Hiya Patricia,
Welcome Home! Thank you for stopping by planDisney with your excellent question. There are so
many benefits to being a Disney Vacation Club Member, but one I really appreciate is the opportunity to make a
Waitlist request if your practically perfect room at your preferred DVC Resort is unavailable at the time of booking. It's a great way to have your magic and pixie dust too.
A few things you should know, Patricia, is that each Disney Vacation Club Membership number can have up to
two active Waitlist requests per Use Year. These can be at the same time or you can use one now and save one for another visit later in your Use Year. The Waitlist request is specific to a room, meaning you select the Resort, the room size, and the room type for your requested dates. You can have two requests at the same Resort or at different Resorts giving you ultimate flexibility.
To make the most of your Waitlist request, here are a few tips. If the room you are hoping for at your preferred Resort for your preferred dates isn't available, I recommend
booking an available room first prior to putting in your Waitlist request. This ensures you'll have a guaranteed booking for your travel dates in the event your Waitlist can't be confirmed. But, if your Waitlist request IS confirmed, your previous booking will be automatically replaced. This also ensures you aren't double dipping in your Vacation Points by having two reservations at the same time because if a Waitlist request is confirmed, it will be booked automatically. Additionally, if you have a second Waitlist request, it will automatically be canceled if your first Waitlist request is confirmed.
A couple of other important things to know, Patricia, is that you can be added to a Waitlist for a Disney Vacation Club Resort only within your booking window. This means for your Home Resort, you can do so 11 months in advance or 7 months in advance for other DVC properties.
Once you make your Waitlist request, you have one more decision which is if you would like the Waitlist request to expire 31 days or 7 days before your Check-In date. The 7-day option gives you a bit of additional time for your Waitlist request to come through, however, any surplus Points that may be left over from a replaced reservation (in this case the backup you booked) would be put into a holding account if that change is made within 30 days before you arrive. The 31-day option means you will know for sure your plans prior to that 30-day deadline. If you are borrowing ahead for your desired room, you can also note that on your Waitlist request as well.
I hope this is helpful for you, Patricia, and I'll wish upon a star that your dream Resort comes through for you. If you have any further questions, please come back and
see me here at planDisney and I'll be glad to help you.
See ya real soon,
Keri