Yet Another Use Year Q

[LuvnMickey]

Hi,
We're planning to buy BCV as first time DVC owners in April. We live in the frozen north and therefore, travel to WDW in the winter months of Jan., Feb. or March.

We've most often gone in March the last few years because of our kids' school schedule and activities. We'll have more flexibility in a few years when our youngest graduates and hope to go during less busy times such as Jan. or Feb.

Our guide suggested a September use year. I'm worried we'll pick the wrong time and forever be restricted somehow. What do you think?

Thanks for your help with this decision!

 

[CarolMN]

Ask your guide if you can have a December use year. That should work quite well with your plans. You would have until May 31 to bank up to 100% of your points should any of those January, February or March vacations need to be cancelled. (That assumes you couldn't use them before November 30). If you end up going in the summer, you could bank up to 50% of your points by August 31.

Use year only matters when you have to cancel a reservation and can't use the points before the end of your use year and your banking deadlines have passed. Hopefully, that will not happen to you (or will happen only rarely), so try not to stress out too much over the decision.

HTH

 

[LuvnMickey]

Oops. I forgot to also mention that we may be only going to Disney every other year. We've gone just about every year for the past 10-12 but my older boys are expressing an interest in doing something else.

Does that fact that we may be banking points every other year (at least in the short term 'til we're empty nesters) matter in this scenario?

CarolMN--Thanks so much for your help!

 

[CarolMN]

Does that fact that we may be banking points every other year (at least in the short term 'til we're empty nesters) matter in this scenario?

I'd still recommend the December use year. Since you most likely will know what year you will NOT go to WDW, you can easily bank those points - after all, you will have 6 months to do it! LOL!

The advantage of having a December use year when you plan to go every other year in January, February or March is the amount of time you would have to use your points if you do have to cancel.

Since you are going every other year, I'm assuming that half of the points for the your reservation will either be banked or borrowed. Once points are banked or borrowed, they must be used within the year they were banked into or borrowed into.

So, assuming you have a December use year, if you have to cancel a reservation made with banked or borrowed points, you will have to use the banked or borrwed points for a stay that ends no later than the night of November 30. If the original reservation was for January, you'd have 10 months to reschedule or rent out the points. IMHO, the longer you have to reuse the points after a cancellation, the better.

Again, I hope you NEVER have to cancel a trip (but of course, it can happen).