Would you cancel or hold the reservation?

[DVC Grandpa]

If you were holding a reservation for the last month of your use year and had no insurance to cover the points, would you cancel that reservation within the last 30 days if it became necessary or would you hold on to it in hopes you may be able to take advantage of a few of the late days in the reservation? As I see it, I would have nothing to loose by holding on to the entire month reservation as I would loose the days anyway if I cancelled. Would DVC hold on to a room for a month just in case I were to arrive at sometime within that month?

 

[Chuck S]

While it is true you have nothing to lose, since the points would go into holding and can't be banked, if I were pretty sure I would not be able to go at all, maybe for health reasons, I would cancel. It then would free up the room for someone else that may be wait listed.

But, if there is a good possibility you would be able to go for several days, just not the first few day, I would hold the reservatoin, or maybe call and drop the first couple of days, and keep the remainder of the reservation.

You could also see if some friends, neighbors, or coworkers of yours would be interested in the reservation, and rent it or give it to them so the room doesn't just sit empty.

No matter what, I would call Member Services, and maybe the manager of your resort, and let them know the situation so they don't cancel you as a "no show" on the first night.

 

[JimMIA]

I think a lot depends on how far in advance you are talking about, and the specific range of dates.

If you have enough lead time, and if the time period is one where you might do okay for a shorter ressie on short notice, you might consider canceling, banking, and then borrowing for the late-notice ressie. If that is feasible in your particular circumstances, you would lose fewer points in the event of a cancellation.

One thing I'm pretty sure of -- if you just don't show up for your scheduled checkin, they will forfeit all your points AND cancel the remainder of the ressie. They do NOT automatically hold the ressie just because the points have been used.

Whether you could call and ask them to hold the entire thing just in case, I don't know. I think an in-depth discussion with someone with a LOT of authority in MS is the only way to get that. And you still risk the system automatically dumping your ressie anyway. I think that is a real low-probability, high-risk strategy.