New and looking to buy

[DVCWannabe]

Hi, I joined the boards a while ago but only just got round to posting!

I am avid Disney fan and have been on many trips to WDW and DLP over the last decade. We have another trip planned for December at WDW. Now we have two little ones, we are hoping to take many more Disney vacations over the coming years and we are thinking that DVC may be the way to go.

We are going to take a tour when we visit WDW in December, but think we may hang on for the new Contemporary DVC, as we love the monorail resorts, and it seems the choice of home resort is very important. AKV look nice but we are not bowled over by the location of that resort.

Having read some DVC members complaining about how hard it is becoming to book DVC resorts as busy times, I was wondering if anyone regretting buying into DVC because of this, or if you would all still recommend it. Also glad of any other advice before we take the plunge.

Thanks, and looking forward to contributing to these forums in the future.

Julie

[KNWVIKING 2.0]

I've never tried for a trip that included 12/25 or 12/31 so I don't know how frustrating it is/can/could be to get those specific date.

I do however plan my trips at 11 month window and have never had any difficulty getting what I want. I've stayed March, April, May, Oct, nov & Dec. Even had Easter weekend ( purely by mistake, Easter never stays in one place long enough for me to figure out when it is - something to do with a ground hog i believe ).

The biggest flaw - for lack of a better term - is that the system doesn't work well for spur of the moment trips.

[DVC Mike]

If you visit WDW at least every 2 or 3 years and typically stay in a deluxe resort, then you are a good candidate for DVC.

If you are particular about which DVC resort you want to stay at, then you'll need to book as soon as allowed. DVC is not for last-minute trips.

[TimK]

Hey, Julie. :)

If you want to book at a specific resort, the best thing you can do is own at that resort and book as far ahead as possible--preferably 10 to 11 months out.

A lot of it depends upon when you want to go. Hands-down the busiest time at DVC resorts is the 5-6 week period from Thanksgiving to New Year's. Aside from that, it's conceivable that you'll find rooms available at most DVC resorts even 7 months out.

Until recently we owned all of our points at Saratoga Springs. We have been successful in booking the BoardWalk (3-4 times), Old Key West and the Beach Club. Most of those trips came between February and May, albeit NOT during peak Spring Break (Easter) weeks.

Unless DVC decides to delay the Contemporary due to economic woes, we should know a lot more by the time your December trip rolls around. The building permits show the project as being complete by September '09, so they can't keep this under wraps too much longer. The main question then becomes how much DVC will charge for the Contemporary. I've heard some pretty high speculation (like 20% higher than current prices).

We also don't know what the point charts will be right now. DVC is certain to charge more points per night for some rooms at the CR--the question is how many more. If they raise prices AND raise the point requirements 20-30% over the likes of the BoardWalk and Beach Club, members are getting hit from both sides.

Don't ignore the resale market when you do your research. It's tough to recommend a purchase at the Beach Club, BoardWalk or Wilderness Lodge since those resorts only have 33 years of ownership left. Saratoga Springs, Old Key West and Animal Kingdom Villas contracts run quite a bit longer.

Hope that helps. Don't hesitate to ask more questions! :mickey:
Tim

[DVCWannabe]

Don't ignore the resale market when you do your research. It's tough to recommend a purchase at the Beach Club, BoardWalk or Wilderness Lodge since those resorts only have 33 years of ownership left. Saratoga Springs, Old Key West and Animal Kingdom Villas contracts run quite a bit longer.

Hope that helps. Don't hesitate to ask more questions! :mickey:
Tim

Hi Tim
Thanks for the advice.

I thought OKW was the first DVC resort at WDW, so how come that has more years left to run than BWV, BCV and VWL?

[KNWVIKING 2.0]

OKW was scheduled to "end" in 2042, same as BWV,VWL,BCV,HHI and VB. In 2007 they announced they would be offering current owners the chance to extend their conracts 15 additional years - for a fee, of course.

The offer was $25.00 per point with a $10.00 discount pp until 1-31-08 ( I believe that was the cut-off date ).

IMO they will have the same offer for theother 2042 resorts.

SSR was the first new resort to start with a fresh 50 yr term.