Please explain walking like I am 5 years old

[melissa70]

Hello all..I’ve come to the experts yet again.. I don’t really want to walk but I feel I have to as most people do. If I want dates of dec 29 2026 to jan 1 2027 how exactly do I do this? Go right to my Jan 1 date and before Dec 29 and just drop a day everyday or…what? Thanks in advance..happy new year!!

 

[melissa70]

I get it..you don’t want to give up the secret LOL

 

[zavandor]

You book a reservation for a night earlier than your travel dates. For example, you book today 11/30/2026 to 12/8/2026.
Then a few days in, for example on the 6th, you modify your reservation to be 12/6 to 12/13.
Then again, on the 11th, you change the reservation to be: 12/11 to 12/18
And so on, until you reach the dates you want.

Doing it this way, once you have booked the first reservation, you're sure you'll get the nights you want, if you continue walking*. For hard to get rooms, this gives you multiple mornings to be able to book your first reservation, if it's unable on the first day, you can try again the following day. If you wait to book on January 29, then you have only one shot to book the room, if it's not available that day you need to hope in a waitlist (or stalking).
You could in theory wait for the last day of your reservation to move it, but I'd say give yourself some margin, so if something happens and you forget or are unable to login, you still have the following day to change it.
In my example I've booked one week, if you don't have enough points, you can still walk with 2 days, but you need to login and modify it daily.

For most rooms types most of the year, it's not really needed.

* it's very rare, but if Disney blocks a few rooms for certain dates, for example for a refurb or maintenance, it's possible you won't be able to continue the walk. Sometimes, a glitch happens too and some rooms are not available at 11 months + a few days, but become available later, this can disrupt a walk too. Also, you cannot walk online across different UY, you need to call for that.

 

[melissa70]

I’ll only use 3-4 nights of points so I should probably walk every day. So basically I’m 3-4 days ahead of someone else that wants the same nights? It’s a holiday week so won’t most people who are staying the whole week have most of the rooms booked?

 

[melissa70]

You book a reservation for a night earlier than your travel dates. For example, you book today 11/30/2026 to 12/8/2026.
Then a few days in, for example on the 6th, you modify your reservation to be 12/6 to 12/13.
Then again, on the 11th, you change the reservation to be: 12/11 to 12/18
And so on, until you reach the dates you want.

Doing it this way, once you have booked the first reservation, you're sure you'll get the nights you want, if you continue walking*. For hard to get rooms, this gives you multiple mornings to be able to book your first reservation, if it's unable on the first day, you can try again the following day. If you wait to book on January 29, then you have only one shot to book the room, if it's not available that day you need to hope in a waitlist (or stalking).
You could in theory wait for the last day of your reservation to move it, but I'd say give yourself some margin, so if something happens and you forget or are unable to login, you still have the following day to change it.
In my example I've booked one week, if you don't have enough points, you can still walk with 2 days, but you need to login and modify it daily.

For most rooms types most of the year, it's not really needed.

* it's very rare, but if Disney blocks a few rooms for certain dates, for example for a refurb or maintenance, it's possible you won't be able to continue the walk. Sometimes, a glitch happens too and some rooms are not available at 11 months + a few days, but become available later, this can disrupt a walk too. Also, you cannot walk online across different UY, you need to call for that.

Thank you for replying

 

[AstroBlasters]

Just go out as far as you can and then go in every day and modify the reservation to drop the first day and extend the trip a day.

 

[Genie+]

The good news is you’ll be starting your Season 7 walk during the much lower point Season 3, so you’ll probably be able to hold an extra night or two during the beginning of your walk. Like say you needed a total of 120 points for your 4 nights in Season 7 (assuming studio), that 120 points will let you hold 5 or 6 nights while walking through Season 3.

The bad news is you’ll be walking through Season 3, which is probably the highest demand season currently. Recommended would be to start the walk and get in before Season 3 starts.

 

[melissa70]

The good news is you’ll be starting your Season 7 walk during the much lower point Season 3, so you’ll probably be able to hold an extra night or two during the beginning of your walk. Like say you needed a total of 120 points for your 4 nights in Season 7 (assuming studio), that 120 points will let you hold 5 or 6 nights while walking through Season 3.

The bad news is you’ll be walking through Season 3, which is probably the highest demand season currently. Recommended would be to start the walk and get in before Season 3 starts.

As in the beginning of December start walking?

 

[Genie+]

As in the beginning of December start walking?

Yes.

In practice Season 3 higher demand studios don’t have an 11 month window, it’s more like 13+ months. People would rather do that instead of crossing their fingers and stalking scraps and waitlisting. The more people do it, the more other people do it. The longer window people d it, longer window for others too, etc. It’s been snowballing for many years now.

 

[melissa70]

Is it still possible for someone else in the meantime to have grabbed the last day or two of your reservation before you can walk into it?

 

[VandVsmama]

Just go out as far as you can and then go in every day and modify the reservation to drop the first day and extend the trip a day.

This is what I've been doing for 3 nights I'm hoping for at GCH in August. I'm about a week out from getting the dates I want. Due to the time zone difference, it's been early mornings every day to be online right at 8:00 am Eastern time (6:00 am my time zone) so I can quickly modify and move the reservation forward by 1 day for the room category I want.

The first day I tried to do this, I messed up and waited a min or 2. By then, 1 of the nights wasn't available and I only got 1 night. The next day, I messed up again by taking the time to add the other guests' names to my reservation.

So now I'm just keeping MY name on the reservation until I'm done walking and THEN I'll add my other family members to the reservation.

Staying at GCH over the weekend of the 2026 D23 convention in August is a no go...all of those rooms are already booked. Boo!

