Observation/Question About Calculating the Eleven-Month Window

[SamR]

OK, having been a DVC member for five years now, I should know this, but...

I'm planning a BCV stay (my home resort) for March 30-April 5 of next year. I regularly use Caskbill's DVC Planner program and had my vacation report in hand showing that I should call today to book the first night of my stay (doing a day-by-day booking). However, when I called MS a few minutes ago, the CM told me I was a day early...I couldn't book until tomorrow since it is based on day of checkout.

Working backwards, that means that I would reserve the night of April 4th (checkout April 5th) by calling May 5th (eleven months later)...This agrees with the planner program. I will call on May 4th to reserve the night of April 3rd ... I will call on May 1st to reserve the night of March 31st. Working backwards, it would therefore seem that I should call on April 30th (today) to reserve the night of March 30th, but I guess it depends on your definition of "eleven months after March 31st". Does MS (or more importantly their computer systems) think that eleven months from March 31st is April 31st, which they translate to tomorrow? So, when I call tomorrow, I'll actually be able to book two nights (April 30th & 31st)?

I guess I've never made a reservation (or at least not a day-by-day reservation) that crossed a 30-day (or worse yet 28/29-day) month boundary before.

Unless some of my knowledgeable DVC brethren think the MS CM was mistaken (or misunderstanding what I was asking for), I need to drop Caskbill a note and report the problem in his planner program. It's a great program...which is one of the reasons I've never really had to think about this before.

 

[beacher]

The exact same thing just happened to me. Trying to book day by day for trip beginning March 30th and am so reliant on Caskbill's program that I assumed for a moment that MS was wrong! She convinced me I need to start tomorrow for the 11 month window - could it be that 2008 is a leap year and there's an extra day on Feb. 29th?

 

[drusba]

As I have always understood it, you can call 11 months before your check-out date, meaning for April 4 check out date, you could first call on May 4. And under that 11 month rule for either a March 31 or April 1 check-out date, you could first call on May 1.

Also be aware that I just called and got a 2BR boardwalk view at BWV for Easter week March 23 to 30. In other words, even for that week, for a 2BR boardwalk view, I did not need to call day by day.

 

[Figment2]

If my check in day is Oct. 29, I know to call on Nov 30 (the day after). On Dec. 1, I can book 2 days (the 30th & the 31st). So on and so forth. All I do is add 1 to whatever check in date I'm booking.

Cyn

 

[DVC Grammy]

The exact same thing just happened to me. Trying to book day by day for trip beginning March 30th and am so reliant on Caskbill's program that I assumed for a moment that MS was wrong! She convinced me I need to start tomorrow for the 11 month window - could it be that 2008 is a leap year and there's an extra day on Feb. 29th?

Yes, 2008 IS a leap year!

 

[SamR]

Trying to book day by day for trip beginning March 30th and am so reliant on Caskbill's program that I assumed for a moment that MS was wrong!

That was exactly how I reacted. After thinking about it, it makes sense...Eleven months prior to March 31st would be April 31st, which would translate to May 1st, so I need to call tomorrow. But when the CM told me I couldn't book it yet, all I could do was look at the DVC Planner output and think, "But, but, it says here that today is the day!"

The DVC Planner has been around a pretty good while now, so I'm just surprised that the problem hasn't been reported before.

 

[Caskbill]

MS has been confused about this for years. I developed the DVC-Planner program based on their published information regarding corresponding dates for use at the 11-month (or 7-month) window. To do it correctly required extra programming on my part.

Basically you call 11-months ahead to the same date as the corresponding checkout date.

However, when there is not a corresponding checkout date, then you call on the last day of the month. So for a checkin date of March 30th, with a corresponding checkout of March 31st, the 11-month window would say to call on April 31st. Since there isn't an April 31st, the correct date to call is today, April 30th.

Unless they've changed it, and I've been watching every year for any publication which shows it was changed, then MS is wrong.

Here's a scan of the actual text in the publication I originally used, dated 05/01/98, Member Guidelines for Disney Vacation Club. I'm using this one as it was handy, but I know the same text was repeated in following guidelines.

My guess is they never could program their computers to accept reservation dates as developed per their own guidelines. Or else MS is just saying no without even trying.

I'm wondering if you call back, and read the guidelines to them, if it'll make a difference.

 

[beacher]

As long as MS is applying it consistently, I can deal with the window opening tomorrow. Checked the member website and it is giving the same information - reservations can be made today for check out on March 30th. I just wouldn't want to find out when calling back tomorrow that 11-month window reservations were taken today for that March 31st check out date.

And thanks, Caskbill, for your terrific program and all your extraordinary efforts.

 

[SamR]

I'm wondering if you call back, and read the guidelines to them, if it'll make a difference.

I don't know about any other posters, but I never even bothered (although I thought about it). Realistically, I strongly doubt that I need to do a day-by-day booking eleven months out even during the "spring break season". The only reason I bother is that I prefer the two-bedroom dedicated villas with two queen beds at BCV, and they are in rather short supply.

So, I'll be booking the first two days of my stay tomorrow. Like beacher said, I just hope MS is consistent, and that the computer system is enforcing the rule rather than individual CMs.