Switching resorts at the 7 month mark

[wayno]

I've been a member since 2001, yet I've never tried to make a reservation at my home resort, then at 7 months call and try to switch it to a different resort. I did it this morning though, and it worked. But I have a couple questions about the procedure I was hoping someone here could straighten me out on.

I was amazed when the member service rep told me that she had to cancel my first reservation before I could book the second. It makes much more sense to me that she should be able to check availability and hold that new room (through the duration of our phone call at least) while we cancel the first room. I think this is how ticketmaster for instance operates when you reserve tickets to an event before purchasing them, it pulls them from inventory so no one else can grab them until you've made your decision/purchase. Otherwise it opens up the possibility (remote maybe? I don't know?) that someone else would be able to scoop up your so-called 'available' room at the new resort after you've cancelled the first room before you can reserve the new one. Then the first room would be gobbled up by an automatic waitlist of people looking for that room and leaving me without a reservation? Is this really how the system works?

Has this actually happened to people here or is this just a fluke phenomenon and I'm getting worked up over nothing?

If that is in fact the case, how do others here get around this policy, if at all? Maybe just book both reservations without cancelling the first until the second is confirmed I suppose that would work if you had the points. But it seems excessive.

Let me know if I'm crazy here, or is this an actual concern.

Thanks,
Wayne

 

[spiceycat]

I was amazed when the member service rep told me that she had to cancel my first reservation before I could book the second. It makes much more sense to me that she should be able to check availability and hold that new room (through the duration of our phone call at least) while we cancel the first room.

Wayne that is how it is surpose to work. Sounds like your MS needs to be retrained.

 

[kdepot]

I believe the system will not hold a room without points. If you do not have a lot of points they have to cancel the first to free them up.

 

[spiceycat]

she but it definitely sounds like she cancelled then look at availability.

never had MS do that to me.

they always look first to see what is available - then if necessary cancel - although not sure that is true any longer.

for my SSR reservation - he went out and held the reservation - while he cancelled. had no points to speak of before the cancellation.

 

[LisaS]

I had the same conversation with MS when I switched a couple of nights of my reservation from one resort to another a few months ago. The MS CM warned me that there was a very real possibility that I would end up with nothing. I was already aware of that possibility because it has happened to a couple of people here.

The only workaround I'm aware of is if you have enough points to book the second reservation without cancelling the first reservation. I've seen one report where MS told someone they can hold the new reservation but I haven't seen anyone else confirm that.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

when i've switched resorts at the 7 month mark..they have been able to check availibility and let me know what I wanted was available.....then they did say the same thing....that while they cancel my first reservation the resort she was currently showing as available may disappear leaving me with nothing ...thank goodness it has never happend to me....it does seem as thought there should be a way for ms to hold what they are showing as available for a few minutes so they have a chance to book it with our points

 

[wayno]

For a clarification, she did in fact check availability for me before she cancelled the reservation. In fact she said there was plenty of inventory so it wouldn't be a problem. But it just got me thinking that what if it was Christmas week and I wanted something else and there was only one room available. Depending on how fast the MS person can type it in the computer, you run the risk of being roomless.

So I was wondering if in fact anyone here has ever been a victim of going roomless due to this policy.

Thanks,
Wayne

 

[PrincessPoppy]

This doesn't make much sense to me.

If you have a reservation and then waitlist for another resort, you're not risking losing your first ressie if your waitlist comes through and they change it over.

Why would they have a different policy when they show that rooms ARE available instead of having to put you on a waitlist?

 

[dvc at last !]

This is interesting 'cause I want to do the same thing when my 7 month window arrives in March.

 

[BillPA]

This is just one more reason to own where you want to stay.

 

[LisaS]

This doesn't make much sense to me.

If you have a reservation and then waitlist for another resort, you're not risking losing your first ressie if your waitlist comes through and they change it over.

Why would they have a different policy when they show that rooms ARE available instead of having to put you on a waitlist?

This problem only happens when multiple MS CMs are booking reservations at the same time. If MS processes the wait list after hours (and I suspect that they do) that would eliminate the risk that one MS CM can grab a room that another MS CM was also trying to book.

