Getting requested room at the 7 month window

[Beachmomma3]

I was just wondering if those who were denied their DVC request at 7 months could tell me the dates and what resort? Just trying to decide on wh to buy points from. This is just one of the deciding factors thanks in advance! I'm new on these boards, but so far in lurking different sites, feeling the most comfortable here

 

[dreamfinder]

No way to tell. Always buy points at the resort you will be happiest staying at. For instance, BWV and BCV will both be darn near impossible to get at 7 months out for Food & Wine time, but may be no problems during January. Or heck, it may even just be weekends that are impossible to get, but midweek is fine.

 

[GoofGoof]

In my limited experience I've never been denied a request at 7 months, but I also never tried to get a tough to rent room.

In general this is what I have observed. The toughest rooms to get are studios followed by 2BR and least popular are 1BR. View matters too. The standard view or lowest point studios are most popular and fill up fast (BLT, AKV, BWV). Time of year is tougher to judge. The most popular times at WDW are not always the most popular times for DVC because of the number of points needed.

The more popular resorts tend to be BLT, VGF, BCV and VWL. BWV and AKV are larger so usually available for a lot longer. SSR and OKW are least popular but still can book up at certain times of the year (rarely at the 7 month window).

My advice would be to weigh the cost savings against how upset you would be if you didn't get your first choice. For example, if you are considering buying at SSR because of the lower resale buy-in price and the lower dues but you really would prefer a monorail resort or an EPCOT resort is the money saved up front worth potentially settling for a resort that isn't your first choice. If you just want to get somewhere on property and don't have a strong preference where you stay it makes sense to look into the cheaper options. If you plan to primarily visit WDW I would avoid buying in at VB or HH even though they have lower upfront costs. The MFs are high and you will always be holding out hope that a 7 month window trade-in works out. Better off with SSR in that case.

 

[Beachmomma3]

In my limited experience I've never been denied a request at 7 months, but I also never tried to get a tough to rent room.

In general this is what I have observed. The toughest rooms to get are studios followed by 2BR and least popular are 1BR. View matters too. The standard view or lowest point studios are most popular and fill up fast (BLT, AKV, BWV). Time of year is tougher to judge. The most popular times at WDW are not always the most popular times for DVC because of the number of points needed.

The more popular resorts tend to be BLT, VGF, BCV and VWL. BWV and AKV are larger so usually available for a lot longer. SSR and OKW are least popular but still can book up at certain times of the year (rarely at the 7 month window).

My advice would be to weigh the cost savings against how upset you would be if you didn't get your first choice. For example, if you are considering buying at SSR because of the lower resale buy-in price and the lower dues but you really would prefer a monorail resort or an EPCOT resort is the money saved up front worth potentially settling for a resort that isn't your first choice. If you just want to get somewhere on property and don't have a strong preference where you stay it makes sense to look into the cheaper options. If you plan to primarily visit WDW I would avoid buying in at VB or HH even though they have lower upfront costs. The MFs are high and you will always be holding out hope that a 7 month window trade-in works out. Better off with SSR in that case.

Thanks for your detailed opinion. I keep hearing "buy where you want to stay." But man the savings buying $79/pt vs $159! I think I'm understanding. We have stayed at Poly 4 times and loved it. Tried BC this summer--none of my family fell in love. So, I may just have to wait for the Poly to go on sale. Just nervous about the price per point they will be asking

 

[GoofGoof]

Thanks for your detailed opinion. I keep hearing "buy where you want to stay." But man the savings buying $79/pt vs $159! I think I'm understanding. We have stayed at Poly 4 times and loved it. Tried BC this summer--none of my family fell in love. So, I may just have to wait for the Poly to go on sale. Just nervous about the price per point they will be asking

This is just my personal opinion and I could be way off, but I think Poly is going to be the most popular DVC resort ever. People love the Poly resort already and it's on the monorail loop so it will likely be at least as popular as BLT or VGF. The rooms are also going to be the largest of any DVC studio. I think it will probably be a little difficult to trade into (especially for the first couple of years it's open).

The one thing we have going for us for trading in is there will be a good number of rooms (I think over 300) and they will all be studios except for the 20 bungalows on the water. I'm guessing a lot of people will be looking to trade in for Poly (I know I will). The price is likely to be about the same as VGF so probably $160+ to start. It's a lot especially considering the lower resale prices out there.

 

[dreamfinder]

This is just my personal opinion and I could be way off, but I think Poly is going to be the most popular DVC resort ever. People love the Poly resort already and it's on the monorail loop so it will likely be at least as popular as BLT or VGF. The rooms are also going to be the largest of any DVC studio. I think it will probably be a little difficult to trade into (especially for the first couple of years it's open).

