Question about weeks booking in Maui

[5infam]

Hi All - I finally completed buying 2 EOYE, 2 bedroom units in the original towers, and want to make my first reservation soon for June 2018. I thought I could use the 13 month window to book online, but based on what I am seeing, I can only do that by calling in, is that correct?

Second, I noticed something that seems unusual to me when my 2nd unit came on line earlier this week. I went in on Tuesday to play around with the booking to see how to do the 13 month deal. Anyway, I noticed that for next year, there was only 1 check in day available, which was April 8th. All other days appeared to be sold out. That is unusual for me to see because I have owned at MOC for a long time, but I owned a 1 bedroom and there was always lots of availability. In any event, I went back in today to see what may be available for the new weekend dates that opened up a couple of days ago. To my surprise, not only did I see availability for the new week, April 13, 14 and 15, 2018, but I also saw March 30 and 31, and April 6, 7 and 8. It seems very odd to me that all of those dates that were sold out a few days ago, are now showing as available. Just curious, why might that be - and is there anything different I need to know about booking now that I have 2 bedrooms instead of a 1 bedroom? I wouldn't think so, but it certainly looks different. By the way, the 2 bedrooms I now own are 1 OF and 1 mtn/grdn, and both of my searches were with the OF unit. With the mtn/grdn unit, there is tons of availability all the way back to January.

 

[davidvel]

Yes, you need to call to book at 13 months and must book 2 consecutive or concurrent weeks.

As to the latter question I'm not sure. Maybe Marriott (DC) is taking all the unreserved weeks for its club since they are OF?

 

[MOXJO7282]

To me it's obvious that Marriott doesn't release all the dates at the 12 month mark and probably not at the 13 months either. How else can you explain that all these dates pop up now? I've been looking for 3/31 and was checking religiously for days and haven't seen a date of any kind after getting one at 12 months, couldn't at 13 and now these dates show up.

That is pretty frustrating because if someone really needs a specific date for whatever reason at least if they release all dates as expected and you didn't get it then you knew that was possible in a floating system but to think they don't release all for what ever reason and you don't get it that is frustrating.

 

[5infam]

Yes, frustrating, and I don't even need my week yet, but I will soon and hate to think that the system doesn't work as it should. How percentage of the weeks are supposed to be released at 13 months?

 

[drlee]

One can only go by what we are told. Of the weeks available for weeks users, 50% are theoretically released at 13 months, the other 50% at 12 months. Not available to weeks owners are: weeks deposited for destination points, inventory held back for encore usage, base Marriott owned units held back for emergency (breakage, maintenance issues), etc. Also, to be subtracted are weeks' owners who booked consecutive weeks from an earlier time period. So, for any particular week, there may be 100 potential units available, for example, of a particular view (lets say ocean view). Let's say 20 are held for destination point people, leaving 80. Of those, maybe ten are already booked from previous consecutive periods, leaving 70. Take another 10 for paid stays, and hold-backs, leaving 60. Thus 30 might be available at 13 months, and 30 at 12 months. Whether it actually works like this is anybody's guess, but this is how it was explained at an owners' meeting (back when they had them).

 

[bazzap]

One can only go by what we are told. Of the weeks available for weeks users, 50% are theoretically released at 13 months, the other 50% at 12 months. Not available to weeks owners are: weeks deposited for destination points, inventory held back for encore usage, base Marriott owned units held back for emergency (breakage, maintenance issues), etc. Also, to be subtracted are weeks' owners who booked consecutive weeks from an earlier time period. So, for any particular week, there may be 100 potential units available, for example, of a particular view (lets say ocean view). Let's say 20 are held for destination point people, leaving 80. Of those, maybe ten are already booked from previous consecutive periods, leaving 70. Take another 10 for paid stays, and hold-backs, leaving 60. Thus 30 might be available at 13 months, and 30 at 12 months. Whether it actually works like this is anybody's guess, but this is how it was explained at an owners' meeting (back when they had them).

It may not actually be the full 50% of weeks inventory released at 13 months.
When addressing this issue on the Weeks owners Webinar, they state
"Must reserve at least two weeks consecutively or concurrently. No more than 50% of inventory available."

