How to Save Money Renting Disney Vacation Club Points
These money-saving tips for renting Disney Vacation Club points will get you Deluxe Resort rooms during your 2024 vacation at Walt Disney World, Disneyland or beyond. DVC rental is safe, easy, and cheaper than standard hotels. It’s also a great way to “test drive” accommodations before actually buying a membership. (Updated March 20, 2024.)
For those who are unfamiliar with it, Disney Vacation Club (DVC) point rental is the one-time use of a set number of a points or already confirmed reservation at a Deluxe Villa room at a Disney Vacation Club Resort. It’s an easy process, and you can do this on a person-to-person basis via social media groups, or via one of the established point rental companies that we recommend.
If you’re simply looking for the best way to safely rent DVC points at the lowest prices, our two top recommendations are David’s Vacation Club Rentals (for lowest prices) and DVC Rental Store (for most flexibility). That’s the short and sweet advice for renting DVC points–if you want to know more or compare the options, this post offers info & tips. Disney Vacation Club point rental can be a great way to save big on your Walt Disney World vacation in 2024, but it can be complicated, confusing, and require planning. For that, we’re here to help!
Let’s start with the basics of DVC rental. Here’s how it works: the owner of the points agrees to “rent” the points out to a rentee, and in exchange for payment to the owner of the points, the owner makes a room reservation for the rentee in the rentee’s name. The amount of the payment is determined by the number of points needed for the booking, with a per-point cost being agreed upon by the parties.
For example, if the agreed upon price is $20 per point, and the rentee wants to stay book Animal Kingdom Lodge for December 1-7, that will require 60 points, for a total cost of $1,200. Contrast that with booking directly from DisneyWorld.com, which would cost $2,451.38. That’s over half off by renting DVC points for that Christmas-time stay! As you can see, the big advantage of Disney Vacation Club point rental is saving money over booking directly with Walt Disney World.
Speaking of Christmas, if you want to visit Walt Disney World and rent DVC points for dates in November or December 2024, you really need to book ASAP. Ideally, you want to make reservations over 7 months in advance, which is quickly approaching. Some resorts are already sold out for certain dates.
The Villas at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort, Polynesian, BoardWalk, Beach Club, and other resorts in close proximity to Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, and Disney’s Hollywood Studios always book up over 7 months in advance for the most popular travel times. In other words, if you’re thinking about renting DVC points for a Christmas trip and want the best options, you’re already too late.
For what it’s worth, there’s a reason the holiday season is such a popular time to visit Walt Disney World. You can read more about why we love this time of year, dates & details, what’s happening, and more in our Ultimate Guide to Christmas at Walt Disney World. Without question, this is the best time to visit Walt Disney World–we highly recommend making reservations immediately so you can get a good resort!
While this is the best time to visit Walt Disney World, it’s just one of many times that Disney Vacation Club Members tend to prefer, which book up quickly as a result. Other popular times of year include all school breaks, holiday weekends, the start of EPCOT festivals, and any ‘cheap’ dates when a lower number of points is required to book rooms.
This brings us to lesson #1 about DVC point rental: book as close to 11 months in advance as possible. It used to be the case that booking at least 7 months in advance was sufficient, but that’s no longer true. In searching for DVC availability, there are very few good options for multi-night stays between today and October 2024 for studios or one-bedroom units. Only a scattering of dates at most resorts, with slightly better options for Saratoga Springs and Old Key West.
If you’re looking more last minute, fear not, as there’s another option for availability inside 6 months: confirmed reservations. These are reservations that have already been booked by a Disney Vacation Club Member and are available to be reserved by a guest. Booking a confirmed reservation is quicker and more efficient, but it’s also inflexible. There are no modifications or customized reservations. What you see is what you get.
In the past, confirmed reservations were rare. They were often bargains that were available because a DVC Member had to cancel a trip at the last-minute, and was hoping to recoup some money. In the last few years, confirmed reservations have exploded in popularity and frequency.
Rather than being bargains, they’re often speculative reservations that are booked for the most popular travel times in the most popular room types. Consequently, it’s often the case that confirmed reservations are more expensive than their per-point counterparts.
