Archive for January, 2009

Update on Disney Vacation Club with Shontell Crawford

Wednesday, January 21st, 2009

 

Our ownership in the Disney Vacation Club (DVC) gave us many fun family vacations.  We started our email discussion dvctalk in 1998 - a list that has grown to over 4,000 subscribers.  We recently caught up with our dvctalk list sponsor and DVC Resale broker, Shontell Crawford, to get the latest on the resale market and DVC.

 FamilyTravelGurus: With the downturn of the economy do you see prices of DVC resales affected?  Are resales selling on average for less now than they were a few months ago?

Resales prices have been slightly affected by the economy and are averaging a little less than they were 6 months ago but not as significantly as one might expect.  Thanks to Disney’s right of first refusal, the value remains in each property.  The properties that expire in 2042 are beginning to drop slightly as their time of expiration nears, yet supply and demand still prevail.  Beach Club Villas continues to sell in the high $80s (per point) while Saratoga Springs is now selling in the high to mid 70s.  I believe the size of the resorts continues to dictate the value of these properties as much as anything.  Wilderness and Beach Club have fewer units while Saratoga and OKW have the most units and will therefore be more readily available, leading to less demand and lower cost.

FamilyTravelGurus: For what DVC resorts do you have resales currently available?  What resort(s) have the most number of resales available?

We currently have all the DVC resorts available with the exception of the yet to open but much anticipated, Bay Lake Towers.  We have a few Animal Kingdom Villas and Beach Club Villas, Wilderness Lodge, Boardwalk, Vero Beach, Hilton Head and quite a few Old Key West and Saratoga Springs.
 

FamilyTravelGurus: What do you hear about the new DVC properties planned? 
 
From what I understand, they have broken ground on the Hawaii property but have yet to begin sales.  The Hawaiian culture is very particular about the way the islands are developed and I don’t expect things to happen overnight on that project.   Bay Lake Towers first sales began on the DVC cruise last October and are going very well from what I understand.  They actually implemented a price increase last week.  I was told reservations will be taken in March of this year and occupancy will begin in September.  

The other additions will be the California DVC which all my West Coast friends are anxious to own and the Saratoga Springs Treehouses.  The previous treehouses were loved by so many that I wouldn’t be surprised if the demand for those is quite high!
 
FamilyTravelGurus: Anything else new with DVC?

Yes!  As of January 1, 2009 Interval International is no longer the exchange company through which DVC is conducting their exchanges.  In it’s place, veteran RCI (Resort Condominiums International) is now the exchange company.  There are many unofficial rumors as to why the change took place, namely the fact that RCI is better equipped to support daily or short weekend exchanges than its predecessor.  I’m still learning the details as to how the change will affect future exchange opportunities. It is exciting!

FamilyTravelGurus: What’s the best way for people to get in touch with you if they are interested in DVC Resales?

I’m available anytime through the “contact us” link on my website  For detailed questions it is probably best to give me a call at 1-800-844-4099 Ext 1.  I’ll be happy to answer any questions about the resale process, how the DVC works or questions on our current listings.

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Alaska Crab

Sunday, January 11th, 2009

 

snapshot 

 “The Bering Sea Crab Fisherman’s Tour in Ketchikan was by far our favorite Alaska cruise excursion and we will go back time and time again to experience it.  We were able to see whales, seals, eagles, red king crab, snow crab and rock crab.  All the crab was caught in sovereign waters and therefore had to go back in, but they were brought on board for people to see up close.”

Thanks to Michele and Paul from Illinois for this photo story.

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Interview with Dave Lukinuk - a Disney antenna topper collector

Saturday, January 3rd, 2009

topper2by Tim Larison

In our travel business we get a chance to meet lots of interesting people.  Recently I talked to Dave Lukinuk of Victoria BC about his Antenna Topper Collection.  Dave says he has 2500 to 3000 “toppers” in his collection with many from Disney.

 FamilyTravelGurus: How did you get interested in collecting Disney antenna toppers?

I’ve been collecting all types of antenna toppers for several years, at first just picking up the odd one here and there, and usually grabbing a couple when we went to Disneyland. After a while I ended up with a couple of dozen different toppers stuffed into drawers and boxes at home and work. One day I was trying to clean up a bit, so I took all that I had, and stuck them all on crude display rack that I made, and I would then add new ones to it from time to time.

About four years ago, again while at Disneyland, I decided to buy any topper I could see that I didn’t already have. I ended up with about two dozen “new” Disney ones, and I figured I must now have “all” of them, until an employee asked “Do you have the Turkey Mickey?” No, I sure didn’t, so the hunt was on. This was at Christmas time, but try as I might, I never found one.
 
So, the next year I tried again, found lots of new ones, but still no Turkey. To make matters worse, we took a shortcut through the Disney “Cast Member” parking lot, and there were Disney toppers galore, most of which I had never seen before. Welcome to the world of “Cast Member Exclusives”. I knew right then that there was a lot more toppers out there than I had imagined, and wondered if there was somewhere I could find them all.
 
Eventually I entered into the world of eBay to see if there might be one or two toppers for sale there.
 
Several hundred toppers later, (not to mention several $$$ later) I have somewhere in the neighbourhood of 2500-3000 (not counting the hundreds of duplicates) in my entire collection, . Many are from Jack-In-The-Box, Union 76, fast food and automotive related, but I am mainly focused now on the Disney collection.  By the way, I did eventually get the Turkey Mickey, both versions.

 

FamilyTravelGurus: How many toppers do you have in your Disney collection and how many more do you need to complete it?

 

I have a “checklist” of all the different variations that was originally created by another collector. Myself and several others provide her with new information as we discover it to keep the list up to date. Of the 560+ different versions that we know of, I have managed to get all but 21, most of which are very early releases and limited editions. One of the harder to locate toppers was the College of Disney Knowledge Graduate Mickey that I recently received thanks to you, Tim.

 

FamilyTravelGurus: We were glad to help!  Does Disney still make antenna toppers since most cars no longer have antennas?

 

Yes, they sure do! Disneyland and Walt Disney World usually put out an average of a dozen or so of their own unique versions every year. They usually correspond to seasonal events, but sometimes are just certain Disney characters, or are themed and released to promote a new Disney movie.

 

FamilyTravelGurus: What is the rarest Disney topper to get?

 

The single white ball (pictured above) is the very first Disney topper ever produced, released in 1991 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of WDW. It is undoubtedly the most sought after, and although the owner let me hold it, I do not have one of my own…….yet.

 

FamilyTravelGurus: If people are interested in more information on this hobby where should they go?

 

The website http://ballcollection.com/ is a helpful guide to get started.
 
The host, JJ Johnson, is the owner of that WDW 20 “Magical Years” topper, and he brought it (and several others) to a Disney antenna topper “mini-convention” I helped to arrange in Anaheim last year.

 

(The photo below) is a pretty good cross section of my whole collection. 

 

FamilyTravelGurus:  Thanks Dave for providing us a glimpse into this interesting hobby!
  topper11

 

 

 

 

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