A Complete Guide to DVC Membership
Disney Vacation Club is Disney's points-based vacation ownership program, and it works differently from most vacation products. You purchase a deeded real estate interest in a specific resort, and in return you receive an annual allotment of vacation points that renew each year for the life of your contract. Those points can be applied to stays at any DVC resort in the system, giving you flexibility in where you go, what kind of accommodation you book, and how long you stay.
The program has operated since 1991 and now includes over a dozen resorts spanning Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Hawaii, and two Florida coastal destinations. Contracts run 40 to 50 years depending on the resort. This is a long-term commitment, and it deserves a clear-eyed look before you decide whether it's right for your family.
The DVC Resort Portfolio
Walt Disney World has the largest concentration of DVC properties. Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort puts you a short walk from Magic Kingdom. Beach Club Villas and BoardWalk Villas sit on the Epcot Resort Area walking path, both within easy reach of Epcot's International Gateway entrance. Disney's Grand Floridian Resort and Spa and the Polynesian Villas and Bungalows both connect to the Magic Kingdom monorail loop. Boulder Ridge Villas and Copper Creek Villas at Wilderness Lodge offer a tucked-away Pacific Northwest lodge aesthetic with boat access to Magic Kingdom.
Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas, split between Jambo House and Kidani Village, are the two properties adjacent to Animal Kingdom, both offering savanna-view villa options where actual African animals roam free outside villa balconies. Disney's Riviera Resort brings European-inspired design and direct Disney Skyliner gondola access to both Epcot and Hollywood Studios. Disney's Old Key West Resort and Disney's Saratoga Springs Resort and Spa are the two largest DVC properties on property, with extensive grounds, multiple pools, and the most available inventory in the Walt Disney World DVC network.
Beyond Florida, Disney's Aulani Resort and Spa in Ko Olina, Hawaii is a full beach resort destination offering 21 acres of oceanfront property with extensive water amenities and authentic Hawaiian cultural programming. Disney's Grand Californian Hotel and Spa and The Villas at Disneyland Hotel are the California properties, both adjacent to the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim. Disney's Hilton Head Island Resort in South Carolina and Disney's Vero Beach Resort on Florida's Atlantic coast serve as coastal escape destinations within the DVC portfolio.
See full details on every resort on our DVC resorts page.
How Points Work
Your DVC contract specifies your annual point total and your use year. The use year is the month when your points deposit annually. A February use year means points arrive February 1st and expire January 31st of the following year if unused. This cycle repeats every year for the life of your contract.
Point costs for specific stays are determined by resort, room type, season, and length of stay. Disney publishes point charts that specify the exact cost for every combination. A studio at a moderate resort during an off-peak week might require 10 to 14 points per night. The same studio during a peak holiday week could run 20 to 30 points. A two-bedroom villa at a premium resort during Christmas week can require 60 or more points per night.
Understanding the point charts for your most likely vacation scenarios is essential before deciding how many points to purchase. Many buyers underestimate their point needs by planning around off-peak stays when their actual travel patterns run toward holidays and school breaks. Be honest about when you'll actually travel.
Banking and borrowing add flexibility. You can bank unused points from your current use year into the next, saving for a larger trip. You can borrow next year's points into the current year if you need more. Each of these options has limits and deadlines, but together they give you meaningful control over your annual point allocation.
Home Resort Priority
Your home resort is the property where your real estate interest is deeded, and it's where you get booking priority. Home resort owners can book their home resort beginning 11 months before check-in. All other DVC members can book any resort starting at seven months. That four-month window is your priority period.
At popular resorts during high-demand periods, the 11-month window is often necessary to secure availability. Bay Lake Tower during Christmas week, Beach Club during Food and Wine Festival, Polynesian during summer: these are scenarios where home resort owners who book on day one of their window have strong access, while members booking at seven months often find limited options.
Your home resort choice should reflect where you'll most want to stay and when. If your travel is flexible and you don't have strong resort loyalty, a high-availability resort with favorable per-point resale pricing might serve you well. If you have a specific resort preference and visit during peak seasons, owning there is worth the priority it provides.
