AP Sales Paused

[DVC92]

As has previously been mentioned, we get 3 trips out of our APs. Currently, we have APs which expire next year after a spring trip. We don't intend to buy new APs util the fall for the next 3 trip scenario. We have no intention of buying daily park passes or only getting 2 trips out of an AP.

Between the park reservation system, shorter hours, Genie+, LL, and now this, we will be selling our DVC interest which we have had for 30 years if things don't change. As DVC members, we should not be denied APs period. Further, DVC members should be given at least 3 FPs daily as perk since we are their most loyal visitors. Obviously, the people currently running the ship are totally clueless or just plain stupid!

 

[MillauFr]

Obviously, the people currently running the ship are totally clueless or just plain stupid!

Obviously anyone running a business where their main problem is too much demand for their product isn’t stupid

 

[Sandisw]

Just saw Disney suspended sales of MYW tickets for today (11/23) thru 11/26. They must be expecting the Parks to be crazy busy over the Thanksgiving Holiday week.

Wow, I guess it does support the notion that this is about capacity. Gosh…I hope there are no cash guests who had not yet waited.

 

[Sandisw]

As has previously been mentioned, we get 3 trips out of our APs. Currently, we have APs which expire next year after a spring trip. We don't intend to buy new APs util the fall for the next 3 trip scenario. We have no intention of buying daily park passes or only getting 2 trips out of an AP.

Between the park reservation system, shorter hours, Genie+, LL, and now this, we will be selling our DVC interest which we have had for 30 years if things don't change. As DVC members, we should not be denied APs period. Further, DVC members should be given at least 3 FPs daily as perk since we are their most loyal visitors. Obviously, the people currently running the ship are totally clueless or just plain stupid!

I guess I don’t understand the argument that DVC owners are such an exclusive group of guests that we should be entitled to something others are not.

Most data suggests that we are not their most loyal customers. I know plenty of people who didn’t buy DVC but went just as much and spent way more each trip.

The fact that they paused not only the FL resident passes, but ALSO MYW, they are making decisions to not overpack the parks. I give them credit for not selling something to people that they know will be blocked from being used.

ETA: Fixed the typo!!!!

 

[CarolynFH]

The fact that they paused not only the FL resident passes, but not MYW

Typo? Did you mean to say "but also MYW"?

I agree that the AP and MYW ticket sales pauses are temporary and a response to anticipated huge crowds through the end of the year.

 

[tjkraz]

I guess I don’t understand the argument that DVC owners are such an exclusive group of guests that we should be entitled to something others are not.

Most data suggests that we are not their most loyal customers. I know plenty of people who didn’t buy DVC but went just as much and spent way more each trip.

DVC Members are also inherently benefitting from a system that allowed them to pre-pay for their accommodations at a significantly discounted rate.

There's no doubt in my mind that some members are giving Disney $10-20k per year for annual dues, park passes, meals and more. But if you're doing it on DVC points--especially points purchased 20-30 years ago (of which I have some)--you're already getting LOT more bang for your buck than the average tourist paying 30% off rack for each night at the Polynesian.

 

[TiggerBouncy]

I guess I don’t understand the argument that DVC owners are such an exclusive group of guests that we should be entitled to something others are not.

I don't get that either. We are getting EVERYTHING promised in our contract, and usually a little more than what is in our contract. But I guess just like with kids, when you give them a piece of candy, they start wanting more and more candy.

The fact that they paused not only the FL resident passes, but not MYW, they are making decisions to not overpack the parks. I give them credit for not selling something to people that they know will be blocked from being used.

Again, I see this as Disney - FOR ONCE - looking ahead and realizing that if they want to keep the parks under a certain capacity which they are trying to do for Covid (as much as people deny it, lets say at least for show, they want to stay under a percentage), they can't do that at the trajectory that the sales volume would predict. So they are taking necessary and critical steps in order to stay under that threshold that they promised their management, or their guests or the state or whomever that they would not surpass.

Now we can talk all we want about whether or not they care; but bottom line is that they somewhere up the line want to show a number to someone that shows a percentage capacity under maximum for whatever reason. In order to do that, they have to limit sales.

In every way, this feels like that is what they are doing, And if they are, that means that despite what people want to believe they are actually putting guest safety (or AT LEAST A LIMITED VIEW OF IT) over dollar signs.

