potential renter I have some questions

[SaraJR]

Hi I only very recently learned about the option of renting DVC points and have been asking lots of questions to the lady on FB you introduced me to the idea, but I think I am annoying her lol I am a planner I research everything and plan plan plan.
So a few questions-what are the perks of upgrading to club level as renter?
The food that you get in the lounge if you upgrade, is what is there it or will they accommodate special diets?
Other than the savings of staying in a deluxe for a price like a mod are there any special perks for renting DVC points in general?

 

[crisi]

DVC really doens't have club level rooms (there are a few at VAKL, they are almost impossible to get). There are no perks. You will not be eligible for member perks. Your deal will be with a member, not Disney, Disney receives no profit from your transaction and will not get involved if there is a problem.

 

[SaraJR]

DVC really doens't have club level rooms (there are a few at VAKL, they are almost impossible to get). There are no perks. You will not be eligible for member perks. Your deal will be with a member, not Disney, Disney receives no profit from your transaction and will not get involved if there is a problem.

Thank you

 

[_auroraborealis_]

If you want Club Level, DVC rental is not going to be a good fit for you. In all of DVC, there are 5 Club Level units for a maximum of 10 rooms at any given time. These are booked at 11 months or earlier by the owners at AKV and are a unicorn for most DVC owners, let alone renters.

 

[crisi]

There are other things you should know.

A DVC studio is almost always a queen bed and a pullout couch - OKW and only OKW has two queen beds. There is no option for a king bed in a studio.

DVC rentals are almost always final. If you find an owner who will let you do something else, you are lucky - the brokers all have final reservations.

DVC rental plans need to be made MONTHS out. As in the prime resorts are gone seven months out.

 

[Lynne M]

When you rent points, what you're really doing is using someone's timeshare. You're paying an owner to make a reservation for you. Your transaction is with the owner, not with Disney, so Disney will give you no perks, discounts, etc. for doing this. Disney will not get involved if something goes awry with the deal.

You do get the perks that any Disney resort gets - use of DME, access to EMH, charging to your magic band, early booking of FP+, etc.

You're not really "staying in a deluxe at the price of a mod." You'd be renting a villa in a DVC resort. Many of those are associated with a deluxe resort (BLT is attached to CR, BRV is right next to the WL main bldg), so you have the deluxe location, pools and restaurants, but the rooms are different, and the rules are different. The only DVC resort with club level rooms is AKV-Jambo, and there are only a small handful of club rooms, so they're extremely difficult to book, even at 11 months out.

Also, there's no such thing as "paying to upgrade" when you're staying on points. You will get the room category that the member booked for you.

 

[crisi]

Oh, one other thing I forgot to mention - there isn't daily housekeeping included in a DVC rental. I say this because it looks like you are looking for a luxury experience - a Deluxe at a Mod price. I like my DVC and find it a good value - but it isn't a Deluxe at a Mod price. With a Deluxe resort, I come back to a made bed every day.

 

[SaraJR]

When you rent points, what you're really doing is using someone's timeshare. You're paying an owner to make a reservation for you. Your transaction is with the owner, not with Disney, so Disney will give you no perks, discounts, etc. for doing this. Disney will not get involved if something goes awry with the deal.

You do get the perks that any Disney resort gets - use of DME, access to EMH, charging to your magic band, early booking of FP+, etc.

You're not really "staying in a deluxe at the price of a mod." You'd be renting a villa in a DVC resort. Many of those are associated with a deluxe resort (BLT is attached to CR, BRV is right next to the WL main bldg), so you have the deluxe location, pools and restaurants, but the rooms are different, and the rules are different. The only DVC resort with club level rooms is AKV-Jambo, and there are only a small handful of club rooms, so they're extremely difficult to book, even at 11 months out.

Also, there's no such thing as "paying to upgrade" when you're staying on points. You will get the room category that the member booked for you.

by paying I meant the price difference in the points needed. What do you mean for rules are different?

 

[Chuck S]

Well, rules that are different:

Disney will refund, rebook, and so forth if your plans change. And Disney cash reservations will receive full housekeeping daily. DVC Rentals are like renting a beach house from someone. The transaction is generally considered final, no refunds or changes. There is no daily housekeeping, if your stay is 8 nights or more, you will get full housekeeping on day 4, and limited housekeeping (trash removed, fresh towels) on day 8, and the cycle then repeated. If you stay 7 nights or less, no full housekeeping, and your day 4 is limited housekeeping.

Shampoos, soaps, etc., will be replenished every 4 days. If you need additional housekeeping days, you need to call the front desk or housekeeping and schedule them. There will be a fee that varies by type of service needed and room size.

 

[crisi]

Additional weird DVC rules - if you don't like your room, they may charge you to move you - even if all you did was stick your nose in. Don't expect that there will be room to move you - DVC operates are pretty much 100% occupancy. Check out time is 11 - there is no option for late check out. Check in is after 4pm - often you get your room earlier, but don't expect it until AFTER 4, which rarely might be as late as 7 or 8. There are no rollaway beds - the sleeping surfaces in the room are the sleeping surfaces in the room.

 

[Lynne M]

by paying I meant the price difference in the points needed. What do you mean for rules are different?

You can't pay the price difference in points, because as a non-member, you don't own any points.

"Renting points" is a bit of a misnomer. The owner doesn't give you a bunch of points to pay for things with. They can't - only the owner of the DVC contract can do anything with the points associated with the contract. What really happens is that the owner will make a reservation for you with their points. You, as the renter, can't do anything at all with that reservation. You can't change it, you can't cancel it, you can't even call DVC and ask about it (though you can view it on Disney's site).

ETA: If you do decide to rent, it's important to be really sure about what resort, room type and dates you want before you contact the owner about making a reservation. It's not like making a hotel reservation, where you can pretty much change anything you want, whenever you want. DVC resort inventory books up earlier than hotel inventory - most owners make their reservations 7-11 months out. They also run at very high occupancy. Because of this, and because of DVC's cancellation policies, many owners who rent have a no-changes policy.

 

[Disneypapa]

I occasionally rent my points out and use a contract for my and the renter's protection. The language is such that once rented, there is no refund, I do offer to help renter change to different dates, if a scheduling issue comes up.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I occasionally rent my points out and use a contract for my and the renter's protection. The language is such that once rented, there is no refund, I do offer to help renter change to different dates, if a scheduling issue comes up.

All rentals are supposed to use a contract. It's in the DVC Public Offering Statement.