AKL waitlist question

[Tammylyne]

I currently have animal Kingdom Kidani Village standard studio booked from April 27 to May 1
May 2 has been waitlisted so the person I brought the points from put me at OKW
My question is in your experience as this is my first time being waitlisted,
1. what are the chance of that waitlist opening up for that one night that I need
2. Usually, how far in advance do waitlist open up.
Thank you for any help

 

[thanxfornoticin]

To clarify, you have an AKLK studio 4/27-5/1, and now an OKW studio for 5/2? You've waitlisted the OKW room on 5/2 for 1 night of AKLK studio? If so, I'd perhaps give you a 50-50 chance (complete guess, though). The fact that you're only looking for 1 night, it probably improves your chances. Do you have savanna view? Those might come open sooner because they cost more points.

Now, on the other hand, the Kidani refurb should be finishing up right about then, so it's not out of the question they are more popular than usual and a waitlist might not come through. I would highly recommend checking for AKLK availability for 5/2 on the DVC site -frequently. Several times i found the room I wanted prior to a waitlist notification. And just because the room was shown as available for me doesn't mean I was next on the waitlist queue! I expect many people do waitlists. But look frequently, and you might get lucky.

Cancellations tend to happen prior to 31 days out because of the points going into Holding if they are cancelled later. If you do get the extra night at AKLK, be sure to contact MS to have the 2 reservations merged into one, so you don't have to change rooms. Sometimes that happens automatically, but we've found we had to ask directly to be sure. Good luck!

 

[sndral]

When you say ‘the person I bought the points from’ do you mean that you rented points from a person who owns DVC for this stay?
There’s no way to predict whether a waitlist will fill & when. In your favor - it’s only one night. However, it’s only 4 months out, it’s for a studio which are the most in demand villa size, & Kidani should be wrapping up their refurb around then so inventory is likely lower than normal but- if they finish early, maybe there’ll be more inventory released .
Usually if I’m waitlisting I’ll also stalk the DVC booking site several times a day because not all villas get grabbed by the waitlist which is an advantage an owner booking their own reservation has.

 

[Sandisw]

All depends on if someone else decided to cancel that night.

So, there is no set timeline. The great thing is it’s one night which increases the odds quite a bit

 

[kevtlas]

I’ve always had luck with waitlisting, especially for just one night. Mine have cleared months out all the way up to a month before.

 

[Mirabell Rose]

When the person you are renting from did the waitlist, they had to select if they wanted the waitlist to end 30 days before your date or all the way up to the date of the stay. Do you know which they chose? If they chose 30 days you will know whether or not you got your waitlist at that mark.

If you are not a DVC member and just renting, you will not be able to stalk (aka frequently check) for an open room and modify the reservation yourself. You will also need them to request a reservation merge if you get your last night at AKV.

Unfortunately your night is a weekend night. Weekends are more in demand. As another poster noted, though, one night is usually more successful than multiple nights. But if you end up having the last night at OKW, it will give you a chance to visit a different resort which can also be fun.