DVC v. Marriott Vacation Club - Beware!

[Dean]

I own DVC and Marriott plus Bluegreen. I bought DVC resale in 1994 as my first timeshares and have owned as many as 885 points down to 432 now I've stayed many weeks a year in timeshares often with multiple units per week, this past summer we had 15 units at Grande Ocean. I feel I can spend 2 hours at a resort and get more real information than most do staying there for a week. IMO DVC resort quality is more consistent than MVC though not by a lot. If you exclude some of the lower end MVC properties, maybe 6-8, the units overall are better for Marriott than DVC. The units tend to be larger and there is no comparison when looking at studios. Disney wins in 2 areas and 2 areas only IMO, location for the park linked resorts and theming. And theming has taken a step backwards as the updates for some of the resorts of recent years have been more generic. In addition MVC wills hands down in 2 other areas, unit maintenance and on site service. It's not uncommon with DVC to ask for something that should be in the room but isn't and it take an hour and sometimes, it never comes. With MVC I can't think of a time when it took more than 15 minutes to get items even during Covid times. DVC has also gotten even more heavy handed with resale limitations than MVC, if that's possible. Aulani is definitely a cut above but HHI and VB fall below reasonable MVC comparisons, esp HHI.

I love DVC and I love MVC but they excel in different things and each have their own issues.

 

[frank808]

Wow lol, if you knew so much and are a veteran in the hospitality industry you would know. Platinum mvc status refers to how many total points they own.

Being an owner in DVC, MVC and HGVC the only thing DVC has over there other 3 is location. Studio, 1br, 2br and 3br DVC rooms are smaller and less well equipped than the MVC timeshare units I have been in.

I love my DVC points and own at VGF, VGC, Aulani, SSR and HH. I pay for experience of staying on site and being immersed in the Disney experience. In my 15+ years of staying at various TS units, I have had service problems at all 3 branded TS. To make DVC being the end all and be all in TS is a little overboard in my opinion but you believe so. And you can certainly think so. I am sure you love your DVC and in your mind DVC can do no wrong. But please stop stating your misunderstandings as facts.

For your information there is no such thing as a Platinum status ownership level at MVC. There is platinum level at the hotel loyalty program. I do OWN platinum weeks in the MVC program. I also own points with MVC and have waitlisted a few times so when you state their is no waitlist with MVC, you are misinformed.

Your opinions about what you prefer is fine. That what makes TS enjoyable for all of us. But to quote obvious wrong facts, like platinum ownership in MVC, please stop with your "facts".

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[frank808]

But Marriott wasn't forced to stop selling any of its timeshares while correcting their mistake of underfunding the initial Maintenance Fees such that MF's in a single resort are assessed based on the date of purchase as subsidized or not. That was DVC. That is Aulani. That was a major industry error and one that no other timeshare company has made. Obviously, DVC has had its own problems getting its act together.

I for one am glad this happened. I own quiet a few of these subsidized points. CHEAPEST maintenance fees per point in the DVC system!

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[CPNY]

Yes, dvc is the best timeshare IMO and many others. They have 15 properties vs Marriott 65. Disney’s brand is all about quality. You get what you pay for. Not sure what Marriott does with all the revenue but they certainly do not reinvest back into their properties. You can see how desperate they are in their sales tactics. Dvc just stands by and has many interested parties flocking to them. They don’t need to tell lies or manipulate or strong arm in the presentations. Sorry for the incorrect grammar. I do have a day job and other things going on. Also can’t help that Apples auto correct is terrible. Yet another overrated company but we won’t go there.

I exchanged into AKL and the quality was not as nice as the Marriott grand vista I was at the week prior. Heck, the new renovated room at SVR I’m currently in now is much nicer than that AKL room.

Ive stayed in excellent Marriott rooms. I’ve stayed in terrible DVC rooms. At the end of the day we all like what we like. My favorite place is the Harborside at Atlantis. The quality of the room is sub par when comparing it to most other timeshares in the system, but it’s still my favorite.

