A funny thing happened to me on the DVC tour...

J

joviacdan

Gail Hayden said:
Good points. I would love to see some comparisons with say a studio at DVC(any of them) with something on par, like the GF, Poly, or Contemp. with the ap discount.

OK, this is in no way whatsoever to be argumentative (after all, this IS Disney fansite).

However, I do feel the need to be perfectly honest. On my last trip, we spent 3 nights at All Star Movies, 5 nights at Old Key West (as guests of a DVC member) and 1 night at Pop Century. I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, Old Key West was my least favorite of the 3. Sure, the room was bigger. However, the beds were MUCH more comfortable at the value resorts. The TV was bigger (not that I really cared about that.)

See, there are 2 types of people. Those who go to Disney for fun and rest. Then, there are those who go simply for fun. I go simply for fun. As such, I spend my sleeping hours at night at the hotel, and maybe about 20 minutes a night at the resort lounge. I don't feel the need or necesity for my vacation interests in spending $300 or more a night on a hotel room. If you do, then sure, maybe DVC can work for you.

I think that's the biggest misconception about DVC. DVC members seem to feel as though non-DVC members are flushing their money down the toilet by not joining, when in fact, if you are more than happy staying at a Value resort, you will save money by not being in the DVC.
 

Tim G

Well-Known Member
joviacdan said:
See, there are 2 types of people. Those who go to Disney for fun and rest. Then, there are those who go simply for fun.
Indeed... And there are people who come into happy forums and start instigating within 10 posts ... :rolleyes:
 

s25843

Well-Known Member
joviacdan said:
if you are more than happy staying at a Value resort, you will save money by not being in the DVC.


Right, any of the WDW DVC rooms that I have stayed in, just somehow didnt have a vacation feel, for some reason I just didn't like em.

If I ever did buy into the DVC, the only DVC hotel that I feel would be worth using the points at would be Vero Beach with an Ocean View. That was simply one of the most relaxing hotel rooms I have stayed at, with the combo of the Ocean view, and just hearing the waves hit the beach...
 
J

joviacdan

"You cannot be guaranteed that you will receive annual pass discounts on resort rooms. And, frankly, any place I would like to stay, even with a discount, will be more expensive than what I pay yearly in dues."

True - However, since the very 1st day of Disney World's opening, there have ALWAYS been some sort of discounts on hotel stays, whether it be through the Disney Club, AP Rates, Florida Pass Holder Rates, AAA rates, etc. There will always be discounted hotel rates. I never said it would be less than yearly dues, but it will be less than the total cost of a DVC investment.

"You do get fresh towels midway through a stay. It does not take me 6 hours on any vacation to do towels. Of course, it might if I was taking them to a stream and beating them on a rock, but, I use the washer and dryer in the unit for them. :) I put the towels in the washer in the am on our way out, take them out and put them in the dryer at lunch and they are ready for me when I return in the evening."

I didn't. I was at Old Key West for 5 nights and never saw a single clean towel or sheet. As for putting them in the wash and leaving, yeah, that's a possibility. It takes 30 minutes to do a wash, 50 minutes to dry. Multiply 80 minutes times 4 washes for the week and a 30 minute roundtrip walk for each washing. My room at OKW didn't have a washer or dryer and I find it hard to believe that any room, with the exception of the home away from home resorts, has a washer and dryer in the room. Much more time than I care to spend doing laundry on my vacation.

"It takes two minutes to load a dishwasher and about one second to turn it on."

I had no dishwasher in my room at OKW. Can't say that bothered me though. Even if I had an oven in the rom (which I didn't) I would not bother cooking in the room.

"I do not like housekeeping in my room, I don't like my things touched by anyone and I am perfectly capable of taking approx. 4 mins. to make my bed, if I chose to make it (which I always do)."

Some don't. Personally, I could care less. I have not one time in 8 visits staying on Disney property ever had any issues with anything being taken from a room. Again, different strokes for different folks. I like the feel of a hotel room. I like coming back to my room at the end of a long day at the parks, and seeing my room straightened out and my bed fresh and made up, along with clean fresh towels.

Of course I respect your opinions. I know lots of people that are members of the DVC and I think it's great for them.

My only problem with DVC is that alot of their members refuse to admit that financially and convenience wise, it's not the best option for everybody. For some, it does work out. For some, it doesn't. Just as you said, different strokes for different folks. When you take all things into considerations, there is no 1 correct "answer" to the DVC member question for absolutely everybody.
 
J

joviacdan

s25843 said:
Right, any of the WDW DVC rooms that I have stayed in, just somehow didnt have a vacation feel, for some reason I just didn't like em.
QUOTE]

Just how I feel.

Granted, my only experience was the week at Old Key West, but as I have said many times, if I won a trip to Disney and was given a choice of staying at either OKW or ANY of the value resorts, I would take the Value Resorts in a heartbeat.

