"Sleep-Around Points" (SAP) - The Thread

[Sandisw]

That would be awesome





I agree, I also think that most current owners will keep what they have to use strictly at the 2042, at least for BCV and BWV.

I'm actually treating my AKV points the same as my BCV and BWV. I use them strictly at AKV and only for value studios and occasionally on club level rooms. We have no fixed season to go yearly, so the entire year is on the table. Being able to book a room in September for 55 points for an entire week is a steal.

And in a way, while not the same as real restrictions, it is self imposed home resort restrictions and maybe DVD saw enough of that they decided to try it as an element of the product!

 

[emchen]

And in a way, while not the same as real restrictions, it is self imposed home resort restrictions and maybe DVD saw enough of that they decided to try it as an element of the product!

I like your theory. Disney, Inc is said to be very keyed into consumer behavior and the formal study of consumer psychology (I once saw a youtube video on a whole research center owned by Disney somewhere in the midwest dedicated to that).

 

[tom1944]

bumping this thread.

I have been tracking BLT very seriously as a potential second purchase. I go on every day to see if there is any chance to book a 1-bedroom standard room at 11 months out and so far there never is.

I see several reasons why I would still want to purchase BLT- dues, length of contract instead of an additional SSR contract but being able to get a certain room type does not appear to be one of them.

If it was only an SAP consideration it appears SSR points gets me the same access at 7 months than BLT gets me at 11. At a fairly less upfront cost.

 

[intamin]

bumping this thread.

I have been tracking BLT very seriously as a potential second purchase. I go on every day to see if there is any chance to book a 1-bedroom standard room at 11 months out and so far there never is.

I see several reasons why I would still want to purchase BLT- dues, length of contract instead of an additional SSR contract but being able to get a certain room type does not appear to be one of them.

If it was only an SAP consideration it appears SSR points gets me the same access at 7 months than BLT gets me at 11. At a fairly less upfront cost.

There really shouldn’t be any difficulty booking standard 1BRs at 11 months, I’m surprised you haven’t seen any availability. I managed to snag a whole week in a standard studio at BLT at 7 months. Given that the price difference between lake view and standard view studios is only 2-3 points per night at multiple times during the year I didn’t feel the need to purchase BLT just for regular stays. If I did buy BLT it would be to get theme park view rooms during 7/4 or NYE personally.

 

[tom1944]

There really shouldn’t be any difficulty booking standard 1BRs at 11 months, I’m surprised you haven’t seen any availability. I managed to snag a whole week in a standard studio at BLT at 7 months. Given that the price difference between lake view and standard view studios is only 2-3 points per night at multiple times during the year I didn’t feel the need to purchase BLT just for regular stays. If I did buy BLT it would be to get theme park view rooms during 7/4 or NYE personally.

I have only been checking 1 bedroom since that is what we would book.

 

[intamin]

I have only been checking 1 bedroom since that is what we would book.

Just looking right now there’s quite a bit of availability at 7 months of 1BRs. In August seems to be popular for whatever reason but June and July look very available for owners.

 

[tom1944]

I have only been checking August and starting in February I will be checking January.

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

bumping this thread.

I have been tracking BLT very seriously as a potential second purchase. I go on every day to see if there is any chance to book a 1-bedroom standard room at 11 months out and so far there never is.

I see several reasons why I would still want to purchase BLT- dues, length of contract instead of an additional SSR contract but being able to get a certain room type does not appear to be one of them.

If it was only an SAP consideration it appears SSR points gets me the same access at 7 months than BLT gets me at 11. At a fairly less upfront cost.

When you say you go on every day to check is it right before 8am? Never available is odd. Standard view at BLT is the 1st to be booked up and can happen right away at 11 months but if on at 8am it's generally doable except the busiest of times. If you're waiting to check after 8am then that's a little different however I've booked and looked at BLT at 11 months a few times this year and standard views have been available.

