The OKW early arrival theory

[CarolA]

There have been a LOT of threads indicating that your chances of getting the room of your dreams are better if you check in at 6 am.


I checked in yesterday at 10 am. My room was pre-assigned. (The CM checking me DID not assign it to me.) That seems to shoot the theory of the CMs assigning rooms on a first come first serve basis.

My room is a handicapped studio. The CM did ask if I minded. While it is not my first choice, I told him that would be fine. The relief on his face and voice was visable. He informed me that some members become VERBALLY abusive to him when he tells them that they have a handicapped room. Personally if you became abusive to the CM and I was the CM not only would you stay in a handicapped room, but I would make sure it was the WORST room at OKW. While you may not be happy with your assignement that is no excuse for the types of behavior he described. One woman threatened to sue Disney and the CM personally! (she wrote down his name for when she called her attorney.)


Has anyone noticed the new info on room requests on the DVC members page?

 

[timC]

Marriott gave me a Handicap room last week, when I was traveling on buisness. The room was bigger, the shower was specially designed for wheel chairs. I was not inconvenienced at all.

What are the OKW HC rooms like. Any pictures?

 

[PamOKW]

Carol, I agree that DVC having to post that blurb on the member site was an indication that things are getting out of hand. Not just DVC members, but on the resort boards as well people are getting crazy about room assignments. Trying to pick the "ideal" room and being disappointed when it's not available just seems like a big waste of time. Some rooms I've gotten have been better than others in terms of my taste in view, but I've never gotten a "bad" room.

I bet you made that CM's day. Hopefully, something good will come back around to you on this trip.

 

[paults]

you did not say when you made your ressie. If it was at 11 months and they gave you a handicap room they must have had a lot of ressies made at 11 months out. I for one would not accept a handicap room if I booked at 11 months out. JMHO

 

[rbuzzotta]

I checked in early for my 2 BR at OKW on 7/20. Our room was not available. That was fine. WE requested top floor close to HH.

We only got close to HH. We were given bottom floor. DH went to the front desk around 1:30 to inquire aobut our room and the CM that had spoken to me in the a.m (9:00) said, "Oh no, someone gave your room away". She said it is first come first serve and since when the room became available some other CM gave it to the person who was checking in at that time!!!

So, the theory about requesting room type (unless it is a medical necessity) and getting there early did not work in our favor!!

Next trip I will be a little more adament about a top floor.............anywhere on the property as it was not so pleasant with the group of loud people above us for nearly 2 weeks!!!

 

[DeeP]

That seems to shoot the theory of the CMs assigning rooms on a first come first serve basis.

I don't know about OKW because it has been quite a few trips since I stayed there but I just stayed at BWV during Memorial Day and this was our experience....I checked in around 9:15 AM and not only was our villa ready but we got a boardwalk view! I had only made these reservations about 4 months prior and this was for the week before and including Memorial Day weekend! No way in the world do I believe this room was not given to us on a first come first serve basis. Matter of fact, we had stayed the first 2 nights of our trip at the Poly and early the morning of our BWV check in I called BWV front desk to see if I could just check in over the phone so we could just go to the parks. The CM said no you must check in, in person--which I kind of knew but just thought I would try anyhow. I then asked the CM if there were any boardwalk view villas available and she said, "I can't tell you which views are available but if you come over right away and check in, I have a room that I know you will be very pleased with." I hung up the phone and hightailed it from the Poly to BWV in about 10 minutes and was rewarded with a fantastic boardwalk view room that was available immediately. Nope, sorry I do not believe the rooms are pre assigned, I have had too many experiences like this happen to me for me to believe the rooms are pre assigned.

 

[Disney Doll]

I must have a happy little rainbow that follows me or something, because I really do not ever run into these types of problems.

We just got back August 1 from OKW,checked in July 26th. Had a very nice CM named Troy who gave us a lovely 2nd floor room on peninsular Road, right near the bus stop, within a reasonable walk to the HH area. It was very easy, we checked in at about 4PM, so it wasn't like we were there at 6AM to get this room.

