Beginning to think I dodged the DVC bullet :(

[luvthatmouseinohio]

It sounds like you’re rationalizing why DVC wouldn’t be right for you.

DVC isn’t right for many people, maybe most. But the reason you gave isn’t typically one of the reasons given by someone who’d otherwise view scoring a DVC reservation as hitting the lotto.

Availability at 11 months is only an issue in a very few categories and then only during the busiest DVC season. You hear a ton of griping here because the members here are typically experts and we spend quite a bit of time focusing on the exceptions not the rule. “If it bleeds, it leads” is human nature.

If you hang around this forum long enough, you’ll come across the oft-quoted “buy where you want to stay.” There are strategies avail to get the most out of DVC ownership.

I don’t think your characterization of DVC not being a good product because booking takes effort is very accurate. Working DVC does take some effort, but that’s the case for planning WDW anyway. I don’t find DVC planning more difficult than any other aspect of planning WDW. Just like planning WDW generally, and to steal an AA phrase, “It works if you work it.”

Unfortunately I’ve learned that the times my kids and I like to hit Disney, during cooler weather and decked for the holidays, are also prime times DVC members like to visit. Thus, I’ve had difficulty securing a rental, even at the 11-month mark. I was very lucky (yes, lotto lucky) to secure a stay for this Thanksgiving and I feel very fortunate. I would expect to have difficulties renting. But ... I read time and time again on this forum of actual owners having the EXACT same problem. Not all owners of course, but enough for me to know that for me personally, I’m glad I’ve never bought in. At 8 am every weekday morning I’m commuting to my office ... I don’t have the luxury of being in front of a computer trying to walk and lock in vacation reservations. I assure you those types of discussions are not had during timeshare presentations when DVC is presented as being the best thing since sliced bread.

I am genuinely happy for all the DVC owners out there who are over the moon with buying in. Sincerely I am. I am just happy that I never personally made the commitment as I would have been sorely disappointed. The flexibility is not near what it’s advertised to be.

 

[jodifla]

For so many years I've dreamed of being a member of the Disney Vacation Club. It just sounds awesome, don't it? Oh, how I wanted to "own a piece of the magic." Never being able to go to Disney World as a child, I was an adult in my mid 20's before my first visit to the Magic Kingdom and, of course, I was hooked.

We all know It takes a lot of money to make the magic happen. My ex of 23 years was the pay-as-you-go kinda guy, so DVC never happened for me. We rented a 1-BR on eBay once for a song at OKW and for a week we were livin' the dream . No value or moderate resort for us ... lol.

Fast forward to the present and post divorce ... I've tried to rent a few times from the online brokers, to no avail. What I want is never available, and I was puzzled by that. So I went looking for other ways to rent, and stumbled upon this forum. And now, after reading so many comments from owners, I'm actually glad the ex never wanted to buy in. My main reason for wanting to be an owner was because I thought it would never be a problem to book a stay at the DVC resorts, but wow, have I been enlightened. The whole rental process is far more maddening than magical.

Don't get me wrong ... I know there are still plenty of perks to staying at DVC properties and I still see the draw for people to buy in. I was able to successfully rent a 6-night stay in a savanna view studio at Kidani during Thanksgiving week this year, through an owner on this forum actually. I feel like I hit the lottery. I could actually have rented a 3-BR at Bonnet Creek the exact same nights for a couple hundred dollars less than I got the studio for at AK, but the draw of Disney transportation to the parks, the 60-day fast pass booking versus 30 days, and seeing a giraffe from our balcony trumped the size of the accommodation. Go figure.

I appreciate so much the discussions I read on this forum, hearing the point of view of the DVC veterans to the brand new owners. It's eye opening for sure and I thank you all for sharing your experiences.

I've made DVC work just fine for 24 years.

 

[luvthatmouseinohio]

For so many years I've dreamed of being a member of the Disney Vacation Club. It just sounds awesome, don't it? Oh, how I wanted to "own a piece of the magic." Never being able to go to Disney World as a child, I was an adult in my mid 20's before my first visit to the Magic Kingdom and, of course, I was hooked.

