Poly Room Category Thoughts?

[Sparrow624]

The whole concept seems completely illogical to me. You have a DVC area larger than VGF and BCV which both have 1 and 2 bedrooms...but you do not allocate any space to any? You still could have done this and had the way too overpriced bungalows as well...but lowered the points.

It makes me angry because we were interested in the Poly, but it does not work for our needs under the configuration. Maybe we will use points to try to "trade in" for an adult only trip once in a while....once the construction is completed...and hope we don't get a ground floor bungalow view.

 

[Dean]

I wonder if the bungalows were built with a deluxe option for RCI exchanges in mind.

If DVC has a bunch of points exchanged to RCI and places a bungalow (maybe WL cabins too) into the exchange, the bungalows looks much more reasonable to other timeshares. Disney has to give up fewer rooms.

I would be very curious to hear what Dean (and others who know other timeshares), think about any unused bungalows possibly being used for exchanges. Would people consider using their RCI points (costing much less than DVC) to book a PVB bungalow?

I doubt it. It's not Disney's style plus it'd still only count as one deposit with RCI.

 

[freediverdude]

I think they messed up big time at Poly. I know of 6 people, myself included, who would have jumped at Poly if it were more than just studios. My friend regularly visited Poly with his wife for years. They began saving money to purchase Poly as soon as they heard there would be DVC. They now have kids and it literally crushed them that there were no 2 bedrooms or at least adjoining studios as an option. They will still pay cash to visit poly, but probably pay for 2 rooms next to each other as the kids get older and the actual hotel will regularly do for them already.

If there were an adjoining room category, I probably would have purchased 150 points to use every other year, but can't bring myself to do it without that garuntee.

What you said about that family doesn't make sense. The Disney hotel side also does not guarantee adjoining rooms, it's just a request. So they would be taking the same chance at getting the adjoining rooms either way, might as well save money on the rooms over the years and get DVC.

 

[Sparrow624]

What you said about that family doesn't make sense. The Disney hotel side also does not guarantee adjoining rooms, it's just a request. So they would be taking the same chance at getting the adjoining rooms either way, might as well save money on the rooms over the years and get DVC.

They have taken 8 trips to the Poly pre-kids with family and friends. Always requested adjoining rooms...Always got them. Not saying it is a garuntee, but seems like it. That being said, they can't take the "chance" of not getting it with kids now, especially as they age. I am not saying they won't buy DVC, but it won't be Poly.

I on the other hand still want Poly points, just to use for trips with my wife...No kids. But, we would probably only buy 60 points or so now and go every few years...if they had offered 2 bedrooms or even adjoining atudios, we would probably have bought enough to go on non VGF years every other year. Now we are looking at BCV and BWV instead.

 

[freediverdude]

It may seem like it, but they're taking the same chance of not getting the adjoining rooms on each of those trips whether they realize it or not. It was available for each of those past trips, so they got it, and chances are they would with DVC as well. If they're looking for a guarantee, they don't get that on either side. It sounds like the type of people who would pull a fit if they didn't get it on the hotel side either, so good I don't want them in the same building as me, lol.

 

[cvjw]

We had 2 connecting studios at Poly. When I booked the reservation, I requested connecting studios, and the CM put the request in. When I did online check-in, the connecting studios option was already checked - it had been done by DVC. I could only make one other online request - I could not change the connecting studio request, it was greyed out.

I think if you request connecting studios when you book, it is more than a request - at least it was for our family. DVC may not can guarantee connecting studios, but they did their best to honor the request.

 

[freediverdude]

We had 2 connecting studios at Poly. When I booked the reservation, I requested connecting studios, and the CM put the request in. When I did online check-in, the connecting studios option was already checked - it had been done by DVC. I could only make one other online request - I could not change the connecting studio request, it was greyed out.

I think if you request connecting studios when you book, it is more than a request - at least it was for our family. DVC may not can guarantee connecting studios, but they did their best to honor the request.

Hmm that's interesting. That hasn't happened with other requests as far as I know. Would be interesting to hear how member services thinks of that.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

Hmm that's interesting. That hasn't happened with other requests as far as I know. Would be interesting to hear how member services thinks of that.

I have read of that with others. I think if you put in a request with MS and it's something standard they can use the check boxes it seems to fix it as unchangeable. You need to call to change it otherwise when you do online check in it's grey'd out.

 

[Dean]

They have taken 8 trips to the Poly pre-kids with family and friends. Always requested adjoining rooms...Always got them. Not saying it is a garuntee, but seems like it. That being said, they can't take the "chance" of not getting it with kids now, especially as they age. I am not saying they won't buy DVC, but it won't be Poly.

