Guaranteeing DVC Accessible Rooms?

Sorry if this has been posted before, but I couldn't find it.

We have had some really bad fortunes in our last 2 DVC check-ins. We totally understand that any room preference requests are just that, with no guarantee for them honoring them.

However, our last 2 trips we have booked accessible rooms for my son in a wheelchair on-line. The last time they simply did not have an accessible room available for us (savannah view at AKL). We had to wait in the lobby for hours, and they finally moved some things around for us in a non-savannah room, and credited our points back. The AKL folks were very nice, but they kind of threw DVC reservations under the bus...saying that AKL (the hotel iteself) was not notified for the need for a wheelchair room. Two days later, they moved us (which was an inconvenience) to the correct room, and like I said, were very apologetic.

So, how should we contact DVC or the hotel itself PRIOR to our trip this year to make sure that doesn't happen again? We would appreciate any advice...

Thanks!

OrthoDad said:

Sorry if this has been posted before, but I couldn't find it.

We have had some really bad fortunes in our last 2 DVC check-ins. We totally understand that any room preference requests are just that, with no guarantee for them honoring them.

However, our last 2 trips we have booked accessible rooms for my son in a wheelchair on-line. The last time they simply did not have an accessible room available for us (savannah view at AKL). We had to wait in the lobby for hours, and they finally moved some things around for us in a non-savannah room, and credited our points back. The AKL folks were very nice, but they kind of threw DVC reservations under the bus...saying that AKL (the hotel iteself) was not notified for the need for a wheelchair room. Two days later, they moved us (which was an inconvenience) to the correct room, and like I said, were very apologetic.

So, how should we contact DVC or the hotel itself PRIOR to our trip this year to make sure that doesn't happen again? We would appreciate any advice...

Thanks!

Click to expand...

See this post: disABILITIES FAQs - temporary & permanent disabled, 1st trip, next trip, Wish trip

I don't know if DVC is handled any different since it is a timeshare. But when you reserve an accessible hotel room it is held specifically for you; it is not a request but guaranteed (exception would be if the room was unexpectedly taken out of service for an unplanned maintenance need). Does DVC consider HA to be a request?

lanejudy said:

I don't know if DVC is handled any different since it is a timeshare. But when you reserve an accessible hotel room it is held specifically for you; it is not a request but guaranteed (exception would be if the room was unexpectedly taken out of service for an unplanned maintenance need). Does DVC consider HA to be a request?

Click to expand...

HA is a booking category, not a request. DVC is subject to all ADA requirements.

Was the room totally inaccessible, or just not the type of accessible you needed? In a standard hotel room, not all accessible rooms will have a roll in shower, for example, you'd need to specify. The website says to call, or I guess have the person booking for you call if you're renting: https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/faq/resort-reservations/disabilities/

I have learned the wrong way that you need to be very specific about exactly what you need in an ADA room. An "ADA room" can be anything from extra floor space and grab bars to a roll in shower, to set ups for hearing accessibility.

I book the room I want online. In the "requests" section, I list what I need in a room, even if it is supposedly guaranteed as part of the booking category.

Then, 48 hours later, I call Disney directly and have them confirm everything.

I also call two weeks before I travel and have them confirm everything again.

It seems like a lot, but we all know that travelling with a disability requires for more preparation and planning than other families.

BobNed said:

HA is a booking category, not a request. DVC is subject to all ADA requirements.

Click to expand...

Yes.
HA is a booking category and is handled the same at DVC as at any other WDW resort. When you make the reservation, you are specifically making a reservation for a handicapped room.
Even with that, there are different types of handicapped rooms you could make a reservation for. Not all handicapped rooms have roll in showers.

SMD said:

Was the room totally inaccessible, or just not the type of accessible you needed? In a standard hotel room, not all accessible rooms will have a roll in shower, for example, you'd need to specify. The website says to call, or I guess have the person booking for you call if you're renting: https://disneyvacationclub.disney.go.com/faq/resort-reservations/disabilities/

Click to expand...

I agree that it's important to be clear about what you need since there are different levels of handicapped accessibility. We need a roll in shower and specifically say we need a wheelchair accessible room with a roll in shower.

It's also possible that you DID have a reservation for the correct type of HA room, but something happened to the room assigned to you that made it not available. We've had several situations over the years - one was a water issue and one time, the carpet was soiled by the last guests and could not be cleaned in time for us to check in.

DVC at AK is actually in 2 buildings - Jambo House and Kidani Village.
Jambo House includes both DVC and non-DVC room. I've read that the entire Jambo House includes 50 HA, with not all having roll in showers and not all of those with roll in showers in the Savannah View areas.
Kidani Village has only DVC; there are 65 HA at DVC, but again, not all are roll in showers not all of the rooms with roll in showers are Savannah view.

It sounds like you were at Jambo House, but I'm not clear if you were staying in one of the DVC villas or using DVC points to staying in a Jambo House AK Lodge room.
Both HA and Savannah view are booking categories; it's possible that one part of that was missed - especially if you were staying on DVC points in an AK Lodge room.

DVC does not accept faxes (it's in the member handbook) and asks that requests be made at the time of the reservation. I'd suggest checking your confirmation carefully. You can try calling to double check, but realize you won't be talking to someone actually at the resort.

1) When you reserve an HA room, it is a category.
2) But, at WDW, no category/room/view is guaranteed.
3) The individual resort is not even guaranteed.
. . . I have personally "walked" many guests to other resorts
. . . this included walking a guest from a Grand Floridian "Suite" to another resort
. . . in hotel terminology, "walked" means taking/driving a guest to a different resort than they reserved.
4) Remember that no (zero, zip, nada) room/resort/category is guaranteed, regardless of what your written confirmation says.
5) It also does not matter what your Reservation Agent or Member Services Rep says.

NOTE: Yes, I know this sounds crass, but that is just the way the "Hotel Biz" works.

DVC has different "point prices" for things like Savannah view at AK. It costs more points per night to stay in a Savannah view villa and it is definitely a different booking category.
That said, there is always a possibility of not getting it, even if that was what the guest booked. Reasons could include in-advertant overbooking for the category, rooms in that category being out of commission, etc.
If the room you get is a lower "point cost" (or price, if not using DVC points), you should be reimbursed for the difference.

Handicapped accessible is a specific RESERVATION category and IS guaranteed, per the ADA and specifically to changes that were made to the ADA that became active in 2013.

• 
  
  • When a reservation is made for an accessible guest room, the specific accessible guest room reserved must be held for the reserving customer and the room must be removed from the reservation system.

Bolded is a quote from this ADA Fact Sheet: https://adata.org/factsheet/accessible-lodging

While the accessible room IS GUARANTEED, the view or location are not. It is possible that the specific room reserved for that customer might not be available because of something outside the control of the hotel/resort (Damage to room, something that needs repair, etc.) If that happens, the hotel/resort is obligated to work with the customer to find a room that meets their needs.