DVC Blog - Issue #3 - Join the Family

Uncovering Disney’s Best Kept Secret – The Disney Vacation Club

Issue 3

Deciding to Join the Family

Disney, and most DVC members, see DVC as a family. Fortunately this is the family you choose, not the one you are born into. And like real family, deciding to join DVC is a serious commitment. Remember DVC is a time share system. You are purchasing a real estate share of your DVC home resort. This contract with DVC is not forever though. All DVC resorts are sold with a 50 year contract. The expiration of your contract depends on the resort you purchase. Most resorts expire in 2042, while Saratoga Springs Resort expires in 2054 and Animal Kingdom Villas expire in 2057. Don’t worry if you don’t think you are going to make it that long, DVC is fully willable to your children or your favorite blogger.

Now that you know you are going to be jumping in for the long haul, let’s look and see if DVC is the right thing for you. Your first consideration in joining should be frequency and location of your vacations. If your employment, family situation or personal desires only have you going on a vacation once every 3-4 years, DVC might not be right for you. If all your vacations are spent visiting Grandma in the“Town You Grew Up In”, USA, DVC might not be right for you. If you travel at least once every 2 years and you love, or at least like Disney, and you want the flexibility to travel any time of the year, anywhere in the world, take a closer look at DVC.

Since you meet the criteria above and want to move on, consider if the expense of joining DVC is worth the cost for you. Currently DVC is selling points for about $105 a point. With the minimum buy in at 160 points, you are going to spend at least $17,600 to get in. It seems like a lot of money but remember this is a long term investment. Let’s compare this to some alternatives. To be fair, let’s compare everything to a DVC 1 bedroom, for a 6 night/7 day trip during June.

A DVC 1 bedroom condo comes with a master bedroom with a king size bed and master bath, a full kitchen, a pull out sofa for 2, a shower and a Jacuzzi tub, and a full washer and dryer. In addition, you get to enjoy all of the things we talked about in the last edition, including the discounts on attractions, shopping and dining, the free transportation on site and to and from the airport, access to the Disney Dining Plan, and the Extra Magic hours. This room will cost about 200 points, thus your initial buy in would cost you $21,000.

Alternative #1: Offsite hotel

You can get some great rates offsite near Disney. Let’s say $100 a night, but you need 2 rooms to compare with DVC fairly, so 6 nights will run you $1,200 for lodging. Since you don’t have a kitchen or washer and dryer, you will need to pay more for food and bring more clothes (think $15 for the first checked bag and $25 for the second). You will also need to rent a car to get to Disney and you will pay $8-10 a day for parking. This will total up to at least $1,800 for the room and extras. Calculated out, do this for 12 years and you have reached the cost of a DVC membership.

Alternative #2: Offsite condo

Though the pricing will be similar to DVC, there are many disadvantages to staying offsite. Many condos offsite are a further drive than the hotels (more gas @ $4 a gallon), and you will still need to rent a car and pay for parking. The added distance will take time away from your enjoyment of the parks. Many condos are 30-45 minutes away from WDW property. You will not get any of the discounts or extras that DVC members get. Worst of all, with most other time shares, you are locked into a specific week, so if you don’t go that week, too bad.

Alternative #3: Disney Resort hotel

You can get a value resort for about $100 a night and a nicer room for $200. Let’s split the difference and say $300 a night (2 rooms, remember). That would be $1,800 for the trip and you can use Disney transportation to save money. You also get the Extra Magic Hours and access to the Disney Dining Plan, but miss out on other things. No shopping and attraction discounts, and no kitchen and washer and dryer. So if this trip ran you $2,000, you would reach the cost of membership in just over 10 years.

Alternative #4: Paying cash for a DVC resort

Yes, you can pay to stay at DVC. You will pay about $430 a night for the 1 bedroom. That’s $2,580 for the 6 night stay. You would have most of the benefits as a DVC member but you would not get the discounts that DVC members get. Go this way and in 8.1 years, you would buy your membership.

Though it is really more cost effective to buy into the DVC, please take the time to consider your personal finances and your ability to pay for DVC. The last thing anyone wants is for you to join DVC and not be able to afford to keep it. Take stock of your personal situation and consult with your significant other before jumping in.

Your final consideration should be if DVC will get you where you want to go. The best way to do this would be to sit down with your family and figure out where you might want to vacation over the next 10 years. Then go to www.disneyvacationclub.com or call DVC (I know a great cast member that would love to help you, email me) and find out if they can get you there. With hundreds of locations around the world, chances are they will be able to.

Take a deep breath. The cost can be overwhelming, but if you understand the value, you may be ready to move on. Don’t write the check yet! Next time, we are going to look at different ways to get the points. That’s right, you don’t have to buy from DVC. Shhhh, that’s a secret.

“It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” – Walt Disney

If you would like to comment on this blog, please join us on the DVC Message Boards at Walt's Basement. If you are not a member of Walt’s Basement, just contact us at waltsbasement@charter.net and we will get you signed up.

If you are interested in more information about joining DVC, please drop me a note and I will get you connected with my great DVC rep. To be fair, I do get a gift when I recommend people to DVC.