We all know It takes a lot of money to make the magic happen. My ex of 23 years was the pay-as-you-go kinda guy, so DVC never happened for me. We rented a 1-BR on eBay once for a song at OKW and for a week we were livin' the dream . No value or moderate resort for us ... lol.

Fast forward to the present and post divorce ... I've tried to rent a few times from the online brokers, to no avail. What I want is never available, and I was puzzled by that. So I went looking for other ways to rent, and stumbled upon this forum. And now, after reading so many comments from owners, I'm actually glad the ex never wanted to buy in. My main reason for wanting to be an owner was because I thought it would never be a problem to book a stay at the DVC resorts, but wow, have I been enlightened. The whole rental process is far more maddening than magical.

Don't get me wrong ... I know there are still plenty of perks to staying at DVC properties and I still see the draw for people to buy in. I was able to successfully rent a 6-night stay in a savanna view studio at Kidani during Thanksgiving week this year, through an owner on this forum actually. I feel like I hit the lottery. I could actually have rented a 3-BR at Bonnet Creek the exact same nights for a couple hundred dollars less than I got the studio for at AK, but the draw of Disney transportation to the parks, the 60-day fast pass booking versus 30 days, and seeing a giraffe from our balcony trumped the size of the accommodation. Go figure.

I appreciate so much the discussions I read on this forum, hearing the point of view of the DVC veterans to the brand new owners. It's eye opening for sure and I thank you all for sharing your experiences.

I've made DVC work just fine for 24 years.

That’s awesome. Might be a little easier to make it work for me if I was a Florida resident . That alone works in your favor.

 

[tjkraz]

I read time and time again on this forum of actual owners having the EXACT same problem. Not all owners of course, but enough for me to know that for me personally, I’m glad I’ve never bought in. At 8 am every weekday morning I’m commuting to my office ... I don’t have the luxury of being in front of a computer trying to walk and lock in vacation reservations. I assure you those types of discussions are not had during timeshare presentations when DVC is presented as being the best thing since sliced bread.

Respectfully, your current perception seems far more out of line with reality. There are more than 4000 DVC villas at Walt Disney World. Successful bookings far outnumber whatever failure stories you’ve read online.

Right now, about 6 weeks after booking opened, there are still Savanna View studios available at Kidani over Thanksgiving week. No powerball success required. If DVC isn't right for you for a variety of reasons, so be it. But I don't think you have an accurate understanding of what it's like to book.

 

[luvthatmouseinohio]

Respectfully, your current perception seems far more out of line with reality. There are more than 4000 DVC villas at Walt Disney World. Successful bookings far outnumber whatever failure stories you’ve read online.

Right now, about 6 weeks after booking opened, there are still Savanna View studios available at Kidani over Thanksgiving week. No powerball success required. If DVC isn't right for you for a variety of reasons, so be it. But I don't think you have an accurate understanding of what it's like to book.

You may very well be right. Admittedly the BW and BR have been particularly elusive for me, but again, I’m attempting to rent. Thanks for your insight.

 

[emchelly77]

For so many years I've dreamed of being a member of the Disney Vacation Club. It just sounds awesome, don't it? Oh, how I wanted to "own a piece of the magic." Never being able to go to Disney World as a child, I was an adult in my mid 20's before my first visit to the Magic Kingdom and, of course, I was hooked.

We all know It takes a lot of money to make the magic happen. My ex of 23 years was the pay-as-you-go kinda guy, so DVC never happened for me. We rented a 1-BR on eBay once for a song at OKW and for a week we were livin' the dream . No value or moderate resort for us ... lol.

Fast forward to the present and post divorce ... I've tried to rent a few times from the online brokers, to no avail. What I want is never available, and I was puzzled by that. So I went looking for other ways to rent, and stumbled upon this forum. And now, after reading so many comments from owners, I'm actually glad the ex never wanted to buy in. My main reason for wanting to be an owner was because I thought it would never be a problem to book a stay at the DVC resorts, but wow, have I been enlightened. The whole rental process is far more maddening than magical.

