what the heck is going on

[justice11]

i have a friend who is going to dw in may and he caled and got rooms at the wilderness lodge. he wanted something cheaper and they told him that this is all that is available for then. i thought we were in a recession and disney is packed to maximum on their rooms.

[MistressGracey999]

If your friend is going very soon, I'm not surprised that they are all filled up.

On our first trip, we had planned on staying 4 nights. Our schedule freed up a bit at the last minute, and we decided we could stay 5 nights. I began calling 9 days before our trip, and WDW was booked SOLID! In FEBRUARY! We ended up spending our first night in some hotel in Kissimmee, then packing back up and heading onto WDW property for the rest of our stay.

I think that this "buy-four-get-three-free" promo is cancelling out the recession, IMO. Which was exactly what WDW intended, I suppose. Glad it will be over before our trip this year (supposedly)...

[justice11]

no they are going may22

[sassafras]

We're going down on May 22, and had reservations for the Beach Club Villas. When I called about changing to the WLVs or AKV's, I had to put our name on a waiting list for both. A couple of weeks later, we were notified a studio had opened up at the WL and our reservation had been changed. Does seem a little strange.....

[tink36]

We are going to Disney May 23. Our travel agent said there are Pirate rooms available at the CBR, but we would not be able to use the 4/3 deal. It would cost us about $800 to change resorts. Apparently, only a certain number of rooms are available for that deal. So, maybe there are rooms available...just not part of the 4/3 offer.

[spoiledraf]

They are also limiting rooms for this offer. I'd bet there are rooms available at full price. We have gone on the premium plan the last few times and you can't get that plan with this offer. And the cheaper rooms tend to go first no matter what the season.

OK, just checked. He can go to any resort....at full price.

[javamama]

Is that Memorial Day weekend or close to it? That could be why it's so full, plus the 4/3 offer has been out for awhile.

[Yvette]

AThe 45 day payoff for the 7/4 packages for those days are coming mid April. There may be some cancellations then. I would check back then.

It's similar to ADR's. I have had pretty good luck calling the day before and getting a reservation since people adjust their plans once they get there.

[spoiledraf]

Is that Memorial Day weekend or close to it? That could be why it's so full, plus the 4/3 offer has been out for awhile.

That's (May 22) the Friday before Memorial day. The resorts are not full. There are just limited rooms for discounts. Don't expect a sell out.

[FenwayGirl]

It is the first Star Wars weekend also

[AmandaChan]

Honestly I am REALLY surprised that they were booked up in May. We always go in May, and we ALWAYS do our trip at the last minute. The only year we had a real problem with it was the second year we went and we had to stay in AS sports because everything else was filled up. The third year we probably booked our stuff a few weeks ahead (it was a last minute wedding) and we made it to all of the reservations we wanted, we got to stay in POP instead of the all stars, etc.

This actually scares me a little bit! We're going the 13-19 and I always love to go in May because the crowds are never too bad. It sounds like everyone is in a rush to go there in May now!!

[mom2morgan]

I wonder, too, if it is because a lot of people book in advance, so may have already had trips planned and paid for before the recession really hit? If there is a ripple effect perhaps it will come the year after the beginning of the lay-offs and such.

[S-A-M]

I just double checked the Disney website, and it IS showing there are rooms available (including 4/3 promotion) at various price points.

We're going that same week (24th - 30th) and were lucky enough to snag AP rates

[gwfx1031]

Correct me if I am wrong, but WDW may not always be at full staffing and may not be able to sell all rooms based on their forecasts and the ability to be able to serve guests. I other words, if they plan on a certain time to be a slow time, they do not full staff and do not plan the rooms to be available. Does this sound out of line?

[TammiMcMan]

Does this sound out of line?

Nope, not out of line at all. Based on historical trends, resorts could pre-plan to close a building and not have as many rooms available during slow times.

I think in the OP's case though, this is more a matter of a particular promotion being sold out at the time they made their reservations. Only so many rooms are initially coded under a discount or promotion. Once they are sold out, Disney can decide whether they want to make more rooms available. It sounds like when they called for a less expensive room under that program, there was nothing showing up at the mods or values. As Disney's inventory changes almost daily, it's best to keep trying to see if anything does open up.