100 pt Direct Blue Card Minimum September 17,2019

[Yinn]

I feel like I'm beating a dead horse here, but I'm going to keep bringing it up. That discount has been that large for about 3 months. It hasn't always been that large, and planning on it being that large for even 1 year much less 5 or more years is ludicrous.

2 years ago we got that Plat Plus pass for 559 dollars. 3 months ago the difference between the Gold AP and Plat was like half the current discount. Ticket prices have gone up significantly over the last 2 years and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Spending thousands of dollars now for something you a) might not even use, b) could go away at any time is foolish.

I don't think you're beating a dead horse, but you're talking past others and perhaps not understanding their view. For a family of 5, the difference of $220 * 5 = $1100 now because they'd have to otherwise purchase a platinum pass. That's not one year from now, not 10. That's how much I would save today buying direct and the gold annual pass. That means the membership premium on 75 points can be had for as little as $2000 - we're not talking about buying the entire thing direct.

Everyone here understands that the membership benefits aren't guaranteed. Heck, even Moonlight Magic is pretty random and has a head count limit. But is it worth the risk of $2000? Do we want to roll the dice that in 50 years time, we'll get our $2000 back? For a lot of us, that's a yes. It may not work for you, we understand that. So we get YOUR point, that YOU don't want to buy direct. But try seeing it from ours. Look at it as a $2000 insurance policy on our $20,000 DVC spend. If it materializes, great it pays off. If the rules change down the road and we get perks, wonderful. If it doesn't..well truth is we were probably going to do it anyway.

The reality is that this thread isn't for those who are asking - should I buy direct? This thread is for those who were already leaning over the fence, or were planning on this strategy at a later date anyway to inform them that - Hey, there's literally hours left (at this point) if you want to keep yourself from spending even more.

There are those who don't want direct, yourself included. You won't be persuaded and won't miss a thing. Then those who do want direct, are just looking for a justification to make the final leap. Whether that's the soft sell on the events, or hard numbers. The truth is we're just looking for enough people to say - yes you're not crazy, or if you are; so am I before we jump in. Once enough penguins are in the water...we'll think it's safe and sane and then we'll go as well. Then half of those will think it's the best thing ever, the other half will regret it.

 

[skippytx]

I don't think you're beating a dead horse, but you're talking past others and perhaps not understanding their view. For a family of 5, the difference of $220 * 5 = $1100 now because they'd have to otherwise purchase a platinum pass. That's not one year from now, not 10. That's how much I would save today buying direct and the gold annual pass. That means the membership premium on 75 points can be had for as little as $2000 - we're not talking about buying the entire thing direct.

Everyone here understands that the membership benefits aren't guaranteed. Heck, even Moonlight Magic is pretty random and has a head count limit. But is it worth the risk of $2000? Do we want to roll the dice that in 50 years time, we'll get our $2000 back? For a lot of us, that's a yes. It may not work for you, we understand that. So we get YOUR point, that YOU don't want to buy direct. But try seeing it from ours. Look at it as a $2000 insurance policy on our $20,000 DVC spend. If it materializes, great it pays off. If the rules change down the road and we get perks, wonderful. If it doesn't..well truth is we were probably going to do it anyway.

The reality is that this thread isn't for those who are asking - should I buy direct? This thread is for those who were already leaning over the fence, or were planning on this strategy at a later date anyway to inform them that - Hey, there's literally hours left (at this point) if you want to keep yourself from spending even more.

There are those who don't want direct, yourself included. You won't be persuaded and won't miss a thing. Then those who do want direct, are just looking for a justification to make the final leap. Whether that's the soft sell on the events, or hard numbers. The truth is we're just looking for enough people to say - yes you're not crazy, or if you are; so am I before we jump in. Once enough penguins are in the water...we'll think it's safe and sane and then we'll go as well. Then half of those will think it's the best thing ever, the other half will regret it.

I already bought direct points and have my blue card. My price delta was sub 1K and it's already paid for itself. The person I quoted extrapolated current savings (which are historically very anomalous) out 35 years for a potential savings of over 47K. Breakeven was around the $6K mark around year 5, which is the same as it would currently be for me owning at BLT. I'm pointing out that you can't do this, and to count on these numbers doesn't make sense. I'm more aligned with ELMC thinking the discount might stick for another year or two, but you can't count on it being that much for year 5 as well.

