PVB Tower - Cash Booking Implementation

[Kailunkat]

Hi Everyone!

I've really enjoyed sharing in the speculation about the Tower opening with you all and I have learned a lot from all the experience you've shared. Since the cash booking dates for Tower rooms is rapidly approaching, I am wondering if you all can answer a few questions about how you think the cash bookings will go. I hope this is the right forum to ask in - I considered putting this thread in other spots but decided to put it here since it is a DVC resort and you all have a great base of knowledge on how Disney implemented other DVC resort openings with cash bookings first.

1) Will these work like a normal cash booking on the DW website where you pay the deposit and then can cancel up to 5 days before arrival? Or will this work differently because of the DVC aspect?
2) Will the Tower sell out/be snatched up quickly with cash bookings? How much demand do you think there will be amongst existing DVC members who can't use their points yet? Will they just wait for points bookings to open later? Will people just go ham on this and try to walk reservations? Technically cash reservations aren't supposed to be transferable right (so there shouldn't be reselling)?
3) What absolutely absurd pricing will be in place? Will there be a premium on these bookings because the rooms are new/a novelty? Or will they be priced as other non-DVC Poly is?
4) How many months of cash booking do you think they will release? When will they start the transition to points? (Since we now know it's the same association as PVB - they could technically start booking it for existing point holders as soon as the amendment is officially passed right?)

Are there other important questions I'm missing? I'm looking forward to hearing opinions on all of this.

 

[CastAStone]

Hi Everyone!

I've really enjoyed sharing in the speculation about the Tower opening with you all and I have learned a lot from all the experience you've shared. Since the cash booking dates for Tower rooms is rapidly approaching, I am wondering if you all can answer a few questions about how you think the cash bookings will go. I hope this is the right forum to ask in - I considered putting this thread in other spots but decided to put it here since it is a DVC resort and you all have a great base of knowledge on how Disney implemented other DVC resort openings with cash bookings first.

1) Will these work like a normal cash booking on the DW website where you pay the deposit and then can cancel up to 5 days before arrival? Or will this work differently because of the DVC aspect?
2) Will the Tower sell out/be snatched up quickly with cash bookings? How much demand do you think there will be amongst existing DVC members who can't use their points yet? Will they just wait for points bookings to open later? Will people just go ham on this and try to walk reservations? Technically cash reservations aren't supposed to be transferable right (so there shouldn't be reselling)?
3) What absolutely absurd pricing will be in place? Will there be a premium on these bookings because the rooms are new/a novelty? Or will they be priced as other non-DVC Poly is?
4) How many months of cash booking do you think they will release? When will they start the transition to points? (Since we now know it's the same association as PVB - they could technically start booking it for existing point holders as soon as the amendment is officially passed right?)

Are there other important questions I'm missing? I'm looking forward to hearing opinions on all of this.

1) yes, it will have normal cancellation policies, including the more restrictive ones if you buy it as part of a package

2) you can’t walk a cash booking, all the dates will open at once. I think it will be fairly popular, and I think Disney will initially be conservative with how many rooms they open for cash booking. There will absolutely be dates that sell out in the first five minutes it’s available. it’s not practical to transfer a cash booking, and it’s not worth the risk of getting banned for life.

3)I would expect something to be priced like Polynesian, so 15-20% cheaper than the equivalent room at Grand Floridian, except for opening week, which will likely get a premium.

4)I think they will open all dates currently available for every other hotel, but the further into the future, the fewer rooms will be available for booking

 

[Kailunkat]

Thanks @CastAStone

So you think they will gradually phase the points bookings in as they decrease cash bookings. Will they do the same thing with points bookings as they are doing with cash - where PVB members get the chance to use their points first, then it opens to all DVC? Since I assume this will be after the 11 and 7 month marks that would make the most sense.

 

[CastAStone]

Will they do the same thing with points bookings as they are doing with cash - where PVB members get the chance to use their points first, then it opens to all DVC? Since I assume this will be after the 11 and 7 month marks that would make the most sense.

I don’t know if there will be a preferential plan for new owners to stay on cash.

Here’s how to think of it.

Disney has built a regular old hotel. They also, separately, have a condominium association (the legal entity for the timeshare).

Currently, as far as we know, the condo association has no control over any of the rooms in the new hotel. At some point in the next few weeks, Disney will portion off some number of those rooms, and declare them to be part of the condo association. Those will be the only rooms available for points bookings.