I don't stress out greatly over a room, because I don't spend a lot of time there anyhow. At OKW,IMHO, there aren't many bad rooms, or bad views. As long as the room is in good repair, and has a bathroom with 2 entrances if I have a guest sleeping on my couch(so they don't have to traipse through the master BR) I'm pretty contect.

 

[DisneyMeMa]

I have posted before about being disappointed about getting a HA BWV GV in June, 2003. I will try to tell my experiences on room assignments as best as I remember them. Because there would be between 6 and 11 of us per night, I made multiple reservations. I was concerned about the availability of the BWV GV at the 7 month window, and not wanting to borrow points, I made reservations for 4 nights at OKW GV and 3 nights at BWV GV 11 months in advance. Also, I made reservations for BCV studios for a couple of nights a few months in advance. The OKW GV was a non handicapped, non smoking one as requested. The BWV GV was a non smoking, HA accessible one, not as requested. I knew the night before we checked in that it would be HA. My DH and I had gone the the Belle Vue Room (?) - we call it the Library Bar - before dinner. When leaving the BW I observed the CMs at the registration desk were "not assisting other guests " and I decided to tell the CM we would be checking in Thursday morning and ask her if she knew if the room we had been assigned was occupied that night. She told me it was. I then asked her if it was possible to make a notation for housekeeping that we were on site, and would be changing resorts. That we would appreciate having the room ready earlier than 4 if possible. We had a 3 year old with us that would not nap except in a quiet spot. Her response was that it takes approximately 5 hours to make a GV ready for the next guest, so, don't expect it before 4. OK. I then asked was it a one story or two. One story. Good. Next, was it non smoking and non handicapped as requested. Her response was it was non smoking, but was HA. I then asked her about the configuration of the baths, and she told me that only one - the MB - was HA. As it turned out, the MB bath and one of the other baths was HA. I asked if we had any choice, and she told me that they were at 100% occupancy and someone else would also be checking in that Thursday and they had been assigned the 2 story GV that would become available. I told her I was disappointed, and I knew she was not responsible for the room assignment. By the way, the next morning when we checked in I did not ask, nor did the CM tell me that the room was HA. The room was available when I checked shortly after 2. The other check-ins we did were at the BCV studios. One was about 6:30 A. M. The CM said I was the first of the day. I was offered a HA room that was available then, or wait for a non smoking, non HA later. I opted to wait. That room was available shortly before 4. Another morning my DH and I went over to check-in about 10:30 A. M. Again we were told there was a HA room available then or we could wait for one that was non HA. We said we'll take the HA. So, my experience was that 3 out of 4 check-ins we could have had HA rooms. Instead we had 2 of 4. Obviously, these requests are a problem for DVC. I am very aware that the DVC point structure is based on 95% occupancy 100% of the time.Now before I upset everyone on these boards about what I have just posted, let me tell you our family that was with us said it really didn't matter all that much. But, in my cranky old opinion, it does. It was not luxurious or even really very special (it did have a great view). We have had HA accommodations many, many times at DVC resorts and other places, and I am certain we will again. Just as many of you are, we are willing to take our fair share (as we see it, of course.) However, my DH says without some assurance we would not get a HA BWV GV, never again...all the better for those that want the BWV GVs...in our opinion it is just too many points to take that chance for something we don't want. Who knows, in a few years we might be all requesting those accommodations...I certainly hope not...

 

[colleen costello]

I have asked to be reassigned twice, once because of proximity to a road (that service road at BCV) and once because we were assigned a "handicapped" studio. Both times I was polite and both times I explained why I had issues with the particular room. Both times I explained I would be more than happy to pay the $25, that it was THAT important to be to be reassigned. Both times I was moved and not charged.

Disney bends over backwards to accomodate us, all of us. They want us happy! Unfortunately, there are nuts in the world. They will be miserable no matter how kind folks are to them. In my opinion, 4 nights with 4 people in a HC studio at the Lodge would have been really tight -- little storage and bathroom issues to boot. But would it have ruined my vacation? No! And would I EVER be abusive to a staff member? Never. Lots of people must be getting really fussy for the member newsletter to reflect this problem.

