anyone use skyaution to rent an accessible timeshare?

[dj2]

my confusion is this. the descriptions of the various sites (say, in a Ready, Set, Go auction) usually list that handicapped accessible units are available at the property, but i don't know how to ensure that one will be available during the particular dates for which i want to bid.

also, as i understand it, RCI doesn't release your name to the property until 48 hours before your stay, making it difficult to communicate special needs.

i posted on the other board that deals a lot with skyauction, but the only response so far has been that it's kind of a catch-22 in that you have to win the auction first and then request the unit.

has anyone done this?

if seems SO economical. 2 bedroom units with full kitchens that sleep 6, or even 8, less than 5-10 minutes from the parks for less than $300/week!!! i just don't know how to ensure the accessible room.

if anyone has done this, i'd really appreciate any tips you can give me.

Thanks.

dj

 

[dclfun]

dj- We bid on a weeks stay for my parents this past May through Skyauction and requested an accessible unit. They told me all their units were accessible however when we got there although the unit was spacious and there was no door threshold, the bathroom beyond the jacuzzi was tiny. It had a sliding door but if someone were needing to transfer, there was no space. We just needed the ground floor and no threshold's for my mother so we were okay, but I didn't consider this unit to be truly accessible. Kathy

 

[BillSears]

I've been thinking about this same problem. I was hoping someone would have some good news to report. Dclfun, thanks for sharing your experiences.

I have stayed at one accessable time share unit at Vistana Resorts. It was kinda strange in that the accessable bathroom was connected to the room with 2 double beds and that room was so crowded that I couldn't navigate my wheelchair in the room to get to the bathroom. I had to leave the room and go in through the entrance in the main room to get in.

This timeshare was requested well in advance by my Aunt who is an RCI member so we didn't go through Skyauction. But still it made me consider trying Skyauction in the future. The prices for a 2 bedroom unit just sound fantastic. Now if they could get thier act together on the accessability then it would be perfect.

 

[Figaro]

We stayed at the Vistana in an accessible resort and there was no flip down shower seat in the roll in shower (which I have never seen in a roll-in shower before) and the bathroom was very difficult to move around in, as there was one door to the bedroom with the double beds and one to the kitchen. The room with the double beds was small and difficult to move around in in a wheelchair.

It was very poorly designed with no peephole on the door at wheelchair level, almost all of the lamps were impossible to reach from a wheelchair because of the furniture, the dining room table had the kind of base that meant you couldn't just roll up to it and use your wheelchair but instead had to transfer. The counter with the chairs in the kitchen was raised too high to use without transferring to the bar stool like chairs and trying to get the fridge open from the wheelchair was very difficult as you had to go into the kitchen, turn around in the limited space and then open the door.

To be honest, DVC units that aren't handicapped accessible are more accessible than the wheelchair accessible unit at the Vistana. We had made this reservation months in advance and they knew we needed an accessible unit, so I don't know what would happen with sky auctions and accessibility requests.

 

[BillSears]

Figaro,

Sounds like the same style of unit I had at Vistana. At least mine had a shower seat in it. Not a fold down one but instead one that was a stand alone type of thing. It was rough balancing on it but it did work.

I have to admit I never noticed the table or counter seating. We never ate in the condo. I'm they type who gets up in the morning, heads to the parks then goes to Pleasure Island at the end of the day. So I didn't really spend much time in the condo.

The DVC sounds fantastic. I just can't justify to myself spending the initial payment and then having yearly maintaineace fees that are higher then the cost of a week worth of a Skyauction bid.

 

[Figaro]

Hi, Bill!

Sounds like we had similar units. There was no shower chair either, so I used our cooler to sit on(smile), which we had with us because we had driven down that time. I suppose I would have had to call a medical supply place to rent a shower chair if we hadn't been able to make do with what we had.

I am fortunate in that my spouse can and will take care of most of the stuff, but I can't even imagine how difficult it would be if he wasn't there. It's one of the reasons that we usually stay in accessible hotel rooms, as then I don't have to worry about being able to get to or at stuff. It is very annoying to have to leave a lamp on because there is no way to reach it to turn it off(smile). But I always tell myself that if that is the worst problem I have, then my life is pretty darned easy.

I wish that DVC wasn't so expensive. I get spoiled when I stay in their accessible units.

 

[LindaDVC]

Another option is to rent DVC points if you can't buy DVC.

Many owners (like us) can't always use all their points and rent the extras.

The last two years we have rented some because we bought a small condo in Daytona and don't have enough vacation time to use it and our DVC as often as we would like!

Linda

 

[dj2]

thanks for your replies everyone.

would anyone else be able to comment on the logistics of reserving an accessible timeshare through skyauction? (we're also looking at www.getrovelop.com, since DH teaches and therefore works for the state government.)

fortunately, i am not confined to my wc 24/7, but will be traveling w/only DD11, and need to be able to be sure i can manage for the week. we'd surely have to rent someplace else when we arrived if the timeshare staff told us we were on the second floor with no elevators.

any thoughts would be appreciated.

thanks,

dj