Studio at AKL or reg room at POR?

[COscrapper]

Prettypinkpoppies it sounds like we are in the same situation! Right now our stay at POR at end of Oct would be about $1630, but renting points for a standard studio at AKL is $1232 - however if Disney offers a room discount in the fall like they usually do, it will be about the same. I never dreamed we'd get to stay in a deluxe; then I read about renting points and took a look at prices out of curiosity...

I am a taaaad nervous about paying up front in cash with no refund though...what if we have some kind of emergency or something? And we weren't planning on paying for ANYTHING until April when DH gets his bonus, not sure we can book it before then so don't know what will be left then either. How many months ahead did you book yours?

 

[COscrapper]

We are staying 7 nights - will that get us a cleaning halfway through our stay? For some reason the website won't let me use the "quote" option in my replies right now.

 

[ciera321]

We are staying 7 nights - will that get us a cleaning halfway through our stay? For some reason the website won't let me use the "quote" option in my replies right now.

We always buy traveler insurance. It really isn't very much, and it would cover you for the price of the resort if there was an emergency, in most cases. For our trip in October, we paid $98 total for 2 of us for an 8 day trip.

Here is the info on housekeeping:

Trash and Towel ServicesFor stays of seven or fewer nights, Trash and Towel Service is provided on day four. With this service, Housekeeping will

• Empty the trash and put new liners in the wastebaskets
• Provide fresh bathroom towels
• Replace shampoo, facial soap and bath soap
• Replenish facial tissues, paper towels, and toilet paper
• Replenish coffee, sugar, and cream
• Replenish diswashing liquid, dishwasher detergent, sponges, and laundry detergent as applicable

 

[ldo]

You can request Jambo when you rent points, but there are much fewer rooms @ Jambo. But, if I were you, I would not want to risk that much $ for something that I cannot cancel. I would book a room only rate at POR and then wait and see if a deal comes out. There is also a decent chance that there would still be standard rooms @ Kidani in April, at which time you could canx POR and switch over, if you still wanted. Travel ins will cover things like accident, etc. but not change of plans, "it's not a good time for us to go," "big sports/school event," etc. I never plan nonrefundable into a new school year until I know what's going on for that year.

 

[COscrapper]

Oooooh, great info, ciera321! I think I am leaning towards AKL now...if we can manage to pay for it in time...

 

[COscrapper]

Very good points, Ido!

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Hi COscrapper,
I am renting points for the first time ever. I was also going to stay at POR this summer, but just booked AKL, standard view studio. I went through a points broker and was able to request Jambo House. It is going to be cheaper doing the studio ($1,800 for 8 nights) then the same at POR. Since we will be there 8 nights we will get a full cleaning service on day 4 and trash/towel service on day 8. We are fine with this and figure we can possibly get clean towels in the pool area if needed. Looking at the studios rooms available, Jambo houses seem have a much better chance of a pool (or savannah!) view.

Wrong order. You get trash and towel on day 4, not a full cleaning.

 

[chicagoshannon]

We've stayed at both places.

POR- food court is better, especially for picky eaters. It just has more choices.
Beautiful walking paths between POR and FQ and you can rent bikes (I think you can still do this)
Very peaceful boat ride to Downtown Disney


AKL- savanna's to walk around
Face painting (free)


They both have pools with slides and the rooms felt the same size. You can't go wrong with either choice.

 

[COscrapper]

This is somewhat off-topic, but do I still need the $200 deposit when booking a room only?

 

[Prettypinkpoppies]

Prettypinkpoppies it sounds like we are in the same situation! Right now our stay at POR at end of Oct would be about $1630, but renting points for a standard studio at AKL is $1232 - however if Disney offers a room discount in the fall like they usually do, it will be about the same. I never dreamed we'd get to stay in a deluxe; then I read about renting points and took a look at prices out of curiosity...

I am a taaaad nervous about paying up front in cash with no refund though...what if we have some kind of emergency or something? And we weren't planning on paying for ANYTHING until April when DH gets his bonus, not sure we can book it before then so don't know what will be left then either. How many months ahead did you book yours?

I booked this week and am going the last week of July. We had some money put back already, so it was okay to pay up front. However, I don't plan to buy park tickets until closer to the 60 day fastpass resrvation time. There wasn't any availabilty at Jambo for the week I had set aside at the end of June. Likewise, kidani was available the third and fourth week of July, but Jambo was only available the very last week and with limited availabilty. The agent I was on the phone was cautious to note that it might take 48 hours to secure the reservation and by that time, the room(s) may be booked. However, they were able to get me a room by noon the next day.

I was very nervous booking the points, but I feel so much better now. I was immediately given a confirmation code and had the email that disney sent to to the person who sold the points to company. I was able to link my reservation in MDE and have already booked all of my restaurants for the week.

 

[Prettypinkpoppies]

Wrong order. You get trash and towel on day 4, not a full cleaning.

Hi aurora,
I just double checked two of the point rental companies I researched and both noted that for stays of 8 nights or longer (we are doing 8), we will get a full cleaning on day 4. However, 7 nights or less only get the towel/trash on day 4.

 

[Babsy]

This is somewhat off-topic, but do I still need the $200 deposit when booking a room only?

Room only bookings requires a one night deposit. It can be cancelled/refunded up to 6days prior to arrival.