New Wyndham Website (2020)

[HitchHiker71]

I was just playing around with the new calendar view and came upon an inventory-related realization.

Front and center on the calendar view search page is the "Include Accessible Suites" checkbox. I realized that after adding this filter to my search, there's a bunch more inventory available than without the option. Went back to the "normal" search page and realized that accessible units are only included there AFTER you've taken the trouble to include a Filter and Sort option for accessible units in that search. You can try this out right now by searching for availability for the week of 6/28-7/4 at Avon with and without the option.

Makes me wonder just how much of this accessible unit inventory is going unbooked because it's not included in searches by default and is not intuitively obvious to include.

I've seen the same thing - I actually reserved a four bedroom PR unit in National Harbor using the accessibility option - otherwise I would not have seen it as available.

 

[Eric B]

Clear your entire cache. We are seeing a number of reports and clearing the browser cache seems to resolve almost all reported issues.

Thanks; that resolved it so that it works now. You can count me as another one not terribly impressed with the distinctiveness of the availability/nonavailability indications on the calendar, though.

 

[HitchHiker71]

Got up this morning to look for a reservation. During the first transaction I got a message that I have "Multiply Transactions in Progress." Tried several more times with the same message. Called and was told there is nothing the VC can do. Said wait until later and it will clear itself. VC can't ever make my reservation.

It's a 15 minute timeout - the same timeout you see whenever clicking "book" that appears on the screen as a countdown indicator.

 

[HitchHiker71]

Thanks; that resolved it so that it works now. You can count me as another one not terribly impressed with the distinctiveness of the availability/nonavailability indications on the calendar, though.

Agreed - just remember it's only MVP 1.0 release so we can input fixes and enhancements from here. I tend to like the color coding idea based upon booking windows, but that's me. Any other suggestions for improvements would be most appreciated.

 

[bnoble]

This is a known issue documented in our regression list and should be remediated in this evenings release (unless the date slid).

It looks like this did not make it into last night's release (at least, it doesn't work for me). Caches were cleared on Safari before checking.

Re: Calendar. This is helpful! But it would be nice to be able to separate availability based on e.g. view when it exists. For example, Kauai Beach Villas has both 2BR Lagoon and 2BR Ocean view, but in the calendar it appears I can only look for 2BRs in general.

 

[Richelle]

It looks like this did not make it into last night's release (at least, it doesn't work for me). Caches were cleared on Safari before checking.

Re: Calendar. This is helpful! But it would be nice to be able to separate availability based on e.g. view when it exists. For example, Kauai Beach Villas has both 2BR Lagoon and 2BR Ocean view, but in the calendar it appears I can only look for 2BRs in general.

That would probably be an administrative nightmare. Each availability view would have to list every specific room type. Some resorts have ocean view, mountain view, harbor view, etc. Then you have upper level, lower level, suites, deluxe, or just plain old # of bedrooms. Then you have some resorts that offer just 1, 2 and 4 bedrooms. Or maybe they only offer 2 bedrooms. There are a lot of different variations that would add to the amount of time it would take to load the calendar initially, and then you run the risk of error. What if a specific room type was not included? What happens if they give the option for a three-bedroom when that resort has no three bedrooms. It's easier to keep it generalized as much as possible. I would imagine if you choose a two-bedroom, you'll only have to choose between two or three different types of two bedrooms. Four at most. It doesn't save a lot of time. Any time saved by choosing a very specific room type would be taken up by the slower calendar load times.

 

[bobbyoc23]

Agreed - just remember it's only MVP 1.0 release so we can input fixes and enhancements from here. I tend to like the color coding idea based upon booking windows, but that's me. Any other suggestions for improvements would be most appreciated.

You guys are doing a great job working with Wyndham. Thank you.

 

[HitchHiker71]

the "not enough points" bug has been there from the beginning of the new site for many of us.

We validated this morning that the "not enough points" errors with respect to both Wyndham and RCI points deposits appears to be resolved. If you find otherwise, please let us know.

