Home resort refers to the Disney Vacation Club resort where you own your points. At the time of writing this article, there are currently 16 DVC home resorts. Out of these, 11 reside at Walt Disney World. These are Old Key West Resort, BoardWalk Villas, Boulder Ridge Villas, Beach Club Villas, Saratoga Springs Resort, Animal Kingdom Villas, Bay Lake Tower, Villas at Grand Floridian, Polynesian Villas & Bungalows, Copper Creek Villas & Cabins, and Riviera Resort. There are 2 DVC resorts located at Disneyland, Villas at Grand Californian and Villas at Disneyland Hotel. There are also three DVC resorts not located near one of the theme parks. These are Disney’s Vero Beach Resort in Vero Beach, Florida, Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort in Hilton Head, South Carolina, and Disney’s Aulani Resort in Kapolei, Hawaii.
Upcoming DVC resorts include the Cabins at Fort Wilderness and the new Polynesian Tower. These are both still in the construction phase. At this time, we are unsure what the condo association status will be for both.
Why does home resort matter?
There are a variety of reasons why the home resort matters. Below are a few reasons why you might want to think carefully about your home resort.
Home Resort Booking Advantage
The home resort booking advantage refers to the ability for members to book their home resort at 11 months out. This 11-7 month window is important for your most likely chance to secure the room and dates you want at your home resort. At 7 months, the booking window opens for guests who own points at other resorts. Depending on the resort, this booking window can be very important. For example, resorts like Villas at Grand Californian and Beach Club Villas have a small amount of inventory and high demand. Therefore, having the home resort booking advantage at them gives you a much better chance of being able to secure a reservation at these coveted resorts. It’s important to note that some resorts will have booking restrictions when purchased on the resale market. We will cover this in detail in another article.
Location & Amenities
For many, location and amenities are important aspects to base your home resort choice on. For example, if you want to be walking distance to Magic Kingdom, you might want to choose Bay Lake Tower or Villas at Grand Floridian as your home resort. If you want Skyliner access, you might want to choose Riviera. If an amazing swimming pool like Stormalong Bay is on your wish list, Beach Club Villas might be for you. What you value most in a resort is a factor you should consider when choosing your home resort.
Economic Value
If where you stay isn’t as important to you and you are simply looking for the best value for your money, there are a few things to look at when determining the economic value of each home resort options. It’s important to consider the buy-in price per point, the costs of annual dues, how many years are left on the contract, and the point charts. These things will help determine which resorts are a better value for your money.
There is a great quarterly article published on DVC Resale Market’s site called Best Economical DVC Resorts to Purchase. Each quarter, this article analyzes the average resale price per point, annual dues, and years left on the deed to determine which resorts are the best bang for your buck. Prices and dues can be a moving target. It’s important to look at all the most up to date information available to you when choosing a home resort based on economic value.
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