Wyndham Bonnet Creek vs DVC Purchase

[ziravan]

I’ll give a quick example of the benefit.

I was able to snag an AP tron preview in early March.

Nothing avail at DVC of course.

At first only Star Island avail Wyndham but kept looking and found 3 days at WBC. Booked.

Now. I have to decide if I want to make the trip but having Wyndham as backup makes it work as an option.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

We stayed at WBC once about ten years ago and did not like it half as much as a Disney resort. But I get the cost and ability to stay elsewhere. Definitely a plus. I would stay there before buying though.

 

[MsChristy12]

Our parents own Wyndham and we have stayed at Bonnet Creek (BC) quite a few times. TBH, if you don't care of being at a Disney resort, BC is definitely a better value. Its location is superb without paying the premium price.

We aren't DVC members (yet), but definitely looking and working on it. Even though staying at BC is much cheaper, the reason we want to buy DVC is simple - We just love Disney more! We do non-park days every trip, so where we stay matters to us greatly. Not saying BC is not a great resort but it's just not for us, we don't enjoy our non-park days there. However, I will say this, in the future if we don't have enough DVC points to book our entire trip, we will definitely use BC to do split stay, and stay there during our park days. To us, that's still way better than staying in a regular hotel room off-property. Or if I want to stretch my DVC points, I would do our Fri-Sat stay at BC, then Sun-Thurs stay at DVC.

Deed Expiration - I think this should be a big part of deciding between the two. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, Wyndham has no deed expiration? Ownership is in perpetuity I think? So that's something to think about if in 20 years you no longer want your contract, how easy is it to offload it? DVC is the opposite, every contract has a deed expiration.

 

[MsChristy12]

Another thing to add about Wyndham that's very different than DVC - They do have a way bigger profile of resorts that you can book with your points without converting or transferring. We have stayed at Wyndhams at a few different destinations, and while not all of them are equal in quality, there are more options if you get tired of going to Orlando, and want to switch up the way you use your points here and there.

 

[AnnaKristoff2013]

Our parents own Wyndham and we have stayed at Bonnet Creek (BC) quite a few times. TBH, if you don't care of being at a Disney resort, BC is definitely a better value. Its location is superb without paying the premium price.

We aren't DVC members (yet), but definitely looking and working on it. Even though staying at BC is much cheaper, the reason we want to buy DVC is simple - We just love Disney more! We do non-park days every trip, so where we stay matters to us greatly. Not saying BC is not a great resort but it's just not for us, we don't enjoy our non-park days there. However, I will say this, in the future if we don't have enough DVC points to book our entire trip, we will definitely use BC to do split stay, and stay there during our park days. To us, that's still way better than staying in a regular hotel room off-property. Or if I want to stretch my DVC points, I would do our Fri-Sat stay at BC, then Sun-Thurs stay at DVC.

Deed Expiration - I think this should be a big part of deciding between the two. Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, Wyndham has no deed expiration? Ownership is in perpetuity I think? So that's something to think about if in 20 years you no longer want your contract, how easy is it to offload it? DVC is the opposite, every contract has a deed expiration.

Wyndham has a certified exit program that lets you deed back to them so long as you don’t have a loan. While I suppose that is not guaranteed to last forever the bonnet creek contracts (and Wyndham resorts with with lower maintenance fees) do generally hold some small resale value and are not hard to either sell for a few hundred dollars on eBay or give away on TUG.

 

[sethschroeder]

Eh by the time I stay there I could literally stay anywhere and pay low prices.

I get DVC for the ease of access to the parks.

 

[MsChristy12]

Wyndham has a certified exit program that lets you deed back to them so long as you don’t have a loan. While I suppose that is not guaranteed to last forever the bonnet creek contracts (and Wyndham resorts with with lower maintenance fees) do generally hold some small resale value and are not hard to either sell for a few hundred dollars on eBay or give away on TUG.

Good to know!

 

[cbyrne1174]

I recently gave back some of my extra Club Wyndham resale points that I no longer needed after adding on 50 DVC points and a Marriott week. It was super easy. The process however does take about 4 months and you do still have to cover the dues until it transfers out of your name. Overall, it was very easy to get out of the obligation.

