If you opened this thread, you probably know about DVC already – it’s a time-share system based on an annual allotment of points which can be used at Disney’s various resort properties.
I am not a DVC owner, but I’ve found that you can “rent” (buy, pretty much) points from owners and stay at the DVC properties for a lot less than booking at the corresponding resort. It looks like a terrific deal all around. Here are a few of the most prominentwebsitesfor doing this.
The catch is that it’s essentially a handshake agreement. The owner has to make all the arrangements for you, then you show up with their reservation number. This makes me just a little bit apprehensive. Has anybody here tried it, and what did you think? What’s the chance that the DVC owner will screw you over? How easy is it to get the dates and resort you want? Does Disney care if you’re not the owner when you show up? What else should I know?
I am a DVC member but have not rented points or been a rentee.
It is a handshake agreement. The member can cancel your reservation at any time. If they are frequent renters, you should be able to get references that you can contact to ensure they are on the up and up. Also, you should only pay a small deposit upfront and not pay in full until you have a reservation number and can search that number on the Disney World website to confirm that the information is correct. The reservation can only be made by the DVC member but it will be in your name (since you will be occupying the room). In fact, all members of your party will be listed on the reservation.
Getting the dates and resort you want is a different story. When a member buys points, they buy them at a particular resort (mine are at Saratoga Springs). At 11 months from the first day of the dates you want, you can book a room at this resort (called your ‘Home Resort’). If you want to book at a different resort, you can book 7 months before your first day.
However, for popular dates, even members who want to book at their home resort at 11 months can be shut out. If you are looking for Christmas, for example, you are probably SOL.
If you are looking for something in the next couple of months, you will likely be able to get a ressie at Old Key West or Saratoga Springs but not much else (though it is the low season, so who knows).
One site I found looks like it would get you the most flexibility but is much more expensive than normal points rentals:
DVC owner. I haven’t done it myself since I own my points.
Chances someone will screw you over - not high if you go through a place like the Disboards - higher if you rent via ebay. Do NOT rent an RCI exchange, rent only from a DVC member. Renting an exchange is against RCI rules and RCI will cancel.
Resorts and dates - you know you are looking at the DVC resorts - not the general resorts, right. DVC points are used at DVC resorts (its more complicated than that, but for rental purposes, that is what you need to know). For some resorts and dates you need to line things up a year in advance. For other resorts or dates, four months out will be fine.
Disney does not care, provided your “owner” is not engaged in commercial renting. RCI does care (see above), but you aren’t going to rent an RCI trade, right?
Other things to know. No housekeeping. A DVC studio will have a Queen bed and a full pullout sofabed - no two queens.
Since I’m not sure what RCI is, I’m probably not doing that.
I do like the idea of using a middleman site as perfectparanoia suggested; I was looking at going either here or here – they both seem to be on the up and up.
I do know about the housekeeping differences (no big deal to us) and that the DVC properties are not the same as the regular resorts. Bay Lake Tower and Boardwalk Villas look awesome, though!
I rented points directly through a DVC member for a vacation last year. I found them through DisBoards. The site has a section where members can post points available for rent. Since I wanted a fairly desirable location (Beach Club during the Epcot Food and Wine Festival), I talked to the member a couple weeks before the 11 month booking window opened up. So, yeah, I had to have my October vacation planned in November of the prior year.
Overall, the process was very smooth. Yes, there is definitely trust involved. I talked with the person beforehand and got references of people who had previously rented from her. Once at Disney, there were no problems - my name was on the reservation and I had no issues checking in or out. If you’re interested in the dining plan, I think that might be a little tricky; last I heard, it has to be added and paid for when the reservation is made (previously I think you could wait to pay until check-in).
I think the one bedroom units have a king bed. They also have a full kitchen and separate living area. Of course, it takes more points so the cost will be higher.
As Sparklo said, a one bedroom unit will have a king bed in the bedroom (and a full pullout in the living room). But will be approximately twice as many points. It will have a full kitchen though (well, fullish, stove, refrigerator, microwave - smallish space).
RCI trades you’ll find generally on eBay. They will say something about $95 booking fee (or something like that).
Those sites simply are “marriage brokers” - they set you up with an owner. They don’t remove the risk.
**perfectparanoia **has it covered. And yes, wheelz, if you need DVC-style accommodations, renting seems to be the least-expensive option.
I’ve rented points both from individuals (through DISBoards) and from dvcrequest.com. Both have gone perfectly. When going the DISBoards route, I got a slight “You’re sending money to someone you met on the Internet” twinge. However, if you’re getting references and using someone who has been on the DIS for 5 years, the odds are pretty small that you’re a pawn in their master 60-month swindle scheme.
FWIW, I was able to get a Bay Lake Tower grand villa for this coming New Year’s Eve through dvcrequest.com. The odds of doing so on DISBoards seemed really low - I think there are only 12 such units - so I was happy to pay the points premium at dvcrequest. I sent my request in back in January and I had my reservation confirmed literally within 3 hours of those dates opening a few weeks later. I think they cal get really hard-to-get dates and resorts better than most.
