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I’ve booked across my use year a couple of times. I go online at 11 months before check in & book the days in the ‘old’ use year, then an hour later when the MS phone lines open up I call and ask them to finish the booking. The call takes a little time because you have to be clear w/ which...

DVC has always grandfathered in those qualified for benefits when they’ve changed the rules about what it takes to qualify. Here’s a summary of DVC benefits & what it took to qualify for them. Originally there was no distinction between direct & resale owners. In January 2011, DVC removed the...

Thanks for the construction update - March 2022 through 2025 is 3 years 😱, I’m surprised that it’s taking so long.

A Sept. contract is currently in it’s 2023 use year, @JeffCD would have until April 30, 2025 to bank the 2024 points. Sept. 2024 points are good for vacations from 9/1/24 - 8/31/25. To use for a vacation in 11/25, just bank them into 2025 when you book at 11 months in 12/24 :). It is pretty...

DVC prohibits commercial renting, & they’ve given themselves the ability to define what that is. Several years ago they set the number of rentals above which they’d assume commercial at 20 per annum, they have leeway to change that, though. Recently w/ the CFW legal documents DVC used more...

You cannot see the savannas in the walk between Jambo & Kidani. The outside savanna observation areas are behind the lobbies (Kidani lobby outlook for Sunset savanna, Jambo lobby outlook for Arusha savanna,) & by the pools (Jambo’s pool for Uzima savanna, Kidani’s pool for Pembe savanna.) The...

Here’s a photo of the shuttle bus that runs between Kidani & Jambo that @drusba mentioned:

Arusha savanna has always had Giraffes, it shares a barn with Uzima savanna. Sunset savanna has it’s own barn as does the smaller Pembe savanna. The savanna that never has giraffes is Pembe, over by Kidani, its’ barn isn’t tall enough to house giraffes, & at only 4 acres it’s not best suited for...

Jambo is shaped like a horseshoe - in the aerial below it’s labeled Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge. Arusha is the savanna in the middle of the horseshoe & savanna view villas on both Kudu & Zebra trail overlook Arusha savanna. Sunset is the savanna on the left of the horseshoe (sort of west) &...

Yes, when you stay in Jambo you can visit Kidani & use their pool. You can walk between the buildings, take a DS’s bus to Kidani from Jambo & a park bus back from Kidani to Jambo, or jump on the shuttle bus that runs between the 2 buildings - if you don’t see the shuttle verify w/ bell services...

Through the years when DVC has shuffled guests to other resorts I’ve seen reports of DVC contacting the owner who’s rented out the points & I’ve also seen reports of DVC contacting the non owner who rented the points, so who knows what they’re doing this time 🤷‍♀️.

We’ve gone the first 2 weeks of Dec. a lot & it used to be hard to get w/ DVC (low points, holiday visit) but relatively quiet at the parks, but that’s not been the case in more recent years & the parks have been increasingly busy IME, maybe partly because park hours are pretty severely...

If DVC exercises ROFR they step into the shoes of the buyer, so if the buyer agreed to reimburse the seller for the MFs they’ve paid - for example buyer reimburses seller for the 2024 MFs the seller paid in Jan. - then DVC must likewise reimburse the seller for those MFs. Some owners pay their...

I’m glad you made it, like the resort, & hope all is well w/ your DD’s ears.

I love the spa tubs & will really miss them if/when they’re gone. Folks who don’t use them likely don’t care, but AKV has always had them, so anyone buying points there knew they were paying MFs for their upkeep/replacement just like we’re paying for the added maintenance, & replacement costs on...

I’m a bit pessimistic, they started BWV Sept. 2023, & supposedly finished the BW view villas awhile ago, yet they’ve circled back & started kicking people w/ reservations in BW views out again allegedly because they have to redo the Murphy beds, plumbing, & electricity 🤷‍♀️. AFAIK, they haven’t...

I agree, DVC has started saber rattling about enforcing the no commercial renting rule (as has been done in other timeshare systems) & there’s really no way to predict whether DVC will actually do something about it going forward. But potential renters should at least be aware that the issue is...

I agree, going from a 1 br. to a hotel room for $50 per night doesn’t seem fair because it isn’t even close to being fair, it’s an insult based on any way you calculate the value of a 1 br. v. a hotel room. Across the board at all of the combo hotel/DVC resorts Disney charges cash guests the...

I’m no expert, but the reason folks go the riskier route of renting DVC points from a private owner route or broker is presumably because it saves them money. However, you really need to pencil it out. Private owners tend to charge based on $XX per point & how many points any particular stay...

Ah, analysis paralysis. I know it well. W/ DVC & the specific resorts you’re considering, resale tends to hold value, so if you buy & discover DVC doesn’t work for you, you can sell & recoup some of your investment. If you buy & discover you like the system but the 7 month dance doesn’t work...