How to switch resorts at 7 months

[ColonialMouse]

I'm still in the process of closing on our resale contracts, but one thing I don't understand is how to switch reservations at 7 months. Lots of people talk about reserving your home resort as early as possible, then trying to switch later, but I assume most people don't really have the points to book both without borrowing. Is it possible to do a "replacement" reservation online where the replacement cancels the home reservation? Do you call member services? Do you check availability and then cancel the home resort reservation assuming availability of the replacement won't change?

Thanks,
Bruce

 

[JAG107]

I just did my first ressie swap, and it was easy. I had BLT (home) booked at 11 mos, then checked online to see if AKV was available at the 7 mo. window. I just called this morning, had MS cancel the BLT res, and book AKV all in one swoop. I did not need to have enough points to double book, the banked and borrowed points needed for this res were all I had to use. Piece o cake!

 

[Deb & Bill]

I'm still in the process of closing on our resale contracts, but one thing I don't understand is how to switch reservations at 7 months. Lots of people talk about reserving your home resort as early as possible, then trying to switch later, but I assume most people don't really have the points to book both without borrowing. Is it possible to do a "replacement" reservation online where the replacement cancels the home reservation? Do you call member services? Do you check availability and then cancel the home resort reservation assuming availability of the replacement won't change?

Thanks,
Bruce

You have to cancel the first before you can make the second. Unless you have tons of points and don't have to borrow.

 

[Snurk71]

You have to cancel the first before you can make the second. Unless you have tons of points and don't have to borrow.

I thought they fixed that in one of these upgrades to where MS could do the two transactions in one so you weren't sitting without any reservation at all (maybe it's with a hold???)? I asked an MS agent about it a month or so ago but I don't know if I described it very well - the agent didn't know what I was talking about.

 

[drusba]

If you call MS at 7 months out, you can do the switch and MS can temporarily hold the new reservation while it cancels the old one so you do not risk ending up with no reservation.

However, though you can cancel on-line and then make a new reservation, there is no assurance the reservation you want will still be there after you go through the cancellation process. Thus, if you try to do it on-line, you risk the possibility of losing your original reservation and not getting the new one.

 

[disneymomjcs]

I am hoping to do this for our Christmas Reservation. We are at SSR over Christmas and New Years hoping to switch to AKV. Although due to some Plumbling issues and a new job after a long unemployment we may have to scrap the trip all together. I am trying to be hopeful. Hopeful our plumbing issue will not require extensive repairs.

 

[ColonialMouse]

Thanks. I guess I'll hope they add a "replace this reservation" in the future for online, but for now it sounds like calling MS.

Bruce

 

[disneynutz]

If you call MS at 7 months out, you can do the switch and MS can temporarily hold the new reservation while it cancels the old one so you do not risk ending up with no reservation.

However, though you can cancel on-line and then make a new reservation, there is no assurance the reservation you want will still be there after you go through the cancellation process. Thus, if you try to do it on-line, you risk the possibility of losing your original reservation and not getting the new one.

Not always true.

We lost a club level reservation at Jambo during a switch 2 months ago. I was told that until the new reservation is actually being booked, the inventory can change.

Bill

 

[gmi3804]

Couldn't you find the new reservation, and then open a new browser window to cancel the old one before continuing with the new?

 

[chalee94]

Couldn't you find the new reservation, and then open a new browser window to cancel the old one before continuing with the new?

how are you going to "hold" the new reservation without any points?

it will still show as available until you refresh and then you'll find that i booked it out from under you while you were still canceling your old reservation...

 

[gmi3804]

Couldn't you find the new reservation, and then open a new browser window to cancel the old one before continuing with the new?

how are you going to "hold" the new reservation without any points?

You don't allocate points until the following screen, right?

it will still show as available until you refresh and then you'll find that i booked it out from under you while you were still canceling your old reservation...

Huh?

 

[Cant wait for Disney]

Hoping to piggyback on this thread with an additional question- if i can only switch the first 7 days of my 11 day trip when i call on the 7 month mark, what will my reservation end up looking like? Right now we have a THV. Let's say for laughs we get BCV for the first 7 days-will my reservation details now show a trip from day 1-7 at one place, and then a new ressie number for what would be a separate trip days8-11 at the THV? I hope that makes sense!

 

[chalee94]

You don't allocate points until the following screen, right?

hmmm...ok, i looked at it again and i was wrong.

that is weird that you can hold a room for an hour without having to allocate pts first. you'd think if we could hold a room that MS would be able to.

 

[Pirate Granny]

I was told very firmly, that I had to cancel, and take my chances that BLT would still be available...was very nervous and felt like telling the nice man to quit being nice and BOOk the darn ressie success!... Whewww going to be trying again on the 28th.

 

[ColonialMouse]

hmmm...ok, i looked at it again and i was wrong.

that is weird that you can hold a room for an hour without having to allocate pts first. you'd think if we could hold a room that MS would be able to.

Oh. So it IS possible to hold a new reservation while cancelling the old one?

Bruce

 

[chalee94]

Oh. So it IS possible to hold a new reservation while cancelling the old one?

i didn't actually make the reservation, but the screen says it will hold the reservation for an hour for you to complete it.

it looks like it should work...

i'm sure MS has different software but you think they'd have more options and not fewer?

 

[gmi3804]

Oh. So it IS possible to hold a new reservation while cancelling the old one?

Bruce

It is. But you have to either have enough points (either current or borrowed) to do it. Think of it like if you actually wanted both reservations; you can certainly have two accommodations held for the same period of time. I'd be careful, however, to make sure you're within your cancellation window.

 

[BLTLDZ]

I just did my first ressie swap, and it was easy. I had BLT (home) booked at 11 mos, then checked online to see if AKV was available at the 7 mo. window. I just called this morning, had MS cancel the BLT res, and book AKV all in one swoop. I did not need to have enough points to double book, the banked and borrowed points needed for this res were all I had to use. Piece o cake!

I have to say, I am debating if we should do this..we are currently booked at a Studio standard at BLT ,for the week of 12/7-12/15, and am thinking of switching over to AKL at the 7 month mark, in two weeks.

Here's the thing: BLT is our home resort, and we have only stayed there once for four nights

Last december, we took a last minute 5 night trip and stayed at AKL as it was all we could get, and we fell in love SOO pretty around the holidays!

BUT, hubby thinks we should enjoy our home resort...what to do , what to do...once we give up BLT, there's no turning back...However, I LOVE being in the center of it all, but also love the vibe at AKL. UGH

And to answer the OP- It's quite simple. Book your home resort at 11 months out, make a note of the day you can switch at 7 months, and be on the phone bright & early that day....

 

[disgrits]

Can someone tell me what happens to "leftover" points after you make the switch? For example, if I book my home resort at 11 months out for 110 points, then I switch to another resort at 7 months out for 100 points, what happens to the "leftover" 10 points? Do they go back to regular points? Do they go to a holding account? BTW, these are points for the current use year--not borrowed or banked points.

Thanks!

 

[Deb & Bill]

Can someone tell me what happens to "leftover" points after you make the switch? For example, if I book my home resort at 11 months out for 110 points, then I switch to another resort at 7 months out for 100 points, what happens to the "leftover" 10 points? Do they go back to regular points? Do they go to a holding account? BTW, these are points for the current use year--not borrowed or banked points.

Thanks!

They go back into the current UY. If you haven't passed your banking deadline, you could bank them into the next year. If they were borrowed, they go into the current UY and must be used before the end of that year.