Why Resorts vs the DVC

[Kathy5]

I have been considering a DVC membership. I have visited that board and read how great of an idea this is. But...I'm not sure if this is the right way to go with my family. My question to people who have decided NOT to go with the DVC option, but to instead continue using the resorts the old fashion way of hotels and reservations-why did you decide this? What reasoning made you turn away from the DVC?

I would appreciate any input.

Thank you.

Kathy

 

[skiwee1]

I prefer the resorts because I get to stay where and when I want, have daily maid service, and don't have to see a kitchen while on vacation!

 

[dmen]

Well, we have been thinking about it awhile. So far, we have decided against it but may change our minds in the future. Right now, the reasons we are apprehensive:

-i really like staying in a deluxe resort and feeling like there are people there who are supposed to make sure my vacation goes smoothly. dvc seems more independent.

-i really like staying where i want--different places, when i want and not having to worry about wasting extra points over the weekends

-i enjoy eating out too much and while i admit the kitchen for breakfast in the morning would be great--i am a cereal kind of girl, i am afraid once we have kids, my husband will find it too easy to just cook our own food or have take-out (we don't have kids yet so i might change my mind on that one after having them awhile)

-we have gone to wdw a few times in the recent past, but think that it may be just a phase. we both love to travel and we aren't sure disney every year will be for us--always. trust me, i can totally see myself wanting to take one trip a year to wdw as long as we traveled other places as well--or even every other year, and i think that will become more strong when children enter the picture, but DH is overwhelmed by the thought of that much disney!!! but i can only see us using the dvc for onsite accomodations. i have no interest in limiting myself to time share exchanges. the concierge collection makes it somewhat more appealling but i love fancy hotel and resorts and would prefer my freedom in choosing them.

-i demand maid service and fresh towels daily which makes the cost efficiency of the dvc less significant

-while you do save on the accomodations portion, i still find disney to be a very expensive trip--by the time you buy the park passes, and the water parks, and pleasure island, and disneyquest etc. etc. also add in the maintenance fees and all the other goodies i find the necessity to buy there that i don't find other places.

so basically, a lot of this is just personal issues! boy do i sound difficult! i hope maybe this helped you a little--either for or against it!!! (realizing how silly i sound

 

[TigrLvsPooh]

We keep changing our minds about DVC also. We came really close to buying a resale, but didn't.

I LOVE Old Key West, but I also love other resorts (like the GF and BWI). The weekend points are so high, it's a big drawback for us, as well no maid service (unless you pay extra).

Right now we are just renting DVC points and not buying into the DVC yet. We might change our minds, who knows.

 

[Kermit]

We've thought about it, but I really want to move to the Orlando area if we can sometime, and I'm sure we'd want to vacation elsewhere if that happened. I know we could exchange our points for stays in other places or resell our DVC membership, but for now, just doing it the old fashioned way works for us.

 

[gepetto]

We thought about buying into DVC too. I don't like having to plan my trips so far in advance. I also like being able to have more of a choice of where to stay.

I don't want to cook on vacation. Like the other posters, I like having maid service.

Plus....as our kids get older, they may not want to go to Disney every year.

 

[las3888]

My own thinking is that I would love to belong to DVC...I love WDW and all the magic, etc. so would love to feel like I 'own' a part of the magic. HOWEVER, my husband, the practical thinker is right when he says that because of the discount codes that we have discovered in the past few years here, we really would spend MORE money on DVC. So, not owning, we don't feel like we 'own' the magic, but we have a lot more flexibility - don't feel like we have to go more often (or less often) and don't have to make our own beds, plus we get clean towels every day. We can also stay where we want without feeling guilty about using more points to stay at the Poly or something else we might have a craving for. We really are better off in the end, because we just aren't limited by it. That's our own situation though, most of the people I know are just so happy with it, so it does make you think twice!

