Do you book with a travel agent or Disney directly?

[jlk806]

I have always booked with Disney directly. Are there any advantages to booking with a travel agent instead - like Small World or Dreams Unlimited?

 

[damone]

Some will say the advantage is that if you're looking for a discount, they can keep an eye out for them and apply them for you. If you can check the boards out once a day, you're better off on your own. If you ever need to make changes, you can call Disney and do it. Otherwise, the travel agent has to.

 

[KatMark]

I don't use either of the two you mentioned (although I do use a Disney one). I have let our Disney TA do 90% of all of our planning for our last seven of nine trips and have been completely satisfied. She goes above and beyond in watching for specials and changing our current plans, making/chanding ADR's, etc.

It really comes down to a personal preference. I don't always have the time I'd like to sit on the phone or checking codes, etc., that I would like to. My TA does that all for me.

 

[JohnnyB2]

We used a travel agent at first, then disney direct,but with the information on the Disboards it's easy to keep up on discounts,packages,etc yourself.Or Small World and Dreams Unlimited from what I've heard, are excellent at planning your trip for you.Either way, have a great trip

 

[DSQUIRT]

I don't have the time to monitor prices, changes, etc. Therefore, I always use a Disney-qualified TA. I have been very pleased. Usually, a booking is done for the dates I want to be at Disney. When better rates are offered, the TA makes all the necessary changes for me. No fuss. No muss.

 

[diskids2]

I think it boils down to personal preference.

I have done both. I prefer to do it myself because I do not like giving up control of my reservation. Since I check daily for discounts and am a uber planner I saw no benefit to having a TA do this for me.

HOWEVER, if I was not an uber planner or did not have the time or resources to devote to looking out for discounts, booking ADR's, etc. I would go with a TA and I would recommend Dreams Unlimited. My DU TA was very good. I would mention one thing after recommending DU and that is you have to be comfortable with email communicating. You can call the DU 800 number and the person will help you as much as they can, but you will not be able to just call your TA when you need to. For some people that might not work out.

For sure, I would not go to WDW without spending the time to look for discounts or book ADR's, IMHO. I have saved so much money after booking by simply using newly published codes and listening to the tips on these boards. In fact, I just saved over $300 on my Universal hotel nights.

 

[trekker93]

Boy, for the last 4 years we've been using bounce backs and i believe those are Disney. By doing it this way, we have not had any trouble, getting ADR's or MNSSHP tix, etc.. Then when we look on line to do thingson our reservation, it is always there to look at and check!

 

[cosmicrays]

I don't use either of the two you mentioned (although I do use a Disney one). I have let our Disney TA do 90% of all of our planning for our last seven of nine trips and have been completely satisfied. She goes above and beyond in watching for specials and changing our current plans, making/chanding ADR's, etc.

It really comes down to a personal preference. I don't always have the time I'd like to sit on the phone or checking codes, etc., that I would like to. My TA does that all for me.

Ditto for me as well. I love my planner and got her name from someone here on the DIS. She has saved me time, money, and made my life so much easier.

 

[Wendy*Darling]

I use a Disney Specialist TA too, but not one of the ones you mentioned. I've used Magical Memories for a few years now and have always been very happy. I'll continue to do so for future trips too. Yes, I lose the ability to call Disney and make changes but I can call my TA and make changes and she takes care of it. Never once has a change fallen through or anything. She's great with watching for discounts for me and for recommending ways to save. In fact for our Spring Break trip, when I booked in January our dates were blacked out of the room discount adn gift card offers. The Disney web site listed our dates as blacked out right up until the offers were taken down. We accepted the fact that it was peak season and we weren't getting a discount but it is a special trip in honor of my FIL who passed away at the end of 2009 and made DH promise he would take the kids on a vacation "from Papaw" with part of the money DH was left. So we booked at rack and paid in full. We were OK with it and my TA knew it. Still, she kept checking even though everything still listed our dates as part of the blackout dates. I ended up getting a surprise phone call from her that she was able to get us a discount and saved us over $1000 on the trip! I was impressed that she kept trying even under those circumstances and then made a change even though that meant her commission went down.