Don't get me wrong ... I know there are still plenty of perks to staying at DVC properties and I still see the draw for people to buy in. I was able to successfully rent a 6-night stay in a savanna view studio at Kidani during Thanksgiving week this year, through an owner on this forum actually. I feel like I hit the lottery. I could actually have rented a 3-BR at Bonnet Creek the exact same nights for a couple hundred dollars less than I got the studio for at AK, but the draw of Disney transportation to the parks, the 60-day fast pass booking versus 30 days, and seeing a giraffe from our balcony trumped the size of the accommodation. Go figure.

I appreciate so much the discussions I read on this forum, hearing the point of view of the DVC veterans to the brand new owners. It's eye opening for sure and I thank you all for sharing your experiences.

For so many years I've dreamed of being a member of the Disney Vacation Club. It just sounds awesome, don't it? Oh, how I wanted to "own a piece of the magic." Never being able to go to Disney World as a child, I was an adult in my mid 20's before my first visit to the Magic Kingdom and, of course, I was hooked.

We all know It takes a lot of money to make the magic happen. My ex of 23 years was the pay-as-you-go kinda guy, so DVC never happened for me. We rented a 1-BR on eBay once for a song at OKW and for a week we were livin' the dream . No value or moderate resort for us ... lol.

Fast forward to the present and post divorce ... I've tried to rent a few times from the online brokers, to no avail. What I want is never available, and I was puzzled by that. So I went looking for other ways to rent, and stumbled upon this forum. And now, after reading so many comments from owners, I'm actually glad the ex never wanted to buy in. My main reason for wanting to be an owner was because I thought it would never be a problem to book a stay at the DVC resorts, but wow, have I been enlightened. The whole rental process is far more maddening than magical.

Don't get me wrong ... I know there are still plenty of perks to staying at DVC properties and I still see the draw for people to buy in. I was able to successfully rent a 6-night stay in a savanna view studio at Kidani during Thanksgiving week this year, through an owner on this forum actually. I feel like I hit the lottery. I could actually have rented a 3-BR at Bonnet Creek the exact same nights for a couple hundred dollars less than I got the studio for at AK, but the draw of Disney transportation to the parks, the 60-day fast pass booking versus 30 days, and seeing a giraffe from our balcony trumped the size of the accommodation. Go figure.

I appreciate so much the discussions I read on this forum, hearing the point of view of the DVC veterans to the brand new owners. It's eye opening for sure and I thank you all for sharing your experiences.

Thanks for the info! I have always wanted to buy DVC too! i am now in the rental track!

 

[crisi]

You may very well be right. Admittedly the BW and BR have been particularly elusive for me, but again, I’m attempting to rent. Thanks for your insight.

Thats because there are two availability problems with renting, and only one with owning. With renting you have to secure both an owner who wants to rent out their points instead of going themselves - and it has to line up with availability at the resort you want. Sometimes that combination is hard to luck into - there may be BR points when you want to rent, but no owners. Or there may be owners with points, but the week you want is already gone. With owning, you only need to have the availability at the resort you want.

There IS a problem with seven month reservations, particularly studios, at several resorts (notably BCV, BWV, VGF, VGC - and specialty rooms - like standard view rooms). People who don't own at BCV and want to switch in at seven months are looking at a resort that many owners who own BCV points use them there - and a lot of people trying to switch into the few rooms that are available. Its a game of musical chairs. If you are happy booking home at eleven months, don't need to book the standard/value/specialty units, and are fine staying at your home resort if nothing else is available at seven months you will be satisfied FAR more often than you are not - even with studios.

However, this negates one of the things a lot of people want - you cannot depend on staying where ever you want on your points. While some people have excellent luck "sleeping around" - it takes a certain amount of flexibility to be satisfied. People who own anywhere other than BCV who ABSOLUTELY want to stay at BCV in a studio for six nights the second week in July are going to be disappointed more often than not.

 

[luvthatmouseinohio]

Therein lies my problem ... I like the studio, during Thanksgiving or first two weeks in December, at the resorts near the theme parks. What so many members already want, so of course they’re never available through a broker. That was really the point I was trying to make ... even as an owner I would have difficulty booking what I was after. And honestly, I totally admit I’m not flexible, so I’m not a good fit for DVC ownership, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a good product. I appreciate your comments.

