DVC Snobs

[Donna M]

We are an example of a family where Disney is not getting a lot of money out of us. They got their up front money when we bought 500 points 12 years ago, but we go once a year now. We might go into a park once during the week and we eat most of our meals in our unit. We go to enjoy the resorts and get out of New Hampshire's cold winter.

We also bought all our points at SSR direct (at, I think, $89) because we didn't know about resale and we have stayed at VGF for the past 3 trips, and hope to keep staying there.

 

[myzel]

View attachment 290503

By then again, I think owning a tractor makes me an elitist snob, so what do I know?

See if you were an elitist snob you would have a cab. LOL

 

[kboo]

We are an example of a family where Disney is not getting a lot of money out of us. They got their up front money when we bought 500 points 12 years ago, but we go once a year now. We might go into a park once during the week and we eat most of our meals in our unit. We go to enjoy the resorts and get out of New Hampshire's cold winter.

We also bought all our points at SSR direct (at, I think, $89) because we didn't know about resale and we have stayed at VGF for the past 3 trips, and hope to keep staying there.

This. While we may go to WDW more frequently, we may not spend as much per day as the family that is doing a "this is our once in a lifetime trip to Disney" or even frequent travelers on cash rooms who may not know about AP discounts, etc. In addition to @Dean's point that most things that make members say they want to feel "special" would affect the bottom line, there is no incentive for Disney to bother or care, beyond the general baseline of customer service that one expects as ANY visitor at WDW. (And yes, people will disagree on whether Disney provides even that, but I've generally had positive experiences.)

This brings to mind the frequent interactions at airport gates and airline service counters along the lines of "Do you know who I am?" There, airline frequent flier status dictates exactly who gets what perks, and often the people making the biggest noise don't have any status at all. And in the airline world, frequent fliers get the perks because they repeatedly spend more. With DVC it's often less.

 

[Dean Marino]

Must comment on post title....

No DVC Member is a "snob". We are simply people with up front cash that bought a product offered by WDW.
Product offered? We bought it. This would be refereed to as a CHOICE.

Consequence: Break even, vs DISCOUNTED room offers. comes to us in April 2018 (booked, 6 years after buy in). After this? Our room costs are about $120 per night, in our chosen Deluxe - now listed at DISCOUNT for about $500 per night, main Hotel

Gee - we must have been really stupid . Having hit "break even vs discount", we are only going to gain about 15 years x 2 vacations X $380/night X 8 nights/vacation = about $90K.

Again - we must be totally ignorant snobs . Just bought a WDW product, had the up front cash, and the math appears to be working .

 

[Ben E N]

Must comment on post title....

No DVC Member is a "snob". We are simply people with up front cash that bought a product offered by WDW.
Product offered? We bought it. This would be refereed to as a CHOICE.

Consequence: Break even, vs DISCOUNTED room offers. comes to us in April 2018 (booked, 6 years after buy in). After this? Our room costs are about $120 per night, in our chosen Deluxe - now listed at DISCOUNT for about $500 per night, main Hotel

Gee - we must have been really stupid . Having hit "break even vs discount", we are only going to gain about 15 years x 2 vacations X $380/night X 8 nights/vacation = about $90K.

Again - we must be totally ignorant snobs . Just bought a WDW product, had the up front cash, and the math appears to be working .

I think you are misunderstanding the purpose of this thread. Most people understand what they got when they bought into DVC, but there are those who feels being a member makes them somehow better than others, and are upset that other, "less worthy" people are now buying in. That would make them snobs, ignorant snobs yes, but still snobby.
Being a DVC member by no means makes you a snob automatically.

 

[mco65]

Fascinating thread.

I envy the DVC members, never met one that was snobbish about it but i suppose they are out there. I suspect they are just snobs whether it has to do with their clubs, cars, homes, schools.. etc.. just snobs...

We are NOT DVC members.. came awful darn close about 10 years ago.. had the deal ready so sign that my wife had negotiated so to speak. We were looking at a big (200 point) SSR contract and a smaller contract with some other resort... She was ready to sign.. she is an impulse buyer as am I on smaller ticket items but not on large ticket items.. I simply said, lets sleep on it.. which we did and the next morning she called the rep and said we would have to pass... A couple hang ups we had was we didn't require deluxe accommodations.. in fact, we spend 95% of our time at the parks, not the resort.. second, we wanted to visit WDW more than once a year..... the points we were getting was going to limit us to once a year maybe, at certain times of the year, again.. maybe. We certainly could not afford enough points to allow us to go any time of the year for 7 days much less, twice a year... so, in the end we passed... part of it was $ but at the time, the biggest part of it just didn't fit our vacation plans..