There's also a large grey area between buying a Gold AP for your visit and the 1129 dollar Plat pass. It's not an either or situation, buying normal tickets is a perfectly acceptable option, and might make more sense financially. 100% of resale DVC owners are not going to be buying the Plat pass, so the "savings" are unrealized unless they're actually planning on going often enough to make it worth it. So you spend a few hundred more buying tickets for your trip without the AP, does that eventually make up for the extra 6 thousand you spent to get the blue card?

None of this makes financial sense. Disney is an expensive luxury product. If you want direct points, buy direct points. If FOMO from not having a blue card is going to ruin the DVC experience, spend the money get the blue card.

For the record I haven't "saved" a penny since I joined DVC. If anything my expected Disney vacation spend has doubled from what I thought it was going to be at first. I'm ok with it, we enjoy ourselves and have a good time, but in no way shape or form have I convinced myself I've "saved" anything by buying into DVC.

 

[smurphym]

i'm about to call and buy 75 at Saratoga before the deadline. my 1st purchase, any advice on what I can expect doing this over the phone? thank you

 

[Louis morrell]

Easy as an amazon purchase. Hope you are not too late though.

 

[smurphym]

lol, and they'll deliver to my doorstep tomorrow? they're there until 9 tonight

 

[Louis morrell]

Yes, and points in your account in 24 hours

 

[Yinn]

lol, and they'll deliver to my doorstep tomorrow? they're there until 9 tonight

The transaction doesn't have to finalize, it just has to go on record if you will to proceed. So let's say worst case scenario you don't get a hold of someone. Shoot an email to your guide so its timestamped.

If you do get a hold of someone, they'll do a search/confirmation of availability. If they have it, they ask if you'd like to proceed and how you'd like to pay. You can put just a deposit down, or you can pay the whole thing. A little more complicated than one click purchase, but not complicated by any means.

The paperwork will either be overnighted or sent 2-day to you. From there you sign the paperwork and mail it back. Have your guidance call, orientation call, and then make sure you read the paperwork so you can register online and see the dashboard. Prior to that, you'll have your points but you won't have access to the website yet. (You could also call for the clubID for website access if you're in a rush..)

 

[smurphym]

The transaction doesn't have to finalize, it just has to go on record if you will to proceed. So let's say worst case scenario you don't get a hold of someone. Shoot an email to your guide so its timestamped.

If you do get a hold of someone, they'll do a search/confirmation of availability. If they have it, they ask if you'd like to proceed and how you'd like to pay. You can put just a deposit down, or you can pay the whole thing. A little more complicated than one click purchase, but not complicated by any means.

The paperwork will either be overnighted or sent 2-day to you. From there you sign the paperwork and mail it back. Have your guidance call, orientation call, and then make sure you read the paperwork so you can register online and see the dashboard. Prior to that, you'll have your points but you won't have access to the website yet. (You could also call for the clubID for website access if you're in a rush..)

very helpful, thank you!

 

[Sandisw]

I don't think you're beating a dead horse, but you're talking past others and perhaps not understanding their view. For a family of 5, the difference of $220 * 5 = $1100 now because they'd have to otherwise purchase a platinum pass. That's not one year from now, not 10. That's how much I would save today buying direct and the gold annual pass. That means the membership premium on 75 points can be had for as little as $2000 - we're not talking about buying the entire thing direct.

Everyone here understands that the membership benefits aren't guaranteed. Heck, even Moonlight Magic is pretty random and has a head count limit. But is it worth the risk of $2000? Do we want to roll the dice that in 50 years time, we'll get our $2000 back? For a lot of us, that's a yes. It may not work for you, we understand that. So we get YOUR point, that YOU don't want to buy direct. But try seeing it from ours. Look at it as a $2000 insurance policy on our $20,000 DVC spend. If it materializes, great it pays off. If the rules change down the road and we get perks, wonderful. If it doesn't..well truth is we were probably going to do it anyway.