DVC, Wyndham and Marriott all have their advantages. That's why I went with all of them. If you plan on visiting Orlando for most of your vacations in the next 20+ years, DVC may be good for you. I only bought 50 DVC points because I'm an hour away from WDW. I can book a studio for $120-$250 a night and get 2 extra hours in the parks after they close + 2 full days of pool access. I only use it for single night stays; anything else is too rediculously overpriced compared to competitors. I honestly bought DVC for the pools in the summer and for less crowded times in the parks. I can't justify those prices because I know better. I've been to every 4 star timeshare resort in Orlando. Bonnet Creek, Reunion, Lakeshore Reserve, and Orlando World Center (Sabal, Royal and Imperial) all are equitable to Disney in my eyes for a fraction of the price.

I do like the VALUE that Wyndham has over DVC. I have resale for both systems and the Wyndham inventory often discounts. I'm staying at Bonnet Creek for 25% off ($75/night) in a 1 bedroom deluxe and Cypress Palms for 35% off ($33/night) in a 1 bedroom suite this summer. I hate the I-4 traffic and for $33/night, that's a steal!

My advice would be to own both so you arent stuck vacationing in the same location. You can book some of the Marriott Orlando inventory through your II account you get for free with Disney. Maybe buy just enough points for DVC every 3 years and just stay cheap if you go more often than every 3 years?

Also another thing that isn't talked about much is having access to Aulani. Would I fly all the way to Oahu just to visit Aulani? NO! However, I found 2 awesome back to back exchanges using my Wyndham RCI account and am adding on 3 nights at Aulani at the end of my exchanges. I will be staying at the Hilton Waikoloa Village in a 2 bedroom at Kingsland for 7 nights. The Waikoloa Village is a huge resort complex on the big Island that has dolphins and a tram that runs through it. After that stay, I'm going to the Hilton Hawaiian Village in Waikiki, Oahu for another 7 nights in a 1 bedroom. It's next to the Honolulu downtown area so there is tons to do and cheap bus transportation to see the rest of Oahu. I am going to add 3 nights at Aulani just to experience Aulani.

I spent about $150-$200 a night to stay in 1-2 bedroom units in a 4 star Hilton complex and those 3 nights at Aulani in a studio will cost me more per night than the other units because my resale buy in cost for Wyndam was $0 and DVC was $7k for just 50 points.

 

[E2ME2]

“Bonnet Creek, Reunion, Lakeshore Reserve, and Orlando World Center (Sabal, Royal and Imperial) all are equitable to Disney in my eyes for a fraction of the price.”

Just curious - which of the Wyndham resorts are equitable to the Disney Resorts that provide walking access into 2 of the largest theme parks in the world??

 

[Brian Noble]

Saratoga Springs? No, that's not it. Old Key West? No, that's not it either. Riviera? Grand Floridian? No and no.

Don't get me wrong, the non-Disney resorts are definitely not "the same" as any of the Disney resorts. But for us, the overall vacation experience that we get at Bonnet Creek is pretty comparable to our experience at SSR or OKW. There are things we like about Bonnet better, and things we prefer about the DVC resorts.

If you've never tried Bonnet, and you find yourself short of points for a trip you really want to take, it is worth a look.

 

[AnnaKristoff2013]

“Bonnet Creek, Reunion, Lakeshore Reserve, and Orlando World Center (Sabal, Royal and Imperial) all are equitable to Disney in my eyes for a fraction of the price.”

Just curious - which of the Wyndham resorts are equitable to the Disney Resorts that provide walking access into 2 of the largest theme parks in the world??

The appropriate comparison is to SSR or OKW.

 

[Brian Noble]

Saratoga Springs? No, that's not it. Old Key West? No, that's not it either. Riviera? Grand Floridian? No and no.

Oh, I know! The Hard Rock Hotel!

(I kid, I kid.)

 

[RoseGold]

There are many hotels in Orlando that are objectively better than Disney, especially DVC. I don't consider DVC a fantastic hotelier, that's not really the point. If I wanted a nice resort experience, I'd stay somewhere that isn't connected to a theme park and overrun with kids. You don't have to buy into either timeshare system to experience any of these systems.

