Buy a disney vacation club membership

Sign up for the FREE MouseSavers Newsletter and get a monthly email with exclusive discounts! Disney Vacation Club DVC is a timeshare program operated by Disney. The program currently operates 14 resorts: There are ten DVC resorts at Walt Disney World: There is one DVC resort at Disneyland in California: Villas at Grand Californian. There are also DVC resorts in three beach locations: Oahu, Hawaii , Vero Beach, Florida and Hilton Head, South Carolina.

While Disney likes to emphasize the flexibility of the points system and your ability to use them outside of Disney, the reality is that the most cost-effective use of DVC points is at the DVC resorts. Most studios sleep 4 plus one baby under age 3 in a crib in two queen beds or a queen bed and a queen- or full-size sofa bed.

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The Treehouses at Saratoga Springs Resort have 3 bedrooms and sleep 9 plus one baby under age 3 in a crib. There is one queen bed each of the first two bedrooms; bunk beds in the third bedroom; and a Full-size pullout sofa and a Twin-size pullout chair in the living room. The exact configurations vary, but generally there is a king bed in one bedroom; two queens or a queen and a full-size pullout sofa in each of the other two bedrooms; and a full- or queen-size pullout sofa in the living room.

Most Grand Villas have 4 bathrooms — one for each of the bedrooms, plus an extra off the living room area. DVC members who purchase directly from Disney or who purchased via resale before April 4, receive a few extra benefits , including discounts at certain Disney World and Disneyland restaurants and shops these change frequently and discounts on Walt Disney World Annual Passes.

In the sections below, we offer some thoughts on these issues. Among other things, your points are not good forever: We did this, and also looked at spreadsheets done by others. Among the factors to consider are your vacation habits , whether you can afford the initial buy-in cost and its associated opportunity cost and whether you can handle the annual dues be sure to account for annual dues increases.

If we had to borrow the money, we definitely would not join. Naturally Disney will suggest otherwise, because it makes a lot of money on the financing.

The effect of annual dues increases on the total cost of DVC membership must be considered. A portion of your dues is allocated to a capital reserve fund for major refurbishments.

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Adjustments are always possible if the projected reserve needs vary from actual experience, although Disney has been in lodging business for many decades and has considerable experience in what long-term costs to expect. Special assessments are possible if something unforeseen occurs i. In the scenarios expressed on this page, we assumed a 3. If you think it will be higher, you should adjust your calculations accordingly. Like the DVC resort dues increases, the rate increases at the Disney resort hotels are not consistent.

Thus, the total grows geometrically. Of course, the value of a dollar will almost certainly be lower by then, due to inflation. If you think resort rates will go up faster than DVC dues increases, that will tend to make DVC membership look more attractive. And if you think resort rates will go up slower than DVC dues increases, that tends to make DVC membership less attractive.

For purposes of this example, points would cover 11 nights of vacation in a Saratoga Springs Studio unit: Note that Disney Deluxe resort stays are currently subject to However, the number of discounted rooms has gone down each year lately, and in Disney eliminated their AAA discount, which was the only discount that was available almost all of the year.

If your dates are flexible and you can go in the off-season you can probably get some kind of discount, but if you need to go during school vacations room discounts are going to be harder to get.

Each each year you add the same amount of money you would have paid in DVC fees. Then you pay cash for your vacation each year out of this investment account. When you compare such an investment against a DVC purchase, the results will depend on a number of factors, including your vacation habits how much time will you be spending at Disney World, Disneyland and other DVC resorts in the next years?

Every family can generate a different scenario. The assumptions include NOT financing the purchase.

We also assumed there would be equivalent annual increases in dues, resort rates and cost to rent points. In the following scenarios, DVC purchase beats investing the money buy-in amount plus annual fees and paying cash for your annual vacations: If you would normally average less than that per year for your accommodations, DVC is probably not going to save you money.

DVC may still be a decent bet. You can bank your annual points, allowing you to skip a year. Or you can rent out excess points. If you want to see how the above scenarios were calculated, right-click on this link and download the Excel file. Note that calculations were based on numbers and assume 3. One last note on this topic: If you invest the money and want to stop vacationing at Disney World, you can easily divert the money to other uses.

Remember that the cost of accommodations is actually a small fraction of the overall cost of a vacation. DVC members do qualify for some discounts that may help with these additional vacation expenses though only if they buy at least some of their points direct from Disney. They save a substantial amount on Annual Passes at Walt Disney World, a small amount on first-time Annual Passes at Disneyland, and get some restaurant and merchandise discounts but this varies and is always subject to change.

Also, the villas have full kitchens , which could help a bit with the costs, since some meals can be made in the unit. The Dining Plans are available to the general public only as part of a vacation package, so this is a nice benefit for those DVC members.

This is true whether you use your own points, rent points or pay cash.

By contrast, the Disney resort hotels charge extra if you have more than 2 adults defined as 18 and older in a room. Depending on the ages of the people in your group, this may save you a bit. DVC members who are staying on points at a Walt Disney World DVC resort get FREE self-service laundry: Consult your tax advisor for details.

DVC contracts last a long time.

