I’ll admit, renting DVC points felt a little confusing the first time I did it. I had no idea what I was doing, but kept reading it was a great way to stay there.
I was nervous that it wasn’t through Disney directly – it was a chunk of change to rent something through a stranger. I spent hours reading up on what the heck points were, how to calculate them, the fees associated with each service that will broker it, and then renting them through a private party directly.
My head hurt.
The truth:
Renting DVC is a great way to stay at deluxe resort with a moderate-level price tag. I actually think it’s one of the best hacks there is for staying at Disney World, especially if you don’t want to be crammed into a hotel room the whole time. I’m gonna make this easy for you, because you should really do the math and see if it works for you – we vastly prefer DVC to hotel rooms at this point!
Calculating DVC Rental Point Totals
With DVC renting, think of the points as the currency. Each night costs a certain amount, and you pay a fee per point. So, it looks like this:
Per-resort point cost x number of nights = your total
Disney issues point charts (meaning how many points it takes per night) yearly, but if you rent them from timeshare owners, the cost of it a little more driven by demand and supply.
You can rent directly from an owner, OR have a little reassurance and protection by going through a broker. DVC rental brokers manage the transaction between the DVC owner and the renter. (We used David’s and had a great experience!)
Just like with regular resorts, some cost more than others. Season also affects the point rates – it costs more points per night during peak seasons, like the holidays or summertime. The per-point fee is determined by a few factors:
- Which DVC location you pick
- What time of year you visit (seasonality)
- The type of room you request (they have studios up to several bedrooms)
- The days of week you stay (for example, booking a week gets you a weekly rate, which can provide per-point savings vs. staying only 5 nights)
Let’s look at an example.
DVC Calculation Example
You decide you would like to go in February, since Disney World crowds are lighter then.
Plug in your dates, and you will get a total number of points, broken out by hotel. (Or, depending on the tool you use, you may have to go hotel-by-hotel.)
The per-point fee is multiplied by that total number and voila! You know your total.
David’s has a super-handy tool that does this for you. It saved me a ton of time trying to price-compare the different options.
You can also see how the point amounts differ based on the room view type you go for. I love this tool because it lets you see all the options and make an informed decision, versus trying to calculate it all on your own. Ain’t nobody got time for that.
You can take that total and compare it to what you’d pay for a room at that same location if you stayed in the hotel. It’s a nice savings, sometimes up to 50%!
How do I Book a DVC Rental?
There are plenty of owners that post on forums about renting DVC through them, but I found that confusing and dicey. What if they didn’t secure my stuff? What if they took my money and ran?
I strongly recommend doing it through a site like David’s. It takes the risk off you, and they know this whole process inside and out.
You will get a reservation number just like a hotel. Input it to your My Disney Experience account, and it’ll be housed with your Magic Bands and tickets.
What happens when I arrive?
It will feel just like a hotel! There’s a separate check-in area/desk, bellhop service, the whole thing. You can also still charge things to your room, and basically do everything you would with a “normal” hotel room.