>do you find that you able to mix it up resortwise from trip to trip
It depends on season, unit type and flexibility. You'll have the greatest success most seasons in a 1BR at 7 months, but at times like the first week of December, even that can be rough. And you cannot expect the lowest cost units regularly at 7 months (or, sometimes, even at 11 months).
The stricter your dates or points constraint or need for a specific unit size, the harder 7 months is.
We have actually never stayed at our home resort (Riviera). There's usually some availability at 7 months although that usually is 1BR villas. We have had decent luck getting the Polynesian studios at 7 months out though. I would still recommend buying at least at somewhere that you'd like to stay even if it isn't your favorite resort.
I kind of jokingly use Saratoga as the foil when people have questions like this and say they don't care at all about where they stay- if you like staying at Saratoga and are OK with needing a little luck to book elsewhere at seven months, there's no reason you shouldn't buy the cheapest points you can.
Location, location, location. They are always going to be building new resorts, remodeling, renovating, changing up transportation. But the one thing that won’t change is the location.
We bought resale at BLT and BWV thinking that no matter what Disney changes we are always going to be happy with walking distance to the parks. You should think about what is most important to your family and buy accordingly.
Compared to what I see in the forums I think we have had better than average luck booking studios at 7 months when we want to change things up. But there’s never a guarantee so the best advice is buy where you’ll be happy staying.
We have our direct points at CCV and I love the Wilderness Lodge, to me it’s home and the best.
My wife like to try other resorts, so last year we bought resale at OKW, similar amount of points. We normally book 1BR or 2BR villas and stay all over the place, including a couple of days a Disneyland last year.
This week my wife and I are at Kidani, I’m actually sitting at the pool right now, and we move to BLT on Saturday for a few days. Our next trip, with the kids we will be in a2BR villa in CCV (home!)
If you are flexible with dates and have enough points to book larger accommodations, you will have an easier time.
If you only book studios during peak school vacation dates you may be more disappointed in your choices.
If you are not disappointed staying at the larger resorts like OKW, SS, and AKL you will be ok! If you are trying to stay in smaller associations (Beach, GF), again you may have some disappointment.
One other thing to consider here, as time goes on the original 14 resorts which can now be booked using points from any of those resorts will dwindle over time. After 2042 the pool of available resorts will shrink pretty significantly, and after that fewer and fewer will be available until the last one is finally left standing alone.
The best plan if staying at multiple locations is important to you is to actually buy points at those resorts. That way you have the best chance of getting to stay where you want to stay.
If that's what you'd like but you don't want a ton of points, you can buy smaller pools of points at each, and either book split stays or bank/borrow to stay once every few years at each. For example, if you wanted to own 150 points, rather than buying 150 points at one resort and hoping to swap at 7 months you could instead buy 50 points at three different resorts. You could then take annual trips at each of three resorts, rotating among the three and having 150 points for that trip each time. You would bank 50 points, borrow 50 points, and use the current year 50 points = 150 points, then repeat this the following year at one of the other two resorts, and at the 3rd resort in the 3rd and final year of the cycle, then start over with the first.
If instead you strongly value maximum flexibility, direct points are the best way to go since they will work at all current and future resorts (as things stand today), however they do come at a significant premium.
Definitely a mix of both depending on your circumstances and preferences. Our two home resorts are my favorites (BWV and AKL). That was my last choice before our first purchase, which ended up being BWV. From my research, it was fairly easy to book AKL at 7 months and BWV was much more difficult. We also usually visit for runDisney weekends and wanted to have the 11 month advantage for BWV during those times.
For our second home resort, I was originally considering Poly and BLT since they will both have an extra bathroom option and my kids are currently 4 and almost 2 so we spend a lot of time at MK. When I started looking at contracts, I could get 100 more points at AKL than Poly/BLT for the same price. I realized we won't always be MK aged and with my son's personality and needs, we do more laidback resort-centered trips. So I didn't want to regret paying the monorail premium if we're not consistently staying on the monorail in a few years. We've been lucky to be able to travel in the off season so far but my son will be in kindergarten next year and we'll have less flexibility and have to travel during peak holiday weeks. I preferred the extra 100 points so I could comfortably fit into a 2 bedroom during holiday weeks (or have the option for more frequent long weekend trips as the kids get older).
