Any Disney Vacation Club Members ? What do you and don't you like?

[susancollins]

Can you tell me what you like and don't like about it. Thanks Susan :001_smile:

[Sandra in FL]

He's out of the country (and his ds is in college) so we pay the property taxes and use the points.

 

Pros: love the space in Old Key West. A 1 bedroom suite is huge (OKW was the first DVC built), and we really get to spread out. We've tried all the resorts and like them in this order: OKW, SS, Wilderness Lodge, Yacht Club, Boardwalk and Animal Lodge (we don't like the last 2 as the walk is too long to the suite and we take a lot of stuff along when we go on vacation). Love the magic hours at Disney World that come along with staying on Disney property. We have taken advantage of the FL resident passes and recently the 4-day pass for $99 (great deal) and also the 3 month ($89) Universal Studios pass from Costco. If you live in FL and love Disney (like dh and dd), it's great! Our family knows the ins and outs of Disney World - the boys love to go on Buzz Light Year over and over and over. We plan to try Hilton Head next Christmas break. We only stay Sunday - Thursday nights (cheaper). We also use Disney credit cards (even for tithing) so we accumulate points to use (for meals and property taxes).

 

Cons: we kinda stuck with always going to Orlando for vacation. It's fine when the kids are young, but when they get older ... We'll probably try to sell the points on the internet then. The property taxes keep getting higher - about $2300 for the year.

 

HTH,

Sandra

[Sugarfoot]

We bought into the DVC last year. For us, our 4th child was the point where it made Disney a better deal for us. We go at least once a year, and usually stay at either the Grand Floridian or the Animal Kingdom Lodge for 7-10 days. When we went from 3 kids to 4, we went from needing 1 room to 2. That doubled our lodging expense. Our DVC points give us 7 nights in a 2 bedroom apartment with a kitchen, living area, 3 baths, and laundry every other year. Our kids insisted on the Grand Floridian in the "off" years.;) We bought into the Bay Lake Tower, the new DVC at the Contemporary. We can walk to the Magic Kingdom and there's a walkway directly to level 4 of the main hotel to get to the monorail area.

 

We can use our points on the Disney Cruise line, too, or at lots of other resorts around the country.

[blessed2fosteradopt]

We have been members for about 6 yrs. We love it! We purchased our points throught the Timeshare Store and saved considerably. There is a lot for sale right now with banked points. We own two contracts: 200 at the Boardwalk and 75 at the Wilderness Lodge. We hardly ever stay at the Boardwalk and most frequently at the WL b/c it is our favorite resort. We have never had a problem getting a reservation even when I have waited until the last minute. We just got back from a 6 night stay at the Animal Kingdom Lodge over the holidays.

 

I love the fact that you have options; you can stay whatever time of year you want in whatever size accomodation you want (studio, 1,2 bedroom) or Grand Villa. I also love that it is easy to trade (Boardwalk Villas is one of the most sought after trades in the world - believe it or not). There is nothing like staying on property. It really is magical. Also, we could sell our contracts for more than we originally bought them for right now which is almost unheard of with timeshares.

 

I really can't think of any negatives other than the fact that there is no daily housekeeping (you can pay extra for it) but that is typical for any timeshare. The annual dues are pretty steep but it is still worth it to us.

 

If you have any specific questions, please just ask.

 

Blessings,

Lisa

[delaney]

We have 250 pts at Hilton Head which we LOVE and 100 at Beach Club. I think it was the best investment we ever made and we save loads of money by cooking in the villa instead of eating every meal out. Wilderness Lodge, Beach Club, and Animal Kingdom are our favs. To avoid a long walk at AKL just request Jambo house or ask to be nearest the bus stop. They can usually accomodate requests if you book far enough in advance!

[Karenciavo]

We bought into the Bay Lake Tower, the new DVC at the Contemporary. We can walk to the Magic Kingdom and there's a walkway directly to level 4 of the main hotel to get to the monorail area.

 

I'm so jealous. :D I have never desired to stay at the Contemporary (I'm a Poly girl) but this place looks gorgeous. The lounge is such a nice extra.

 

We have been members for about 6 yrs. We love it! We purchased our points throught the Timeshare Store and saved considerably. There is a lot for sale right now with banked points.

 

There really are some great deals to be had now! I've seen SSR for as low as $61 a point. There was one for BLT with banked points going for $99 a point - not bad. I think it's around $112 a point new.

[LibraryLover]

I love the Poly. lol It's getting a big old, I guess (it was the first WDW hotel, wasn't it?) It's just so nice....Love the pool. Love taking the ferry so easily to MK.

 

For me, nothing beats the Contemporary for MK ease. You can walk. The first time we went with three little kids (one under 2), we chose it for the ease. It was one of the most relaxing vacations, ever. Tired tot? 5 minute walk back ot the hotel for a pool breather or nap on peace. You can also see the light parade on the water from there. The Chip & Dale breakfast is perfect for kids-- lots of easy ,familiar, fresh foods and fruit, bagels, eggs. Gosh, that was an easy trip. I always suggest the Contemporary for families with tiny kids, and who are going for the first time, want to focus on MK. etc

 

 

I'm so jealous. :D I have never desired to stay at the Contemporary (I'm a Poly girl) but this place looks gorgeous. The lounge is such a nice extra.

