Technical Flaw in the Waitlist System?

[Dean]

You didn't read my previous posts. The CM's and Managers do not know if the wait lists are filled live, batched during the day, batched at night, every couple of days, or if it truly does exist.

They say that they can't check status because a computer is in control, but there is CM's filling wait lists because I have talked to them.

I get the feeling that filling wait lists isn't important to Disney and that they just go through the motions to placate the members.

Bill

In a sense it really doesn't matter. We know they have a system and it is far from perfect but work at times. It's fair to complain that there are lapses but not to try to micromanage their system. Matching real time isn't feasible, I don't know anyone who runs a timeshare system with a WL that is able to do it that way. My understanding of Bluegreen, RCI and II are that they have a computer run the info then a person has to finalize the match other than BG which seems to do it far more manually. However, those are full weeks out of the box before those weeks even go into the active system, certainly a much easier nut to crack even with the much larger volume that all do over DVC. I suspect the only way they could reasonably improve the system would be IF they can send all cancelations off line until a short term cut off of say 30 or 60 days out. That way the timing of the WL doesn't matter much or at all as long as it's done accurately. I don't know if they have this capability with their reservation system. However it would mean occasional delays and likely require a larger staff with more expenses that what is present now.

Possible reasons as to why you got varying answers are that they simply don't know, that they do it differently at different times and that it's a totally different group of people than those that answer the phone. My guess, and it's just a guess, is they have to activate it manually and thus it varies with who's responsible at the time and how busy they are. They do have some MS people that work from home at times so communication is not always as easy as stepping into the next cubicle to ask someone else.

 

[Dean]

I would be very disappointed if the WL was enhanced out of existence because its implementation was not perfect. -- Suzanne

I can assure you that the elimination of the WL is more likely that a major fix. That's not to say members should just grin and bear it, just that they need to be reasonable in their complaints/criticism which we've seen with issues like the valet and reallocation, is often not the case. Ranting and raving and threatening legal actions is detrimental to us all unless you're willing to pay a lawyer to proceed with arbitration then a suit.

 

[crisi]

You didn't read my previous posts. The CM's and Managers do not know if the wait lists are filled live, batched during the day, batched at night, every couple of days, or if it truly does exist.

They say that they can't check status because a computer is in control, but there is CM's filling wait lists because I have talked to them.

I get the feeling that filling wait lists isn't important to Disney and that they just go through the motions to placate the members.

Bill

No, I did read your posts. But reservations CMs don't see reservations as transactions. They see rooms available or rooms not available. That's the information they have to work with. It isn't really reasonable to expect them to see that when I cancel a room whether or not that reservation immediately shows up. They are processing thousands of reservations each day.

 

[bookwormde]

It is important to remember that much of DVC's reservation system is old DOS based code integrated into a windows front end and since as they built all the new resorts they did not include adaquate infrastruture $ in the cost of contruction to upgrade the software for the extra load an complexity, we have the situation we have now, that the software limitations drive the situation instead of what is "best" for the majority of members.

As they transition to CRO's system that will help, but since CRO has no waitlist needs, we are low on the priority list for a robust waitlist implementation.

bookwormde

 

[toniosmom]

I wish we could SEE our waitlist requests on the dvcmember web site. More than once, I have called to check on my waitlist only to find that it was not set up correctly.

 

[Lil' Grumpy]

dear disneynutz, i have the same "sinking" feeling.




just another observation, toward the other intruder , i don't think
dvc needs a "defender". however, i read your "challenge" on the other
thread. fyi, the detrimentally suggestion was not missed, & i chose to
ignore the sneak attack. but to be absolute sure, i just added a lil'bait &
you took it all-- line, hook & sinker. so unless you are an official dvc
person, i am just saying, your words have no meanings for me. (no matter
how discouraging you are trying to be. ) but if by happenstance,
you were a dvc person, i am willing to come to the office & address
our issues.


as for calling dvc liars? who like hearing that? it would served no
useful purposes, other than "hurt feelings". i see no value in that.
instead we are seeking problem solving & corrective measures for
honest mistakes.




the "op" of presenting this issue has my gratitude.

another very useful thread, [ my opinion] , was the person
seeking to find a new guide reference. i also think dvc should
care, because of the "range" of those having guides that were
below standards to those way above. [ i read some problems
that were very similar to ours.]

what we are doing, running off "copies" of issues we feel the dvc
should be informed. why? because "we" are owners & have a
"large" interest. not to tear down the system, but to support the
mission instead of "it" being manipulated.

as for the other issue. i am asking you to "backoff". i am not seeking
conflict & therefore, will not comment any more to your innuendos
that are aimed @ me. [ fyi, i have a wife who is very good @ keeping
my life interesting].

