I've been coming to WDW from the UK since I was two years old. I'm now in my late 20's, and yesterday on the final day of our two week Disney trip with my girlfriend and young daughter, we purchased DVC! Very excited and it will definitely make the Disney blues more bearable. Looking forward to many many more trips ✨
We've been thinking about doing DVC for a few years now, we have a disney trip coming up and wanted during it to meet with a rep and do a room tour etc but were probably planning to walk away with a contract.
Heres my question how does the process of closing work? Do you sign a bunch of papers and present them with a cashiers check or such? Or is it more like you get a DVC account and a bill that you have to pay in 30 days or something like that?
I'm asking as the funds I planned to use are in stocks and I wasn't sure if I should sell the necessary stocks and move the money needed over to my current account before our trip or if I don't really need to worry about that until after we get the contract?
We are a saving up and are looking at buying direct in January or February 2027. We would heavily prefer Poly over the Riviera or Lakeshore. Anyone have a guess if we will be safe with this timeline?
One of the questions I hear most often is:
"What's the hardest week of the year to book a Disney Vacation Club resort?"
Everyone has an opinion. Some will immediately say Christmas. Others point to Spring Break or the middle of summer when schools are out.
For the past eight years, the DVC Field Guide has tracked reservation availability across every Disney Vacation Club resort at Walt Disney World. Every day, we record what members can actually reserve, creating one of the most comprehensive historical databases of DVC booking patterns available anywhere.
Rather than relying on crowd calendars or personal experience, this study lets the reservation data answer the question.
Every day, Disney Vacation Club reservations open for one new arrival date exactly seven months before check-in.
Just before that booking window opens, the DVC Field Guide takes a snapshot of every Walt Disney World DVC resort and accommodation type. We record how many consecutive nights are still available for a seven-night stay beginning on that arrival date. Once the seven-month booking window opens, thousands of members can begin making reservations. By capturing availability immediately before reservations open, we measure how much inventory remained after eleven-month home resort owners had already booked—but before seven-month bookings could change the results.
We repeat this process, building a complete picture of how reservation availability changes from week to week and year to year.
For this study, we averaged those results over eight years. Weeks with the fewest consecutive nights available ranked as the hardest weeks to book.
While historical data cannot predict future availability, eight years of daily snapshots reveal remarkably consistent booking patterns.
The Top 10 Hardest Weeks
This has consistently been the hardest week of the year to reserve. The Christmas decorations are complete, EPCOT's Festival of the Holidays is underway, Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party is in full swing, temperatures are comfortable, and point costs remain lower than Christmas week. It is the perfect combination of value and holiday atmosphere.
The week immediately following Thanksgiving has become nearly as competitive as Thanksgiving itself. Many members extend their holiday vacation, while others arrive specifically to enjoy the Christmas season before schools dismiss for winter break.
Families gather from across the country to celebrate Thanksgiving at Walt Disney World. Many reservations are secured during the 11-month home resort window, leaving very limited availability when the seven-month window opens.
One of the busiest vacation weeks of the year. Members planning New Year's vacations often reserve as soon as their home resort booking window opens, making availability scarce at seven months.
Halloween has quietly become one of DVC's most competitive travel periods. Mickey's Not-So-Scary Halloween Party, EPCOT's Food & Wine Festival, and cooler Florida weather combine to create tremendous demand.
Food & Wine Festival continues to attract visitors, while pleasant fall weather and manageable park crowds make this a favorite among experienced DVC members.
As schools begin winter break, demand accelerates heading into Christmas. Members looking to enjoy the holiday decorations before Christmas Day help make this another difficult reservation week.
Another prime fall travel week that benefits from outstanding weather, EPCOT festivals, and the beginning of the holiday season.
October continues to grow in popularity thanks to Halloween festivities, EPCOT's Food & Wine Festival, and cooler temperatures. It is considerably harder to book than many members expect.
Perhaps the biggest surprise in the entire study.
Christmas is certainly difficult to reserve—but based on eight years of reservation history, it isn't the hardest week of the year. Several weeks leading up to Christmas have consistently shown even less availability at the seven-month booking window.