The one thing we have going for us for trading in is there will be a good number of rooms (I think over 300) and they will all be studios except for the 20 bungalows on the water. I'm guessing a lot of people will be looking to trade in for Poly (I know I will). The price is likely to be about the same as VGF so probably $160+ to start. It's a lot especially considering the lower resale prices out there.

Remember though, I believe the latest from @tikiman indicates that the bungalows will be the only 2BR units, everything in Tahiti, Rapa Nui and Tokelau (will now be Moorea, Pago Pago & Tokelau) will be studios. So even though they are larger I do think the lack of 1BRs will be interesting. Almost as if they are angling for couples to stay here and no so much families.

@Beachmomma3 in all honesty, the hardest to get at 7 months I believe is the Grand Californian, just due to the extremely limited number of rooms (which also happens to be the one time we failed to get in on a waitlist). Buying there however does nothing if you really want to stay at WDW. I do think that @GoofGoof 's rundown on the resorts on a whole is fairly accurate, but as I said season and room type will really make a huge difference. Remember though that you are also paying for length of contract. That also affects the price on the resale market, the ones that have longer contracts do command more money. If you wait a year or two, I would suspect the Poly contracts will drop $30 or so from list, but they will be in high demand.

 

[GoofGoof]

Remember though, I believe the latest from @tikiman indicates that the bungalows will be the only 2BR units, everything in Tahiti, Rapa Nui and Tokelau (will now be Moorea, Pago Pago & Tokelau) will be studios. So even though they are larger I do think the lack of 1BRs will be interesting. Almost as if they are angling for couples to stay here and no so much families.

@Beachmomma3 in all honesty, the hardest to get at 7 months I believe is the Grand Californian, just due to the extremely limited number of rooms (which also happens to be the one time we failed to get in on a waitlist). Buying there however does nothing if you really want to stay at WDW. I do think that @GoofGoof 's rundown on the resorts on a whole is fairly accurate, but as I said season and room type will really make a huge difference. Remember though that you are also paying for length of contract. That also affects the price on the resale market, the ones that have longer contracts do command more money. If you wait a year or two, I would suspect the Poly contracts will drop $30 or so from list, but they will be in high demand.

This is a little off topic, but here goes anyway.

I think the main reason the Poly is only studios is logistics. It was easier to construct that way since they were converting hotel rooms. However, I do think the demand seems to be highest for studios so it may be meeting a demand as well.

There are really 2 large groups of people who buy into DVC, those who want the condo/timeshare experience with a full kitchen and the extra space the villas provide and those looking to lock in at a deluxe resort for a discounted price and mostly stay in DVC studios. In reality there are many people who overlap both groups, but I think those are the 2 general owner types. For the studio type owners it makes a lot of sense to convert existing rooms at Poly, WL, BC or wherever else they add on. For the villa people it's a little disappointing to see this trend. However, the Poly is a really popular resort so I could see a lot of people who typically stay in a villa go with a studio there.

 

[Beachmomma3]

This is a little off topic, but here goes anyway.

There are really 2 large groups of people who buy into DVC, those who want the condo/timeshare experience with a full kitchen and the extra space the villas provide and those looking to lock in at a deluxe resort for a discounted price and mostly stay in DVC studios. In reality there are many people who overlap both groups, but I think those are the 2 general owner types. For the studio type owners it makes a lot of sense to convert existing rooms at Poly, WL, BC or wherever else they add on. For the villa people it's a little disappointing to see this trend. However, the Poly is a really popular resort so I could see a lot of people who typically stay in a villa go with a studio there.

Well, we are a family of 5 and the first on property resort we ever stayed in was Poly. We've tried BC, but as I said before- not a fan. I thought for sure my kids would be converts bc of storm along Bay. But- no, said they wish we would have stayed Poly even w construction. We always eat out and also utilize room service for my special needs son for breakfast. So, we are just hoping the DVC Studios remain occupancy of 5. I am just getting antsy w preparations of 2015 vacation. Not sure if we will be DVC members or not?! I'm wondering too if we should take the opportunity to visit DL or DCL while construction wraps up.

 

[Disneykidder]

I just added a considerable amount of points on on Monday for VGF direct with Disney. They were offering the same price to go with BLT (our first home) or with VGF. For 4 more years, we chose VGF. Dues are more at VGF than BLT but it is only $318 over the 4 years. Plus it is very popular to get into but I am sure after The Poly, VGF hype will slow down. We did ask about the Poly and discussed whether we should just wait the few months and go there. Our guide said price will be pretty high so it will not be at the current price of $165 per point. I know most people say to buy where you want but I think after the initial "newness" people tend to move on. The only resort I have ever had to waitlist is BCV and that was because I had a reservation for it at 7 months out but needed to move my trip dates and lost out and couldn't get the new date at 6 months. I did waitlist AKV Savanna view but I did get it. I believe AKV are all gone now. We were only offered points to buy at VGF, BLT, VGC and Aulani but could have gone on waitlists for other resorts. Our rep said BWV had a hefty waitlist.

