Does anyone else think DVC ruins the spirit?

[Gail Hayden]

I do agree that actions of one or more does reflect on a group as a whole. I represent DVC and my behavior can refect poorly or well on DVC. On the same note your behavior as a CM refects on CM as a whole. Your orginal post did not refect good on CM as a whole. (not sure if you are or not, but it did apear to take that tone. I may be wrong.)

Perhaps the behaviour did not reflect well on a CM, but, in reality, they are human and do need a place to vent. I took offense until I reread his post.
I am willing to bet he is an outstanding CM.

I do, however, find it sad that they are so biased towards DVC members, I feel they should take one member at a time in their evaluation.

 

[dvcnut39]

What I cannot stand is the DVC members who act as if they now own the place. They feel that they can boss around and at the CM'S over the silliest of things. Stuff that a normal guest, would just chalk up to bad luck "rain, certain room view not available, long lines" and move on.

However, often it seems that when a BIG DEAL is made over something tiny the word "DVC" gets thrown around. Then, we as CM's have to go over board, bend over backward to do whatever it takes to fix the situation. Just because they are DVC, and they are the all holy of holeyest guests.



Maybe it's the Holidays, I don't know. I can tell you, that it's well known by CM's that DVC members have gotten much worse in there attitudes over the last 2 years.

I feel that DVC members should be take offense to these statements. I can't speak for all of us as I am sure that the DVC bashers can't speak against all of us. Just to give you guys an idea of how bad this DVC family treats CM's and how we take advantage of our "holeyest" rights. Our first trip to our home resort (BCV) (AUG03), we got two studios. One for my 80yr old father-in-law and his 70 year old wife and one for the four of us. We (the four of us) got there early so we could enjoy the pool and we planned for them to meet us at the 4pm check-in time. 4pm rolls around and BCV advise us that my in-laws room was not ready and would not be ready for at least 1 1/2 hours. Finally, when the room was ready, BCV thanked us for our understanding (I guess they figured that most people "showing off" their home resort for the first time to elderly in-laws would have raised a stink) that they gave us a $150 food voucher which we in turned used at Cape May Cafe. Another example was in AUG04, when we rented a two bedroom at Vero Beach and I got stuck in an non-airconditioned elevator for twenty minutes. The mainteance man got ir runnig , but the elevator went to another floor. I never even mentioned to the CMs that is was me, but a few days later they found out while joking with my wife. They also thanked us for our understanding and asked if there was anything that I would like to have. I told them "no", but wife wife told them that I enjoy using the Mickey soap while I'm back at home (I know, weird). Much to my surprise, for the next couple of days, we received baskets of soap, shampoo, toothbrushes, tooth paste, shower caps, etc. One last example of how poorly we treat everyone and how we take advantage of our DVC status- Later that same trip we arrived in Fort Wilderness in our brand new RV. Unfortunately for us, our brand new air conditioner completely melted. During the course of conversation, some CM's asked what all we had planned. We advised them that we had just came back from DTD and SSR. We advised them that we liked it so much that we were thinking about adding-on there. After we all realized the the RV needed much repair work, I told the Manager that we we just going to pack up and drive home (to PGH). We were on day 19 of a 22 day vacation. Being that it was now 1am and that we have a 12yr old and a 3yr old and no air conditioner, the Manager did some checking and advised us that he would put us up (for free) in a cabin in Fort Wilderness. I advised him that I was too stubborn and upset and that we were just going to leave now, but thanked him anyways. Finally, in all of our arrogance, once we got home, we called Disney and gave them every CM's name and work place and advised Disney of how much we appreciated all the special things that they did for us. Disney stated that they do not receive enough telephone calls like this and requested that we call all the CM's Managers directly. They also advised us that we would not be able to call Vero Beach because of the hurricanes, so they gave us a private number and email address which we called and wrote. By the way, we arrived home late Satursay night and sold the RV at 8pm on Tuesday.

Please don't take this post as sarcastic, but please do not lump all DVC members together. Maybe you do or don't think of DVC as a good way to vacation for you, but I have never met a DVC member, regular guest, or CM in my 11 trips to WDW who weren't anything but polite.

 

[jesserin]

Excellant Point DVCnut - some of the best clients that grace the Disney property are DVC members - and I know from personal experience that you take the good with the bad - kind of the grain of salt mentality. There are going to be your problem causers - but then there are going to be those who make the job worth having... all in all I answer no to the question "does DVC take the magic away" I think it adds magic for those that purchase it - who cares if everyone and their brother ownds DVC (which as of yet they do not at all) the point is it is something for your family to look forward to all year long.