 

 

 

There really are some great deals to be had now! I've seen SSR for as low as $61 a point. There was one for BLT with banked points going for $99 a point - not bad. I think it's around $112 a point new.

Edited February 12, 2010 by LibraryLover

[susancollins]

We just bought into the Animal Kingdom thats why I was asking. We always stayed at the Value Resorts last two times we went but we decided it was a worth while investment since we go to Disney once a year. Does anyone have any suggestions for the animal kingdom. We are booking our next vacation for January 2011 in a couple of days. :001_smile:Thanks Susan

[4kiddies]

Where do you get the information about buying into this? We love to go to HHI and will probably start adding in Disney now that our kids are getting to that age.

 

With 6 of us this might be a better deal for us.

 

Thanks!

[LibraryLover]

I've eaten there. It's gorgeous. Feels luxurious.

 

We're not in the DC, I just like to think about Florida when it's freezing here, which it is. I am outta here in Feb next year. I don't know what i was thinking. lol

Edited February 12, 2010 by LibraryLover

[Karenciavo]

Where do you get the information about buying into this? We love to go to HHI and will probably start adding in Disney now that our kids are getting to that age.

 

With 6 of us this might be a better deal for us.

 

Thanks!

 

Timeshare Store is you want to buy used.

[3littlekeets]

I would LOVE to do it, but DH calculated it out with the cost of the DVC and yearly assessments, then considered DVC discounts etc. and we realized we still come out way ahead by RENTING other people's DVC points. We get the stay, without the habitual "pay" :-).

[Vida Winter]

I don't get how you could save with this - the points look expensive! Am I missing something?

[3littlekeets]

I don't get how you could save with this - the points look expensive! Am I missing something?

 

Do you mean renting? We get awesome deals! Or, buying? That's the one I couldn't sell DH and his calculator on, LOL.

[Vida Winter]

Do you mean renting? We get awesome deals! Or, buying? That's the one I couldn't sell DH and his calculator on, LOL.

 

Renting - how does that work? I think I was looking at they buying price and thinking it was the renting price. Is there a different link for renting? LOL.

[4kiddies]

Can someone give me a quick overview of how this works? Thanks!

[Karenciavo]

You can rent point from DVC owners, the disboards has a very active community. I pay between $10-$11 per point, some people charge a little more. So, say you want to stay in a 2 bedroom at the Beach Club in October, by renting points at $11 a point you pay $385 per night (Sun-Thurs) instead of the Disney rate of $845 a night (rack rate, probably could get it for $600 or so with a discounted rate.) On Fri and Sat the rate goes up to $571 a night paying $11 a point, depending on the deal you might pay less renting Fri and Sat from Disney (sometimes they have 40% off rack for DVC rentals.) Here's a points guide from DIS.

 

Bottom line is the DVC has a per point maintenance fee, Bay Lake is $3.71 per point I think. Say you purchase 160 points, that's $593.60 in maintenance a year. You could rent 50-60 points a year to recoup that and then vacation with the rest. Really, purchasing DVC is only "worth it" is you normally stay deluxe and even then it's not really a big money saving operation.

 

Some people buy from the cheaper resorts like Saratoga Springs and then try to get ressies at the other hotels when their dates open up. This works better if you're willing to travel during off times. Most people say buy at the resort you want to stay at.

[4kiddies]

You can rent point from DVC owners, the disboards has a very active community. I pay between $10-$11 per point, some people charge a little more. So, say you want to stay in a 2 bedroom at the Beach Club in October, by renting points at $11 a point you pay $385 per night (Sun-Thurs) instead of the Disney rate of $845 a night (rack rate, probably could get it for $600 or so with a discounted rate.) On Fri and Sat the rate goes up to $571 a night paying $11 a point, depending on the deal you might pay less renting Fri and Sat from Disney (sometimes they have 40% off rack for DVC rentals.) Here's a points guide from DIS.

 

Bottom line is the DVC has a per point maintenance fee, Bay Lake is $3.71 per point I think. Say you purchase 160 points, that's $593.60 in maintenance a year. You could rent 50-60 points a year to recoup that and then vacation with the rest. Really, purchasing DVC is only "worth it" is you normally stay deluxe and even then it's not really a big money saving operation.

 

Some people buy from the cheaper resorts like Saratoga Springs and then try to get ressies at the other hotels when their dates open up. This works better if you're willing to travel during off times. Most people say buy at the resort you want to stay at.

 

 

Thank you! Anyone else have any thoughts?

[susancollins]

They currently have promotions where you get an extra year of points which is a good promotion and you get a discount on the price of points. I think it is a good deal because you get 50 years worth of vacations. We lov We go to Disney once a year and we use to stay in a small cramped room but we can now stay in a large 2 bedroom suite and save money by doing the cooking ourselves.

[Blue Lilac Studio]

We've been members for 7 years and it's been worthwhile for our family, but we have 4 kids. We cook most meals in the villa. So for us, we save a LITTLE money and get much nicer accommodations than 2 value rooms.

 

Unless you go often to Disney, or are willing to deal with the hassles of renting your points, it's not a good deal. It's much better to rent points from members, IMO.