Walt Disney World is one of the most visited vacation destinations in the whole world and because of that, there is a huge variety of accommodation options on-site and nearby. The most popular option is an official Walt Disney World hotel, which is our preferred way to stay. There are many options across different price ranges to book directly through Disney. Naturally, we enjoy the nicer hotels at WDW but don’t always have the means to stay at those. Thankfully, there is an option for those that want to stay at nicer hotels – Disney timeshare rentals by owner.

Renting DVC points has become a popular route to go for Walt Disney World-goers over the last few years. If you are unaware, DVC stands for Disney Vacation Club. We have a post that details the basics of Disney Vacation Club. In short, there are 14 Disney Vacation Club Resorts – 10 at Disney World Orlando, 1 at Disneyland in Anaheim, CA, Aulani Resort in Hawaii, 1 in Vero Beach, and 1 in Hilton Head, South Carolina. Members buy a yearly allotment of points at a certain resort and then those points go towards booking one of the 14 resorts I’ve listed. Check out our guide for more details.

This all leads to renting DVC points, as members who won’t be able to use their points rent them out to other guests. There are several sites that rent out DVC points, including this site. Renting a Disney timeshare through SellMyTimeshareNow.com is easy. You’ll fill out a form, including where you’d like to stay, how many nights you want to stay, etc. which will be sent directly to a private owner (much like VRBO). The owner will then contact you to discuss price and specifics, once a price is agreed upon, they will book your unit and week in your name and send you a confirmation. By renting through a current owner, you’ll not only save money, but you could even book at a resort that’s currently sold out. Several other sites specialize in renting DVC points and do so in a variety of ways, while still all being fairly similar in the process.

There are several sites and message boards that have owners offering their points directly, with no website as the proverbial middle man. While you may be able to score some savings, tread at your own risk as this can lead to scams and other issues. That may be cause for trepidation and, speaking personally, keeps me sticking to websites that rent out guaranteed points from owners.

The Benefits of Renting DVC Points

We’ve already covered the biggest benefit of renting DVC Points – it’s significantly cheaper. Melissa and I have rented points several times and have saved between $200-$300 a night vs. the rate Disney offered at the exact same hotel. The savings might not always be that high but they will be significant. This is especially appealing to our vacation style, as we have a goal of trying out every Disney World hotel. Frankly, that would be a non-starter if we had to go directly through Disney to do that. The Grand Floridian, Polynesian and Contemporary hotels all have starting points of $400/night or higher if booking through Disney. We won’t pay that for a room. By finding the right deal at the right time with renting vacation points, staying at your dream hotel is far more attainable.

Of course, those comparisons are renting DVC points at a certain hotel vs. Disney rates at that same hotel. Disney World does have value resorts that will typically be cheaper than renting DVC points. For some people, a hotel is just simply a place to sleep in between days at the park. If that’s the case for you, then sticking to those resorts is probably the way to go.

We have mixed feelings about the value resorts that Disney offers and do enjoy spending some time at the hotel during a trip to Walt Disney World. While values are often cheaper than renting points, you won’t be getting nearly the same amount of perks (apartment-style accommodations, amazing on-site amenities, etc) as you would when staying at a DVC resort.

Another benefit of booking a Disney timeshare rental is for those interested in buying their own DVC points, you can try before you buy. Buying a DVC contract is a hefty investment and something that shouldn’t be taken lightly. Renting points can give you a taste of the experience and whether it would be right or wrong for you. Melissa and I own a small DVC contract and we regularly use that and rent points, as they aren’t mutually exclusive.

All in all, we think that renting DVC points is one of the best options for accommodations at Walt Disney World Orlando (or any of the four other DVC resort locations). The cost can be significantly cheaper than booking directly through Disney and you can finally experience that hotel you have always dreamed of staying in. As long as you go through the proper websites (read: don’t get scammed) then there are next to no downsides in going this route.

If you have any questions or thoughts on renting DVC points then please let us know in the comments below! Need tickets to Walt Disney World? You can find them here and if you’re planning a trip then please check out our guide! If you enjoy what you are reading here on Wandering in Disney please share this post with your friends, as well as like our social media pages. You can also subscribe to the blog via WordPress or email. All of those links are on the right side of this page. Thank you for reading, we really appreciate it!