The reality is that this thread isn't for those who are asking - should I buy direct? This thread is for those who were already leaning over the fence, or were planning on this strategy at a later date anyway to inform them that - Hey, there's literally hours left (at this point) if you want to keep yourself from spending even more.

There are those who don't want direct, yourself included. You won't be persuaded and won't miss a thing. Then those who do want direct, are just looking for a justification to make the final leap. Whether that's the soft sell on the events, or hard numbers. The truth is we're just looking for enough people to say - yes you're not crazy, or if you are; so am I before we jump in. Once enough penguins are in the water...we'll think it's safe and sane and then we'll go as well. Then half of those will think it's the best thing ever, the other half will regret it.

I like a lot of what you said here and put it into a nice perspective for people who are debating what spending extra is all about. Your mention about spending a little more for potentially certain benefits later on makes sense. When I bought in 2009, I spent about $5000 more to buy BLT direct from Disney, then I could have spent on the resale market for SSR at the time. Why? Because I didn't want to worry about having to wait to 7 months to get what I wanted.

For someone who sees a need for the Gold Pass being a benefit...especially if one has 3 to 5 members in their family..it makes sense. I just paid almost $500 for a 5 day park hopper through Undercover Tourist for my DD 23 for our Food and Wine trip in 3 weeks. She no longer lives with me so I can't get her a DVC pass. Gold is around about $750. Even people going yearly can get two trips out of one pass by simply scheduling both within a 52 week period. So, with what daily tickets are costing, it certainly could reduce the "extra' for getting the blue card within a few years!!

 

[ELMC]

I like a lot of what you said here and put it into a nice perspective for people who are debating what spending extra is all about. Your mention about spending a little more for potentially certain benefits later on makes sense. When I bought in 2009, I spent about $5000 more to buy BLT direct from Disney, then I could have spent on the resale market for SSR at the time. Why? Because I didn't want to worry about having to wait to 7 months to get what I wanted.

For someone who sees a need for the Gold Pass being a benefit...especially if one has 3 to 5 members in their family..it makes sense. I just paid almost $500 for a 5 day park hopper through Undercover Tourist for my DD 23 for our Food and Wine trip in 3 weeks. She no longer lives with me so I can't get her a DVC pass. Gold is around about $750. Even people going yearly can get two trips out of one pass by simply scheduling both within a 52 week period. So, with what daily tickets are costing, it certainly could reduce the "extra' for getting the blue card within a few years!!

I'd also like to add that we are also talking about access to benefits that are not yet known or possibly even conceived. When the direct vs. resale debate heated up around the time of the blue card restrictions, I don't believe that Moonlight Magic was even a thing. Now it is. Some members could not care less about it. Some members go nuts for it. Who's to say that whatever they come up with next won't be something that one finds appealing? We always say that benefits can come and go and you shouldn't buy based on a specific benefit. And maybe that's true. But I also think we spend too much time talking about benefits going and not enough time talking about them coming. I have two qualified resale contracts that earned me the blue card. Seeing as how I am not likely to be adding on direct anytime soon, I'll be holding onto at least one of those contracts to keep the blue card - regardless of how very bearish I am on DVC right now. You just never know what they're going to come up with next.

 

[zavandor]

Ticket prices have gone up significantly over the last 2 years and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Spending thousands of dollars now for something you a) might not even use, b) could go away at any time is foolish.

I'm not sure about this. I was at WDW the last two weeks and Galaxy Edge failed, for now, to attract the hoards of visitors Disney was expecting/hoping. Sure, Dorian didn't help, but it's possible Disney has found a ceiling with their pricing. And if Riviera is not selling as well as anticipated, maybe DVC has found its ceiling too.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

I'm not sure about this. I was at WDW the last two weeks and Galaxy Edge failed, for now, to attract the hoards of visitors Disney was expecting/hoping. Sure, Dorian didn't help, but it's possible Disney has found a ceiling with their pricing. And if Riviera is not selling as well as anticipated, maybe DVC has found its ceiling too.

