Availability at 7 Months

[sbarisch]

Hello everyone! First of all, a thank you in advance for any and all assistance, info, and advice.

My family has been traveling to WDW for many years now, averaging once a year early and more recently twice a year until the pandemic cancelled our most recent trip. We're now considering purchasing resale DVC. I've done quite a bit of research and have really appreciated all of the great threads and info on the boards and on the dis. My question here is what has availability been like at the 7 month mark, both at WDW and at the other resorts - specifically the Grand Californian - for studios or hotel rooms, not villas. There are only 3 of us and to make our points stretch, we would likely be looking for studios 95% of the time.

I understand the "buy where you want to stay" logic, and am looking at 1 or more contracts that would allow us to do just that. However, we like to try new resorts and change up where we stay, so I'd like to get a sense of just how flexible this may be.

I know no one can predict the future, but I do anticipate that once the pandemic passes, WDW will be bustling again in good time.

Thank you!!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

7 month availability at VGC is very bad, especially for studios. You can occasionally get lucky, but your odds there are extremely bad.

Using points for hotel rooms is not recommended, generally. You can only use direct points for hotel rooms, and often they cannot be booked with a lot of lead time. Points charts for the DLR Disney Collection Hotels is here: https://cdn4.parksmedia.wdprapps.di...scharts/2020/2020-dlr-pt-cht-final-080619.pdf

So if you want VGC, owning VGC and using home resort is the best bet. Resale cannot book VGC hotel rooms, PP or Disneyland Hotel.

 

[sbarisch]

7 month availability at VGC is very bad, especially for studios. You can occasionally get lucky, but your odds there are extremely bad.

Using points for hotel rooms is not recommended, generally. You can only use direct points for hotel rooms, and often they cannot be booked with a lot of lead time. Points charts for the DLR Disney Collection Hotels is here: https://cdn4.parksmedia.wdprapps.di...scharts/2020/2020-dlr-pt-cht-final-080619.pdf

So if you want VGC, owning VGC and using home resort is the best bet. Resale cannot book VGC hotel rooms, PP or Disneyland Hotel.

Thanks, that's disappointing but good to know. I'm only looking at a trip or two to Disneyland, so it would be nice to be able to get a room on points, but not a deal-breaker.

By hotel rooms, I really meant that I'm not in need of villas with bedrooms. I do get that actual hotel rooms at non-DVC aren't a good deal and for direct contracts only.

Is the ability to book studios 7 months out at WDW, Hilton Head, or Vero Beach better?

 

[ngl]

We have been DVC members for 10 years. Live in FL about 1 hr from WDW. Bought at BLT originally. Then bought into VB a few years later as we love going there each summer and wanted to ensure we could get a 3 bedroom cottage (only 6 of those). Have stayed at every DVC resort now except HHI and (hopefully!) will staying there in Aug. We have booked Aulani at the 7 month mark (2x and at Easter week both times - booked multiple units for family) and went to VGC once in early June which isn't high season but had no issue at the 7 month mark. But we generally get 2 bedrooms and not studios. HHI is tough in the summer but have been able to cobble together nights after waitlisting. Maybe we are just lucky but as long as I am ready on day 1 of the 7 month mark we haven't been shut out anywhere.

 

[CastAStone]

Thanks, that's disappointing but good to know. I'm only looking at a trip or two to Disneyland, so it would be nice to be able to get a room on points, but not a deal-breaker.

By hotel rooms, I really meant that I'm not in need of villas with bedrooms. I do get that actual hotel rooms at non-DVC aren't a good deal and for direct contracts only.

Is the ability to book studios 7 months out at WDW, Hilton Head, or Vero Beach better?

It not that hard to book a studio at Hilton Head when it’s cold!

With the parks closed for 4 months everyone has 4 extra months of points, plus right now people still are staying away, further increasing the number of points waiting to be used. This will cause availability to get tighter that it has been. The thing is, nobody knows to what extent it will get tighter, because this is unprecedented. It might not get much worse or it might become impossible to switch to anywhere but SSR.

But no matter what happens, it will probably still be pretty easy to book at Hilton Head when it’s cold. Except at Christmas.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Is the ability to book studios 7 months out at WDW, Hilton Head, or Vero Beach better?

This is a historic view but fairly good to set expectations. The cheapest units and most popular resorts go first. Fall is a slugfest and home resort is critical.

I would say these charts should be viewed as the most optimistic availability.

https://www.disboards.com/threads/p...-bd-charts-september-2019-2-bd-added.3689931/

 

[Heather07438]

Generally the hardest categories are Studios (especially standard) and Fall into the holidays. The easiest studios are SSR/OKW followed by AKL/Poly. Poly is almost all studios so that helps availability at 7 months.

We were considering resale too and figured the best 7m strategy is having an assortment of resorts in mind. You may get lucky and find standard studios but more often only preferred views are left (more points). A split stay is another strategy to work, or bumping up to a 1BR since they have good 7m availability. Fall is a challenge, popular with DVC crowd for all the seasonal WDW activities and a relatively lower point season. Hardest to find a specific room, better to keep a few options in mind.

You never know. People find great rooms at 7 months all the time. Be ready when your date arrives Hope for the best, plan for the worst.

Covid impacts, who knows? 2-3m availability might be better than 7m for a while which is new with this era of uncertainty as people wait closer to their trip to cancel. Once things start returning to normal, a bunch of cancelled trip points will be competing. The 50th might have slim 7m pickings but really that would be goods news, because that would mean the life and society has rebounded.

 

[Deb & Bill]

I had a studio booked for early Dec 2019 in January 2019. I had to cancel because we didn't think we would be able to go. Luckily it worked out for us to go, so I went to rebook that same stay in early April, nine months out. Couldn't get a studio for two nights together at OKW. Booked the one night I could get and waitlisted the other two nights separately (bookend nights: we own at OKW and were using OKW points). I stalked the RAT for months trying to get those two nights. Finally about six months out, the first night came through (so I now had two nights in a row). About another week or two later, the last night popped up from the waitlist.

So I am saying don't plan on even getting OKW studios at seven months out some times during the Fall Frenzy.