 

[tom1944]

I ha

When you say you go on every day to check is it right before 8am? Never available is odd. Standard view at BLT is the 1st to be booked up and can happen right away at 11 months but if on at 8am it's generally doable except the busiest of times. If you're waiting to check after 8am then that's a little different however I've booked and looked at BLT at 11 months a few times this year and standard views have been available.

I have not been going on right at 8am.

I will try that tomorrow although I am not sure it is worth it to me to turn the attempt to get a specific room into a commitment.

 

[lilsonicfan]

I think that if standard view is important to you and you're finding that 11 month availability isn't great, buying in at that resort makes sense. Using points for SAP means that you need to be flexible in a variety of ways: you commit to booking right at 8am 7 months out (or even walking it a little bit), you don't mind if you have to use a few more points per night on a lake or preferred view vs a standard view, you aren't going for Boardwalk during food & wine, you're willing to stay at different resorts and don't just have your heart set on one.

 

[DanCali]

If it was only an SAP consideration it appears SSR points gets me the same access at 7 months than BLT gets me at 11. At a fairly less upfront cost.

I would not let a slightly higher upfront cost vs SSR dictate what you buy. Unlike dues, the upfront cost is "equity" and if you sell your ownership in 15 years, odds are you will also get a higher price per point for BLT vs SSR. In the meantime, you had home resort advantage and paid lower dues over that time.

I ha

I have not been going on right at 8am.

I will try that tomorrow although I am not sure it is worth it to me to turn the attempt to get a specific room into a commitment.

Given the current inventory situation, I strongly suspect you will not find a 1BR standard view at BLT tomorrow at 8am for Aug 21 next year. But if you try in a few days you may have more luck since some of those reservations are probably being walked.

As others mentioned, the 1BR should generally not be a problem at 11 months, especially right at 8am. That said, the are not many units in that category so general rules don't always apply. The Studio standard view can be a problem even at 11 months.

You can use these tables as a guide (basically any number les than "7" can point to a problem in that booking window):

https://www.dvcfieldguide.com/availability-tables

But those tables are just an average of the last 5 years and things do change over time. And with limited inventory of certain views like "standard" or "theme park", all it takes is a handful of walkers to mess up historical trends.

 

[kboo]

I have been tracking BLT very seriously as a potential second purchase. I go on every day to see if there is any chance to book a 1-bedroom standard room at 11 months out and so far there never is.

Remember too that BLT is getting refurbed in 2024 so you may be seeing really limited room availability. My historical experience with BLT is that standard views in any room size are usually gone between 7-11 months but lake view is more available for booking at 7mo. And (may be jinxing myself) I have never gotten a standard view room at BLT where I wasn't pleasantly surprised at the view.

ALSO - after BLT refurb, which I hope will get us Murphy beds (anyone?), BLT standard will continue to be great value for the points on the monorail loop. The +1 bathroom in the 1 br and larger will be really appealing for larger groups. A 1br standard at VGF has an arguably worse bathroom setup for a family (1 toilet, 1 shower, 1 soaking tub) than a 1br standard at BLT (2 toilets, 2 showers, 1 soaking tub) with a shorter walk, and costs approx+8-10 points per night.

(tl; dr - I'm not selling my BLT points any time soon!)

 

[intamin]

Remember too that BLT is getting refurbed in 2024 so you may be seeing really limited room availability. My historical experience with BLT is that standard views in any room size are usually gone between 7-11 months but lake view is more available for booking at 7mo. And (may be jinxing myself) I have never gotten a standard view room at BLT where I wasn't pleasantly surprised at the view.

ALSO - after BLT refurb, which I hope will get us Murphy beds (anyone?), BLT standard will continue to be great value for the points on the monorail loop. The +1 bathroom in the 1 br and larger will be really appealing for larger groups. A 1br standard at VGF has an arguably worse bathroom setup for a family (1 toilet, 1 shower, 1 soaking tub) than a 1br standard at BLT (2 toilets, 2 showers, 1 soaking tub) with a shorter walk, and costs approx+8-10 points per night.