Obviously anyone running a business where their main problem is too much demand for their product isn’t stupid

And yet everyone on social media thinks they know how to run a 70 Billion Dollar company better when most of them can't even conceive of a billion dollars. I'll be honest - I have not personally managed over a fraction of that size (I think my max was about 10M). A company the size of Disney is daunting. And lets be honest - in 1980, they were only a Billion. They have grown that to bumping against 70, with almost zero down years except a few outliers. That's no easy job. /Respect.

 

[Sandisw]

DVC Members are also inherently benefitting from a system that allowed them to pre-pay for their accommodations at a significantly discounted rate.

There's no doubt in my mind that some members are giving Disney $10-20k per year for annual dues, park passes, males and more. But if you're doing it on DVC points--especially points purchased 20-30 years ago (of which I have some)--you're already getting LOT more bang for your buck than the average tourist paying 30% off rack for each night at the Polynesian.

I can see that point of view. I am certainly one of those people who spends over $10K yearly for my WDW trips and definitely agree I am getting a lot out of my membership!

 

[Sandisw]

Typo? Did you mean to say "but also MYW"?

I agree that the AP and MYW ticket sales pauses are temporary and a response to anticipated huge crowds through the end of the year.

That I did!!!! They have now stopped both!!!! Good catch! I will edit it!!!

 

[eandt]

Until people stop going, until people stop spending all the extra money Disney asks for the same or less return, it doesn’t matter. Until it hurts the bottom line, they are all good business decisions.

Vote with your wallet. I think some people here as well as Disney management both forget that nobody HAS to go to Disney. When the economy is hot, it seems the parks will fill no matter what. When the economy eventually slows down, they should hope that disneys most loyal haven’t moved on.

Just told our guide we were putting our add on purchase on hold until we see what happens with this .... if they go away for good or price becomes crazy we will still go but only once every other year or so. The add on would have allowed us 2 - 4 trips depending on accomodations in a 12 month period .... glad we didn't pull the trigger last week.

 

[CBMom01]

Except when you buy day tickets they are date based and you know ahead of time if your days are still there.

APs without resort reservations are different. So don’t think it’s the same.

This is the important distinction for sure

 

[CBMom01]

DVC Members are also inherently benefitting from a system that allowed them to pre-pay for their accommodations at a significantly discounted rate.

There's no doubt in my mind that some members are giving Disney $10-20k per year for annual dues, park passes, meals and more. But if you're doing it on DVC points--especially points purchased 20-30 years ago (of which I have some)--you're already getting LOT more bang for your buck than the average tourist paying 30% off rack for each night at the Polynesian.

I wish I knew the math on DVC owners and park capacity. If legacy DVC owners and/or locals on discounted APs take up a material amount of capacity, I can see why Disney would want to get out from under that.

But it sounds like AP demand is still too high relative to capacity. People on these boards are outraged and I don’t understand why. If I have 4 trips planned in 2022 can’t I just pay for regular tickets for the first trip then convert to AP later when they open up sales again? Someone on here said the AP would cost less than hoppers for a single trip. That can’t be right can it?

 

[npatellye]

I wish I knew the math on DVC owners and park capacity. If legacy DVC owners and/or locals on discounted APs take up a material amount of capacity, I can see why Disney would want to get out from under that.

But it sounds like AP demand is still too high relative to capacity. People on these boards are outraged and I don’t understand why. If I have 4 trips planned in 2022 can’t I just pay for regular tickets for the first trip then convert to AP later when they open up sales again? Someone on here said the AP would cost less than hoppers for a single trip. That can’t be right can it?

If they are selling APs, yes, you can bridge your ticket to an AP. For us, as non-FL residents, the cost of park hoppers for 4 of us for 7 days is cheaper than an AP. Perhaps if we went for longer or at a holiday time, then the AP would be cheaper. We opted to renew our Gold/Sorcerer APs because we plan on using them for two trips again.