Ironically we went through the DVC presentation again this past trip just to see what might have changed... this time my wife didn't even give it a second thought.. no deal. We make at least 30% more $ now, maybe 50% more $ than we did some 10 years ago but the bottom line now was that we couldn't afford it... I consider us middle class, either right smack dab in the middle or upper middle but not scraping to get by by any means.. but DVC was too expensive for us.. WE looked at the numbers and was like, 'holy smokes' that is a lot.. not sure what we were looking at 10 years ago but we were ready to pounce then but not now.. perhaps DVC is becoming an upper echelon club... ??

Part of me wishes we had purchased some 10 years ago. It wont be long now before we are vacationing with our kids and grandkids.. A moderate aint gonna cut it anymore unless we get 2 or more rooms which kind of spoils the idea of vacationing with family, at least to me it does

 

[Ben E N]

Fascinating thread.

I envy the DVC members, never met one that was snobbish about it but i suppose they are out there. I suspect they are just snobs whether it has to do with their clubs, cars, homes, schools.. etc.. just snobs...

We are NOT DVC members.. came awful darn close about 10 years ago.. had the deal ready so sign that my wife had negotiated so to speak. We were looking at a big (200 point) SSR contract and a smaller contract with some other resort... She was ready to sign.. she is an impulse buyer as am I on smaller ticket items but not on large ticket items.. I simply said, lets sleep on it.. which we did and the next morning she called the rep and said we would have to pass... A couple hang ups we had was we didn't require deluxe accommodations.. in fact, we spend 95% of our time at the parks, not the resort.. second, we wanted to visit WDW more than once a year..... the points we were getting was going to limit us to once a year maybe, at certain times of the year, again.. maybe. We certainly could not afford enough points to allow us to go any time of the year for 7 days much less, twice a year... so, in the end we passed... part of it was $ but at the time, the biggest part of it just didn't fit our vacation plans..

Ironically we went through the DVC presentation again this past trip just to see what might have changed... this time my wife didn't even give it a second thought.. no deal. We make at least 30% more $ now, maybe 50% more $ than we did some 10 years ago but the bottom line now was that we couldn't afford it... I consider us middle class, either right smack dab in the middle or upper middle but not scraping to get by by any means.. but DVC was too expensive for us.. WE looked at the numbers and was like, 'holy smokes' that is a lot.. not sure what we were looking at 10 years ago but we were ready to pounce then but not now.. perhaps DVC is becoming an upper echelon club... ??

Part of me wishes we had purchased some 10 years ago. It wont be long now before we are vacationing with our kids and grandkids.. A moderate aint gonna cut it anymore unless we get 2 or more rooms which kind of spoils the idea of vacationing with family, at least to me it does

You can either look into the resale market if ownership interests you, or you can always rent DVC points from either a member or David's once the need comes up. I actually found that renting ended up costing just more than a moderate resort would have, and that the per night costs of owning are very similar to, if not cheaper than, some moderate resorts.

 

[zavandor]

We make at least 30% more $ now, maybe 50% more $ than we did some 10 years ago but the bottom line now was that we couldn't afford it... I consider us middle class, either right smack dab in the middle or upper middle but not scraping to get by by any means.. but DVC was too expensive for us.. WE looked at the numbers and was like, 'holy smokes' that is a lot.. not sure what we were looking at 10 years ago but we were ready to pounce then but not now..

10 years ago the DVC market was a compeletely different beast. I am a very happy member, but to be honest, I wouldn't buy right now, I would have to pay nearly double for my contracts.

 

[jwhitty5]

My wife and I very recently members of DVC. I enjoy joking about this with my Disney loving in-laws as they own a travel agency specializing in Disney. In me, they have a son in law who went from not wanting anything to do with Disney 18 months ago to being an AP, DVC member, runDisney footwear enthusiast, Nike Golf Disney polo shirt collector,and bonafide Disney lover. When we became DVC (resale like commoners), I went online and ordered a DVC Nike polo, 2 DVC member hats (ebay), a DVC leather portfolio with notepad, and DVC Decal to put on my laptop just to be over the top around them.

