Wilderness Lodge DVC II - Why No Further Info?

[BWV Dreamin]

I have been patiently waiting for more renovation info to leak out from somewhere, but nothing, nada. Has Disney threatened anyone from the inside from leaking any sort of news? We at least by now have, in the past, had some kind of rumored info to hash about. But the fact that I'm reading nothing really concerns me. Are we in for something bigger than expected?

 

[WelcomeHome]

I agree completely! If Disney is making changes that are obviously going to effect our timeshare and our membership, shouldn't they have the common courtesy to run their plans past us before they proceed?? Is Disney simply going to execute their plan without any concern, consideration or any input from the existing members who are certainly going to be effected by these changes?? It's obvious that the almighty dollar is Disney's only consideration right now and I suspect their plan is to simply hope the negative reaction is not to long or loud. I sometimes wonder what Walt would think about Disney's consideration of their DVC partners (us - the members) if he were still alive - I wonder how many DVC excs would be fired immediately for forgetting the most basic premise of customer satisfaction which fueled Disney's success? The lack of information and lack of transparency regarding the details seriously concerns me.

 

[WelcomeHome]

What concerns me most is that nobody is even thinking along the lines of "oh how wonderful this new VWL Phase II is going to be for us existing VWL members. Oh how we can't wait to hear about the wonderful new additions, perks and advantages Phase II is going to include to enhance our membership even further. I'm so lucky and happy that I'm a VWL owner because look at the fabulous new enhancements DVC is now adding to my membership by including us in the terrific advantages of Phase II."

No, it's not that way at all. It appears the existing VWL members are simply resigned to see how bad the changes are going to adversely effect our membership and our timeshare. Very, very sad! This is no way to run a business Disney!

 

[BWV Dreamin]

Agree WekcomeHome! I own a significant amount of points at VWL and purchased so based on the current VWL footprint. I am extremely concerned about how this new expansion is going to effect my MF's, booking criteria and overall room availability.

Disney takes the initiative to move a lot of guests to other resorts due to the impact but can't give the curtesy (spelling) to owners to let us know what the heck is going on? I just can't help but think we are not going to like what's coming

 

[DavidRoss]

While I do not own at WLV (own at BWV, OKW and VB), I like VWL very much. My wife and I almost feel that both WLV and GCV were made with us in mind. Unfortunately, WLV was not available when I was buying into DVC. As a person who owns at other resorts and has to wait until 7 months to book and often am not able to, I am glad to see a new DVC component at WL. But at the same time, I understand and agree with those of you who have posted here. I don't understand Disney's lack of transparency. One other thing I fear is if they do the same thing they did with Poly bungalows. It could be substantially more difficult to book existing units. I think the point allocations of the bungalows vs the studios is a huge negative at Poly. I worry that by pricing a bungalow so far above a studio that more people will clamor for studios and there will be a lack of availability. Honestly, when I saw the price of a bungalow being nearly ten times the cost of a studio, I thought there was a misprint or something. I hope they don't do that at VWL. My wife and I may consider adding on at VWL at some point. But if Disney continues to go in the current direction of financially raping their current members, they may find me selling my interest rather than adding on.

Does anyone else feel Disney is turning into a vacation destination only for the rich and famous?

 

[npcougar]

Does anyone else feel Disney is turning into a vacation destination only for the rich and famous?

A theory I read was that Disney now prefers "once in a lifetime" or "once in ten year" visitors. They spend more on food, merchandise and events. That is why they changed the annual pass. They don't want "cheap" yearly visitors. Food and ticket prices have almost hit our limit. We plan on going each year but won't visit the parks everytime. There are other things to do in Orlando and DVC stays only costs us our maintenance costs. We bought re-sale and could actually sell it now for more than we paid. So I won't factor in the base cost for our stays yet. I'll miss Disney but I'll still enjoy our relaxing trips to the Lodge.

 

[DebbieB]

I agree completely! If Disney is making changes that are obviously going to effect our timeshare and our membership, shouldn't they have the common courtesy to run their plans past us before they proceed?? Is Disney simply going to execute their plan without any concern, consideration or any input from the existing members who are certainly going to be effected by these changes?? It's obvious that the almighty dollar is Disney's only consideration right now and I suspect their plan is to simply hope the negative reaction is not to long or loud. I sometimes wonder what Walt would think about Disney's consideration of their DVC partners (us - the members) if he were still alive - I wonder how many DVC excs would be fired immediately for forgetting the most basic premise of customer satisfaction which fueled Disney's success? The lack of information and lack of transparency regarding the details seriously concerns me.

