Newbie question on bookings

[MJ6987]

Hi,
We are looking at buying our first DVC contract at BWV.

This is the scenario....

Let's say we want to stay 14 nights in a studio from 12-26 December 2016. Ideally we would like to stay 9 nights at BWV in a Standard View Studio (to save points) and the other 5 nights in AKL (Jambo or Kidani) in a Savannah view studio.

On 12 Jan 2016 (using our 11 month BWV window) we book the first 7 nights in the BWV Standard View Studio. 7 days later (19 Jan 2016) we book the remaining 7 nights, again in the same type of accommodation.

At the 7 month window (12 May 2016) we book 5 nights at AKL Savannah View studio and cancel 5 nights of the BWV booking. I am assuming I would be better booking the first 5 nights as the last 5 nights may be full up at AKL as it includes Christmas?

My questions are. Have I got this plan right? And, is it a feasible plan?

Thanks and sorry it's a bit long

 

[drusba]

What you plan is fine except that the 7 month window for those last five nights at AKV won't open until May 21, exactly 7 months before your intended arrival at AKV, and if you decided instead to switch the first five nights of the trip, the call date is May 12 not April 12. Particularly for that time of year, you want to book the entire time you want at home resort 11 months out and try to switch some of the nights at 7. If AKV is available at 7 months out for those last five nights, MS can drop your last five nights of the BWV reservation and make the AKV reservation. it can do the same procedure and drop the first five nights if you choose instead to switch the first five nights.

In fact, particularly if you want BWV standard, it is important that you book BWV standard exactly 11 months out that time of year including any of that time before Christmas because standard can fill very quickly during any time in December once the 11 month window opens. Note, once you make the first 7 nights, you can actually add the remaining nights at BWV by calling daily thereafter and adding a night each call and thus do not necessarily have to wait until Jan 19 to book them.

 

[MJ6987]

What you plan is fine except that the 7 month window for those last five nights at AKV won't open until May 21, exactly 7 months before your intended arrival at AKV. Particularly for that time of year, you want to book the entire time you want at home resort 11 months out and try to switch some of the nights at 7. If AKV is available at 7 months out for those last five nights, MS can drop your last five nights of the BWV reservation and make the AKV reservation.

In fact, particularly if you want BWV standard, it is important that you book BWV standard exactly 11 months out that time of year including any of that time before Christmas because standard can fill very quickly during any time in December once the 11 month window opens. Note, once you make the first 7 nights, you can actually add the remaining nights at BWV by calling daily thereafter and adding a night each call and thus do not necessarily have to wait until Jan 19 to book them.

OK thanks. Yeah, I calculated the 7 month date wrong although I think it would be the 12th rather than the 21st. I was just thinking that it may be unlikely that AKL would be available for the last 5 nights being over Christmas so I would be better changing the first 5 nights to AKL?

For the initial 14 nights BWV booking I didn't know that you could book day by day after the first 7 nights so that is useful to know. Would I be able to start doing that from the 13th January or would I have to wait until the 18th I.e. Exactly 12 months before the date?

Thanks

 

[drusba]

You can start to call to add nights daily on Jan 13. That would be a continuation of your BWV reservation and as long as each new departure date is not more than 11 months plus 7 days from the date you call, you can make the addition.

 

[MJ6987]

You can start to call to add nights daily on Jan 13. That would be a continuation of your BWV reservation and as long as each new departure date is not more than 11 months plus 7 days from the date you call, you can make the addition.

Great thanks. One more question (for now!) on this. Presumably I can make the initial 7 nights booking and the subsequent daily bookings online rather than by phone? Or is it better to phone?

Just that, all things being equal, I would rather deal online as I am based in the UK, but can phone if I need to obviously.

 

[disneynutz]

Great thanks. One more question (for now!) on this. Presumably I can make the initial 7 nights booking and the subsequent daily bookings online rather than by phone? Or is it better to phone?

Just that, all things being equal, I would rather deal online as I am based in the UK, but can phone if I need to obviously.

Online opens at 8 AM EST, the phones don't open until 9. During the last several months, there has been a wait time of 0 to 45 minutes for MS to answer the phone with more reports of long hold times.

Bill

 

[MJ6987]

Online opens at 8 AM EST, the phones don't open until 9. During the last several months, there has been a wait time of 0 to 45 minutes for MS to answer the phone with more reports of long hold times.

Bill

Thanks. So, online is the way to go. Can you do most things online, e.g. Cancelling or changing reservations, banking / borrowing, waitlisting, etc?

 

[RobDoc]

Great thanks. One more question (for now!) on this. Presumably I can make the initial 7 nights booking and the subsequent daily bookings online rather than by phone? Or is it better to phone?

