GRRR! Mostly a vent, and WWYD? (First timer question)

[kboo]

New owner here - I was trying to make our Feb 2018 BLT reservation on Friday but on my phone - RAT showed full availability for a LV studio the whole time, but the phone kept bumping me out. Traveled for work over the weekend, now back at a computer and there is NO availbility for the Friday night that week.

What do you suggest? Waitlist that one night? book a separate night or partial stay in a 1BR? SO frustrated that we didn't make it in time!

 

[BillPA]

I would book what you can and wait list the 1 night you need. That's about 9 months out, something should open up, just keep checking, don't just wait for DVD to get back to you.

 

[Marionnette]

New owner here - I was trying to make our Feb 2018 BLT reservation on Friday but on my phone - RAT showed full availability for a LV studio the whole time, but the phone kept bumping me out. Traveled for work over the weekend, now back at a computer and there is NO availbility for the Friday night that week.

What do you suggest? Waitlist that one night? book a separate night or partial stay in a 1BR? SO frustrated that we didn't make it in time!

Book the rest of your trip. WL the one night because single-night WLs have a higher likelihood of success than multi-night WLs. If you have enough points and don't mind using them, then go ahead and book the 1-bedroom for one night. However, if you would need to borrow points to do it, booking a cash reservation at a Value Resort for the one night is a point-saving option. You can always cancel the cash ressie if your WL comes in.

 

[kboo]

If I decide to move the arrival date 1 day later because the waitlist comes through, I can do that, right? Or change the booking at 7 mo to do a split stay (3/3 instead of 5/1, for example), I can do that without losing my reservation, or is that when the whole 2-screens/call MS comes into play?

 

[Marionnette]

If I decide to move the arrival date 1 day later because the waitlist comes through, I can do that, right? Or change the booking at 7 mo to do a split stay (3/3 instead of 5/1, for example), I can do that without losing my reservation, or is that when the whole 2-screens/call MS comes into play?

You can change your reservation as you deem fit. You cannot change and existing reservation online, so the removal of day(s) would require a call to MS. If you're adding a day without dropping any, you can book the additional nights under a separate reservation and then call MS to have the reservations combined. If you have a 6-day reservation and decide to split it to 3 at that resort and 3 at another you have two choices:

1. Book the 3 days at the second resort and then call MS to drop the last 3 days on the first reservation. This would necessitate having enough points to cover the 3 nights at the second resort without having first dropped the days at the first resort
2. Call MS and have them drop the 3 nights at resort #1 and then book the 3 nights at resort #2. In this case, you would be taking a slight risk that the 3 nights at resort #2 will get booked up while in the process of cancelling the nights at resort #1.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I agree, book what's available and waitlist the one night. I'd give it a very high chance of coming thru.

 

[kboo]

Thank you all! And if I'm making all these changes before the banking deadline and at least 31 days before the reservation starts, any changes extra points can be banked, right? (assuming they could have been banked before)

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Thank you all! And if I'm making all these changes before the banking deadline and at least 31 days before the reservation starts, any changes extra points can be banked, right? (assuming they could have been banked before)

That's correct.