To be sure, there are still bargains at the absolute last minute and during less-popular travel times, but as hotel availability has become more difficult to book during peak seasons, confirmed reservations have become more popular among DVC Members looking to capitalize. While the amount varies, it’s common for confirmed reservations to charge as much as $25 per point.
Looking forward to the rest of 2024, we have a few pieces of advice. First is that the Villas at Disneyland Hotel are now open! If you’ve ever debated doing DVC at Disneyland Resort, we recommend doing it now. Due to far less room inventory, booking Disney Vacation Club accommodations is far more competitive in California.
If you’ve ever tried to book the Grand Californian, you’ve likely encountered this problem–that is far and away the most difficult DVC resort to book. It requires booking right at the 11 month mark or getting lucky with a cancellation or the waitlist. The Villas at Disneyland Hotel will end up being a very similar story–but that’s not yet the case!
Now is a golden window of opportunity because the Villas at Disneyland Hotel are brand-new and are still in the process of being sold, so there are not very many members there (yet). That means less competition, which can mean easier availability. Unfortunately, this is already starting to change–but it’s only going to get worse and more competitive from here, so 2024 is a good time to try! For more, see our post:Â Inside the Brand-New Villas at Disneyland Hotel.
It’ll likely be a similar story with both the upcoming DVC Cabins at Disney’s Fort Wilderness Resort and New DVC Tower at Disney’s Polynesian Village Resort. Those are slated to open in 2024 at Walt Disney World, with the cabins rolling out in phases from July 1, 2024 until 2025. The Polynesian tower will open later, but all at once.
At first, the Cabins at Fort Wilderness will be very limited, making reservations highly competitive. Reservations for all Disney Vacation Club members–and by extension, rentals–open on April 23, 2024. If you want to book the cabins this year, we highly recommend submitting a request before that date.
The Polynesian Tower has not yet started booking and probably won’t until sometime this summer. However, that new addition is joining the existing condo association (a little inside baseball–but relevant), so it’ll work a bit differently. It’ll also be incredibly competitive because there are already Poly points in circulation that will have priority, even as only a portion of the rooms in the Poly tower are declared into DVC inventory. (Meaning they’ll mostly be bookable at higher cash rates, rather than via points. That’s important, but also beyond the scope of this post.)
Speaking of new, one of the big themes of the last few years has been Disney Vacation Club room refurbishments and reimaginings. You can check out the 2024-2025 Disney Vacation Club Resort Refurbishments & Construction Timeline for what’s on the horizon.
Every resort that has recently received a soft goods refurbishment has included installation of the new pull-down sofa bed and couch combo (like the one pictured above). This feature first debuted at Disney’s Riviera Resort, and has since spread to every single Disney Vacation Club room (and beyond!) that has been renovated in the last few years. And for good reason, as member satisfaction surveys give these rooms very high marks and guest satisfaction scores have increased by 20% among guests who have stayed in new rooms.
This pull-down bed is a colossal upgrade over the pull-out couches, and has been one of several functional improvements that have really improved the ‘quality of life’ of DVC rooms–Imagineering has done a fantastic job weaving themed design into the upgraded units. Point being, we’d recommend taking whether the resort you’re considering has new vs. old rooms when determining where to stay. The new rooms have made a big difference for the average guest!
In terms of other updates, there’s big benefit of renting Disney Vacation Club points this year or the duration of 2024. That’s because guests staying in Walt Disney World resorts have access to a couple of perks. First is Early Theme Park Entry, which gives ALL on-site resort guests a 30-minute head start at any Walt Disney World theme park, every day before normal operating hours begin. Learn more strategy in our Guide to Early Entry at Walt Disney World.
Second, there’s Extended Evening Theme Park Hours. This benefit is exclusively for guests staying at Deluxe Resorts, Deluxe Villas, or other select hotels. This includes Disney Vacation Club resorts and those renting DVC points are eligible. This second perk is incredibly advantageous, as crowds are usually low during these nighttime hours. See our Guide to Extended Evening Hours at Walt Disney World for taking advantage of this perk, eligibility, and more.
