DVC Rental Walk Through
Ok, friend. I told you there was a cheaper, better way to go to WDW, but it didn't seem true. So I just told you to go read this blog post. Its cool, we can do this together.
I love the Deluxe Resort Hotels at Disney World. If I am spending that much on a vacation, I want to stay somewhere nice! Somewhere super close to the parks! Somewhere that is so nice it makes me relax.
But I'm also super cheap. I refuse to pay retail on anything, and 75% of my wardrobe is consignment. How can I get my love of resort hotels to match my cheapskate being?
RENT Disney Vacation Club (DVC) Points.
Stay with me. This isn't scary.
There is a timeshare section of Walt Disney World. For those with a lot of mullah (or not scared to take on a lot of debt), they buy a timeshare at WDW. Years ago I bought another timeshare somewhere else, and we won't go into it here, but.... don't do it. The math doesn't work.
But sometimes people that own through the Vacation Club don't go to WDW. They have other vacations to take! But they paid for it, so what do they do? They rent their "points" (read vacation) out to non-owners. Read- people like you and me.
What does this mean? It means that you can rent a week at WDW, stay on property, take advantage of THEIR discount, but not pay to be an owner. Super sweet!
Are these rooms as nice as other rooms at Deluxe Hotels?
Short Answer: Yes. Our family stayed in a one-bedroom at Saratoga Springs using our timeshare (a different story, but same place), and it was nice. AND it had a kitchenette. AND a washer and dryer. AND was bigger. No joke. I would argue that it is BETTER.
Ok. But really, what money are we talking about?
There are several places you can go through to rent points. For our trip this upcoming November (10 year anniversary- Yay!!!), my husband and I wanted to stay at the Boardwalk Villas. Here is the price comparison for three nights:
WDW Rack rate for a non-villa (cheaper): $1357
WDW 30% Promo (if you could get it): $949.90
Davids DVC Rentals: $752 for a preferred studio.
In other words, we saved 45% of Rack Rate! Sold yet?
Also, remember, our room will have a small kitchenette that the main hotel rooms don't have, AND is 50sq ft larger. So. Yeah.
Sold! Before I proceed... what are the downfalls?
1- You have to book 11 months out (you can try up to 7 months out, but room availability drastically decreases the closer you get to the date you want to travel). For those of you that are not big planners, this is a downfall. HOWEVER, for such a big price swing, you can do this.
2- You only get maid service once a week, if staying for a week. If you care about that, then this isnt for you.
3- You go through another company- not WDW- to do this, so it feels odd. But, not to worry, there are reputable companies out there. I'm about to share how this works.
Ok. I'm ready! Let's do this.
There are a lot of companies out there, but after a lot of research, we went with David's Vacation Club Rentals.
Basically, figure out where you want to stay, and give them a rank ordering. You THEN have to give them a deposit of about $90, and they will start the process for you. You give them the deposit, so that if a room becomes available, they can make the reservation for you. Once they get the reservation, they tell you, and you have 24hrs to pay in FULL.
Once you have paid in full, they give you a reservation number. Once I got that number, I put it into the WDW website...and it showed up!
If your resorts aren't available, they will tell you and refund your money.
We REALLY wanted to do this for our upcoming anniversary- because MATH MATTERS... my form looked like this:
First Resort Choice:
See? I try to be helpful. You may note that we got our FIRST choice, so that is awesome.
What are your questions? I have tried to explain this a few times and feel that I may have failed, so let me know and I'll try to answer!
I love the Deluxe Resort Hotels at Disney World. If I am spending that much on a vacation, I want to stay somewhere nice! Somewhere super close to the parks! Somewhere that is so nice it makes me relax.
But I'm also super cheap. I refuse to pay retail on anything, and 75% of my wardrobe is consignment. How can I get my love of resort hotels to match my cheapskate being?
RENT Disney Vacation Club (DVC) Points.
Stay with me. This isn't scary.
There is a timeshare section of Walt Disney World. For those with a lot of mullah (or not scared to take on a lot of debt), they buy a timeshare at WDW. Years ago I bought another timeshare somewhere else, and we won't go into it here, but.... don't do it. The math doesn't work.
But sometimes people that own through the Vacation Club don't go to WDW. They have other vacations to take! But they paid for it, so what do they do? They rent their "points" (read vacation) out to non-owners. Read- people like you and me.
What does this mean? It means that you can rent a week at WDW, stay on property, take advantage of THEIR discount, but not pay to be an owner. Super sweet!
Are these rooms as nice as other rooms at Deluxe Hotels?
Short Answer: Yes. Our family stayed in a one-bedroom at Saratoga Springs using our timeshare (a different story, but same place), and it was nice. AND it had a kitchenette. AND a washer and dryer. AND was bigger. No joke. I would argue that it is BETTER.
Ok. But really, what money are we talking about?
There are several places you can go through to rent points. For our trip this upcoming November (10 year anniversary- Yay!!!), my husband and I wanted to stay at the Boardwalk Villas. Here is the price comparison for three nights:
WDW Rack rate for a non-villa (cheaper): $1357
WDW 30% Promo (if you could get it): $949.90
Davids DVC Rentals: $752 for a preferred studio.
In other words, we saved 45% of Rack Rate! Sold yet?
Also, remember, our room will have a small kitchenette that the main hotel rooms don't have, AND is 50sq ft larger. So. Yeah.
Sold! Before I proceed... what are the downfalls?
1- You have to book 11 months out (you can try up to 7 months out, but room availability drastically decreases the closer you get to the date you want to travel). For those of you that are not big planners, this is a downfall. HOWEVER, for such a big price swing, you can do this.
2- You only get maid service once a week, if staying for a week. If you care about that, then this isnt for you.
3- You go through another company- not WDW- to do this, so it feels odd. But, not to worry, there are reputable companies out there. I'm about to share how this works.
Ok. I'm ready! Let's do this.
There are a lot of companies out there, but after a lot of research, we went with David's Vacation Club Rentals.
Basically, figure out where you want to stay, and give them a rank ordering. You THEN have to give them a deposit of about $90, and they will start the process for you. You give them the deposit, so that if a room becomes available, they can make the reservation for you. Once they get the reservation, they tell you, and you have 24hrs to pay in FULL.
Once you have paid in full, they give you a reservation number. Once I got that number, I put it into the WDW website...and it showed up!
If your resorts aren't available, they will tell you and refund your money.
We REALLY wanted to do this for our upcoming anniversary- because MATH MATTERS... my form looked like this:
First Resort Choice:
| Boardwalk Villas | |
| Studio-Preferred View | |
| Second Resort Choice: | Beach Club Villas |
| Studio | |
| Third Resort Choice: | Bay Lake Towers |
| Studio-Lake View | |
| Fourth Resort Choice: | Bay Lake Towers |
| Studio-Standard View | |
| Check-In Date: | 2017-11-16 |
| Check-Out Date: | 2017-11-19 |
| Comments: | We don't have a room-type preference, so if we put standard, and a different (like preferred) room is available, we will take it if it is within $200 |
See? I try to be helpful. You may note that we got our FIRST choice, so that is awesome.
What are your questions? I have tried to explain this a few times and feel that I may have failed, so let me know and I'll try to answer!
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