DVC also gave us access to Aulani, which is a place we love but would never be able to afford at cash rates (even discounted rates).

DVC is all about having a room at a discounted rate at Disney World (or Disneyland), and that made a lot of sense for our family. The ability to stay at a deluxe resort, on Disney property, with all the amenities and extras, at the cost of moderates (or less) is awesome. Having the extra space in the 1-3 bedrooms is so nice as well. We'd never stay in a 2 bedroom suite without DVC, but we do now, and love it. That's why we chose DVC (after many years discussing it and renting points!).

 

[muppets3d]

top 3 rules of real estate - location, location, location.

 

[darkconz]

I think location is the deciding factor for us. I regretted not joining earlier, could have saved more money.

 

[BrownThunder]

Precisely. I've looked at Marriott Vacation Club because when we travel with the 5 of us (and sometimes more if we're traveling with the extended family) we can't stay in a typical studio hotel room. If MVC had greater availability throughout Europe and Asia, we'd probably look at it more closely because it is really hard to reliably find hotel options for larger groups over there (we've been pretty successful with aparthotels, but it's still a ton of research into each option, and they tend to be pretty expensive).

This is precisely why we bought into MVC. There are six of us that travel and having to rent out two rooms really adds up, not to mention the fact that normal rooms don't include a kitchen so we have to go out to eat every time which really adds up.

As an example, we went to the Grand Floridian and spent an obscene amount of money because we had to rent 2 rooms. Not to mention that we had go out to eat for everything and that quickly added up as well. All in all, we spent almost as much as buying a DVC contract which is why I fully plan on supplementing MVC with DVC in the future.

 

[nankim]

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.

I like staying on property and like the benefits of reserving earlier and perks like late night hours.