 

[colleen costello]

TimC, re-read your post and wanted to comment. I have not been in an OKW HC room but was recently in one at the Lodge. It was in a fine location but the layout was really a problem for 4 people crammed into a studio (trying to save points!). Everything is laid out differently to make it accessible. The bathroom is not separate. There is a pocket door and it's all together so if someone is on the toilet, the sink is off-limits. The counter space is limited because the microwave, normally up high, is on the lower counter. The switches for everything are low, only an issue for folks with small children who like to fiddle with things. There is no bathtub, instead a big roll-in shower and no real "barrier" between this shower and the rest of the bathroom. The beds are lower for access. This means you can't shove your empty suitcases under them.

All this creates problems if you are a larger group. If you were a solo traveler or a couple, less of an issue. I personally would probably choose a BAD view over a HC room with a great view, because space is an issue for me when we 4 are in a studio.

I know this will never happen, but offering a small points discount on the HC rooms would make them a lot more appealing as they are, in effect, "smaller."

 

[mickey7861]

In all the years we have toured WDW I have never requested a specific room and I have never been disappointed with my room. IMHO making specific room requests just adds stress to an experience that I want to be as stress free as possible. I just returned from 3 weeks in WDW. Checked into the BWV once and OKW 3 times. All 4 of the rooms were ready when I checked in, all between 8:30am and 10:30am. On the last check in, we decided on Thursday that we needed another weekend so we called MS and booked Fri and Sat, we had our choice of 4 different rooms when we checked in.

 

[Debby7]

Just got back from 9 nts. at OKW on August 1. Since I knew that we would not be checking in until at least 8:00pm, I faxed my requests(duplicate of 11 months out,when I made the ressies). Two out of three of my requests were met and my paperwork all said"Do Not Move" at the top. The request not met was for upper floor, we got a ground floor. Luckily , the people above were pretty quiet, we only heard voices when in the bathrooms. All in all I felt that for checking in late on a Wed.. we were accomodated as best as possible.

PS I just read the new policy statement on the members site, guess that was my first and last time faxing a request!!!

 

[CarolA]

Well as some of you know this whole handicapped is one of my pet peeves. However, I believe in Karma. Those who complain most will probably be complaining in 20 years that they could not get one when they needed it! If you look at the facts the population is aging. I would expect that the age of the average DVC member is aging right along with America. Especially based on the comments on how old we will all be when the DVC ends.

However, the room at OKW is just as large as the other studios. The bathroom actually seems bigger and may be. The door opens out instead of in which makes it bigger and there is plenty of counter space. The big differences are there is NO counter under the sink and the roll in shower. Now for some reason this kitchen is not really handicapped. The microwave is WAY to high (normal spot!) I guess the beds are lower, but they are
probably closer to normal height then the average OKW bed. The closet actually has more hanging space then normal since it has two bars a normal one and then a half bar at a lower height. The room is in building 26 and is a GREAT location. I did not bring a camera so no photos. My big complaint is that the TV remote does not work well! (Actually I think if I had been willing to take smoking, I would not be in this room and it would have been ready at 10 am. My only request was non-smoking and I kept it on the record.)


Personally I agree with those who don't worry about the locations. I read way too many posts where the whole vacation seems ruined by the room location. I have checked and all of the OKW and BCV rooms are at Disney so I am set!

 

[Beth]

Well ... I, for one, can't figure out how they're doing it...

A friend of mine went over to Boardwalk 2 weekends ago. Stayed for one night - Saturday - in a 2BR. She booked it ONE WEEK prior. I believe they checked in around 2:00 or 3:00. The room was ready - and it was smack dab overlooking the boardwalk! I'm guessing that (1) checking in on a Saturday and, (2) staying for only one night really played in their favor - but I was still amazed at their luck.

On the other hand, DH and I checked in to WLV this past February - the morning we got back from the SS Member cruise. We hightailed it from Pt Canaveral - and arrived to check in around 10:00. Our room was ready - but it was the dreaded dumpster view. We called down and asked if there was anything else available, and all they could offer was a HA room. With us checking in that early - I just have to think that they WERE pre-assigning rooms, and that they were holding those rooms for other guests who had yet to check in. I can't believe that we were the last guests to check in that day - at 10:00 in the morning. BTW - we made the reservation approx 4 months in advance.