I on the other hand still want Poly points, just to use for trips with my wife...No kids. But, we would probably only buy 60 points or so now and go every few years...if they had offered 2 bedrooms or even adjoining atudios, we would probably have bought enough to go on non VGF years every other year. Now we are looking at BCV and BWV instead.

And they likely will get them with the Poly as well and they might not next time with the hotel side. I suspect DVC will pay a lot of attention to that specific request. However, I'd suspect the chances of success are higher on the hotel side than with DVC. If they can't take the chance and need 2 rooms, they need to look at 2 BR villas elsewhere or stay with cash. They could still buy poly and stay at the easier to reserve places if they wanted until the kids are older but financially that likely doesn't make sense. Or they could take the chance and split up with one adult in each if they are unlucky.

 

[southerngirl528]

One of the main reasons I joined DVC 22 years ago was to have villa accommodations. Even when it is just DH and I, I book a 1 bedroom villa. Almost without exception. I book a week in a GV once a year for my big brood to gather in. While I do think that the Poly Villas' Studios are the most optimal in the DVC collection for families wanting or needing (because they don't have many points) to stay in a studio. They are quite large and the split baths are terrific for a family staying in a studio.

That said, I agree that the Poly Studios in Pago Pago that overlook the parking lot should be in a different category at at slightly lower points rate. Of course if they ever did this they would out of necessity need to RAISE the points accordingly somewhere else at the Poly Villas….

 

[supersnoop]

If they lower the points for the bungalows the studios will end up being ridiculously high. The points don't just go away. So they raise the points for the studios per night and less members book 360 studios instead of 20 bungalows. How does that improve things? You forget that one reason studios are popular is that they are lower priced. DVC could easily over price the studios at PVB.

I thought I read that increasing the points for a studio by a single point per night would decrease the bungalow by 26 points per night. There's more room in there than you might think.

 

[Sparrow624]

I thought I read that increasing the points for a studio by a single point per night would decrease the bungalow by 26 points per night. There's more room in there than you might think.

This speculation is one of the dangers of buying Poly now. Who knows what that will be point wise in 1-2 years, and who knows how many rooms might no longer be categorized as "lake view" in 1-2 years. Too many unknowns here. Yeah, buying 100 point right now is enough for a LV studio for 7 nights every other year...now. What happens when you need 7-15 more points total in a year or two?

 

[dizfan]

I thought I read that increasing the points for a studio by a single point per night would decrease the bungalow by 26 points per night. There's more room in there than you might think.

360 studios divided by 20 bungalows should be 18 points lower.

IMHO, lowering points for 20 bungalows and raising them for 360 rooms would be a social media problem for Disney. Not sure how someone could claim PVB studios should be more points than a VGF studio. The majority of the additional space at PVB was wasted in a bathroom.

I think they would need to remodel the PVB studios to do this. Maybe a stackable washer/dryer. At BLT, DVD received so many complaints, they remodeled the studio bathrooms at Disney's expense, so it's not inconceivable for them to do this.

 

[Sparrow624]

The funny thing is that they are so proud of that extra bathroom. When w took a tour there, the "manager" that was kind enough to show us around raved about the extra bathroom for our kids. If you watch any interviews on youtube, they rave about the extra bathroom for getting ready for parks, etc. They built the studios with the idea that families would stay in them all the time...and that is great...Until you are trying to put a mom, dad, teenage daughter, and teenage son, etc. in them. Then it can just become awkward and cramped.

Like I said, we may still get some points there for trips with just the two of us (short, 3-5 nights) but not the amount we would have gotten had they offered larger accommodations. We will probably add on to VGF or buy BCV or BWV instead now for that reason. Which stinks, because we were really excited about Poly when word came that they were building the villas.

 

[Dean]

360 studios divided by 20 bungalows should be 18 points lower.

IMHO, lowering points for 20 bungalows and raising them for 360 rooms would be a social media problem for Disney. Not sure how someone could claim PVB studios should be more points than a VGF studio. The majority of the additional space at PVB was wasted in a bathroom.

I think they would need to remodel the PVB studios to do this. Maybe a stackable washer/dryer. At BLT, DVD received so many complaints, they remodeled the studio bathrooms at Disney's expense, so it's not inconceivable for them to do this.

I don't buy into the people will complain or lawsuit issue that so many seem to. Certainly if it affects sales enough we could see some changes but I doubt so until it's been a few years long enough to do a refurbishment anyway. Maybe DVC management of the last 90's and early 2000 would have worried about this but I don't see the current management overly concerned about such matters since they have a firm technical and legal basis for such changes. I've said several times that I feel they left a lot on the table at the Poly. A super studio or mini 1 BR with a european style W/D all in one and an upgraded kitchen would have been an easy sale I believe and at the benefit of more points to sell likely at an ever higher profit.

