A Concept I Still Cant Quite Understand

[DizMagic]

There are a lot of threads about the availability of DVC resort rooms on points versus cash. I read all of these and I understand that if trading out then those rooms go back into cash inventory. What i cant understand is if that room then doesn't book on cash and someone wants to use their points to stay there - can they? Why or why not?

 

[DebbieB]

There are a lot of threads about the availability of DVC resort rooms on points versus cash. I read all of these and I understand that if trading out then those rooms go back into cash inventory. What i cant understand is if that room then doesn't book on cash and someone wants to use their points to stay there - can they? Why or why not?

There have been some cases posted where someone called member services last minute (within a week) and they were able to get a room pulled over from cash but that is very rare. They really want to get cash reservations for the cash rooms because they are not owned by the members and the owner (DVC) wants the money or they need the cash to cover a trade.

 

[crisi]

It depends on the ownership of the points. There are a number of point pools and how the rooms associated with those points get over to CRO to be available for cash.

When you book a room through RCI, Disney then sends a room equilvent over to RCI to book via an RCI trade - those rooms are now RCIs, if an RCI member books them, and usually they do, if they don't - they are no longer DVC inventory.

Same with if you book something with the Disney collection. Disney gives CRO rooms in trade for your cruise - those rooms are now owned by CRO to try and sell for cash. If they sell them, they are occupied. If not, they can't come back to DVC because they don't belong to members. One of the reason the Disney collection is so expensive is that CRO won't have a 100% booking rate - but those points - and the room associated with them - has been used by a member.

DVD has some inventory they own. Foreclosures and inventory not yet sold. The inventory they haven't sold is what your guide MIGHT use to make some magic on your first booking - but again, members don't own the rooms nights associated with those points, DVD does and they use CRO to broker them to pay their portion of the dues on those points. They also have some maintenance inventory, but we can't access that, nor does CRO, its maintenance.

CRO will have rooms that DVC has turned over as unbooked inventory 60 days out - DVC tries to rent those for cash, and that helps our dues - that inventory is "shared"- DVC can pull it back if it doesn't get booked on cash.

The biggest mystery here is how DVC and CRO decide how to choose rooms and nights to trade over. No one really knows how that is done.

 

[disneynutz]

There are a lot of threads about the availability of DVC resort rooms on points versus cash. I read all of these and I understand that if trading out then those rooms go back into cash inventory. What i cant understand is if that room then doesn't book on cash and someone wants to use their points to stay there - can they? Why or why not?

IMO there is more to it than we are told. People will tell you that the room inventory transfers are due to trades and the 60 day not booked rule. I think that some how Disney makes money off of the deal or getting inventory back to DVC owners wouldn't be so hit or miss. Many MS CM's that I have asked to check the 60 day inventory act like they don't know what I'm talking about, others say that nothing is available even though there is still cash availability.

Another DVC Best Keep Secret, lack of training or both?

Bill

 

[Dean]

There are a lot of threads about the availability of DVC resort rooms on points versus cash. I read all of these and I understand that if trading out then those rooms go back into cash inventory. What i cant understand is if that room then doesn't book on cash and someone wants to use their points to stay there - can they? Why or why not?

IMO understanding and accepting this issue is important to being happy with any timeshare. There are pots of rooms that include:

1. Rooms within DVC that are slated for points only reservations.
2. Rooms that are not yet declared into inventory and are technically not part of DVC at all not really any different than the mixed use properties like BWV or BWI.
3. Rooms secured by points owned by DVD.
4. Rooms secured by points traded out by members for cash options like DCL
5. Rooms traded to RCI
6. Breakage inventory usually 60 days or less but this can be ANTICIPATED by DVC and taken at the 11 month window.

Of those, the only one that's truly available to members is the first one. The last MAY be available at DVC's mercy. The rest will likely sit empty rather than be made available for points usage. On the surface one might say "why not offer those to members" but that could cause more issues than it's worth and ultimately costs Disney money they will not recoup otherwise.

 

[bakerworld]

Called one year a day or two before we were leaving to see if I could get all nights needed at one resort. Member services called the hotel to see if they were willing to give me a night on pts. The Hotel offered me a HA room which we didn't take but MS did try and that's what the hotel portion of the venue was willing to give us using pts.

 

[OneMoreTry]

Called one year a day or two before we were leaving to see if I could get all nights needed at one resort. Member services called the hotel to see if they were willing to give me a night on pts. The Hotel offered me a HA room which we didn't take but MS did try and that's what the hotel portion of the venue was willing to give us using pts.

This would indicate there is at least a little room for flexibility at the hotel level when it comes down to the wire.