Several posted a few months ago that they were invited to participate in some focus group discussions while at WDW. One kind poster offered for all of us here on the Board to make our suggestions for what we would like addressed at the meeting. While I certainly have my preference of how they do it - I think it would be most fair to grant requests according to when the reservation is placed - my biggest desire is just to have a good understanding of how they are assigning these rooms - and that they might be consistent at all the DVC resorts. I understand many here think that room requests are frivolous but, we DO spend a lot of time in our villa - and location IS important to us.

 

[Minnie&Mickey]

My 18 year old daughter is turning 19 next Saturday and the only thing she wanted for her birthday was to be able to go on a trip with her two best friends...no parents. We weren't thrilled with the idea until she told us that they wanted to go to WDW! Since they weren't asking to go to Daytona, or Fort Lauderdale, or Cancun, we said yes. I called and got them a one bedroom for 4 nights at OKW with the only requests being no-smoking for medical reasons and top floor.

About two months before the trip, the girls decided that they really wanted to arrive a day early, but since I am a little "points poor" right now, I told them that they would have to stay at the All Star for the first night. I called and made the reservation for them and made the same requests. They didn't get in until about 10PM last night, and ended up being put in a smoking room. My daughter called me and was quite upset. I told her to call the front desk and tell them that they needed to be moved. The front desk at the All Star told them that there weren't any non-smoking rooms available and that all they could do was spray the room. When I found out, I called down there and explained that they HAD to be moved and then the story changed...now there were plenty of non-smoking rooms available and that they would be moved immediately. Unfortunately one of the girls is asthmatic and had already had to use her inhaler twice within the first 30 minutes in the room.

However, this morning (8AM) they checked into OKW and all of our requests were met without any problem. Considering what my daughter went through, it sounds to me like they do first come-first serve on room assignments. They didn't get what they requested when they arrived at 10PM, but they did get what was requested at 8AM.
Holly

 

[robinb]

Originally posted by CarolA
My room is a handicapped studio. The CM did ask if I minded. While it is not my first choice, I told him that would be fine. The relief on his face and voice was visable. He informed me that some members become VERBALLY abusive to him when he tells them that they have a handicapped room.

Kudos to your CM for telling you it was going to be a H/C room even though other guests had been rude and abusive to him in the past! There is really no excuse for that kind of behavior from guests . The CM (and manager of BCV) who checked me into my H/C room did not extend that same curtesy even though our only requests were non-smoking and non-handicapped. Instead, we were surprised. I wouldn't have been half as disappointed if I was told "Sorry, we're sold out and all we have left are smoking rooms or handicapped rooms."

I do think it's interesting that you received your handicapped studio 13 hours before I received mine. My guess is that if you had objected to the room they would have moved you and allocated the h/c room to someone who was checking in later.

 

[RLevy29]

We checked in on 7/6 at OKW at about 11:30 and the room was not ready. We were given our cards and told to call back for our room assignment. We went to EPCOT and had lunch and then walked around a little. Then we went grocery shopping and called to see if our room was ready. This was about 2:30. The CM gave us our room assignment and we went right to the room. It met all of our requests NS, upper floor, and new building. I can't answer if our room was pre-assigned or if when we arrived they assigned the first available room that met our requests. We had never had to call for our room assignment before and we were very pleased that we didn't have to return to the front desk.

 

[dianeschlicht]

Interesting experience. Our trip later this month was booked at about 9 months out. We only requested a non-smoking, since we have a 2 bedroom for 4 people, and the extra door isn't an issue. I also kind of like taking my chances since I haven't ever had a really bad room at OKW. Last year we had a 1 bedroom that had some repair issues, but a call to maintanence cured that.

I am hoping our late afternoon arrival isn't an issue.

 

[joepoe]

We will arrive at OKW early on Sunday the 17th after three nights offsite. We will check in early, (9:00 am), leave our stuff and then off to MK and lunch with Pooh. We never ask for anything beyond n/s, Turtle Pond, and we always get our requests, maybe because they are not very narrow in scope. I think when you say n/s, near HH, third floor, elevator building, golf course view, it gets a little difficult to accomodate. Each additional request seems to complicate matters.