Okay, now on with the normal DVC point rental tips…
In recent years, renting points has gone from relatively uncommon to a bit more mainstream practice. There are individual owners who rent points because they either aren’t going to be able to use their points or need a way to offset some of the considerable cost of membership, and there are companies that exist solely for the purpose of renting Disney Vacation Club points to savvy Walt Disney World and Disneyland guests.
As indicated above, the two main places to rent Disney Vacation Club points are David’s Vacation Club Rentals and DVC Rental Store. The two are pretty comparable–both are reputable businesses that can be trusted. David’s has one big advantage: lower prices. This makes David’s the better option if you’re simply looking to pay the least money possible.
DVC Rental Store’s biggest strength is flexibility. All reservations include their Stress-Free Cancellation Policy, which basically means paying a little bit more for lower risk. Additionally, they don’t require full payment up front–your balance is due 75 days prior to check in. The obvious advantage here is that you’re not paying in full up front, meaning you can cancel your reservation if you’d prefer to just walk away and not deal with credits.
Speaking of timeframes, it’s generally recommended that you rent DVC points at least 7 months in advance or, ideally, 11 months in advance. These are when the booking windows open for Disney Vacation Club resorts, so you’ll have a higher likelihood of success the earlier you contact one of the rental companies. If you think you’re going to get exactly what you want 5-6 months in advance, think again. Resorts along Magic Kingdom’s monorail loop, EPCOT’s Crescent Lake, and the Skyliner gondola all start booking up more than 7 months in advance.
With that said, booking at the very last minute also can be advantageous. DVC Rental Store has confirmed reservations and David’s has dedicated reservations available for rent. As explained above, these are reservations that have already been booked.
If you’re flexible on your travel dates, resort, and room preference–or just happen to get lucky with the stars aligning and exactly what you want already being booked–these existing reservations can sometimes be a better option at the very last minute. Otherwise, we highly recommend renting DVC points at least 7 to 11 months in advance.
Although we are Disney Vacation Club owners, we have a relatively low number of points, so we’ve actually rented points ourselves a couple of times in the last few years. In attempting to rent points, we’ve contacted both the point rental businesses and individuals on forums about rental, and have opted to go with the point rental businesses (despite paying a bit more) for simplicity and peace of mind.
How you go about renting Disney Vacation Club points, and whether it’s safe, is probably the most common reader question we’ve received in response to our Disney Vacation Club Buying Guide, so I figured I’d put together this guide based on our experiences and research, along with my thoughts about the pros and cons of each method of renting points.
Let’s start with the pros and cons of renting DVC points in general to determine whether it’s right for you…
Pros & Cons of DVC Point Rental
The biggest benefit of renting Disney Vacation Club points is saving money. The example of Animal Kingdom Lodge Villas above is a good one. If you wanted to book a stay August 19-23 in a value view studio, that’s exactly how many points you’d need, and how much it would cost if you rented points through one of the point renters.
For a stay December 2-6 it would be even cheaper! Other nights throughout the year would cost more, but you get the idea. You couldn’t even stay in a Moderate Resort for the rates you can get by renting Disney Vacation Club points, let alone a Deluxe.
In addition to saving money on hotel rates, another benefit of renting Disney Vacation Club points, for some people, is getting the Disney Dining Plan without purchasing park tickets. Although temporarily unavailable this year, the 2024 Disney Dining Plan can now be booked!
Speaking of food, the studio rooms feature a kitchenette and one bedrooms and larger have full kitchens. This means it’s easier to prepare full meals than if you’re staying in a standard hotel room. Not something everyone wants to do on vacation, but it’s nice to have the option. This is especially true for breakfast when you want to get out the door quickly, or for late night snacks after the restaurants have closed. To that point, here’s what we recommend for grocery delivery at Walt Disney World.
Similarly, guests staying in Disney Vacation Club units have access to free laundry rooms. Moreover, one-bedroom units or larger have in-room washers and dryers. Laundry is another thing we hate doing on vacation, but having the option in your room is huge, and the convenience of that cannot be overstated.