 

[5infam]

Thanks for the info - I thought it was supposed to be 50%. There really is no way to know, but this tells me that for the ocean front unit I just bought, I will have to be diligent about making sure I take a shot right at 13 months, and if I miss it, go again at 12 months right at release time. The mountain garden unit doesn't appear to have the same issue, at least based on what I can see now.

 

[m61376]

Dates becoming available later on (after the 12 month release at 9AM) may not be due t Marriott holding back inventory, but to customer changes. there is a long history (way before the inception of the DC) of inventory not being available at first release, but then later in the day or a few days later. People make reservations, then they change their mind; even if not enrolled, there is a 24 hour cancellation period without a change fee. Also, people have long booked consecutive weeks at the 13 month mark and then changed a reservation at the 12 month mark, since they initially really only wanted one of the weeks and the other was being booked for the 13 month advantage. So there are lots of reasons why weeks open up. I know it's worked to my advantage a few times, both when initially purchasing resale units and wanting to change the reserved week, and when I needed to change dates. Even during high demand periods I've found that dates open up along the way; it might take a few phone calls though to ultimately get what you want.

 

[5infam]

That is interesting! I also own DVC, and there, because of the booking rules, people start booking in advance by a week with their actual first day they really want to check in, as their last day of their initial reservation. Then, each day, they call in and take off the first day of what they booked and add on a day on the back end. Eventually they get what they wanted. We used to call it "walking a reservation." I didn't think I needed to concern myself with that here because of the fee to change a reservation, but I guess it could make some sense to pay the fee for a better shot at your unit.

As an example, for June 2018, I need to use both of my weeks concurrently, for a single week, because we have extra family coming with us. In my case, I own 2 - 2 bedroom units, one OF and one mtn/grdn. So if I wanted to play the game, I could book these weeks as consecutive weeks at 13 months out, starting the week before I really want to stay? Then the next week, call in and change the first week to concurrent, and pay the fee, I think is $35? So, if I really wanted to stay on June 30, 2018, with both weeks, I would book my mtn/grdn when the 13 month window opens up for a June 23, 2018 check in and set it up for consecutive weeks with my OF unit for a June 30th check in. Then the following week, which is really the week I should be calling in to book, change my reservation from the 23rd check in to the 30th check in. Then I get what I really want, which is both weeks the week of the 30th, but I locked in my OF unit, which is harder to get booked, a week earlier. It just costs me an extra phone call and a fee. Do I have that right?

 

[NTP66]

When I booked my 2BR OV unit back in February, I had been checking the site at random times throughout the day, a few days every week, and did see the inventory change on a daily basis.

 

[MOXJO7282]

I really don't think it was date changes because i had been looking like 10 times a day for 2 weeks when i missed 3/31 at 12 months and there was absolutely nothing, nada, and then weeks later there is not just one date but a number of them as the OP has pointed out.

 

[frank808]

That is interesting! I also own DVC, and there, because of the booking rules, people start booking in advance by a week with their actual first day they really want to check in, as their last day of their initial reservation. Then, each day, they call in and take off the first day of what they booked and add on a day on the back end. Eventually they get what they wanted. We used to call it "walking a reservation." I didn't think I needed to concern myself with that here because of the fee to change a reservation, but I guess it could make some sense to pay the fee for a better shot at your unit.

As an example, for June 2018, I need to use both of my weeks concurrently, for a single week, because we have extra family coming with us. In my case, I own 2 - 2 bedroom units, one OF and one mtn/grdn. So if I wanted to play the game, I could book these weeks as consecutive weeks at 13 months out, starting the week before I really want to stay? Then the next week, call in and change the first week to concurrent, and pay the fee, I think is $35? So, if I really wanted to stay on June 30, 2018, with both weeks, I would book my mtn/grdn when the 13 month window opens up for a June 23, 2018 check in and set it up for consecutive weeks with my OF unit for a June 30th check in. Then the following week, which is really the week I should be calling in to book, change my reservation from the 23rd check in to the 30th check in. Then I get what I really want, which is both weeks the week of the 30th, but I locked in my OF unit, which is harder to get booked, a week earlier. It just costs me an extra phone call and a fee. Do I have that right?

I believe you would be able to book both weeks at 13 months if this is available. It is book consequtive or concurrent weeks for the 13 month booking window.

