When Is the Toughest Time to Use Your DVC Points?

Unlike traditional timeshares, Disney Vacation Club’s point-based system gives you the flexibility to use your points any time of year. However, room availability is still subject to demand, which makes some times of the year harder to book than others.  Here’s the toughest time of the year to use your DVC points, plus some alternatives if you can’t find availability during that travel period.  

When Is the Most Popular Time to Book a DVC Villa?

The beginning of December is easily the most popular time of year to book a DVC room, which also makes it the most challenging to book. DVC Members love this time of year because you can enjoy the beautiful holiday decorations throughout the resorts and parks, and the points per night for that travel period (December 1-23) are low. Leading up to Christmas, you can visit the gingerbread displays, visit the EPCOT International Festival of the Holidays, or enjoy Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party or Jollywood Nights. Plus, it doesn’t hurt that the weather is cooler and more comfortable that time of year. 

Courtesy of Disney Tourist Blog

With the popularity of early December, rooms can be hard to book, even at the 11-month booking window.  Deluxe Studios in particular can be a challenge at every resort.  Resorts known for their holiday decor, such as Boulder Ridge, Copper Creek, and the Grand Floridian, are especially difficult to book for early December. 

Alternatives to Early December

If You Want to Enjoy Holiday Decorations

If early December is mainly appealing to you for the holiday decorations, the beginning of January is a good time to see them before they are taken down for the season.  The decorations typically stay up until after runDisney Marathon Weekend, which is often the first full week of January. This time period also happens to be the travel period with the second lowest point values.

Beach Club Gingerbread Carousel

If You Are Looking to Save Points

When your main priority is using the lowest number of points for your trip, you can actually book September or early May to save even more points than early December.  September is the cheapest travel period with Deluxe Studios at some resorts starting at 9 points per night.  While early May is not as cheap, the points chart is still low for this travel period.

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