Finally, not purchasing a vacation package from Walt Disney World directly means you can save money by purchasing tickets from an authorized ticket broker. These savings can be small or huge, depending upon the size of your party and the tickets you get, this could amount to another $800 or more in savings!
The biggest downside to renting Disney Vacation Club points is that you don’t have total control over the reservation. Someone else books the reservation for you, and someone else has to make any changes to the reservation for you (such as adding the Disney Dining Plan, once that returns). Disney Vacation Club won’t discuss the reservation with non-members, so even if your name is on it, you’re at the mercy of the person who booked it if you need changes.
Another downside for some guests is that, since the unit rented is a villa and not a hotel room, housekeeping service is not daily. Most stays will only have one visit by Mousekeeping. This isn’t a problem for us, but for some people, not having the full hotel experience might be a fatal blow to renting DVC points.
The final downside is cancellation and refund policies. While it’s possible to purchase travel insurance for DVC point rentals, the cancellation policies are not nearly as forgiving as booking directly via Disney. This is because of the strict policies surrounding DVC point usage. In the event of hurricane or some other ‘Act of God’ scenario, the member who is renting out the points may not be able to reuse them if the guest cancels.
You’ll find no shortage of negative reviews online about the major rental companies following the closure of Walt Disney World for this very reason. While some guests were accommodated with future bookings or travel credits, a lot of people who wanted cash refunds were denied. We’ve explained the why of this in DVC’s Point Pool Problem; the short version is the supply of unused outstanding points exceeds room availability by several millions of points. Someone is going to be left holding the bag, and it’s not going to be Disney.
The good news on this front is that it has resulted in some policy reforms by the rental companies. DVC Rental Store now offers a stress-free cancellation policy that issues you a credit you can use toward a future DVC rental in the event of cancellation. You can utilize these credits up to two years from your original travel dates.
We recommend paying close attention to contract when renting, and making sure you’re not agreeing to terms that would not create an undue burden if you need to cancel, because there are no cash refunds. Part of the reason DVC renting saves so much money is that it comes with compromise–there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Whether DVC rental is right for you comes down to your personal risk v. reward assessment.
How To Rent?
If you’re convinced that renting Disney Vacation Club points is right for you, the next question is who to use. There are a couple popular choices here, including the DVC Rental Store and David’s Vacation Club Rentals. The advantages to renting through them are that both are accredited by the Better Business Bureau, both have a team that does this as its full-time business, and both have a sterling reputation. The other upside to renting from the DVC Rental Store or David’s is convenience.
They have “home resort” inventory for every Disney Vacation Club resort. This means that if you want a popular resort, you can book with him at the 11 month mark. If you want a hard-to-book resort and plan on booking through an individual, you need to do so 11 months out and find an owner who has the resort you want as a home resort. That can make the whole process of booking person-to-person more time consuming and tedious.
Compounding that challenge, most of the forums that previously facilitated person-to-person point rental have closed, with the exception of the Disboards one. However, several Facebook and other social media groups have popped up in their place. If you have friends who are DVC members that are willing to rent out their points to you, that’s another route, too.
The downside to renting from strangers is that you have no guarantee that you aren’t going to be ripped off, or that the owner will be available to assist you if something goes wrong with the reservation. You’ll have a bit of uneasiness until the moment at the check-in desk that your reservation pulls up. Basically, it comes down to how risk averse you are and how much more you can save by going through an individual.
For what it’s worth, in my time researching rentals, I heard of very few instances of people being ripped off by individuals on the forums or social media. It does happen, but it seems to be very, very infrequent. When we rent in the future, I’m not sure how we’ll do it. It largely depends upon prices.
If it’s a short weekend trip and the David’s Disney Vacation Club Rentals is charging ~$23/point versus $20/point from an individual, I can’t see going the person-to-person to say what will amount to $30 or less. The possibility that we could be scrambling at the last minute to find an alternate hotel room for such a short trip wouldn’t be worth it. Given how significantly Disney has increased their prices in the last few years, these rentals are still a good deal.
I’d prefer to just pay the bit extra for the peace of mind. If it were a 10-day trip in a Grand Villa, I’d probably be more likely to go through an individual because the savings are greater, but then I’d be concerned that such a big purchase were risky. I really don’t know what I’d do, it’s a tough call.
