Can I book AAA rate directly through Disney?

[jalaine]

Our travel dates are 4/26/13-5/5/13 and I have our package booked directly with Disney. Not being sure if any discounts will be released for those dates, I called Disney yesterday and asked if I could get a AAA discount applied to our package since we have a AAA card, but WITHOUT booking through AAA. I've read some things on here that make me think people have done this???

But the CM I spoke with said in order to get a AAA discount, I would have to cancel my res. w/ Disney and have a AAA agent book it instead and then I would lose control over my res. directly which I do NOT want to do. Was she right???? She definitely seemed like she was trying to discourage me from moving my res. to AAA, saying that the price w/ AAA discount would essentially be the same and emphasizing that I wouldn't be able to have control over my res. then...

Was she right or should I call back to get another CM? She was lovely though and said discounts for 2013 should start coming out very soon...fall 2012 ish.

 

[ms mouse]

Haven't done it lately but I have booked with a AAA rate. I do think it was a room only reservation. I would call back and try room reservation you can always add dining and tickets later if you want.

 

[bdklein]

Our travel dates are 4/26/13-5/5/13 and I have our package booked directly with Disney. Not being sure if any discounts will be released for those dates, I called Disney yesterday and asked if I could get a AAA discount applied to our package since we have a AAA card, but WITHOUT booking through AAA. I've read some things on here that make me think people have done this???

But the CM I spoke with said in order to get a AAA discount, I would have to cancel my res. w/ Disney and have a AAA agent book it instead and then I would lose control over my res. directly which I do NOT want to do. Was she right???? She definitely seemed like she was trying to discourage me from moving my res. to AAA, saying that the price w/ AAA discount would essentially be the same and emphasizing that I wouldn't be able to have control over my res. then...

Was she right or should I call back to get another CM? She was lovely though and said discounts for 2013 should start coming out very soon...fall 2012 ish.

From what I know, you can book a room through Disney and get AAA discount. But any packages utilizing the AAA discount need to go through AAA.

What's the big deal about having "control" over your reservation?
What types of things can only you do that the AAA agent cannot? Or the Disney rep, for that matter. Just curious.

I have used AAA in the past with no problems for 2 WDW package reservations-and used 2 different agents within my agency. All went without a hitch-but no promises for you. As it seems amlmost all do, from what I read here.

Good luck however you go.

 

[ErinsMommy]

If its room only, Disney can book with a AAA discount and you can always get park tickets through numerous other sources. However, if you want a package that includes dining, you must go through AAA. No need to cancel your reservation though -- just call a local AAA agent and they'll pick up your existing reservation so you don't lose any ADRs you may have already made.

 

[Mom2Luci]

Given the experience I've had with my AAA package, I'd have to say it's not worth the potential savings to book through AAA.

I cannot make any changes or get any information about my package from Disney. I have to rely on a less than responsive AAA TA. I emailed her almost 2 weeks ago to ask about my documents for ME and everything else and she said I'd have them by the end of last week. I emailed her again today and was informed I may not get them before I leave. Of course, I can only go by what she is telling me, I can't call Disney and ask what's going on. This is the most frustrating part to me. We leave in 12 days and I have nothing other than the itinerary AAA sent me. Thankfully I can at least look at the Disney site and see my reservations are there. I don't think I'd use AAA again for a Disney trip.

 

[lanejudy]

Our travel dates are 4/26/13-5/5/13 and I have our package booked directly with Disney. Not being sure if any discounts will be released for those dates, I called Disney yesterday and asked if I could get a AAA discount applied to our package since we have a AAA card, but WITHOUT booking through AAA. I've read some things on here that make me think people have done this???

You are trying to apply an AAA discount to a package, and there technically isn't one. Disney CAN apply a AAA discount to a room-only reservation, but if you want a package discount it has to be booked through AAA. And the CM may or may not be correct that it would cost the same. AAA may not be offering a package discount now, or not valid for your travel dates. AAA room-only discount (I think it's 10% but not sure) is usually valid at any time as long as the particular resort has not already filled all rooms allotted for the discount (not all rooms can have the discount).

 

[kelleigh1]

As others have reported, in order to get a AAA package, yes, that must be done through a AAA TA.

Now just like everything else, there are good and bad AAA TA's out there. They may all claim to be Disney experts, but they aren't. I've booked all our trips with a AAA TA, and she's not even in the same state. She is very responsive and knows her stuff. When I went to my local AAA office when planning my first trip, I knew more than they did. I got a referral for another AAA TA (probably from someone here all those years ago) and I haven't hesitated once in booked with her since. Although I do make all my own ADR's.

You will find good ones and bad ones, and you don't have to go through your local office. If you don't like the answers/info they give you, find a different office to work with.

 

[cmadara]

I will never go through a AAA agent again. They all will say they are Disney experts and have Disney stuff all over their desks, but most are not. I had a problem a few weeks ago that I posted on here about. A discount came out for my dates, I confirmed through the Disney phone number but b/c I booked through AAA I could not make changes on my reservation- the AAA agent had to . By the time I got a hold of her the next morning and when she got around to calling, all availability was gone. So I lost out on a $200 savings- not a huge amount but......
Do your own reseasrch on here and mousesavers.com (and other sites as well) and you will be able to be your own TA! I found I was telling my AAA TA stuff she had no idea what I was talking about!
Book your RO reservation through Disney using your AAA.

 

[jalaine]

Thanks everyone! That explains it then. For our first trip ever, I booked with AAA and although she was fine, I didn't like having to wait for her to do things for me, such as calling Disney to have discounts applied when they became available. She was off some days (obviously) and the hours were pretty much 9-5, so if I found out about a discount early evening or the weekend or something, I couldn't do anything about it until she got back to me...it was really frustrating for me personally.

Since then I've booked our trips myself and have been much happier! So it looks like I'll just wait a couple more months and see if Disney discounts come out and go from there...

Thanks again for all your replies

 

[twodogs]

Where are you staying? AAA room- only discount is up to 20% off right now, which may be a lot better than a general public discount from Disney later. I just booked a room-only at BLT for 20%off rack rates through WDW for almost your exact same dates. I can still buy tickets online directly from Disney (but not by adding them to my room-only reservation because that makes it a package and those have to be booked via AAA). The only thing keeping it as room only and then tickets only does is keep me from getting little things that you get with the packages such as mini golf etc. these are not things we use, so it is no loss. Also I like that with room only, I can cancel without a penalty up to 5 days before the trip. For us, room discount is better than dining, so we don't add this. AAA rooms are limited at the resorts, so early booking is critical.

For you, it might be good to call WDW and see what the room only price with AAA discount is. Then price out buying tickets separately. Remember there is not a discount on the price of tickets with a package versus buying tickets separately from the room. Then compare that to your current package and the package price AAA will book you. Might be better deal to snag a room only at 20% which you do yourself through WDW. You retain control of reservation, and if a better GP discount comes up later, there's no fee to change to that discount on your room if it is available for your dates.