Strategies for joint reservations with other members?

[jtkboston]

We have friends that are also DVC members. We're thinking of doing a combined stay with them, perhaps in a grand villa (3BR). To do so, we'd have to combine our points and their points.
The options we know of so far are:

• Transfer points from one member to the other. My understanding is that we can only do it once per membership per use year, so it's an irreversible transfer? Also, the points then are controlled by the receiving member. The sending member should really trust the receiving member to use the points as agreed. Do the transferred points retain their home resort (10-month window)? If one set of points are not a home resort, then the reservation can't be completed until the 7-month window, but part of it could be booked with 10-month points and then extended later once the 7-month window opens?
  
• Arrange back-to-back bookings in the same room category. One member reserves a few nights, then the other member reserves the remaining nights. Has anybody done this, can the room assignments be guaranteed to use the same unit? If one member has home resort privileges, I would think they'd be better off to reserve the end of the trip, in case the other member can't get the planned first day and has to delay the arrival--the 10-month member would be more likely to be able to add a night at the end?

Is there another option I haven't thought of? What would you do if you wanted to vacation with another member and needed to pool points to make a single reservation to cover the room?

 

[BillPA]

Grand villas book quickly at many of the resorts, due to the low number of units. BWV only has 7, OKW has 27, SSR has 36, AK has 22, BLT has 14, GF has 6.

Transferred points retain the original UY and home priority. So if I own BLT with a June UY and transfer to you, they 'stay' BLT with a June UY. Unless you both have the same resort and UY a transfer is not a lot of help.

 

[jtkboston]

Transferred points retain the original UY and home priority. So if I own BLT with a June UY and transfer to you, they 'stay' BLT with a June UY. Unless you both have the same resort and UY a transfer is not a lot of help.

That sounds like a vote for plan B (two separate reservations, booking as early as possible)? Would we be able to link reservations and avoid packing/checkout/vacating room/checkin?

Any different if we're talking Aulani instead of a WDW property?

 

[BillPA]

Aulani would be the same as any other DVC. If you book 2 reservations, you should be able to LINK them. Always let the front desk know about the link, just in case. DVC will try to keep you in the same room, it saves them a full cleaning. Have a great trip!!!

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

That sounds like a vote for plan B (two separate reservations, booking as early as possible)? Would we be able to link reservations and avoid packing/checkout/vacating room/checkin?

Any different if we're talking Aulani instead of a WDW property?

We have two UY's so two memberships and fairly frequently have rooms linked for continuing stays. You both will have to contract MS to have them linked and then I'd also confirm with the front desk at check in that they recognize you have a continuing stay and are kept in the same villa. Technically they could move you but with all our times doing it we've never been moved. It benefits them also to keep you in the same room.

 

[DizBub]

We are probably going to do plan B in May when we go with our DD and her family. They will book 3 or 4 nights in a 2 bedroom and we will book the next 3 or 4 nights in a 2 bedroom. We will all be on both reservations and MS will be able to link the 2. Just make sure both reservations are the same booking category and there should be no problem.

The only problem we have right now is we will be using points from different resorts so we are waiting to book together at 7 months. Best of luck planning your trip.

 

[Meriweather]

BFF and I booked for a trip last Jan. She booked a week, I booked the next week.
To link them we were told we had to conference call to them so both members were on the phone at the same time.
That wasn't going to happen because of time differences and schedules.
We just told them when we checked in and were lucky enough that they linked them then and we didn't have to change rooms.

 

[com_op_2000]

We have friends that are also DVC members. We're thinking of doing a combined stay with them, perhaps in a grand villa (3BR). To do so, we'd have to combine our points and their points.
The options we know of so far are:

• Transfer points from one member to the other. My understanding is that we can only do it once per membership per use year, so it's an irreversible transfer? Also, the points then are controlled by the receiving member. The sending member should really trust the receiving member to use the points as agreed. Do the transferred points retain their home resort (10-month window)? If one set of points are not a home resort, then the reservation can't be completed until the 7-month window, but part of it could be booked with 10-month points and then extended later once the 7-month window opens?
  
• Arrange back-to-back bookings in the same room category. One member reserves a few nights, then the other member reserves the remaining nights. Has anybody done this, can the room assignments be guaranteed to use the same unit? If one member has home resort privileges, I would think they'd be better off to reserve the end of the trip, in case the other member can't get the planned first day and has to delay the arrival--the 10-month member would be more likely to be able to add a night at the end?

Is there another option I haven't thought of? What would you do if you wanted to vacation with another member and needed to pool points to make a single reservation to cover the room?

It is 11 month window for the your HR not 10 month.
If you each have different HRs, then each of you book your HR at 11 months out a GV (in case someone has a HR that is does not have a GV, then the next largest number of rooms to accommodate everyone), that way you have a reservation even if you have to move to another resort. At WDW, transferring between resort is easy:

Move steps:
Have your items packed and ready for pickup.
On move day call Bell Services to come and pickup your items.
Tell Bell Services which items are to be keep cold and which frozen.
Go check-in to new resort and do whatever you have planned for the day.
When the room is ready and after @ 2-4 go to the room.
Call Bell Services of the check-in resort and they will deliver your items to the room.
You MUST be in the room for both the pickup and delivery. Tips expected.

 

[DenLo]

As to getting a grand villa at Aulani, the standard view ones are usually booked by owners at the 11 month mark (not 10 months). And if you want to book for June you might have more problems getting the dates you want.