Switching resorts

[Merhlyn]

If I make my reservation then down the road my wife tells me we want a different resort is switching possible. ie are we locked in once we make the reservation?

Thanks all

Michael

 

[chalee94]

nope. you are not locked in.

it's preferred to make a reservation at your home resort at 11 months out and then, if you want, call exactly when the 7 month window opens to try to switch resorts.

no penalties or anything, but if you banked or borrowed pts to make the 1st reservation, be aware that those pts cannot be put back in their original use year.

(but naturally, you are limited by availability, so if the new resort is booked up - which can happen at any point - you would be out of luck.)

 

[chalee94]

here are some guidelines for when different villas tend to book up:

http://www.dvcrequest.com/how_soon_should_i_reserve.htm

but i'm sure someone has booked a 2BR concierge villa at AKV on 2 days notice at some point, so you'd always need to call MS to find out for sure what is still available...

 

[Deb & Bill]

If I make my reservation then down the road my wife tells me we want a different resort is switching possible. ie are we locked in once we make the reservation?

Thanks all

Michael

As long as you are using your own points, you could probably change to a different resort pending availability. But if you are renting from an owner and you are not an owner, probably not.

 

[Merhlyn]

So if I understand I could book my Bay Lake Tower on 11/06 for 10/06/12 (home resort with 11 month booking )
Using the 40 points form this year (2011) plus my points for 2012 and possible borrow from 2013.
Then if we decide to go to another resort I could change around the 6th month mark for non home resorts.

If I got that correct thanks all if not thanks all anyways lol

Michael

 

[BrerNashville]

Yes, that's generally correct. Make sure, however, if you move to a cheaper-point option that you are doing that prior to your banking deadline, as you will lose the benefit of that many points, unless you can schedule another trip by the end of your use year.

 

[chalee94]

when is your UY month?

 

[Disney Princess]

If you plan to switch, it is in your best (booking) interest to try and switch at 7 months out. That one month difference can change availability outcomes. Also, if you have to go on a waitlist, 7 months out will be better than 6.

 

[Merhlyn]

My use year is August.

Michael

 

[chalee94]

So if I understand I could book my Bay Lake Tower on 11/06 for 10/06/12 (home resort with 11 month booking )
Using the 40 points form this year (2011) plus my points for 2012 and possible borrow from 2013.
Then if we decide to go to another resort I could change around the 6th month mark for non home resorts.

some UYs would make this more complicated, but yes, this is correct for an aug UY.

i'd agree that you should call the morning that the 7 month window opens rather than waiting till 6 months or so out to get the best opportunity at trading out.

 

[Sandisw]

My use year is August.

Michael

If you plan to use your 2011 UY points for the Oct 2012 reservation, then you will need to bank those first, before the CM can use them.

You can do it in the same phone call but if you are concerned about availability, then I might call ahead of time, or do the banking online.

Just remember, if you do book at 11 months with borrowed points, and then change at or after the 7 month mark and you want to spend less points, be sure that you ask the CM to use up the banked and borrowed points first since those would be expiring July 31st, 2013.