[MJD]

Little history; Going down to Disney for the third year in a row, wife and family just love it. Can't see the reason to go anywhere else at this time. Fun for all and a time to relax from a busy schedule.
This year I am taking my parents for thier wedding anniversery. Would like the extra space, need the extra space but can't seem to get myself to buy in! Two years ago we almost bought into the "Wilderness Lodge" sold out when I decided to take the plunge! My fault again, can't see buying something I have no experience with and can actually justify spending the money.
I know for the amount of money I spent in the last few years, I could have bought it out right. I hope there are some guest on this forum that could help me make my decesion(my wife sure does).
Looking into buying at the "Yatch and Beach Club". How many points for a family of four? Are the rooms nice? What are your thoughts? How are things with your plan? I know this a tall order to fill and I also know that most people I have met at Disney were willing to help. I would rather speak to someone that may have been in my shoes.

Thanks
MJD, Rhode Island :o

[mickey]

MJD, Welcome to DisneyCentral! We are a family of seven, and starting going to WDW when our oldest was about 4. We stayed at Dixie Landings the first two times, since we only had 2 kids. As soon as our third was born, the rooms got small really fast. So, we started staying off site in the Marriott timeshares. They are nice, but it was a pain driving to the parks every morning, and the vacations weren't the same. During our 5th trip to WDW, we decided to stay at Vero Beach resort. We had just taken a tour at the Boardwalk Villas, and then another when we arrived at Vero Beach, and were sold. While DVC is definitely more expensive for us than the Marriotts, it is well worth it. It allows us to visit more often and for less money than almost any other way.

How many points for a family of four?

That is a difficult question. If you plan on going each year, and plan on going about the same time per year, you can figure out how many you need by calculating how much a week will cost you that year. We purchased 270 points, and that is about right for us. If you go to the Beach Club Villas every year, and go in January or the first two weeks of December, a one bedroom is going to cost you 200 points every year, and a two bedroom is going to be 270. You can save a lot of points by only going Sunday to Friday, since Friday and Saturday night combined are almost as much as the five weekdays.

Are the rooms nice?

They are just as nice as the rooms in the deluxe resorts. While I haven't been inside the Beach Club Villas yet, all the others are fantasic rooms, and just as nice as their resort counterparts. I don't think they compared to the suites in the deluxe resorts, but then again, they are usually over $1,000 per night.

What are your thoughts? How are things with your plan?

I love the Disney Vacation Club. The fees are reasonable, Disney keeps their properties in wonderful shape, they point system is great, we have stayed as little as two nights using points, and it gets us to WDW on a regular basis. I haven't run into any problems with the plan, though we usually go during off season, so we aren't trying to get a room during Christmas. We have used our points at Old Key West (our home resort), Boardwalk Villas and Vero Beach. We are going to try to stay at the new Beach Club Villas for our next trip.

My suggetion to people is to first consider resale, though you won't be able to find anything at Beach Club. There should be plenty of choices at Wilderness Lodge, Boardwalk and Old Key West. We purchased resale and saved about 15%, and receive all the benefits of people who purchase through Disney. The other suggestion is to buy where you want to stay every time you go. While you can use you points elsewhere, I have found that you can almost always get a room at your home resort, if you call ahead at the 11 month limit. You can stay at other resorts, but you can only call 7 months ahead, and it is often booked, even during non-busy times. We usually stay at Old Key West because the rooms are cheaper, and we like the grand villas there.

If you have any other questions, we would be glad to help. There are quite a few DVC members around here, and I am sure that they will respond as well.

[BDavis932]

We are a family 4 with (our children almost 7 and 2 1/2).

We had been looking at DVC since 1994 and just never took the time to do it. On our trip in December of 2000, on the day we were supposed to depart, we took the tour (with Randy--he's a super guy!) at 11:00 am, they gave a gift certificate to eat anywhere we would like to on the boardwalk when we were through. We bought 150 points at Old Key West, sight unseen.

When we arrived at OKW for the first time this past June, we were so pleased!!

We had vacationed the summer of 2001 at the Keystone Resort in Colorado using our DVC membership. Six of us stayed in a 2 bedroom condo for an entire week for 147 points. That place was great!!! I highly recommend it to all DVC members - although it is a ski resort....they make it into a great summertime get-a-way!

We, to, usually go to WDW for vacations every year, and having the vacation club MAKES us do it!! (We don't put it off)

So far, the points that we purchased have worked out well for us. Since we can only take off work 2 weeks per year and we always drive to our vacation destinations, we spend 7 days at Old Key West at the end of May/early June and use only 98 points!!