The thing about galaxy’s edge is it is just... well... boring. We found there isn’t much to do there. Shops with ho hum souvenirs and the overpriced blue and green drinks. One ride (yes another is coming). The MF backdrop is cool. I noticed bob Iger wasn’t at the opening for GE in WDW. I think after everyone saw the one in CA, he wanted to distance himself. I see GE as a pretty big fail for Disney. The reason why I say this is because our Star Wars loving 17 year old was deflated after we went on day 2. He had been talking about it for months, but after seeing it said it was “ok.” If he wasn’t impressed, I am not sure who was. I think their next possible big fail is not putting a/c in the gondolas. Of course they are trying to manipulate public perception on that one by opening in October after the heat has broken. I can survive in the heat but dh has no tolerance for heat. He grew up in a cold climate and says every time he sees the gondolas that Disney is not plussing it with the lack of a/c.

 

[CanadaDisney05]

I think their next possible big fail is not putting a/c in the gondolas. Of course they are trying to manipulate public perception on that one by opening in October after the heat has broken. I can survive in the heat but dh has no tolerance for heat. He grew up in a cold climate and says every time he sees the gondolas that Disney is not plussing it with the lack of a/c.

Not trying to go off topic here but..... I really think we need to have a wait and see approach with this one. From everything I've heard, they will be very well ventilated and moving at a good pace. Not much different than going on a ride outdoors, using the already existing boat transportation, etc... All of which you will be probably doing within 20 minutes of getting off the Gondola itself anyways. Non-AC'd gondolas are not new technology that Disney just came up with. These things have been in use all over the world in hot climates. I can't in my wildest imagination believe that come next May, Disney will first realize that it's warm in Orlando.

 

[we"reofftoneverland]

Not trying to go off topic here but..... I really think we need to have a wait and see approach with this one. From everything I've heard, they will be very well ventilated and moving at a good pace. Not much different than going on a ride outdoors, using the already existing boat transportation, etc... All of which you will be probably doing within 20 minutes of getting off the Gondola itself anyways. Non-AC'd gondolas are not new technology that Disney just came up with. These things have been in use all over the world in hot climates. I can't in my wildest imagination believe that come next May, Disney will first realize that it's warm in Orlando.

I know I hated to bring it up because it is off topic and I didn't want to start the same debate! It is just a feeling I have, that they will regret it. I have a very high tolerance for heat. My blood pressure is lower but I think it is also because I grew up in heat and we didn’t have much air conditioning. I am not worried for myself. But most others I know have 0 tolerance for it. I agree it will be similar to a ride but so are the buses. They could just use open air buses like in the Caribbean but they do not.

 

[Louis morrell]

Wow, this went sideways

Back on topic. As of this morning the member site has not updated most of the pages that display the restriction. Most still state 75 points min with the Feb. date. This includes the pages you do not need to log in to see.

 

[dropd]

Wow, this went sideways

Back on topic. As of this morning the member site has not updated most of the pages that display the restriction. Most still state 75 points min with the Feb. date. This includes the pages you do not need to log in to see.

Doesn't seem to matter to Disney. I tried to sneak in a June UY 75 point purchase at SSR last night around 8:30pm EST, and the guide said that the folks who do the contracts were already gone for the day and he didn't think that my purchase would go through before the minimum point increase.

Sure enough they called me back this morning already and said no go.

 

[Ginger R]

Wow, this went sideways

Back on topic. As of this morning the member site has not updated most of the pages that display the restriction. Most still state 75 points min with the Feb. date. This includes the pages you do not need to log in to see.

Yeah, the only place I could find it changed is on the explore Disney vacation club membership section. The section where you view your membership card still shows it as the old message with needing to own 75. Guess they just didn't get around to switching it there?? Would be nice if they were at least consistent although that's hardly the case

 

[ClarkWGriswold]

I am literally watching the website update as we speak. As I refresh the pages, I'm seeing content get updated.