I also like knowing I have someone on my side if something goes wrong. Fortunately we haven't had any big problems but we did have one situation where I feel like she helped a lot. A few years ago my husband and I booked a "grown up trip" for our anniversary. We booked a lagoon view room at the BWI. We got there to check in and were told that lagoon view was overbooked so we were being put in a standard view room. They were very appologetic and immediately refunded us the difference in cost but I was really disappointed, especially when I discovered that our room looked out over the parking lot! I love looking out over the Boardwalk and seeing the lights twinkling on the water. DH and I went back to the desk and were told that they could not move us right then but maybe in a day or two. We were only staying 4 nights as it was! I called her to see if maybe we could move to the Beach or Yacht club or something and she went to work. A few hours later while we were at Epcot, I got a call from her saying that she had worked with guest services and to stop by the desk and ask for a certain CM who would take care of moving us. Our TA said "I'm really sorry I couldn't get you in to anything with a view of the lagoon but I think you will be happy with your new room. It definitely has a very pretty view." We were moved to a Garden Suite for no extra charge at all! The next night we got chocolate covered strawberries and a bottle of wine from our TA with a note saying she was sorry for the room issue and she hoped our trip was magical. I'm sure we weren't the only ones bumped from a lagoon view room, but having her on our side made sure we got bumped UP rather than down (even though we were refunded for the difference by Disney).

To use a TA or not, or even what TA to use is a matter of preference. You are the only one that has to be comfortable with that choice. There are pros and cons either way. There isn't a right answer for everyone. If you book with one, I think the important things are to make sure they don't charge any cancellation fees if you have to cancel and be sure they are REAL Disney experts. Look for the "Authorized Disney Vacation Planner" logo and ask how often they travel to Disney and when was the last time they were there.

 

[jeepgirl30]

I'm an event planner for work and have always insisted on doing my own vacations. I have talked to TAs in the past that really had very limited knowledge on Disney, I'd know much more than they did and I'd get frustrated.

However, I used Small World this time and am very pleased. I still feel like I've planned the trip, I knew which resort and the discounts available. She showed me comparisons on other offers out there.

It is true I have to contact her when I want to make a change. I email her and get a very fast response. I'd rather shoot off a quick email than be on hold with Disney reservations for 1/2 hr. I called to price a package with them and the hold time (after pressing # for being there before, # for many times, # for within X years, etc) was told the wait was 18 min. No thanks!

I did eventually get through and was told by Disney the price with a TA would be the same.

 

[harpinjean]

I book through Disney.

 

[TiggerFamily]

I've booked our last 3 trip through Mouse Ears Vacations, I've used the same agent every time she is great. I will be happy to send you her info if you would like me to. I tell her where I want to stay and when and where I want to eat and she books everything for, it couldn't be easier and it's always right. We've never had any problems.

 

[fivebyfive]

I recommend Dreams Unlimited!

Don't forget that DU sponsors these boards, and if you're getting all of your *WDW info* from the DIS boards, I personally can't think of a better way to say 'thank you'.

 

[autigger]

I also like knowing I have someone on my side if something goes wrong.

That is exactly why we use a travel agent.

We have never had a problem, but it is very nice to know that you have an advocate if somthing is not right.

 

[mking624]

I book directly through Disney. Besides wanting to be in control of my own reservation, I absolutely love going through the reservation process and handling all of the details.

 

[kteesmumma]

I just booked through Mouseketrips and really love my TA. I emailed 2 weeks ago to ask about different quotes. DH and I were still in the IFFY stages of booking. I got a few quotes and my TA answered a few questions. I still wasnt sure if we were gonna be booking. A week later I called Disney to find out if I had a PIN...after having to through an automated system of my name, email addy, blah blah blah..I did get a PIN and was given a quote on a few different packages as well.

After a few more days, I got an email from my TA asking how things were going and to see if we had anymore questions to make our decision easier. I gave the info to my TA that I had a PIN (although I didnt have the exact PIN Info) he was able to look it up and find it, and give us a quote and book our November trip.

I love the fact that I can just email him, give him the information and he takes care of it for me.

 

[DisneyDarlings]

After many trips and booking them on my own, I decided to give SmallWorld Vacations a try. My TA was great and I have continued to use her for the past several trips. I love the fact that while I am asleep, she already knows about a discount and is handling it for me. I love to wake up, check my email, and see that she has been busy saving me money. I also let her get my ADRs for me. She has been very helpful to me!

 

[Goofy'slady]

I use a Disney Qualified TA. Preferably AAA. I get their room discount which makes our whole package cheaper rather than just going thru Disney alone and the last few trips we've been able to stack Disney promotions on top of it all. I also enjoy the idea of letting her do the deal searching for us and getting that email or phone call that says "hey I was able to save you another couple hundred dollars".

I'm capable of planning each trip but when I have a chance to save a dollar then I run with it. I do still make all of my ADR's, BBB and other reservations that way the TA isn't the only one having Disney planning fun.

T.

 

[kteesmumma]

How are you able to stack other discounts onto a AAA discount??

 

[mrskchris]

As with all of other vacations, i book the trip directly. It's fun planning and it it helps build the excitement of going on a trip. I like to have control too, so it is hard for me to use a TA.