Disney Vacation Club adjusts 2010 Vacation Points charts

[famsen]

What a minute.
I specifically asked the guide on my visit to Doorway to Dreams just about three months ago if they point charts will ever go up. She told me "no".
I had a friend with me who was thinking of buying in and this was one of her deal-breaking concerns. She is my witness.
So I get the new chart today and for AKV during the beginning of Dec 2009 for a week stay in a 1 bedroom savannah is 205 points.
I see the 2010 point chart that the same room during the same time is 206 points. I read the 2010 point chart and all the weekly points went up by at least one or two points. Maybe I am a total idiot but what is the point of buying into DVC and the 'benefit" of buying in at a price that will pay for itself eventually if they can increase the points. Theoretically, they can increase the points to a level where a 160 point buy-in won't even get you a week anywhere. The whole selling point as communicated to me by my guide was; with DVC you can be paying 2008 prices for a vacation 25 years from now.
If someone can explain this, maybe I am missing something.

 

[doconeill]

What a minute.
I specifically asked the guide on my visit to Doorway to Dreams just about three months ago if they point charts will ever go up. She told me "no".
I had a friend with me who was thinking of buying in and this was one of her deal-breaking concerns. She is my witness.
So I get the new chart today and for AKV during the beginning of Dec 2009 for a week stay in a 1 bedroom savannah is 205 points.
I see the 2010 point chart that the same room during the same time is 206 points. I read the 2010 point chart and all the weekly points went up by at least one or two points. Maybe I am a total idiot but what is the point of buying into DVC and the 'benefit" of buying in at a price that will pay for itself eventually if they can increase the points. Theoretically, they can increase the points to a level where a 160 point buy-in won't even get you a week anywhere. The whole selling point as communicated to me by my guide was; with DVC you can be paying 2008 prices for a vacation 25 years from now.
If someone can explain this, maybe I am missing something.

It could be argued that they were not lying. The number of points at a resort CANNOT go up, unless more units are added, and then they can only go up proportionally. However, the points charts can be "rebalanced". If a particular night goes up a certain number of points, then it needs to go down somewhere else. In essense, the net changes to the chart must be zero. But a particular day or week can change.

 

[Sandisw]

What a minute.
I specifically asked the guide on my visit to Doorway to Dreams just about three months ago if they point charts will ever go up. She told me "no".
I had a friend with me who was thinking of buying in and this was one of her deal-breaking concerns. She is my witness.
So I get the new chart today and for AKV during the beginning of Dec 2009 for a week stay in a 1 bedroom savannah is 205 points.
I see the 2010 point chart that the same room during the same time is 206 points. I read the 2010 point chart and all the weekly points went up by at least one or two points. Maybe I am a total idiot but what is the point of buying into DVC and the 'benefit" of buying in at a price that will pay for itself eventually if they can increase the points. Theoretically, they can increase the points to a level where a 160 point buy-in won't even get you a week anywhere. The whole selling point as communicated to me by my guide was; with DVC you can be paying 2008 prices for a vacation 25 years from now.
If someone can explain this, maybe I am missing something.

The total points for the resort for the year can not change. If you look through the points charts, the 1 bedroom SV you refer to did go up from 205 to 206. But, the same 1 bedroom at the Concierge level, went from 241 a week to 240.

So, as something goes up, others go down. Many weeknights went up and weekends went down (that same room had Fri/Sat rates go from 45 to 38 per night).

I think the purpose was to try to even out the demand for weekdays and spread it out to the weekends.

 

[famsen]

It could be argued that they were not lying. The number of points at a resort CANNOT go up, unless more units are added, and then they can only go up proportionally. However, the points charts can be "rebalanced". If a particular night goes up a certain number of points, then it needs to go down somewhere else. In essense, the net changes to the chart must be zero. But a particular day or week can change.

Wow. Just, wow.

I have 210 points and with the increase in the weekly rate at the time of year we go, I am just 5 points away from not being able to get a one week stay at AKV in the room type we rent at the time of year we want to go. Just a couple more years of "tweaking" the charts, and we will have to end up downgrading to a room we don't really want or not go once a year.

Thanks for that info.

 

[Dean]

What a minute.
I specifically asked the guide on my visit to Doorway to Dreams just about three months ago if they point charts will ever go up. She told me "no".
I had a friend with me who was thinking of buying in and this was one of her deal-breaking concerns. She is my witness.
So I get the new chart today and for AKV during the beginning of Dec 2009 for a week stay in a 1 bedroom savannah is 205 points.
I see the 2010 point chart that the same room during the same time is 206 points. I read the 2010 point chart and all the weekly points went up by at least one or two points. Maybe I am a total idiot but what is the point of buying into DVC and the 'benefit" of buying in at a price that will pay for itself eventually if they can increase the points. Theoretically, they can increase the points to a level where a 160 point buy-in won't even get you a week anywhere. The whole selling point as communicated to me by my guide was; with DVC you can be paying 2008 prices for a vacation 25 years from now.
If someone can explain this, maybe I am missing something.

They didn't really go up but were merely shifted around. They should have explained about reallocation when you asked that question. The only things that truly went up were stays less than a week that did not include both weekend days, other things went down.

 

[Dean]

Wow. Just, wow.

I have 210 points and with the increase in the weekly rate at the time of year we go, I am just 5 points away from not being able to get a one week stay at AKV in the room type we rent at the time of year we want to go. Just a couple more years of "tweaking" the charts, and we will have to end up downgrading to a room we don't really want or not go once a year.

Thanks for that info.

I don't think it's that bad. Even if they were to change it 20% in the worst way possible for you, about the worst case you'd be looking at would be missing one trip every 6-7 years or downgrading or shortening a couple of times over the same period.