Sent from my SM-N910P using Tapatalk

 

[JIMinNC]

Hi All - I finally completed buying 2 EOYE, 2 bedroom units in the original towers, and want to make my first reservation soon for June 2018. I thought I could use the 13 month window to book online, but based on what I am seeing, I can only do that by calling in, is that correct?

Second, I noticed something that seems unusual to me when my 2nd unit came on line earlier this week. I went in on Tuesday to play around with the booking to see how to do the 13 month deal. Anyway, I noticed that for next year, there was only 1 check in day available, which was April 8th. All other days appeared to be sold out. That is unusual for me to see because I have owned at MOC for a long time, but I owned a 1 bedroom and there was always lots of availability. In any event, I went back in today to see what may be available for the new weekend dates that opened up a couple of days ago. To my surprise, not only did I see availability for the new week, April 13, 14 and 15, 2018, but I also saw March 30 and 31, and April 6, 7 and 8. It seems very odd to me that all of those dates that were sold out a few days ago, are now showing as available. Just curious, why might that be - and is there anything different I need to know about booking now that I have 2 bedrooms instead of a 1 bedroom? I wouldn't think so, but it certainly looks different. By the way, the 2 bedrooms I now own are 1 OF and 1 mtn/grdn, and both of my searches were with the OF unit. With the mtn/grdn unit, there is tons of availability all the way back to January.

The sentence I bolded above is important to something I've been considering, so I have a question.

I have frequently read on TUG about MOC owners having issues booking their owned weeks during the high season (late Jan/Feb/Mar) even at 12/13 months out. The explanation always given was because of the many multi-week owners who string together consecutive weeks and thus jump to the front of the reservation line. That has usually been in regard to discussions about 2BR units - maybe even specific to 2BR OF units (not sure if OV has this same issue).

We've been thinking about acquiring an EOY 1BR OF or OV unit at MOC sometime in the next year or so (primarily for use), but as I kept reading about the difficulties in booking traditional weeks in high season, but seeing plenty of MOC availability in all view categories through the DC Points system, I have begun to question whether just using DC Points to book Maui would a better, more reliable approach than going the EOY week route. But your statement above that you never saw any availability issues with your old 1BR unit might indicate the availability issues people complain about at MOC are limited to 2BR units. What view category was your old 1BR - OF, OV, or MG - and were you ever searching for Jan/Feb/Mar weeks?

 

[5infam]

My old 1 bedroom was mountain/garden. I usually went 4th of July and would book online at 12 months out, never had an issue not getting what I wanted. The first 3 months had lots of openings as well. I see the same thing with my mountain/garden 2-bedroom now. Tons of availability for the first 4 months of 2018. Last I looked, only a couple of check in days were full, but generally, I could get in on one of the three check in dates in any week for 2018 that has been released. Not true at all with my Ocean Front, as I stated.

It may also be that people use the OF units as a business, since they get the most money for rentals, and they race to lock in dates. Then when they get a renter, they change the date to accommodate. I don't really know, but it seems odd to me - something is going on. Maybe it is a combo of a bunch of things?

 

[JIMinNC]

My old 1 bedroom was mountain/garden. I usually went 4th of July and would book online at 12 months out, never had an issue not getting what I wanted. The first 3 months had lots of openings as well. I see the same thing with my mountain/garden 2-bedroom now. Tons of availability for the first 4 months of 2018. Last I looked, only a couple of check in days were full, but generally, I could get in on one of the three check in dates in any week for 2018 that has been released. Not true at all with my Ocean Front, as I stated.

It may also be that people use the OF units as a business, since they get the most money for rentals, and they race to lock in dates. Then when they get a renter, they change the date to accommodate. I don't really know, but it seems odd to me - something is going on. Maybe it is a combo of a bunch of things?

Thanks. I can see where the mountain/garden demand might be less for the reasons you mention. Also, the folks who paid the premium for OF are probably more likely to want to lock in the prime weeks, so they book early and often. So that still doesn't solve my question as to whether 1BR OF/OV have the same availability issues at MOC as the 2BR OF units obviously do.