 

[cbyrne1174]

“Bonnet Creek, Reunion, Lakeshore Reserve, and Orlando World Center (Sabal, Royal and Imperial) all are equitable to Disney in my eyes for a fraction of the price.”

Just curious - which of the Wyndham resorts are equitable to the Disney Resorts that provide walking access into 2 of the largest theme parks in the world??

All the ones I mentioned have pool complexes that are superior to DVC. They all have lazy rivers and multiple water slides.

 

[cbyrne1174]

Saratoga Springs? No, that's not it. Old Key West? No, that's not it either. Riviera? Grand Floridian? No and no.

Don't get me wrong, the non-Disney resorts are definitely not "the same" as any of the Disney resorts. But for us, the overall vacation experience that we get at Bonnet Creek is pretty comparable to our experience at SSR or OKW. There are things we like about Bonnet better, and things we prefer about the DVC resorts.

If you've never tried Bonnet, and you find yourself short of points for a trip you really want to take, it is worth a look.

I prefer Lakeshore Reserve over all others (including DVC). It's equidistant between universal and WDW and the pool is amazing.

 

[Dotluvsdisney]

I have looked through a lot of old threads and even other forums and I feel like I'm missing something. WBC seems significantly cheaper than DVC. Is it just the Disney upcharge and theming or is there some hidden cost to WBC that I'm not finding? I get why people buy DVC as I have been seriously considering a purchase but I was blown away when I started looking at WBC. I can get a contract on resale for WBC that will get me multiple weeks/year for half the price of similar DVC resale contract.

I looked at some timeshares and the fees were about double of what I pay for my DVC. I personally live nearby and have paid cash to stay on property almost every year for the past 10 years. I can’t afford cash rates anymore so was happy to buy resale!

 

[Monykalyn]

These stories overzealous sales reps who follow you are really the edge cases and not my experience. As I said, a simple, no, no, no thank you interrupting them has worked like a charm for me every time with minimum hassle.

Same. We have a timeshare in MO that is an excellent trader and some of the lowest maintenance fees around-frequently trade into Marriots everywhere-to get out quickly of those pitches is "why should I go into debt to own here when I can trade here for $xx amount-can you beat that?" smile and walk away.
And now that DVC is back in Interval International-SSR and OKW frequently pop up and there was Boardwalk and AKL available too for this year.

 

[Brian Noble]

I looked at some timeshares and the fees were about double of what I pay for my DVC.

What were they?

I've had a hard time finding timeshares with annual fees significantly more than DVC on an apples-to-apples basis. For example, Marriott Ko'Olina, right next door to Aulani, had 2023 fees of $2,750 and change. A Standard 2BR at Aulani in the lowest point season is just a shade over $3,000 (329 points at $9.14/pt) and that's the cheapest 2BR at the resort--they only go up from there.

 

[cbyrne1174]

I looked at some timeshares and the fees were about double of what I pay for my DVC. I personally live nearby and have paid cash to stay on property almost every year for the past 10 years. I can’t afford cash rates anymore so was happy to buy resale!

I have the opposite issue. If I'm going to be in the parks all day, I'll usually just get a 1 bedroom suite at Wyndham Cypress Palms for $35-$40 a night. Im a teacher, so I can use the discounted sun-fri inventory. Wyndham almost always discounts Cypress Palms in the summer/fall 35-50%. That's where I come up with $35/$40 a night. The room still has a washer/dryer and stove/oven and is 10 mins from Magic Kingdom.

For DVC, I have to factor in the buy in cost as well as the annual maintenance.

 

[cbyrne1174]

What were they?

I've had a hard time finding timeshares with annual fees significantly more than DVC on an apples-to-apples basis. For example, Marriott Ko'Olina, right next door to Aulani, had 2023 fees of $2,750 and change. A Standard 2BR at Aulani in the lowest point season is just a shade over $3,000 (329 points at $9.14/pt) and that's the cheapest 2BR at the resort--they only go up from there.

Yea but getting into the Marriott resale system only costs a few thousand dollars. I can get a Ko Olina week from my Grande Vista week that I paid $1800 dollars on Ebay. You have to include the buy in costs. It would cost at least $40,000 to own a contract big enough to stay 1 week in a 2 bedroom at Aulani. Also, the Marriott deed never expires.