Disney Vacation Club Overview

One exciting detail from our Disney World trip last May was that we became Disney property owners! I'll be the first to say that it isn't the right option for everyone but it can be a great savings opportunity for any family that plans to make a trip to Disney at least once every two years. Read on if you're interested to learn more....

I was initially skeptical of Disney Vacation Club ("DVC") because I felt that timeshares were a waste of money. I really didn't want to sit through a seminar and then get talked into a purchase that I didn't want - and here's the part where I scare some people away by saying that our salesman was awful. He totally oozed 'used car salesman' and didn't even try to hide it. He countered every question with a sales spin and it was very difficult to find a polite way out of the situation. Let me be honest, DVC sells itself. The program is wonderful and pays for itself (more on that later) so I felt like it was easy for me to say 'yes' to the purchase but I didn't want to say 'yes' to this guy. Thankfully, the finance manager was more personable and totally empathized with our situation when we explained that we were less than impressed with the sales pitch. He took extra time to walk us through our questions, gave us extra fastpasses and a $50 gift card, and then sent our documents via FedEx to our home so we didn't have to pack them in our luggage. If you decide to inquire about DVC, definitely do some research first and make sure it's something you think you will want before putting yourself through the potential torture of the sales pitch.

On a happier note, I have not regretted our purchase at all and we are actually considering another contract next year. I started with the lowest point package first (50 points) because I wasn't sure how many we would need. The DVC site has a wonderful tool to help you calculate a point total for your vacation if you're interested to see how many points you need. We usually travel in off-peak season so our 50 points should get us about 5 nights per year in a standard room at Animal Kingdom Villas. Alternatively, we can also use our points at Grand Californian on Disneyland property, Aulani in Hawaii, or a number of properties near other Disney locations. Although points are incredibly important and you should get the package that fits your needs, rest assured that you can bank points for years when you don't visit and then use those points the next year. Additionally, you can also borrow from the next year's points if you need extra to round out your vacation or purchase up to 25 points from the general DVC pool (our salesman said the price for these is $15 each).

Other than points, the next most important decision is picking a home resort. DVC usually opens one or two resorts at a time for purchase, depending on where they have availability. The two resorts offered at our seminar were the Polynesian and Copper Creek at Disney's Wilderness Lodge. We were enamored with the idea of Copper Creek because it's the most recent addition to the DVC collection and has beautifully appointed rooms, but ultimately the monorail access won us over and we selected the Polynesian. We felt that we really couldn't go wrong with either choice, though, so we were pretty lucky with the offerings. The home resort choice is so important because it will allow you an extra four months availability ahead of the general DVC crowd. With DVC, you can opt to use your points at any DVC property but if you select a property that isn't your home location then you won't have access to book it until seven months out compared to 11 months for home members. That detail is especially important for anyone looking to stay at a monorail resort because those rooms move quickly!

Now to the financial details: in addition to the monthly payment for the points that are purchased, there are also annual dues. These can be paid in one lump sum every year or automatically debited each month (but you'll have to call after your contract closes to set this up!) The prices are directly influenced by the home resort that is selected so if you choose a moderate resort, Old Key West for example, then you'll have lower payments and annual dues than if you select a deluxe resort such as Bay Lake Tower.

And finally, the fun stuff. There are so many perks to being a DVC member that I probably won't be able to list them all. First, Disney often offers exclusive discounts for special events and sneak previews of new additions (Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge is on our radar!) The Top of the World Lounge at Bay Lake Tower is DVC-exclusive and offers fantastic views of the fireworks at Magic Kingdom. There's a standard 20% discount on merchandise purchased at Disney-owned stores on property and dining discounts at many beloved locations, as well. This is just a small number of the perks that accompany DVC membership and I can personally vouch for the 20% merchandise offer because it saved us at least $50 on our last trip and we only had the membership for a few days! Remember, many in-park snacks and sundries can be purchased at Disney stores so don't venture to an ice cream cart to buy the Mickey Bar if you can get it inside a store instead.

I hope this overview has been helpful; remember, you can always rent points first if you want to try it out. You won't have the full membership experience but it will at least show you what it's like to stay in a villa vs. resort. Let me know if you have any questions and I'll be sure to report on our experience as we gain a better understanding of the program!