The rest of the building will stay just a regular hotel until DVC wants more rooms to sell for points. The hotel portion will work exactly like every other hotel on WDW property, with rooms primarily booked through BVTC and subject to all of BVTC’s terms and conditions. DVC (theoretically) has not control over those rooms until they are declared into the condo association.

So don’t expect much in the way of DVC preference for those rooms.

 

[Sandisw]

To add, I think when the opened for cash reservations at VDH last year, initial bookings were only for 2023 dates…it didn’t open for 2024 bookings until a bit later

DVD will only open up a portion of the rooms for dates for each set of groups that will be able to book.

Part of the process in determining that will be what they have projected they will want to declare for sales into the condo association.

To help, the rooms were added as part of the timeshare license which gives DVD authority to sell them.

However, as mentioned, they have to be declared as property in the condo association in order to become bookings for points.

Once that happens, the info will be posted here and other sites which will give us an idea of how many rooms will be open for the start.

One thing that they will do is give PVB owners, current and new, an adjusted home resort period before opening up 7 month booking dates for others.

 

[Sandisw]

I don’t know if there will be a preferential plan for new owners to stay on cash.

Here’s how to think of it.

Disney has built a regular old hotel. They also, separately, have a condominium association (the legal entity for the timeshare).

Currently, as far as we know, the condo association has no control over any of the rooms in the new hotel. At some point in the next few weeks, Disney will portion off some number of those rooms, and declare them to be part of the condo association. Those will be the only rooms available for points bookings.

The rest of the building will stay just a regular hotel until DVC wants more rooms to sell for points. The hotel portion will work exactly like every other hotel on WDW property, with rooms primarily booked through BVTC and subject to all of BVTC’s terms and conditions. DVC (theoretically) has not control over those rooms until they are declared into the condo association.

So don’t expect much in the way of DVC preference for those rooms.

Why would BVTC be involved in booking the rooms owned by DVD that are not part of the condo association?

 

[CastAStone]

Why would BVTC be involved in booking the rooms owned by DVD that are not part of the condo association?

Derp. Should say “Walt Disney Travel Company”.

 

[mkatsy]

I don’t know if there will be a preferential plan for new owners to stay on cash.

Here’s how to think of it.

Disney has built a regular old hotel. They also, separately, have a condominium association (the legal entity for the timeshare).

Currently, as far as we know, the condo association has no control over any of the rooms in the new hotel. At some point in the next few weeks, Disney will portion off some number of those rooms, and declare them to be part of the condo association. Those will be the only rooms available for points bookings.

The rest of the building will stay just a regular hotel until DVC wants more rooms to sell for points. The hotel portion will work exactly like every other hotel on WDW property, with rooms primarily booked through BVTC and subject to all of BVTC’s terms and conditions. DVC (theoretically) has not control over those rooms until they are declared into the condo association.

So don’t expect much in the way of DVC preference for those rooms.

This has probably been discussed, and it went over my head. How do the maintenance costs of the tower work? In the beginning, as you mentioned, this just a big old hotel. Are the Poly owners paying to maintain real estate that we don't even own yet?

 

[CastAStone]

This has probably been discussed, and it went over my head. How do the maintenance costs of the tower work? In the beginning, as you mentioned, this just a big old hotel. Are the Poly owners paying to maintain real estate that we don't even own yet?

There’s a lot of back end mechanics and they’re funded differently, but in theory, DVD is paying the costs for both any undeclared rooms and for any unsold points. In reality, I bet current owners are paying slightly more than their fair share, particularly on the declared but unsold rooms.

But I think that’s true at all the DVC resorts.

 

[Sandisw]

This has probably been discussed, and it went over my head. How do the maintenance costs of the tower work? In the beginning, as you mentioned, this just a big old hotel. Are the Poly owners paying to maintain real estate that we don't even own yet?

For any rooms not declared into the association, DVD is responsible for the cost to run those rooms.

For rooms declared into the condo association , DVD does not pay the operating expenses of MFs on the unsold inventory in exchange for the developer guarantee they give owners.

They cover any shortfall that occurs between the budget approved and actual expenses.

As more rooms are declared, the operating costs shift to the owners of the association..but with sales it’s a wash as more owners buy.