Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<It must just be the spirit of the Christmas season getting to me. I'm usually a lot more pragmatic.>> Be careful ... sometimes what you think is the spirit is really just a case of salmonella creeping up on you ;-)
Originally Posted By vbdad55 <I can't really imagine that taking a WDW vacation every year for 50 years would be all that enjoyable time and again. < we've gone 1 - 2 times per year for 23 straight years and have enjoyed them all -- which is why we bought into DVC in the beginning...( now we take other non Disney vacations also) - my expectation is that all future trips will be enjoyable also --and we are very demanding about quality - upkeep etc..which is why I complain about offerings like the Pooh playground and stitchs adventure...and comment on menu degradation and maintenance issues in the parks when they occur- so we are not Pollyana's by any stretch <I fear that if Disney doesn't expand beyond Orlando, you'll start seeing DVC re-sales in record numbers as people grow tired with the idea.<M the economy would drive this more than lack of enjoyment. Anti - DVC's have been saying this since we joined 12 years ago...hasn't happened yet and doubt it will....Most people who joined knew exactly what they were signing up for..not an issue. Now as far as non Orlando resorts -- when thy have trouble selling out a resort as fabulous as Vero ( have been there 8 times ) - it has to make them nervous -- but if they build another Vero quality resort in an area I want to visit, I will be there -- I was hoping Newport Beach was going to be that for the west coast before they sold the land.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 <Many of those owners, and other potential buyers, will start thinking that Starwood, Hilton and Marriott can offer great resorts on the doorstep of the Mouse but also all over the planet, and they will opt to dump DVC or never buy to begin with. < I've stayed at 2 other offerings besides DVC ( from work) and I can tell you my experience with the Marriott time share location was horrid...2nd class furnishings and service was lousy- as was housekeeping....the Hilton venue I stayed at was very nice...and for non Disney people seemed to be a decent value...but the key there is non Disney people...the many DVC members I know like to stay on the grounds--so I do not see this mass exodus ever happening. <Part of me thinks Disney is realizing this. Just look at the 'hints' the company has been dropping lately. ... It's basically a certainty that Anaheim will FINALLY see a DVC property 15 years after its inception < let's face it, the cost of land has been the #1, #2 ans #3 reasons for why there wasn't DVC in DL sooner than even the plans now -- I can't wait to see the point usage for those to recover building/land costs....
Originally Posted By vbdad55 <I don't know enough about the early days of DVC to really know why/how Hilton Head came to be picked, but I do know (first-hand) that it is a truly wonderful resort in an amazing area. Just thinking about my last visit makes me want to return! < In talking to DVC people early on, it seems the thought process included ' add on' trips to vacations -- adding 3- 5 days after Orlando since you are on vacation anyway. We do exactly that with Vero -- we spend 7- 10 days at WDW- then usually 5 more at Vero unwinding before heading home... Have only visited the Hilton Head resort on a golf trip ( the neighbor is originally from NC and he is a pilot ( has a small plane) and we flew down to golf near the resort, and I stopped in to see it....it sure looked very nice.
Originally Posted By Spirit of 74 <<Now as far as non Orlando resorts -- when thy have trouble selling out a resort as fabulous as Vero ( have been there 8 times ) - it has to make them nervous -- but if they build another Vero quality resort in an area I want to visit, I will be there -- I was hoping Newport Beach was going to be that for the west coast before they sold the land.>> I have to say that while I'm glad I didn't buy into DVC that if they had built the Newport Beach, NYC and Colorado resorts that were next in the pipeline that I'd likely be a member right now. That alone should tell DVC planners that there's a market for the product well beyond WDW. <<I've stayed at 2 other offerings besides DVC ( from work) and I can tell you my experience with the Marriott time share location was horrid...2nd class furnishings and service was lousy- as was housekeeping....the Hilton venue I stayed at was very nice...and for non Disney people seemed to be a decent value...but the key there is non Disney people...the many DVC members I know like to stay on the grounds--so I do not see this mass exodus ever happening. >> I think I've mentioned this to you, or Trippy, in one of our many DVC 'discussions', but a few years ago I spent a week in a Hyatt unit in Key West that was so amazing I would have liked to have owned it ... naturally, the price was totally out of whack with reality. But the furnishings were just incredibly high end. More recently I spent time in the newest Hilton Vacation Club on the Vegas Strip and that also was wonderful with much more expensive furnishings than any DVC. Now, I suppose they didn't have the 'magic' of Saratoga Springs, but they did have more than enough to make up for it ... and then some. As to the folks who MUST stay onsite, those people are just like the ones who would rather pay $150 for a tired room at a WDW moderate resort when they can spend $199 to stay at the Ritz Carlton a few miles away. Or the folks who feel a meal at the Rainforest Cafe or such is better than traveling off-site to some of the amazing restaurants in metro Orlando. Those people aren't gonna change. They need to be close to Mickey to feel safe and secure. Disney can lower quality tenfold and those folks will still be there. <<let's face it, the cost of land has been the #1, #2 ans #3 reasons for why there wasn't DVC in DL sooner than even the plans now -- I can't wait to see the point usage for those to recover building/land costs....>> True, buddy, but Disney owned the land in Newport Beach. That land was never going to decrease in value. Disney opted for a quick buck by turning it over to Marriott.
Originally Posted By vbdad55 <True, buddy, but Disney owned the land in Newport Beach. That land was never going to decrease in value. Disney opted for a quick buck by turning it over to Marriott. < Having relatives in Newport Beach, I can tell you a quick buck wasn't the only reason they sold...there was a lot of public issue with Disney building there...mostly misplaced as some of the hob nob snobs thought giant foamheads were coming to their town... Lots if petitions and pac's working to keep them out -- yet they let Marriott build there...one wonders who pulled what strings..as Marriott hardly the top end of the timeshare world ( or any other world)
