Will online room check in Impact (pro/con) early room availability?

[TigerLaw]

We are going to be staying in a standard view room at Bay Lake next month. I am totally willing to trade the View we get for an earlier check-in time.

My question is this. I've never used online check in before and was wondering if this would help or hurt our chances to get into our room earlier than the normal 4 p.m. time?

thanks in advance for the help!

 

[KayaWildfire]

I would think online check in would help in this case, assuming this is a cash reservation. They have a box in the requests section that says something like I would like my room asap and my requests don't matter. You also put in an estimated arrival time as well, so you might get a room earlier. It may do nothing at all though for you.

 

[msjprincess]

I'm not sure if it's a coincidence but my room has always been ready early when I do online check in. Even DVC reservations.

 

[AngiTN]

This is one of the times where online check-in offers it's biggest benefit.
If you don't complete it, there are little chances of their knowing your arrival time or that you'd like a room ready early.
Completing online check-in will give you just about your only chance of letting them know both of these things.

It was that you could put in that you wanted a room ready over room requests during online check-in. But that feature doesn't work most of the time now, since you have to enter at least 1 room request in order to have the ready early box show up.

Now, I think they sort of default to a room ready early if possible for everyone. At least that's been my experience. If you enter that you will be arriving via ME, they automatically use that as your arrival time. If you don't enter ME info the option to enter a time remains available during the online check-in process. In the times we having entered flight info (such as when we are transferring from another resort) then I always use 8:30 as my arrival time.

We do get our rooms early more than we don't. Not 100% but often.

All that said, DVC is less likely than the regular resorts to have them early. Not impossible but it is less likely. Takes longer to turn over the rooms there.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Won't help for BLT Standard. DVC rooms undergoing turnover are the least likely to be available before 4, and all BLT Standards open for assignment on the day of your check in will be having turnover.

 

[FSU Girl]

Won't help for BLT Standard. DVC rooms undergoing turnover are the least likely to be available before 4, and all BLT Standards open for assignment on the day of your check in will be having turnover.

That’s not always the case. I’ve had a few rooms available around 1pm and those were one-bedroom villas so it can happen.

OP check you’d like the earliest available room over requests. When you arrive you can also ask if another room is ready I’ve done that before and if it’s not super busy they usually can accommodate

 

[_auroraborealis_]

That’s not always the case. I’ve had a few rooms available around 1pm and those were one-bedroom villas so it can happen.

OP check you’d like the earliest available room over requests. When you arrive you can also ask if another room is ready I’ve done that before and if it’s not super busy they usually can accommodate

DVC is always full, especially BLT Standard.

 

[msjprincess]

My room was ready early on my last 4 DVC stays. None were a BLT standard view though.

BWV BW view studio 11am
AKL Jambo standard view studio 10am
Poly standard view studio 12:30pm
BCV one bedroom 2pm

 

[FSU Girl]

DVC is always full, especially BLT Standard.

Ok then how did I get a room there before 4pm more than once? I’m just saying it’s possible to get a room earlier than their 4pm check in time. Even at Bay Lake Tower, which is one of my favorite hotels to stay at

 

[jo-jo]

Last two trips in May while staying at BLT, I did online checkin for both my room and my DS's room. Traveled together. Both trips, his room was ready hours before our room was ready.

One trip he got a text while on the bus (about 10 ish), our room wasn't ready until little after 4. The other trip, again got text on bus, but our's was maybe 2 hours later.


I'm not sure when they started online checkin, but we have never gotten a room ready text before we arrived at disney. We tend to arrive mid to late morning. On the other hand, we rarely had to wait past 4 pm.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Ok then how did I get a room there before 4pm more than once? I’m just saying it’s possible to get a room earlier than their 4pm check in time. Even at Bay Lake Tower, which is one of my favorite hotels to stay at

What view did you have? There are more lake view villas than theme park view or standard view. Standard may have the fewest number of villas at BLT. What size villa did you have? There are zero dedicated one bedroom or studio villas at BLT. They all are part of the 133 two bedroom lockoffs. There could be more lockoffs checking out at 11 am than checking out at 9 am. They have to clean both sides of the lockoff to get a one bedroom or studio.

