DVC for 21 night stays

[RossK]

We've been thinking about DVC for a while (since our last paid stay at the Poly in October). We really liked both the Poly and AKL. We particularly liked the fact that its possible to stay club level at AKL.

We would always look to vacation at around the same time each year and can easily flex our exact travel dates, but we'd like the bulk of our stay to be in October (so we could check-in anytime around the end of September through to mid-october) and we'd always be looking for 21 nights in a studio.

DVC, on the face of it, seems to make financial sense for us. So my question is:-

1) We are aware there is a tiny amount of club level rooms at AKL (5?); if we book at exactly the 11 month mark, what are our changes likely to be of securing a CL room in October, given we can flex our arrival date?

2) As our stays would be for 21 nights, we are aware you can only book the first week at 11 months out - and we'd need to keep phoning to extend. Does that make 21 consecutive nights in CL extremely unlikely?

Not getting CL wouldn't be the end of the world - but we'd obviously need to buy a contract(s) with enough points for CL (396 vs 348 for a Savannah studio). If its extremely unlikely we'd be able to secure CL for a 3 week period, it probably doesn't make sense buying the additional ~50 points required.

Any insights from existing AKL owners would be very much appreciated!

 

[agie65]

If you have enough AKL pts to get 21 nights, then you should be able to get 21 nights. All you have to do is get the first week as soon as possible then keep calling every 2-3 days to extend your stay. But you have to on computer right at 8 am EST to get the first night. Looks like a fun trip.

 

[disneynutz]

21 nights in the same studio, not for me. 21 nights CL, not for me, not worth the points IMO. After a few nights the novelty wears off and I would be moving to another resort closer to the parks that we like to visit.

Bill

 

[ScubaCat]

I think an individual booking is limited to 14 nights per the master declaration. I don't know how strictly that's enforced having never stayed that long, but you may run into issues trying to book more than 14 nights in one specific room. Maybe someone else can fill in what I don't know here.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

I would caution that buying a contract with an expectation that you will always be able to book AKL Club in October, even with flex on start dates, is likely a recipe for disappointment.

The max number of CL AKL studios is 5; fewer can be available at any given time due to all being part of 2BR lock offs. And depending on other people's arrival dates, it can be hard to get the first day going.

 

[Dean]

We've been thinking about DVC for a while (since our last paid stay at the Poly in October). We really liked both the Poly and AKL. We particularly liked the fact that its possible to stay club level at AKL.

We would always look to vacation at around the same time each year and can easily flex our exact travel dates, but we'd like the bulk of our stay to be in October (so we could check-in anytime around the end of September through to mid-october) and we'd always be looking for 21 nights in a studio.

DVC, on the face of it, seems to make financial sense for us. So my question is:-

1) We are aware there is a tiny amount of club level rooms at AKL (5?); if we book at exactly the 11 month mark, what are our changes likely to be of securing a CL room in October, given we can flex our arrival date?

2) As our stays would be for 21 nights, we are aware you can only book the first week at 11 months out - and we'd need to keep phoning to extend. Does that make 21 consecutive nights in CL extremely unlikely?

Not getting CL wouldn't be the end of the world - but we'd obviously need to buy a contract(s) with enough points for CL (396 vs 348 for a Savannah studio). If its extremely unlikely we'd be able to secure CL for a 3 week period, it probably doesn't make sense buying the additional ~50 points required.

Any insights from existing AKL owners would be very much appreciated!

I don't see doing 21 nights in a studio or 21 nights club level. I'd look at a 1 BR Savannah view for AKV. Maybe CL for a few days while not going to the parks routinely.

 

[pangyal]

I would caution that buying a contract with an expectation that you will always be able to book AKL Club in October, even with flex on start dates, is likely a recipe for disappointment.

The max number of CL AKL studios is 5; fewer can be available at any given time due to all being part of 2BR lock offs. And depending on other people's arrival dates, it can be hard to get the first day going.

This. You'll always be at the mercy of others' end dates as well, not just fighting for start dates.

 

[Minniesgal]

I think the reality of this is you might get what you want some years but there will be years where you will be disappointed

DVC is a program where flexibility is the key to happiness if you go in only wanting 1 room type at 1 resort I fear you will end up being a disappointed customer.

I echo what others have said I think 21 nights in the same studio would be hell. If it were me I'd be looking at 1 bedrooms and booking three separate resorts each for 7 nights

 

[RossK]

Thanks for the insights everyone.

I understand the concerns about club level value for money and a long stay in a studio, but we know this works out well for us. Our cash stay last October at Disney was Poly club level for 21 nights and we had a fantastic time. The room is just a place for us to sleep - we spend most of the time out and about or enjoying the wider resort, so the hotel room is literally a bedroom for us. For example, we do signature dining most nights and lots of 'extra' events (like fireworks cruises, F&W premium package, dessert parties etc) so we found the itinerary planning service offered in club level invaluable; they secured every reservation we asked for (every signature dining restaurant on property, including V&A chef's table and also BoG for breakfast and lunches, etc) at the precise times we wanted.

