Grand Cal hotel point charts published

Historically Disney Vacation Club members are prohibited from using points to book a hotel room at any location which also features DVC villa accommodations.  That was the case when the Villas at Disney's Grand Californian Hotel opened back in 2009--with the addition of villas to the DVC program, standard hotel rooms are removed from The Disney Collection and no longer available to members using points. 

However, due to the scarcity of accommodations at the Grand Californian--only 48 villas were constructed--Disney Vacation Club has again arranged for members to book hotel rooms using points. 

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The costs are on par with other destinations in The Disney Collection and dramatically higher than booking a Deluxe Studio DVC villa in the same facility.  As with other Disney Collection destinations different rates are provided for different views at the hotel.  Even the seasons are different making a direct comparison difficult.  A few examples are noted below:

September 1-22, 2012

June 24 - August 25, 2012

The best view hotel view comparison would be the Theme Park / Pool category as nearly all of the DVC villas also overlook these areas.  In each season the Grand Californian hotel room requires at least twice as many points--often nearly three times as many--as the comparable Disney Vacation Club Deluxe Studio villa.  

It is worth noting that the hotel rooms do offer a greater variety of room styles.  Sleeping options include one king-size bed, two queen-size beds or one queen bed and bunk beds.  Hotel room bookings also include daily housekeeping.  

All Deluxe Studio villas feature one queen-size bed and a full-size sofabed, along with DVC's limited housekeeping schedule.

Points committed to a reservation in The Disney Collection are converted to "Reservation Points" and can no longer be used at Disney Vacation Club accommodations.  As such, members would not be able to reserve a Grand Californian hotel room and then use the DVC waitlist to try securing a cheaper villa room.  

The $95 Disney Collection reservation fee does not apply to Disneyland Resort hotels including the Grand Californian.   The "Rule of 4", which states that memebers cannot reserve and stay a non-DVC destination within the last four months of their Use Year, also does not apply.  

Thanks to Gary for the tip!