 

[HitchHiker71]

It looks like this did not make it into last night's release (at least, it doesn't work for me). Caches were cleared on Safari before checking.

Re: Calendar. This is helpful! But it would be nice to be able to separate availability based on e.g. view when it exists. For example, Kauai Beach Villas has both 2BR Lagoon and 2BR Ocean view, but in the calendar it appears I can only look for 2BRs in general.

I haven't tried searching in Kauai but when searching within Shawnee Village, I do see the village displayed when multiple choices are available. Screenshot for reference:

However, when displaying one a single hit in the search results, it does not display the village name. Screenshot for reference:

This is a known issue that we have documented in our list from inception. We will need to revisit this with our PDM contact next week as it has not been remediated. It is BUG item #5 on our list. This is not calendar view specific - it happens in all searches that return a single result.

Or are you saying you want to see a breakdown by view type in the Suite Type box? IMHO as long as I can see the view description in the search results - I'm OK as is. Screenshot below for reference, shows "lagoon view" in the search resultset:

 

[Eric B]

I haven't tried searching in Kauai but when searching within Shawnee Village, I do see the village displayed when multiple choices are available. Screenshot for reference:

View attachment 22536

However, when displaying one a single hit in the search results, it does not display the village name. Screenshot for reference:

View attachment 22537

This is a known issue that we have documented in our list from inception. We will need to revisit this with our PDM contact next week as it has not been remediated. It is BUG item #5 on our list. This is not calendar view specific - it happens in all searches that return a single result.

Or are you saying you want to see a breakdown by view type in the Suite Type box? IMHO as long as I can see the view description in the search results - I'm OK as is. Screenshot below for reference, shows "lagoon view" in the search resultset:

View attachment 22538

I believe that what @bnoble meant was that the suite type drop down doesn't allow you to differentiate between the subcategories of 2 BR suite types that may exist at a resort.

That would probably be an administrative nightmare. Each availability view would have to list every specific room type. Some resorts have ocean view, mountain view, harbor view, etc. Then you have upper level, lower level, suites, deluxe, or just plain old # of bedrooms. Then you have some resorts that offer just 1, 2 and 4 bedrooms. Or maybe they only offer 2 bedrooms. There are a lot of different variations that would add to the amount of time it would take to load the calendar initially, and then you run the risk of error. What if a specific room type was not included? What happens if they give the option for a three-bedroom when that resort has no three bedrooms. It's easier to keep it generalized as much as possible. I would imagine if you choose a two-bedroom, you'll only have to choose between two or three different types of two bedrooms. Four at most. It doesn't save a lot of time. Any time saved by choosing a very specific room type would be taken up by the slower calendar load times.

It might be an issue setting it up, but IMHO the lack of an ability to screen things by more than just the suite size could hinder the usefulness of this feature. In a situation like the one mentioned where there are two or more subcategories of suites with 2 BR, but you can only limit the availability display for the calendar to the number of rooms, as is the case with this version of the availability calendar and the last one, you will have situations where the calendar displays that a date range is available when it can't really be booked because there are no available suite subcategories that cover the date range, but there are always 2 BR suites available for the date range.

For example, if there are the 2 BR subcategories of lagoon view (or subcategory A) and ocean view (or subcategory B) at a resort, and the availability of those in a given week is the following:

Monday - A available;
Tuesday - B available;
Wednesday - B available;
Thursday - A available;
Friday - A & B available;
Saturday - B available;
Sunday - A available

The availability calendar would show 2 BR availability for the entire week. However, once you select A as the check in day, if you are in a reservation window that requires a 3-night minimum stay (e.g., ARP or standard in prime season), you should get an error saying that no units are available because it is not possible to book a 2 BR A suite for 3 nights and it's also not possible to book a 2 BR B suite for 3 nights. I had this happen to me a number of times with the old availability calendar and it took me a while to figure out why it was happening - there isn't anything that explains that anywhere I've found, so I'm sure it has frustrated many users.

