How available are "cash" rooms at DVC properties?

[GinnyFavers]

It seemed like there was a bit of a marketing push for people to consider the "Home Away From Home" properties when booking packages, marketing aimed at novice visitors, it seemed to me.

Isn't there a really small % of DVC that's available for cash bookings to begin with, or does every DVC cancellation go into cash rooms instead of being held for another DVC'er?

Just wondered why they would advertise if there's not a lot of availability.

I am mulling over my options for taking my family, including my mother in law, to Disney World for Christmas 2008.

 

[RLCarmichael]

Don't know percentages but in addition to unsold developer points, when trades are made for cruises or other resorts points get released to the general public or II trades into DVC.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Isn't there a really small % of DVC that's available for cash bookings to begin with, or does every DVC cancellation go into cash rooms instead of being held for another DVC'er?

Disney Vacation Development sells all but a small percentage of the inventory at each DVC resort, and that unsold inventory is primarily so that rooms can be taken offline for maintenance. Remaining inventory is rented out through CRO.

However, there's a much larger source of DVC room inventory for rental through CRO. Whenever a DVC member uses DVC points to book into Disney Collection (including Disney Cruise Line), Adventurer Collection, Concierge Collection, and Adventures by Disney, the DVC inventory associated with those points goes to CRO for rental to "cash" guests. That makes sense when you think about. DVC ultimately has to pay for all those non-DVC rooms, cruises, and packages.

That doesn't mean there is less inventory or more inventory for other DVC members. It just means that some percentage of DVC members choose to use their DVC points outside of DVC resorts, and paying guests end up using the corresponding DVC inventory.

World Passport Collection is different. DVC provides actual week-long DVC resort stays to Interval International (primarily) so that DVC member can have week-long stays at other timeshare resorts.

 

[shellbelle1971]

It seemed like there was a bit of a marketing push for people to consider the "Home Away From Home" properties when booking packages, marketing aimed at novice visitors, it seemed to me.

Isn't there a really small % of DVC that's available for cash bookings to begin with, or does every DVC cancellation go into cash rooms instead of being held for another DVC'er?

Just wondered why they would advertise if there's not a lot of availability.

I am mulling over my options for taking my family, including my mother in law, to Disney World for Christmas 2008.

I don't know anything about the % of DVC available for cash bookings, but every time we've ever wanted to book a cash night we've been able to get it. In fact, we've even gotten the 25% DVC discount every time but one. (And the one time we couldn't get the DVC discount we were at Vero Beach, where the regular cash rate on weekends was still MUCH cheaper than using points.)

 

[tomandrobin]

Disney owns about 2.5% of the points at each resort. The percentage is shown on the mailings for the upcoming members meetings. In addition to the 2.5% percentage, they have points from trades out of DVC, Cruises, Adventures by Disney and points from any unsold contracts.

 

[smiller]

I have a question along the same lines - at what point can you call to make a cash reservation for a DVC resort? We're 7pp and a 2BR seems to make the most sense for us, plus we'd love to "test-drive" DVC. Everytime we call CRO, though, they say they can't even choose the DVC resorts as an option for our reservation (September 2008).

Will we have better luck trying after the 7-month mark, when the non-home resort members get their go at the rooms?

Thanks!