 

[NTP66]

Thanks. I can see where the mountain/garden demand might be less for the reasons you mention. Also, the folks who paid the premium for OF are probably more likely to want to lock in the prime weeks, so they book early and often. So that still doesn't solve my question as to whether 1BR OF/OV have the same availability issues at MOC as the 2BR OF units obviously do.

While I normally visit in September, I have always checked availability in February for whale season, and have always seen availability through the entire month and into March. This is for my 1BR OV unit.

 

[JIMinNC]

While I normally visit in September, I have always checked availability in February for whale season, and have always seen availability through the entire month and into March. This is for my 1BR OV unit.

That's good to know. I suspect if we eventually decide to go that route we'll likely wind up with an OV instead of an OF. There are so few 1BR OF units at MOC I could see where competition for the prime weeks might be fierce, with multi-week owners having a big advantage. Also, since we would only be looking for an EOY unit, I've noticed that EOY 1BR OF unit listings are a little harder to find than EOY 1BR OV.

 

[amanda14]

Based on the above posts can it be assumed that a late June/Early July trip to MOC or others is an "easier" time to obtain a rez?

 

[5infam]

I think it depends on what you own. My guess is that the ocean front units are harder to come by than mountain/garden. I generally always go at 4th of July and those weeks, even for mountain/garden go quickly. So if you want a reservation for a certain week, be ready to book at opening at 13 or 12 months, and generally, you will get what you want. Of course, a little flexibility in dates makes it a lot easier.

 

[amanda14]

Cool thanks. I have some date flexibility and I am doing 13 months out for sure. View isn't the priority.

 

[hangloose]

Appreciate the input in this thread (and other similar threads). We are generally in HI every other year, but don't own there (yet). MOC is our favorite all around MVC resort in HI. We are looking at purchasing a MOC week also. Leaning towards a 2BR vs 1BR (extra space, small maint increase for 2BR vs 1BR, lock-off ability for second week use or rental). We are also thinking of OF purchase, as Maui has one of the best OF views available and right on the beach (especially if in Molakai tower).

My only concern is the ability to reserve the 2 BR OF at 12 months. Sounds like 2BR OF is the hardest to book for prime weeks at 12 months? Is it harder or easier in the old towers vs new for 2BR OF? Worst case, I reserve at 13 months using another MGV week I have and place that week into II in attempt for a second adjoining HI week. Or, I buy a second HI (MOC or other) week....down the road.

 

[NTP66]

If it helps, here are the number of available rooms for the old towers:

1BR OF: 18
1BR OV: 99
1BR GV: 43
1BR IV: 20

2BR OF: 48
2BR OV: 44
2BR GV: 39

 

[hangloose]

If it helps, here are the number of available rooms for the old towers:

1BR OF: 18
1BR OV: 99
1BR GV: 43
1BR IV: 20

2BR OF: 48
2BR OV: 44
2BR GV: 39

Thanks. Looks like 1BR OF is the most challenging in the old towers.

What are the numbers like in the new towers?

 

[NTP66]

Thanks. Looks like 1BR OF is the most challenging in the old towers.

What are the numbers like in the new towers?

Lahaina:
3BR OF Fixed: 24
2BR OF Fixed: 24
2BR OF Float: 24
2BR OV: 36
2BR GV: 34

Napili (going off the old property map, so these may not be 100% accurate; somebody else can chime in to confirm)
3BR OF Fixed: 10
2BR OF Fixed: 4
2BR OF Float: 31
2BR IV: 26

It's worth noting that there's a significant price increase going from the old towers to the new towers, and if you're looking for an EOY unit - good luck. I've only ever seen a handful of them, and they've all been Island Views.

 

[hangloose]

Lahaina:

It's worth noting that there's a significant price increase going from the old towers to the new towers, and if you're looking for an EOY unit - good luck. I've only ever seen a handful of them, and they've all been Island Views.

Thanks. While we are in HI EOY, we would purchase EY. That way we can choose which year we want to go. Or eventually, we'll go every year. The other year we could rent for above maintenance fees.

Do most find the new towers rent higher than old towers for similar view categories, given they have the full kitchen and W&D? I love Molakai tower given how close it is to the water and have no issues with using the shared W&D and smaller kitchen. Debating whether it's worth the extra annual maintenance fee for new towers.