 

[buzzwoody70]

Just switched form Sartoga to TreeHouseVillas this morning. Wokred like a charm. They checked for availabilty 1st then made new reservation. If that happens again, suggest you thanks them, hang up and try again. you wont get the same person

 

[LisaS]

Just switched form Sartoga to TreeHouseVillas this morning. Wokred like a charm. They checked for availabilty 1st then made new reservation. If that happens again, suggest you thanks them, hang up and try again. you wont get the same person

Are you saying the MS CM was able to hold the new reservation for you before cancelling your SSR reservation? You mentioned they checked for availability but that is not the same thing as holding a reservation (I sound like Seinfeld here).

 

[dudelydude]

Are you saying the MS CM was able to hold the new reservation for you before cancelling your SSR reservation? You mentioned they checked for availability but that is not the same thing as holding a reservation (I sound like Seinfeld here).

Yeah, WHAT'S the deal with MS...they know how to TAKE the reservation...they just don't know how to HOOOOoooooLD the reservation....anyone can just write them ***as he frantically writes into the air*** "Better give me the supplemental insurance cause I am going to beat the hell the out of this villa."

 

[PrincessDuck]

Just a note.....when switching from a room at Saratoga to a Treehouse Villa, you are actually staying within the same resort. They just switch room type and you keep your reservation number.

 

[PrincessPoppy]

This problem only happens when multiple MS CMs are booking reservations at the same time. If MS processes the wait list after hours (and I suspect that they do) that would eliminate the risk that one MS CM can grab a room that another MS CM was also trying to book.

If your theory is true, that means that waitlists are NOT filled the minute rooms open up, but only if they are STILL open at the end of the day.

I don't like this idea, but it might explain a lot of problems with the waitlist.

 

[LisaS]

If your theory is true, that means that waitlists are NOT filled the minute rooms open up, but only if they are STILL open at the end of the day.

I don't like this idea, but it might explain a lot of problems with the waitlist.

CarolMN wrote a great post the other day on how the waitlist works. In that post she said that when nights are freed up due to a cancellation and there are waiting lists for those nights, the nights are set aside in a separate queue. Some time later, MS CMs process the waiting lists, pulling the nights from the queue. So that would explain why this problem doesn't occur when processing the waiting lists -- the nights have already been removed from inventory and can only be used to fulfill waiting lists.

 

[ammo]

I believe the system will not hold a room without points. If you do not have a lot of points they have to cancel the first to free them up.

A follow-up question: Assume that I booked at 11 months using banked points and have enough current-year points to make a new reservation at the 7-month window. Can I:

1. secure the switched reservation at 7 months using current-year points,
2. then cancel the original reservation, and
3. go back and change the points used on the new reservation from current to banked points?

Sorry if this is hard to follow.

 

[wayno]

That's pretty funny as it was going to be my follow up question almost nearly exactly. I was thinking the exact same thing for a trip next fall. I have points right now from my OCT08UY to bank into OCT09UY and make a reservation at my home resort for October to hopefully reserve a room before the 7 month window opens. Then, if I call next month and book a second reservation for the same time at a different resort using OCT09UY points. It would be great to then cancel the first reservation and switch the new reservation to use my Banked Oct08UY points in OCT09UY.

This would solve my initial conundrum of potentially losing the first reservation between the time it's cancelled at the home resort and rebooked at the new resort. Although no one yet has posted that this has actually happened to them, so it's possible that it's a nonissue and I'm getting all worked up over nothing really.

 

[PrincessPoppy]

CarolMN wrote a great post the other day on how the waitlist works. In that post she said that when nights are freed up due to a cancellation and there are waiting lists for those nights, the nights are set aside in a separate queue. Some time later, MS CMs process the waiting lists, pulling the nights from the queue. So that would explain why this problem doesn't occur when processing the waiting lists -- the nights have already been removed from inventory and can only be used to fulfill waiting lists.

Wow -- I thought the process was a lot more automated than that! Maybe that's why some people have success when calling daily within 30 days of check-in -- because there is some human involvement the whole time.