I need some honest feedback

R

rick1969

New Member
Original Poster
Hi all!

I'm assuming most on this site are members of the DVC. We jsut returned from a stay at Wilderness Lodge and thoroughly enjoyed our time. We are not very good vacationeers...meaning we really want to but don't do a good job with actually doing it. Our thoughts are that this would force us to get away. I have some questions that I really need some consumer feedback on, not sales feedback.

1. How easy or what kind of experience have you had with booking vacations outside of the Disney resorts?

2. I'm assuming this is true, but the DVC members still have access to all of the onsite transportation, Disney dining plans, etc

3. Where do you buy groceries to stock your kitchen if you don't have a rental car? (Sorry, lame question but something we thought of after the fact).

Thanks for all your help! We are really leaning towards jumping in to the Bay Lake Towers, but this is alot of money!!

Thanks
Rick
 
G

Grumpy2

New Member
I order Groceries from Disney from the members site. Some us the green Grocer. Dvc is pretty simple to us as compared to other time shares I have looked at. We are members at beach club. Its the best money I have ever spent. It is the only time my family is truly together. Disney dining is available and transportation is free. There are a few member perks available as well.
 
elisatonks

elisatonks

Active Member
myfolks have DVC membership, and have always found booking both disney and non disney very easy. You still have access to everything that a resort guest gets (bues, boats, free parking) plus you can buy the dining plan without purchasing park tickets (which is great for those of us with annual passes, or don't want to go in the parks every day!) Before I moved to Orlando they used to buy food at the onsite shop (which has a limited stock, and is a little pricey, but nowadays i will pick up supplies for them when i do my weekly shop. I have also heard good reports of green grocers and they will deliever to your resort.
 
slappy magoo

slappy magoo

Well-Known Member
Lot of questions have been answered. Will add that I've used my membership to go to San Francisco for 5 nights at what was then a "concierge" level bed and breakfast. Wasn't really a problem. I think most DVC members find it easier to get lodging outside of DVD resorts than NON-DVC members find it getting into a DVC resort. In other words, RCI members can try to swap their timeshare for a DVC resort, just like DVC members can swap their points to stay at a RCI resort (plus a transfer fee, I think it's currently $75). But there are always more RCI members trying to swap then there are DVC members, so DVC members tend to have more options.

When it comes to groceries, each DVC resort has a small selection of convenience store-style items, usually in their gift shop and/or food court. You can also print out a shopping list ahead of time, and the DVC resort you'll be visiting will get your groceries together for you. But the prices are premium. Some websites, like greengrocer.com, will let you shop online and deliver your food the day you arrive, and the resort will refrigerate whatever needs to be refrigerated if your groceries arrive before you. There are also some car services to and from the airport whose prices include a 30 minute grocery stop.

Finally, here's something else to consider. The link to "The Timeshare Store" at the top of this thread has tons of people looking to sell their interest in DVC. This is not (necessarily) indicative of people being disappointed in DVC - many people realize that they won't be going away as much as they thought, or the economy being what it is, money being tight, some people NEED to liquidate assets if they are divorcing, etc etc human misery blah blah blah... You won't have as many (maybe not any) options for Bay Lake Towers, considering it's so new, but you may find yourself some incredible bargains, even better than any current promotional offers DVC itself is offering. Worth a look, even if ultimately you decide only Bay Lake wil do ya :)
 
DisneyLuvR

DisneyLuvR

New Member
1. How easy or what kind of experience have you had with booking vacations outside of the Disney resorts?
My family have booked outside Disney 3 times and have never had a problem yet. It was a a very smooth hassle free process each time.

2. I'm assuming this is true, but the DVC members still have access to all of the onsite transportation, Disney dining plans, etc
Yep, DVC members are treated the same as every other guest (even better IMHO)

3. Where do you buy groceries to stock your kitchen if you don't have a rental car? (Sorry, lame question but something we thought of after the fact). As the others have replied, most of the resorts have their own grocery sections in one of their on site gift shops. Choices are limited but all the basic essentials are available.

Thanks for all your help! We are really leaning towards jumping in to the Bay Lake Towers, but this is alot of money!!

My family just took a tour at the Bay Lake Towers and LOVED it. It is a beautiful hotel. We can not wait to stay there next year. Also, we have been members for 7 years and loved every minute of it. It was the best decision that we made in regards to Disney. And just in case you didn't know, we bought all our points online as a resale purchase. You can save a lot of money doing this and you are treated exactly as if you bought it from Disny itself.
 
R

rick1969

New Member
Original Poster
we bought all our points online as a resale purchase. You can save a lot of money doing this and you are treated exactly as if you bought it from Disny itself.
Click to expand...

