OKW - No Luck Booking at 11 Months!

[nunzia]

It was Disney's decision to change the booking policy and give other members a booking advantage over others. Why should Joe get a crack at the room I want to book just because he stayed the night earlier? Its an unfair advantage to him that he can book other nights that other members can't book yet.

Walking a reservation evens out this unfair booking policy and gets all members on an equal shot to get the rooms they want when the booking window opens.

I don't consider it having a "me first, screw everyone else" attitude, I think of it more like a "I got a fastpass so I can go on Space Mountain at the time I want".

Also, I have never walked a reservation, I have never had a need since I don't book that far out but as soon as bookings open for the Grand Californian, you can defently bet that I will be using every policy that Disney has to help me get the room reservation I need.

What about the people who are trying to get a booking for the days a walker has tied up with no intention of using?

 

[Boardwalk Tigger]

Most walkers cancel pretty quickly so if you dont get all of the days you want,call back for a few days in case there was a walker. As I stated earlier, in most cases walking isn't even needed and for the times it is I think a day or so will do the trick with few exceptions. I got what I wanted Christmas week and I didn't walk the reservation (but I would do so for a day or two if needed). I don't think one person has a right to a reservation over another.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

What about the people who are trying to get a booking for the days a walker has tied up with no intention of using?

If we could convince DVC to return to the old way of booking, the one that is completely fair for all, this would be a non-issue.

MG

 

[Disneyhappy]

If we could convince DVC to return to the old way of booking, the one that is completely fair for all, this would be a non-issue.

MG

Agreed- I know their are people on boths sides of the aisle but I believe the new system is not an equal playing field for all members. But DVC is not so interested in what is fair but more so about the bottom line $. The new policy has eliminated a large number of phone calls for the day by day bookings with the only increased calls are from the limited number of people who are walking their reservations.

 

[nunzia]

If we could convince DVC to return to the old way of booking, the one that is completely fair for all, this would be a non-issue.

MG

I don't think the old way was any better for anyone involved..all the frantic first thing in the morning day by day calls tying up the lines and the extra headache for MS and guests also.
People will do what people will do to get their way though.

 

[bobbiwoz]

If we could convince DVC to return to the old way of booking, the one that is completely fair for all, this would be a non-issue.

MG

The original way was fair because you could call day by day or not. It was always a choice! Now you need the points to book 7 days ahead of what you want.

I sure hope the OP gets the GV that should have been available at 11 months out. I would call, write Member Service, Satisfaction team. Whoever lost out for this holiday season should complain, I think. We weren't trying, except for early in December and we got it, but we never thought that we wouldn't. It's not all of the times that this new booking affects, but the most popular booking times and for some of the most prized villas.

Bobbi

 

[Maribel]

...
All who owned at your resort had the exact same opportunity to book each day on an individual basis. It didn't matter what your vacation dates were. This resulted in "reservation holes" for some members. Maybe they were able to book the some nights but weren't quite fast enough to get them all. They had to waitlist for the missing nights.

The new system is better at preventing holes, but does give those who arrive first an advantage. The old system resulted in lots and lots of unnecessary calls - many called day by day even though there was no need.

Now, if this was the case of what was happening, there could easily be deadlocks that can't be resolved.
Let's see the case of the OP, she called and there was nothing available, but she did had a second plan that has her settled for the dates she wanted. She also is on a waitlist, so she may have the opportunity to get exactly what she wanted at the end. For what I see, she can rest assured that at least she will be in the same rooms during her whole vacation.

Let's say that the other person, let's call him/her DG (date grabber), that got the GV when she called has the exact same dates that the OP.
Under the old system, each day the OP and DG will call to try to get the days. Some days, OP will get them, others DG will get them. Each will waitlist the dates they didn't get. Neither will cancel their days until the very last minute, thinking they may get what they wanted from the waitlist.
At the end, you will have two members frustrated not to be able to book what they wanted with holes in the reservation. This is a simple example of deadlock, add up a few dozen people trying to do the same, and well, you get the idea.

I think the new system is more efficient in having clean reservations and having people call less often, although I can see it has some unfairness in it causing people to walk their reservations, but still, I think the number of people walking the ressies will be much smaller than the ones that were calling on a day by day basis, therefore, I don't see them changing it back to the way it was any time soon.