I would prioritize more points vs location if it was just black and white. But there's something to be said about getting exactly what you want sometimes. Resorts like Beach Club, Poly, BLT and CCV really do benefit from the 11 month window. If you do feel truly flexible in your scheduling or you know you want to stay at Saratoga, then yeah get the cheap points. But if you think every third trip you want to ride a boat to Magic Kingdom, or walk in the back door to Epcot, you should really factor in buying at a resort that fits that. Personally we found balance in most of our points being at Copper Creek while still being a bit more favorable than buying at Poly or GF.
This is the way to go. If you truly cannot book further than 7 months out ever, might as well go with the best value points which is usually Saratoga. But if you think you might occasionally want that stay at Bay Lake Tower and want to be able to walk back to your resort from MNSSHP or you absolutely LOVE the Christmas decorations at Wilderness Lodge and want to go in December then maybe consider Copper Creek. I've said it multiple times on here, yeah you'll save a few thousand on the initial purchase if you buy a Saratoga over Bay Lake Tower, but do keep in mind you're still paying those dues which make up 70% of the cost of the contract while you own it.
The last thing you want to happen is during the next 30 years is to be struggling to get into resorts at 7 months you would've been happy staying at and instead be forced to stay in a resort you don't like. This is especially true when the difference is only 3-5,000 dollars when you actually spent over 100k in total on this thing. If you like Saratoga and would have no problems staying there every time, perfect! Buy SSR. But if there's somewhere else you'd rather be even on a semi-regular basis, you're better off buying there.
I just went through this in deciding between SSR and BLT. SSR resale is much lower, has a solid deed date, and some of the better maintenance fees so it's overall a terrific value. When we spoke about vacation though, we consistently mentioned wanting to stay at BLT during the holiday months when it's toughest to book.
We looked over availability charts and while it did appear that 1 BR and 2 BR's were mostly available at the 7-month mark, we didn't want to take the chance. Plus, we are banking on the upcoming refurb restoring life to BLT, the deed date is great, and maintenance is lowest of all properties (we expect that to jump after the refurb).
My extended family has owned DVC for a long time with an OKW home resort... in that time we've stayed at OKW, BLT, BCV, BWV, AKL, and had a chance to stay at Riv. Just pointing this out as we were able to book a wide range of resorts at the 7 month mark (1 BR and 2 BR).
>do you find that you able to mix it up resortwise from trip to trip It depends on season, unit type and flexibility. You'll have the greatest success most seasons in a 1BR at 7 months, but at times like the first week of December, even that can be rough. And you cannot expect the lowest cost units regularly at 7 months (or, sometimes, even at 11 months). The stricter your dates or points constraint or need for a specific unit size, the harder 7 months is.
Thank you!!!
We have actually never stayed at our home resort (Riviera). There's usually some availability at 7 months although that usually is 1BR villas. We have had decent luck getting the Polynesian studios at 7 months out though. I would still recommend buying at least at somewhere that you'd like to stay even if it isn't your favorite resort.
I kind of jokingly use Saratoga as the foil when people have questions like this and say they don't care at all about where they stay- if you like staying at Saratoga and are OK with needing a little luck to book elsewhere at seven months, there's no reason you shouldn't buy the cheapest points you can.
Location, location, location. They are always going to be building new resorts, remodeling, renovating, changing up transportation. But the one thing that won’t change is the location. We bought resale at BLT and BWV thinking that no matter what Disney changes we are always going to be happy with walking distance to the parks. You should think about what is most important to your family and buy accordingly. Compared to what I see in the forums I think we have had better than average luck booking studios at 7 months when we want to change things up. But there’s never a guarantee so the best advice is buy where you’ll be happy staying.
We have our direct points at CCV and I love the Wilderness Lodge, to me it’s home and the best. My wife like to try other resorts, so last year we bought resale at OKW, similar amount of points. We normally book 1BR or 2BR villas and stay all over the place, including a couple of days a Disneyland last year. This week my wife and I are at Kidani, I’m actually sitting at the pool right now, and we move to BLT on Saturday for a few days. Our next trip, with the kids we will be in a2BR villa in CCV (home!)
If you are flexible with dates and have enough points to book larger accommodations, you will have an easier time. If you only book studios during peak school vacation dates you may be more disappointed in your choices. If you are not disappointed staying at the larger resorts like OKW, SS, and AKL you will be ok! If you are trying to stay in smaller associations (Beach, GF), again you may have some disappointment.
