How Does the DVC Point System Work?
How Points Are Put In Your Account
Disney Vacation Club uses a flexible point schedules. DVC members use these to calculate the number of points needed for a DVC resort reservation. If you booked a cash room at a hotel, you’d expect to pay more for bigger rooms, rooms with a better view, or rooms at peak times of the year. DVC resorts work precisely like that except cash=points at DVC Villas. The most desirable bookings will usually require more points.
Here’s how it works. Every year based on the number of points you purchased, Disney will deposit them into your DVC account. This will happen at the same time each year for the life of your contract. The specific month determined in your agreement for this to occur is called your “use year.”
Point Charts-DVC Resorts
Every accommodation has a point value for every day of the year. The final point schedule will be issued in January.
DVC has an easy-to-use website that is very intuitive. Just like any hotel website, owners who book a reservation choose the check-in and check-out date, the resort where they want to stay, and the accommodation type. The point charts are loaded into the system and will tell you how many points are required to make the reservation. It’s just like a hotel but with points instead of cash.
How To Read A DVC Point Chart
The DVC website publishes a point schedule for each resort, listing the point requirements for the year. You will find that all point schedules have the same format. The points tables are given based on the room size, room view, time of the year, and time of the week (weekend vs. weekday).
The accommodation types are listed from left to right across the top of the schedule based on size. The smaller rooms are on the left (Studios), and the larger rooms (Grand Villas) are on the right.
The room views/locations are listed under the room sizes. For each room size, there may be a view/location selection. Like room sizes, the room views are listed across the page from standard to more expensive. Please note, some resorts do not have view or location choices.
Points required are also different based on the time of year. DVC breaks it’s point schedule into four to seven travel periods determined by the resort where you plan to stay. These are listed on the left side of the point schedule. The least busy time is listed at the top, and the remaining times are listed down the page, ending with the busiest time.
Finally, weekend nights are a priority at most DVC resorts. On the schedule, this distinction is made right beside the travel period. Weekend nights are Friday and Saturday.
For example, to book a week’s stay at a studio with a savanna view at Animal Kingdom Villas on July 1-7, 2022, the cost would be 130 points. Looking at the chart, the combination of studio/savanna view/travel period 4/weekdays is 18 points per day, and the same combination for weekend days is 20 points per day. 5 weekdays x 18=90 and 2 weekend days x 20 points= 40 points. The total required points are 90+40=130.
Point Chart Impacts-Resorts
Some DVC resorts are perceived to be more desirable than other DVC locations for many reasons. I love staying at all the Disney DVC resorts, but the point schedule would indicate a desirability bias.
Point Chart Impacts-Room Size
The factor of room size and guest accommodations is also a driver in cost. Just like hotels or cruise ships, bigger rooms require more points. One-Bedroom Villas are priced higher than Studios, Two-Bedroom Villas are higher than One-Bedroom Villas, and so on. In addition, some specialty rooms are higher priced. For example, at Animal Kingdom Villa, a Kilimanjaro Concierge Club Studio requires more points than a standard view One-Bedroom Villa. There are only a few of these exceptions. Usually, the bigger the room, the more it will cost.
Point Chart Impacts-Room Views/Location
Room views are the next point differentiators. Some resorts don’t have a choice of room views. These are Beach Club, Boulder Ridge, Copper Creek, Old Key West, Hilton Head, Vero Beach (except for Inn rooms), and Grand Californian. Copper Creek distinguishes its Studios and Two-Bedroom Lock-Offs with a tub shower or a walk-in shower, but there are no differences in points required for each.
Rooms with views that determine point differences are Animal Kingdom Villas, Aulani, Bay Lake Tower, Boardwalk, Grand Floridian, Polynesian, and Riviera. Saratoga Springs is based on location (standard and preferred, with preferred being near the Hospitality House)
Specialty Villas such as the Cabins at Copper Creek or the Bungalows at the Polynesian are the highest priced Two-Bedroom Villas on any DVC property.
Point Chart Impacts-Travel Periods
DVC will modify its vacation point charts to reflect travel patterns and resort demand from time to time. The idea is to adjust the schedules to encourage travel throughout the year to smooth out availability. In 2021, DVC changed its point charts across the board for its Walt Disney World villas and created seven travel seasons instead of the five it had prior. The non-Walt Disney World resorts maintained the same seasons as in the past.
Point Balancing
Each year, Disney can adjust the points required for specific room accommodation. However, the overall points needed for all accommodations at the resort cannot change. If there is a points per night increase for any accommodations, there must be a points per night decrease somewhere to offset it. Unlike cash reservations, where all room prices go up in price almost every year, DVC overall resort points will not go up. This inflation hedge is a crucial advantage when making a DVC decision.
Point Chart Impacts-Weekends
Except for Aulani in Hawaii, weekends (Friday/Saturday nights) require more points than other days of the week. For Walt Disney World Resorts, the premium will vary by accommodation and season, but overall there is a 15% average increase. The weekend premium for Hilton Head is much higher at 56%, for Vero Beach 28%, and for the Grand Californian 24%.
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