Early planning and basic questions

[pokerface]

We are having initial convos about an extended family trip to WDW in June 2023. I have some initial questions that I would love your feedback on.

Can someone explain renting points and Disney Vacation Club to me like I’m 5?

While my siblings may join us, our core group is my parents, my husband and 3 kids who will be 9, 6 and 4. I think our best bet for convenience and price would be a suite that holds all of us - something like Old Key West. The temptation of Polynesian is SO high but in my mind it’s way more expensive and I can’t justify the price.

Do you think separate standard hotel rooms (my parents would be happy to have one of my kids on their booking to make that work) would be a big price difference?

How much will we regret staying off property? I see the perk as cheaper, make our own food, more space. My parents think driving/parking at the parks is a hassle and time suck, and are always pro staying on property. Welcome opinions on this!

Thanks all! Looking forward to reading responses and old threads while dreaming about this idea.

[curbsideprophet]

I feel like this article gives a good overview of the pros/cons of DVC rental.
www.disneytouristblog.com/renting-disney-vacation-club-points/

I will try to hit the main points though.

Typically, renting DVC points is cheaper than booking the same room direct through Disney. You can get trip insurance but typically the cancellation policy on a DVC rental is not as good compared to booking directly though Disney. For you first time renting I would go through a broker. We have used DVC Rental Store dvcrentalstore.com/ in the past and were happy with them. The broker will take your reservation request and find a DVC owner to book the request for you. The owner will always be the one in charge of the reservation however they will but your name/party on the reservation. So if you need to make any modifications, you would need to ask the broker to ask the owner to make the change. DVC reservations can be made 11 months in advance. If you want to go this route and you are able, I would start talking to a broker a year out so they can have all your info ready to go and start looking for a owner right at 11 months.

DVC rooms do not have daily housekeeping but they do come in once a day to empty the trash and do a safety check.

If it is in the budget, a two bedroom villa sounds like it would be a good option for you. This would give you a full kitchen and W/D in the unit. The Poly does not have a typical 2 BD, only the bungalows. So if you were to stay there you would need multiple studios. The 2-bd villa sleep 8-9 guests depending on the unit.


I have never booked through David's but I do like their cost calculator. You can look at price or number of points. dvcrequest.com/dvc-guests/cost-calculator
The 2023 point chart is not available yet but you could look at the same week for 2022 to get an estimate of what the points/costs might be.

I have not stayed off site in years, so I can not really speak to that. I will say that even when on property we sometimes drive to the parks depending on the situation. Taking Disney transportation can also be time-consuming.

[pokerface]

Thank you for taking the time to explain that! I’ll look into those links, too.

We used to be a Disney family (well, to the extend we could on my parents limited budget) but now that I’m paying with 3 kids I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around the cost. Even though I believe it will be worth it!

[huskymom]

We just rented points for next year and it was pretty much the same price as the rack rate at Disney - assuming any of the Disney deals would be better. Only doing it this way Bc we have a credit from 2020 - would not use David’s again.

[ssmjlm]

We rented years ago, but with COVID, I'm not sure how much of a deal renting points is anymore. I think a lot are still trying to makeup for the shutdown.

That said, for me, it's absolutely worth it to be on property and close. We stayed at Bay Lake Tower both times in a 2bd suite and being able to walk to MK in the evenings was worth it.

Since you're going in Summer when it's HOT, I would probably aim to be on-site so you can do morning at the park, afternoon break, evening at the park. That's our plan for next June at Universal.