If they were to include some other filtering for the availability calendar display, it could simplify the reservation process and lower potential frustrations for users because it could be communicated to the user why they can't book a week (or 3 days) in a 2 BR suite when the availability calendar says there is one available.

No idea how difficult it would be to provide that type of filtering, but it has to exist on the backend, particularly for resorts where the different suite subcategories have different point values.

 

[paxsarah]

If they were to include some other filtering for the availability calendar display, it could simplify the reservation process and lower potential frustrations for users because it could be communicated to the user why they can't book a week (or 3 days) in a 2 BR suite when the availability calendar says there is one available.

I agree. Another way to put it would be that currently (and in the previous version of the website), the availability calendar shows every single night available in the given unit size, even if those single nights can't be strung together to make a full stay. What might be more helpful would be for the availability calendar to show viable check-in dates instead. Inside the 14-day window, that would be identical to the current calendar of every single available night. Inside the express window, it would include all check-in nights with a 2-night or longer stay available, and inside the standard window it would include 2 or 3 night stays, depending on the season.

 

[bnoble]

We validated this morning that the "not enough points" errors with respect to both Wyndham and RCI points deposits appears to be resolved. If you find otherwise, please let us know.

Looks like it is still not working for me. Screen shots below.

 

[HitchHiker71]

Looks like it is still not working for me. Screen shots below.

View attachment 22541

View attachment 22542

Have you cleared your browser cache? If not, try doing so and then let us know the result. At what point in the process do you receive this prompt? As soon as you click on the Deposit Points button?

 

[HitchHiker71]

I agree. Another way to put it would be that currently (and in the previous version of the website), the availability calendar shows every single night available in the given unit size, even if those single nights can't be strung together to make a full stay.

What might be more helpful would be for the availability calendar to show viable check-in dates instead. Inside the 14-day window, that would be identical to the current calendar of every single available night. Inside the express window, it would include all check-in nights with a 2-night or longer stay available, and inside the standard window it would include 2 or 3 night stays, depending on the season.

This was briefly discussed during our conversations and the back end team will not allow for this broad based type of search query for an entire month's worth of data. Essentially what you're asking for is for the system to check every single date for the month to validate whether a contiguous set of rooms and dates is available for each date displayed - by default. This would translate to running 30+ searches and processing all 30 search results just to display the calendar view initially. This approach would significantly slow down the calendar viewing experience right now. It's something we can add to the enhancement list - but this would require both back office and front office changes - and the back office team is still running waterfall - not agile - so any back office changes will take much longer to come to fruition.

 

[ladawgfan]

These don’t appear to have been addressed with the current release. Are these an issue for everyone else and does anyone know whether Wyndham has plans to fix these problems?

Still can’t search availability by entering the resort name. Search function is still location based.

There is no ability to sort existing reservations by resort or date. For those of us with multiple reservations, it’s extremely frustrating to have to page through existing reservations 3 at a time until the reservation you are looking for appears.

Upcoming reservations continue to show multiple reservations for the same location, dates, and confirmation number, while other existing reservations are not shown at all.

Can no longer add point protection to an existing reservation online. Need to call a VC to get this done.

 

[kaljor]

With the return of an availability calendar, I am a happy camper. Without that, my booking experience was miserable. As others above me have posted, there are a couple of differences from the prior one, but at least I can make it work. I still don't see that the new website offers a big improvement, but It's fine. I have nothing left to complain about, I can use the site and that's all that matters to me.

Thank you again, to Hitchhiker and Richelle (and anyone else who helped) for this amazing project, and for gaining the respect from the Wyndham folks so they took the owner's concerns seriously. You have really helped a whole lot of folks here.

 

[HitchHiker71]

These don’t appear to have been addressed with the current release. Are these an issue for everyone else and does anyone know whether Wyndham has plans to fix these problems?

Still can’t search availability by entering the resort name. Search function is still location based.