OK DisnyLuvR, then let me ask the next stupid question. Unless you are just dead set on the BLT DVC, why in the world would you pay for "new" points through Disney and not just go with the re-sale market. There has to be an upside...right?
 
G

Grumpy2

New Member
Disney sometimes offers perks. Free cruises, developer points( one time use). I would check out both. On resale sometimes there are banked points included. You home resort you can book at 11 months but a 7 months it opens up to all dvc members. I have liked all the dvc resorts we have stayed at. Some are quite some are really close to the parks ( BCV to epcot) As far as food we only do breakfast stuff pop tarts, fruit, cerial
 
R

rick1969

New Member
Original Poster
Right now, they are offering credits. $19 off the point cost at Animal Kingdom and a tiered discount at BLT starting at $11 off the point cost depending on how many points to buy. The sales rep didn't mention any other promos.
 
DisneyLuvR

DisneyLuvR

New Member
OK DisnyLuvR, then let me ask the next stupid question. Unless you are just dead set on the BLT DVC, why in the world would you pay for "new" points through Disney and not just go with the re-sale market. There has to be an upside...right?

Like Grumpy2 said, sometimes Disney offers some nice goodies when going thorugh them. We had friends that wanted to buy DVC points and only wanted to go through Disney because they felt safer that way. When we joined, we bought a resale that had all the banked points from the previous year so we wound up starting the year with 400 points instead of just the 200 that we bought. When our sale went through, we received our "Welcome" kit from Disney (the same exact one our friends got). We have found there is no difference from buying it online and from buying it at Disney. (except the savings)
 
G

Grumpy2

New Member
BLT is selling really fast. So they might not offer as much as at other slower selling resorts. I really want to try BLT but i really don't like hights.
 
DisneyLuvR

DisneyLuvR

New Member
To get the best deal for you, I would recommend that you look at both ideas. If your set on buying at BLT, then you will probably need to go through Disney b/c it so new. If you are open to buying at another resort then you have some choices. The two main things to keep in mind when picking a resort is 1) you can book 11 months in advance at your home resort vs. 7 months at all other resorts 2) the monthly maintinence fee is different at each resort.
 
R

rick1969

New Member
Original Poster
And they all have varying expiration dates...right? Granted they are years away, but BLT expires in 2060, Animal Kingdom in 2054 (I think) and the others in the 2040 ballpark. This is when the lease that DVC has with Disney expires.

Correct?
 
dizzney

dizzney

Member
Rick

We've preordered our groceries from http://gardengrocer.com/

and found more selection and better prices than the disney markets,

As DVC owners, found the benefits worhtwhile, AP's at a good discount, restuarant discounts, etc

We love it, good luck
 
DVC Mike

DVC Mike

Well-Known Member
rick1969 said:
And they all have varying expiration dates...right? Granted they are years away, but BLT expires in 2060, Animal Kingdom in 2054 (I think) and the others in the 2040 ballpark. This is when the lease that DVC has with Disney expires.

Correct?
Click to expand...

SSR is 2054, AKV is 2057, BLT and VGC are 2060.
 
828tnt

828tnt

Well-Known Member
i think you have the answers to all of your questions. i just want to add that it has been such a good choice for our family.

do take some time to determine your home resort, it will determine where most of your vacations will take place. and it's good to hear you're already keeping the end date in mind.

one other thing, don't fool yourself into thinking this is a way of wacationing everywhere. if you don't want to visit wdw once every other year, then put more thought into it....

we have another timeshare in cancun. same spot every year, same time. we love that one too. just perfect for someone from the northeast to vaca in late jan. but the flexibility through disney is wonderful!

but, absolutely one of the best decisions we've made!!!

good luck! and welcome!

kungaloosh, my friend!
 
wserratore1963

wserratore1963

Active Member
rick1969 said:
Hi all!

I'm assuming most on this site are members of the DVC. We jsut returned from a stay at Wilderness Lodge and thoroughly enjoyed our time. We are not very good vacationeers...meaning we really want to but don't do a good job with actually doing it. Our thoughts are that this would force us to get away. I have some questions that I really need some consumer feedback on, not sales feedback.

1. How easy or what kind of experience have you had with booking vacations outside of the Disney resorts?

2. I'm assuming this is true, but the DVC members still have access to all of the onsite transportation, Disney dining plans, etc

3. Where do you buy groceries to stock your kitchen if you don't have a rental car? (Sorry, lame question but something we thought of after the fact).

Thanks for all your help! We are really leaning towards jumping in to the Bay Lake Towers, but this is alot of money!!

Thanks
Rick
Click to expand...
We bought 2 units last september; we can't wait to go this year 8/21 - 8/22/09
So far the experience has been very, very good
 

Register on WDWMAGIC. This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.

Back
Top Bottom