Whenever I go to their house now, I make it a point to cloak myself in these items and remind them that they are Disney peasants to us. Joking of course, but still funny to everyone involved. I think they are still in shock of the Disney fan they have turned me into so they have fun with it too. We sit around and watch Tim Tracker, Disney Food Blog, and of course every DIS unplugged weekly together. Now my father in law is thinking about becoming a DVC member. I think on our next trip he may even go over to the DVC lobby at Saratoga to start talking to guides.

I say all of this because if I was sitting in that epcot lobby with my in-laws, you might overhear the same thing being said by me but with extremely playful undertones. I would hate for someone outside my family to think that I was serious about any of this stuff. Its all about a love for Disney for crying out loud. How can anyone take themselves THAT seriously?

 

[disneynutz]

I think you are misunderstanding the purpose of this thread. Most people understand what they got when they bought into DVC, but there are those who feels being a member makes them somehow better than others, and are upset that other, "less worthy" people are now buying in. That would make them snobs, ignorant snobs yes, but still snobby.
Being a DVC member by no means makes you a snob automatically.

But isn't that the way of the world? People staying in CL are special, people with fast passes are special, people on the monorail are special, people at TOTWL are special, people staying in cabins, bungalow, and Grand villas are special, people staying at the Grand Floridian are special. We were staying at AKV CL and rode the elevator with a lady who used her room key to take us to the CL. She didn't get off, she said that using her key with others in the elevator made her feel special.

Bill

 

[Ben E N]

But isn't that the way of the world? People staying in CL are special, people with fast passes are special, people on the monorail are special, people at TOTWL are special, people staying in cabins, bungalow, and Grand villas are special, people staying at the Grand Floridian are special. We were staying at AKV CL and rode the elevator with a lady who used her room key to take us to the CL. She didn't get off, she said that using her key with others in the elevator made her feel special.

Bill

Yes, but special is a different thing than "better than". You are allowed to love riding the CL elevator as long as you are not laughing at those who cannot get on it. I want people to enjoy and be happy with their successes without putting others down.

On a related note, personally, I do not like the multicolor flashing magicband entries for DVC members. I feel like it is a way of flaunting DVC membership status to those others who do not have it. Kind of falls into the snobby category, even though members themselves have no say in the matter.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

On a related note, personally, I do not like the multicolor flashing magicband entries for DVC members. I feel like it is a way of flaunting DVC membership status to those others who do not have it. Kind of falls into the snobby category, even though members themselves have no say in the matter.

Most others won't even notice it. And if they buy a "special" Magic Band they can get different flashy lights too. But I understand. I'm good with green lights and any other color gets me thinking for a minute until I realize it's blue that I don't want.

 

[jwhitty5]

Don't you want to feel special? I mean realistically you have dedicated a substantial amount of money and the next 30 years of vacations to this company. I feel like DVC members should absolutely feel like Disney is giving them something special and making them feel special for their commitment.

 

[Ben E N]

Don't you want to feel special? I mean realistically you have dedicated a substantial amount of money and the next 30 years of vacations to this company. I feel like DVC members should absolutely feel like Disney is giving them something special and making them feel special for their commitment.

Sure. I love the idea of special parties and lounges that come along with membership. I'm not saying others shouldn't enjoy the little light, either, just that it when I saw other people get it, it may me feel like they were Star Bellied Sneetches.

 

[DduzDis]

personally, I do not like the multicolor flashing magicband entries for DVC members. I feel like it is a way of flaunting DVC membership status to those others who do not have it. Kind of falls into the snobby category, even though members themselves have no say in the matter.

I think the purple is supposed elicit a 'Welcome Home' from the attending CM. For me it has occurred only a time or two. Not a big deal to me, but it is kind of cool when they do. We worked hard to save an earn our DVC membership. I don't think there is anything better than getting the rewards....as long as nobody is put down or demeaned in the process.

Also, we have a trip later this year where we invited my brother, SIL and niece to join us in a 2 BR at BLT. This will likely be their 'once in a lifetime trip' to WDW. My niece is at the perfect age of 8 and I cannot wait to share the experience. DVC can be a force for good or evil. I choose good.

