Parents Joining Us For 2-3 Days Out of 7, 1BR->2BR or 2BR->1BR Possible?

[robinb]

My in-laws want to join us at WDW in August, but only for a couple of days. We will be there 5-7 days. We could just book two studios and be done with it. But ... I would really like to stay in a 1BR. Is it possible to either start with a 1BR and add on the connecting studio to make a 2BR for the last 2-3 nights or start with a 2BR for the first 2-3 nights and drop off the studio?

I am going to book at BWV while I can now and then try to convert the reservation over to AKV at the 7-month mark. There are only 3 of us, plus 2 of them so booking a 2BR for the whole time is a waste of points. I also don't want to book a 1BR (kosher at AKV) because I really want anyone sleeping on the couch. My in-laws are very late risers and we try for rope-drop. I gave up my master bedroom for them once. Never again! Booking the 1BR and a separate studio for them for 3 nights uses up even more points than the 2BR for the whole time.

So ... would we be able to convert from a 1BR to a 2BR or a 2BR to a 1BR without moving?

 

[Caskbill]

It's definitely possible, but wouldn't be guaranteed. The best scenario is to have the 2-B/R first, then drop the studio portion after 3 days and keep the 1-B/R postion. This ensures the 1-B/R is reserved for the whole 7 days.

If you start with the 1-B/R and want to switch later to the 2-B/R, it would only work depending on the reservation dates the other AKV member had for the Studio. It would be necessary that their plans were to check-out the same day you want to add the studio to your 1-B/R so that that specific studio then becomes available. If the other member had the Studio portion for different dates, then you would have to move somewhere else to get the 2-B/R.

Whatever you do, understand they are two separate reservations, so be sure they are linked. I'm also pretty sure you'll need to check-out and then check back in, whether or not you keep the same villa or not.

 

[LIFERBABE]

I think it would be more difficult at AKV with all the different room categories. You would have to book the least desireable view category because there may be a studio empty but it most likely will not be in Concierge or Savannah or value which will go first.

Studios book up the quickest, so they would have to coordinate your 1 bedroom stay with your neighbor checking out on the day your parents arrive or leave the studio portion empty.

If the resort is not full and they have the availability it will be easier, but with a full resort it will be difficult. Even if they did try to arrange it for you, All it would take is someone to complain about their assigned studio and be moved to the studio next to you and take away that option.

They can't block it, because its not reserved so the studio portion is fair game.

You can check in early and see if they can accomodate you at the front desk.

I would book the 1 bedroom and the studio. It gives you the most flexibility if someone cancels and anytime I take guests, I make sure I have options with some insurance built in.

MS can "link" them as "travelling with you" and they will do their best to get them together or nearby but the only guarantee is to book the 2 bed for the entire stay.

I hate moving too!

 

[robinb]

Studios book up the quickest, so they would have to coordinate your 1 bedroom stay with your neighbor checking out on the day your parents arrive or leave the studio portion empty.

If the resort is not full and they have the availability it will be easier, but with a full resort it will be difficult. Even if they did try to arrange it for you, All it would take is someone to complain about their assigned studio and be moved to the studio next to you and take away that option.

But what about Bill's suggestion that we start with a 2BR and then downgrade to a 1BR? If the two reservations are connected then I might not have to move when we drop the studio.

 

[LIFERBABE]

But what about Bill's suggestion that we start with a 2BR and then downgrade to a 1BR? If the two reservations are connected then I might not have to move when we drop the studio.

Yes, I do agree with Bill, he just made such an excellent case for his reasoning, that I wanted to follow up with why the other options/alternatives would be more difficult

1 bedrooms are normally the last to go, so I would think you would have the most success doing as Bill suggested.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We have done this with the marathon when we brought friends along for the last few days of our stay. We checked into a one bedroom at OKW and about four days later, we checked into a two bedroom just by opening up the door between the rooms. We had to request a lock off one bedroom so we would have the studio to add to the villa to make the two bedroom. So make sure you don't have a dedicated villa for any part of your stay. You must have a lockoff to make it work.

When we checked in on 1/1/06, we confirmed that we had a lock off that would be available on 1/5/06 to add the studio to it. They had both rooms blocked so we wouldn't have to move.

It just takes some coordination with MS to have it noted on your reservation and the front desk when you check in.

 

[Fellowship9798]

But what about Bill's suggestion that we start with a 2BR and then downgrade to a 1BR? If the two reservations are connected then I might not have to move when we drop the studio.

I would still say don't count on it. I just came back from a 12 night stay at BWV. First night was a Studio, then 7 nights in a 2BR when my parents & sister arrived, then down to a 1BR when they left.

All reservations were the same category (Boardwalk view) and it was noted in my reservations that I was staying over from one reservation to the next and was hoping to stay in the same rooms. It was clearly stated by Member Services that it was not guaranteed, but I had high hopes.

We had to move rooms both times, even when we moved from the 2 BR to the 1 BR. BWV would not let us drop the studio portion and stay in the same 1 BR despite asking different CM's and pushing quite a bit. Apparently the rooms were already assigned and they refused to change the assignments.

It was a big pain to take time to pack up everything twice (particualrly with everything required for a 15 month old and 2.5 year old), store it for the day, have no place for the kids to nap, then spend time setting up all over again. On the plus side, there was some benefit in moving into a freshly cleaned room with new towels and sheets as we were switching beds after our extra guests left.

Anyway, it may turn out to be luckier for you, but be warned it is definitely not guaranteed (or even likely in my experience) to stay in the same room.

We still had a great trip and really enjoyed BWV, we just lost a good portion of two days of our vacation. It's something I will defenitely consider in our future plans. We are considering adding on a few more points with the hopes of minimizing room changes in the future.

 

[robinb]

I would still say don't count on it. I just came back from a 12 night stay at BWV. First night was a Studio, then 7 nights in a 2BR when my parents & sister arrived, then down to a 1BR when they left.

All reservations were the same category (Boardwalk view) and it was noted in my reservations that I was staying over from one reservation to the next and was hoping to stay in the same rooms. It was clearly stated by Member Services that it was not guaranteed, but I had high hopes.

We had to move rooms both times, even when we moved from the 2 BR to the 1 BR. BWV would not let us drop the studio portion and stay in the same 1 BR despite asking different CM's and pushing quite a bit. Apparently the rooms were already assigned and they refused to change the assignments.

Wow. Thank you for your cautionary tale. You "connected" the reservations and everything?

 

[Fellowship9798]

Wow. Thank you for your cautionary tale. You "connected" the reservations and everything?

I did the best I could. When making the reservation, I asked to have them linked up. The MS person told me that "linking" means something specific in the reservation system and since the rooms were all different types (Studio, 2BR, the 1BR), they couldn't be "linked". But she would include notes in the reservations stating it was a continuing reservation and referencing the other reservation #. She said this would give me the best chance that we could stay put, but she couldn't guarantee it.

So although I did push at the front desk to keep the room, I did have to accept moving since I was warned that it was not guaranteed. I really still don't understand why keeping the room through the change from the 2BR to a 1BR couldn't have been arranged. We were changing on a Sunday when there is all kinds of people checking in and out and there would be no shortage of rooms to slot people into besides ours. Oh well, we decided to move on with our day rather than fighting for something that was never guaranteed to us in the first place.