 

[eandt]

[QUOTE="TiggerBouncy, post: 63558787, member: 464708"
And yet everyone on social media thinks they know how to run a 70 Billion Dollar company better when most of them can't even conceive of a billion dollars. I'll be honest - I have not personally managed over a fraction of that size (I think my max was about 10M). A company the size of Disney is daunting. And lets be honest - in 1980, they were only a Billion. They have grown that to bumping against 70, with almost zero down years except a few outliers. That's no easy job. /Respect.
[/QUOTE]
Folks don't need to know how to run a 70 billion dollar company or even a 10M one to know that what is going on is making many of them feel disrespected. Despite what we "get" from Disney for our money they are also "getting" plenty from us in return the form of 30 plus year prepaid commitment to vacations as well as our ambassadorships of the brand. We didn't just say we will be back, We said will definitely be back since we put up 5 figure sums of money, 'putting our money where our mouths are" and many of us brought friends and family to join the "club'. We as a group ARE among their most loyal customers so if what they are doing is making a large proportion of us feel like we may not continue with that loyalty in some form or another that may turn out to be a huge issue for them in the long term, remains to be seen. Short term it has, at least temporarily, cost them an add on contract that we were planning to buy before the "pause"

 

[Sandisw]

I wish I knew the math on DVC owners and park capacity. If legacy DVC owners and/or locals on discounted APs take up a material amount of capacity, I can see why Disney would want to get out from under that.

But it sounds like AP demand is still too high relative to capacity. People on these boards are outraged and I don’t understand why. If I have 4 trips planned in 2022 can’t I just pay for regular tickets for the first trip then convert to AP later when they open up sales again? Someone on here said the AP would cost less than hoppers for a single trip. That can’t be right can it?

You can only upgrade tickets to the AP if they are selling them. If you are there and use all the days, and sales are suspended, that value is no longer there for the upgrade later.

So, those who waited…and some on advice from CMs…are now stuck. I know I was going to add another voucher as a back up but I got complacent and didn’t. Fortunately I don’t need it, but I can say that will buy one as soon as they are on sale again!

 

[limace]

I will gently point out that several of the folks posting here most firmly that folks should have expected this, people shouldn’t be upset, are folks who have their APs already. Everyone entitled to their perspective but…

 

[CBMom01]

You can only upgrade tickets to the AP if they are selling them. If you are there and use all the days, and sales are suspended, that value is no longer there for the upgrade later.

So, those who waited…and some on advice from CMs…are now stuck. I know I was going to add another voucher as a back up but I got complacent and didn’t. Fortunately I don’t need it, but I can say that will buy one as soon as they are on sale again!

Ohhhhhhhhhh, now I get it. It’s sort of like the loophole they closed with upgrades/blackouts. Makes sense. I wasn’t understanding.

 

[CBMom01]

I will gently point out that several of the folks posting here most firmly that folks should have expected this, people shouldn’t be upset, are folks who have their APs already. Everyone entitled to their perspective but…

I’m not saying people shouldn’t be upset, FWIW. I don’t have an AP. I was considering but assuming I could decide later and just “retroactively” apply the cost of my Dec tickets when I go in 2022. What I’m hearing is that if sales are suspended while I’m
There in Dec I can’t later apply those tickets toward upgrade. Is that right?

 

[Sandisw]

Ohhhhhhhhhh, now I get it. It’s sort of like the loophole they closed with upgrades/blackouts. Makes sense. I wasn’t understanding.

It was always like that. Tickets can only be used to upgrade as long as you haven’t used them all up.

That is why people who were expecting to do it now..those who had to buy tickets to secure park reservations while APs were still paused the last time…are now stuck.

Now if WDW would allow the value of tickets alreadyto go for a new AP once sales resume, even if it had to be backdated to the first day of the ticket as would have happened if sales were going on, then people would not care.

Maybe that’s what they should do as it puts people to the same place they had planned to be.

 

[wdw4rfam]

All I can offer - in 20/20 hindsight - is I’m so so so glad I never let our passes expired during the Covid closure and have no plan on letting them expire going forward…Historically, Disney has shown they will take care of their AP holders but maybe not so much for “POTENTIAL” buyers…

Yeah ours aren’t expired yet, and we won’t let them ever again without buying new ones first. We will buy new ones before our renewal window expires to make sure we will be able.We are hoping they start reselling by the time ours expire in February. Either way I am buying something in February. Either renewals, or new passes that we won’t activate until later. But I will never again let myself lapse with nothing. We got lucky with the closure that we bought them right before they shut down and never got shut out