I am DVC member and we never purchased travel insurance option from Disney but I am not sure how it works through David's rentals.

I wanted to offer some tips on ways to save money on dining if you are not on meal plan. Consider breakfast vs. lunch or dinner for character dining. The price is much lower and for many places, you get the same characters (e. g., Crystal Palace at MK with Winnie the Pooh characters). For AK consider Tusker House. For adults who are smaller eaters, you can get by with kids' meals for quick service restaurants. You get entree plus 2 sides and a beverage for $5.99 on average. Resort mug not worth it unless you plan on staying at the resort a lot to use the pools. Cost is $16.99 per person for mug good for length of stay.

OP back - wanted to thank the PPs. I upgraded our stay to Animal Kingdom villa using points through David's. I am thrilled & so is my husband (balcony, kitchen, separate space for the kids). DD is now talking about seeing giraffes and princesses at Disney World. This might have been my most helpful tip ever from DCUM.

If I can sneak in one more question for those of you who have been down this path - travel insurance, is it worth it, worth it to upgrade to the "cancel for any reason"? When I run the quote - do I assign the total amount to me, or split it amongst my family members? THANKS!!!

We rented points to stay in a suite at the Animal Kingdom our first trip (ages 4 and 2) and it was great! I think we used David's point rental or something like that. So long as your travel plans are firm, it's a great option. The second time we went for a long weekend and stayed at the Art of Animation resort. They have almost all suites and the rooms are themed like movies (Cars, Lion King, Little Mermaid) - each suite has two bathrooms and two beds in the living area for the kids. My kids LOVED the room, and it worked really well for a family of four.

OP again - doing some searching on DVC aftermarket points (including looking at some of the threads here).

OP back - thank you to the PPs for some great thoughts! I'm incredibly appreciative.

I'm definitely interested in looking at a different property - how does one find DVC points aftermarket and (other than getting the Disney credit card) what would be the best way to book a hotel at a discounted rate? My husband would be thrilled if I could get us a room with a balcony just due to the nap/sleep situation of a baby & toddler.

I'll check out the touring plans and the unofficial guide as well. My biggest hesitation/question was around the resort and I think I've got some good info to go on - now to figure out a cost effective way to improve our situation

Anonymous wrote:Being a Disney Visa cardholder gives you a little leg up on the discounts -- you can snag the 30%-40% rooms a week before the general public, plus get advance notice. Sometimes you can get a promotion that you'll get a $200 Disney gift card when you sign up too.

I like being in a resort that's walkable to at least one park. That isn't possible with anything but deluxe resorts, unfortunately.

If you buy DVC points aftermarket, you can stay at the Boardwalk or Beach Club (walkable to Epcot and HS) for ~1,300

Being a Disney Visa cardholder gives you a little leg up on the discounts -- you can snag the 30%-40% rooms a week before the general public, plus get advance notice. Sometimes you can get a promotion that you'll get a $200 Disney gift card when you sign up too.

I like being in a resort that's walkable to at least one park. That isn't possible with anything but deluxe resorts, unfortunately.

We usually arrive midday to mid afternoon. We do the pool at the resort and then a character meal for dinner our first night. It gets the kids excited about the characters and was a good trial one for little ones who may get a little spooked by the characters the first time. We typically do Chef Mickey's for that meal.

I'm also a big fan of the Unofficial Guide and of touringplans.com, which costs about $14 for a 1 year subscription. They will give you a touring plan for each day based on crowd projections for that day. They also let you enter FP reservations and meal reservations and then adjust your plan around them. If you use the app in the park, it will update your plan in real time based on current wait times.

A few strategies -
Disney hotel rooms will go on sale for about 30% off stated rates.

I would try and stay at a hotel with a balcony as it is much better for naps with young kids.

My last visit I stayed on property using DVC member points that I purchased aftermarket. It was worth it!