If we did end up going through an individual, I would do a few things to protect myself as best I could. First, I wouldn’t rent from any new members or individuals with only a handful of posts. I’d want someone with an established reputation on the forums. Second, I’d ask for references. Third, I’d pay with an American Express credit card rather than any other form of payment.
Which DVC Resort?
Finally, you need to figure out which Disney Vacation Club Resort is right for you. We’ve stayed at every single DVC resort at Walt Disney World, most several times. It’s tough to declare a definitive “best” Disney Vacation Club resort, as each has its pros & cons, and is a good option depending upon your priorities.
We have a post that Ranks the Disney Vacation Club Resorts at Walt Disney World and shares the strengths and weaknesses of each. To be honest, though, we love just about all of them. That list does give you a good basis in terms of theme, location, amenities, and other things to consider that will help you make an informed decision, though!
Ultimately, Disney Vacation Club point rentals is a great way to save tons of money without making the long term commitment to joining. If you’re currently booking Moderate or Deluxe Resorts directly from Disney, it’s definitely something to consider. Most of the time, renting Disney Vacation Club points will be cheaper than booking a Moderate, and it will ALWAYS be cheaper than booking a Deluxe (even with the best discounts!).
Renting from individuals is the best way to maximize your savings, and renting from the DVC Rental Store or David’s Vacation Club Rentals is the safest way to rent–plus they’re full service companies with great customer service that can help you through the process and answer all of your questions!
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
YOUR THOUGHTS
Do you agree or disagree with our recommendations for renting DVC points? Any firsthand experiences you care to share? Which DVC resorts do you recommend for a first-timer renter? Any questions we can help you answer? Hearing feedback about your experiences is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
Do all rental companies have the same listings at 11 months or would it be advantageous to pay out the $100+ to a few companies to up your chances to getting the rental you are looking for?
Thank you Tom for this wonderful blog.
If you rent DVC points, can you book FastPass+ 60 Dayan before or only 30 days?
60 days out.
Jim posted on May 2017 that his resort was switched last minute to a resort he didn’t want. How often does this happen? What other problems might occur?
wow it’s very helpful, i think if i do it, i will save a lot of money
Are you able to rent DVC points (non-member) and apply to Disney Adventure trips?
Theoretically, this could be done, but the value-proposition would not work out–you’d be better off purchasing an Adventures by Disney trip directly from Disney.
So how do I go about purchasing the dining plan without tickets and with the rental? Does DVC help with that?
As someone who routinely rents my points out, I will tell you the process. Whether you rent your points from a broker or an individual, the individual owner is the one who makes the reservations for Disney’s Magical Express bus service or 5ge Disney Dining Plan.
Since Disney requires that the dining plan be paid for in full before you travel, never at the front desk, the owner and the guest will need to be on a three way call with Disney Vacation Club member services..Once I give my owner information and get on with a travel advisor I can end my side of the call leaving you to speak to Member Services alone. At that time you can pay for your Dining Plan with a credit card. It’s all easy. I’ve done it numerous times for my guests.
If you rent through a broker they will need to contact the owner to do this call with Disney Vacation Club. One of the issues owners have with Brokers is that they are NOT paid in full until you check in. Why is this important? I need to pay my substantial maintenance when they are due. If I’m waiting for payment from a broker for points already rented I could be at a deficit for several months. This does not sit well with most owners therefore they, and I, rent my points out myself.
Lauren, how does one go about contacting you to rent points? Are you listed on one of the forums? You seem rather knowledgeable about the process and I would like to deal with someone who has done this a few (many!) times before.
Me too! Id like to know how to reach individuals without brokers to rent directly from. My mom and I are annual pass holders and looking to go one more time before 2018.
How do I get in contact with you about renting your points for April 2018?
Would you be interested in renting points for a family of 5-6 for a 2 bedroom villa at the beach club at the end of April 2018 or in May for ~6 nights. Flexible.
Anyone know the answer to Shannon’s question? I too am wondering if the FP dates would be 30 days out like off-site guests, or 60 days out like resort guests. Thanks for any insight.