 

[LauraLea]

mini 1 BR with a european style W/D all in one and an upgraded kitchen would have been an easy sale

and I think we will see this, if the WL rooms are being converted to DVD. And the 1 br will sleep 5. I believe the kitchen will be quite small compared to the older resorts. But heck, there is now wasted space in the older 1 br where they are replacing full size frigs with apartment sized frigs. Lots of design options for this convert if it is happening.

Laura

 

[freediverdude]

And they likely will get them with the Poly as well and they might not next time with the hotel side. I suspect DVC will pay a lot of attention to that specific request. However, I'd suspect the chances of success are higher on the hotel side than with DVC. If they can't take the chance and need 2 rooms, they need to look at 2 BR villas elsewhere or stay with cash. They could still buy poly and stay at the easier to reserve places if they wanted until the kids are older but financially that likely doesn't make sense. Or they could take the chance and split up with one adult in each if they are unlucky.

I believe every studio at the Poly is connecting, whereas I'm not sure that's true on the hotel side. But true the occupancy is higher on the DVC side. So I can't tell if the odds are higher or lower of getting connecting on either side. Also some of the rooms on the hotel side are king bed with no second bed or pull down bed, so that's another thing to consider.

 

[kungaloosh22]

With all of the complaints about Poly being studio only, how long until either of the following happen:

-1st floor lake/bungalow view get renamed as standard view?

-They re-allocate bungalow points, etc. And create an adjoining studio room category for booking?

I wish they would rename the 1st floor lake view, but am not holding my breath. If they're going to do this, it seems they'd need to do so before they max out the number of lake view "fixed week" rooms for any given week (but maybe that's a long way from happening). They could convert some rooms in Tokelau to lake view to compensate, but I doubt it would be enough to make up for an entire floor.

When I talked to a DVC manager about our less than stellar stay in 2 connecting studios in Pago Pago, she said the biggest complaint they get is the parking lot views. They should not be the same amount of points as other standard view studios. That was one of our complaints. The studios in Pago Pago are all the same amount of points, while one side of the building looks out on a very busy and noisy parking lot just feet from your balcony, and the other side looks out on a tropical paradise. Not worth the same amount of points in our book.

I could not agree more. I feel very strongly that they should add a garden view category and keep standard view as Pago Pago parking lot, as is done at other resorts. And I'd be perfectly okay with an increase in nightly point cost to get a guaranteed garden view room. Nothing would wreck the tropical atmosphere of the Poly to me more than the Pago Pago parking lot views. You can see the parking lot from many Moorea rooms, too, but there's enough buffer of greenery between the parking lot and Moorea to make that acceptable. Pago Pago is an entirely different beast.

As it is now, I plan to always book Lake View at the Poly, even though a garden view would be perfectly fine and in some ways preferable, for no other reason than to avoid the Pago Pago parking lot views. That is the primary reason I have a guaranteed week Lake View contract.

 

[dizfan]

I don't buy into the people will complain or lawsuit issue that so many seem to. Certainly if it affects sales enough we could see some changes but I doubt so until it's been a few years long enough to do a refurbishment anyway. Maybe DVC management of the last 90's and early 2000 would have worried about this but I don't see the current management overly concerned about such matters since they have a firm technical and legal basis for such changes. I've said several times that I feel they left a lot on the table at the Poly. A super studio or mini 1 BR with a european style W/D all in one and an upgraded kitchen would have been an easy sale I believe and at the benefit of more points to sell likely at an ever higher profit.

DVC can certainly legally make point changes. If I implied lawsuit, that was not my intention.

How many years ago was the OKW extension? People still talk about that as a mistake that will likely not be repeated. I believe people would similarly be talking about PVB as a mistake if they did as some recommend (increase all PVB studios by 1 point per night just to decrease bungalows by 18 points per night). My nieces/nephews remind me I'm a fossil. It wasn't until the last few years I adapted to social media. Makes me wonder what OKW extension would have been like with social media.

I agree with you that DVD could have done so much more with the studios. Different management for DVC today than there was when VGF was being built. They chose this path and it's doubtful any of us will ever know why. Should be fun to watch if they follow the same plan with WL expansion.

 

[Dean]

DVC can certainly legally make point changes. If I implied lawsuit, that was not my intention.

You didn't but the two responses (complain and legal action) are often used together in such situations which is why I elected to include the information. Also when some talk about complaining in such situations it's sometimes done with the attitude of "boy will I complain" and they often do so implying that they alone can get it changed simply by complaining, you also did not take that stance.