How far in advance do I need to book - AKV

[Pezalicious]

My husband and I are thinking of buying DVC, but plan to rent points to try before we buy. We plan to go in *** or the first week of ***, ***, and would like to stay at AKV in the cheapest value studio. How far in advance would I need to book? Does that room choice go quickly, or any of the studios, for that matter? We're supposed to go with his sister, but we're not sure if she'll end up canceling, so we'd prefer booking much closer to the date of travel, if possible.

Edit: This post has been edited to remove date range so as not to be construed as a reservation wanted post, which is limited to the DVC R/T Board only. Thanks - Chuck S

 

[chalee94]

for a value studio, as far in advance as possible - you'd need to find an AKV owner and book at least 10-11 months ahead (i.e. start looking now). there are only a handful of value rooms in jambo house and they are tougher to book than the savanna view rooms available in both kidani and jambo house.

you can take your chances closer in, but odds aren't good.

edited to add: if you were flexible on the other types of studios, i'd say you had pretty good odds even 5-6 months out.

 

[tjkraz]

I don't think any of us can give you a very educated response. If you insist on having a value studio, the only way to get that guarantee is to book very close to the 11 month window opening. It's certainly possible that Value rooms will still be available 7 or 8 months out, but none of us would bet any money on that. Everything with DVC is first-come, first-served.

If you're willing to expand to ANY AKV Studio (not just Value) you will certainly have more time to book. But again I wouldn't push it any further than the 7-month window.

DVC doesn't provide us with any statistics or booking trends so we're stuck with our own personal experiences and what we read on the web. And I doubt anyone is willing to go out on a limb and promise that you'll still be able to get a Value studio on short notice. It could happen, but experience shows that such rooms are rarely available on short notice.

If you must have a Value room, I'd suggest being prepared to book 11 months out. If you'll take any Studio at AKV, you could probably wait until 7-8 months out. Any shorter notice than that and it's a crapshoot.

 

[Pezalicious]

We don't have to have a value room. We just figured that since I completely wither in the heat, I'll be spending our looooong afternoon breaks in the pool, or on the bed with the a/c blasting on high. I doubt we'd use the balcony enough to make it worth a view room.

Thanks for the input. I suppose if his sister cancels, we'll call it an anniversary trip and celebrate, just the two of us.

 

[kristenrice]

Just an FYI....3 adults in a value studio will be cramped. There is very little room for storage in a value studio. Even if you pack light, you have to find room for the 3-4 huge decorative pillows from the bed, 2 more from the sofa and the 4 huge sofa cushions when it is time to fold out the sleeper. We were in one for a Saturday night (2 adults and 2 children, ages 3 and 5) and we ended up storing the strollers, car seat and one of the 2 suitcases in the vanity area of the bathroom. It was cozy, but for us, it was perfect since we were moving to a value 1BR the next day. I cannot imagine three adults trying to "kick back and relax" in a room that size. It is tiny by DVC standards. Now, the savanna studio we stayed in was much more tolerable. We spent 6 nights there without an issue and we did not feel cramped at all. It's amazing the difference that 3' makes in those studios.

 

[Pezalicious]

Thanks for the info! Fortunately, it'll be just me and my hubby in the room. She'll be staying off site (probably) with her husband and kids.

I told him the info about booking and he's not sure she'll even have dates picked out in time.

This is the first time I've planned a vacation with his family, so I don't want to be pushy. But hubby isn't helping. I'll just hope that by the time we can book, there will be a studio at any of the resorts. The way he's talking, it sounds like 6 months out will be the earliest plans will come together.