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[Keys2kingdom]

I just returned from my latest trip to WDW with my Husband, we had a great time in the parks, but were somewhat disappointed with our stay at POFQ. It was way noisy in the dining hall and the pool was overrun with people even at midnight. I should have known that with out a sit down rest. and a quiet pool we would not be happy, but i really wanted to stay at the "FQ" for the theme. Prior to our trip I viewed the DVC DVD. While in WDW we saw SSR and met with a sales rep.

I want to know what you feel are the best parts of DVC ownership, and especially the worst parts about joining. I have a vacation budget that technically would allow me to pay off my points in three years, but i a sheepish about the upfront money and not knowing how the points will be five or ten years from now. I know i can add points later, but then that skews the comparison when i try to decide if it will be a good financial decsion.

my second question is how many of you use your DVC to go to places other than WDW?

and Lastly should i buy direct into SSR or look for resale of another property like VWL?

[Wendyismyname]

Well first off to the boards! Glad to have you here!

Your third question: I think it largely just depends on which resort you want to purchase in! If I'd known about resale, I might have gone with them(for VWL or OKW), but I am tickled pink with my purchase of 300 points at BCV!

second question: we've yet to visit anywhere else but WDW, we plan to wait until the kids get older so they can appreciate them better.

I knew right away when I took my tour that DVC was what we wanted. Purchase the amount of points that you think you'll need(even with our family of 6, 300 points is plenty!)and can afford.

We can write off part of our annual dues on our yearly taxes, so that's plus for us. I adore the various discounts that are offered to DVCers.

I hope soon we can say Welcome Home!

[Cats'N'Dogs]

It's definitely been a win:win for us. I bought in 4 years ago and have already "paid off" my investment. In terms of value, I've tracked what my stays at the resorts would have cost me in dollars and the DVC has been a great deal.
The only downside is the addictive aspect. I keep wanting to buy more points, I already have 500!

As to buying from Disney vs resale, it depends on what you want for a home resort. You can book 11 months out at your home resort so that may be a factor in your decision. Some of the older resorts sell at lower cost per point which also means lower annual dues costs. My home resort is WL but I would love to buy into OKW resale someday.

I've used my points to stay at the Disney Resort in Hilton Head and plan on other trips outside of Disney when my DD is older. Like the Alaskan cruise and dude ranch in Arizona.

[DISNEYGOOF]

Welcome to the boards, I love being a DVC member. It's great picking up the phone and reserving a room without having to "pay" and I love having a kitchen, washer and dryer(when we stay in a one bedroom) I don't really have a worse part, only that I wish we would've joined years earlier. We haven't stayed anywhere but Disney, we've only been members since 2003. I don't really know about the resells personally but there are members on the board who have had good experiences with them.

[chezp]

Firstly welcome to the boards!

I want to echo what others have said to a certain extent.

As to the downside, I'm yet to find one, except I wish we'd joined earlier as well.

The best part of joining is knowing that our accommodation at Disney is essentially paid for for the next few decades. I too love being able to pick up the phone (or e-mail) and know that it's all already paid for. I also love knowing that the points aren't going to increase - unlike the cost of staying at a Disney resort, which does go up every year.

We used our points to take a three night Disney cruise last year and really there is no way that we'd have been able to afford that, had we paid cash. We're also planning to spend a couple of nights at one of the Disneyland hotels next year.

As for resale or buying into direct, as others have said, it depends on whether you're likely to be going at a busy time of the year. If so, you might want to have a home resort that you want to stay at, so you can book eleven months out. Otherwise, it probably doesn't matter where you choose as your home resort. We have points at both the Beach Club Villas and Saratoga Springs and when we came to book the BCV for early December, they were nearly fully booked, so we used all our BCV points to make a booking before the seven month window.

I hope that helps and I look forward to being able to welcom you home.

[Jillybean]

Add me to the list of DVC members whose only regret is not joining sooner!

Also consider that you don't pay tax on your accomodations - - if you've ever looked at your itemized bill from a hotel then you know how much tax adds on.

We love the deluxe resorts so DVC was perfect for our family. We own at HH and SSR and would love to add on in a couple of years.

Good luck with your decision!

Jill

[rescuesk]

Welcome to the Boards!!

I can only echo what everyone else said here. We own at VWL, BWV and just added 100 points at SSR. This year, we did a four day Disney Cruise with my DStepS, I am staying at the Grand Floridian for 5 days (3 of them on DVC points) and we are travelling to VWL in December. There is NO WAY we would have been able to afford these trips without DVC.

My biggest regret is that we didn't join sooner!

[RobDVC]

The only thing I could add is that, if you buy at SSR you will get a 50-year ownership, whereas the other resorts have been open for awhile and your ownership will expire in 2042.

[SuperKate]

Hey Keys2Kingdom do you know that you are member number 10,000!!! We were all so excited waiting to see who would be # 10,000 and it's you! CONGRATULATIONS!!

[WDWLVR]

The good: Having a one bedroom villa when we visit WDW. I'm spoiled having a full kitche, washer/dryer, and most of all that wonderful tub! DVC has allowed us to travel more because we can budget better. We've only used points so far at WDW, Vero Beach and for a couple of cruises.

The bad: Like everyone else has said - that we didn't buy in sooner.

The ugly: Realizing how spoiled we've become. Regular hotel rooms just don't do it for us anymore.


As for the age old question - where should you buy. The universal answer is buy where you want to stay. If you like SSR then by all means buy there and get the extra years. If you think you would be happier with an Epcot Resort (Beach Club or Boardwalk) then buy there. Love the casual feel of Old Key West - then look there.