Travel Agent or Disney

[allenandshell219]

Is it cheaper to go through a travel agent or straight through Disney for reservations...we have used Disney for the last 4 years and I have seen on like Mousesavers travel agents and people say they are cheaper...anyone know and if so who is the best travel agent to go through

 

[Sue M]

I have used a WDW specialized TA sometimes, and sometimes I book myself.
Ears To You has been great. Using a TA isn't cheaper, they can get you the same rates as you would get booking directly.
Then benefits as I see it are that:
*They can do the Disney Math, when WDW is putting out multiple discounts, IE: free dining or room discount, or the 4/3 promo, they will number crunch and figure out the best deal for you.
*They know sometimes a tad ahead, when new discounts are coming out, and will automatically be on the phone with WDW, getting you the discount if it is applicable to your vacation. So they keep an eye on discounts, doing the leg work for you.

yes, they can save you $, thru their Knowledge. They can also suggest touring plans, and restaurants you may enjoy, and if you want, make your ADRs for you.

Another thing i like is that if you want to make a change, or add something on, it's just an e mail away, you don't have to phone WDW and stay on hold waiting. Just fire off an E mail to TA. Works for making payments too. I'll just e mail TA and ask her to make a payment for me.

 

[aussietravellers]

I have used www.yourmagicaljourneys.com for our recent Disneyland trip and had never used a TA before, had always booked direct, but Denise was so great that we will be using them again for our WDW trip. They don't charge any more than Disney direct and they keep an eye out for specials for you. We are hoping for free dining to come up when we are there, so will book this week and wonderful Denise at Magical Journeys will keep an eye out for better deals that come along for us.

 

[Bill and Jen]

Just a word of warning, If you use a TA they own your reservation and you can not make any changes to it through Disney, it must be done through the TA.

Me being a control freak, I find I need to own my reservation.

 

[cbg1027]

Part of the fun about a Disney trip for me is in the planning. I'm also pretty type-A, so I would never use a TA!

The part about the TA "owning" your reservation is a real downside to me.

As far as prices though, I don't think a TA is going to save you much, if any, on your trip. You're probably better off researching here on the boards and the various Disney websites.

 

[NYTiz]

We booked through AAA Travel for our trip last February. It saves a little bit of money and our agent was wonderful! I did make a couple of changes to our itinerary through her, but we made all of our own ADR's.

 

[CarKey]

If you book through a AAA travel agency you get their pack of perks with your ticket packet. It has discounts and best of all...the Diamond Parking pass. (I think that's what it is called).

 

[Native NYer]

I always book directly through Disney and never use a TA. I like having control over my reservation and don't need the extra help with ADRs. I keep an eye out for discounts and just call to add a code or PIN to my package.

One big plus (for me anyway) to booking directly through Disney is that their phone lines are open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. EST everyday. If I have questions or want to make a change, I don't have to wait for the TA's business hours. I can call at 7 a.m. on the day a deal is released.

 

[Desnik]

I never use a TA. I book directly through Disney(I am a DVC'er but I often do split stays at non DVC resorts). I do my research here and mousesavers to find the best deals. Usually I book room only and almost always get a general code or an AP rate. Then I have up until 5 days before to cancel instead of the 45 days before cancelation policy with a package. I like booking everything on my own and separately. A TA would not get me a better deal I just think people like to use them so they don't have to do too much research and planning. Me, I love the research and planning part and it is very important for me to have control over my own reservation.

 

[kathleendsm]

For our original reservation we went with Dreams Unlimited. They were really nice and I'm sure they do a great job, but having to go through the TA started to grate on me, especially when he (obviously) wasn't available 24/7. I had to book ADRs through him and wait for responses and changing things felt like a pain because I didn't want to feel like I was inconveniencing him.

We ended up canceling that reservation and renting DVC points instead. Now we control all of our own ADRs which is so much easier and faster if we have changes we want to make. I think we would have done fine with the discounts too because we like to do our own research and we keep close tabs on what's coming out.

It's really a style thing. For a lot of people, having the assurance that the TA is always looking out for them is really fantastic. They don't want to do it themselves, and they aren't going to make a lot of changes. If you're kind of type A hands on and are doing tons of research, and if you might be making various changes to things like dining reservations, I think it's better to do it yourself.

 

[francie57]

We always book through AAA. We priced our next trip with both AAA and Dreams Unlimites (told them we were AAA members) and the AAA price came in $800 cheaper. AAA gives a room discount and ticket discount plus the other items they include in their package (parking pass is the best for AK). We have never had a problem using AAA and I am able to make my own ADRs which all I really care about. Once I book the package for the room/tix/DDP we really don't have anything that will change (unless there is an emergency and we have to cancel - thats what insurance is for!) so I don't really care that the TA controls the reservation. We book our own air and rental car.

 

[julirina]

not to hijack, but...

I was hoping to book our Sept trip in the next few weeks and get Free Dining if/when it comes along in the spring. Is it possible to do this without a TA's help? When FD is released can I just call WDW, give them my res# and ask them to add the FD package? I was going to go with a TA just to make this easier but if I can do it myself, I'd rather. Thanks!

 

[vicki_c]

not to hijack, but...

I was hoping to book our Sept trip in the next few weeks and get Free Dining if/when it comes along in the spring. Is it possible to do this without a TA's help? When FD is released can I just call WDW, give them my res# and ask them to add the FD package? I was going to go with a TA just to make this easier but if I can do it myself, I'd rather. Thanks!

Yes you can do that yourself with no problem.

 

[Conkozan]

I have used www.yourmagicaljourneys.com for our recent Disneyland trip and had never used a TA before, had always booked direct, but Denise was so great that we will be using them again for our WDW trip. They don't charge any more than Disney direct and they keep an eye out for specials for you. We are hoping for free dining to come up when we are there, so will book this week and wonderful Denise at Magical Journeys will keep an eye out for better deals that come along for us.

I have used Magical Journeys many times, and it seems like they are always available! I can email my agent at odd hours and I hear back almost immediately. As soon as a discount is out, they have it applied while I am heading to work, saves me a lot of grief trying to call.

 

[TaleasoldasTime]

We used a TA for our December and found it pointless, besides for the gift card of $50. We booked through Disney ourselves for our July trip.

 

[Sue M]

I always book directly through Disney and never use a TA. I like having control over my reservation and don't need the extra help with ADRs. I keep an eye out for discounts and just call to add a code or PIN to my package.

One big plus (for me anyway) to booking directly through Disney is that their phone lines are open 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. EST everyday. If I have questions or want to make a change, I don't have to wait for the TA's business hours. I can call at 7 a.m. on the day a deal is released.

When you live on the west coast it's a bit harder! I was up at 4AM making my dining ADRs on the 90 day mark! I prefer making my own ADRs!

But I know when I use my TA,(who is on the east coast) she will be up and on the phone at 7AM with Disney getting me the discount. And I don't have to wait for business hours, I just fire off an e mail, and she checks her e mails at home, on weekends, 24/7!