Just that, all things being equal, I would rather deal online as I am based in the UK, but can phone if I need to obviously.

You can make the daily reservations online, but they will each be a separate reservation and you would need to wait until the 11 month priority opened for each date and cannot just daily add dates to the existing online reservation. You will still need to call MS to add dates to the original 7 night reservation or wait and make a 2nd 7 night reservation right at 11 months.

I would not make daily additional reservations. After reserving the first 7 nights online, I'd wait and do the next 4 nights all together and then the last 3 together by calling MS. No one else could reserve those dates anyway unless they also had already reserved the first 7 nights as their 11 month priority won't open until 11 months from the date they want to reserve.

At 7 months, I'd call right away to change your reservation to add the second resort. If you have enough points, I'd do that online - otherwise, I'd just call MS and have them assist with the cancellation/rebook at another resort.

Good luck!

 

[MJ6987]

You can make the daily reservations online, but they will each be a separate reservation and you would need to wait until the 11 month priority opened for each date and cannot just daily add dates to the existing online reservation. You will still need to call MS to add dates to the original 7 night reservation or wait and make a 2nd 7 night reservation right at 11 months.

I would not make daily additional reservations. After reserving the first 7 nights online, I'd wait and do the next 4 nights all together and then the last 3 together by calling MS. No one else could reserve those dates anyway unless they also had already reserved the first 7 nights as their 11 month priority won't open until 11 months from the date they want to reserve.

At 7 months, I'd call right away to change your reservation to add the second resort. If you have enough points, I'd do that online - otherwise, I'd just call MS and have them assist with the cancellation/rebook at another resort.

Good luck!

Sorry for my ignorance but isn't making daily reservations (after the initial 7 days) safer, especially with it getting towards Xmas and the BWV standards being quite rare.

Otherwise, people could be booking on the 13th Jan to book 7 nights to the 19th, more people booking on the 14th taking dates to the 19th and 20th, etc.

 

[RobDoc]

Sorry for my ignorance but isn't making daily reservations (after the initial 7 days) safer, especially with it getting towards Xmas and the BWV standards being quite rare.

Otherwise, people could be booking on the 13th Jan to book 7 nights to the 19th, more people booking on the 14th taking dates to the 19th and 20th, etc.

Unless this person had already reserved the 13th - 19th, they could not reserve the 20th on the 14th since they are not within their 11 month priority. That could happen only if there was still availability for those dates on the 14th. If the earlier 7 nights were not already reserved, no later dates could be added until the 20th using the 11 month reservation priority. This includes making the reservation online, since I don't believe you can "add" to an existing reservation online. You can do that only by calling MS.

 

[Dean]

Hi,
We are looking at buying our first DVC contract at BWV.

This is the scenario....

Let's say we want to stay 14 nights in a studio from 12-26 December 2016. Ideally we would like to stay 9 nights at BWV in a Standard View Studio (to save points) and the other 5 nights in AKL (Jambo or Kidani) in a Savannah view studio.

On 12 Jan 2016 (using our 11 month BWV window) we book the first 7 nights in the BWV Standard View Studio. 7 days later (19 Jan 2016) we book the remaining 7 nights, again in the same type of accommodation.

At the 7 month window (12 May 2016) we book 5 nights at AKL Savannah View studio and cancel 5 nights of the BWV booking. I am assuming I would be better booking the first 5 nights as the last 5 nights may be full up at AKL as it includes Christmas?

My questions are. Have I got this plan right? And, is it a feasible plan?

Thanks and sorry it's a bit long

I'd book the first 7 nights day one 11 months out. Then about 4 days later I'd call and add 4 nights, then 3 days later call and add the remaining 3 nights, you don't have to call day by day in this situation. Then in a few days I'd have them break them into 2 reservations, one you plan to use and one you plan to change to AKV. I'd then try for the first of my trip 7 months out which would give you two chances of being successful rather than just one, wait listing anything you don't get. Separating them will also give you some protection from losing the entire BWV reservation if you match the WL.

 

[drusba]

The theory is that if you reserve a room exactly 11 months out for Dec 12-19, no one else can possibly reserve that same room except beginning with Dec 19 and thus as long as you call by Jan 18 to add nights, you will get days beginning Dec 19. I state that is the theory but reality might be otherwise, and daily calling may be advised because there is one owner, namely Disney, for which we do not know exactly what it does. I can only explain by what I saw 11 months out for Thanksgiving week 2013. Thanksgiving was Nov 28. On Dec 24, 2012, I went on-line to check on AKV Jambo GVs for the week beginning Sunday Nov 24, 2013. All the Jambo GVs were booked full for Thanksginvg night and the night before. However, at least one was still open for Nov 24, 25 and 26 because those dates were not filled. No member, if you apply the 11 month rule, could have gotten a GV Nov 27 and 28 by reserving on Dec 24, 2012 or before without also getting Nov 24 through 26. Thus if Nov 27 and 28 were gone, Nov 24 through 26 should also have been gone when I checked. That raised my suspicion that Disney might have been holding one or more GVs for its own reservations for the day before and of Thanksgiving. I sent emails to Member Services and the DVC satisfaction email asking what had occurred and whether those rooms were being withheld from members. I did not get a response.