60 day’s from check in
I must say I’ve just had a less-than-satisfactory experience with DVC Rental Store. We had a trip planned to start this weekend, and really had to fight HARD to get even a partial refund from them when the scope of Hurricane Irma caused us to have to cancel—even though I know folks booked directly through WDW and DVS owners are receiving full refunds on their Irma-related cancellations. I do not recommend them.
I’m having the same issues with getting a refund due to Hurricane Irma. I do not recommend this company at this time even if your purchase their Point Protection Plan, which I feel is almost useless and a waste of money.
We have rented from the DVC Rental Store numerous times and have been beyond pleased! We have always been given all of the details of their travel insurance BEFORE we booked. I have seen comments elsewhere, as well as here, and have noticed that the commenters never seem to mention that they were given all of the information regarding the DVC Rental Store’s travel insurance BEFORE they booked. They are not receiving a refund if they did not purchase the travel insurance (just as they were told BEFORE they booked) and are receiving refunds if they did buy the travel insurance (just as they were told BEFORE they booked). I hate that anyone was harmed by Irma, but everyone that booked with this company knew how they would be compensated if they needed to cancel. Anyone booking through David’s or any other company would never receive a refund from those companies for any reason. This is true beginning the very first day that they booked, not just in these extreme circumstances. In effect, upset guests want to pass the financial loss onto someone else. Being mad and trying to ruin this company’s reputation for decisions that they made BEFORE they booked is nothing more than selfish and hateful.
We had a similar unsatisfactory experience with DVC Rental Store and hurricane Irma. We had a trip scheduled that had us renting points for two nights at the start of our trip, then using our own points for the remainder. Our trip was due to start the day after the storm went through Orlando. When we made an inquiry with them as to potential for canceling the booking due to Florida’s declared state of emergency and Orange County’s imposed curfew, we were basically told that we were stuck with the contract. So, we banked on the fact that Orlando would most likely have decent weather immediately after the storm, and continued with our travels anyway to arrive just after the curfew was lifted. As we were driving down through a battered northern Florida we had called Disney to ensure that a room was waiting for us, but was told that it had been canceled by the renting party. Fortunately, Disney came through and booked us in an awesome 2 bedroom suite at Animal Kingdom lodge. However, we felt like we were beat down by DVC Rental Store twice – once when they told us we were SOL with any potential for refund or cancellation AND AGAIN when we learned that the renting party cancelled on us last minute (no refund ever promised, communicated or given by DVC Rental Store). In the past we have had success with DVC Rental Store, but after this experience we will not be using them again AND present a warning to anyone attempting to use a DVC point rental during the heart of hurricane season as there are limited or no protections.
Another reason to rent from an owner directly. It was a very simple process for me to rebook my guests vacations due to hurricane Irma. Disney and Disney Vacation Club were both allowing rebooking due to the extreme circumstances.
Please let me know how I can contact you regarding point rental for August 2018. Thank you. Marie Aguirre
Hi Lauren! I’m interested in renting points for 2018. How can I contact you? Thanks- Megan
Thanks for this post! I found it to be very helpful and informative.
I am doing research now for a trip in fall of 2018 so I will definitely
look into DVC!
Will I still get a Magic Band, and can I charge purchases to my room?
Yes, you’ll get Magic Bands and be able to use them for room keys, Magical Express, Disney Dining, Purchases, and other Disney Experiences.
Hello,
My family will be enjoying a week at BLT June 18-22this year, are you still renting points?
Taking a trip to WDW next month, second time renting points from DVC Rental Store (staying at the Poly, yay!). I would never book Disney with anyone else. The savings are so significant, it’s a wonder how so many people still book directly through Disney. Special thanks to you, Tom, for this post. I stumbled upon an earlier version of this post 2 years ago when doing research for my Disneymoon and rented points for OKW.
To anyone who is apprehensive about renting points, I can’t recommend DVC Rental Store enough! I did tons of research and found this was the best way to go. Super reputable company and you’ll get the deluxe experience for a fraction of the price.