As of right now, the fine print for the Epcot moonlight magic says "Effective February 25, 2018, to obtain a Disney Vacation Club Membership Card, Members must accumulate a total of at least 75 Vacation Points purchased directly from Disney Vacation Development"

However, the Hollywood Studios moonlight magic fine print says "Effective September 17, 2019 to obtain a Disney Vacation Club Membership Card, Members must accumulate a total of at least 100 Vacation Points purchased directly from Disney Vacation Development, Inc"

 

[Yinn]

The thing about galaxy’s edge is it is just... well... boring. We found there isn’t much to do there. Shops with ho hum souvenirs and the overpriced blue and green drinks. One ride (yes another is coming). The MF backdrop is cool. I noticed bob Iger wasn’t at the opening for GE in WDW. I think after everyone saw the one in CA, he wanted to distance himself. I see GE as a pretty big fail for Disney. The reason why I say this is because our Star Wars loving 17 year old was deflated after we went on day 2. He had been talking about it for months, but after seeing it said it was “ok.” If he wasn’t impressed, I am not sure who was. I think their next possible big fail is not putting a/c in the gondolas. Of course they are trying to manipulate public perception on that one by opening in October after the heat has broken. I can survive in the heat but dh has no tolerance for heat. He grew up in a cold climate and says every time he sees the gondolas that Disney is not plussing it with the lack of a/c.

I'm more of a Star Trek fan. In terms of Star Wars, I can tell you I watched some of the movies. I know there's a Boba Fett, a Darth Vader, Light Sabers, Yoda, and an X-Wing..and I have no idea what they fight about. Something about a force that my daughter calls magic. With that said, after avoiding HWS on opening day, we ventured over to SWGE around 5-6pm because the app said it was not busy (85 minutes wait) by 9pm we were on a bus headed back to the hotel having experienced what we were calling - Star Wars Land. This was after we made detours to also take rides of the saucers, slinky, and mania on the way out. There seemed to be more staff than visitors, and it was no where as busy as we would have thought it'd be; but it makes me wonder if fundamentally the way we visit is just changing. If I think about black friday, we used to line up outdoors. Now, it's not any less purchasing; but people are more controlled in staged specials and online purchasing. I wonder if the initial visit isn't as important because we can see it live via social media and then plan accordingly to visit in time to avoid crowds. I'm not sure if this detracts altogether or potentially reduce the peaks but spread evenly; but I digress...

With that above said, my family and I were EXTREMELY impressed with SWGE. We even talked about when the new areas got built (Pandora/Toy Story) we weren't that impressed. They were neat, but didn't feel any where near as immersive as SWGE. Perhaps my lack of familiarity is why I was impressed, but we felt the structures were huge. The marketplace didn't feel like just another Disney store, and it didn't feel like we were in HWS anymore either.

 

[Bing Showei]

Since people are beating dead horses... I’ll say that to every last person, every time it’s posted that someone talks about how the benefits are not worth it, they will be a blue-card carrying member. Granted, you can’t really make that judgement if you weren’t, but I would ask everyone who has talked about how the befits are not worth it:

If I were to offer to trade your direct/grandfathered points for 2016-2019 restricted resale points, how much would you expect to be cash compensated?

To anyone who says anything besides $0; that you would be willing to trade your blue-card points for 2016-2019 restricted points for zero compensation, you are putting some value on membership benefits. Being able to decide that moonlight magic is not worth it, that you don’t buy THAT a much merch to make it worth it, that you don’t use the dining discounts much, etc., has some value to you.

There is value in the freedom to choose whether or not to use a benefit. There’s a luxury in being allowed to register for the Soarin’ tour. It doesn’t matter whether or not you do. You have that choice.

What people who preach to others that member benefits aren’t worth it don’t fully appreciate is that they are part of a privileged class. They are choosing not to use the benefit. With the current class system, Disney created an entire group of owners who are not afforded that opportunity to choose. That second class feeling was imagineered by Disney brilliantly and it has worked. So if you used your 20% merch discount even once, wandered into the Epcot lounge - even just to check it out and decide “not worth it.” You have exercised that privilege in a way a lot of owners can’t.

While I certainly don’t condone the misguided Mickey Math justification of projecting “savings” by way of buying 35 years worth of APs, I recognize that often, people aren’t buying the benefits. They’re buying the right to choose whether or not to use those benefits.

I am making no judgement on the merits of the member benefits, nor the perceived loss of opportunity by not being a part of Disney’s timeshare “club,” but I understand the desire to at least have that choice.