Unbalanced Resort Ressies

[Dean]

Hi Dean! Yes, I do agree with what you are saying. (Less I dare disagree!) The whole notion of "home resort" just doesn't seem so advantageous when those that bought at their respective resorts have trouble getting ressies even withing the 11-8 mos home resort timeframe. If everyone who bought wanted to stay all at the same time, there should be enough accomodations for this. Its like overbooking a flight. You know there is always a chance not everyone will make or want the flight they've paid for. I just think everyone takes their chances at ressies anywhere, anytime, regardless of "home resort" advantages or not.

Just book day-by-day at 11-month out and you have no problem. There is certainly no guarantee of reservations even within the home resort window however, for those situations, there is essentially a guarantee of nothing after the home resort window. Thus it's more important to have home resort priority for those resorts and those times. In

 

[mprewitt]

Just book day-by-day at 11-month out and you have no problem. There is certainly no guarantee of reservations even within the home resort window however, for those situations, there is essentially a guarantee of nothing after the home resort window. Thus it's more important to have home resort priority for those resorts and those times. In

That's why I still believe in the "buy where you want to stay" philosophy (sorry, Tim!).

If I want to try to guarantee that I can book VWL during December, BCV or BWV Std View during F&W festival, or maybe even AKV concierge, then it's probably best that I own points there so that I can get every advantage possible. In fact, I do own points at those 4 resorts.

Sure, there may be times when I may get those at the 7-mo window, but I would rather have more certainty. If that costs me a bit more in MF, so be it. To me, it's worth it.

 

[Dean]

That's why I still believe in the "buy where you want to stay" philosophy (sorry, Tim!).

If I want to try to guarantee that I can book VWL during December, BCV or BWV Std View during F&W festival, or maybe even AKV concierge, then it's probably best that I own points there so that I can get every advantage possible. In fact, I do own points at those 4 resorts.

Sure, there may be times when I may get those at the 7-mo window, but I would rather have more certainty. If that costs me a bit more in MF, so be it. To me, it's worth it.

Actually the dues are not enough to make a difference other than Vero beach. That is likely be continued to be the case into the future.

 

[jekjones1558]

If everyone who bought wanted to stay all at the same time, there should be enough accomodations for this.

Actually that is not mathematically possible. Points are sold as if owners will spread their usage evenly over all unit sizes and dates. There is no way financially to build enough units so that at any given date every owner at a home resort can stay there.

 

[Boston5602]

Sure, there may be times when I may get those at the 7-mo window, but I would rather have more certainty. If that costs me a bit more in MF, so be it. To me, it's worth it.

Thats how I felt when buying BWV last year. I may be able to get into it at 7 months but I want to know for sure .

An earlier post asked why someone would buy an older resort with less time , I bought it last year because previous to that I had stayed there 8 different trips with family and friends. This is where I already felt at home and wanted the booking advantage .

 

[katdocnorf]

I did not read all of this thread for lack of time but just some input (2 cents).

BWV has always had Standard View that was not something that was added. After BWV that was something that was done away with at newer resorts. Views are now done 1st come, 1 serve basically. And I don't know why the complaint anyway. When you buy you know going in you have your window for home resort and that by waiting to the closer windows, you may or may not get exactly what you request. If I know beyond a shadow of a doubt a time I want to go far enough in advance, I book at my home resort. If I decide at the 7 month window I would like to try another resort, I see if I can get that resort and then switch my ressie. If not then I stay at my home resort. I purchased where I love the most. I purchased extra points at VB on a special pricing in order to have extra points to go elsewhere or get bigger rooms or longer vacations if feasible. When I purchased those extra I knew in advance that I may not be able to get at WDW in my home resort with those points or may not get first choice of where I want to be at all. I have stayed elsewhere other than BWV because of the fact of not being able to get what I want. It does not bother me.

I have a larger family now and absolutely need a 2 BR which means I have to use those VB points even to stay at WDW anywhere close to a week. Last vacation and this one I did not get to stay at BWV. Last one because of availability at the 7 month window. This one because I had to change reservation dates last minute because of a job change and not able to get time off that I had originally planned.

My main point is everyone should know this going in and not get mad at having to take their home resort. I am just happy to be able to go as with my large family I would not be able to without DVC. DVC helps us all to save the largest chunk of expense for going to Disney in the first place.

