Is there a maintenance event at Bonnet Creek?

[Bigrob]

There had been a ton of availability around the 15 day cancellation mark. Suddenly today I look and there is nothing.

Has anyone heard of anything happening at Bonnet Creek?

 

[Shelbyd95]

The only maintenance that I know of is onTower 6...From the Wyndham site... "Please note: Tower 6 will undergo renovations Sept. 1 - Nov. 30, 2015. Dates are subject to change"

 

[vacationhopeful]

Oh, goodie, goodie .... I have several Jersey weeks booked!!!!! This will HELP me in getting them taken!!!1

 

[MaryBella7]

I have been checking pretty regularly over the last week and a half, and there has been nothing until late in the month. Every now and again a 1 bedroom pops up on the week of the 15th, but it goes pretty quickly.

 

[Bigrob]

I have been checking pretty regularly over the last week and a half, and there has been nothing until late in the month. Every now and again a 1 bedroom pops up on the week of the 15th, but it goes pretty quickly.

Yes... that's what I'm referring to. When following the cancellation calendar, nights have been popping open at the 15 day mark. There was significant availability last week of July, and suddenly everything was gone. I also noticed that things I cancelled didn't come back.

 

[am1]

Not the first time it has happened there.

 

[Explorer7]

I posted something similar about Govenor's Green this past Feb through March time frame. One day tons of availability not just at the 15 day mark. The next day nothing until suddenly some time in April Tons of availability showed up again. No expanation and front desk had no reason. I think I believe read someone else experiencing it at another resort this spring so I am begining to see a pattern possibly maintenance related but just speculating.

 

[Sandi Bo]

I noticed a lot of stuff come in last minute for other weeks - seems like the last week of June /first of July -- even for the 4th of July. It went fairly quickly, but quite a bit was available and some lasted a few days.

I was wondering / hoping the same might happen for the first part of August.

Sure seems like something odd is going on. Not the normal cadence of last minute cancellations that we see - feast or famine. Or should I say... famine, famine, feast, and famine.

 

[Bigrob]

Thanks... thought I was going crazy. I'm glad that other people are noticing it also.

 

[happyhopian]

Funny that you mention this. I cancelled a 1 night stay and it never came back. I am going to call owner care again. I have a feeling they have set inventory to a negative number again. Maybe they are getting ready for tower 6, but this is the third time this summer this has happened (cancelled inventory not coming back). This is an issue in preventing cancel/rebook for VIP level folks. I'll report back what I learn.

 

[vacationhopeful]

OK ... let's go over the rules which Wyndham can either choose or NOT choose to enforce.

RULE: Wyndham can take (confiscate) 90% of the available inventory at the 60 day and inside the 60 days mark to rent via Extra Holidays.

What has changed?
1) ...The economy ... it has improved.
2) ... A market has been "developed" at almost NO COST to Wyndham for renting timeshare units (particularly at certain resorts, like Bonnet Creek).
3) ... Wyndham has figured out a RENTOR with small kids will take the $100 bribe to met with the sales staff and the sales staff conversion ratio is higher this way than prior means to fill those seats and sell points.
4) ... Upselling a young family works better at this point in time as the current cycle of "retiring" seniors have way less money. The young double income career couple look out for themselves ... seeing a Disney annual vacation as a standard for the next 10-15 years.

 

[Sandi Bo]

Any new info on Bonnet Creek?

This morning I released a couple things for the week of August 15th. Just playing around with some stuff I don't need and needing some points for other stuff. They didn't come back in to the system. Reservations for this time frame were available earlier.

We've never seen the 1st 2 week of August coming back in for last minute cancellations.

I've asked Owner Care and Bonnet Creek, no one knows of anything going on and they say BC is not overbooked. One of the BC folks even said if anything their fill rate is a little low.

Anyone have any idea what is going on? Sure seems like Wyndham has to be taking back the inventory.

 

[am1]

Cancellations are not coming back. Possible everything will come back one morning.

 

[Bigrob]

This morning I released a couple things for the week of August 15th. Just playing around with some stuff I don't need and needing some points for other stuff. They didn't come back in to the system. Reservations for this time frame were available earlier.

We've never seen the 1st 2 week of August coming back in for last minute cancellations.

I've asked Owner Care and Bonnet Creek, no one knows of anything going on and they say BC is not overbooked. One of the BC folks even said if anything their fill rate is a little low.

Anyone have any idea what is going on? Sure seems like Wyndham has to be taking back the inventory.

I have a theory that they are trying a new strategy to defeat mega-renters.

I am currently wasting an hour on a Sunday trying to recover a reservation they claim I cancelled online, and I have a guest checking in today. They claim I cancelled it on the 15th. If that's true, why did I add a guest confirmation to the reservation today?

 

[Shelbyd95]

We called yesterday to inquire about an upgrade to our reservation at BC (since we have not seen one online) and she told us she has seen very few. This morning, I was looking up reviews on Tripadvisor for Star Island and Cypress Palms because I am extending my trip and SI and CP have availability. I was not too happy to see that I could book a 2 bedroom for my dates at BC through Expedia. I am contemplating bringing this up when we check in.

