Hiya, Jeanine!
As a fellow Disney Vacation Club Member, I'm happy to welcome you to planDisney. Thanks so much for dropping by with a question about your upcoming visit. While there are tons of cool perks that come with being a DVC Member (seriously, the list goes on and on), one of my favorite things is our ability to make a
Waitlist request for the perfect room in the event it's unavailable when it's time to book. So whether you're hoping to find a hard-to-get room, like a Villa with Kilimanjaro Club access at
Disney's Animal Kingdom Villas - Jambo House, or you're searching in the 7-month booking window for a busy travel time like Spring Break, let me share a few details about making a Waitlist request to help you score the perfect reservation.
Each Disney Vacation Club Membership can have up to
two active Waitlist requests at one time per Use Year. If you have multiple contracts that each have a
separate Membership number (not multiple contracts with the same number), you'll have the option to Waitlist two reservations per Membership. How you choose to make those requests is up to you. For instance, you can choose to Waitlist multiple room types at a single Resort –– maybe a 1-Bedroom Standard View and 1-Bedroom Theme Park View at
Bay Lake Tower at Disney's Contemporary Resort –– or you can choose to Waitlist accommodations at two different DVC Resorts. And once one of your Waitlists requests has been fulfilled, expires, or is canceled, you'll be able to Waitlist an additional reservation for the same trip or a later stay at another time.
To make the most of your two Waitlists requests, let me share a few tips to help you get started. First, if the room you're searching for is unavailable, I recommend booking a backup reservation, if possible,
before making your Waitlist request. This does two things –– not only does it guarantee that you'll have a reservation for your travel dates in the event your Waitlist can't be fulfilled, but by booking that reservation first, you'll have the option for that reservation to be automatically replaced once your Waitlist comes through. This means that you won't be double-dipping from your Vacation Points allotment by having two reservations at one time.
Also, I suggest giving some thought to whether you want your Waitlist request to cancel 31 days or 7 days before your check-in date. While choosing the 7-day option gives you more time for the request to be fulfilled, any surplus Points from a replaced reservation would also go into a holding account if the change is made 30 days or less before you arrive. With the 31-day option, you'll be able to rest easy knowing that your changes will be made before that 30-day deadline. Since there are definitely pros and cons to each expiration date, what works best for you will depend on your specific needs and might even be different for each visit.
I hope this helped to answer your question, Jeanine, and I really appreciate you visiting planDisney. If you need about your Disney Vacation Club Membership or have new questions as you plan your upcoming visit, please don't hesitate to drop by again –– we're always here to lend a helping hand!
Happy Planning,
Amy