I just didn't get the feel of a Disney Vacation at OKW.
 

Jaws Theme

Account Suspended
Corrus said:
Tsk, tsk, tsk...


WE give ME a call if WE need you?!?@!#!@#

Who the heck do you think you are...


Better stop this rude behaviour, young man...

People have been banned for less!!!
If you have nothing to contribute to the post please move on. We are adults having an adult conversation about the DVC and you have added nothing to it. Your big bold letters will not scare us away. If you want to add something please do so or please be gone and take your bad feedback with you. Bye Bye Now.

Don't you just love people who come into a post, contribute nothing, and try to pick a fight. Corrus may be a Troll.
 

phichi17

New Member
I can't believe all the turmoil over the DVC. As stated before, its a choice for some people/families, but it's not for everyone.


Can we ALL please try to be constructive in our discussions and not bash each other.......this is, afterall, a fan site devoted to all things pertaining to WDW and to a lesser extent Disney in general. I for one use this site as an escape from the daily grind. If I can't be at WDW, I consider this the next best thing...the last thing I think anyone wants is to have to defend their point of view to the extent where it gets ugly. I have seen this trend increase in my short tenure here (Sept 04) and frankly, it makes me want to visit this site less every day.

Stimulating debate is one thing and should be encouraged if it's in context. Mindless drivel like what I've read here today has no place on a site that has the potential to be one of the happiest sites on the net.
 

dvcnut39

Well-Known Member
I have to strongly agree with DisneyPhD. We have been very proud members of DVC since SEP02. As DisneyPhd stated earlier, there are numerous perks of being a member and every year the list gets longer. In addition, as an example, I'll tell you of our experience this year, but first I have to give you a little background. At my wife's urging, we purchased a nice, new, "reliable" RV in JUN03 (no we don't have any money, but we did fall into a few fortunate situations and I know, what do we need DVC for if we have an RV, but bare with me). Anyway, we used 145pts this July to take our sister-in-law and her family to stay in a two bedroom villa at Vero Beach for five nights. Then we were going to go to Fort Wilderness to stay an additonal three nights. While at Vero Beach, I had a slight problem. I got stuck in an unairconditioned elevator for twenty minutes. I got stuck on the ground floor after I hit the "3" button. The doors were stuck about 1" open. About two minutes after I called on the emergency phone, the first castmembers appeared in an attempt to help me out. Finally, a mechanic arrived and got the elevator running. The doors shut and took me to the third floor. The castmembers never knew who was in the elevator. A few days later, my wife informed the castmembers who cared for our room that I was the unfortunate one. They asked her if there was anything that I particularily enjoy. She advised them that my master plan is to only use "Disney soap" all year round (I know, a little weird). The next few days, several castmembers brought me up approximately $250 worth of Disney soap, shower caps, toothpaste, toothbrushes, shampoo, hair conditioner, etc. After a wonderful stay, we finally left Vero Beach and went to Fort Wilderness. When we arrived at at the check-in gate, we prepaid (after our AAA discount, about $190) for the three nights with Disney dollars. We went to our campsite, hooked up, and took the buses to DTD. We had a great dinner at Rainforest Cafe and went over to SSR. We are hoping to be able to pay off some bills so we can purchase a minor add-on next DEC. After SSR, we started to head back to FW and were planning on getting to bed early so we could be one of the first in EPCOT so we could ride Mission: Space for the first time. By the time that we got back to FW, our three year old had already fallen asleep, so I had to carry her approximately 1/2 mile back to the RV. As we approached the RV door, I remember telling my 12 yr old and my wife, that I couldn't wait to get into our nice, cold RV. My wife opened the door and was greated by smoke pouring out the RV. Long story short, the entire brand new air conditioner melted, not broke, melted. The air conditioner's fuse blew, the coach's main breaker blew, and Disney's outside breaker blew. Luckily, the coach did not catch on fire. All this on a new coach that was rated most reliable (I can't fix anything). After making all the calls back home looking for suggestions, my wife urged me to call Disney's maintenance. A very nice engineer and a manager arrived. They checked everything out for us and advised us that they could have a mechanic come in the morning to fix our air condtioner. My wife chit-chatted with the castmembers and during the small talk, they asked what we had done during the day, after she advised them that we went to look at SSR, they asked if we were thinking of buying into DVC. She advised them that we were already members, but were thinking of purchasing a minor add-on. They then offered us an available cabin ($229/nt) for the night so we did not have to sleep in the heat. Me, being the rational person that I am, declined their geneorus offer and advised them that we were probably just going to dirve straight home (it is now 0100hrs and we had been up since 0800hrs and we live in Pittsburgh). They urged us to take the room and if we still wanted to drive home in the morning, to just check out and go. I advised them that I work swing shifts and was used to not sleeping. The manager again offered us the cabin, but stated to help us out, he would refund the last two nights of our stay. We arrived home at 11pm on SAT night and had sold the RV at 6pm Tuesday night. I could cite other examples of how the castmembers help us out, but I already went on long enough.
 