 

[Sandi Bo]

There is definitely something shady going on. No one if fessing up to knowing what is going on.

I had an unusual situation (first time) where Owner Care contacted me because they took away a reservation I had at a different resort. They said the VC accidentally cancelled it and they needed it back. I figured it was a great opportunity to ask what was going on at BC, but they feigned ignorance, said it was the first they had heard.

I've also noticed some pretty darn cheap BC accommodations on eBay as well as availability on extraholidays (and now I'm hearing expedia).

VC's, OC, and BC folks always end up saying the typical "it's a very busy time and those reservations get picked up right away by others watching for cancellations". Are they really ignorant to the possibility that they never come back into the system, or trained to provide this canned response?

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. :annoyed:

 

[am1]

VC's, OC, and BC folks always end up saying the typical "it's a very busy time and those reservations get picked up right away by others watching for cancellations". Are they really ignorant to the possibility that they never come back into the system, or trained to provide this canned response?

Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. :annoyed:

Its easier.

 

[linpat]

Its easier.

Plausible Deniability, perhaps?

 

[bnoble]

The front line people have no idea. Their job is to close transactions (on the phone or in person) as fast as possible. If you are talking to them for some other reason, they are going to tell you anything they can to get you to go away so they can move on to the next person.

The Owner Care folks are not there to tell you the truth. They are there to satisfy your concerns and keep you happy. If the truth isn't going to make you happy, you won't hear it from them.

What matters is: if you cancel a unit, it is possible that you will lose it and not get it back. It doesn't seem to happen reliably but it certainly happens often enough that I would not cancel a unit that I needed for something.

 

[Bigrob]

The front line people have no idea. Their job is to close transactions (on the phone or in person) as fast as possible. If you are talking to them for some other reason, they are going to tell you anything they can to get you to go away so they can move on to the next person.

The Owner Care folks are not there to tell you the truth. They are there to satisfy your concerns and keep you happy. If the truth isn't going to make you happy, you won't hear it from them.

What matters is: if you cancel a unit, it is possible that you will lose it and not get it back. It doesn't seem to happen reliably but it certainly happens often enough that I would not cancel a unit that I needed for something.

While what you are saying is 100% true, it is also true that there is something different going on at Bonnet Creek that is not currently happening at the other resorts. My concern is if/when the "pilot" being run at Bonnet Creek gets rolled out more globally. It would be a game changer.

FYI; I was speaking to a VC today who confirmed that Wyndham, indeed, is running a program that reclaims inventory when cancelled at Bonnet Creek, and she said it in a casual, matter-of-fact way.

 

[bnoble]

Oh, I have no doubt that *something* is going on. I just don't expect Wyndham to tell me what it is!

 

[bnoble]

On the broader subject:

It would be a game changer.

Since I've been a timeshare owner, I've learned two things. One: there is always an opportunity for leverage somewhere in the system. Two: today's leverage opportunities will not be there tomorrow, because the system is always changing.

For the average owner, just using or exchanging their time more or less "normally," the changes really don't matter. But, those of us who are actively working the system should always remember that change happens, so we either need an exit strategy or a backup plan. I've only used timeshares for my personal vacations, with an eye towards working the system to beat market rental rates by a fair margin. But, even for me, I can think of 4-5 sea changes over the time I've owned that have completely altered the way I go about planning our vacations.

 

[MaryBella7]

While what you are saying is 100% true, it is also true that there is something different going on at Bonnet Creek that is not currently happening at the other resorts. My concern is if/when the "pilot" being run at Bonnet Creek gets rolled out more globally. It would be a game changer.

FYI; I was speaking to a VC today who confirmed that Wyndham, indeed, is running a program that reclaims inventory when cancelled at Bonnet Creek, and she said it in a casual, matter-of-fact way.

I continued looking consistently every day throughout June and July for a 1 bedroom on the week of Aug 7th (have a 2 bedroom booked but only need a 1 bedroom), and NOTHING popped up EVER! I stopped looking after the 15 day cancellation period ended and kept my 2 br. I agree, very strange. And I looked on varying check-in dates. Stuff popped up on and off during the last 2 weeks of August, though.

 

[mistalong]

IT Convention

OK because my boss is booked at the Disney resorts, I now know the reason no rooms are opening is because of a large IT convention at Disney World. A couple of the execs in out dept are staying at Bonnet Creek. I believe the convention starts Aug 5 but most are flying in earlier that week.

 

[vacationhopeful]

Southern USA schools are in session by mid August ... demand would drop off.

As for the IT convention mentioned by a prior poster .... makes WHY more sense as WHERE those units are going. Remember, Wyndham can TAKE 90% of the available inventory for "their purposes" inside the 60 day mark.

And I bet this WILL not be the only resort this will happen at ... lots of HIGH rental times: every 4 years in DC or the Cherry Blossom Festival or Easter or NYC any time of the year, etc. Just have to get a BETTER rental group than Extra Holidays ... say, Expedia or Travogo?