 

[DebbieB]

I did not read all of this thread for lack of time but just some input (2 cents).

BWV has always had Standard View that was not something that was added.

I wasn't a member when BWV opened, but from what I've heard, BWV only opened with 1 view. Then there were complaints that some people got driveway view and some got boardwalk view for the same points. So within a short time, they revised the points charts to add standard view at a lesser point value. They were able to make this adjustment because there were not many points sold and they were able to adjust the total points available for the resort.

I personally favor leaving the 11 month/7 month windows as is. If they raised the non-resort owner to 10 months, it would be very hard to get into the smaller resorts. I bought BWV for the 11 month priority because I knew it would be hard to get into for when I wanted to go in early December.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

I wasn't a member when BWV opened, but from what I've heard, BWV only opened with 1 view. Then there were complaints that some people got driveway view and some got boardwalk view for the same points. So within a short time, they revised the points charts to add standard view at a lesser point value. They were able to make this adjustment because there were not many points sold and they were able to adjust the total points available for the resort.

I personally favor leaving the 11 month/7 month windows as is. If they raised the non-resort owner to 10 months, it would be very hard to get into the smaller resorts. I bought BWV for the 11 month priority because I knew it would be hard to get into for when I wanted to go in early December.

Don't get me wrong, I am in favor of the 11mos home resort booking. My question is just with demand for certain resorts growing, esp. at certain times of the year, how long will Disney continue this policy. Like the OP, it would be nice if something was instituted that would be more of a guarantee to stay at your home resort. I just sense changes are destin to come.

 

[Dean]

Don't get me wrong, I am in favor of the 11mos home resort booking. My question is just with demand for certain resorts growing, esp. at certain times of the year, how long will Disney continue this policy. Like the OP, it would be nice if something was instituted that would be more of a guarantee to stay at your home resort. I just sense changes are destin to come.

I think it's unlikely demand will change policy. If it does, it will be to lengthen the home resort priority. Overall members are very spoiled when it comes to reservations. With very few exceptions , anyone reserving a points or floating time has to reserve the first day reservations are available. Even then , many systems require one to move up the ladder to be successful . Certainly with Marriott , Blue Green and Fairfield ; one needs to be in a preferred status and or own more points or more weeks so that you can reserve ahead of other members. I can easily envision Disney Vacation Club the future where most times have to be reserve day-by-day at 11 months out.

 

[tjkraz]

I think it's unlikely demand will change policy. If it does, it will be to lengthen the home resort priority.

While I don't think DVC will change the booking window on a whim, if there's any justification for doing it my suspicion is that it would be a response to reports of difficulty in booking non-home resorts.

DVC likes to market the entire package. If it should become widely reported that getting non-Home reservations at 7 months is extremely difficult, it could hurt sales. Reducing the Home resort priority would facilitate greater numbers of non-Home bookings.

I can easily envision Disney Vacation Club the future where most times have to be reserve day-by-day at 11 months out.

Right now there are 2 weeks out of the year where day-by-day is a near requirement. Sorry, but I don't see us reaching a point where that's true for more than 26 weeks out of the year.

 

[Dean]

While I don't think DVC will change the booking window on a whim, if there's any justification for doing it my suspicion is that it would be a response to reports of difficulty in booking non-home resorts.

DVC likes to market the entire package. If it should become widely reported that getting non-Home reservations at 7 months is extremely difficult, it could hurt sales. Reducing the Home resort priority would facilitate greater numbers of non-Home bookings.

I don't think Disney worries nearly as much about resorts and how they fit into the overall marketing standpoint as many people seem to think. Thus I think DVC will put more emphasis on owners complaints at that resort than non owners. Honestly I doubt they'll change it either way but if they did change it I think they'd be far more likely to improve the home resort priority than to improve non owners ability to trade in.

Right now there are 2 weeks out of the year where day-by-day is a near requirement. Sorry, but I don't see us reaching a point where that's true for more than 26 weeks out of the year.

Actually there are probably almost that now if one looks at the harder to book resorts but I guess it depends on how you define it. And it's obviously becoming more difficult to book and one is having to plan earlier for a number of weeks compared to before. I doubt it'll ever be where you have to call day by day to get anything for most weeks but I can definitely see the current trend continue of increasingly difficult to reserved weeks at certain resorts. And I wouldn't be surprised if a full half of the weeks had to be reserved well within the home resort priority, at least for on property options.