I’ve interviewed Dave, the owner, for the next edition of the Guide. Unless we’re running really long on page count, they’ll be in our recommendations.
A further question: Is it kosher to submit the same request to more than one site simultaneously or is that frowned upon?
This is beginning to sound like something I might want to do more than once, and I wouldn’t want to get a bad reputation for making requests and then not accepting subsequent offers… Or maybe there’s a way to withdraw my requests if they’re offered elsewhere?
I’ve rented DVC points twice from the folks on DISBOARDS. Make sure you know what the going rate per point is and how many points you need to rent the particular unit you want. It varies by season, day of the week and resort. I’ve had several folks try to sell me points at over the twice the normal rate.
I don’t think it’s jerkish at all. Many owners advertise in more than one place, is that jerkish? I always look and post on Tug2, Redweek, VBRO and when I’m looking for Disney, I post on Disboards too. I have rented timeshares and private condos in Hawaii and Colorado dozens of times. All turned out well. Heh, the first time was a last minute deal, made the reservation on Thursday for arrival on Monday. The owner said she’d put the key under the mat and pick up the check sometime during the week
Owners think its jerkish. The matchmaking services are just matchmaking services. Owners are individuals. Disney does not permit commercial renting. If I rent you my points, I have to make a few phone calls. I’m not making any profit on my points at current going rates (and new owners are losing money). And you are going to say “oh, we decided to go with someone else?” What if I tell you I’ll make your reservation for you, then call you back in a week and say “oh, I decided to rent my points to someone else?”
You are free to look at as many advertisements as you want, but once you engage an owner to start working with you in securing a reservation, you should stick to that owner. Of course, you don’t HAVE to, but if you were working with me and then decided to work with someone else, I’d think it was jerkish. Plus, why bother, they all have access to the same inventory (well, home resort owners have access to home resort inventory earlier - but the people you talk to should be saying “I can’t make those reservations yet” - in which case, you should go looking for someone else - but close out with the first owner letting them know they should find someone else to rent to.
(Oh, Wheelz, which is a low risk issue with those internet sites - commercial renting is prohibited. Disney CAN (but to the best of my knowledge, hasn’t) cancel the reservations of anyone doing what they consider commercial renting. Make sure you are working with someone who is matchmaking - not someone commercially renting).
I definitely agree with this. What I meant by by the question was, before I’ve been matched with any owners, is it OK to post on DISboards, as well as, say, dvcrequest and dvcrentalstore saying “I’m looking for Bay Lake Towers on these dates”? I was thinking this would increase my chances of getting the resort and dates I wanted. Each site works with a different pool of owners, no?
I certainly would not enter into any agreements with more than one owner.
Dangerosa; It seems we have misunderstood each others’ posts. I post what I’m looking for at different sites. If you are the first to say you have availability and the price is right I don’t continue looking and then after you’ve made the reservation say I changed my mind. That would indeed be jerkish.
And yet, a surprising number of people do just that. They keep contacting other people after a reservation is “in the works” for them and someone is making phone calls. Then, they tell the person that they had the original deal with that they found a better price. Or - worse yet - they just never send money.
I won’t know if there is availability until after I make the call. And no one else will either. Since we all dip into the same availability pool, if it isn’t available for me, it probably won’t be for anyone else (sometimes you get lucky with cancellations). So once we agree I’m calling to check, I think there are two ethical outcomes - you get a reservation and send me a check, or I call you back with “I’m sorry, it wasn’t available - would you like me to try a different resort or date?”
(And honestly, if I rented my points (I don’t), I’d coach people BEFORE I called for a reservation with “and what is your second choice? And your third choice?” Some rooms are difficult to book)
All owners have access to the same pool of points (well, home resort owners get access to their home faster - which means if you are more than seven months out, you want to be working with an owner who has points at the resort you want to stay at).
DVC isn’t a fixed week timeshare. Its points based. So reservations go first come, first served. If you are working with me and you are working with Len, we both call member services for the same units.
(What are you looking for by the way?, if its anything in 2011, you are not likely to find much available).
I’d be looking for a long weekend in November during the Food & Wine festival. I’m well aware that it would be a long shot, and this is why I was hoping to maximize the odds by asking at different sites.
Also, due to a family situation, we need to wait at least another month (maybe more) before we can pull the trigger on a non-cancellable reservation… So the more I’m learning, it sounds like a DVC rental won’t be a good fit this time around. (Carribean Beach, here we come!)
But I’m absolutely keeping this idea in my pocket for future trips.
Yeah…you aren’t going to find that late in the game. Those are the ones that people on the DISBoards - when they used to allow people looking for points to post what they were looking for, didn’t even contact you about because there wasn’t any use in making the phone call. That’s one that if you want to book that at an Epcot resort (the best resorts for Food and Wine) you need to find an owner a year out so they can call right away. And everything else books up months out - right now people are saying that some F&W weekends are completely booked already - and its JUST July.
Unless someone has a reservation that they can’t use. At 30 days out if you can’t use your reservation, the points go into holding - which is a pain in the ass. So sometimes people will rent out a reservation they have in their hand. You won’t find those on the broker type sites generally though.