 

[DVC BLT]

So glad the DVC bullet hit me square between the eyes : )

 

[crisi]

Therein lies my problem ... I like the studio, during Thanksgiving or first two weeks in December, at the resorts near the theme parks. What so many members already want, so of course they’re never available through a broker. That was really the point I was trying to make ... even as an owner I would have difficulty booking what I was after. And honestly, I totally admit I’m not flexible, so I’m not a good fit for DVC ownership, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a good product. I appreciate your comments.

As an owner, if you owned one of those resorts, you would get it. But always those resorts, and not necessarily a BWV or BLT standard view room

 

[Buttcracker]

The key here is to buy where you want to stay. So if you wanted to stay at AKL, buy in there and book at 11 months. You can try to waitlist a reservation at other resorts and it takes persistency to get the resort you want, but many people do it. The benefit to DVC is you get first option at booking a room vs those paying cash.

In my current planning for purchasing DVC this is message I read time & time again from current DVC members.

 

[zavandor]

There are two reasons why there are a lot warnign about how difficult is to book DVC.

The first is connaturate to all point system timeshares. In a traditional fixed week timeshare you buy exactly the time you want in the unit you want. Thanksgiving week is yours and yours only, unless you trade out. For the developer this is not very appealing because no one is going to buy the first week of September or the last week or January unless they discount it a lot.
With a point timeshare, instead, everyone might think they're buying Thanksgiving week because they intend to use the points for it, but the reality is that it's one week over 52 available and only 4% of owners can book it. However balancing the charts (something that DVC has finally started to do) they may make high demand weeks more costly and somehow try to balance demand. It'll never be perfect, but some owners will be enticed to book September because of the lower cost and that may free up availability for the busiest weeks.

The second reason is that "better safe than sorry". When giving a suggestion to some stranger on an internet forum, I cannot guarantee them that they're going to be able to book the week they want at the resort they want. It simply is not possible in any point or floating weeks timeshare, there will always be competition between members. Unless you buy a guaranteed week you may never be sure...
But I've booked at 7 months studios all resorts (except BLR and CCV, which will be next). My last visit was a split stay (by design) between BLT standard, BWV standard and AKV value, 3 of the 4 most difficult categories to book at 7 months (the most difficult is AKV concierge which I'm not interested in). You'll find posts saying it's impossible to get those, and yet.

Do you want to be guaranteed to book Riviera every year during Thanksgiving? You can buy a guaranteed week*. Do you want flexibility? DVC can still be a good choice.


* actually, since thanksgiving is a floating holiday, you can buy a fixed week that most of the years gives you thanksgiving, every few years you'll have to cancel and rebook because it falls in a different week


That's like Slinky Dog FP+. They're difficult to get even at 62 or 63 days out. And yet I've ridden it multiple time as a 4th+ FP booked during the same day refreshing the app. So what's true? Is it difficult or if it possible to get a Slinky Dog FP+? Both. It's difficult to get and if your vacation would be ruined if you cannot ride it, then plan to go to the Studios on your 3rd or 4th day so you can book it 63+ days out. But if you cannot or you like to change plan on the day, you can still ride it if you are willing to put the effort in refreshing the app like crazy.

 

[crisi]

The second reason is that "better safe than sorry". When giving a suggestion to some stranger on an internet forum, I cannot guarantee them that they're going to be able to book the week they want at the resort they want. It simply is not possible in any point or floating weeks timeshare, there will always be competition between members. Unless you buy a guaranteed week you may never be sure...

This is a big motivator to all my advice. Whether its affordable, whether you will be able to book the room you want, whether the rooms are clean, whether you will like the resort. Its better to set expectations low and plan for the worst - and then be delighted when your experience exceeds expectations - then go into SAB having heard its the best pool in the whole world - and its a great pool if your kids are strong swimmers in the late elementary or middle school years - and going crazy because your 3, 5 and 7 year olds are impossible to watch all at once in that pool because no one knew you had three young kids at ages different enough to want to be in three different spaces in a pool that is heavily divided. Better safe than sorry.