PhilharMagician

Well-Known Member
I can't say how happy I am with DVC so far. I have 27 days planned over the next 12 months (almost 2 years of points)and it is costing me less than the 8 days I spent there last year in a moderate, including taking my purchase cost and dividing it by 50 years. I just do not know how most of you can say this is bad. The resorts are beautiful and the rooms are comparable to deluxe resort rooms. The housekeeping doesn't matter to me, but to some that is part of being pampered on vacation.
 

tecowdw

Well-Known Member
We stay at Disney 3 to 5 times a year, staying around 4 nights on average. We generally stay at the Polynesian, AKL or WL.

I've looked into DVC a few years back. The cost just seemed to be much higher than the annual passholder rates I generally receive at these resorts. Plus, I would have spent more points by staying at the Polynesian or AKL as opposed to a DVC resort (not sure if that's still the same).

Another disadvantage of DVC to me was the fact that it was a constant finanacial liability. Without it, if I can't afford to stay at Disney I can just not go. With DVC, you still have to pay that monthly "mortgage" and maintenance dues. Selling it would just be an added headache if I had financial problems.

We never took the tour. We signed up for it once but they never contacted us at the pickup time. We were in our room waiting but I think they forgot to tell us to meet them out front. Oh well. Glad we didn't end up at the sales pitch anyway (free meal or not).
 

Gail Hayden

New Member
I think that's the biggest misconception about DVC. DVC members seem to feel as though non-DVC members are flushing their money down the toilet by not joining, when in fact, if you are more than happy staying at a Value resort, you will save money by not being in the DVC.<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->
I don't feel that way at all. It is your money, you can spend it any way you want.
I would not be happy in a value resort, I am old, I go for fun and rest.
 

Gail Hayden

New Member
My only problem with DVC is that alot of their members refuse to admit that financially and convenience wise, it's not the best option for everybody. For some, it does work out. For some, it doesn't. Just as you said, different strokes for different folks. When you take all things into considerations, there is no 1 correct "answer" to the DVC member question for absolutely everybody.
I believe I have said over and over, it is not for everyone. did you miss that part?

I have never had anything taken from my room either, I just don't like my things touched.

I am happy with my purchase/membership. I would be nice if you would stop telling people how they have wasted their money (paraphrased). Because it does not work for you and you like the value resorts, is no reason to imply we are tossing our money out the window. We are not and we like it there, besides we get a tiny write off each year.
 

Tim G

Well-Known Member
phichi17 said:
Can we ALL please try to be constructive in our discussions and not bash each other.......this is, afterall, a fan site devoted to all things pertaining to WDW and to a lesser extent Disney in general. I for one use this site as an escape from the daily grind. If I can't be at WDW, I consider this the next best thing...the last thing I think anyone wants is to have to defend their point of view to the extent where it gets ugly. I have seen this trend increase in my short tenure here (Sept 04) and frankly, it makes me want to visit this site less every day.

Stimulating debate is one thing and should be encouraged if it's in context. Mindless drivel like what I've read here today has no place on a site that has the potential to be one of the happiest sites on the net.
You're absolutely right!!
That's why I've added him to my ignore list... Thus I won't see his disparaging addresses to me...
 

Gail Hayden

New Member
Jaws Theme said:
If you have nothing to contribute to the post please move on. We are adults having an adult conversation about the DVC and you have added nothing to it. Your big bold letters will not scare us away. If you want to add something please do so or please be gone and take your bad feedback with you. Bye Bye Now.

Don't you just love people who come into a post, contribute nothing, and try to pick a fight. Corrus may be a Troll.
Jeez, I would be careful how I spoke to Corrus. People have been known to disappear for less.
 

Gail Hayden

New Member
phichi17 said:
I can't believe all the turmoil over the DVC. As stated before, its a choice for some people/families, but it's not for everyone.


Can we ALL please try to be constructive in our discussions and not bash each other.......this is, afterall, a fan site devoted to all things pertaining to WDW and to a lesser extent Disney in general. I for one use this site as an escape from the daily grind. If I can't be at WDW, I consider this the next best thing...the last thing I think anyone wants is to have to defend their point of view to the extent where it gets ugly. I have seen this trend increase in my short tenure here (Sept 04) and frankly, it makes me want to visit this site less every day.

Stimulating debate is one thing and should be encouraged if it's in context. Mindless drivel like what I've read here today has no place on a site that has the potential to be one of the happiest sites on the net.
Darn, I did not think my drivel was mindless, I put a lot of thought into it. ;)
 

FamilyMan

Account Suspended
Besides, Corrus has WDWmagic protection. From what I've seen, he's in the WDI Protection Program for Disney Forum Users. You can't go against him... it's just not right. :) LOL
 


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