 

[AstroBlasters]

This is what I've been doing for 3 nights I'm hoping for at GCH in August. I'm about a week out from getting the dates I want. Due to the time zone difference, it's been early mornings every day to be online right at 8:00 am Eastern time (6:00 am my time zone) so I can quickly modify and move the reservation forward by 1 day for the room category I want.

The first day I tried to do this, I messed up and waited a min or 2. By then, 1 of the nights wasn't available and I only got 1 night. The next day, I messed up again by taking the time to add the other guests' names to my reservation.

So now I'm just keeping MY name on the reservation until I'm done walking and THEN I'll add my other family members to the reservation.

Staying at GCH over the weekend of the 2026 D23 convention in August is a no go...all of those rooms are already booked. Boo!

Yeah…. the more nights you can book ahead then the better off you will be.

I also don’t get into the studio knife fights….. a bit easier in the villa world…. however BWV Boardwalk View 2Bd has introduced me to it…. so for an upcoming trip I cheated and did a Garden View at 11m and then flipped to a Grand Villa at 7m when I can bring in my sweet sweet Aulani subsidized points.

 

[zackiedawg]

Having been DVC since 1996, I admit I never even heard of 'walking' until a few years ago reading these forums. And while I know it's not 'wrong', 'illegal', 'immoral' etc, it just feels skeezy to me, so I've never done it and can't imagine I ever will. I'm the weirdo for feeling that way I'm sure, but I can't help it. I also feel the same way about booking multiple dinner reservations for the same time the moment the window opens, then just canceling them and keeping the one you want. Or grabbing reservations for every night available for something hard to get, and then keeping one and canceling the rest later. These are all traditions common on the forums, but I can't bring myself to do it.

 

[Sandisw]

Today opens up booking for a check in day of November 30th…so you are just under a month from the check in day you want.

You can basically look to start grabbing the room any time and just keep moving it forward, unless you have a Dec UY…then you can start Jan 1st.

You can move daily, or you can wait a few days to move…just don’t forget!

The only thing that can prevent you is if you are trying for a resort that might have rooms taken it for refurbishment or if you are booking a resort with FW and the rooms disappear before the 11 months mark.

 

[melissa70]

If I am only walking a three night stretch, shouldn’t I modify every day to make sure?

 

[tx911]

Having been DVC since 1996, I admit I never even heard of 'walking' until a few years ago reading these forums. And while I know it's not 'wrong', 'illegal', 'immoral' etc, it just feels skeezy to me, so I've never done it and can't imagine I ever will. I'm the weirdo for feeling that way I'm sure, but I can't help it. I also feel the same way about booking multiple dinner reservations for the same time the moment the window opens, then just canceling them and keeping the one you want. Or grabbing reservations for every night available for something hard to get, and then keeping one and canceling the rest later. These are all traditions common on the forums, but I can't bring myself to do it.

Trust your gut

 

[melissa70]

Today opens up booking for a check in day of November 30th…so you are just under a month from the check in day you want.

You can basically look to start grabbing the room any time and just keep moving it forward, unless you have a Dec UY…then you can start Jan 1st.

You can move daily, or you can wait a few days to move…just don’t forget!

The only thing that can prevent you is if you are trying for a resort that might have rooms taken it for refurbishment or if you are booking a resort with FW and the rooms disappear before the 11 months mark.

or if you are booking a resort with FW and the rooms disappear before the 11 months mark.

How would it disappear before 11 months?

 

[Genie+]

Is it still possible for someone else in the meantime to have grabbed the last day or two of your reservation before you can walk into it?

No they can’t. As long as you are properly flipping the reservation, then the only way availability could be missing would be due to maintenance, fixed week 12 month booking, or system glitch.

However… somebody utilizing a full 7 day booking could end up with advantage over a shorter booking when it comes to that inventory taken out for maintenance or fixed week. That’s because whoever secures the existing inventory first will keep it.

You really can simplify this down to one room to understand the principle. If I book right now at 11 months, the furthest I can book is Nov 30 to Dec 7th (11 months for the maximum duration of 7 nights). But even say I couldn’t book the full 7 nights and just booked 4 nights - I’d have Nov 30 thru Dec 4. As long as I flip this walk before the 11 month window opens nobody else is going to be able to book any dates beyond me. - This is basically how 11 month plus inventory works because everybody is individually holding a room that exists. There’s no need for one person to cross into a different room because they are already holding their own room down.

Now expand that same thought to 10 rooms. All have been booked at the 11 month +nights window. Well if 11 months plus 3 days starts somebody else’s fixed week, there will only be 9 rooms left and whoever shows up last to book it will be out. Now anybody already holding 11 months +4, 5, 6 or 7 nights is safe. Say the shortest booking was 3 nights and everybody else was holding a longer reservation. That 3 nights person has no way of securing that offline night out from under the others (as long as they kept up their walk by flipping over any new 11 month window). The 3 night reservation would be last access that offline night, and lose out.

Yes - it’s complicated! There are better descriptions on how the math/inventory works. But if you really think it through to the next level, it does work out that normal 11 month plus bookings can’t take from other 11 month plus bookings before that other booking gets there. The only thing that can mess it up is being last when inventory is taken in another way (maintenance, FW, glitch).

 

[Genie+]

How would it disappear before 11 months?

The fixed weeks get a 12 month booking for which they pay an extra 10% points.

 

[Sandisw]

How would it disappear before 11 months?

If you are booking a room that has FW thst can happen because those rooms are booked before the 11 month window.

For example, if I want a RV studio at RIV, I know that several have been bought for that first or second week of December.

If I am walking, and that is the room I want, it could end up stopping me because the number of rooms available is reduced for that week.

Same with refurbishing the rooms,,.they pull rooms for that ahead of time…and we don’t know how many that is…so it could happen.

It’s not likely, but possible. You don’t mention what you are trying for so it may not even apply.