7-month switching resorts

[lucyem]

This is my stupid question of the day so please bear with me.

Friday is my 7 month window for our april trip. I have our home resort bcv reserved for the week following easter. Busy busy time.
I want to try and get vwl the whole or at least part of the week to be near friends staying there.

What is my best plan of action?

I am expecting to keep checking daily and add one day at a time as they come up.
If i go online and reserve a day will it automatically cancel the bcv reservation For that day? Can i tell the system to?
Or do i need to call?
I get paranoid if i have to cancel the bcv reservation to make it shorter, because it is a busy time i could lose the days i have there while they rebook the shorter stay.

Usually we either stay at our home resort or switch to kidani which has more availability. Also we have never switched during
Such a busy time of year.

Thanks for any advice!

 

[Msmithmd]

You do not have to book one day at a time. You can book the full trip on the seven month window from your start date. The system will not cancel your BCV reservation day by day, just all or none. To drop days you have to call a live CM at MS. But again, no reason to do it day by day.

There are three options. One is to cancel the current res at 8 am and book the desired res online. This gets ahead of the people that will do it at 9 am via a member services call, but also risks losing your current reservation and having the availability at the desired location disappear before you book. Small but non zero risk. Obviously you'd have checked to make sure all your dates were available by a search before you cancelled your existing reservation. But it could theoretically sell out in the minute or two between cancel and book. Again, small risk.

Second option is to borrow points from next use year to book the desired reservation, then cancel current reservation and bank those points into the next year to use then. Downside here is hopefully obvious in regards to next years flexibility on points.

Third option is to wait until 9am and do the trade on a phone call to MS where (some) CM's have the ability to hold the desired reservation for you while they cancel the existing reservation. No risk of ending up without a room, no need to use next years points. But moderate chance your desired lodging will have already booked up between 8-9a with people using option (1) above.

It isn't a perfect system. But it works for most members, most of the time.

 

[drusba]

If you need to use points in current reservation, safest course is, as noted above, calling at nine and do the switch while MS holds the new reservation while cancelling the first. Make sure you ask them to do that hold when making the switch.

As to chances for getting a room at VWL, they are likely high. Contrary to want many may believe the week before and of Easter are not very high DVC demand times (lower than all of October, a high DVC demand time) and for Easter time in 2013, VWL was open at 7 months out, and thus far it has been open for Easter time in 2014.

 

[simbasmom2]

Great info everyone, thanks. I was wondering this too!

 

[lucyem]

We have no spare points, already borrowing just to get a studio because of the Easter high points.

I guess I will check online at 8 and if the whole time period is open I will make the switch. Otherwise I will call at 9.

Thanks!

 

[lucyem]

As to chances for getting a room at VWL, they are likely high. Contrary to want many may believe the week before and of Easter are not very high DVC demand times (lower than all of October, a high DVC demand time) and for Easter time in 2013, VWL was open at 7 months out, and thus far it has been open for Easter time in 2014.

You are right. I kept checking the past few days and the studio at VWL was there. This morning at 8am I canceled our BCV and reserved VWL.

Now I have 5 borrowed points I have to use by May 31st. I might have to rent a few more and add a day to my April trip

 

[drusba]

For those curious for future reference, here is how easy it can be to get Easter week:

Today, Sep 23, is four days into the 7 month reservation window for the week that begins with Easter, April 20-27, 2014. At WDW everything is still open for the entire week except for the following which have some days during the week full: BLT standard view, BWV standard view studio and 2BR (1BR open), AKV club level and value, OKW GVs at the Hospitality House, VGF standard studios.

At non-WDW resorts, everything is still open for the entire week except the following: Aulani 1BRs, 2BRs, and GVs that are standard view (standard studio and all other view categories for all rooms are still open); VGC missing only the night of April 20 in a GV; VB missing only 3BR Cottages; Hilton head is the only one with real issues where all room categories are missing some nights. Hilton Head happens to be the only DVC resort that does not treat Easter as high point premier season.

 

[dwight16]

i get kids are off but who would want to spend like 30% more in points to go that week and deal with all the people. i plan on going May3rd will be my second trip in may and it seems that you can get into all the hotels at the 7th month window

 

[lucyem]

i get kids are off but who would want to spend like 30% more in points to go that week and deal with all the people. i plan on going May3rd will be my second trip in may and it seems that you can get into all the hotels at the 7th month window

No one does, but kids are off of school so there is little choice. Most years that week in april is great.