I know I rambled but I hope I have helped.

 

[GoofGoof]

Well, we are a family of 5 and the first on property resort we ever stayed in was Poly. We've tried BC, but as I said before- not a fan. I thought for sure my kids would be converts bc of storm along Bay. But- no, said they wish we would have stayed Poly even w construction. We always eat out and also utilize room service for my special needs son for breakfast. So, we are just hoping the DVC Studios remain occupancy of 5. I am just getting antsy w preparations of 2015 vacation. Not sure if we will be DVC members or not?! I'm wondering too if we should take the opportunity to visit DL or DCL while construction wraps up.

Right now I think only VGF, WLV and probably Poly DVC will have studios that sleep 5. They may convert the others to a pull out bed under the TV when it's time for a refurb like they did with WLV.

 

[bubster]

Just a FYI, I tried at exactly 7 months to get into BWV for May 2 - 9. I could get the last 4 nights at BWV but only for garden/pool view. Booked SSR for the first 3 nights and waitlisted those dates at BWV. Now I do love SSR and won't be upset if we have to stay there but really do not want to move in the middle of the trip.

Buy where you want to stay and be prepared to book at 11 months.

 

[GoofGoof]

Just a FYI, I tried at exactly 7 months to get into BWV for May 2 - 9. I could get the last 4 nights at BWV but only for garden/pool view. Booked SSR for the first 3 nights and waitlisted those dates at BWV. Now I do love SSR and won't be upset if we have to stay there but really do not want to move in the middle of the trip.

Buy where you want to stay and be prepared to book at 11 months.

Were you trying to get a standard view? A studio?

I only ask because I think a lot depends on room size too. The 1BRs tend to be easiest to trade for and the studios the hardest.

 

[bubster]

I would have loved to have gotten a standard view studio. May 2 was available but not 3, 4 or 5. 6, 7 and 8 was available but when I called MS they told me that I had to wait until this morning to book those.

As we spoke May 8 vanished. So I booked May 2 yesterday. Got on-line at 7 am and booked May 6 and 7. Called MS and was going to waitlist May 3, 4, 5 and 8 and the CM suggested I just book the 4 consecutive days in a G/P view and to waitlist the first 3 nights. It's more points but we really wanted standard view to be closer to the parking lot since we drive.

For what it's worth, AKV, OKW and SSR were all wide open with studios. No surprise there.
BWV, BCV, VWL, VGF and BLT had VERY limited availability with studios. I would expect this for Sept - Jan but not early May......Am I missing something? Any special events during that time?

 

[GoofGoof]

I would have loved to have gotten a standard view studio. May 2 was available but not 3, 4 or 5. 6, 7 and 8 was available but when I called MS they told me that I had to wait until this morning to book those.

As we spoke May 8 vanished. So I booked May 2 yesterday. Got on-line at 7 am and booked May 6 and 7. Called MS and was going to waitlist May 3, 4, 5 and 8 and the CM suggested I just book the 4 consecutive days in a G/P view and to waitlist the first 3 nights. It's more points but we really wanted standard view to be closer to the parking lot since we drive.

For what it's worth, AKV, OKW and SSR were all wide open with studios. No surprise there.
BWV, BCV, VWL, VGF and BLT had VERY limited availability with studios. I would expect this for Sept - Jan but not early May......Am I missing something? Any special events during that time?

EPCOT flower and garden festival, but I don't know how popular that is. On May 4th DHS has a big Star Wars Day. BWV is the closest resort to DHS and with the new film coming out in 2015 maybe it will be extra crowded.

 

[bubster]

Ahhh, we used to go in early May with regularity, before Star Wars Weekends. The last few years we have gone later in the month after F&G ended. I will be glad to enjoy F&G this year with the food stands since we are missing F&W for the first time in years. Thanks!

 

[bubster]

I wanted to come back and report that my waitlist has already been fulfilled! In 24 hours! Yay!!

 

[Beachmomma3]

I wanted to come back and report that my waitlist has already been fulfilled! In 24 hours! Yay!!

That is wonderful!!! Mb there is hope for 7 month out bookings. But I'm sure it makes you a little nervous! I guess i really should buy where we want to stay more expensive for me- unfortunately!