If you are anything like me, it took several days to calm down from all the exciting news shared last week regarding Disney Cruise Line’s newest ship, the Disney Wish. One unexpected addition to those announcements was that the second ever sailing of the Disney Wish would be a DVC Member exclusive! Now I’m not going to lie – the thought of being one of the first people to experience this brand new ship is very appealing. But is it worth the price?
Hidden inside the announcement of this Disney Vacation Club private charter of the Wish was a paragraph that literally sucked the air out of my lungs:
“Because this is a Disney Collection Exchange opportunity, at least one person in each stateroom must be booked on points. In addition, one person in the party must use Vacation Points when this cruise is booked. Other Guests can make cash payments.”
Disney Vacation Club
For those unfamiliar with past member-exclusive sailings, DVC typically hosts a Member Cruise once per year that includes all sorts of fun events, free swag, and much more. Historically, DVC owners can book these Member Cruises with either cash or reservation points (more on those later). Disney Vacation Club has made it very clear from day one that this Disney Wish “Member Voyage” will not be like these other cruises, thus the reason for their reservation point requirements.
Although they sound like the same, “vacation points” and “reservation points” have some big differences. Reservation Points are created when choosing to reserve accommodations with the Disney Collection or Concierge Collection, such as this cruise. It’s also worth noting that they can’t be reverted back, expire at the end of the Use Year, and you are charged a $95 non-refundable transaction fee to make the conversion.
For years, other DVC owners and I have said booking a Disney Cruise with your vacation club points is not the best bang for your buck. Booking a Disney Cruise with cash and renting your points to cover the cost is a much better option.
To explore this further, let’s compare the cost of a 3-night sailing over this same weekend in 2021. To do this, we will look at the cash price for two adults in a verandah stateroom and compare it to the point cash equivalent if you were to rent your points for $16 per point with DVC Rental Store.
3 – Night Bahamas – June 17th, 2021 – Disney Fantasy
| Cash Price | Points Price | Difference |
| $1,453.50 per person $2,907.00 Total (Includes Taxes, Fees, & Port Expenses) | 180 points per person 360 points = $5,760.00 Total (Not including $95 transaction fee) | $2,853.00 |
I feel like not much more needs to be said after looking at these numbers, but if you are still struggling to see it – you could literally take this cruise twice if you rent out your points! You’ll be pocketing almost $3,000, which would be more than enough to bump you up to a 4-night sailing on the Disney Wish, or even vie for that coveted 5-night maiden voyage!
As a bonus, you could save even more when choosing to book this cruise with Dreams Unlimited Travel. When you book using Dreams Unlimited Travel, you’ll receive shipboard credit, an exclusive gift bag, and the help of a Disney Cruise Line expert.
At the end of the day it is up to you to spend your points in whatever way brings you happiness… just maybe not a cruise!
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! Are you planning to book a sailing on the Disney Wish? Are you using points? Renting points? Paying cash?
I know it’s not a popular opinion, but I always us points for DCL! You can tell me how much it would cost and the cost of the points, but I’ve always known that, but still use points because I usually have well over a 1,000 pts a year to use ( 660 a yr plus what I have been banking each year which is usually around 400 to 500 a year.. and I go usually 2-3 times a year!) So, using points isn’t bad for me.. I could see it being for people that don’t have that many points to use.
Consider that you could also rent out all of those excess points, still take the cruise, and pocket the difference.
I’m not a cruiser, but this should be a thank you for being a member and guests should be allowed to pay cash if they don’t want to use points. Based on the controversy regarding the 2022 point charts, this is just one person’s opinion but I suspect that DVC management’s goal with this is for members to burn points on the member cruise, thus freeing up villas that can be used as “breakage” and rented to cash-paying guests. Bottomline, some smoke and mirrors by presenting it as a special opportunity for members while in reality the net outcome will generate additional breakage revenue.
What I find hard to understand is how will they require at least one passenger is using all points vs cash and expect to fill this sailing. Are there that many people with enough points to do this? I would entertain the premium price if we could pay all cash but I cant take 2 years of points to pay for one person.
I see this as a nice offering and a way to help those with an overage of points that aren’t sure how to use them. Those of us who don’t see the value don’t have to and those who do can. It’s not the most economical decision, but for many it’s not about economics. With over 400,000 members, they need at 10% take up to fill the ship – will be curious to see if they do.
I think they are trying this is because we all have a ton of unused points in our use year 2020 and 2021 now and maybe even some leftover from 2019 that may have been extended…not sure but maybe…so their idea is to see who goes for the bait to waste away these points so they aren’t used at Disney resorts.
If you rent out your points what is the amount of tax you pay for the “ profit”. Can you tell me how that works for a family of 5? Do I need to get more staterooms?
Hey Tricia – Basically the income you receive from a rental is considered taxable. There may be certain deductions you can take from that but it is always best to consult a tax professional when making those decisions.