 

[tjkraz]

And I wouldn't be surprised if a full half of the weeks had to be reserved well within the home resort priority, at least for on property options.

Well, that's a little different than branding day-by-day a necessity at 11 months for the majority of the year.

I still don't know that I agree. That would entail even more advance planning by owners at a resort, not to mention a desire to stay at one's Home almost exclusively. Maybe it's just me, but I get the sense that most people enjoy sampling different resorts at different times rather than remaining loyal to one. Even those who have a preference for one will find themselves increasingly drawn elsewhere as DVC continues to add new locations.

If people are booking their Home at 11 months and then trying to move elsewhere, that 7-month shuffle will accommodate many non-Home bookings.

I also believe that waitlist success will increase along with trends toward earlier bookings. The earlier people try to predict their travel dates, the more prone they will be to cancellations over the 11-month period leading up to the trip. I know a member who recently had a waitlist request come thru for BCV during the Food & Wine fest.

The only periods that should be of concern now are early-December and Food & Wine time at the Epcot resorts. And of the two, DVC could have a dramatic impact on early-December bookings if they were to reallocate points. Demand indicates that reallocation would be justified.

When people start reporting that they are getting shut-out of their Home 8-10 months out for January (or February, March, April or just about any other non-holiday period aside from the above) then we may have a trend worth scrutinizing. But I don't think recent history during the early-December "Perfect Storm" (lowest points, Christmas decorations, MVMCP, Mousefest, etc.) is a harbinger of the future of DVC.

 

[Dean]

When people start reporting that they are getting shut-out of their Home 8-10 months out for January (or February, March, April or just about any other non-holiday period aside from the above) then we may have a trend worth scrutinizing. But I don't think recent history during the early-December "Perfect Storm" (lowest points, Christmas decorations, MVMCP, Mousefest, etc.) is a harbinger of the future of DVC.

I doubt Jan, Feb, May or Sept will ever be a major issue, simply too low of demand overall. So if that's the criteria, we'll definitely never get there. Even those that plan to try other resorts are more likely than not to reserve something at their home resort assuming we're talking WDW resorts. I doubt the wait list has the ability to cross match reservation requests. I'd say we're at about 3 months of the year where the 4 higher demand resorts should be booked at 11 months out to ensure success and no later than 10 months out. I'd predict that we're talking around 5-6 months of the year will require the same planning starting somewhere around 2012 but it'll evolve slowly, but we shall see. It remains to be seen where AKV will fall once it's fully open and sold but I suspect it will remain in the high demand group.

 

[BWV Dreamin]

I doubt Jan, Feb, May or Sept will ever be a major issue, simply too low of demand overall. So if that's the criteria, we'll definitely never get there. Even those that plan to try other resorts are more likely than not to reserve something at their home resort assuming we're talking WDW resorts. I doubt the wait list has the ability to cross match reservation requests. I'd say we're at about 3 months of the year where the 4 higher demand resorts should be booked at 11 months out to ensure success and no later than 10 months out. I'd predict that we're talking around 5-6 months of the year will require the same planning starting somewhere around 2012 but it'll evolve slowly, but we shall see. It remains to be seen where AKV will fall once it's fully open and sold but I suspect it will remain in the high demand group.

You are right on Dean, as usual. I feel we are definitely at the 5-6 mos. of the year/ for 11-10. mos booking. already. Maybe not the whole months entirely, but yes I can count 5-6 mos where at least 1/2 of those months would be hard to book. So surely by 2012, I can see issues. Everyone's perspective's are great food for thought!

 

[tjkraz]

I feel we are definitely at the 5-6 mos. of the year/ for 11-10. mos booking. already. Maybe not the whole months entirely, but yes I can count 5-6 mos where at least 1/2 of those months would be hard to book.

So which 6 months would those be?

 

[BWV Dreamin]

So which 6 months would those be?

I think definitely October, Novemember, December, now beginning of January looks hard, April, and some summer months, especially around the holidays. I had no problem reserving a 2 bdr. bwv in April, but I did call day-by-day at 11mos. exactly. But I wonder what the availablity is now even though it is still within the 8 mos ressie time frame?

 

[tjkraz]

I think definitely October, Novemember, December...

My take...