 

[White_Sox_Fan]

What a minute.
I specifically asked the guide on my visit to Doorway to Dreams just about three months ago if they point charts will ever go up. She told me "no".

Here is what is wrong with this. That is an ambiguous question followed by a somewhat conditional answer. Can the point chart go up? Define what you mean by point chart. Do you mean an individual amount for a day for a given room type in a given season or do you mean the point chart as a whole. The answer to the first is yes, the second no.

 

[disneynutz]

Even though I am a natural cynic, I don't believe that this is designed to benefit Disney.

Then why are they selling so many 25 point add ons and why did so many new owners modify their contracts to increase their number of points purchased?

It will also reduce the number of bookings during the week and increase the number of bookings on Friday & Saturday.

The overall effect will be increased occupancy, and a increased number of Guests in the parks, stores, and restaurants. It also creates a more balanced work schedule for the Cast Members.

 

[Chuck S]

It will also reduce the number of bookings during the week and increase the number of bookings on Friday & Saturday.

The overall effect will be increased occupancy, and a increased number of Guests in the parks, stores, and restaurants. It also creates a more balanced work schedule for the Cast Members.

These two items benefit not only Disney, but also the DVC Membership as a whole. The resorts will operate more efficiently by not having as many check-in Sunday, check-out Friday guests, then having to try to fill so many rooms with cash guests on Friday to Sunday.

Better, more balanced, scheduling of resort staff, including housekeepers, is also more cost efficient, helping to keep our costs in check.

Just because something benefits Disney doesn't mean it won't also benefit the overall DVC membership base, too. It may have a negative impact on members that bought primarily for weekday stays, but if it lowers peak demand check-in/out days they could see benefits...perhaps not having to wait until after 4pm to get into the room, or through lower operating costs.

 

[tjkraz]

Then why are they selling so many 25 point add ons and why did so many new owners modify their contracts to increase their number of points purchased?

I assume that's a rhetorical question since we really can't quantify either of the "so many" owners in either category.

The flip side is that DVC risks losing sales for years to come because Sunday to Thursday night stays are no longer as good of a value as they once were. In the long run I believe DVC stands to lose far more than it will gain from the reallocation.

Regardless of all the suspected ulterior motives and conspiracy theories, I cannot help but think that the reallocation is designed improve the health of the program.

The fact that DVC has weekday/weekend point differentials and 5 different seasons demonstrates the desire to balance demand over the calendar year. And if demand no longer corresponds to those weighted values, the only logical move is to rebalance the system. The wrong move is for DVC to bury its proverbial head in the sand and pretend that the status quo is acceptable.

 

[White_Sox_Fan]

Then why are they selling so many 25 point add ons and why did so many new owners modify their contracts to increase their number of points purchased?

It will also reduce the number of bookings during the week and increase the number of bookings on Friday & Saturday.

The overall effect will be increased occupancy, and a increased number of Guests in the parks, stores, and restaurants. It also creates a more balanced work schedule for the Cast Members.

As was stated before, we don't know how many 25 point add-ons there were. Additionally do you think that Disney really makes much profit on a 25 point add-on? After the cost of the product, commission, fees and the cost in labor to handle the paperwork I imagine it's not a huge profit center. I'm sure that is one of the primary reasons they won't well less than 25 points.

The occupancy point may be a benefit to Disney but is also a benefit to the membership as a whole. If the resorts are not near 100% occupancy for every day of the year then there are members out there who are not using their points for whatever reason and those members have lost their benefit of membership.

I think everyone needs to step back from their personal effect of this and look at the big picture of the system of the whole. What would you do if you ran the system and you had the following problems?

Sun - Thursday book up faster than weekends, weekend occupancy is less than weekday occupancy by X%. There are a certain number of members or points not being used and those members are losing their points or banking them. If too many points are banked are there will there be too much demand for the supply in the coming year?

How do you solve this problem?

 

[Dean]

How do you solve this problem?

The options are limited. You either adjust points to even out demand, a moving target to a minimal degree, or you institute requirements or options that encourage booking a full week or similar. things like a priority for booking a full week, lower points or simply force linking certain days together. Of these, adjusting the points fits best with what people think DVC is all about. I figure we'll see some type of minimum stay or priority for booking at some point but we shall see.

 

[yitbos96bb]

Woo Hoo... 180!

 

[icydog]

Woo Hoo... 180!

HUH!! 180 what, points?.. Whatdaya mean?

 

[White_Sox_Fan]

180 pages.

 

[ValpoCory]

8 days at BCV during the Adventure Season went up from 116 to 118 points. So it got 2 points more expensive for me.

Something tells me that although some vacations went up and some went down, on the whole, the more popular visits went up, earning money for Disney.

 

[tjkraz]

Something tells me that although some vacations went up and some went down, on the whole, the more popular visits went up, earning money for Disney.

How does that earn money for Disney?

 

[ValpoCory]

How does that earn money for Disney?

Understand now. Thanks.

 

[tjkraz]

I'll have to buy more points.

But someone else's vacation went down by 2 points and now they have too many. The reallocation didn't change the number of points in existence. If there were 10 million points at OKW in 2009, there will still be 10 million OKW points in 2010. This didn't create anything new for Disney to sell.

 

[ValpoCory]

But someone else's vacation went down by 2 points and now they have too many. The reallocation didn't change the number of points in existence. If there were 10 million points at OKW in 2009, there will still be 10 million OKW points in 2010. This didn't create anything new for Disney to sell.

Ok got it. My mistake. Thanks.

Why do you think they did it?