AP Discounts rant...........

[dkrauss]

Good morning folks.............

My wife and I have a trip planned for June 21 thru June 28th. We're very excited about seeing Rivers Of Light........we were able to snag the dining package. We also were able to get BOG dinner for the 1st time in since it opened. We've planned a split stay at WL and POP Century..........was able to get great plane tickets from Newark.

Here's my issue. I originally only planned for 4 days at POP but being the Disney geek I am. I was trolling ADR's and much to my surprise I was able to get the BOG resi............for the 22nd.......hmmm So I said to myself.........."Self......." why not surprise my wife with a few extra days at the WL . Our favorite resort! I also said..........."Self".........wait for the AP discount to book WL and save 30%/35%. So I checked Mousesavers and found that historically (this is where I get in trouble) the AP discount for the time frame I'm interested in booking occurs in late February.

Ok...........late February is gone............its now early March..................WHERE IS MY AP DISCOUNTS

Rant (as it is ) done!

Doug

 

[goofy4tink]

Sadly, AP discounts are never a given. Hope you find something that fits the bill though!!! That's a nice surprise.

 

[dkrauss]

I appreciate that point, however, in reviewing the historical information on the subject............Disney has been very consistent regarding them. I have my fingers crossed

Doug

 

[ThistleMae]

LOL...yeah....you and a bunch of other people asking the same question! It's always a waiting game. We all try to calculate when and what deals are being offered....and we wait...and wait...and wait. While past behavior is often the predictor of future behavior, Disney doesn't play that way. We stalk these boards, we desperately search Mousesavers for any clues, for any past patterns, and then we scramble when the actual deals come out making sure we are at the right resort in the right time frame. So along with the rest of us....you'll just have to check daily until something comes out....or just book it and hope. Good luck, you are a very special husband and I hope you can surprise your wife.

 

[Lynne M]

Moving this to the Discount Codes and Rates board.

 

[dkrauss]

Thank you @ThistleMae . I wait because I'm a bit nervous about booking now and when the discount finally does come........I get closed out. I need to just re-read your post from time to time.

Thanks,

Doug

 

[jpeden]

Thank you @ThistleMae . I wait because I'm a bit nervous about booking now and when the discount finally does come........I get closed out. I need to just re-read your post from time to time.

Thanks,

Doug

Could you book Room Only so you only have to put the deposit down that way if for some reason it doesn't come out you can cancel? Just an idea so you at least have a room held and you can call the morning they become avaliable.

 

[focusondisney]

Could you book Room Only so you only have to put the deposit down that way if for some reason it doesn't come out you can cancel? Just an idea so you at least have a room held and you can call the morning they become avaliable.

Having a room booked at rack rate will not offer any advantage in getting a discount. Say Disney decides to only offer 10 rooms (just an example) with an AP discount. If 10 people call before the OP, all the discounted rooms will be gone & he will not get the discount. It may even make Disney less likely to discount rooms. Discounts are offered to help fill rooms. If most rooms are booked at rack rate, there will be no reason to offer discounts. All having a room booked at rack rate will do is guarantee the OP will stay there at rack rate.

 

[dkrauss]

Having a room booked at rack rate will not offer any advantage in getting a discount. Say Disney decides to only offer 10 rooms (just an example) with an AP discount. If 10 people call before the OP, all the discounted rooms will be gone & he will not get the discount. It may even make Disney less likely to discount rooms. Discounts are offered to help fill rooms. If most rooms are booked at rack rate, there will be no reason to offer discounts. All having a room booked at rack rate will do is guarantee the OP will stay there at rack rate.

This was what I assumed.............so I'm diligently watching the website. Hey it may not work...........but since I have the deposit money and there are other options, I figure waiting is my best play right now.................Just ranting because I WANNA BOOK!!!

Doug

 

[tuckerkeys]

Last year, the AP rates for the summer came out mid March. I know this because I was on vacation in the FL Keys when I booked my June 17-25 trip! It was after March 19. So, hopefully, this will happen around that timeframe this year!

 

[cruiser21]

Cheap tickets is giving 16% on top of the Spring discount. Use code sunshine. They may offer the same thing this Summer or try Orbitz.

 

[dkrauss]

Ok folks.............listen to this and heed my warning.

I've been following Disney's website everyday for the past 2 weeks waiting for the new AP discount. In fact this thread was based on that wait. So nothing has really happened. So each day I log in and search the Wilderness Lodge "Places to stay" area. I've always had the Standard Room come up with a "reasonable" price. I was also aware of the situation with rooms at WL.....there in lies my mistake..........yes BIG MISTAKE. I was holding out booking in the hope that I could just do it only with the discount and reduce the amount of my down payment (STUPID MOVE!)

This morning (March 9th) I woke up and went over to my PC, logged in to the MDE..........went to the Wilderness Lodge booking area...........and..............................the Standard room is no longer available . I MESSED UP! I was on the phone at 7am to WDW........spoke with a very affable CM who was unable to get me a Standard room (with that reasonable price) at this time .

So what I ended up doing was booking a Courtyard Room.............for $180 (total) more for our 3 night stay! Its not the end of the world.......... After speaking with the CM I could have taken a DVC Studio room for a small amount less. However he pointed out that the AP discount on the DVC Villas can be only 25% while a room in the main Lodge could be 35%.......so I went with that POTENTIAL scenario.

Yeah I could have booked a different resort and saved some money but my wife and I have the WL embedded in our first 4 days of this trip (8 days total - the last 4 at POP Century). I didn't want to change that up..............yeah I'm being inflexible about that...........I'm paying more for that but its MY choice.

So..............don't wait for discounts............know the situation at your resort.............book the darn room and worry about the discount when it comes out. Arrrrgggggggggg

Doug

 

[emmabelle]

Sometimes they do add more rooms closer to the date. I was able to get a Passholder discount for a deluxe club level room at WL really close to our date. I hadn't seen it come up until then. It's a pain to check every day but you never know.

 

[CJMickeyMouse]

Keep checking. People cancel and/or change all the time. Good luck, I hope you get some pixie dust!

 

[Maistre Gracey]

AP discounts should be appreciated, but never asssumed.

Sounds like you assumed.

MG

 

[dkrauss]

Maybe I mis-stated my mistake...........I was "hoping" for the AP discount...........My thought was I can live with the standard room price "even" if I DON'T get the discount. I do understand that the discounts are limited at best and never guaranteed. My mistake was not booking the room based on my original thought that the standard room was the best price and I just should have booked it. In the end I realize that I may not get a discount on this room.............but I'm ok with that..............because we're so excited about the WL. If I do get the discount.............any discount.............just gravy

Doug

 

[Babsy]

Yes, it is important to realize that rooms do sell out. So, if you really want a particular resort and room category regardless of the discount, then you should book as soon as you are able. Only wait to book a room that you will not stay in unless you get the discount. Even then, we book a 'back up resort plan' at rack rate that we are willing to live with if no discounts are offered for our preferred option. It is just a matter of upgrading if discounts become available later.

 

[DebbieB]

The thing to keep in mind about Wilderness Lodge is about half the rooms are in the process of being converted to DVC. Copper Creek Villas are opening in July (the half of WL being converted). So availability will be less than it used to be and discounts less likely.

 

[LAS321]

AP discounts should be appreciated, but never asssumed.

Really? If you read the AP page on the Disney site it specifically says that your AP includes special resort offers.....so yes, if we purchased an AP we don't assume, we expect special offers on resorts.

 

[dkrauss]

@LAS321 they do make it seem like we should expect it..............but we all know that isn't always accurate.

Doug