Booking rooms wasn’t always this…challenging… was it?

[guy_incognito]

Members since 2012.

Once a year, we book for 3 groups of our family. Typically snag at our home resorts and try to modify At the 7 months window.

During the call today, every option closed while talking. It was wild, it was like the stock market. Ended up ok with the result, but it is wild that the luxury of consideration has disappeared. Poly? Let’s see… gone. Riviera? Yes, 3 rooms. Gone.

Anyone else feel this way, or is it just me?

 

[Sandisw]

I think all the near park resorts have gotten harder and harder over the years.

I think more people are buying places to stay and not moving as much as they used to.

Both those resorts are very popular and you are talking fall where is pretty busy.

 

[We’reAllMadHere]

October is a tough time to get DVC rooms near Epcot, which explains Riv. I’m guessing Halloween parties drive up demand for MK area also.

 

[guy_incognito]

October is a tough time to get DVC rooms near Epcot, which explains Riv. I’m guessing Halloween parties drive up demand for MK area also.

October is a tough time to get DVC rooms near Epcot, which explains Riv. I’m guessing Halloween parties drive up demand for MK area also.

We’ve gone the same week in October for 14 years, it has gotten noticeably harder in my opinion. I think reservation-squatting has become worse than ever.

 

[We’reAllMadHere]

We’ve gone the same week in October for 14 years, it has gotten noticeably harder in my opinion. I think reservation-squatting has become worse than ever.

Yes. I think a rise in popularity for non-DVC people renting points and certain owners reserving certain time period with the intent to rent has made it more difficult. People walking reservations doesn’t help.

Idk if there is still a post-Covid glut of points or if enough time has passed for that to level off but certainly that has contributed to the difficulty in the past few years.

 

[xdan0920]

It’s def not the rental market and don’t you dare bring it up

 

[thanxfornoticin]

Totally agree that in recent years, the room availability patterns have changed - at least for us at the times of year we like to book. There are times it's even a challenge to get something specific at 11 months, let alone 7. We've gone for years in early December without issue, and that time period has been much more of a challenge in recent years than we saw before. On the other side, it seems like there's more availability at times during the late summer than there used to be. I'm sure there are lots of reasons. Probably some preferring to visit in the fall instead of the heat of summer. I also read out here so many members with 4/5/6 contracts at different home resorts with points to book prior to 7 months - that seems like a trend that wasn't as popular before. But maybe I really don't know the actual reasons, but I agree it does seem to be happening.

 

[Brian Noble]

Idk if there is still a post-Covid glut of points

I know we are still working off our backlog of timeshare assets from Covid.

 

[AstroBlasters]

Members since 2012.

Once a year, we book for 3 groups of our family. Typically snag at our home resorts and try to modify At the 7 months window.

During the call today, every option closed while talking. It was wild, it was like the stock market. Ended up ok with the result, but it is wild that the luxury of consideration has disappeared. Poly? Let’s see… gone. Riviera? Yes, 3 rooms. Gone.

Anyone else feel this way, or is it just me?

Every year there are millions of more points added to the system….

 

[han22735]

I wonder if you had done it online yourself rather waiting to call if that may have helped?

 

[guy_incognito]

I wonder if you had done it online yourself rather waiting to call if that may have helped?

I wonder if you had done it online yourself rather waiting to call if that may have helped?

I wish. I needed 3 rooms and there's no way to know how many rooms are available when looking online. What I was afraid of was finding 1 or 2 rooms and ending up with rooms in 2 resorts. But yes, there was a lot of availability at 8am compared to 9am.

I'm just politely bringing to light that there's a systemic issue somewhere that needs to be addressed.

 

[AstroBlasters]

I wonder if you had done it online yourself rather waiting to call if that may have helped?

I wish. I needed 3 rooms and there's no way to know how many rooms are available when looking online. What I was afraid of was finding 1 or 2 rooms and ending up with rooms in 2 resorts. But yes, there was a lot of availability at 8am compared to 9am.

I'm just politely bringing to light that there's a systemic issue somewhere that needs to be addressed.

I think a top 5 list needs to be decided the night before and then the owner goes in and does the best they can.

8am 7-months out is too late…

 

[guy_incognito]

It’s def not the rental market and don’t you dare bring it up

I definitely won't bring it up.

What do we think the % of reservations are that are just prospectors vs. vacation planning families?

 

[We’reAllMadHere]

It’s def not the rental market and don’t you dare bring it up

I have rented and I still recommend renting to people, so I’m probably working against myself as an owner. I don’t have an issue with renting to friend or family or the occasional points you can’t use. But I do think entities with thousands of points reserving key time periods only with the intent to rent is doing us a disservice. They’re more like subleasing at that point.

 

[guy_incognito]

But I do think entities with thousands of points reserving key time periods only with the intent to rent is doing us a disservice. They’re more like subleasing at that point.

Agreed!

 

[guy_incognito]

I think the a top 5 list needs to be decided the night before and then the owner goes in and does the best you can.

8am 7-months out is too late…

My point is that it hasn't always been this way, and it's getting worse. People already hate going to Disney now because of how complicated it is, and why should DVC members have yet another thing to worry about?

You cannot book a non-home resort room more than 7 months out a 8am, without gaming the system, that is.

 

[Brian Noble]

There are potentially many reasons for things being more complicated. For example, do you normally get three units during the Fall, or have your trips been at other times of year? If the latter, part of what you are seeing is Fall is hard. Then, over time, more and more people who have waited to try to book are turned away, and so they learn to start booking earlier, and that also increases competition. Domestic travel has been surging, so more DVC owners are probably being proactive about travel rather than "Oh, we should use these points I guess." And yes, the increase in interest in rentals is probably not helping.

 

[guy_incognito]

There are potentially many reasons for things being more complicated. For example, do you normally get three units during the Fall, or have your trips been at other times of year? If the latter, part of what you are seeing is Fall is hard. Then, over time, more and more people who have waited to try to book are turned away, and so they learn to start booking earlier, and that also increases competition. Domestic travel has been surging, so more DVC owners are probably being proactive about travel rather than "Oh, we should use these points I guess." And yes, the increase in interest in rentals is probably not helping.

I think I said it in the OP, but I'll restate it... we go at the same time, every year. It's an anniversary trip for the grandparents.
We always have 3 family groups, sometimes we may get a 2br and a 1br, but it's often three 1BR units.

Our family unit goes at other times, but this is the only trip where we get more than 1 room.

We had a list of preferred locations, but it checked down to the 4th preferred option in a matter of minutes.

To summarize: If it's this bad now, how bad will it be in a few years? I would love the option to book a non-home resort 11 months out every now and then.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

I would love the option to book a non-home resort 11 months out every now and then.

Catch-22 - imagine how tough most 7-month reservations would be then!!

 

[JackosinDIS]

I think it’s just a mix of more people preferring the fall dates, a huge number of SAP in the system and many people only having enough points for studios. It’s not renters… that makes no difference to the overall availability.

On the flip side it made it super easy for me to get the grand flo GV at 7 months for an August stay this year!