What to expect re: availability three months out?

[olliesmom]

We are in the process of purchasing a resale contract and awaiting ROFR. With the holidays coming up, I'm not anticipating being able to have our account set up and points available to book until mid-January.

Our vacation schedule this year is already fixed and our travel weeks are in April and July. We will have a baby with us, so would very much prefer to avoid the heat of July in WDW (we've done it before and swore we would never do it again!).

This has me thinking about that April week. I am anticipating availability will be very low three months prior to our travel dates, but am wondering if it's realistic to plan to book something if we are flexible with resort and room type? And/or if we dedicate a lot of time to reservation searching? We would be looking at the week of the 12-18. I have been trying to look at and understand the historical availability charts I've found online but would love to her personal experiences.

We have considered renting DVC points ourselves for that week and then renting out our own points once we receive them, but avoiding the DVC rental process was one of the reasons we are purchasing our own contract.

 

[VGCgroupie]

Nobody can predict what will be there. April is busy but I don’t think you won’t be able to find anything as long as you are flexible with dates and a potential split stay.

 

[olliesmom]

Nobody can predict what will be there. April is busy but I don’t think you won’t be able to find anything as long as you are flexible with dates and a potential split stay.

We unfortunately have no flexibility with dates because of work schedules, but have happily done split stays in the past. Thank you!

 

[VGCgroupie]

We unfortunately have no flexibility with dates because of work schedules, but have happily done split stays in the past. Thank you!

Often availability gets much better 30 days out because people cancel. So if you book something you don’t love remember to check back at 30 days to see if you can swap out to something better.

 

[muppets3d]

If you have enough points for preferred view studios or 1 bedroom villas or larger, your odds exponentially improve. The resort view studios will be all but gone, barring cancellations which nobody can predict. As @VGCgroupie said, 30-45 days before check-in is when you really want to stalk the site for cancellations because that's the last chance for folks to cancel without possibly penalizing their points. I would recommend you book something ASAP, even a split stay, and then stalk the site (or waitlist) what you actually want.

 

[MICKIMINI]

VGCgroupie is right. People do cancel. I cancelled 10 nights in a studio at BWV a few weeks ago for 9 nights in a 1BR at BWV. I stalked those 10 nights daily for weeks and added day by day, piece by piece. Those April and May dates were gone in hours after I cancelled.. Personally, I would consider renting from another DVC member or booking through WDW since you need specific dates. Cancellations through WDW is a consideration if you can book your choice of DVC. You will do yourself a favor, not have to stress out and have MORE points for your next trip!

DVC is awesome and it's pretty hard to get exact dates unless you are in your 11 month (sometimes EXACTLY at 11 months) or willing to stay at any resort at 7 months. The cheapest points rooms sell out almost immediately. Stalking is the trick, but it takes a lot of time (middle of the night is the best time IMO) and effort with no guarantees.

Congrats on being a new DVC member!

 

[Sandisw]

You just never know what will open up. I just had a change in my Spring vacation plans and made adjustments.

So, things can change regularly. We don’t allow people to post what they see..and I know you were not asking people too,, because it changes so quickly.

Your best option is to book what you can, use the waitlist but stalk regularly!

 

[thanxfornoticin]

April dates are often in flux depending on Easter. If you're looking for 12-18, it might improve your chances a little bit since you're a week beyond the week following Easter Sunday. As soon as you are set up to view availability and potential locations that might work, take a look and be flexible with your location. You might need to be persistent and check often, but there's a chance you can work out what you want in April. I would also not recommend July!!