 

[Dean]

dear disneynutz, i have the same "sinking" feeling.




just another observation, toward the other intruder , i don't think
dvc needs a "defender". however, i read your "challenge" on the other
thread. fyi, the detrimentally suggestion was not missed, & i chose to
ignore the sneak attack. but to be absolute sure, i just added a lil'bait &
you took it all-- line, hook & sinker. so unless you are an official dvc
person, i am just saying, your words have no meanings for me. (no matter
how discouraging you are trying to be. ) but if by happenstance,
you were a dvc person, i am willing to come to the office & address
our issues.


as for calling dvc liars? who like hearing that? it would served no
useful purposes, other than "hurt feelings". i see no value in that.
instead we are seeking problem solving & corrective measures for
honest mistakes.




the "op" of presenting this issue has my gratitude.

another very useful thread, [ my opinion] , was the person
seeking to find a new guide reference. i also think dvc should
care, because of the "range" of those having guides that were
below standards to those way above. [ i read some problems
that were very similar to ours.]

what we are doing, running off "copies" of issues we feel the dvc
should be informed. why? because "we" are owners & have a
"large" interest. not to tear down the system, but to support the
mission instead of "it" being manipulated.

as for the other issue. i am asking you to "backoff". i am not seeking
conflict & therefore, will not comment any more to your innuendos
that are aimed @ me. [ fyi, i have a wife who is very good @ keeping
my life interesting].

I am not a DVC apologist and I am not looking to dump on you. However, I am reading your posts and it SEEMS you are very upset over minor issues. IMO the WL and any misinterpretation, or even frank lie, not backed up by written documentaion are minor issues. Certainly there are a range of guides ability, etc; however, even the worst DVC guide is FAR above average for timeshare sales in general. I think DVC is well informed, I don't think you'll be able to educate them on these areas beyond the fact that you yourself are upset over the issues in question. I'd suggest you never attend a non DVC timeshare sales pitch (owners update) because they tend to be far more negative, dishonest and aggressive than is DVC. I'll say again that a meeting with DVC and your guide would serve no appropriate or reasonable purpose and could only go downhill.

 

[doconeill]

Ideally, yes, any time a reservation is canceled it should be run against the waitlist and applied to the first match by some criteria - what that criteria should be - should it match exactly by length? Could it match a shorter waitlist that happens to fit? What about those people willing to waitlist by day? etc. - is debatable.

It's obvious that that isn't the case here. The one time I had waitlisted, I called one day to follow up, and lo-and-behold, the waitlist came through.

The system seems to have worked well enough. Perhaps the likelyhood of someone calling that matches a canceled reservation that same day is low. Obviously it has happened, but we don't know how often.

I'll be calling tomorrow for my waitlist - I have to call anyways because we couldn't waitlist the last day yet (Dec. 1-9). According to the CM, there were NO 2BRs available at BWV, BLT, BCV, or VWL. I haven't submitted an availability report as DW called for the first time and I don't know if every day wasn't available. I'm hoping it was a case that others haven't swapped theirs yet because of the extra day, or because we're doing a midweek-to-midweek stay, so I'll probably call again a few days later.

 

[Mich Mouse]

When I called today to check on my wait list I inquired about how the waitlist works. The CM told me that the reservations are done manually, by a CM, after the computer makes the match. Of course, I am unsure how accurate that information is.

I know the list wil work sometimes, but in my two experiences it was the phone call that generated my ressie....not the waitlist system.

 

[MidwayManiac]

Thanks for the advice to call even if waitlisted.

My problem with the wait list system is that often I am willing to take anything a certain size at a particular resort. Since resorts have multiple view categories and each one is a separate wait list and you can only have two wait lists active (per use year), it is impossible to wait for "any 1 BR at BWV" or "any studio at BLT" for instance.

FWIW I have had very good luck with the wait list system over the years. We closed in January 1998 and it seems like since 2000 we have waitlisted just about every trip. (I just can't plan my life 11 months ahead most of the time). We have only had two wait lists not clear. I am hoping my luck continues for this Dec 26 through 29th as I am booked at my least favorite resort -- a home resort and yes, I am in "that" crowd, though I didn't know it til after I stayed there and hated it -- and am waitlisted for my favorite home resort which was not available 8 months out. I am counting on either the wait list clearing or a favorite non-home resort having something at 7 months.

So please send good DVC karma my way on May 26 at approx. 9 am EDT.

 

[wbl2745]

Based on an experience today I don't think that the wait list is run nightly, it may be running continuously. This morning I called at 9:00 AM EDT when MS opened to see about confirming some reservations for a value 2 bedroom at AKV for Dec 1 through Dec 7. Yes, very highly sought after dates.

I had called yesterday and 12/1, 12/5 and 12/6 were unavailable. I wait listed 12/1 through 12/7 since that is all I could do.

Today, I called intending to reserve 12/2, 12/3, and 12/4. In the last day 12/4 was now also unavailable so I went ahead and reserved 12/2 and 12/3. About 4 hours later I called with another question about the dining plan and thought while I'm here I'll ask about the dates I'm looking for, you never know. It turns out that my 12/1 wait list had been filled. So between 7:00 AM (MDT) and 11:00 AM (MDT) a room became available and my wait list was filled. It appears that the wait list process is running more often.