I may have misunderstood the OP when he said "I am totally willing to trade the View we get for an earlier check-in time." He can't really change the view because that is a booking category. He could eliminate any requests and take any standard villa (not sure what size he booked) that becomes vacant. But, when I check the DVC booking for up to 60 days out, there are zero BLT villas other than a Grand Villa that is available for booking and that is only two nights. So the odds of having a vacant villa left over from the night before is rather slim. And while guests to check out early in the morning, Housekeeping doesn't always specifically clean those villas first. So it is possible to get a villa early, but not much earlier than the 4PM check in time.

 

[TigerLaw]

just to be clear, what i meant was i don't care what room we get in the std. room category (it could have a view of the garbage dumpsters) as long as we can get in the room early.

i ended up signing up for the online check in so we will see what happens.

 

[Deb & Bill]

just to be clear, what i meant was i don't care what room we get in the std. room category (it could have a view of the garbage dumpsters) as long as we can get in the room early.

i ended up signing up for the online check in so we will see what happens.

When you arrive, you might want to check in at the front desk to see if they happen to have any villas available in your booking category.

 

[FSU Girl]

What view did you have? There are more lake view villas than theme park view or standard view. Standard may have the fewest number of villas at BLT. What size villa did you have? There are zero dedicated one bedroom or studio villas at BLT. They all are part of the 133 two bedroom lockoffs. There could be more lockoffs checking out at 11 am than checking out at 9 am. They have to clean both sides of the lockoff to get a one bedroom or studio.

I may have misunderstood the OP when he said "I am totally willing to trade the View we get for an earlier check-in time." He can't really change the view because that is a booking category. He could eliminate any requests and take any standard villa (not sure what size he booked) that becomes vacant. But, when I check the DVC booking for up to 60 days out, there are zero BLT villas other than a Grand Villa that is available for booking and that is only two nights. So the odds of having a vacant villa left over from the night before is rather slim. And while guests to check out early in the morning, Housekeeping doesn't always specifically clean those villas first. So it is possible to get a villa early, but not much earlier than the 4PM check in time.

I've only stayed in Theme Park view and one time Bay Lake view, but that time was an upgrade so doesn't count. The one-bedroom villas were ready before 4pm, not all the times, but the majority of our stays. The times where it was ready early were around 1pm, so a decent amount before 4pm. When we stayed in a two-bedroom villa it was not ready until 4pm. I've only booked through Disney, never DVC. I don't think it's a given for a room to be ready before 4pm, but from my experience there is definitely a chance to get one earlier.

 

[PSUGuy]

It's rare that we don't get right in our Board Walk DVC rooms, both standard and courtyard views. We usually roll in before 10 am and I do use online check in.

Bill From PA

 

[kylie]

May I just sidetrack the debate a bit with an unrelated question, it has been a number of years since we stayed at blt and the checkin was at the contemporary. Is this still the case? While I have checked in online we do need to collect magic bands.

 

[FSU Girl]

May I just sidetrack the debate a bit with an unrelated question, it has been a number of years since we stayed at blt and the checkin was at the contemporary. Is this still the case? While I have checked in online we do need to collect magic bands.

No, you can go directly into Bay Lake Tower to check in.

 

[kylie]

Thank you, 6 more sleeps!

 

[Undavolt]

Since becoming DVC members in 2017 our rooms have been ready before 4pm. On all four trips we did online check in, used ME, arrived around 11am and went directly to the front desk upon arrival.

BLT studio Lake View - 12:30 pm
Poly studio Standard View - 2:30 pm
CCV grand villa - 3 pm
BWV studio Boardwalk View - 11:30 am

Will see what happens at AKL Kidani in Oct.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Since becoming DVC members in 2017 our rooms have been ready before 4pm. On all four trips we did online check in, used ME, arrived around 11am and went directly to the front desk upon arrival.

BLT studio Lake View - 12:30 pm
Poly studio Standard View - 2:30 pm
CCV grand villa - 3 pm
BWV studio Boardwalk View - 11:30 am

Will see what happens at AKL Kidani in Oct.

Do you have dates to go along with each of these? That may play into it as well.