 

[CPNY]

Apparently DVC saw some value in the Marriott, Westin, Sheraton and Hyatt timeshare resorts. Otherwise they probably wouldn't have moved affiliation to Interval International. Certainly if they thought these were substandard properties, they wouldn't want their members exchanging into them?

Exactly!! …. They specifically said this in their dang letter lol

This has been really entertaining guys. Came on this thread to share my opinion since I own a few different brands including dvc and my relatives own a lot of mvc so have affiliated experience there. Clearly you are all loyal mvc owners which is great. My point was that you will see that dvc owners will benefit more from the II exchange than you all will be able to get into dvc. But since Disney is sub par to Marriott lol then there shouldn’t be any issues. Stay in your Marriott and enjoy!!!!

Looks like even “Bill” thinks Marriott is quality enough to be specially curated high end resorts selected especially for DVC members. If “DVC members will benefit more from II” as you say, and the high-quality resorts curated for DVC members consist of Marriott, Westin, Hyatt, and Sheraton, does that mean you’re saying that those resorts are better than DVC? Sounds like it to me.

“Through Interval International, you will have access to thousands of resorts including a specially curated portfolio of high-quality properties selected especially for Members. This expanded portfolio includes well-known resorts offered by Marriott, Sheraton, Hyatt and Westin, to name a few.
We’re excited to continue to provide you and your family with a whole new world of vacation possibilities!

All the best,

William C. “Bill” Diercksen”

 

[pchung6]

Did anyone stay at both Marriott Ko Olina and Aulani before, and can make comparisons between the two?

 

[Dean]

Did anyone stay at both Marriott Ko Olina and Aulani before, and can make comparisons between the two?

I haven't stayed at both but I've stayed at Ko Olina and spent time at Aulani including visiting a couple of rooms. IMO Aulani is nicer but it's mostly related to theming and not by a ton. They do have more food options.

 

[cbyrne1174]

Fair enough, but you don't seem to be equally open to the opinions that others have of DVC resorts.

I agree with you about DVC. I only would book SSR through RCI because it was $1,000 for the whole week. The ONLY thing you can't do at a DVC resort while visiting is swim in the pool. I'd rather pay less for the room and use the extra money saved to splurge on something else. The room itself doesn't justify the price. Stay at Bonnet Creek in a 1 bedroom during the weekdays for $55 a night and make dining reservations at Riviera or something. Bonnet Creek has better pools than Riviera anyways and they're a 3 min drive apart. Bonnet Creek room + pool + dinner at Topolino's Terrace is still cheaper than just a deluxe studio at Riviera without the dinner.

 

[CPNY]

I agree with you about DVC. I only would book SSR through RCI because it was $1,000 for the whole week. The ONLY thing you can't do at a DVC resort while visiting is swim in the pool. I'd rather pay less for the room and use the extra money saved to splurge on something else. The room itself doesn't justify the price. Stay at Bonnet Creek in a 1 bedroom during the weekdays for $55 a night and make dining reservations at Riviera or something. Bonnet Creek has better pools than Riviera anyways and they're a 3 min drive apart. Bonnet Creek room + pool + dinner at Topolino's Terrace is still cheaper than just a deluxe studio at Riviera without the dinner.

I’ve eaten at topolinos 4 times and Each time I stayed off site. It was very easy to get to from Sheraton Resort. It will be interesting to see what T&L does with RCI without DVC. Will they deposit more Wyndham units for exchange?

I agree with you on the riviera resort. The pools look very nice, but extremely small. I’d much rather stay off site unless I was going to be in the parks every day I was there which isn’t the case. I typically spend half the time at the pools. For that fact, lakeshore reserve is absolutely the best even though it’s the farthest from Disney compared to others being mentioned

 

[littlestar]

Did anyone stay at both Marriott Ko Olina and Aulani before, and can make comparisons between the two?

We have stayed at both. Aulani was nice - we were on a high floor. We heard from some people staying on lower floors that they had problems with “real” mice. We didn’t have any problems with mice up high. Theming and pools and lazy river were great. I liked Marriott’s KoOlina resort the best. It had an understated elegance and calmness to it that I fell in love with.

