Stay at a 5 Star Walt Disney World Resort for the Price of a 3 Star Value or Moderate Resort

Walt Disney World's version of timeshares is their Disney Vacation Club or DVC for short. The resorts included in the DVC lineup are 5 star top of the line resorts. These special resorts are nick named "Home Away From Home Resorts" because they make you feel as though you're right at home when you visit them. The DVC resorts include the Beach Club Villas (BCV), the Boardwalk Villas (BWV), Old Key West (OKW), Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa (SSR), and the Villa's at Disney's Wilderness Lodge (VWL). The Animal Kingdom Lodge will be joining the DVC lineup in the fall of 2007. To become a DVC owner you have to purchase points at a Home Away From Home resort which allows them to take a vacation at any of the DVC owned resorts. Currently there are over 81,000 DVC members/owners.

So how exactly do regular people like you and me benefit from the DVC points? Sometimes DVC owners aren't able to use the points they have purchased before they expire each year. Most owners decide to trade their points to other DVC members but some of them decide to rent their points to an outsider rather than loose their points. By renting points from a DVC owner you can stay in deluxe on site Disney accommodations for about the same price as a value or moderate resort. Saving over $2,000.00 for accommodations at one of these luxurious resorts may seem like a fairy tale but you will be able to take advantage of this amazing discount by visiting Walt Disney World forums that have a section devoted to renting out DVC points. Finding these forums can be as simple as searching for the term "rent DVC points" in any search engine. However, I believe the best place to begin your search is by visiting the DIS discussion boards (www.disboards.com).

There are a few steps involved in securing your reservation at one of the DVC resorts:

1. Find the tables on the DIS discussion boards that list the point requirements for each of the DVC resorts during each of the different seasons. Determine how many points you will need for the resort you would like to stay at including the dates of your vacation, the room type you are requesting, and the number of nights you will be staying.

2. Determine which DVC owners have points for rent that matches your vacation requirements.

3. Contact the member by directly by e-mail or by replying to their post on the forum.

4. If you can't find anyone offering points that matches your vacation requirements then post a message stating that you are interested in renting points and include a description of your specific needs and dates.

5. Always correspond and promptly answer DVC members who are interested in renting to you.

6. Come to an agreement on how many points will be rented, the time period, the specific resort to be rented and the entire cost. The terms of the transaction should be completely understood by both parties.

7. Once an agreement has been made the DVC owner will make a reservation in your name with DVC Member Services and will forward the reservation to you.

8. Make sure to get a printed copy of the agreement and the reservation.

9. Meet any follow up obligations to the agreement such as completion of payment.

Once you have complete all of the steps listed above you will have secured a 5 star Walt Disney World resort for the price of a 3 star value or moderate resort. This tip alone will save you thousands on the over all cost of your next Walt Disney World vacation!