Carol, that is good to know. For some reason, and I remember reading it on the boards (even though I realize incorrect advice is sometimes given) that walking was of no use unless you did 7 nights.
So now I am understanding that even if you did only a five night reservation, for example, as long as it was prior to your "actual" date wanted, that you could still walk a reservation. If so, then this could eliminate my need for borrowing since the reservation that I really want crosses my use June use year.
Since I thought I had to have a 7 night reservation(to serve walking purposes), I ended up borrowing points from the next year to secure a 7 night and figured I would just end up using the borrowed points (for 2 nights).
Would this have worked if I started over with a five night reservation and as I crossed into my new use year, then adding additional nights--to keep from borrowing those earlier? Thanks.
To successfully "walk", you only need to secure a 2 night reservation. Let's use a a simple example to help clarify:
Suppose that there are exactly 5 studios at
DVC Resort A. To make the example simpler, we will assume that all 5 studios are available when the 11 month window opens. Let's assume there are 5 members who want to begin their stays on 1/1 and call on 2/1 as soon as MS opens.
So on 2/1, 3 people call and make 7 night reservations, 1 person makes a 5 night reservation and 1 person makes a 2 night reservation.
So we now have:
3 members who will check in on 1/1 and out on 1/8 (7 nights)
1 member who will check in on 1/1 and out on 1/6 (5 nights)
1 member who will check in on 1/1 and out on 1/3 (2 nights)
The next day (2/2), the 11 month window opens for anyone who wants to begin a studio stay at DVC Resort A on 1/2. But there are no studio rooms available - all 5 are taken by the members who made reservations yesterday.
However, if the members who made reservations yesterday want to extend their stay by a night, they are allowed to do so today (2/2) and are guaranteed to be able to do that. (Because no one who doesn't already have a reservation can reserve a studio for 1/3 or later until the 11 month window opens on 2/3).
So walking only requires you to secure the first 2 nights to be successful, as long as you are willing to call daily after securing the 2 night reservation. You don't need to call daily if your first reservation is longer. You just need to call to add nights before the 11 month window opens for the nights you need.
The real challenge is to get that first reservation. That can be tough to do if other people are "walking ahead of you".
Carol's Opinion Follows:
As I have said previously, walking is unnecessary almost all of the time. If too many people do it, DVC will just institute new restrictions - and there's no way to stop walking without hurting all of us in other ways.
Everyone who is considering walking should be absolutely sure it is necessary. Too many posters here suggest walking for times of the year and booking categories that are usually available at 7 months. So there is NO PROBLEM getting them at 11 months and no need to walk. Walking in those cases just wastes time and creates problems for other members.
