Considering DVC point rental?

[Brianna E.]

I have read all the websites and got most of the information I needed, I still have a few unanswered questions. I was hoping I can get some help! I apologize in advance for having so many questions

- Have any of you every done this and how was your experience?
- If you have a problem with your room or your stay, are you allowed to contact the desk while you are there or do you have to contact the broker you went through ?
- Is there anyway you can get a room in the main resort area or is it ONLY the DVC area (I am assuming only the DVC areas of the resort is where you can stay since you are renting DVC points lol) Like for example if I wanted to rent DVC points for the Grand Floridian, do I have to stay in the Villas?
- Is the "Cancel anytime" Point protection plan worth the extra money in the DVCrentalstore.com, because I heard there are a lot of stipulations.
- Any Tips on doing this? Extremely nervous as it is our first time.

 

[cmb5002]

I'll take a crack
1. I did it in back in 2014 through Davids. Experience was great.

2. Once you arrive can contact the desk yourself. The one thing for sure that must be done through the Broker (and by extension the owner of the DVC points) is any Dining Plan, but that's done ahead of your visit. I'm not sure on Magic Express, but I think the member has to set that up as well, so check with the broker on that.

3. Though DVC members can get a room in the main resort area, it isn't really advisable. For instance Grand Floridian starts at 60 Points per night, vs the Grand Floridian Villas at 17 point per night (small room, mid-week, slow season). It goes up from there. Best bang for your buck is staying within the DVC Area.

4. Sorry, can't help you there.

5. Don't do it! You'll never go back to a moderate resort again and may end up buying! In all seriousness though, the biggest thing is put your reservation in as far out as you can, if you're going to an in-demand resort. Some, like Saratoga and AKV have decent availability at 6 months. My home resort (BWV), my room size (studio or 1 BR) and my time of year (F&W), mean that I make my reservations 11 months out every year. The availability tends to disappear around 7 months and I don't like taking a chance.

 

[Ted Daggett]

I rented through Davids 3 times, and have another one scheduled in March. Stayed at OKW (2BR), BLT (studio), SSR (1BR), and scheduled for BLT (studio) again in Mar 2019. The process couldn't be easier, experience was great, and price was great. Once you arrive at the hotel, you are treated the same as any other guest. Once you get your reservation, you deal directly with MyDisneyExperience , and never deal with the broker again. If you want magical express or dining plan, you will alert the broker, and they will have the DVC owner sign you up for that. You need to make sure you have all names spelled correctly on the DVC rental website, because they will transfer over to Disney.

I didn't do the cancel any time plan.
The one drawback to renting is that you need to pay Davids 100% up front, and there are no refunds, unless you do the protection plan. The DVC owners wouldn't participate if not for the no cancellation fee, because they wouldn't know if their points were truly sold until the date of the stay.

I also convinced my neighbor to use Davids, and they stayed at OKW (2BR) and loved the experience with David's as well.

Only other tip is to get your requests in early, because the rooms book quickly!

 

[dreamfinder]

I haven't actually rented points (we own), but there are lots of threads about it over on the DVC section.

Up until the point when you check in, you don't have any control over the booking. Any changes or modifications needs to be done by the owner. But once you check in, the desk will answer any questions/problems you have as that point you are the guest.

As @cmb5002 said, technically you can use DVC points to stay in non villa accommodations, but it's not cost effective. Each resort is different, some are DVC only, others have separate DVC wings, and some it's just on a different floor. So depending on where you are staying, it's not a big difference.

Most DVC rentals are non refundable. The owner has booked the reservation, and can't easily reuse the points to recoup their costs. Insurance lets you get your monies back in case you need to change/cancel the booking. Even though your dates may be set, if you run into a storm (snow or hurricane) or get sick, you would be out of luck. Depends on your tolerance for losing the funds.

 

[disneyflush]

We have rented a few times and from different sources. Davids once, a different place one, then this time we rented from the Buy/Sell/Trade boards and saved some money by renting directly through an owner. There are obvious risks but we asked to see the contracts up front and reviewed them thoroughly before closing the deal. The particular owner we went through required half the money when it was booked at 11 months and then the other half will be due 30 days out from the check in date.

Going through Disney for rooms means you will be paying for parking, tax, and the room rate. Renting points means not paying to park, tax is included, and you are getting a really nice resort room for a nice discount. Its a no brainer for us. We got Beach Club for 240 a night for 6 nights, everything included, and were looking at a little more on average to get any of the Moderate resorts for the time period we are going next year.

Understandable to be nervous before your first time. Just want to note that if everything else stays static we will never do anything but rent points if we go back. Too much value to ignore.

 

[Herdman]

I won't duplicate some of the comments of the others, but we used David's in May for a savanna room view at the AKL. The whole process couldn't have been more seamless. We are considering using them again on our next trip in 2020, maybe for a stay at OKW.

 

[MotherofaPrincessLover]

I have used David's once and am using them on my upcoming trip in January. If you are using DVC points for a DVC room, you will be in the DVC area. I've never bought travel insurance, there's a lot of stipulations. If you are unsure whether your trip will happen, renting points may not be the best option; you need to be 100% committed to going on those dates.