(I have found rooms to be worn, but clean enough to my standards - but there are tumbleweeds on dog hair that need to be swept up in my kitchen right now - for someone who has really high standards of cleanliness, my experience may not be at all a good benchmark)

 

[bumbershoot]

In hindsight buying in would have been a big mistake for me personally and I would have been very disappointed.

Well, at least in my experience, until this year it’s been easy-peasy to get what I want. So if you’d bought in years ago you might have had years of good experiences under your belt.

Our first DVC stay was after thanksgiving through December 15, booked at 7 months, and it wasn’t an issue at all to do.

2016 I got a studio at the GFV on Christmas Eve and day, mere weeks before. 2017 I got the same just before my Princess half marathon stay. Last year I got a one bedroom at boardwalk no problems.

Until this year when it came crashing down. 13 days out and I haven’t yet gotten the Boardwalk one bedroom I want. Yes I was able to get OKW at 7 months, but that is literally the one one bedroom available at all during that week. We’ll be fine, but it isn’t *perfect*.

So that’s 10 years of reservations that have gone very very well, and one set of reservations that aren't as perfect as I want them to be.

 

[luvthatmouseinohio]

Well, at least in my experience, until this year it’s been easy-peasy to get what I want. So if you’d bought in years ago you might have had years of good experiences under your belt.

Our first DVC stay was after thanksgiving through December 15, booked at 7 months, and it wasn’t an issue at all to do.

2016 I got a studio at the GFV on Christmas Eve and day, mere weeks before. 2017 I got the same just before my Princess half marathon stay. Last year I got a one bedroom at boardwalk no problems.

Until this year when it came crashing down. 13 days out and I haven’t yet gotten the Boardwalk one bedroom I want. Yes I was able to get OKW at 7 months, but that is literally the one one bedroom available at all during that week. We’ll be fine, but it isn’t *perfect*.

So that’s 10 years of reservations that have gone very very well, and one set of reservations that aren't as perfect as I want them to be.

It’s awesome that you’ve had really good fortune for all those years! From many posts I’ve read DVC has definitely changed the past few. I guess everything in life does and some of us are better at going with the flow than others.

There are so many changes at the parks as well, some of which I don’t like. I miss the days of paper fast passes gotten one at a time at the kiosk. I’ve always been a planner, but I feel like everything except potty breaks have to be scheduled in advance now. Spontaneity doesn’t exist hardly at all ... I think Walt would think his parks today are missing the mark, and some of the Magic. But it’s still my favorite place to be

 

[tjkraz]

It’s awesome that you’ve had really good fortune for all those years! From many posts I’ve read DVC has definitely changed the past few. I guess everything in life does and some of us are better at going with the flow than others.

At this point, I'm not sure if your goal is to convince us that DVC isn't right for you or to convince yourself. If you have a half-dozen other reasons for not buying....great. But trying to convince people who have been members for 10-20 years that DVC booking is unwieldy is a nonstarter.

Yes, availability has changed in some subtle ways over the years. But the vagueness of your posts suggests you really have no idea what those changes are or if they would even impact you personally.

DVC isn't just for people willing to "go with the flow."

 

[luvthatmouseinohio]

At this point, I'm not sure if your goal is to convince us that DVC isn't right for you or to convince yourself. If you have a half-dozen other reasons for not buying....great. But trying to convince people who have been members for 10-20 years that DVC booking is unwieldy is a nonstarter.

Yes, availability has changed in some subtle ways over the years. But the vagueness of your posts suggests you really have no idea what those changes are or if they would even impact you personally.

DVC isn't just for people willing to "go with the flow."

I’m not trying to convince anyone of anything. I’m simply sharing my thoughts on a discussion forum, which others may or may not agree with. Just because my opinions don’t necessarily align with yours does not make them less valid. Enjoy your DVC

 

[tjkraz]

Just because my opinions don’t necessarily align with yours does not make them less valid.

You're arguing "opinions" in a forum populated by members who have decades of real-life experience.

