Looking at a potential family trip (6 adults, 3 small kids) - is DVC rental the best route?

Disney Vacation Club
#1

Just beginning to plan out a potential early Dec trip, which might include my partner & me (39 & 41), my brother and his wife and 3 kids (38, 36, 3, infant twins), and my parents (63, 61)

*(all ages at time of trip)

It’s looking like I could get 3 Boardwalk Villas Studios, or 2 Polynesian Villas Studios for around $5k from David’s (assuming they have any available)

I’ve never rented DVC points before, so my questions are:

  1. How likely is it I could get 2 Poly studios or 3 BW studios in early Dec?
  2. Is DVC the best route for this vs VRBO or regular resorts? (I know a VRBO would be cheaper, but I like staying on-property… BUT my mom would probably watch the infants while the rest of us go to the parks, so a VRBO would probably be more comfortable for her. Also, I dont mind driving to the parks, as we actually do that even when we stay on property)

Thanks for any answers or suggestions on what is probably a fairly common question from DVC noobs

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#2

Studios will be the most difficult to obtain for pretty much any DVC other than probably SSR in early December. Not that it couldn’t happen, but if I look at availability right now, there isn’t much left for studios at that time.

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#3

Yeah, I just saw the generic availability charts for both resorts’ studio rooms, and it looks like I’m 2 months too late to have a shot

#4

Most likely…but you never know…someone could cancel and availability pop up. But those first two weeks of December are extremely popular times to book studios for DVC because the points are cheaper then. Probably anything that becomes available is already wait-listed.

But, as I said…there is availability at SSR at the moment, at least, for that time frame. We are going in early December, so I’ve been paying attention to availability there, BC, and BW. Not certain about others, though.

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#5

Hi @daybreaker ! You have helped us so much, I hope we can help you!

Have you run the numbers for a two bedroom?

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#6

I’m going to be the outlier here and strongly suggest a rental house. So comfortable to spread out and have space while still being together. I’ve never stayed on property, so I can’t compare apples and oranges. But we’ve been renting houses since 2003 and have had great experiences.

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#7

Yeah, I’m leaning towards that if everyone shows up. I’m 100% fine driving to the parks, and while missing out on the 30 minutes each morning would be rough, Lines will get us through.

Although, we’re unsure if my brother is going to bring his twins who will still be < 1yr old. In which case my parents would probably also stay home to take care of them…

So in that event, we would have a few more options, especially if we move our dates back a few days. Some 1BRs are open at a few places like Bay Lake Tower, Beach Club, Boardwalk… and it does say the Poly has studios… If I book soon maybe they’d still have two open?

But also with only 4 adults and one child, do I just look at an AoA family suite or a FW Cabin? I mean… those cost just as much as renting points for a 2BR at Kidani Village.

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#8

Yep! I’ve been looking, and if its only 4 adults and 1 kid, a 2BR at a place like SS, OKW, or Kidani, or a 1 BR at BC, or BW, are all pretty similar in pricing.

So then I would need to decide… do I do a 1BR at a more convenient resort, or go for more space in a 2BR at one of the older, less convenient ones.

I also havent checked our hotel ratings yet… I should probably do that too. :stuck_out_tongue:

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#9

An AKL Kidani 2 bedroom would sleep all 9? Actually, you really only need to sleep 7? Plus it would have three bathrooms.

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#10

Also, if you want any owners to check real time availability, just let us know the dates, or PM me.

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#11

we’ll either have 4 adults and a 3yr old, or 6 adults a 3 yr old, and 2 infant twins. So, a 2BR would work in that the living room usually looks like it has a fold out single/twin along with the fold out queen. Then we’d bring two cribs (or one big crib? I dunno how they would plan on doing it :stuck_out_tongue: ) to stick in there somewhere. It’d be tight, but it would work. So yeah, I guess we’d just need to sleep 7, in theory.

Obviously if its just the 4 of us and my nephew, it’ll be much easier to find something on property via DVC.

Thanks for the offer to check real time info! Can you see how many studios are available at the Polynesian Dec 11-18? Or does it just tell you that at least one is available?

#12

Sounds like you really need to know who is committing.

If you go the rental route I’m happy to help out with sorting etc. :+1:

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#13

I can only see that it is available, not how many

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Most two bedrooms have a lot of room. BLT and Kidani would have three bathroom, but BLT would be more points.

Have you looked at some 3D walkthroughs?

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#14

I do second this idea. While we have stayed on property recently, we traditionally have stayed off property and got a rental for far cheaper, but with much more space (plus a private pool, full kitchen, etc).

The loss of ETPE is real…but still manageable.

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#15

Do one of the DS resorts have 1 bedroom suites? Those resorts give you the 30 minute EE. Of course parking and possible rental car(s) will add a cost?

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#16

If you check the DS hotels that get the 30 EE look on Mousesavers.com . They have discounts with a few of them for free parking or resort fees

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#17

Thanks everyone for all the help with what is probably a very noob question. :stuck_out_tongue: I’ve just never looked into DVC point rental, and its hard to know which sites have the best info. Since I trust people here, I figured it was the best place to go.

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#18

2 Bedrooms are great if it’s within your budget! Another option would be to keep your eyes out for a Dedicated Rental. Those very often pop up. It’s tough to get two studios for the same resort at the same time using dedicated reservations though. But not impossible.

#19

I’m with Qwerty. Offsite was amazing. We loved having a full kitchen. We took afternoon breaks and we each had our own room to relax in.

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#20

I think, although not sure, that one of the infants would need to be included in the head count. Only one under 3 can be an additional person.

Not that it matters either way. All 2-beds would sleep 8.

I was thinking a 2-bed at SSR might work best. The brother and family could be in the 2nd bedroom. If they had a lock-off the 3yo could sleep on the sofa ( so not pulling it down) leaving room for 2 cribs or pack ‘n’ plays.

The grand parents in the master and @daybreaker and partner on the queen Murphy bed in the living room. A lot comfier than a 2-bed with a sleep sofa.

That would leave the living room free for the adults in the evening, with the kids sleeping in the bedroom. And the grandparents could always retire to the master if they wanted to.

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