 

[DisneyPhD]

Excellant Point DVCnut - some of the best clients that grace the Disney property are DVC members - and I know from personal experience that you take the good with the bad - kind of the grain of salt mentality. There are going to be your problem causers - but then there are going to be those who make the job worth having... all in all I answer no to the question "does DVC take the magic away" I think it adds magic for those that purchase it - who cares if everyone and their brother ownds DVC (which as of yet they do not at all) the point is it is something for your family to look forward to all year long.

Ahh, that was such a nice post. I would give you rep points, but I already didn't and can't do any more. :kiss:

I used to be that CM were the best people around. In the past years you find a few that aren't as good as the rest, but I have found there are still some GREAT CM out there! :sohappy: :sohappy: Thank you.

 

[Thelazer]

DVCNut, you seem as one of the good DVC members. Yes, there are good and bad and I suppose you could indeed find good and bad folks at any resort, be it DVC or Poly etc. So please understand that I am aware of this.

I do not treat every DVC member I meet with a bias just because they are DVC. Let me make this VERY clear. I do, keep all this in mind while talking with them however. I keep myself VERY aware that I need to be careful how and what I say with them, just as much as I am careful of what to say if a person is drunk, of the opposite ______, etc. If that person DVC or otherwise, chooses to act like a 5 year old and throw a hissy fit then I act accordingly.
If they treat me with respect, then rest assured I’d do everything in my power for them.

So yes, not all DVC members are bad... and to those that are respectful and nice I, along with other CM's thank you. We really do thank you. We wish there were more of you; we'd also enjoy it if you could come to our defense next time you see a "Bad" guest acting up. For those DVC or otherwise, who scam, scream, and berate the CM's. Well, luckily enough karma works both ways and you've got yours coming. You also wont get the best service we can give either.

 

[dvcnut39]

Thelazer, even though I have not personally seen a guest treat a CM poorly, yet, I would, as I am sure that most of us in this forum would, come to the defense of that CM. We, on this forum, might disagree about this or that, but we all know that it is the CMs that make all the Magic possible for us guests. Hopefully nobody here minds when I speak for all of us guests when I/we say "Thank you!".

 

[DisneyPhD]

For those DVC or otherwise, who scam, scream, and berate the CM's. Well, luckily enough karma works both ways and you've got yours coming. You also wont get the best service we can give either.

Think abou it, this type of person goes through life trying to get what they want by bulling and yelling. Clasic push others down to make themselves feel good. It isn't just at WDW or DVC, it is every where in life. Even if they think they get what they want, they are never really satisfied. Not a very rewarding kind of life. So not only do they get what is coming to them the end, they never really feel good about it. Maybe they need a little more kindness in their life, who knows.

What I do know is you get much further in life by being nice and respectful, but by expressing your needs and thoughts too. (Once again people can't know to fix something if you don't tell them.) The old cacth more flys with honey then viniger thing. :lookaroun

As Tigsmom once said "it isn't what you say as how you say it." :animwink:

I am sorry there is enough rude DVC members out there to make it seem like a trend. I have't meet one yet.

 

[Gail Hayden]

Think abou it, this type of person goes through life trying to get what they want by bulling and yelling. Clasic push others down to make themselves feel good. It isn't just at WDW or DVC, it is every where in life. Even if they think they get what they want, they are never really satisfied. Not a very rewarding kind of life. So not only do they get what is coming to them the end, they never really feel good about it. Maybe they need a little more kindness in their life, who knows.

What I do know is you get much further in life by being nice and respectful, but by expressing your needs and thoughts too. (Once again people can't know to fix something if you don't tell them.) The old cacth more flys with honey then viniger thing. :lookaroun

As Tigsmom once said "it isn't what you say as how you say it." :animwink:

I am sorry there is enough rude DVC members out there to make it seem like a trend. I have't meet one yet.

It is indeed sad, but, I have watched CMs being treated like dog ________ by DVC members. I have, indeed, stepped in and had my say, and trust me, it was to the point. There are some amazingly rude people out there. IMHO, EVERYONE should have to work in some service industry before they are allowed to go anywhere. These buffoons know that you cannot do anything to defend yourself and they go at it big time. That is simply not right. I detest working with the public and pray I never ever have to do it again. I KNOW I would last about 2.5 minutes with Disney. There would also be a body count. LOL.

 

[Gail Hayden]

DVCNut, you seem as one of the good DVC members. Yes, there are good and bad and I suppose you could indeed find good and bad folks at any resort, be it DVC or Poly etc. So please understand that I am aware of this.

I do not treat every DVC member I meet with a bias just because they are DVC. Let me make this VERY clear. I do, keep all this in mind while talking with them however. I keep myself VERY aware that I need to be careful how and what I say with them, just as much as I am careful of what to say if a person is drunk, of the opposite ______, etc. If that person DVC or otherwise, chooses to act like a 5 year old and throw a hissy fit then I act accordingly.
If they treat me with respect, then rest assured I’d do everything in my power for them.