Are you able to use the Magical Express if you rent? Can you still use the app for fastpasses and dinner reservations? I thought you could not add the dining plan but now because of Tom’s post, I am seriously considering this. Last question, along the same lines as above..can I add my flights to the app too? Thanks again!
Thank you!
Yes, you can use Magical Express, the app, and all other perks you would normally receive from staying at a Disney resort. I booked all dining and Fast Passes through the My Disney Experience app. Unfortunately, you can’t take advantage of DVC member perks (special lounges, etc). You also don’t get daily housekeeping, which my husband and I prefer since we aren’t always up at the crack of dawn. You are also not eligible for free Disney dining if it is offered when you go – not a big deal for us, but it might be for others, especially if you have kids. I 10000% recommend the DVC Rental Store. They truly are the best. OKW was a nice quiet resort and also the least expensive DVC resort…only downside was that it is a bit far from the parks (10-15 minutes, depending on which park you’re going to). Definitely take a look. Happy planning!
I rent my DVC points with David’s and have had excellent interactions with their staff. Initially, I was very hesitant to rent. I have been a DVC since 2001 and never wanted the hassle of dealing with the rental side. I initially contacted David’s to rent my points in exchange for them managinging my booking for a Disney cruise. It is more cost effective for members to to use a 3rd party service if they plan to pay for their cruise with points. In any event, 3 cruises, several years and about 10 rental agreements later I have nothing but the highest praise for David’s staff. They are all highly professional, efficient and seasoned travel professionals. I highly recommend them.
I recently used David’s to rent two studios at The Grand Californian for five nights, and saved $1700. It’s a no-brainer to me.
My husband and I are considering a Disney vacation for our family in about 9 months. This is the first time I’ve planned a Disney Vacay and my head is swimming!! I’ve gotten quotes from a Disney vacation planner, but recently stumbled upon the DVC rentals and am thinking this is the way to go. However, I am confused about the whole 11 month/7 month out thing. Since we are well pass the 11 month mark already should I just wait closer to the 7 month mark to start looking? We would probably like a studio in either AK Savannah view or Wilderness Lodge. Thanks for any input!
Put your request in as soon as you have firmed travel dates. It’s never advisable to wait, you may lose availability at the resort of your choice.
Similar to the previous question for other excursions sponsored by the hotel or to send the kids to the kids clubs, do guests get to setup these activities or does the owner have to?
Does the owner have to book FastPasses, or can I do that?
You can do that.
Same with dining reservations (the owner or the actual people going on the trip make the reservations)?
You can do that. Neither FastPass+ nor ADRs require a resort reservation to make–they are independent of that.
I am just wondering how this would affect my fastpass and dining dates, do I link the rental through my disney experience so that it is 60 days or would my date be the same as an offsite guest?
Are the Bounce back fliers in the DVC resort rooms? I’m thinking of getting a room at one of them but only to book free dining bounce back.
With the recent rash of scams occurring on the rental forum on MouseOwners, I would recommend using a points broker company such as the DVC Rental Store for a safer transaction.
Are there differences in quality of rooms between points broker company? Do certain companies have better access to better villas etc?
We decided for our trip to Disney this year to rent points through a broker. Your money is safe not your plans. Everything seemed to be going fine, then one day before our trip we were informed our booked resort was switched to a different resort, needless to say the least popular one. Screwed up our plans dinner ,ect. Read the find print .
which broker?
My husband and I booked OKW in for our November 2015 Disneymoon through DVC Rental Store and had an amazing experience. Flash forward to early 2017 and we booked our Sept 2017 Poly stay. We don’t miss daily mousekeeping and the savings is substantial. We will never book directly through Disney and find it 100% worth it to use the DVC Rental Store for the savings alone. Plus, our travel advisor is so nice and very easy to work with!
We recently bought some DVC points from a friend of ours who was looking to sell them. He gave us a good price and we were actually able to book AKL labor day weekend for cheaper than we would have been able to do Pop Century for the same dates! We’ve never stayed at Deluxe before because of the price, so we are really excited. We will probably look into renting point through DVC rentals in the future, so this information was handy. I have a feeling it will be hard to go back to value after staying in a deluxe!