They get in touch periodically to see whether you are considering buying more points or have any questions about the resorts they're currently selling. Never anything high-pressure. The better ones keep track of when their clients are staying at a DVC resort and send them a "Welcome Home" note or a small welcome gift.
Stand corrected
It has been worth it for my family but we wanted to go to WDW at least annually and stay on site. The price per point and maintenance costs have gone up quite a bit, so it's harder to justify direct purchase unless you would get much use out of the annual pass and merch discounts. I was lucky in that my guide told me to split my Polynesian contract up in case we wanted to give half our points away down the road or split among two children. The cost is much less than you'd spend if you tried to book the same rooms cash, but it locks you into being there or renting out the points through the end of the contract. The upside for Disney obviously is they guarantee revenue for hotel operations even in a big downturn
To our family, yes. But it's definitely not worth the cost to everyone. It depends on your financial situation, when/where/how you like to vacation, etc. The biggest value for us was being able to stay in some of our favorite WDW on-property hotels (with the convenience and early FP+ booking that entails), but have a 1-bedroom villa with a full kitchen. We can cook a real breakfast before heading to the parks, and some days we do lunch or dinner in the room, too. On the other hand, it does permanently lock much of our vacation budget into Disney (via annual dues on the DVC points), so we take fewer trips elsewhere than we might otherwise. It's also a lot more expensive to buy points direct than it used to be, and there are restrictions on what perks resale owners get access to.
Right. As well as many of the other perks. On the other hand, it's a lot cheaper and many members find the price difference matters more to them than the perks do.
Yes, buying resale you don't get certain things. The discounts are the big one, including the ability to buy the Gold AP. Beyond that it's about using points for certain outside hotel groupings or for cruises, but those aren't a great use of money regardless. You also can't go to the Epcot lounge or Moonlight Magic events, but only a fraction of members can fit in those anyway.
Apparently people only want minimalism, and the best way to do that is to water down highly ornate, contradictory styles like Beaux Arts and Art Nouveau instead of picking something that is inherently minimalist.
Ya know what, anyone who criticizes you about it can pound sand.
Going home and thinking about it is a bit of a different calculation for you though, right? IIRC you'd have to wait to buy until your next trip
