DVC & Alternatives

DVC is Disney's version of a timeshare. Most Disney resorts have DVC units, they range from regular hotel rooms called studios all the way up to 3 bedroom villas. You will find DVC kiosks all over the parks and resorts staffed with cast members eager to sign you up for a tour. We know lots of people who have bought DVC and really love owning it.

Here is why we never bought DVC or any other timeshare.

We prefer the flexibility of staying in different places each trip, including non DVC and non Disney resorts.

We generally do not plan our trips months in advance as is required when you own a timeshare. The supply of units available for DVC owners gets manipulated and if you don't plan far in advance you may not get to stay at your desired resort.

Unlike most timeshares, DVC ownership is not a permanent deed, it has a time expiration on it. The amount of time depends on the resort.

Having done the math, factoring in ongoing maintenance fees and other costs, we would have to use a DVC vacation for 8 years in a row before breaking even and then starting to save money. And who knows what our kids will want to do as a vacation 8 years down the road. And if you finance a timeshare purchase, the math gets pushed way off.

One thing many people don't realize about timeshares, is that even after you pay ten grand to own your week, you still have to pay maintenance fees annually. These fees can fluctuate, but they usually run around $80-$100 per night that you own.

One DVC week's worth of points is only for annual use, and we go 3 or 4 times a year.

Again, some people love it, and we are happy for them. But I have some ways to to enjoy the benefits of a timeshare without buying one.

One way is to just call them up and book it like its a hotel. DVC villas have very high rack rates through Disney reservations. But Bonnet Creek for example, runs less than twice what the maintenance fees would have been if you book through Ebay.

Another way of getting a DVC rental without actually buying a DVC timeshare, is by either renting points from an owner who can't use them that year and getting them to make a reservation for you, or by renting an existing confirmed reservation made by a DVC owner who can't use it. We've done the latter with great success several times.

There are also people who buy up DVC points when they are cheap and make a business out of renting them out to both DVC and non DVC members. Somehow they make a income doing this. People who do this, post on the DISBOARDS.

The DISBOARDS DVC Rent/Trade Board is an online classified where non DVC-Members can find a DVC Member who can make a DVC Resort Reservation for them, or to look to trade a non-DVC timeshare for an equivalent DVC reservation. DVC-Members can use this board to offer to make reservations for others (normally to non-members), transfer points to other members, and so on.

From my efforts, I found that renting points with the hopes of using those points to get a specific week at a specific resort was difficult because most dates were booked up already. And it was much easier if I got lucky and found a DVC member who had an existing confirmed reservation available. But these finds were few and far between. When we did succeed, we got a 1 bedroom Villa at the Beach Club Villas during the International Food Festival. And we paid about half the rack rate. As additional savings there no hotel taxes imposed by the resort because it's real estate owned.

Finding, negotiating and closing on a deal like this takes a lot of work, and some faith. We've done it, it does work. But these days, it's just easier to book at Bonnet Creek.