When have they ever ran anything past us? My guess is there will be some info at the annual meeting.

From the sound of the announcement that was made, this will be a separate DVC resort, not an expansion of the current VWL.

 

[dizfan]

I believe PVB was the exception to information leaking. I think that's why they put a gag order on Tikiman. Disney likes to control as much information as possible. In fact, most businesses don't want rumors getting out because it leaves them less flexibility to change things.

I understand the frustration. Just realize, Iger and the board trust the decision makers enough to risk many jobs on these plans. I doubt Iger wants to have two slow selling DVC resorts in a row. WL II may well turn out to be a major hit because PVB is selling slow.

 

[tjkraz]

Grand Floridian was announced in December 2011.

Wasn't until public filings in April 2013 that some specific details started to leak.

http://dvcnews.com/index.php/resorts/grand-floridian/news/2241-grand-floridian-what-we-know-so-far

And DVC itself didn't release any concrete info until some room mock-ups appeared a few weeks later.

http://dvcnews.com/index.php/resorts/grand-floridian/news/2254-new-vgf-model-room-photos

I expect we'll hear some info at the annual meeting in December but the trickle of information isn't really different than other projects. Heck, with BLT they denied all knowledge of the project for almost 3 years until finally admitting it was a DVC resort!

 

[Dean]

They've always tended to announce and/or provide details as late as reasonably possible. One thing to note is that they really have no obligation to involve members in items that are not directly related to the current resort. For example, they could build a new resort around the old one there where all you saw was the new building from any room and they'd be within their legal and ethical rights. Any affect on the current resort is going to be marginal at most given what we know so far though I'm sure we'll have those up in arms related to parking, pools usage, restaurants, etc.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

They've always tended to announce and/or provide details as late as reasonably possible. One thing to note is that they really have no obligation to involve members in items that are not directly related to the current resort. For example, they could build a new resort around the old one there where all you saw was the new building from any room and they'd be within their legal and ethical rights. Any affect on the current resort is going to be marginal at most given what we know so far though I'm sure we'll have those up in arms related to parking, pools usage, restaurants, etc.

Some good points but I think when DVC is actively moving guests out of the existing DVC building I think some explanation is warranted. How long will guests get asked to move? What other projects will cause major disruptions? I don't think is asking too much to divulge some info so that current members can plan accordingly.

 

[Dean]

Some good points but I think when DVC is actively moving guests out of the existing DVC building I think some explanation is warranted. How long will guests get asked to move? What other projects will cause major disruptions? I don't think is asking too much to divulge some info so that current members can plan accordingly.

But they don't have an obligation to do move them. It's somewhat like reserving a BW view room and having scaffolding or a pool closure at BCV. They could provide some information but clearly don't think they need to and I would agree.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

My friends were asked to move to either AKV or BLT. They could not stay at VWL. So, I do feel some explanations are in order.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

We had reservations at VWL nov 29-dec 2 ...I received a call about the construction...in August I think....we were not told we couldn't stay there but were offered to be moved to another location if we wanted to...we decided to move to BLT

 

[DebbieB]

I think they have given details of what is going to be affected by what they are doing now, the waterfront bungalows and pool refurbishment. What they do beyond that may not even be finalized, like rumors of room conversions at the Lodge.

http://www.kennythepirate.com/2015/...major-refurbishment-as-part-of-dvc-expansion/

It's only been a month since the official announcement (9/22/15) and it doesn't open until 2017.

http://dvcnews.com/index.php/resort...3091-wilderness-lodge-cabins-villas-confirmed

 

[BWV Dreamin]

I think they have given details of what is going to be affected by what they are doing now, the waterfront bungalows and pool refurbishment. What they do beyond that may not even be finalized, like rumors of room conversions at the Lodge.

http://www.kennythepirate.com/2015/...major-refurbishment-as-part-of-dvc-expansion/

It's only been a month since the official announcement (9/22/15) and it doesn't open until 2017.

http://dvcnews.com/index.php/resort...3091-wilderness-lodge-cabins-villas-confirmed

Was there actually an official announcement?

 

[wdrl]

Was there actually an official announcement?

Yes. The second link in DebbieB's post includes the official Disney press release about the Wilderness project. The press release specifically says that when completed, the project will become the 14th DVC development and the second at Wilderness Lodge. Such language strongly suggests that the new project will be a separate stand-alone condominium association and not an expansion or addition to the existing VWL condo association.