On my most recent trip to Walt Disney World I was offered a tour of the Disney Vacation Club (DVC) rooms. I was chatting to the rep during the tour and asked loads of questions, but I came away feeling like DVC just isn’t worth it for British visitors to Disney World.
Let me tell you why…
1. Our Disney packages are already such good value
Honestly, our Disney packages in the UK are insane. Especially compared to what US visitors are offered.
Each year Disney runs a promotion in the UK & Ireland between April-July where you can book for any dates the following year, and you get:
- Free dining plan
- 14 day ticket for the price of a 7 day ticket
- £300+ off total room rate
- Free resort mug per person
- Magical extras which includes:
- Miniature Golf: Four vouchers per package for an 18-hole round at either Fantasia Gardens or Winter Summerland Miniature Golf courses.
- Dining Discounts: 10% to 20% off at select Walt Disney World and Disney Springs locations like Rainforest Cafe, Joffrey’s Coffee, City Works, and Paradiso 37.
- Shopping Offers: 15% off first orders at the UK Disney Store online.
It’s one of the best value ways of booking a Walt Disney World holiday, and when you calculate everything you get included, DVC just doesn’t compare.
2. The annual dues are crazy expensive
What a lot of visitors don’t realise is that buying into Disney Vacation Club isn’t just a one and done payment. You don’t just buy a $30,000 timeshare contract and be done with it.
Every year you also have to pay mandatory annual dues which cost thousands.
And each year those annual dues increase for the life of the contract.
As a single person travelling to WDW, the amount I’d have to pay in annual dues would come close to what I’d pay for my entire Disney package vacation…and that’s without even considering the $30k buy-in fee.
3. IMO, the moderate resorts are better value than deluxe
I’m actually not a huge fan of the deluxe resorts (read my review of the Polynesian Resort here).
For me, I find the moderate resorts much better value, and I actually prefer the vibe of them.
Read my review of Coronado Springs
Read my review of Port Orleans French Quarter
Unless you’re always staying in deluxe and with multiple people/an entire family, DVC just isn’t worth it for British travellers.
Also, some of the best luxury resorts in Disney aren’t even owned by Disney.
4. We visit less often
Brits visit less often.
We’re further away, flights are more expensive, and Disney is usually more of a ‘once in a lifetime’ trip than a regular occurence.
But even if you are like me and visit multiple years in a row, DVC isn’t worth the cost unless you know for sure that you’re going to visit most years for the duration of the 30-40 year contract.
5. There are resale restrictions
What the DVC reps don’t tell you is that there are resale restrictions.
So if you decide you need to get our of the contract because you can no longer afford the repayments or annual dues, there are certain restrictions in place.
- Disney has Right of First Refusal (ROFR): So before you can complete a sale, Disney has the right to buy your contract themselves on exactly the same terms you’ve agreed with the buyer. Disney exercises ROFR, your buyer loses the contract, but you still receive the same agreed sale price from Disney.
- Selling isn’t free: Typically there are broker commissions (if using a resale broker), title/closing fees, and other transaction costs that reduce your net proceeds.
- Transfer process: Every resale has to go through Disney’s transfer process before ownership changes. This adds time…typically a couple of months from agreeing a sale to the buyer becoming the registered owner.
- Market value: Disney also doesn’t guarantee any resale value. This isn’t a contractual restriction, but it’s probably the biggest practical limitation. Your resale price depends on:
It’s also important to note that it may be harder to resell any of the 7 newer DVC resorts because when you resell them the buyer can then only use their DVC points at that specific resort. They won’t be able to use them at any other resort than their home resort.
6. The contracts can be crazy long
I don’t mean in terms of paperwork (although that it true too lol), but in terms of term length.
Some resorts are 50 years long, so you’ll be paying the annual dues for up to 50 years unless you can resell.
And remember those annual dues increase every year for the duration of the contract.
7. You still have to pay for an annual pass
DVC membership doesn’t include park tickets, so you’ll need to buy an annual pass for each member of your family (up to an additional $2k per person, per year).
Like I said before, because the UK packages are so good and offer 14 day park tickets for the price of a 7 day park ticket (around £600 each), to be this just doesn’t make financial sense.
8. I think DVC is an irresponsible trend among Disney influencers
I honestly believe that having DVC membership has become a really irresponsible trend among the Disney influencers.
It’s become this status symbol and everyone seems to think you need DVC, and the UK Disney influencers are constantly talking about how great it is.
The problem is, these contracts are long and very expensive, and often not worth it for people who only travel to Disney once a year. They make sense for the influencers because they usually visit 4+ times per year to create content.
They can also then charge it as a business expense.
It’s only worth it if you always stay deluxe and travel to Disney 1-2 times per year
DVC was created for the US visitors who travel there often and don’t have access to the great deals British visitors have access to.
It’s my honest opinion that Disney Vacation Club is only worth it for UK travellers if:
- You have a large family and know you want to take them to Disney every year
- You visit minimum once per year (or at least every other year and are willing to rent the points out the years you don’t visit)
- You always stay Deluxe and never Moderate or Value
- You’re able to pay the entire membership fee upfront, and you can easily afford the cost of the annual dues (aka, you don’t need to take out finance to fund the DVC membership)
How the numbers stack up
For me personally I spend around £3000 on each Disney trip.
- I usually spend around £2000 on 6 nights in a moderate resort, which includes park tickets, free refillable resort mug and free dining plan.
- I then use my Virgin Atlantic points to pay for my return flights, but spend around £300 on the taxes and fees.
- I then usually use Marriott points for a free one night stay in one of the luxury Marriott resorts.
- The remaining £700 is spent on airport taxis, additional snacks, food, drinks, and shopping (both Disney & Outlet shopping).
If I bought DVC, I’d need to pay around $30,000 upfront, plus around $1500 per year for the annual pass, and then another $2000 or so on annual dues. I’d also need to pay for all food and drinks because I wouldn’t get the free dining plan.
And I’d be tied into that every year for 30-50 years.
As you can see, it just doesn’t make financial sense. That’s a heck of a lot more money.
Catherine Lux is a veteran travel blogger by night and the Head of Content Marketing at Amazon by day. Originally from Surrey, she spent four years living in Australia (2007-2009, and 2016-2018), and now lives in London. An ex-party girl sometimes prone to relapses, she loves nothing more than sharing her fine dining and luxury travel experiences with her loyal readers.