So yes, not all DVC members are bad... and to those that are respectful and nice I, along with other CM's thank you. We really do thank you. We wish there were more of you; we'd also enjoy it if you could come to our defense next time you see a "Bad" guest acting up. For those DVC or otherwise, who scam, scream, and berate the CM's. Well, luckily enough karma works both ways and you've got yours coming. You also wont get the best service we can give either.

I knew you were a super CM. This post proves it.

I once read something about a counter agent for an airline who was being berated by a customer. He was totally trashing this person. She finally finished with the customer and the next in line could not believe that her attitude was so great after what she went through with the prior customer.
The customer asked her how she managed to keep such a cool demeanor.
She responded with "It's easy, he is going to CA his luggage is going to Tokyo".
I bet there are days you wish you could send a guest to Tokyo.
Are you allowed to mention what resort you work for?
Most of the CMs at OKW are FANTASTIC!!!!! I would love it if you worked there.

 

[Thelazer]

I'm more "backstage" then I am "onstage" most of the time.

 

[GrimGhost]

...Don't forget to include depreciation. The DVC currently maintains right of first refusal (ROFR) on all DVC contracts. This keeps the value of those contracts artificially high. The DVC has only been in existence since 1991 so 13 years is only a 26% slice out of the contract pie. However, when that slice reaches 40 to 50% (7 to 11 years) you are going to see a sharp slump in the DVC values. Then it will only be a matter of time before the DVC will not want to exercise its ROFR and the prices will continue to drop even more. It is common now to see Disney Vero Beach points selling in the low 60's.

As DVC owners begin to realize that their membership is running out (20 years or less), a phenomenon will occur that happens to all leasehold property. Values will plunge as buyers will only purchase a property with 20 years or less if they can get a significant discount. DVC will most likely offer extensions to members to encourage them not to resell and/or will move them to a new contract (for a high price). Most owners will not renew and will rent out their points and/or sell their contracts. This oversupply of rental points and memberships will cause the old contracts to plunge in value even furtherThe DVC itself will continue to make money hand over fist size

I think most of us members will point out a fundamental flaw in your logic..The VALUE as you say, assumes we intend on selling our membership for some sort of profit. Our value is that ww have already gotten what we paid for...vacations

 

[PixyDust]

I'm not a confrontational person, so my post won't be to "side" with a poster or be against another.

Simply stated, my family loves Walt Disney World. We enjoy visiting a couple of times a year, staying at a 2 bedroom in OKW, and bringing my sister and her family, my parents, or friends with us every now and then.

Sure, we could stay at a value for MUCH less than our investment in DVC. However, we truly appreciate the space of the 2 bedroom units, we appreciate having a full kitchen so we don't have to drop $200 a day on food, we appreciate the washer and dryer in our room so that we only have to pack overnight bags for a week long stay, we appreciate our discounted annual passes, we appreciate the memories we are providing for our children, and we appreciate the CMs who make us feel so welcome everytime they greet us.

We stayed at the Poly last fall to see what we were missing from the resorts. What have we been missing? Let's see, I had to do laundry in a hot room filled with other people while a very mean woman kept making snide remarks to me for no reason at all, I had a nice room with a refrigerator but no way of heating up a snack, I had a very small bathroom (without the huge jacuzzi I have come to LOVE), I could clearly hear the people in the rooms on either side of us and in the hallway, I ran into a lot of rude vacationers at the resort, I had to park quite a distance from my room and couldn't run down to the car on a whim, and I had to share my bedroom with my kids. I love my kids, but it's my vacation too...

I did enjoy the monorail service and the beautiful view, but even with the annual pass discounted rate I got, it was extremely expensive. Including the cost of food that week that I would have normally fixed myself, I could not afford WDW on the frequency I have come to enjoy with DVC. I know there are people who can't imagine staying anywhere but the Poly - that's what makes WDW so great - there's something for everyone!

 

[ripleysmom]

DVC is not for everyone. I don't think that anyone could argue that.

For my purposes the tradeoff of not having my room cleaned everyday is.....

I don't have to worry about packing up my kids to get them breakfast before hitting the parks. I also don't have to worry about trying to fit a week's worth of groceries in some out of the way place in my room in case I want the kids to eat in the room. I don't have to let the kids eat at the table while I balance my food on the bed in said room (although I guess having mousekeeping everyday would keep those pesky crumbs to a minimum).

I especially like not having to worry about being out of the room by a certain time so they can come clean the room.

I don't have to worry about finding someplace to eat at the end of the day if I don't want to. Cooking a quick dinner in your room can be less trouble than taking 2 overexcited children to dinner. Heck when we were at Hilton Head my son caught dinner (blue crabs) the last 2 nights we were there. I cooked 'em and he ate 'em. Can't do that at the Grand Floridian.

