Am I a dummy?

[rutgers1]

I mainly spend my disboards time on the rumors, photography and DVC forums, but every so often I take a look elsewhere. I see talk of rack rates and discounts and such, and then I wonder if I was a dummy for all those years prior to buying DVC in April (Maybe you will call me a dummy for that, too, lol). The reason why I ask is because, whenever I booked a hotel and ordered my food/tickets, I always just called Disney and booked it.

1) So, when I called Disney, did I pay the dreaded "rack rates"? If so, what SHOULD I have done instead of just calling them (the number I got off the Disney web site)?
2) Are the discounts available if you look hard enough at all times of the year, no matter when you book, or do you have to be willing to book at a certain time?

That last Disney trip - the one where I topped it off with buying into DVC - cost me a bundle, as did the previous two. We always stayed at moderate resorts, aside from a few nights at a deluxe once. Although I can't change the past, I am wondering if I screwed myself in terms of what I paid by simply calling Disney.

 

[helenk]

Even if you called Disney and they were offering specials you should have been able to get the deals over the phone. They are not just offered on line.
I've called and booked through Disney and got good deals. I certainly did my reseach prior to calling. I asked for AAA rates or AP rates or any deals that they were offering on line and have had good luck.
In all my trips I think I only paid rack rate once, when no deals were available for my dates, and I was fine with that.

 

[portocall]

I am paying rack rate for the moment... actually, since it is Thanksgiving I am not anticipated a discount, however if one comes out I will jump on it... I saved up enough to pay rack rate, and it is our "once while we have kids" trip so I don't mind much. Going over and over, I might have to look for ways to catch a break...

 

[rutgers1]

How do you know if you are paying rack rate? I ask because I just pay what they tell me the price is when I call. Is there a listing of "rack rate" somewhere?

 

[happymommy]

If it's the regular rate, then yes, it's "rack" rate. That is probably what you paid, but... that's not to say there was a special going on when you were going anyway (I hope that makes you feel better!).

I have had the best luck with annual pass rates in the past (we've had them 2 or 3 times). Also, we've gotten overflow from Shades of Green a few times, but those don't seem to be as good as they were in the past (like we paid $199 for the GF and $109 for the BC, but that was years ago).

I would gather most folks are paying rack.

Now, with the economy suffering so, there are some great deals. You may find a good deal to add to your DVC visit in the future, or saving the points and such.

We've been lucky (and super cheapskates) enough to never pay rack, but I have always shopped around when we travel. I am too cheap to pay rack; I don't think we've ever paid rack for any hotel.

I do also kick myself for not knowing more when we first went to Disney about other deals, but it's all a learning experience!

 

[mousefan1972]

Typically, when phoning Disney CRO (407-WDisney) unless you specify the discount you are looking for (annual passholder, florida resident, etc) the CM's will not offer it to you. Often, if you are trying to use a discount code for the general public, you will be asked for the 3 letter code in order for the CM to be able to look up the discounted rate. On another board on which I am a longtime member, another member was trying to book a trip last month on very short notice (3 days away), and simply asked the CM if there were any discounts available. There were, but she would not give him the rates unless he had the code. (It was the Disney Visa free dining offer) I would bet there are a lot of people who pay full price just because they aren't aware of the discount offers available.

 

[Miffy]

If you want to know all the facts--what rack rates for various resorts are for every season, what discounts are commonly available at the resorts, and anything else you can think of--then go to mousesavers.com, where there's extensive information about all these things.

Since you didn't post when your trips were, what exactly you purchased, how many days you stayed, how often you went, etc., it's impossible to know if you could have saved some money. As PPs have said, when you call WDW reservations, they never offer a discount unless you ask for one specifically. So my guess is that you probably paid rack rate for your trips. There are some travel dates that there are no discounts for and rack rate's the best you can get--Christmas, Thanksgiving, and parts of Easter break, for example. But most of the rest of the year, there are discounts offered, some of them better than others.

But until they build the time machine and you can go back and do everything differently, enjoy your memories, savor your DVC, and have fun at WDW. Even if you "should have" gotten a lower price, at least you didn't throw your money away in the stock market. Instead, you had wonderful experiences. That alone makes you a complete non-dummy.

 

[rutgers1]

Thanks everyone

 

[su_A_ve]

Thanks everyone

Fellow jersian? (based on the nickname I guess)...

Anyway, don't feel bad... Specials must be asked for. Even if today you go to the web site and select 'Reservations' you'll get rack rate. You must use the special links to get general discount offers, and some are only available via the phone.

In fact, if you call and ask for a special for certain dates, you could get the 'no availability' answer. It could be just one of those days is not available. You change the dates, and all of a sudden you have a cheap vacation.

Also, if you plan a trip and there are no specials, you'll pay rack rate. However if a special does come out, you will need to call them to have the special applied to your rez. If not, nothing will change.

A travel agent will help with this, though YMMV. Some are good and as soon as a special comes out, they will automatically apply it. Others (ugh) you have to hunt them down and get them to apply the code after you even explain them what the code gives you.