 

[frank808]

Did anyone stay at both Marriott Ko Olina and Aulani before, and can make comparisons between the two?

Having been to both resorts as owners and exchangers at both resorts we prefer MKO. Now we might be a little jaded as we stay here full time. We have had the lucky opportunity to stay for 3 months straight a few years ago at Aulani. The $190 a week fee irritated me as an owner of Aulani points.

Funny thing is that I got much better room assignment as an exchanger than owner. For those 13 exchange weeks we got top floor beautiful ocean views. It was a great deal as I used 3400(1 bedroom) or 4800(2 bedroom) HGVC points to stay a week plus the exchange and $190 fee. Came out to about $1500 a week for a 2br ocean view unit and $1200 a week for 1br unit.

Here at MKO have been usually assigned low floors and ok views as exchanger and points owner. I have a few reservations this year with my owner weeks and will see what I get assigned.

The reason MKO wins out for our family is that it is not as crazy here compared to Aulani. The pool area at Aulani is superb compared to MKO. But there is also the crowds and screaming young kids (that is fine as it is a family resort and great pool area). It was great when my son was 5 yrs old but now that he is 16 he is no longer interested. He used to spend hours at Aunties Beach house and the pools but as a teen is no longer interested. My take is it is great for a week to 10 days. Also was not a big fan of the long walk to the garage unlike here at MKO where the garage is attached to the tower and is much closer.

Rooms at MKO are larger and are better equipped kitchen wise. Themeing is non existent at MKO. You could be in Florida or Branson Missouri if just looking at MKO interiors. While Aulani is superbly done with lots of Hawaiiana and Disney touches. And the big pet peeve of my wife is that the door from living room to master bedroom is louvered and does not do much for sound emanating from living room.

This is off top of my head. If anyone has questions between both TS, I will gladly answer them.

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[Quadmaniac]

This has been really entertaining guys. Came on this thread to share my opinion since I own a few different brands including dvc and my relatives own a lot of mvc so have affiliated experience there. Clearly you are all loyal mvc owners which is great. My point was that you will see that dvc owners will benefit more from the II exchange than you all will be able to get into dvc. But since Disney is sub par to Marriott lol then there shouldn’t be any issues. Stay in your Marriott and enjoy!!!!

My question is why do you care ? What difference does it make ? Is your debate here going to change any minds ? Give it a rest.

 

[mdurette]

We heard from some people staying on lower floors that they had problems with “real” mice.

Ha Ha, that took me a minute to get. I was like fake mice???? Huh, then it dawned on me.

 

[mdurette]

This has been really entertaining guys. Came on this thread to share my opinion since I own a few different brands including dvc and my relatives own a lot of mvc so have affiliated experience there. Clearly you are all loyal mvc owners which is great. My point was that you will see that dvc owners will benefit more from the II exchange than you all will be able to get into dvc. But since Disney is sub par to Marriott lol then there shouldn’t be any issues. Stay in your Marriott and enjoy!!!!

In general, we are usually a very welcoming bunch of people. But, I think the underlying issue here for the most part, we are all very seasoned in the Timeshare (not hotel, but timeshare) industry and some of your posts didn't referance the actual exchange or TS topic. You reference internatl DVC exchanging and the Marriott brand (not MVC). When there is misinformation, we will correct it.

In the end, like someone else mentioned, we will all like what we like for our own person reasons. It doesn't make it right or wrong. We will all go on vacations and stay in properties with or without the mouse hanging around and enjoy our time.

 

[mdurette]

Having been to both resorts as owners and exchangers at both resorts we prefer MKO. Now we might be a little jaded as we stay here full time. We have had the lucky opportunity to stay for 3 months straight a few years ago at Aulani. The $190 a week fee irritated me as an owner of Aulani points.
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Holy Moly, 3 MONTHS! Dang, good for you

 

[Quadmaniac]

Holy Moly, 3 MONTHS! Dang, good for you

Frank is our power owner, I am utterly amazed by how many he has and been able to know the ins/outs of the systems to get such great value out of timeshares no matter the brand. I always enjoy talking timeshares with him in Ko Olina as he is such a wealth of knowledge!