My plan is to continue to call daily asking about individual days, adding them to my reservation, along with holding a wait list. I suspect that having a single day wait list also helped since they could fill the wait list entirely. I'm willing to bet that there are other wait lists out there with 12/1 for a value 2 bedroom at AKV on them, but because the entire wait list could not be filled they were not "selected." If I still had my 12/1 through 12/7 wait list I bet I'd still be waiting. As it is I have 3 of the 6 days I need.

I think the process is going to be to call often, reserve what you can when it is available, and if possible keep the wait list short.

 

[Eventer98]

Last year we had 4 scattered days WL'd in our 10 night VWL Christmas reservation. (We don't own there..had to book at 7 mon.) At the time I didn't know I could check online to see if the WL came through so I called daily. On ALL 4 WL'd days I was able to get the rooms with each call. Since then I have used the WL many times without calling and also got what I wanted. I guess it works both ways and no way is better then the other.

 

[d-r]

we were waitlisted for two ocean view rooms at vero this summer. One came through a few weeks ago, the other came through on Sunday. FWIW.

 

[junglejoy]

If the WL comes through, how is one notified? Email? Phone call? Snail mail...???

 

[Sandisw]

You will know when you see your vacation reservation changed on the member website.

Just look at Vacation Details. If the new resort or room type you want is there, your wait list was filled.

 

[junglejoy]

Thank you, Sandi.

I guess I'd better figure out that member website. I haven't even logged on yet.

 

[WDWCrazyfromGA]

Another angle on the WL - what if there is someone on the WL wanting what I have reserved and they have what I want. I know that is taking it a step further and after reading this thread, I'm sure the answer is No-way does the WL system account for this!

I wish we could start a thread on the DIS that was like the old dining thread where you could post what you were giving up and what you wanted.....

 

[Dean]

Another angle on the WL - what if there is someone on the WL wanting what I have reserved and they have what I want. I know that is taking it a step further and after reading this thread, I'm sure the answer is No-way does the WL system account for this!

I wish we could start a thread on the DIS that was like the old dining thread where you could post what you were giving up and what you wanted.....

They really can't in a first come/first served system. The only way it would work is if they both had what the other wanted and were both at the top of the list for that item. They could do it like playing solitare and simply stop when everyone at the top had been switched around and nothing else matched up. That would take a lot of work and time and would likely only produce an occassional match.

 

[CarolMN]

Based on an experience today I don't think that the wait list is run nightly, it may be running continuously. This morning I called at 9:00 AM EDT when MS opened to see about confirming some reservations for a value 2 bedroom at AKV for Dec 1 through Dec 7. Yes, very highly sought after dates.

I had called yesterday and 12/1, 12/5 and 12/6 were unavailable. I wait listed 12/1 through 12/7 since that is all I could do.

Today, I called intending to reserve 12/2, 12/3, and 12/4. In the last day 12/4 was now also unavailable so I went ahead and reserved 12/2 and 12/3. About 4 hours later I called with another question about the dining plan and thought while I'm here I'll ask about the dates I'm looking for, you never know. It turns out that my 12/1 wait list had been filled. So between 7:00 AM (MDT) and 11:00 AM (MDT) a room became available and my wait list was filled. It appears that the wait list process is running more often.

My plan is to continue to call daily asking about individual days, adding them to my reservation, along with holding a wait list. I suspect that having a single day wait list also helped since they could fill the wait list entirely. I'm willing to bet that there are other wait lists out there with 12/1 for a value 2 bedroom at AKV on them, but because the entire wait list could not be filled they were not "selected." If I still had my 12/1 through 12/7 wait list I bet I'd still be waiting. As it is I have 3 of the 6 days I need.

I think the process is going to be to call often, reserve what you can when it is available, and if possible keep the wait list short.

That process may work for you. (Hope you have good luck). But even if it does, you will never really know if waitlisting for the entire time would have worked, too.

The process you use is not for everyone. Keep in mind that you are limited to 2 waitlists at a time. What if you have more than 2 holes to fill? Every time you make a change to a waitlist, you go to the bottom of the list. That may balance the shorter lists are easier to fill thought. You also take a chance that you end up not getting your entire reservation or having to move between rooms or resorts.

IMO, having to use the waitlist process is what drives many to add on.

I subscribe to the "Let Fate Decide" method for waitlists. I reserve at my home resort at 11 months and if I can't switch at 7 months (only tried once, though), I waitlist the entire reservation. Then it's up to fate where I end up. I think the success of calling every day because the waitlist has flaws is way overblown and for me, the effort far exceeds the reward. YMMV.

FWIW, I got my BLT standard view 1 bedroom for the week after Thanksgiving via the waitlist (went on it at 7 months). I was surprised, but pleased all the same.

 

[Dean]

Now that we're home from our week plus travels, I'll add that it's very likely that the % of members who have something of high demand also looking for other high demand weeks is very small.