If we went for AKL DVC, I would not expect to get club level every year (we would be very happy with a Savannah view room), but I wouldn't like to purchase the additional ~50 points required for CL if actually, there was very little chance of ever securing a CL room in October. If there were odd years we were not able to secure it, we may use remaining points to get a larger room for part of our vacation, for example.

So following agie65's comment... Am I correct in my thinking that, if I succeeded in securing a 7 day booking at the 11 month mark, then I will have no issue getting it for the additional 14 nights? To use an example, lets say there was only 1 CL room (just to make the example less complicated). Lets say I look online today and I see in exactly 11 months time, there is availability for that room, so I book the maximum allowed number of days (7?). So now, no one can make a booking for that room for 11 months out and even if they logon for the next 6 days in a row, that remains the same. Can I just keep calling every few days to modify the reservation, adding on the additional days? Wouldn't that effectively mean the room would be "out of reach" for anyone else? I understand its more nuanced than this, but just trying to get my head around how it works!

Finally, ScubaCat mentioned a possible 14 day limit to a single booking. I can't find the "rules" on this anywhere... Does anyone have any further information? I had a chat with the DVC people back in October and did mention my intention to use for a 21 night stay and they seemed to think this was perfectly possible (but then, they would say that, wouldn't they).

 

[_auroraborealis_]

I believe you can extend the initial reservation by calling once you secure the first 7, to 14 days. But to get the additional week would be a new booking entirely, not an extension of the first booking.

I would also ask: have you stayed at AKL? Are you sure you like the resort, and their CL?

 

[disneynutz]

so we found the itinerary planning service offered in club level invaluable; they secured every reservation we asked for (every signature dining restaurant on property, including V&A chef's table and also BoG for breakfast and lunches, etc) at the precise times we wanted.

I find this interesting because the IPO at AKV has told us more than once that they have zero special powers and that they have the same access to reservations as the concierge desk. During our last stay we decided that while CL was okay for a couple of nights, the lounge offerings got old and the "special" treatment for the price wasn't worth the points. In addition the views from the DVC CL rooms are the worst at the resort.

Bill

 

[Friendlyadvice2]

I believe you can extend the initial reservation by calling once you secure the first 7, to 14 days. But to get the additional week would be a new booking entirely, not an extension of the first booking.

I would also ask: have you stayed at AKL? Are you sure you like the resort, and their CL?

This is not true as I routinely book 3 week stays for family all in one reservation. As long as you are 21 days within the 11 month window, you can book all 21 days on one reservation by calling MS. A max 14 days can be booked online as long as you're 14 days within the 11 month window. One could call MS and easily add additional days to the initial 14 day reservation if availability permitted; no "entirely new booking" needed. I don't recall if the Master Declarations say anything to limit this, but if they do, it is not enforced in my experience.

 

[ldo]

as others have said, you might get it, but some years, you might not. For ex., I bought AKV, and can usually book @ 11mth booking for value rooms. I was just shut out for Christmas week from persons who had booked it up several days prior to my check-in date. Happens with concierge, as well. FYI-at 9 months out, CL studios are fully booked up for end Sept-mid Oct. No way to tell how close to 11 mths that was. Other studios are wide open.

 

[Judique]

I thought we could book a max 31 day reservation.

 

[RossK]

I find this interesting because the IPO at AKV has told us more than once that they have zero special powers and that they have the same access to reservations as the concierge desk. During our last stay we decided that while CL was okay for a couple of nights, the lounge offerings got old and the "special" treatment for the price wasn't worth the points. In addition the views from the DVC CL rooms are the worst at the resort.

Bill

We were told the same thing by the Polynesian staff too. Yet they secured everything we asked for - we had something like 47 ADR's and are glad we didn't have to make sure we were at the ready every day to book them! I suspect they have no additional access, but maybe they can "pre-load" the reservations in to the system and then process them as soon as the window opens. Who knows. Maybe we would have got everything we wanted if we were online first thing in the morning US time, but that would not have worked for us.

We also welcomed the personal service we had during our stay. As an example, we overindulged one night as Trader Sams and were a little late up the following day and missed our Sorin' fast pass. On our way out, the club cast members would often ask about our plans for the day; when we mentioned we had missed our Sorin' fast pass and were a bit gutted about that, without asking, they added a "green" Fast Pass to our account which we could use at any time for any attraction at Epcot (one use only, obviously). It was just little things like that which they clearly took pleasure in doing for guests. Another time, we were in the concierge lobby and a couple of kids were asking the club concierges lots of questions about Disney. Once they left, one of the cast members turned to another and said "lets put some Stitches in their room for when they get back". They could not do enough. Funnily enough, for me, its the other way around. If I was only staying for a short trip, I probably wouldn't bother - but for a long stay, we found it very useful and enjoyed our regular interactions with the cast members.