(tl; dr - I'm not selling my BLT points any time soon!)

I hope they do a nice job on the refurb, I like the location of BLT but the rooms leave a little to be desired. If it’s incredibles I’ll be pretty disappointed. If they do anything similar to VDH I’d be pretty content but that’s just me

 

[tom1944]

I am leaning to a BLT purchase. That was my original choice when I made my initial purchase. I made several offers, but the sellers were not ready at my offer price. Several sold for less than my offer which at the time was $137.

The only thing that could change my mind if I decide to go direct at Poly2.

 

[emchen]

When you say you go on every day to check is it right before 8am? Never available is odd. Standard view at BLT is the 1st to be booked up and can happen right away at 11 months but if on at 8am it's generally doable except the busiest of times. If you're waiting to check after 8am then that's a little different however I've booked and looked at BLT at 11 months a few times this year and standard views have been available.

Given the current inventory situation, I strongly suspect you will not find a 1BR standard view at BLT tomorrow at 8am for Aug 21 next year. But if you try in a few days you may have more luck since some of those reservations are probably being walked.

Walkers! I agree, they have a tendency of quietly sneaking up on us and biting us in the neck! I hope they don’t “turn” him!

 

[intamin]

Walkers! I agree, they have a tendency of quietly sneaking up on us and biting us in the neck! I hope they don’t “turn” him!

I wonder what they're even walking for.. September inventory? MNNSHP? Both? MVMCP?

 

[tom1944]

Walkers! I agree, they have a tendency of quietly sneaking up on us and biting us in the neck! I hope they don’t “turn” him!

That’s more effort than I plan to do.

 

[perchy]

I bought VGF direct (50 pts) for SAP and direct points. For the dues, and for collecting direct points. Dues are the lowest I’ve got, and I never want to have to stay at SSR.

 

[RichVIII]

Thoughts on BLT (as an owner).

• We rode out a Hurricane in BLT and all the extra space in the 1BRs were awesome.
• Two bathrooms saves us so much time in the morning or at night.
• Standard 1st floor rooms means you can be at the turnstiles in under 10 minutes.
• Lake views are also great as some you can see MK.
• Studios are cramped
• I sure hope @vboo there are Murphy beds. I am just not sure how it is going to fit in the studio.
• I miss the boats to other resorts. Also miss the little mini-racer boats
• Access to Contemporary is also great.
• Standard points rooms tough around certain seasons for sure.
• Glad the roof top is back open - still not sure all the ground rules with it.
• Points are still pretty reasonable.
• And one day I will stay in one of those Grand Villas overlooking MK.

 

[emchen]

bumping this thread.
If it was only an SAP consideration it appears SSR points gets me the same access at 7 months than BLT gets me at 11. At a fairly less upfront cost.

I agree with your final conclusion and think no matter what the situation with 1-BR SV at 11-mo, ultimately you will be paying a slight premium on proximity to MK park.

I wonder what they're even walking for.. September inventory? MNNSHP? Both? MVMCP?

Fall frenzy (cheap) point chart?

Thoughts on BLT (as an owner).

• We rode out a Hurricane in BLT and all the extra space in the 1BRs were awesome.
• Two bathrooms saves us so much time in the morning or at night.
• Standard 1st floor rooms means you can be at the turnstiles in under 10 minutes.
• Lake views are also great as some you can see MK.
• Studios are cramped
• I sure hope @vboo there are Murphy beds. I am just not sure how it is going to fit in the studio.
• I miss the boats to other resorts. Also miss the little mini-racer boats
• Access to Contemporary is also great.
• Standard points rooms tough around certain seasons for sure.
• Glad the roof top is back open - still not sure all the ground rules with it.
• Points are still pretty reasonable.
• And one day I will stay in one of those Grand Villas overlooking MK.

These are cool thoughts! Having had a short one night stay this past July, I can appreciate your list!

Has BLT ever had valet or bell services? If so did it get permanently shut down by the pandemic? If not, then when and why did it go away?