Please explain the process

[kenziesmamaw]

This is an awesome site and is really helping with our decision about buying in to DVC.

I'm curious how the reservation process works, though. I understand the 11/7, but am wondering if there is a waiting period when you call to make your reservations. I'm reading about "waitlists" and other things and don't know what is referring to contracts and what is referring to reservations. This wasn't anything that was discussed with our guide, so I would like to know more while we have the two days to make our decision (he is off til Monday).

 

[tjkraz]

DVC has a toll-free Member Services number to make reservations. Reservations at your Home resort can be made 11 months before your check-out date. At non-Home resorts, you can begin calling 7 months before your check-out date.

For example, if you wanted to stay at WDW from 12/7 to 12/10:

Home resort: Call on or after 1/10
Non-Home: Call on or after 5/10

You can also call day-by-day for extremely busy times meaning that technically you could call on 1/8 to book 12/7, call on 1/9 to book 12/8, and so on. Some people on this forum booked day-by-day ressies for dates in December, but even that was probably not necessary 99% of the time.

All rooms are subject to availability at the time that you call. Home resort has zero meaning when that 7-month window arrives. If you own at BWV and call 6 months out, you are subject to the same availability restrictions as anyone in the program.

If you call and a room is not available at your desired resort you can go on the waitlist. If your room becomes available due to a cancellation, DVC will either contact you and give you 24 hours to confirm the booking or immediately book the room in your name (you choose the process.)

Many people will book their Home resort at 11 months to ensure that they do have SOME room, and then when the 7-month window opens, call and try to switch to another resort. If there is availability, one reservation is cancelled and the other is booked.

If a room is not available when you call, you can ask to be placed on the waitlist and then receive a room as they become available. Note that DVC cannot tell you how far down the list you might be, so it's difficult to predict the odds of success.

Any difference in points between the two resorts is returned to your account with no penalty. You can always make changes to reservations with zero penalties up to 31 days before check-in.

 

[kenziesmamaw]

Okay, I think I have that part down. Now for the questions about banking and borrowing.

I'm gathering that there are deadlines for banking current year points for use in the next year. I know that they can only be banked for a certain period of time or you lose them, which won't be an issue for us anyway. I doubt that we will be banking much because we will probably travel enough to use all of our points each year whether it is to WDW or some other place closer to home. We love Asheville NC so the Grove Park Inn option is very attractive to us as is Charleston SC.

 

[tjkraz]

In the first 6 months of your Use Year you can bank 100% of your points. In the next 3 months you can bank up to 50% of your total points. In the next 1 month you can bank 25% of your total points.

Note that these are cumulative percentages. If you own 150 points and have already banked 100, you cannot bank any more after the first 6 months.

Points can be banked one year forward. If they are not used by the end of the year into which they were banked, the points are forfeit.

Points can be borrowed from the next Use Year. The borrowing must occur at the time a reservation is made with the points. Borrowing is a final transaction. Even if you end up canceling the reservation for which you needed to borrow points, they stay in the new Use Year and CANNOT be banked.