Freezing water and then having it ice cold to drink while in the parks is an awesome thing. Can't do that in a mini-fridge.

I don't have to worry about shlepping 4 suitcases with me. Since we will have a washer and dryer, 2 suitcases generally is sufficient.

The space. Whenever we go we get a 2BR villa. The space is just wonderful and having a separate area from the kids can never be overrated. I don't have to worry about my children wanting to watch TV in the morning while we are still trying to sleep. I am not a crack of dawn commando.

and finally the kids love the jacuzzi.


A couple of other things.....

I mentioned in another thread but I think it bears repeating here. Our investment in DVC has paid for itself. We bought in 2000 and since then have taken a Disney Cruise, stayed at the Boardwalk, Wilderness Lodge and Hilton Head all 2 bedroom accommodations (except for 1 trip to the BWV).

My best story about this is when we were staying at WLV President's Week '04. We had gotten onto the elevator and were chatting with a woman. We were talking about how nice the 2BRs were and mentioned how glad we were to be a part of DVC. The woman told us that she wasn't a DVC member and she was paying about $950/night for their room. Well after we went we went :sohappy: Our room had cost us about 1 1/2 yrs worth of points and what the woman was paying per night was about a year's worth of dues for us. Buying DVC had saved us $5700 just on that stay alone. Yes you could say that we would never have paid that but now thanks to DVC we don't have to.


Did you guys know that Disney has 3 properties listed in the Top 10 at Timeshare Users Group? I would say that is pretty special. Maybe not clean my room every day special or towel animals special but it's special enough for me.

 

[DisneyPhD]

Did you guys know that Disney has 3 properties listed in the Top 10 at Timeshare Users Group? I would say that is pretty special. Maybe not clean my room every day special or towel animals special but it's special enough for me.

:lol: :lol: :lol: Great quote!

Very good post, I couldn't agree more (but we tend to use out points for studios, at least while we keep taking more then one trip a year until we can get a add on.) That is what I love about DVC, such flexibility to fit your needs.

 

[Pluto Parking]

I think a lot of DVC bashing is jealousy. Most of the people compaining would be the first ones to join up if they could. DVC bashing is like a sport to some. Should we also ask Does anyone think Moderate Price Resorts ruin the Sprit? Just like some DVC members act poorly, some Mod resort guests act like when they pay $90 for a room they should have a Grand Floridian experience. Lets just be happy Disney has created rooms and experiences for every budget.

 

[Lauriebar]

I think a lot of DVC bashing is jealousy. Most of the people compaining would be the first ones to join up if they could. DVC bashing is like a sport to some. Should we also ask Does anyone think Moderate Price Resorts ruin the Sprit? Just like some DVC members act poorly, some Mod resort guests act like when they pay $90 for a room they should have a Grand Floridian experience. Lets just be happy Disney has created rooms and experiences for every budget.

Jealousy? That is a very arrogant statement don't you think?

I for one am happy not being a DVC member. I am also happy for those who are DVC members.

My not being a DVC member is an informed choice my husband and I made after discussing the pros and cons for our family. It wasn't a matter of money, and even if it was...so what? People have different ideas about the value of money and what they want to get for it. I understand that other families find that the DVC is the best thing for them.

Why try to stir the pot with the jealousy statement?

 

[Pluto Parking]

Jealousy? That is a very arrogant statement don't you think?

I for one am happy not being a DVC member. I am also happy for those who are DVC members.

My not being a DVC member is an informed choice my husband and I made after discussing the pros and cons for our family. It wasn't a matter of money, and even if it was...so what? People have different ideas about the value of money and what they want to get for it. I understand that other families find that the DVC is the best thing for them.

Why try to stir the pot with the jealousy statement?

I have to read 5 pages of DVC bashing and I'm stirring the pot? The title of this post is ment to stir the pot!
No I don't think its arrogant. Its my opinion. You don't have to agree with it.
When I see misinformed people make statements that bash the club and its members my opinion is some of its jealousy.

 

[Lauriebar]

I have to read 5 pages of DVC bashing and I'm stirring the pot? The title of this post is ment to stir the pot!
No I don't think its arrogant. Its my opinion. You don't have to agree with it.
When I see misinformed people make statements that bash the club and its members my opinion is some of its jealousy.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, as am I. The tone of your post offended me.

 

[Indy95]

*Sings Kumbaya* Opinions are opinions, to be sure. However some of the posts here recently have been more akin to mud-slinging than actual arguments for or against. Can we just answer the thread topic please?

 

[Pluto Parking]

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, as am I. The tone of your post offended me.

It's hard to figure out someones "tone" by reading a post. Sorry if you were offended.