If you really want to know the ins and outs of DVC booking, take advantage of that resource. People here are quite willing to explain the good and bad of DVC reservations. (It truly is far more "good" than "bad.")

Don't assume that posts you've read about how things have "changed" are an accurate representation of the whole. Don't dismiss real-world knowledge by concluding that DVC only works for people willing to "go with the flow."

 

[Philsfan77]

Unfortunately I’ve learned that the times my kids and I like to hit Disney, during cooler weather and decked for the holidays, are also prime times DVC members like to visit. Thus, I’ve had difficulty securing a rental, even at the 11-month mark. I was very lucky (yes, lotto lucky) to secure a stay for this Thanksgiving and I feel very fortunate. I would expect to have difficulties renting. But ... I read time and time again on this forum of actual owners having the EXACT same problem. Not all owners of course, but enough for me to know that for me personally, I’m glad I’ve never bought in. At 8 am every weekday morning I’m commuting to my office ... I don’t have the luxury of being in front of a computer trying to walk and lock in vacation reservations. I assure you those types of discussions are not had during timeshare presentations when DVC is presented as being the best thing since sliced bread.

I am genuinely happy for all the DVC owners out there who are over the moon with buying in. Sincerely I am. I am just happy that I never personally made the commitment as I would have been sorely disappointed. The flexibility is not near what it’s advertised to be.

To be fair...the flexibility is actually what does make it great IMO. We wanted to go first week of December last year and decided last minute to see what was available (last minute for DVC trip that time of year anyways - 6 months out) and there was still availability at SSR and OKW. People get locked into only wanting to stay in a certain room category (because it's the cheapest and they either bought just enough points for that category or want to extend their points for as many days as they can) at a certain resort, which is the definition of being non-flexible. So then they complain that "there's nothing available on my 11 month booking day." Reality at most resorts is that for a few more points (in a different view studio) they could easily get their dates, or maybe shorten their trip by 1 day, if they don't have the points, but thats not what their mind was set on, so they get upset and tell everyone how they were lied to in their presentation for buying DVC.

I think our definitions of flexible are just different on this topic.

 

[luvthatmouseinohio]

You're arguing "opinions" in a forum populated by members who have decades of real-life experience.

If you really want to know the ins and outs of DVC booking, take advantage of that resource. People here are quite willing to explain the good and bad of DVC reservations. (It truly is far more "good" than "bad.")

Don't assume that posts you've read about how things have "changed" are an accurate representation of the whole. Don't dismiss real-world knowledge by concluding that DVC only works for people willing to "go with the flow."

I am not sure why I seem to have ruffled your feathers, but this will be the last I respond to you.

1) Note the title of my thread "I think ..." There is no way for me to know for certain that DVC would not have been a fit for me, because I never actually bought in. Therefore, I can only use the "real-life experience" that I have.

2) The numerous times I have attempted to secure a rental at the DVC resorts that I want to stay in, for the unit type I want, and the travel dates I want, at the exact 11-month mark, have NEVER been available. These attempts have been made through various brokers and eBay. I understand totally that renting is a completely different animal than being an owner. I do not have the capability of seeing availability. But, I assume that the people who are checking availability for me are not lying because they want a sale. Just seems logical to me.

3) I can only assume that the numerous threads on this forum regarding walking, wait listing, piecing together reservations, etc., regardless of how long the poster has owned, are valid. I can also only conclude that because of these threads there are several owners who need to be flexible, to go with the flow, or whatever you want to call it. But then again, maybe these people just make that stuff up.

4) I am NOT trying to state that owning a DVC is a bad thing. Obviously, the good must far outweigh the bad or people would not be still buying in until this day. The vast majority of owners, yourself included, must be happy with their decision, which is the way it should be. If most of you weren't happy, Disney sure wouldn't keep building DVC resorts.

5) I am simply making a point that the experiences I have had, coupled with multiple threads from multiple owners on this forum, strongly indicate that for me PERSONALLY it likely would have been a disappointment.

Readers of this thread should take my humble "opinion" and draw their own conclusions, even if it doesn't compare to your holier than thou decades of real-life experience.