Perhaps the biggest surprise isn't which weeks are the hardest.
It's which weeks aren't.
Looking at the opposite end of the rankings, the most available weeks of the year are dominated by late June and July. Despite being one of Walt Disney World's busiest seasons, summer consistently provides some of the best seven-month booking opportunities for DVC members.
That may seem counterintuitive, but several factors likely contribute.
Summer point charts are among the highest of the year, encouraging many owners to visit during lower point seasons instead. Florida's heat and humidity also lead some members to favor the cooler months of fall and early winter. In addition, summer vacations are spread across nearly three months, allowing families much greater flexibility than holidays like Thanksgiving or Christmas, when travel is concentrated into a single week.
The result is one of the most interesting findings from eight years of tracking DVC reservations:
The busiest time at Walt Disney World isn't necessarily the busiest time for Disney Vacation Club members.
The biggest takeaway isn't that Christmas is difficult.
It's that nine of the ten hardest weeks occur between mid-October and mid-December.
That period combines nearly everything DVC members value: cooler weather, EPCOT festivals, Halloween entertainment, Christmas decorations, holiday parties, school breaks, and attractive point values before Christmas arrives.
The data also shows that DVC demand doesn't always mirror traditional park crowd calendars. While millions of guests visit Walt Disney World during the summer, DVC members consistently place a premium on the fall and holiday season.
After eight years of tracking reservations every day, those patterns have become remarkably consistent.
Historical data can never guarantee future availability, but it provides valuable insight into how Disney Vacation Club members have used their points over time—and that information can help members make better booking decisions.
What surprised you the most?
Did you expect early December to rank ahead of Christmas? Or were you more surprised to see that summer is actually one of the easiest times of the year to book with DVC points? I'd love to hear your thoughts.
To all the Boardwalk Villas owners! How competitive are the deluxe studios during New Years Eve @ the 11 month window? Impossible to book w/out walking? Or not too terrible to book?
Disney Vacation Club released its Summer 2026 direct incentives today, and they're a noticeable improvement over the Spring offers across most resorts.
The biggest surprise is that Disney increased discounts at nearly every actively selling resort, especially for purchases of 150 points or more. Disneyland Hotel saw one of the largest jumps after two rounds of declining incentives, Riviera reversed its recent downward trend, and Fort Wilderness continues to receive aggressive discounts. Aulani also remains one of the strongest values for larger point purchases.
Another interesting change is the introduction of Welcome Home Weeks for existing Members. Instead of simply increasing the standard incentives, Disney added an extra layer of savings that expires August 26, while the standard Summer incentives for new Members continue beyond that date. That's a departure from the way Disney has typically structured these seasonal offers.
We put together complete charts for every resort, compared every incentive to the Spring 2026 offers, and included our thoughts on which deals stand out the most.
Full breakdown:
https://dvcfan.com/general-dvc/summer-2026-disney-vacation-club-direct-incentives/
Do you think these are finally strong enough to justify buying direct, or does resale still make more sense?
Looking to buy a small resale contract at either Boardwalk or Beach due to the 2042 deed expiration. Should I do 60 points at Boardwalk or 50 points at Beach? I know the annual dues are more expensive at Boardwalk but not by much. Beach has an August user which one of my other contracts has already, but the Boardwalk has a completely different one. Beach also has double points coming into the next year. Prices are about a $200 difference so that doesn't factor in at all. Help I'm having trouble deciding!
Edit: Well...I put in for the Beach Club last night! The contract was signed and sent to Disney for ROFR today! You guys did a good job persuading me. Thank you for all of the help. Now keep your fingers crossed it passes lol
We're from the UK, and looking to book our first ever DVC holiday. We have 150 Direct points at the Polynesian with an April use year which we just bought. Our plan is to go every 2 years for 14 nights. Our 11 month window is due to open in a week for when we would like to go next year.
We have 150 points banked from 2026, 150 avaliable from 2027 and going to borrow some from 2028 as as far as I can tell, it seems to be better to always be borrowing so you dont loose any points. Can worry about it in 40 years.
