Windsor Hills in 3 days....biting my nails

[aimeeme]

Ok....this is the first time for me renting from a private owner. I received the letter of invitation & directions in a timeley manner. And I am supposed to receive the security access code 2 days prior. First, I am nervous about not receiving the access code in the next couple of days. And second, nervous even if I have the access code, we show up there and for some reason the invite letter does not allow us in or the code wont work. Yes, I am being Neurotic but I have never done this before & my biggest fear is getting there & not having a place to stay . Please.....somebody settle my nerves!

 

[sympatico]

Chill out aimeeme, we've done this twice so far and had absolutely no problems. Just don't forget your letter and you'll have no problems.

 

[2xDisneyDad]

Ok....this is the first time for me renting from a private owner. I received the letter of invitation & directions in a timeley manner. And I am supposed to receive the security access code 2 days prior. First, I am nervous about not receiving the access code in the next couple of days. And second, nervous even if I have the access code, we show up there and for some reason the invite letter does not allow us in or the code wont work. Yes, I am being Neurotic but I have never done this before & my biggest fear is getting there & not having a place to stay . Please.....somebody settle my nerves!

We just returned and had no trouble at all. They are definately used to dealing with the invitation/confirmation letters at the guard booth. You should have no trouble.

Have fun,

Steve

 

[5mins2disney]

Ok....this is the first time for me renting from a private owner. I received the letter of invitation & directions in a timeley manner. And I am supposed to receive the security access code 2 days prior. First, I am nervous about not receiving the access code in the next couple of days. And second, nervous even if I have the access code, we show up there and for some reason the invite letter does not allow us in or the code wont work. Yes, I am being Neurotic but I have never done this before & my biggest fear is getting there & not having a place to stay . Please.....somebody settle my nerves!

TIP! Put the owner's cell #s and/or the MCs phone # in your cell phone! Then if you get lost or forget the sheet, have issues, etc, you can still get in! We've had this happen to guests of ours a few times, just yesterday I got a call someone was at the wrong house address. Others forget the codes, that sort of thing, it happens all the time.

And, if you have questions or issues, don't be shy to call your owner or MC and ask a question!

 

[isla bonita]

Most homes have in addition to the key code a lock box just in case. I am sure all will be fine.

Take all phone numbers with you to both the owner and man/co. You really should have no problems but if you should you will have the contact info ao you.

 

[aimeeme]

Ok, I did not receive any info about a management company from the owner at all. Is that something that she should have provided? I e-mailed her yesterday with some questions and haven't heard back from her. Then, I called today with the same questions and mentioned that I e-mailed (regarding the questions) and have not heard back from her. At first she would reply to me right away, so this seems a bit odd to me. I dont know why she isn't responding. I hope I am just worrying over nothing here & the code will be sent to me tomorrow (that would be 2 days before arrival). I will keep you all posted. Thanks for the responses!

 

[Tissa]

The owner could be out of town or busy for Mother's Day weekend. I'm sure you will hear back on Monday. Don't worry, I'm sure you will get the info you need.

 

[curlyjbs]

Have a wonderful WORRY FREE trip!! Don't forget a trip report when you return!!!

~Connie

 

[5mins2disney]

Ok, I did not receive any info about a management company from the owner at all. Is that something that she should have provided? I e-mailed her yesterday with some questions and haven't heard back from her. Then, I called today with the same questions and mentioned that I e-mailed (regarding the questions) and have not heard back from her. At first she would reply to me right away, so this seems a bit odd to me. I dont know why she isn't responding. I hope I am just worrying over nothing here & the code will be sent to me tomorrow (that would be 2 days before arrival). I will keep you all posted. Thanks for the responses!

Usually guests don't even know who the MC is until you arrive, and it's in a book of information left in the home in case you have any issues. We usually go the "extra mile" though and provide our guests all of our contact information, as well as our MC's cell phone / emergency # in advance, just in case they need it.

We had a guest show up in Jan while we were vacationing ourselves in Colorado, and had trouble getting into the home, they were able to reach our MC quickly while we were out tubing (and didn't have our cell phones with us). Fortunately, they got right in, without that information though, it could have been a few hours until they reached us, and that's not good! Little problems like this are easily prevented by good communication up front is our belief! (So, I would ask her for their phone # at least when you reach her, and, put it in your cell phone now before you leave home just in case!).

 

[aimeeme]

Thanks George for the response. If I do get in contact with her I will ask for the mgt. company #. I still havent heard anything from her and I am now 2 days before arrival. I feel in addition to the stress you experience before leaving for vacation, this is an unnecesary one. I'm quite bothered by it right now and very worried and rightfuly so. I'm sorry, if you promise someone a security code to a prospective tennant 2 days before their trip (especially one who has expresed feeling uneasy & is new to renting from a private owner) then you really should provide what is promised. At this point I still feel like (actually even more so than 2 days ago) that I may not have a place to go when I get there. Not a good feeling. Dont know if I would go this route again.

 

[5mins2disney]

Thanks George for the response. If I do get in contact with her I will ask for the mgt. company #. I still havent heard anything from her and I am now 2 days before arrival. I feel in addition to the stress you experience before leaving for vacation, this is an unnecesary one. I'm quite bothered by it right now and very worried and rightfuly so. I'm sorry, if you promise someone a security code to a prospective tennant 2 days before their trip (especially one who has expresed feeling uneasy & is new to renting from a private owner) then you really should provide what is promised. At this point I still feel like (actually even more so than 2 days ago) that I may not have a place to go when I get there. Not a good feeling. Dont know if I would go this route again.

I agree with you for what it's worth, you should have this info already, it's pretty poor guest communications to wait until the last minute to give you all of the info. Do you have directions and such by the way? If you want..PM me your email and I'll mail you my WHR directions sheet with the "shortcut" route to the parks on it as well. I'm sure the house will be there and you'll have a place to stay, I just think you should have everything by now, we do this about 6-8 weeks out when guests make final payment. Makes sure I don't forget, and if they have any questions or problems (maybe they didn't get the email for instance, happens all the time!), there's plenty of time to deal with it. Next time you can always rent from one of the many owners others have recommended here on the DIS! Hopefully it'll all be fine, if you need anything let me know.

 

[luvmy3jewels]

We just returned from Story Time 3 last week. I am very embarrassed to admit this, but I was so stressed out about packing, flying, and making sure I had directions to every where we needed to get to....I forgot to make sure I was clear on how to get the keys to our townhouse.

We had a late flight and arrived at the Villa Direct offices at 10:30 p.m. They have a locked area beside their offices that contains keys, directions, etc. for late check-ins. I didn't know the number to use to get into this area, so I called the phone number for Villa Direct and ended up speaking to a gentleman who gave me the number and explained what I needed to do. (While I was speaking to him, I found an e-mail from the owner and noticed that they had given me the number under their signature line...duh!) It all worked out in the end, but I did have that moment of initial panic that we would have to find a hotel to check into for that night.

 

[4eyedbuzzard]

At this point I still feel like (actually even more so than 2 days ago) that I may not have a place to go when I get there. Not a good feeling. Dont know if I would go this route again.

I agree that you should have had this info already - we already have ours for a June 6 arrival. But FWIW, I've had major hotel chains tell me they didn't have my reserved room available upon check-in, so I wouldn't let this bother you from a "Dont know if I would go this route again" perspective. Probably just a busy/inattentive owner or MC, lost e-mail address(you've double-checked your e-mails, right?) or contact info. I'd send e-mails and call all the numbers you may have at hand and call day and night until I got a response.