Long Lead-Time Planning and Reservations.

[Tcrow55]

So, Obviously I'm new here since I've elected to open a new thread rather than hunt aimlessly for the right place to pose a series of questions. Please forgive the brash disregard for any established procedure upon which I may be stomping. But you'll notice from the Avatar that Im probably not very cooperative in a general sense, anyway.


Anyhoo...My lovely Bride and I are planning our third trip to WDW for April of 2014. (We seem to be able to save the bucks to go about every seven years.) Our plan is to stay in the POR resort. We plan to make reservations for a preferred room in Alligator Bayou. Here is where the questions begin.... We know we want a preferred room, but we also need a king bed and, due to mobility, issues for my wife we really need a ground floor. Now, on WDW reservation site, I can reserve either a king room OR a preferred room, but not both. I realize that I need to make the ground floor a special request, but which do I pay to reserve King or preferred? How do these choices work going through a travel agent? Are they better able to convey our needs to the room allocation gods than I am? Can I bribe someone?

Okay, next... At what point in the year does package information for the following year become available? In my case, Im trying to figger when Ill actually be able to make and pay for reservations for April 2014. I've read a little about going with the room only option and converting to a package later, but I don't know if that's a good idea or not. Any input is greatly appreciated.

So, those are my main questions. If any of you have any sage guidance, Id be happy to hear from you. Answers on the forum or via email are fine, or both.

Thanks

Troy

 

[Missytara]

Anyhoo...My lovely Bride and I are planning our third trip to WDW for April of 2014. (We seem to be able to save the bucks to go about every seven years.) Our plan is to stay in the POR resort. We plan to make reservations for a preferred room in Alligator Bayou. Here is where the questions begin.... We know we want a preferred room, but we also need a king bed and, due to mobility, issues for my wife we really need a ground floor. Now, on WDW reservation site, I can reserve either a king room OR a preferred room, but not both. I realize that I need to make the ground floor a special request, but which do I pay to reserve King or preferred? How do these choices work going through a travel agent? Are they better able to convey our needs to the room allocation gods than I am? Can I bribe someone?

Okay, next... At what point in the year does package information for the following year become available? In my case, Im trying to figger when Ill actually be able to make and pay for reservations for April 2014. I've read a little about going with the room only option and converting to a package later, but I don't know if that's a good idea or not. Any input is greatly appreciated.

Whether you book it yourself or the TA does it, your chances of getting requests are going to be the same. Requests are just that, requests. If you read the fine print, all Disney owes you is a room on-site somewhere. Neither one controls availability at the resort, and while they try to accommodate you, it cannot always be fulfilled.

You are correct about the booking category; you can pick one and then request the others. And if you have multiple requests, such as you have, you need to list them in the order of importance to you, so they can fulfill as many as possible. I will add if you book preferred, POR AB is the preferred buildings and they are two floors and do NOT have elevators. You could potentially get a second floor room if you book preferred, whereas if you book king bed room, you have a better chance of getting a room in the mansions and they do have elevators.

You can book a room only at 499 days out and pay the first night's deposit. When the rates for the following years are announced, you can convert to a package. They credit you the amount of the one night's deposit and then you put down a $200.00 deposit on the package. You will need to pay it off 45 days before arrival.

For many years, the rates were not released until August, but the last two years they have moved it up - most recently the end of June.

At this point, I would just wait and book your package.

You can head over to the official POR thread for any more info about the resort.

 

[Tcrow55]

Missytara,

Thanks much for the response. Good information to consider. As for the POR Official site dont know for sure where that is but I've spent a tin of time on the
PortOrleans.org. Super site is that. Barb (my wife) and I stayed at Riverside in 2007 and loved it. We wanted to do the Wilderness lodge this time but just not affordable for us. Anyway, you sound veteran-y, like you've done this a billion times. Do you know of any specific changes to POR since 2007? Also, I just realized that our trip dates include Easter Sunday. Is that a good idea?

Troy

 

[Missytara]

Missytara,

Thanks much for the response. Good information to consider. As for the POR Official site dont know for sure where that is but I've spent a tin of time on the
PortOrleans.org. Super site is that. Barb (my wife) and I stayed at Riverside in 2007 and loved it. We wanted to do the Wilderness lodge this time but just not affordable for us. Anyway, you sound veteran-y, like you've done this a billion times. Do you know of any specific changes to POR since 2007? Also, I just realized that our trip dates include Easter Sunday. Is that a good idea?

Troy

The same person that maintains the POR thread maintains portorleans.org. So you will get the best info on either!

All of the rooms have been refurbished and changed to queen sized beds.

The mattress under the bed in AB has been changed to a murphy bed, but they lost a lot of storage. The TV is mounted on the wall above the bed.

They now have flat screen TV's and the Cuisinart pod coffee pots. In the mansions, the armoire was changed to a dresser set-up and the TV is now on top with the coffee pot.

Oak Manor and Parterre Place are now themed Royal Room's. Unfortunately, there are no king bed rooms in RR's, but they are still in other parts of the resort.

They have added the preferred, courtyard view, and split waterview into water view and river view. They got pretty savvy about the requests and turned them into booking categories.

The lobby has recently been transformed with a new marble floor and furniture that is exquisite - I cannot wait to see it.

Oh, and Holly from the lounge is now at Kouzzina's.......I am sad about that.

Um, I think that is it for changes.

 

[Tcrow55]

You are unbelievable! Did you do that from memory?