 

[SuzanneSLO]

The original way was fair because you could call day by day or not. It was always a choice! Now you need the points to book 7 days ahead of what you want.
Bobbi

Actually, to walk you only need enough points to book 2 weekend nights, so the reallocation actually made it accessible to more members. -- Suzanne

 

[Maistre Gracey]

I don't think the old way was any better for anyone involved..all the frantic first thing in the morning day by day calls tying up the lines and the extra headache for MS and guests also.
People will do what people will do to get their way though.

But... Nobody was forced to call day by day. You were free to make one call at the end to book your whole stay. Risk? No more than it is now with a front loaded call.
Call on the front end, or call on the back end. Either way, if you choose to make only one call you are at risk. At least with the old method either way you booked (one call or day by day), every member had the same chance at getting the room. That is not true with the new system.

MG

 

[supersuperwendy]

The original way was fair because you could call day by day or not. It was always a choice! Now you need the points to book 7 days ahead of what you want.

Bobbi

I'm a little confused now. I thought you could make reservations regardless of how many points are currently in your account as long as they are there before you travel. Is that wrong? We are still new and haven't made any reservations yet..we banked our first year and they won't be back into our account yet when I'm ready to book. What do I do?

 

[DebbieB]

I'm a little confused now. I thought you could make reservations regardless of how many points are currently in your account as long as they are there before you travel. Is that wrong? We are still new and haven't made any reservations yet..we banked our first year and they won't be back into our account yet when I'm ready to book. What do I do?

You're correct. The extra points come into play if you want to book extra nights ahead of your actual stay in order to "hold" the nights you really want.

 

[tjkraz]

I guess "fairness" is in the eye of the beholder.

Personally I think there is a lot to be said for guaranteeing a member his/her entire trip in a single phone call (up to 7 nights, of course.) The one thing this thread tells us is that there were at least 28 people trying to get 27 Grand Villas for a single night--probably more. Under a day-by-day system, chances are there would be multiple people who were not able to book their entire desired stay because they lost-out on the 9am telephone sprint one or more days.

Also, I'm not sure how we can brand the day-by-day booking system "fair" when it was never advocated by DVC. It was never addressed in any of our membership materials. The policy always was "11 (7) months from your departure date." I'm sure many would argue that booking day by day was patently unfair since only a small subset of DVC members were privy to that approach.

Certain dates and room classes will be consistently hard to book regardless of the system used. If this "walking" continues to be a pretty rare thing--only a small volume of traffic--then DVC will probably allow it. But (IMO) as soon as people start "walking" reservations for AKV Savanna view in mid-May, DVC will shut it down.

 

[fishermouse]

Someone posted that member services suggested "walking" to them. I doubt they want to put a stop to it.because I don't think they really care about the individual member. As long as DVC is going to allow it, I would do it for a stay important to me. Otherwise, someone else will beat me to it by doing it that way.

My biggest concern is that I book 11 months out and can't get the airline resi I want so now I have to canx a day and maybe add a day at the end. If DVC see's walking as a problem they may start penalizing for cancelling, by either making you canx the whole week and rebook or charging a fee. Of course in this "it's all about me world" no one is concerned with the effect it may have on the people who are doing things the right way.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

I guess "fairness" is in the eye of the beholder.

Personally I think there is a lot to be said for guaranteeing a member his/her entire trip in a single phone call (up to 7 nights, of course.)

But the new system guarantees NOTHING.
If it did, I would be the first to say that the change was a good thing.

The one thing this thread tells us is that there were at least 28 people trying to get 27 Grand Villas for a single night--probably more. Under a day-by-day system, chances are there would be multiple people who were not able to book their entire desired stay because they lost-out on the 9am telephone sprint one or more days.

Maybe... Maybe Not.
The point is, all members started with equal access. Not true with the new system.

Also, I'm not sure how we can brand the day-by-day booking system "fair" when it was never advocated by DVC. It was never addressed in any of our membership materials. The policy always was "11 (7) months from your departure date." I'm sure many would argue that booking day by day was patently unfair since only a small subset of DVC members were privy to that approach.

It is a fact that DVC would suggest this technique when they thought a ressie would be hard to get.
In addition, the day by day method was no secret. I learned of it from my mailman... That's a true story.

MG

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Of course in this "it's all about me world" no one is concerned with the effect it may have on the people who are doing things the right way.

Since there are no rules against walking, there really is no "right way" of doing it.

I must bid my vacation time far in advance, and it gets locked in. My wife must coordinate her vacation time the prior year. Obviously the two must match.