And RE the view from the AKL CL rooms, this is a good point - which is one of the reasons we would not be upset at staying in a Savannah view instead

 

[disneynutz]

We were told the same thing by the Polynesian staff too. Yet they secured everything we asked for - we had something like 47 ADR's and are glad we didn't have to make sure we were at the ready every day to book them! I suspect they have no additional access, but maybe they can "pre-load" the reservations in to the system and then process them as soon as the window opens. Who knows. Maybe we would have got everything we wanted if we were online first thing in the morning US time, but that would not have worked for us.

We also welcomed the personal service we had during our stay. As an example, we overindulged one night as Trader Sams and were a little late up the following day and missed our Sorin' fast pass. On our way out, the club cast members would often ask about our plans for the day; when we mentioned we had missed our Sorin' fast pass and were a bit gutted about that, without asking, they added a "green" Fast Pass to our account which we could use at any time for any attraction at Epcot (one use only, obviously). It was just little things like that which they clearly took pleasure in doing for guests. Another time, we were in the concierge lobby and a couple of kids were asking the club concierges lots of questions about Disney. Once they left, one of the cast members turned to another and said "lets put some Stitches in their room for when they get back". They could not do enough. Funnily enough, for me, its the other way around. If I was only staying for a short trip, I probably wouldn't bother - but for a long stay, we found it very useful and enjoyed our regular interactions with the cast members.

And RE the view from the AKL CL rooms, this is a good point - which is one of the reasons we would not be upset at staying in a Savannah view instead

Disney sure offers something for everyone, hey if you enjoy CL and staying in a studio, have a great time. We are the opposite, we spend more room time than park time, 2 adults in a 1 bedroom, a few ADR's (we have become disappointed with the food/service/cost) and more cooking in the room. We sleep in, avoid the crowds, and relax.

Bill

 

[DenLo]

Oh we could easily stay 21 nights in a studio. What I couldn't handle is 21 nights in a room without a view which is what most of the Club Level rooms have. Worse yet for me would be that we have a pool view that we can't really see but get all the noise from the afternoon activities at the pool. I like to sit on the balcony and enjoy the view and the quietness at AKV so I would prefer a savanna view. I can tell you that only once have we be able to book club level at the 11 month mark. The rest of the time we were missing nights or couldn't even get the first night. Now that CL no longer gives us a sunrise safari, I don't see us booking it, too many points without a view.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

I thought we could book a max 31 day reservation.

Some are saying the Master Declaration says less. Some are saying they've been able to book more.

Both might be true. And if both are true, there comes a question on if you expect one, but they start enforcing the other. If long stays in a very small category of room are critical to your enjoyment of a DVC purchase, I think it needs to be on OP's radar to carefully check, because if they were to enforce a master declaration statement, it would be on a popular room type or low inventory, because those are rooms that will be near 100% booked regardless of permitted booking length. No point in enforcing it for rooms that usually boast excess inventory, like a SSR studio.

 

[MsTessP]

On a bit of a different note - we have had several threads over the years about how DVC ownership has changed vacationing at WDW. Many members have reported that they spend much less time at the actual parks as time goes on. Our family has also found this to be true. In your planned scenario, you would have spent 210 days at WDW over the next ten years. As much as we are Disney fanatics, there is just so many days in a row that one can ride Spaceship Earth, Dumbo, The Great Movie Ride, etc. A few years ago, the kids and I just *might* have been able to enjoy 21 days (dh gets "antsy" after 7, and no longer has any real urge to ride any attraction), but now we spend much more time at the resort, and we frequently venture out outside WDW. Many days we find ourselves entering a park only for a dining option, or to experience an attraction that varies from day to day (such as the Safari at AK). Studios are fine for the two of us for short trips, but with other family members we will always opt for at least a 1 bedroom. For us, having a 1 or 2 bedroom really makes DVC special, and our choice, if we had to choose, would be to stay for a bit less time in a 1 bedroom than a longer time in a studio. Some of our best memories have been cooking and enjoying breakfast in our kitchen, and lots of time on balconies (especially at AKL!).

Also, I would suggest breaking that many points into at least two contracts. Just make sure that the UY is the same, and that the name(s) on the two deeds are identical. You will then be able to use them as one, and they will be much easier to sell one or both if you need to do so in the future.

 

[RossK]

Also, I would suggest breaking that many points into at least two contracts. Just make sure that the UY is the same, and that the name(s) on the two deeds are identical. You will then be able to use them as one, and they will be much easier to sell one or both if you need to do so in the future.

Thank you, that is a really good tip