Reservations - Real Time Inventory?

[nw6675]

Does anyone know if room inventory is updated in real time? If someone cancels right now, does that room immediately show as available? I wasn't sure if the systems refreshes or sweeps for availability at a set interval or as soon as it gets cancelled.

Finally, I've read you can call in if it doesn't show availability online and sometimes the CM "finds" a room. Has anyone actually had that occur? That seems quite unlikely to me.

Can you tell I'm stalking every five minutes for my resort of choice to come open?

 

[mz-s]

I have had a week show unavailable at WDW's website but my TA was able to book it. So I don't think the availability tool on WDW's site is tied to live inventory, or at least it won't allow you to book every last room.

 

[stranger706]

Haven't needed any help lately but before covid I've had CMs find rooms/discounts/dates for me that were not available on the website. Or they were somehow able to make it work when I was not able to on the website.

 

[nw6675]

I called and she said the only time you don't see it is if someone literally just canceled in the time it takes you to call or if you are clicking through incorrectly on the site. I'm sure most of us realize that if there is a current offer you have to take several steps to see rack rate rooms when there are no discounted ones. I don't know why IT has it set up like that since most people would just assume no rooms at all.

 

[elvispursley]

A couple months ago I called in to see if there was availability for my dates at the Poly--on the site it said to call for availability. The CM was able to find me a pool/marina view room (although I did end up cancelling that resort in favor of saving a huge chunk of change for a stay at YC).

 

[focusondisney]

I’ve cancelled rooms, gone back to the booking & seen it show up right away. Yes, I checked before cancelling & the room type or dates were unavailable. So I do think it shows up pretty much real time. As for calling, I think a few rare CMs might have availability to process a discount that isn’t showing or over ride the algorithm that prevents booking certain lengths of stay. Or they get guest services to do it. I really don’t think they see anything not showing on the website. Disney has made distinctive moves away from using phone CMs for bookings & pushes online bookings. If they kept inventory back to only be booked by CMs, word would get around quick & everyone would start calling to book. Not what management wants.

 

[gottalovepluto]

The website is glitchy as all get out. What I can see, you can’t see and visa versa. We’ve had reports of people changing browsers or clearing cookies and then suddenly inventory was available. Disney IT at its finest

I do know that if you snag something in your cart and then close the window you can’t get it back immediately. Takes like 15 mins before it’s released to snag it again. Not that I was dumb enough to put something in my cart on my phone and then try to book it on my laptop…

 

[Marthasor]

I have had a few instances when WDTC CMs see inventory before it pops up online. Although hold times can be bad, it never hurts to call and ask.

 

[maltdizzy]

There is definitely a cookie issue with the site. Sometimes, if I log into my regular browser page, I don't see any rooms, but if I use a Incognito/Private window, I can.

But Disney also relies an automated room inventory algorithm software. This will block out certain combinations of rooms and dates that it feels would leave rooms orphaned or a night or more. The fewer available rooms there are, the more aggressive the algorithm gets. This is why the site may show no availability for short trips, but show lots for longer trips over the same days.

 

[Jhondy]

I called to once to see if CM could get our whole stay in the same type of room w/discount for whole stay. He said he saw availability and booked it for me…then I looked at confirmation and realized he booked rack rate and not the discount (prior to the change I had a discount room for the whole week but had to split the booking based on different views to get the discount).

I tried to get the rooms with the discount I had before the change was made and was unable to. I called Disney and spoke to a nice CM and explained what happened and asked if there was anyway to get the room switched back to what I had but that I understood if I couldn’t. He put me on hold for 5-10 minutes and came back and said he got me the entire week in one room with the discount…that was not available on the website cause I had been checking like crazy. I think the CM pulled some strings or something to make it happen for me and I appreciated it so much.

 

[gottalovepluto]

I called to once to see if CM could get our whole stay in the same type of room w/discount for whole stay. He said he saw availability and booked it for me…then I looked at confirmation and realized he booked rack rate and not the discount (prior to the change I had a discount room for the whole week but had to split the booking based on different views to get the discount).

I tried to get the rooms with the discount I had before the change was made and was unable to. I called Disney and spoke to a nice CM and explained what happened and asked if there was anyway to get the room switched back to what I had but that I understood if I couldn’t. He put me on hold for 5-10 minutes and came back and said he got me the entire week in one room with the discount…that was not available on the website cause I had been checking like crazy. I think the CM pulled some strings or something to make it happen for me and I appreciated it so much.

The general theory seems to be there is a like an upper layer to guest services with some ability to override the general computer under extenuating circumstances. They can’t make non-existent rooms appear but they can make modifications to existing inventory you can’t make online.