We have banked enough from our original purchase, that we will be taking my parents on there 40th Anniversary trip to WDW in June!! They would never have gone without us being able to do this for them. And, honestly, it would have been a little hard to pay for 2 trips at the same time without DVC. I wished we had done it sooner!

I love knowing that we will be able to go places all over the US, WDW & DL, until 2042. We will have it paid off in 2005!!! That is like 37 years of free accomedations!

[MJD]

Guys Thanks!
This is great. Hey, BDavis sounds like you are in the same boat as us. My parents are celebrating their anniversary too. Thanks, for the info, it should be helpful to make a decision.

:) Hey Mickey,
Could you expand a little bit more about resale? The gentleman from WDW that I have been working with did not mention that.

You guys are great!!!

[WorknFires]

Hi MJD,
I'm not Mickey but I can point you towards some resells. I origonally bought 150 pts from WDW becaue I wasn't "sure" that DVC would be right for us and wanted to take baby steps into the timeshare pool. Well, one trip was enough to convince us we wanted to swim in the deep end (too bad we can't afford too deep :D) but we did wade a little deeper and purchased a 220 pt resell from the timeshare store:

http://www.dvc-resales.com/

They were very professional and easy to work with. I did not want to pay what the seller was asking and made them an offer that was accepted. The timeshare store got me an answer within the hour.

It's just my husband and I, but so far we've taken 2 trips where we were able to treat my mom and his parents to 9 day trips to WDW followed by a 3 day Disney Wonder Cruise the 1st trip and followed by a 4 day Disney Wonder Cruise the 2nd trip. All was affordable to us because of DVC.

We are wanted to add an add'l 50 pts at Beach Club but need to pay off a few small bills 1st. It's truly been a great investment for us. I hope you will feel the same.

Cheryl

[MJD]

WorknFries,
Thank you very much!

Mjd

[mickey]

We purchased through them as well. They were very good to work with. They have a fairly current list of available properties on their site. Make sure you take into account any existing points or any points borrowed. When we purchased ours, they had over 300 points banked, so we got a free vacation out of the deal.

Also, remember that this is a real estate transaction, and you are free to make an offer on any of their listings, so if you find one you like, but it is a little too expensive, make an offer. The people selling are most likely in need of money, and the quicker they can sell it the better off they are.

[MJD]

Mickey & WorknFries,
Do they also offer financing like WDW? Or should I start looking for financing? Thanks, for the help.

MJD:D

[mickey]

They didn't offer financing when we purchased, though they said they were working on it. Now that I think about it, I remember seeing something about it on their site.

[WorknFires]

They can put you in contact w/ a financing company. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to find traditional financing for a timeshare. Basically the banks in your area will want you to take a 2nd mortgage, personal loans or equity line on your house. DVC (unfortunately) is seriously tainted by the other timeshare operations reputations. Wait til you try to explain the point system to a banker (they just don't get it!)
I got in contact with Tammac 1800-640-6753. I found them thru the Timeshare store's site. I dealt w/ Amber. Actually, I contacted Tammac 1st so that I could confirm whether or not I met their criteria before I wasted the Timeshare stores time.
I had heard that it was difficult to qualify for financing but actually it was quite easy. When I knew that I qualified, I called the Timeshare store and made the offer on the resell.
One thing you should be aware of that I wasn't... the financing is usually for 5 years instead of the 10 year financing that Disney offers so of course the payments are larger but the financing rate is less so that's a good thing.

Cheryl

[soxmets]

Hello MJD. I see on your listing, you are going in February. Have a great trip.

I am a DVC owner at the new Beach Club Villas, which are located next to the Yacht & Beach Club. We went in July, the first week these new Villas opened and WE LOVED IT!!!! Wish we bought years ago. We are a family of 5 and have 300 points. There is plenty of room in the Villas if you use a one-bedroom, or a two bedroom. In my opinion, the studios are basically a hotel room. The one and two bedrooms are more like suites. Kitchen, jacuzzi, king size bed, washing machines, large walk-in shower, etc. If you go to: www.disneyvacationclub.com, there is a lot of information.

Again, this place is great! It has the largest pool in Disney World, called "Storm-Along-Bay." There is a grocery facility and restaurants. (Not to mention a bar specializing in great wines.)

You are within walking distance of Boardwalk, ESPN and Epcot. Just a short boat ride to MGM. If you want to go to Magic Kingdom, the bus stops right out front and goes directly there. (About a 10-minute ride.) To me, this is the best thing I have ever done for my family. Good luck & have fun!!!!! :)

[yesdisneyfool]

We bought site unseen 7/2000. On our visit 2/2001 when walking in the 1br it was mouth's open and saying "all this is ours". We love it and glad we were able to. The time we spend in Disney is much less relaxed because we know we will be back. 3 trips in 2001 and 4 in 2002.