 

[jaguar9748]

DVC sounds really attractive. We have read the brochures, listened to the talk, but have become squeamish when the money is mentioned. As mentioned previously, we enjoy such great rates being AP holders and FL residents. We really don't spend much on the resorts over a year. For our upcoming week of 4 days at POR and 3 days in the Contemporary Tower, our cost is about $1100 which ain't bad! I also like the freedom of not having to worry about points, especially weekend points vs weekday points. I don't have to worry about booking way in advance - if I get a whim, I can go. In addition, as mentioned above, our days of frequent visits to Disney are drawing to a close as DS is 19 and DD is 17. While I know that I can use DVC points for other vacations, I like having the flexibility to think about other vacation destinations in the years to come. I like being able to go when I want, where I want and with whom I want. I think DVC is a great choice for many; but it's not for us.

 

[betterlatethannever]

Investigated DVC earlier this year. Talked to them and got all the information. The reasons why we didn't in no particular order:

1. We like to go down on weekends which are high point nights. That extended the break even point out to 12-15 years even without room discounts (depending on how you crunch the numbers).

2. I like the idea that, if I plan on going to the wine and food festival, I can book it a year or more ahead of time (we did for this year). That is a very busy time for DVC even at the 11 month window you would have to call every day to book each individual day because if you wait until 11 months from the last day of your trip, you would not get what you want.

3. Like others, want our daily maid service.

4. This may sound silly or even stupid, but I wouldn't want to be welcomed "home". I am on vacation and the last thing I want to be reminded of is home.

 

[Lewisc]

1) Daily maid service,
2) I look to book 2-3 months in advance and I'm not sure you can always do that with DVC
3) Many of the "regulars" at DVC stay elswhere weekends. I tend to go to Disney for long weekends (4-5 nights) and DVC gets more expensive if you mainly use it on weekends.
4) I never pay rack rate for resorts. I generally get AP, postcard or someother code discounts. If I am going during a period with no discounts I take the opportunity to try an offsite hotel. Many of the DVC analysis compares rack rate with DVC.
5) Not sure I want to vacation at Disney forever.
6) When I toured DVC the guide actually said DVC wouldn't work for me. Specifically because I like trying different resorts and am able to book with discounts. A few years ago I was able to book a 1 bedroom BWV for about $230 (doubt you can get it today) but that really destroyed the analysis.

 

[Kathy5]

I'd like to thank everyone for the input. Having hesitations leads me to believe that I should wait. If the time is ever right, I will know.

Kathy

 

[hmp2z]

We like staying at resorts other than the DVC resorts, like the GF, and for the amount of points they cost, it wouldn't really be cost effective for us. The DVC resorts don't have the nice views like the others; in the WL you can see the MK from 7th floor concierge, but not from the WLV.
Also, my fiance's parents are DVC members, which definitely decided us against joining. We have seen them try to make reservations months in advance at their home resort, Hilton Head, and they've been told there's no availability. Then, we'll get a postcard in the mail for an amazingly discounted rate at the Hilton Head resort, for the exact dates they wanted to go there. This makes me think that the attitude might be that Disney now has their money, so isn't necessarily as accommodating as they are to someone like me who hasn't paid yet. His parents aren't unhappy with DVC, quite the contrary, but we've seen time and time again how they'll try 6 months in advance and can't get reservations at the resort they're trying for, either Hilton Head or WDW resorts. I'm kind of leery of handing over our money without guarantees that we'll be given the dates we want. Plus, we like to book earlier than the DVC allows you to.
Cheers!
Heather P

 

[wdwnut]

hi: i originally thought about dvc in 93 with okw. we decided for most of the reasons listed above, not to join. after bwv became available, we did join. The money we spent in the interim on the resorts (even with 50% off ap rates-contemporary tower at $125 night), would have paid for most of the original investment. looking back now, we're wondering what ever stopped us in the first place. as far as booking in advance, the 11 month mark is only a problem around the holidays. it's not a problem for the wine and food festival. the grand villas at bwv and okw are much more limited and would necessitate calling every day during busy dvc seasons. you do have the advantage of "trading out" to places like hawaii with not too much trouble. only you can decide what is best for you and your family.