Is it really hard to book VGF at 11 months?

[daraweb]

Hi All,

I am looking for some cold-hard facts on exactly how tricky it is to book VGF at the 11 month mark (toughest time frames and room types- I assume the usual peak DVC times and the studios are the toughest...but I thought it was worth checking).

Would love to hear any experiences...good and/or bad. Would hate to spend the $ to own there and end up unable to get the dates we want!

Thanks!

 

[dizfan]

If you have a specific week you go in most years, you may want to consider a fixed week purchase.

 

[daraweb]

If you have a specific week you go in most years, you may want to consider a fixed week purchase.

We are planning to buy resale (assuming we ever find the right contract!) and actually we do not have a specific week we always go...otherwise that would have been great advice. We need the flexibility because I am a teacher and our vacation days shift year to year. Thanks for the idea though.

 

[Sandisw]

I think it depends on when you want to go. Studios from September through the first of the year seemed to be gone pretty much right at the 11 month mark. I have been able to book a 2 bedroom without issue during the summer and it was still available at the 7 month mark. So was a studio. Of course, not long after the 7 month mark, they were gone.

 

[nalajms]

These are my experiences with studios:
MLK 2015 - looked at 10m. Couldn't get the 4nights. Ended up at BLT at 7m.
Pres 2015 - looked a few days after 11m. Booked 4n stay - 2/14 was gone shortly after. At 7m, I was able to get Fri/Sat using other points.
Early May 2015 - booked for 5n around 10m. Still had availability for a month or two afterwards.

MLK 2016 - booked at 11m. No problems.
Pres 2016 - booked at 11m. No problems. 2/14 gone shortly afterwards.

2014
Thanksgiving/1st Week of Dec - Would have had to walk at 11m to get these.
First week of F&W (late Sept/early Oct) - booked shortly after 11m, not right at 11m. No problems.

In short - there are certain "busy" times that you need to be looking a few days before 11m and getting ready to book. I think trying to get anything at 8 or 9months will be hard. I would buy enough points so that you can "hold" reservations. I book if there's a chance we'll go. I can't wait till we're definitely going to book.

 

[Noelle]

We usually use our VGF points for December.
Booked 2 bedroom standard view December 18 - 22 2014 at 7.5 months out
Booked 2 bedroom standard view & studio lake view for December 17 - 24 this year at exactly 11 months out. I wanted a standard view studio but it was gone as soon as I logged in at 8:00 am. So I booked the lake view studio and then wait listed the standard view studio which the wait list came through in about 3 or 4 weeks.

 

[Johnny D]

If you plan to book on the 11 month day exactly, you will be fine most of the year. First couple of weeks of December would be the exception if you are looking for a studio. Many people walk their reservation and it can be tough. I have yet to have a problem, but from what I hear I have been lucky. Have stayed in standard view studios in Oct. Dec. March and will be staying in a standard view studio this Dec. 13 to 20 and again a few weeks later over Marathon weekend. I have not to this point had a problem.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

I think it's safest to consider studios to always be an issue - it's been getting worse and will probably continue to do so as people run into issues booking more and more and recognize they need to get in right at 11 months. All other size rooms will vary depending on the time of the year but I don't think they'll ever be as bad as the studios.

 

[drusba]

Booking at 11 months is wise year round for VGF studios. The following are the times where there have been issues of possibly being blocked out some nights even at 11 months out: first two weeks of Dec, Christmas week, time around Thanksgiving, Columbus Day weekend, the weekend after that, the early Nov weekend that has the Food & Wine race, and marathon weekend in Jan. I am not sure of your understanding of "usual Peak DVC times" but those as a group happen to be DVC's highest demand times of the year, late Sep through marathon weekend in Jan is DVC's high demand season, and right after marathon weekend in Jan to late Sep is DVC' low to moderate demand season at WDW.

 

[automaticsoap]

Agree with PP that it depends on when you go. I always book standard studios and haven't had any problems booking mid-November, early February, and early May. I kept playing around with an early February reservation for 2016, and it still had plenty of availability past the 11 month window. Mid-November was booked up close to the 11-month window. I'm glad I haven't had to compete for a December spot!

 

[daraweb]

Wow...thanks for so much information. I really appreciate it. Typically we have traveled during our March spring vacation. I am a teacher and my kids go to the school I teach at. We only have a few more years of this though...so in 2018 my kids and I will have different vacations (I will have 2 weeks in March and they will have 1 week in Feb and 1 week in April). At that point we will either travel the week before xmas, early summer, or late summer. Then 4 years later our available travel dates will change again.

That is a long way of saying that we will most likely be traveling at "peak" WDW times (maybe not peak DVC times) with maybe a few peak DVC times for long weekend etc. I feel like we are a few years from being at a life stage where it is hard for me to predict our plans/date. Although, I will almost always be able to book 11 months before because I will have the school calendars a year before.