 

[Disney Doc]

Sorry for my ignorance but isn't making daily reservations (after the initial 7 days) safer, especially with it getting towards Xmas and the BWV standards being quite rare.

Otherwise, people could be booking on the 13th Jan to book 7 nights to the 19th, more people booking on the 14th taking dates to the 19th and 20th, etc.

But they cannot reserve YOUR room until the 19th. (You have removed that room from the available inventory until then.) Nobody can claim the 19th onward, in your room, until January 19th. As long as you call before 11 months from your checkout date, the extension is guaranteed to go to you. There is no need to call every day, as long as it is your home resort, at the 11 month mark.

I am honored to repeat the advice of the 2 DIS experts above... drusba's experience above cannot be discounted - we can't do anything about Disney's corporate power. Under NORMAL circumstances, there's never a reason to call daily.

 

[Dean]

But they cannot reserve YOUR room until the 19th. (You have removed that room from the available inventory until then.) Nobody can claim the 19th onward, in your room, until January 19th. As long as you call before 11 months from your checkout date, the extension is guaranteed to go to you. There is no need to call every day, as long as it is your home resort, at the 11 month mark.

This assumes that the number of that exact villa type are the same on day 1 of the reservation and day 8 of the reservation, this is not always the case. I'd agree that it works this way unless you get unlucky but it's not 100%.

 

[disneynutz]

Thanks. So, online is the way to go. Can you do most things online, e.g. Cancelling or changing reservations, banking / borrowing, waitlisting, etc?

I now try to do as much on line as possible. If I make several separate reservations, I will send a email to MS via the member website contact form to have the reservation merged into one, not linked but merged.

I use the contact form for anything not time sensitive, it's better than waiting on hold hoping that you get an MS Advisor who knows what they are doing.

Bill

 

[drusba]

You cannot modify any reservation online. You need to call to do that. What you can do online is reserve BWV 11 months out for 7 nights and thereafter make one or more separate reservations for the remaining nights and then after you are done call or email MS to link them all together into the first reservation. The issue there is that you cannot make the second reservation online until Jan 19 if you start with one for Dec 12-19. Thus, best way to assure you get what you want is book 7 nights and then call daily or some days later before Jan 19 and start modifying your reservation.

 

[MJ6987]

Thanks all - I think I get it now. I think what I hadn't realised is that when you make a reservation they are holding a specific room for you, rather than just an allocation against the inventory.

So let me check...

1) 11 months to the day: book first 7 nights online
2) 4 days later - phone to add a further 4 nights to the same reservation
3a) 3 days later - phone to add the final 3 nights to the same reservation.
3b) On this same phone call ask them to leave the first 5 nights as one reservation and make the final 9 nights as a separate reservation (?)
4) 7 months to the day: phone to check availability on AKL and then ask them to cancel the first reservation and reserve AKL instead

Is this right? Wow, they don't make things simple

 

[Dean]

Thanks all - I think I get it now. I think what I hadn't realised is that when you make a reservation they are holding a specific room for you, rather than just an allocation against the inventory.

So let me check...

1) 11 months to the day: book first 7 nights online
2) 4 days later - phone to add a further 4 nights to the same reservation
3a) 3 days later - phone to add the final 3 nights to the same reservation.
3b) On this same phone call ask them to leave the first 5 nights as one reservation and make the final 9 nights as a separate reservation (?)
4) 7 months to the day: phone to check availability on AKL and then ask them to cancel the first reservation and reserve AKL instead

Is this right? Wow, they don't make things simple

no, they do not hold a specific villa, just go by how many. Other than the HC ones.

 

[MJ6987]

no, they do not hold a specific villa, just go by how many. Other than the HC ones.

OK thanks, but is my my understanding of the process correct now? Thanks

 

[Dean]

OK thanks, but is my my understanding of the process correct now? Thanks

It seems so. The 4 & 3 days was arbitrary but for an additional 7 nights you'd only have to call twice to be essentially guaranteed of getting what you wanted. IF you called one to get the last 7 nights, you'd be at risk. I'd separate the reservation into 2 a week or 2 later on a separate call rather than at the time. I'd also reserve online for anything you can. Do you have enough points to hold both reservations? If so, you could book online then have them cancel the existing reservation. They could reallocate any points if you needed them to.