December: First two weeks and New Year's Eve are definitely call at 11 months. Most of the rest of the month is slower to fill up due to the higher points. Getting a room at 7 months is possible.

October and November are difficult only at BCV and BWV. Even then, I see plenty of people getting those two resorts at 7 months and/or via the waitlist.

...now beginning of January looks hard...

January depends a lot on where NYE falls on the calendar and the scheduling of the WDW Marathon. And since the marathon is a scheduled event, its impact on bookings is far from set in stone. The dates are always subject to change and the event's popularity will vary over the years.

...April, and some summer months, especially around the holidays.

Do you have any evidence to support this? Sorry, but I have yet to see reports of people getting shut-out of their Home at 9 months in April or any of the summer months.

I had no problem reserving a 2 bdr. bwv in April, but I did call day-by-day at 11mos. exactly. But I wonder what the availablity is now even though it is still within the 8 mos ressie time frame?

I'd be curious to hear as well. Feel free to check and let us know.

Two weeks ago a friend checked on March availability for me at BWV. As of that time they had Two Bedroom villas availabile in all three categories for my week (standard, BW view and preferred). So no problems at BWV eight months out for March '08 (Easter is March 23rd.)

In the end if you are comfortable with the terms under which you bought BWV points, so be it. Some people don't assign any value to the extra years elsewhere and don't care about the higher dues.

That said, I think you're confusing people's paranoid desire to book day-by-day at 11 months with a true NEED to do so. Just because you read reports of a few people calling day-by-day for January (or April, or July) doesn't mean that people who wait until 10 months out are being told there is nothing available.

Personally, I enjoy sampling all of the different resorts and would have no problem sitting on the waitlist for a few months if necessary. The waitlist doesn't cause me the anxiety that it apparently does others. I've used my points at BWV three times so far--once Preferred View booked on very short notice and the other two times Standard View. The prognostications about things getting tougher and tougher to book have been floating about since I bought 4 years ago and, IMO, have yet to manifest in any measurable way.

 

[OneMoreTry]

I think DVC is addressing the issue of availability after seven months by building more rooms at highly themed destination hotel-style resorts -- or resorts close to parks as the CRV will be. This will reestablish the same (or maybe exceed the) ratio of hotel style/home style rooms that existed pre-SSR. I know it's hard for the BCVers to believe that some may prefer the Africa theme or MK proximity to their precious SAB, but time will tell. Aren't they doing a super-pool at AKV?


As for rearranging points to establish more equity between 7 and 11 mos, that's for owners at individual resorts to hash out. If it's hard to book at 8 months, don't blame anyone from another resort.

 

[Dean]

I think DVC is addressing the issue of availability after seven months by building more rooms at highly themed destination hotel-style resorts -- or resorts close to parks as the CRV will be. This will reestablish the same (or maybe exceed the) ratio of hotel style/home style rooms that existed pre-SSR. I know it's hard for the BCVers to believe that some may prefer the Africa theme or MK proximity to their precious SAB, but time will tell. Aren't they doing a super-pool at AKV?


As for rearranging points to establish more equity between 7 and 11 mos, that's for owners at individual resorts to hash out. If it's hard to book at 8 months, don't blame anyone from another resort.

It'll take far more than one destination resorts to reestablish the balance. It is not the total number of rooms but the rooms that are available seven months out that is the issue. Given that criteria, it would probably take four or five destination resorts in the size range of AKV to the approximate that balance.

 

[tjkraz]

It'll take far more than one destination resorts to reestablish the balance. It is not the total number of rooms but the rooms that are available seven months out that is the issue.

Adding new resorts like AKV (or the Contemporary, or Disneyland, or Hawaii) has a two-fold impact on the 7-month windows:

1. Owners at BWV or BCV could start booking outside of their Home in greater numbers. I think it's a given that this will occur...it's just a question of how great the numbers might be.

2. Non-owners at BWV or BCV will have other destinations to choose from, which will lower demand for those two resorts resorts at 7 months.

Of course, you're also adding new owners to the program who will have the opportunity to book BCV or BWV as non-Home resorts. What remains to be seen is whether demand from new owners will be greater than the reductions cited above.

Regardless of what happens there, I don't see any great movement toward manic 11-month bookings other than the oft-cited examples (early-December, Food & Wine fest time). That means there WILL continue to be rooms available at 7 months and those who are most prepared to take advantage of the openings will benefit.