Disney Vacation Club Review

Disney Vacation Club (DVC) Review: What Every Owner and Buyer Should Know

Disney Vacation Club is one of the most talked-about timeshare products in America. It’s also one of the most misunderstood.

If you’re considering buying, or you already own DVC and you’re wondering whether it still makes sense, this review covers everything you need. I’ll walk you through the resort’s history, the good, the bad, the resale market, and how cancellation works if you decide DVC isn’t for you anymore.

How Disney Vacation Club Got Started

Disney announced its move into the timeshare business in January 1990. It wasn’t a small side project. It was Michael Eisner’s answer to a problem Disney kept watching happen right outside its own gates.

Guests loved staying on Disney property, but they kept leaving to book bigger rooms at nearby timeshares instead. Disney wanted that revenue back.

The first resort, originally just called the Disney Vacation Club Resort, opened at Walt Disney World in December 1991. It later became Disney’s Old Key West Resort. It started small, just 50 units.

From there, DVC grew fast. Disney’s Vero Beach Resort followed in 1995, becoming the company’s first timeshare built off Disney property. Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort came next in 1996. Then Disney’s BoardWalk Villas arrived later that same year, putting DVC steps from EPCOT for the first time.

That pattern held for the next three decades. Disney kept building where its members actually wanted to be, close to the parks. Today, DVC spans 17 resort properties across Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Hawaii, Vero Beach, and Hilton Head Island, with an estimated 250,000 member families.

It’s grown into one of the largest and most recognized vacation ownership programs in the country. And like every other timeshare program, it comes with the same fine print, rising fees, and binding contract that every owner needs to understand before they sign, or before they try to get out.

What Is Disney Vacation Club?

DVC is a points-based vacation ownership program tied to Walt Disney World, Disneyland, and a handful of other Disney-owned resorts. Instead of buying a fixed week, you buy points. Those points determine how many nights you can stay, and where.

Direct purchase prices from Disney currently range from about $150 to $330 per point, depending on the resort. Most first-time buyers purchase between 150 and 200 points, which typically covers a week or two each year in a studio or one-bedroom villa.

What Members Like About DVC

Owners consistently point to a few things:

  • Disney World and Disneyland proximity. Several DVC resorts sit inside the parks or a short monorail ride away. That convenience is hard to replicate anywhere else.
  • Point flexibility. You can bank unused points, borrow from next year, or split a trip between multiple resorts.
  • Long-term value retention. Unlike most timeshares, DVC points often hold their value on the resale market, and some resorts have even appreciated over time.
  • Membership perks. Members get access to discounted annual passes, select dining offers, and other Disney-specific extras, though these are only available if you buy directly from Disney.

What Members Don’t Like About DVC

No timeshare is perfect, and DVC owners are candid about the downsides:

  • High upfront cost. Direct pricing can easily run into the tens of thousands of dollars for a usable number of points.
  • Rising annual dues. Maintenance fees climb every year, just like every other timeshare product.
  • Booking competition. Popular resorts and travel windows, especially around holidays, fill up fast. If you don’t book early, you may not get your preferred dates.
  • Limited use outside Disney. Unless you exchange through the Disney Collection, your points are largely locked into Disney-owned properties. That’s a big commitment if your travel interests change.
  • Newer resorts feel like leftovers. Owners often note that the most desirable, prime locations were built out years ago, and newer additions sit on less central land.

You Can Buy the Same Points for a Fraction of the Price

Here’s something Disney’s sales team won’t lead with. You don’t have to buy DVC points directly from Disney.

Buying DVC resale typically saves families 40% to 60% compared to purchasing directly from Disney. In dollar terms, that gap often runs $80 to $140 per point.

Real numbers make this clear. A 150-point Saratoga Springs contract runs about $15,000 on the resale market, while that same contract costs over $31,500 when purchased directly from Disney. That’s more than $16,000 in savings, enough to cover years of annual dues on its own.

Resale pricing varies by resort. Grand Floridian and Polynesian contracts currently trade around $150 to $180 per point, while Saratoga Springs and Old Key West run closer to $95 to $115. The blended average resale price across all DVC resorts recently sat around $126 per point.

What do you give up buying resale? Mainly the Membership Extras: discounted annual passes, certain dining discounts, and use of non-Disney Collection resorts. The core ownership benefits, including booking at any Walt Disney World DVC resort during the standard window, banking and borrowing points, and full access to your home resort, stay fully intact.

One more thing worth knowing. Disney holds a Right of First Refusal on every resale contract. That means Disney can step in and buy back a contract at the agreed price before it reaches you. It doesn’t happen on every sale, but it’s part of how the resale market works.

How DVC Compares to Other Timeshares

Most timeshares lose value fast on the resale market. Many are practically unsellable. DVC is the exception. DVC points often retain their value, and some resorts have even appreciated on the resale market over time, something almost unheard of in this industry.

That said, DVC still shares the same core structure as every other timeshare: a binding contract, rising annual fees, and a sales process designed to move you toward a same-day decision. The Disney branding doesn’t change the legal reality of what you’re signing.

How to Cancel a DVC Timeshare

If you’re past your rescission period and you’ve decided DVC no longer fits your life, you have two realistic paths.

Selling your contract. Because DVC holds value better than most timeshares, resale is a genuine option here in a way it often isn’t for other brands. If your points still have strong resale value, this may be your fastest way out, minus the Right of First Refusal step.

Legal cancellation. If your contract isn’t a good candidate for resale, or you’re dealing with an outstanding balance, a formal legal cancellation may be the better path. This involves preparing the correct documents to terminate your contract and, if you still owe money, negotiating a settlement alongside it.

Either path requires paperwork that holds up. A cancellation letter that doesn’t meet legal requirements can get ignored, or used against you later.

My Background

I’m Wayne C. Robinson. I’m 71 years old and retired. I spent 15 years working in the timeshare industry, in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean islands. I was very successful at it.

Since retiring, I wrote Everything About Timeshares: Before, During and After The Sale to share what I learned from the inside, including how these contracts get sold and what owners need to know before they sign, or before they try to exit.

Your Next Step: A Free Cancellation Review

Whether you’re deciding if DVC is worth buying, or you already own it and want out, I offer a free timeshare cancellation review. Send me your contract details, and I’ll tell you exactly where you stand and what your options look like.

No pressure. No obligation. Just clear answers from someone who’s done this before.

[Get Your Free Timeshare Cancellation Review →]

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References

  1. Disney Vacation Club. Disney Vacation Club — Official Site. Walt Disney Company. https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/
  2. Wikipedia contributors. “Disney Vacation Club.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disney_Vacation_Club
  3. Federal Trade Commission. “Timeshares, Vacation Clubs, and Related Scams.” Consumer Advice, U.S. Federal Trade Commission. https://consumer.ftc.gov/articles/timeshares-vacation-clubs-and-related-scams
  4. Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. “Timeshare Division.” Consumer Resources. https://www.fdacs.gov/Consumer-Resources/Timeshares