 

[Dean]

Called one year a day or two before we were leaving to see if I could get all nights needed at one resort. Member services called the hotel to see if they were willing to give me a night on pts. The Hotel offered me a HA room which we didn't take but MS did try and that's what the hotel portion of the venue was willing to give us using pts.

there has been anecdotal data that they could reclaim breakage inventory at times, no suggestion of other inventory that has been available to members. One system I work with offers cash and member availability to members at 48 days out (93 days for non CONUS). They could do so, they have the choice. I will tell you that with the one above that does offer other access, members plan around that and take advantage of it to the detriment of the club itself.

 

[Deb & Bill]

This would indicate there is at least a little room for flexibility at the hotel level when it comes down to the wire.

But don't forget about the rule of four.

 

[OneMoreTry]

but don't forget about the rule of four.

4?

 

[Deb & Bill]

4?

You can't use your points to book a non-DVC Disney stay during the last four months of your UY for a stay during that same time.

 

[DizMagic]

I guess i ultimately don't understand why Disney / DVC / DVD - whomever would rather the room go empty then let a member book on points. i can understand that they wouldn't be "making money" on the room booked through points, but they would be making money on all the other expenses. i spend a lot in the parks / resorts as im sure many of you do as well!

 

[dmunsil]

I guess i ultimately don't understand why Disney / DVC / DVD - whomever would rather the room go empty then let a member book on points. i can understand that they wouldn't be "making money" on the room booked through points, but they would be making money on all the other expenses. i spend a lot in the parks / resorts as im sure many of you do as well!

Hope springs eternal. Disney is hoping that someone will make a last-minute booking for cash. Sometimes people do. They extend their visit one more day, or they just want to hop down for a day or two. I'm sure Disney knows to the penny how much they make on last-minute stays.

If Disney regularly made rooms available for DVC at the last minute, that would just encourage DVC members to wait until the last minute. That's not so good for Disney. DVC isn't intended to be a good choice for last-minute travelers. Disney has a perfectly good program for them - it's called "cash on the barrelhead."

Some hotels offer screaming deals at the last minute, because an empty hotel room is just lost revenue. So hotels are willing to rent a room for basically the cost of cleaning it. But Disney doesn't play that game, because they know that pricing sends a message, and Disney consistently sends the message, "Our stuff is so good that we don't need to offer big discounts." This is true for Disney hotels, DVDs, merchandise - everything they sell. You never see Disney hotels on Priceline or Hotwire. Why? Because Disney wants people to see a Disney hotel room as uniquely valuable. So it's worth it to them to let hotel rooms go empty even when they could make money via some kind of "last minute deal" newsletter or something.

Also consider that it's not actually free to let a DVC member stay in the room. It costs something. They have to change all the linens and do a full room clean. The air conditioner runs in normal mode rather than energy saver mode. It's got to be at least $50 in costs, I'd think. It's less if a member is just adding a day to an existing reservation, but it's not zero.

 

[Dean]

I guess i ultimately don't understand why Disney / DVC / DVD - whomever would rather the room go empty then let a member book on points. i can understand that they wouldn't be "making money" on the room booked through points, but they would be making money on all the other expenses. i spend a lot in the parks / resorts as im sure many of you do as well!

There are many factors. One is that Disney has a number of divisions which operate independently and thus one's gain is not necessarily seen as a positive for another portion. Another is that those empty rooms can be used for backup, employee stays, maint, etc. Also, no good deed goes unpunished. If they allowed the type of flexibility you suggest, members and others would take advantage of it. Take a timeshare that has 3 or 4 view types ranging from garden view to Ocean Front. If you own Garden View and get OF, why would you buy OF.

Some systems allow cash rental of open rooms short notice, that too can be (and is) taken advantage of. Restaurant.com for several years routinely ran specials of 80% off their starting price during most months and at least once, 90% off. It's been about 3 years since I saw anything lower than 60% off but I still hold off buying any more certificates waiting on the bigger discount. The same is true for many with Disney with Free Dining and discount codes.

 

[crisi]

I guess i ultimately don't understand why Disney / DVC / DVD - whomever would rather the room go empty then let a member book on points. i can understand that they wouldn't be "making money" on the room booked through points, but they would be making money on all the other expenses. i spend a lot in the parks / resorts as im sure many of you do as well!

It isn't that they wouldn't be making money - one division would be stealing money from another division. Since each division has its own P&L, it isn't very likely to happen. Moreover, moving assets between P&Ls creates some issues with fair market value and GAAP for financial reporting purposes which could be flagged in audit, which if not done correctly, could create issues with the SEC.

 

[disneynutz]

I guess i ultimately don't understand why Disney / DVC / DVD - whomever would rather the room go empty then let a member book on points. i can understand that they wouldn't be "making money" on the room booked through points, but they would be making money on all the other expenses. i spend a lot in the parks / resorts as im sure many of you do as well!

The member will book on points, maybe not for this stay but they have to use their points or lose them.

There are many things that go on inside of DVC/DVC that we don't understand. DVC/DVD/Disney monitors these boards and never seems to make change based on the information that they have learned. That tells me that they either have reasons that we don't know about or they don't care to improve the system.

Bill