7 month window is not imposible

[DebbieB]

Yes it is nice for me. My (our) MF's pay their salaries and if they (DVC customer satisfaction team) want to do something nice for a member then that is great for all of us. Priority waitlist is nothing that they pulled out of the air to apease me. Perhaps this is just the first time that you have heard of it. I am sure many members have been assisted by this team and that is another perk of our memberships. With all the dwindling DVC perks it seems unusual to hear a member complaining about someone else receiving one.

How would you feel if the shoe was on the other foot? Say next year you could not get the room you wanted and have been on the waitlist for 3 or 4 months. Then you find out a new member was placed on the list ahead of you and got the room. Would you call it a "nice member perk"? That room did not come out of the clear blue sky, it was potentially taken away from someone else.

 

[dizfan]

Thaks for the advice.
This was the very first call I have ever made to MS so I don't know much about waitlisting. The MS guy said that my dates had to be "exact matches" or it wouldn't work out. Not sure if I should take the end, middle or beginning?
Just very sad right now and unsure of even continuing with the paperwork to join.

Call your guide right away and tell them you want a BLT reservation or you aren't going to join. Disney has some rooms at BLT (because it's not sold out). Your guide may be able to work a little magic with Disney to get you a room using the non-DVC available inventory.

When we joined, we had our guide try to get us a reservation. Our guide was able to get us a reservation at BLT. He couldn't get MK view, but was able to get us Lake View.

 

[eyeheartgoofy]

We have had success with the 7 month window as well.

I was able to book 10 nights in a 1 bedroom at AKV-Jambo in a standard room for August this year (which is exactly what I wanted) at 7 months.

We were able to get 6 nights in a studio at BWV in April 2009 (week before Easter) by calling at the 7 month mark. Granted, it wasn't a Boardwalk view or a standard view, but we weren't expecting that to be open.

Our very first DVC stay was 3 nights in a studio (Sun-Wed) at VWL in January of 2006 ... we rented points and booked about 8 weeks out. The member we rented from was definately surprised when VWL had availability. Maybe we just have good luck.

 

[disneynutz]

What does this mean? More inventory? Are they not letting all of the rooms book even though they are available and sitting empty?

Only a portion of the resort is available for sale. Last I read it was about 60%. That means that 40% of the resort is rented for cash by Disney and not available to DVC Members using points.

Bill

 

[DebbieB]

Only a portion of the resort is available for sale. Last I read it was about 60%. That means that 40% of the resort is rented for cash by Disney and not available to DVC Members using points.

Bill

Only a portion of the resort points have been sold to date. As more points are sold, rooms are moved from DVC Developer Inventory over to Member inventory. So the Member number will keep going up. When the resort is soldout, the developer still retains 3%-5% as specified in the contract.

 

[pinnocchiosdad]

How would you feel if the shoe was on the other foot? Say next year you could not get the room you wanted and have been on the waitlist for 3 or 4 months. Then you find out a new member was placed on the list ahead of you and got the room. Would you call it a "nice member perk"? That room did not come out of the clear blue sky, it was potentially taken away from someone else.

You are right. This does not sound fair. But DVC has given me a priority waitlist and I appreciate it. I am not going to tell them to put me at the bottom of the list. They didn't invent this practice for me. But they offered it and I gratefuly thanked then for it. Perhaps they re-examine the system of priority waitlists. I have also heard of DVC guides pulling reservations out of thin air at booked resorts to make a contingent sale. So I am sure there is much mmunipulation of the reservation system that we do not know about.

 

[cg1200]

I've had mixed luck at the 7 month window. I was able to get a 1BR at BLT for a Nov 2009 trip after switching from a BWV 1BR. But two years ago we could not get a 2BR room at BWV during President's week. And last year we had to pay cash for 1 night at VWL for a 2BR over MLK weekend.

If you don't mind SSR or OKW, I don't think those places ever fill up completely. They always have availability whenever I call at 7 months. BCV, BWV and VWL are sometimes very tight given how small they are.

It's all the luck of the draw. Makes it very exciting doesn't it?? Makes me glad I own at my two favorite resorts so I don't have to deal with this anymore...

 

[dsneygirl]

We usually travel in off season and have rarely had a problem with the 7 month (only early Dec) we booked BLT for March only 5 months out.

 

[crisi]

I don't know anyone who says the seven month window is impossible. There are more and less likely scenarios - September at OKW, no problem. BWV Grand Villa on New Years Eve - wow, were you lucky. And some people are willing to work with a waitlist, other people don't want to deal with the stress or uncertainty.

Even the eleven month window is not a sure thing - people have been frozen out of VAKL Conceirge rooms or those NYE BWV Grand Villas calling at eleven months.

 

[Slakk]

How would you feel if the shoe was on the other foot? Say next year you could not get the room you wanted and have been on the waitlist for 3 or 4 months. Then you find out a new member was placed on the list ahead of you and got the room. Would you call it a "nice member perk"? That room did not come out of the clear blue sky, it was potentially taken away from someone else.

I can tell you how I felt when a top floor MK 1 BR was given to a potential DVCer (scheduled to tour) instead of her CRO studio Lake View when I reserved 2 minutes after reservations opened for BLT. I got the worst MK View 18K can buy...4th floor on the side.

I sold my points. I was that ticked off.

 

[katiegel]

Here's a question (since you all seem way more knowledgeable then I am!): the 7 mo window..is it 7 mo from the MONTH or the DATE you want to check in?

Thx.

 

[Sammie]

The date.

 

[mikron]

We booked a 2 BR AKV room at the 11 month window for 8/10 to ensure we had a reservation. I called this morning (7 month mark) and cancelled AKV and booked 2 BR at BCV. The 7 month window is not imposible. We have always gotten what we wanted (have waitlisted several times, but they always came through).

I think if you are willing to take 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th resort choices you can get 7 month reservations 99% of the time. 11 month is best if you refuse to reserve anywere but your first choice. OKW & SSR with the number of units they have over say BC, BW WL etc. you can get reservation at 7 months.

 

[cg1200]

I think if you are willing to take 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th resort choices you can get 7 month reservations 99% of the time. 11 month is best if you refuse to reserve anywere but your first choice. OKW & SSR with the number of units they have over say BC, BW WL etc. you can get reservation at 7 months.

Agree 100%. SSR is almost always available even well within the 7 month window.

 

[BelleDVC]

How hard do you think it will be to get Hawaii at 7 months....?

I'd like to go, but can't afford to get more points.

Belle

 

[crisi]

How hard do you think it will be to get Hawaii at 7 months....?

I'd like to go, but can't afford to get more points.

Belle

Just a guess....in the summer, not hard at all. Over Christmas or Spring Break, probably very hard.

 

[dizfan]

How hard do you think it will be to get Hawaii at 7 months....?

I'd like to go, but can't afford to get more points.

Belle

Assuming they have the same rules for Hawaii that they do for Florida, it will be easier to book before the resort is sold out.
At the Florida DVC's they declare a bunch of units and then sell points for those units. At BLT, they have declared 15+ units but it may take a couple months before they sell points in the unit.

When a unit is declared, existing DVC members have more rooms that they can book at a resort.

February may be very popular because of the whale migration in Hawaii.