Anyone ever upgraded to a villa at Aulani once you get there?

[jjgarv]

We have a dedicated 2BDR reserved at Aulani in March, and was wondering if anyone has ever been upgraded to a Villa either by Aulani based on space or paid for an upgrade at check-in?
Thanks for any insight!

 

[dianeschlicht]

We have a dedicated 2BDR reserved at Aulani in March, and was wondering if anyone has ever been upgraded to a Villa either by Aulani based on space or paid for an upgrade at check-in?
Thanks for any insight!

There are no paid upgrades through DVC. What are you wanting to upgrade to...a Grand villa? That isn't likely to even be available at check in if it isn't available before.

 

[eva]

Even if a grand villa is available (almost no chance of that) at check in, DVC seems to have a policy of no upgrades. The only time I have heard of an upgrade is if rooms are taken out of inventory due to damage and such. That would mean that absolutely no 2 bedrooms are available the day you arrive. Happens only rarely because most damages can be corrected during the day. If you are hoping for a grand villa, you probably should just go ahead and book it.

 

[crisi]

Even if a grand villa is available (almost no chance of that) at check in, DVC seems to have a policy of no upgrades. The only time I have heard of an upgrade is if rooms are taken out of inventory due to damage and such. That would mean that absolutely no 2 bedrooms are available the day you arrive. Happens only rarely because most damages can be corrected during the day. If you are hoping for a grand villa, you probably should just go ahead and book it.

And when they do tend to upgrade, they tend to upgrade someone with a very short stay - most of the upgrades we've heard about are one night before a cruise types.

 

[jjgarv]

Has anyone, upon checking in, and with availability, paid for an upgrade at Aulani?
We are fine with our 2 BDR, but interested to know if anyone had ever opted for an upgrade when available...or if it's even possible.
It happens every DCl cruise.

 

[eva]

And when they do tend to upgrade, they tend to upgrade someone with a very short stay - most of the upgrades we've heard about are one night before a cruise types.

Good observation. Bet you are correct. There would be no reason to upgrade someone for more than a night or two.

 

[chalee94]

Has anyone, upon checking in, and with availability, paid for an upgrade at Aulani?
We are fine with our 2 BDR, but interested to know if anyone had ever opted for an upgrade when available...or if it's even possible.
It happens every DCl cruise.

timeshares are different animals than cruises. also very different from a regular hotel.

paid upgrades (part points/part cash) are not an option. upgrades, in general, don't happen with timeshares, even if they have the availability to do so. (in the rare cases they happen, it's because they are forced to by maintenance issues.)

 

[eva]

Has anyone, upon checking in, and with availability, paid for an upgrade at Aulani?
We are fine with our 2 BDR, but interested to know if anyone had ever opted for an upgrade when available...or if it's even possible.
It happens every DCl cruise.

You can not pay for an upgrade when using points. You can't even do that when using reservation points at a WDW non-DVC resort. We tried at YC awhile back. We wanted a water view or concierge, but didn't have quite enough points for the whole trip. So we booked a standard view and thought we would see about paying for an upgrade at check in. Unfortunately this is not allowed at all, even at a regular WDW hotel. I knew DVC resorts wouldn't do it, but I had no idea till we checked in at YC that you can't do it with any resort stay. Now you can pay for a cash upgrade through DCL, but only at check in.

 

[crisi]

Cash and points don't mix for the same room for the same night - not ever.

 

[DenLo]

When we were at Aulani in September we met an Aulani DVC Owner who said they received a free upgrade for their entire two week stay to a 2 BR OV. I didn't ask details as to what she had reserved.