Check in time

[Pdollar88]

Hello! I'm hoping to stay at the Poly Villas in September 2023. I'm used to having access to my room early, say around 11, at the regular Disney resorts.

Is that possible with the Villas? I see that check-in time is listed as 4pm.

 

[erionm]

Will depend on what time the previous guests left the room and when housekeeping gets in it to prepare it for the next guests. Once housekeeping is done cleaning a room, they dial a special extension on the in-room phone which tells the resort computer that the room is ready to be occupied.

 

[BillPA]

You can check in early, like 6am. Your room may not be ready until after 4 pm. If your unit is ready earlier you can go to it, most likely you will have to wait until 4-5 pm.

 

[Pdollar88]

Will depend on what time the previous guests left the room and when housekeeping gets in it to prepare it for the next guests. Once housekeeping is done cleaning a room, they dial a special extension on the in-room phone which tells the resort computer that the room is ready to be occupied.

Perfect - that's what I assumed. I just wondered if anyone had had success in getting into a room relatively early.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Perfect - that's what I assumed. I just wondered if anyone had had success in getting into a room relatively early.

It happens, but can be rare with DVC. They tend to be 100% occupied, and housekeeping is understaffed.

You have to also be willing to accept first available unit. Even if it isn't "third floor Tokelau pool view." Your only request needs to be "first available."

 

[tjkraz]

Perfect - that's what I assumed. I just wondered if anyone had had success in getting into a room relatively early.

Just to reiterate, it is POSSIBLE but completely unknown whether a room will be ready early. Disney resort hotels average 90% occupancy. That means, on any given day, hotels have dozens of rooms vacant from the night before to accommodate early arrivals. Plus whatever rooms are cleaned at the start of the day.

DVC resorts operate at virtually 100% occupancy. Meaning rooms aren't available to new guests until they have been vacated and cleaned. And the departing guests have until 11am to leave.

If you stay at a DVC resort, you absolutely, positively must plan as if you will not have access to a room until 4-5pm. If you have an urgent need for access 6 hours early (child nap?), look elsewhere. Yes there are people who have gotten a room by 11am. In the grand scheme of things, it's quite rare. Over 20 years, I can think of one example where we got our room that early. And it was a slow season at a slow resort where the room happened to be left over from the previous night.
My own personal average is probably around 2-3pm and there are many times it has approached the 4pm deadline.

 

[Pdollar88]

Just to reiterate, it is POSSIBLE but completely unknown whether a room will be ready early. Disney resort hotels average 90% occupancy. That means, on any given day, hotels have dozens of rooms vacant from the night before to accommodate early arrivals. Plus whatever rooms are cleaned at the start of the day.

DVC resorts operate at virtually 100% occupancy. Meaning rooms aren't available to new guests until they have been vacated and cleaned. And the departing guests have until 11am to leave.

If you stay at a DVC resort, you absolutely, positively must plan as if you will not have access to a room until 4-5pm. If you have an urgent need for access 6 hours early (child nap?), make different arrangements. Yes there are people who have gotten a room by 11am. In the grand scheme of things, it's quite rare. Over 20 years, I can think of one example where we got our room that early. And it was a slow season at a slow resort where the room happened to be left over from the previous night.
My own personal average is probably around 2-3pm and there are many times it has approached the 4pm deadline.

I really don't have an urgent need. I'll be going solo, and as long as they'll hold my bags, I'm good to go.

Thanks everyone for the replies!

 

[drusba]

Over a period of many, many years, the earliest I have ever had a room ready is 1 p.m. and that happened once. Most often I have gotten the room ready email after 2:30 and usually before 4, although I have had a few waits that went to five or a little after. I have also had two complete screw-ups, one where I was given a room and when we went to it someone else was in it because they had been given the same room; the second one was similar in that we had a two bedroom lock-off but when we got to the room, the 1BR was available but the studio was occupied by someone else who had been given the studio.

 

[DizneyLizzy]

I will say out of all the DVC resorts, I've had the best luck getting into my room early at the Poly. Maybe because it's all studios, other than the bungalows. I've stayed at the Poly Villas 4 times, and all 4 times I've been in my room before 2 PM.

 

[sticker231]

I really don't have an urgent need. I'll be going solo, and as long as they'll hold my bags, I'm good to go.

Thanks everyone for the replies!

You can definitely drop your bags at Bell Service and head wherever you'd like.

 

[ZerasPride]

Our room was ready at 5:30 back in May at the Beach Club when we checked in around noon but we had very specific villa requests which were met and generally I would say it was worth the wait for our 9 day stay.

I just completed a girls trip at Bay Lake and when we checked in around noon we nicely asked for any villa that was ready and at 1:00 I got the text that our villa was ready. So I would say pick your priority - room ready versus room location preference. It may help.