Will you still want to go to Disney World every year, 25 years from now? If your lifestyle changes, you get tired of Disney vacations, or you suffer financial reverses, the dues can become a burden. Realistically, there is a reason why there are always DVC resales available: When she became a member, she had small children and went to Disney World every year. The single biggest reason people sell timeshares is that they can no longer afford the membership fees, which inevitably go up and up.

However, we have never seen a DVC membership being given away, because there is an active DVC resale market. Given the success of DVC, there is every reason to expect that additional resorts will be built, with later and later expiration dates.

On the other hand, there is a major advantage in your DVC membership having an expiration date: Generally only the newest resorts are available for immediate purchase directly through Disney. For popular, small resorts like Beach Club or Grand Californian, the waiting lists can stretch for several years. For bigger resorts like Saratoga Springs, you may be able to get points immediately or within a few weeks or months. You can purchase a contract at any DVC resort from current owners who want to get rid of their memberships, through the resale market.

Be sure to research before making your offer, so that you have a reasonable expectation of actually getting the contract. Most of the time, an offer that low will be taken by Disney under its right of first refusal. If you just want to buy into DVC as quickly as possible so you can start using it right away, buying direct from Disney is usually the best bet.

Disney expedites the deed recording process and you can usually get a reservation as soon as you sign the paperwork, even before the deed is officially recorded with the state. If you want to pay the lowest amount possible, buying resale is usually the best bet. You just have to understand that the process can be slow, sometimes frustrating slow.

With a resale, you first have to find a good contract. If you want a specific size at a smaller resort, it can take some time for one to come up. Once you find one and make an offer, the seller may decide to take a different offer, and then you have to wait for another one to come along. Once the offer is accepted, it has to be sent to Disney for them to decide whether to exercise their right of first refusal, followed by the titling and deed recording process.

Disney then needs to get you registered as a member in their system. If Disney does take the contract back via right of first refusal, it costs you nothing, but now you have to go back to the beginning and find a new contract to make an offer on. We can tell you from personal experience that the process can feel maddening. Another difference between buying direct and resale is the ease and cost of financing.

Disney has their own lending arm, so they can get you financing very quickly and easily, whereas financing a resale purchase can be a little trickier. There are third-party timeshare lenders, and some of the resale companies can help facilitate the process of taking out a loan with one of them. To be honest, the costs of financing a DVC membership, no matter who you take the loan with, strike us as far too high.

If you do decide to finance the purchase, evaluate all possible options first before just taking the Disney financing.

Keep in mind, though, that there are lots of point contracts available resale, but very few that are really small or really large. All resale points, no matter when purchased, are valid for reservations at all the Disney Vacation Club resorts as well as via RCI exchanges, Club Cordial and Club Intrawest.

Resale points purchased after March 20, are not valid for certain exchanges: The merchandise and food discounts are not going to nearly as big, unless you plan to eat at lot of very expensive restaurants or buy a massive number of souvenirs. That may make sense for some folks, but our advice is to run the numbers carefully. There are a handful of other restrictions on buyers who only own resale points: Those core privileges make up the primary value of DVC.

If you are interested in buying a resale, several Florida real estate companies specialize in DVC resales — try a Google search to find them. Disney offers special incentives for new buyers on the DVC resorts that are currently available for direct sale. These offers are subject to change at any time and may not be available when you make your purchase. A minimum purchase of points is usually required for new buyers. A good source for finding the most recent incentives is DVCNews.

Buying a DVC membership is a rational, financially viable option for some people: A DVC purchase is a way of committing to an annual Disney vacation with family and friends. For some people, that may outweigh any financial considerations.

Only you can determine if DVC membership makes sense for your situation. If you have the patience, the savings you get buying a resale contract can be very good.

Evaluate both and see what works for you. If you only visit Disney Vacation Club destinations occasionally, you may find that renting DVC points from an owner is actually a better deal than buying a DVC membership. See below for information on how to rent points. Thanks to Sue Pisaturo of Small World Vacations for some excellent suggestions and historical hotel rate information.

Thanks to the members of the DIS DVC Forum for useful insights and suggestions. The main focus is reporting news that is of interest to DVC members, but the site also offers room descriptions and floorplans, DVC points charts including charts for destinations like Tokyo Disneyland, Disneyland Paris, etc. Renting Disney Vacation Club DVC points is a little-known way to stay in a deluxe-level Disney resort for much less.

Not only is renting a great deal, there are some fabulous larger units available that are perfect for big families, groups of family and friends, and people who just plain want a little more room: Click here to learn more about the different units. The points needed for a stay vary tremendously depending on the season.

DVC rentals offer less-frequent maid service than paying cash directly to Disney for the same unit. You can opt to pay extra for more frequent service. Alternatively and usually a little more cheaply , you can rent points directly through a DVC member.

If you want to arrange a private transaction with a DVC owner, be sure to read the information below. If you are renting DVC points directly from an owner, be very careful! In a direct transaction with an owner, you can lose all your money, and there is no way to prevent this. This is part of a very friendly discussion forum associated with an excellent site for DVC information. Be sure to read the FAQ Frequently Asked Questions post on that board before trying a rental.

We recommend renting only from people who have participated on the DIS Boards for over a year and who have made a significant number of posts about general subjects not just offers to rent. Thanks to Kent and Joyce A for the suggestion. We personally would not rent DVC points from listings on eBay or Craigslist. David can provide the guidance and the guests to make the rental process very easy and painless for you.

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