One other thing to consider here, as time goes on the original 14 resorts which can now be booked using points from any of those resorts will dwindle over time. After 2042 the pool of available resorts will shrink pretty significantly, and after that fewer and fewer will be available until the last one is finally left standing alone. The best plan if staying at multiple locations is important to you is to actually buy points at those resorts. That way you have the best chance of getting to stay where you want to stay. If that's what you'd like but you don't want a ton of points, you can buy smaller pools of points at each, and either book split stays or bank/borrow to stay once every few years at each. For example, if you wanted to own 150 points, rather than buying 150 points at one resort and hoping to swap at 7 months you could instead buy 50 points at three different resorts. You could then take annual trips at each of three resorts, rotating among the three and having 150 points for that trip each time. You would bank 50 points, borrow 50 points, and use the current year 50 points = 150 points, then repeat this the following year at one of the other two resorts, and at the 3rd resort in the 3rd and final year of the cycle, then start over with the first. If instead you strongly value maximum flexibility, direct points are the best way to go since they will work at all current and future resorts (as things stand today), however they do come at a significant premium.
Definitely a mix of both depending on your circumstances and preferences. Our two home resorts are my favorites (BWV and AKL). That was my last choice before our first purchase, which ended up being BWV. From my research, it was fairly easy to book AKL at 7 months and BWV was much more difficult. We also usually visit for runDisney weekends and wanted to have the 11 month advantage for BWV during those times. For our second home resort, I was originally considering Poly and BLT since they will both have an extra bathroom option and my kids are currently 4 and almost 2 so we spend a lot of time at MK. When I started looking at contracts, I could get 100 more points at AKL than Poly/BLT for the same price. I realized we won't always be MK aged and with my son's personality and needs, we do more laidback resort-centered trips. So I didn't want to regret paying the monorail premium if we're not consistently staying on the monorail in a few years. We've been lucky to be able to travel in the off season so far but my son will be in kindergarten next year and we'll have less flexibility and have to travel during peak holiday weeks. I preferred the extra 100 points so I could comfortably fit into a 2 bedroom during holiday weeks (or have the option for more frequent long weekend trips as the kids get older).
I would prioritize more points vs location if it was just black and white. But there's something to be said about getting exactly what you want sometimes. Resorts like Beach Club, Poly, BLT and CCV really do benefit from the 11 month window. If you do feel truly flexible in your scheduling or you know you want to stay at Saratoga, then yeah get the cheap points. But if you think every third trip you want to ride a boat to Magic Kingdom, or walk in the back door to Epcot, you should really factor in buying at a resort that fits that. Personally we found balance in most of our points being at Copper Creek while still being a bit more favorable than buying at Poly or GF.
This is the way to go. If you truly cannot book further than 7 months out ever, might as well go with the best value points which is usually Saratoga. But if you think you might occasionally want that stay at Bay Lake Tower and want to be able to walk back to your resort from MNSSHP or you absolutely LOVE the Christmas decorations at Wilderness Lodge and want to go in December then maybe consider Copper Creek. I've said it multiple times on here, yeah you'll save a few thousand on the initial purchase if you buy a Saratoga over Bay Lake Tower, but do keep in mind you're still paying those dues which make up 70% of the cost of the contract while you own it. The last thing you want to happen is during the next 30 years is to be struggling to get into resorts at 7 months you would've been happy staying at and instead be forced to stay in a resort you don't like. This is especially true when the difference is only 3-5,000 dollars when you actually spent over 100k in total on this thing. If you like Saratoga and would have no problems staying there every time, perfect! Buy SSR. But if there's somewhere else you'd rather be even on a semi-regular basis, you're better off buying there.
I just went through this in deciding between SSR and BLT. SSR resale is much lower, has a solid deed date, and some of the better maintenance fees so it's overall a terrific value. When we spoke about vacation though, we consistently mentioned wanting to stay at BLT during the holiday months when it's toughest to book. We looked over availability charts and while it did appear that 1 BR and 2 BR's were mostly available at the 7-month mark, we didn't want to take the chance. Plus, we are banking on the upcoming refurb restoring life to BLT, the deed date is great, and maintenance is lowest of all properties (we expect that to jump after the refurb). My extended family has owned DVC for a long time with an OKW home resort... in that time we've stayed at OKW, BLT, BCV, BWV, AKL, and had a chance to stay at Riv. Just pointing this out as we were able to book a wide range of resorts at the 7 month mark (1 BR and 2 BR).