Purchasing Direct vs. Resale
Disney sells DVC contracts directly at published prices, which you can see on our retail prices page. The resale market offers existing contracts at prices typically 20 to 50 percent below Disney's direct prices. Both paths produce the same core ownership: the same villa accommodations, the same booking system, the same annual point allocation.
The differences between direct and resale involve some member perks that Disney has historically offered only to direct buyers, including merchandise discounts and invitations to certain exclusive member events. For newer restricted resorts, particularly Disney's Riviera Resort, resale buyers also face booking limitations on future DVC properties. This is covered in detail on our how DVC works page.
For most buyers evaluating contracts at the established Walt Disney World DVC resorts, the resale savings are substantial and the forfeited perks are relatively minor. The math strongly favors resale for most buyers who are focused primarily on the vacation product itself.
Annual Dues
DVC ownership includes annual maintenance dues that apply every year for the life of your contract. Dues cover resort maintenance, property taxes, Disney's management fee, and reserves for future capital improvements. Current rates vary by resort and run roughly $7 to $9 per point for most Walt Disney World properties. On a 150-point contract, that's approximately $1,050 to $1,350 per year.
Dues increase modestly most years. This is normal across all DVC resorts and all vacation ownership programs generally. Factor the current dues rate and an assumption of modest annual increases into your total cost calculation when evaluating any contract.
Current dues rates for all resorts are on our annual dues page.
Contract Expiration Dates
Every DVC contract has a fixed expiration date, at which point the ownership interest reverts to Disney. Older resorts, including Old Key West and Saratoga Springs, have expiration dates in the 2040s. Newer resorts like Riviera expire in 2070. Expiration date affects both the current value of a contract and the per-year cost when you amortize the purchase price across the remaining ownership period.
A contract expiring in 2042 gives you roughly 16 to 18 years of remaining use. A contract expiring in 2070 gives you roughly 44 years. The remaining lifespan is part of what determines a contract's market price, and it's worth considering when evaluating whether any specific contract represents appropriate value for the price being asked.
Is DVC Right for Your Family?
DVC membership works best for families who visit Disney destinations regularly, value villa-style accommodations over standard hotel rooms, and plan to continue doing both for many years. If those conditions describe your family, the economics of DVC ownership tend to work in your favor compared to booking equivalent accommodations at retail rates.
If your Disney visit frequency is uncertain, if you prefer booking opportunistically when prices are low rather than committing to a fixed annual cost, or if Disney isn't likely to remain central to your family's vacation planning, the long-term financial commitment of DVC ownership may not be the right fit.
We're a licensed real estate brokerage and we'll give you a straight answer about whether DVC makes sense for your situation. Browse our current resale listings to get a sense of available contracts and pricing, and reach out to our team with specific questions.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How many points do most families need to purchase?
Most families who visit once or twice a year and stay in studios or one-bedroom villas for typical one-week trips find that 100 to 200 points covers their needs reasonably well. Families who prefer two-bedroom villas, visit during peak holiday weeks, or plan to visit multiple times per year may need more. The specific answer for your situation depends on working through the point charts for your likely vacation scenarios before committing to a contract size.
Q: What happens to my DVC contract when I die?
DVC contracts are deeded real estate and can be inherited or transferred through your estate like any other real estate interest. You can also add family members to the deed during your lifetime. Planning the succession of your DVC contract is something to address through standard estate planning with your attorney.
Q: Can I rent out my DVC points to other people?
DVC's membership documents permit members to make reservations and allow guests to use them, which in practice means renting reservations to other people. Disney discourages commercial rental activity but personal use of your points, including allowing family, friends, or renters to stay in reservations you've booked, is within the program's framework. Many DVC owners rent points in years when they don't use their full allocation.
Q: What is the process for purchasing a DVC resale contract?
The process involves identifying a contract, submitting an offer, having the offer accepted, going through Disney's 30-day Right of First Refusal review, and then proceeding to closing with a title company coordinating the deed transfer and membership activation. The full process typically takes 60 to 90 days. See our how DVC works page for a detailed walkthrough of every step.