Our plan is, around 10 nights at the Poly island, deluxe studio with a theme park view as a treat for our first ever stay. Then 4 nights at AKL, studio with a savanna view.
Poly - 298 points for 10 nights
AKL - 60 points for 4 nights.
What is the best way to book this? I've been reading alot and most people reccomend booking your home resort for the full 14 nights then modify the booking at the 7 month window. If I were to do this though, because of the price difference from Poly to AKL, the initial booking would borrow around 60 points more than required from 2028 balance.
I read that the system will always use banked or borrowed points first. I think id have an issue where I'd end up with my 2027 points being returned.
I wouldn't be going back till 2029 though, so if that's what happens it would be a waste. Is that how it works? Is it best to just book the 10 nights at the 11 month mark then hope i get the 4 at AKL?
Also, Im thinking of doing AKL first then the final 10 days after. Would you choose this order or finish with AKL.
Apologies for the massive probably overcomplicated post and thanks for any help!
Is the promo ending today worth grabbing or do they run consistently better ones? Its been a long time since I explored dvc but Ive recently gotten bit by the disney bug bigtime. My daughters are grown but our best memories are of disney trips and i just got the chance to experience recently doing a grownup girls trip for my 50th and Im hooked again! Its my dream to one day be a fun grandma that treats the family to disney trips. So while I dont necessarily see annual trips, the idea of stacking years for larger accommodations seems very appealing. Plus I have flight benefits so I can make it happen more frequently for myself and or maybe giving individual attention to kids.
I see benefits of both Poly & BCV in particular. BCV being one that would be great for Epcot festivals and being harder to get. However, I love a monorail resort, a longer contract, and the idea of not being restricted from resale. Are these reasons worth it enough to go direct?
ETA: Ive tried renting points but found it too restrictive for modifications
I'm looking to rent points for some stays that I know are best booked as early as possible (e.g., 5 nights in GF 1bed, 6 nights BLT studio with theme park view, etc).
I've been looking at some of the popular dvc rental services but I can't seem to find information on if I am able to submit a request earlier in advance (say, 12/13 months) so that when the 11 month booking window opens, the service is immediately able to seek out availability. Or, do these services only accept enquiries once the 11 month window is available for selected dates?
We just bought this year and I’m waitlisting for the first time for a January 2027 stay. We have a 2 bedroom Savanna View for 5 nights at Kidani and I’m waitlisting for a 2 bedroom at either Copper Creek or Boulder Ridge.
Questions:
Is one of those properties better to waitlist at over the other?
Is it a waste to waitlist in general? Like will we even possibly get it?
We are going regardless, so is it a better idea to choose to waitlist until a week out over the 30 day out option?
Thank you!
Is there an incentive to purchase or add points while on a Disney cruise. We already have 150 direct points
I'm looking to buy my first contract and had a few questions how use year would work in the first year. Let's say I bought a contract in August would use year be when I buy it ie August or can I pick when in the year I want use year to be? Also if you can pick use year, let's say I bought in August 26 and set a use year for March would I then get my first year of points instantly then the next years points in March 27 or would I not get my first set of points till March 27? (Dates listed are hypothetical examples)
When people compare Disney Vacation Club to paying cash for Deluxe Resorts, they usually focus on the obvious costs: the purchase price, annual dues, financing, etc.
But after owning DVC for a while, I think there are a lot of "hidden" costs that don't get discussed very often.
A few that came to mind:
Of course, there are hidden benefits, too. My family has made memories we probably never would have otherwise, so for us it's been well worth it.
I expanded on these ideas here if anyone wants to read the full article:
https://dvcfan.com/general-dvc/the-hidden-costs-of-disney-vacation-club/
What hidden costs (or hidden benefits) have you discovered since becoming a DVC Member? I'm curious what everyone else would add to the list.
Can anyone tell me about the current construction? I saw they’re updating bathrooms in the villas? Is it bothersome during the day? Is there dust everywhere?
I know a few months back that one of the gates was closed to get to the park is that still the case? I’m thinking about renting points for later this year but don’t want to be in the middle of construction.