There is a solution in the works for this item, but there is no date yet.

There is no ability to sort existing reservations by resort or date. For those of us with multiple reservations, it’s extremely frustrating to have to page through existing reservations 3 at a time until the reservation you are looking for appears.

Are you referring to the Upcoming Vacations view? Or the Transaction History view? I can view existing reservations by date in the Transaction History for example.

How many reservations do you have actually have? I have nine reservations at present for example, and own 1.4MM points.

Upcoming reservations continue to show multiple reservations for the same location, dates, and confirmation number, while other existing reservations are not shown at all.

Clear your browser cache. We've seen improvements after this latest release, however a browser cache clear is usually required to see the improvements as much of this data is cached.

Can no longer add point protection to an existing reservation online. Need to call a VC to get this done.

Yes we have this on our tracking list as regression item #5 and we hope to see a fix in July timeframe, subject to change.

 

[bnoble]

Have you cleared your browser cache? If not, try doing so and then let us know the result. At what point in the process do you receive this prompt? As soon as you click on the Deposit Points button?

Yes, and yes. Cache and history completely cleared on Safari, and as soon as I click on the Deposit Points button in the RCI panel. I have a chrome installation I rarely if ever use. I will check that too. (Edited to add: same result)

 

[comicbookman]

Yes, and yes. Cache and history completely cleared on Safari, and as soon as I click on the Deposit Points button in the RCI panel. I have a chrome installation I rarely if ever use. I will check that too. (Edited to add: same result)

This is now fixed and working foe me. I was able to deposit points to 2021. previously I was getting the same "Not enough points" error

 

[HitchHiker71]

Looks like it is still not working for me. Screen shots below.

View attachment 22541

View attachment 22542

I could be wrong, but AFAIK you cannot deposit future use year points, nor could you on the old Voyager site. Is that what you're trying to do here?

 

[paxsarah]

I could be wrong, but AFAIK you cannot deposit future use year points, nor could you on the old Voyager site. Is that what you're trying to do here?

To RCI you can deposit future use year points 10 months in advance. (You cannot use Points Deposit on future year points.)

 

[paxsarah]

This approach would significantly slow down the calendar viewing experience right now.

It's a tradeoff between the calendar's initial load slowing down, or a user potentially clicking on multiple check-in dates and receiving the message that they won't work. The latter could easily take longer and be more frustrating than the former. I don't actually know which would be a better solution for the user.

Part of the issue is that say 9 months out, most check-in dates are probably viable and a user will more likely find something acceptable on the first or second try. In that timeframe, the slow load of the initial calendar may not result in an actual benefit to the user. But closer in or during the discount period, there might be 15 nights showing available but only 3 viable stays starting on those dates. A slower calendar load will likely pay off for the user who doesn't need to click on multiple check-in dates that don't work. So the real tradeoff is between helping the second user's experience at the expense of the first user's experience.

 

[Manzana]

Looks like I can back out of a reservation

 

[HitchHiker71]

To RCI you can deposit future use year points 10 months in advance. (You cannot use Points Deposit on future year points.)

Did this function exist on Voyager? I don’t believe it did but I’m not a big RCI user either hence the ask. It makes a difference in so far as priority is concerned. One is a regression, one is an enhancement. Regressions are always higher priority.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[paxsarah]

Did this function exist on Voyager? I don’t believe it did but I’m not a big RCI user either hence the ask. It makes a difference in so far as priority is concerned. One is a regression, one is an enhancement. Regressions are always higher priority.

It did exist. I'm trying to figure out if I personally actually deposited future year points to RCI during Voyager, and I can't remember. I know I at least went into the dialog partway into the process, and it provided the ability to choose which use year (current or next) to deposit points from.

Edit: I'm pretty sure I did not complete a future year deposit myself, because my 2020 exchange was made with transferred points, my 2018 exchange was made in the first two months of 2018 (so I couldn't have deposited future year points for it), and my 2017 exchanges were made prior to Voyager.