First DVC Trip / Trying for Aulani - how do I do this?

[agirlcallededdy]

We are hoping for a 2 bedroom standard or island view for a week at Aulani in Sept. 2020. We have 440 SSR points for the trip. Would you book your SSR WDW reservation at 11 months and waitlist Aulani or wait until the 7 month mark and then book Aulani? If Aulani doesn't come through, we would want to travel to WDW in Sept 2020 in a treehouse or Grand Villa at SSR instead.

One of my concerns is when would the waitlist come through? Immediately at 7 months? I don't want to be booking 8 flights to Honolulu too close to our trip - will cost us a bundle!!

Edited to add: We are resale buyers, so we can't pull the magic Welcome Home trip lever.

TIA!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

If you aren't going to WDW if you cannot get Aulani, don't book it. If it is your backup, book it.

You cannot waitlist Aulani with SSR points until your 7 month window opens. You cannot waitlist outside of your home resort at 11 months.

FWIW, your chances of a 2BR Standard at Aulani for a week in any season are not good. There are 9 dedicated units, and 18 lock-offs. Your chancew at Island Garden is far better, since 74 dedicated units exist, and 92 lock offs. Standard is not a category people tend to be successful with, save for a day or two, outside of home resort.

 

[agirlcallededdy]

So your recommendation would be:
1. Book SSR at 11months
2. WL a 2 bedroom island garden at 7 months.

I know that I cannot WL until 7 months for non-owned resorts. If there is availability at Aulani at 7 months, will it automatically come through or should I stalk/call?

 

[Marionnette]

So your recommendation would be:
1. Book SSR at 11months
2. WL a 2 bedroom island garden at 7 months.

I know that I cannot WL until 7 months for non-owned resorts. If there is availability at Aulani at 7 months, will it automatically come through or should I stalk/call?

If AUL is available at 7 months, you can modify the SSR reservation to AUL online. No need to WL.

 

[stuartsong]

As soon as you get your points, book at SSR. Then at 7 months, try to modify your reservation at SSR to Aulani. If Aulani is not available at 7 months, then put a waitlist on at Aulani. Make sure you also put on the waitlist to cancel the SSR reservation if the Aulani comes through.

 

[agirlcallededdy]

Perfect- this is exactly what I was trying to figure out! Thank you!!

 

[drusba]

You should consider chances of getting standard view 2BR at Aulani in September at 7 months out to be very low. Better chance for Island garden view but even that is not a ceretainty. Where you would have almost certainty would be if you were to seek an Ocean View 2BR. You should book SSR and then, at 7 months out, if Aulani is open, modify your reservation on line to Aulani. It is only if it is not open that you would need to wait list.; As to how long it may take a wait list to come through, there is no set answer. It might not happen at all, it might happen within days or weeks, or it might not happen until a month or two before your desired time. If a big issue is Hawaii airfare, you will need to consider, at 7 months out, whether it is even worth the bother to wait list or decide to wait list for only a short period of time, and if nothing happens, remove your wait list request.

 

[agirlcallededdy]

We can do any view, and have enough points for Ocean. I would shoot for island garden first, but could go to the higher point value view if needed. It will depend on what I can secure at 7 months. As for WL, I think we could let the sit for a bit, but you're right, at some point we'd have to decide and secure our airfare to MCO.

 

[wdwsue]

The ocean view is so worth it. We had a Grand Villa in February of 2019 and it was spectacular.

 

[The Jackal]

The ocean view is so worth it. We had a Grand Villa in February of 2019 and it was spectacular.

We have never been to Aulani, if we do it will probably be just one and done due to costs of flights, I agree if going all that way to enjoy the best view.

 

[agirlcallededdy]

We ended up pushing out trip up to Feb 2020 and got a 2 bedroom Pool/Garden view for a week. It is a splurge of 427pts, but we are so excited about it!! Back to WDW in March 2021.....

 

[grinnellgirl]

We are hoping for a 2 bedroom standard or island view for a week at Aulani in Sept. 2020. We have 440 SSR points for the trip. Would you book your SSR WDW reservation at 11 months and waitlist Aulani or wait until the 7 month mark and then book Aulani? If Aulani doesn't come through, we would want to travel to WDW in Sept 2020 in a treehouse or Grand Villa at SSR instead.

One of my concerns is when would the waitlist come through? Immediately at 7 months? I don't want to be booking 8 flights to Honolulu too close to our trip - will cost us a bundle!!

Edited to add: We are resale buyers, so we can't pull the magic Welcome Home trip lever.

TIA!

Glad you got your reservation! Question, what did you mean that you couldn’t pull the welcome home lever since you bought resale?

 

[agirlcallededdy]

Glad you got your reservation! Question, what did you mean that you couldn’t pull the welcome home lever since you bought resale?

Just that as a resale buyer we couldn't ask for any special treatment as a "welcome home" trip. I hear Disney will try to fulfill requests for direct buyers first trips.

 

[Arthur2990]

For us we would rather have a standard view and longer trip. That being said I know the struggle of trying to get a standard view at the 7 month window. I am new to DVC so almost every day I try to follow trends to try to educate myself for possible future trips.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

For us we would rather have a standard view and longer trip. That being said I know the struggle of trying to get a standard view at the 7 month window. I am new to DVC so almost every day I try to follow trends to try to educate myself for possible future trips.

There are so few SV units it cannot be a consideration for 7 month booking when planning if you want to be realistic.