 

[Ben E N]

I think the purple is supposed elicit a 'Welcome Home' from the attending CM. For me it has occurred only a time or two. Not a big deal to me, but it is kind of cool when they do. We worked hard to save an earn our DVC membership. I don't think there is anything better than getting the rewards....as long as nobody is put down or demeaned in the process.

Also, we have a trip later this year where we invited my brother, SIL and niece to join us in a 2 BR at BLT. This will likely be their 'once in a lifetime trip' to WDW. My niece is at the perfect age of 8 and I cannot wait to share the experience. DVC can be a force for good or evil. I choose good.

Yeah I get where things are meant to be special and discreet. I am happy that it is making people happy, that's the whole purpose of the effect. I am just thinking of it from a former outsider's viewpoint, where I saw that so and so got a 'special' welcome that I was not worthy of, despite spending thousands of dollars on my trip. Yes, those other people deserved the special welcome, but it did give me a bit of a snobby feeling about the whole thing, whether it was warranted or not. (For what it's worth, it's quite possible that somebody else paid for a special magic band and that I misread the whole interaction.)

There's really no perfect way to acknowledge something awesome by one group of people without another group noticing and feeling jaded about it. The same is true when a teacher praises a student for getting an A+ on a test and the other students get jealous. Yes, the A+ student deserved the praise, but it in turn made the other students less worthy of that praise. I'm not saying that DVC members, or DVC management, is doing anything wrong, just that it has the potential consequence of having others view those members as being snobby.

 

[Dean]

I think you are misunderstanding the purpose of this thread. Most people understand what they got when they bought into DVC, but there are those who feels being a member makes them somehow better than others, and are upset that other, "less worthy" people are now buying in. That would make them snobs, ignorant snobs yes, but still snobby.
Being a DVC member by no means makes you a snob automatically.

But that's just it, many don't understand what they bought OR they just have unreasonable expectations.

Don't you want to feel special? I mean realistically you have dedicated a substantial amount of money and the next 30 years of vacations to this company. I feel like DVC members should absolutely feel like Disney is giving them something special and making them feel special for their commitment.

IMO the only way for this to happen is for DVC to manage the resorts appropriately and the member to be content with the same. It's not mathematically possible for DVC to continue to course members if this is what's required to make them feel special. The rest is smoke and mirrors and sales tactics. It's a little like bribing kids to get results, you have to continue to increase the size of the carrot. Actually it's exactly like that, sometimes on both ends.

 

[mj2vacation]

I have worked with many members who are decidedly middle class. DVC is an aspirational product. There are many who join when they can barely afford it, but make it work, and there are many who join when they hit a milestone.

There are many members who sold a business, got an inheritance, hit the lottery, etc.

As for snobs, some see it as an exclusive club. It’s not that exclusive, anyone with a credit score over 680 and a credit card for a down payment can and do join.

 

[jimmytammy]

I don't consider myself a snob, I am a carpenter, worked hard and still working hard too be able to afford DVC trips. What I do consider myself is fortunate. I am a middle class kinda guy, not rich in finances, and according to the fed. govt., I am considered poor. But I live a good life, and am blessed beyond measure. I was lucky enough to join DVC when it was still affordable. I feel for those who buy in these days at such a high price.

Where the word "snob" does settle in with me is the accommodations provided by DVC. I find myself constantly comparing any other accommodations to DVC. And most never live up to those standards.

As for what the original poster overheard, I don't doubt it! Unfortunately, there are folks like that everywhere, who feel they are better than others. I have experienced it as my trade means I very often am dressed in work cloths that may have dust, dirt, paint, etc. on them. I can't dress in a suit to install cabinets, that would be not so smart. But after doing this job all my life, believe me, I know when I get looked down on! I also know when someone thinks they are smarter than me because of what they do or where they live, or how they talk, or how much they make. We as humans have a very strange way of setting ourselves on a pedestal, but we can be knocked down with life. God has a way of humbling us for sure.

 

[lovin'fl]

I try to live my life such that others think of me as "that riffraff..."

It's actually quite liberating. On Twitter, there's a guy that always complains about people that take their shoes off on airplanes. I'm thinking of trying it on my next trip down...

Try that in the Epcot DVC lounge too ...lol!