Now, I bought vacation points years ago with the security of being able to call at 9 am, 11 months ahead of checkout, in order to *reasonably guarantee* my ressie.
Why now should I have the rug pulled from under me? I need to do whatever I can to ensure getting my EXACT vacation dates. If that means walking, than so be it. I truly wish it didn't have to be that way, but I wasn't the one that changed the rules.
If DVC would buy my 1100 points back at fair market value, that would be an acceptable alternative. The fact is that DVC put my future vacations in jeopardy, and I'm guarding against that.

MG

 

[tjkraz]

It is a fact that DVC would suggest this technique [day-by-day] when they thought a ressie would be hard to get.
In addition, the day by day method was no secret. I learned of it from my mailman... That's a true story.

I've read a handful of reports of Member Services reps recommending day-by-day before it was eliminated, but let's not confuse that with it being condoned by DVC in any way, shape or form. It was not part of the script that MS reps were required to read. It was never mentioned in Disney Files mag or on the member website. None of our annual vacation planners even remotely suggested that members book day-by-day.

Whether or not it was a secret depends entirely on the company you happen to keep. DVC members shouldn't have to learn about timeshare booking procedures from their mailman.

You could argue that DVC turned a blind eye to the process since it was functionally possible and reps were not prohibited from booking trips in that manner. But "fair"? Not by my definition. If you had 300,000 members who were equally informed of their ability (right?) to book DBD, THAT is what I consider to be fair.

Under the old rules members who were following the published rules would wait until 11 mos from their checkout date, call MS and be told "sorry, we don't have anything available for the start of your trip." Gone before the member even had access to book those dates. Isn't that exactly what people are claiming is unfair about the current system?

This "walking" of reservations is just as much a manipulation of the rules as day-by-day bookings were. And I agree with fishermouse: if it becomes a problem DVC will either enforce stricter cancellation policies or start charging for reservations over a certain threshold.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

Under the old rules members who were following the published rules would wait until 11 mos from their checkout date, call MS and be told "sorry, we don't have anything available for the start of your trip." Gone before the member even had access to book those dates. Isn't that exactly what people are claiming is unfair about the current system?

No. Under the old system the member had the option to call DBD. They also had the option to call at the end and "take their chances".
Under the new system that option is gone... Of course, they can choose to walk.

This "walking" of reservations is just as much a manipulation of the rules as day-by-day bookings were. And I agree with fishermouse: if it becomes a problem DVC will either enforce stricter cancellation policies or start charging for reservations over a certain threshold.

I don't see any manipulation whatsoever. Using the published rules to one's advantage is smart, not manipulation.
If DVC is so worried about members walking, they could have changed the rules for DBD booking.
Besides... Just how many times can they materially change the rules? I mean, I don't think charging for cancellations is in the best interest of the membership.

MG

 

[tjkraz]

No. Under the old system the member had the option to call DBD. They also had the option to call at the end and "take their chances".
Under the new system that option is gone... Of course, they can choose to walk.

But members...ALL MEMBERS...were never given equal (fair!) notice of the ability to do the day-by-day bookings.

If you want to fairly compare and contrast the old and new booking systems, the comparison should be between truly calling 11 mos from checkout vs. 11 mos from checkin. No day-by-day. No walking.

And under either system there is a risk of people being disenchanted.

Day-by-day and "walking" are both manipulations of the system by my definition.

Were they/are they permitted? Yes.

Are they "legal"? Yes.

Are either "fair"? No...not in the sense that all members have been equally informed of their rights to do so.

 

[Maistre Gracey]

But members...ALL MEMBERS...were never given equal (fair!) notice of the ability to do the day-by-day bookings.

If you want to fairly compare and contrast the old and new booking systems, the comparison should be between truly calling 11 mos from checkout vs. 11 mos from checkin. No day-by-day. No walking.

And under either system there is a risk of people being disenchanted.

Day-by-day and "walking" are both manipulations of the system by my definition.

Were they/are they permitted? Yes.

Are they "legal"? Yes.

Are either "fair"? No...not in the sense that all members have been equally informed of their rights to do so.

How about a happy medium...
Go back to the old system, but inform all members of the DBD option.

MG

 

[tjkraz]

How about a happy medium...
Go back to the old system, but inform all members of the DBD option.

MG

Except it doesn't solve the fundamental problem of DBD only being remotely necessary about 5% of the year and for a tiny number of room classes.

I'd say we have a better chance of seeing the special season lottery return for "small resort / December" and AKV Concierge.