Are you averse to the 'new' 5-day pass only? Please read and comment...

[KAT4DISNEY]

Uh oh - now they're giving out the old "based on guest feedback" response.

 

[jory29]

I sent an email last week also asking for a longer park hopper ticket expecting the same canned response, imagine my surprise when my email is from Linda Hunt asking for my number so she can call me, and giving me her number so I can call her if that is easier!

I will let you know what she says, but frankly I am scared! I am very shy and get flustered easy. I hope I can make my point!
Anyone want to give me an outline of what I should say?

Good luck to be talking personally to someone about this. I am still waiting for my email or phone call from when I sent them a new email yesterday.

I would suggest asking if she knows if plans are in the works to accommodate the numerous guests who have been asking for the 6 and 7 day Park Hopper passes to be brought back, and just see what she says.

You can also state that the fact that going for more than 5 days means that your cost per each day in the park is higher than if you only went 5 days, and that's not fair to you, (the guest showing support for the Parks) when you want to spend your hard earned money in the Parks for more than 5 days.

You could also explain how now that Cars Land is here, that Disneyland Parks have mentioned it now as being more of a resort, where one would want to stay for 6 days or so.

If you spend a lot of money to get to Disneyland in the first place, that is yet another factor, it is a huge one for us.

Did you state any of your own personal reasons in the email you sent to them, why you would want to stay there? Perhaps they want to address that with you.

Does anyone have any other suggestions for what Skellinton should say?

Good luck, and thanks for letting us know!

 

[dcraythorn]

It seems that Disneyland will not listen and will continue to give the canned responses that we all have been receiving. Maybe we should contact the Orange County Register, here is the link for the reporter assigned to Disneyland:
Well, I can't post the email address, but her name is Sarah Tully. Her email address is on their website.
Sorry, it's just a thought.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

I'm going to go ahead & move this over to the Community Board now.

 

[gilesmt]

Well Disney's loss for me. I was hoping the other board was correct. When we go next week I will ask since I did book before the change, but if they say no, I will go spend my money else where and save big time. See this morning I was going to add my goofy and my arial vouchers to my package with Alaska. Great deal on air fare and save $40 on every DL ticket by the way, I saved over $450 because DL tickets were $250 with them for 5days. Anyway usually we spend the first day which is only 4 hours and the last day 5 hours in the park for shopping, and on Saturday and Sunday we have our big goofy and arial meals. If they say no to our upgrade to 7 days for a small fee, then we won't go in and shop the first day, leaving close to $200 in my pocket. Then on Saturday when the park is the crowdiest we will go to knotts $25 for the senior and child ticket what we would have paid Disney to upgrade, and $35 for the adult tickets so just about a $20 more trip, but those are the days we would have eaten at groofys and arils, so we will save $200 for each of big meals, not to count the other meals we would have eaten but won't now. That putting another $200 in my pocket at least.

So far since Disney has gotten so money hungry, I have had to rethink our trips, this is turning into our biggest saving trip since the mid 90's when I use to take three of us for $1000, this trip will cost me only $2500, which saves me about $3000 over the trips just 2 years ago, and well over the that for the trip three years ago. But hey if Disney does not want me to spend my money there I will go elsewhere, I'm not a huge fan of knots, but I would rather save $1000 and go there if Disney thinks I'm going to buy a second ticket just for a few hours they are kidding.

 

[cyclenut]

I sent an email last week also asking for a longer park hopper ticket expecting the same canned response, imagine my surprise when my email is from Linda Hunt asking for my number so she can call me, and giving me her number so I can call her if that is easier!

I will let you know what she says, but frankly I am scared! I am very shy and get flustered easy. I hope I can make my point!
Anyone want to give me an outline of what I should say?

Keep it simple. Make three points.

1) your vacation experience with Disney parks is one you and your family treasure. You are a family on a budget and you choose Disney, but the recent change to the park hoppers on top of the price increases have outpaced your ability to make a realistic budget for your trip.
2) while a 5-day trip might be good for most, it doesn't meet your needs for a couple of reasons. (come up with two reasons ... Small children who move slower and need more breaks, older adults who need the same, any disabilities in your party that mean you might move slower, you like to take your time and immerse yourself in the atmosphere that Disney has created in their parks that set them apart from everyone else, you travel a long distance and want to make the most of your vacation, etc.). Also note that for a family to take a week long vacation would mean they have 9 days available. With a travel day on either end, that means 7 days Friday to the following Sunday. Topping out at 5 days just doesn't make sense to you and doesnt meet your expectations for a vacation length.
3) the park hopper ticket policy is inconsistent with Disney policy at other parks and with executive statements made during the repenting week of DCA. WDW still offers extended stay park hoppers. Earlier in this thread is the quote from the Disney executive stating that this is a 6 day park.

Keep it simple. Three main points with supporting detail.

 

[jory29]

It seems that Disneyland will not listen and will continue to give the canned responses that we all have been receiving. Maybe we should contact the Orange County Register, here is the link for the reporter assigned to Disneyland:
Well, I can't post the email address, but her name is Sarah Tully. Her email address is on their website.
Sorry, it's just a thought.

Thank you, I will wait just a little longer to see about whether or not I receive a personal reply from Disneyland, and then will try to contact The OCR to see if they want to run an article on this. Thanks for the information!

I'm going to go ahead & move this over to the Community Board now.

Thanks, Mary Jo for having kept it on the planning board for as long as you did. Thank you also for moderating this thread [along with Sherry E.] so it could stay open! My only concern is that those planning a trip won't really know about the 5 day Park Hopper pass only, but I imagine others will chime in to let them know, if questions about it are being asked.

Well Disney's loss for me. I was hoping the other board was correct. When we go next week I will ask since I did book before the change, but if they say no, I will go spend my money else where and save big time. See this morning I was going to add my goofy and my arial vouchers to my package with Alaska. Great deal on air fare and save $40 on every DL ticket by the way, I saved over $450 because DL tickets were $250 with them for 5days. Anyway usually we spend the first day which is only 4 hours and the last day 5 hours in the park for shopping, and on Saturday and Sunday we have our big goofy and arial meals. If they say no to our upgrade to 7 days for a small fee, then we won't go in and shop the first day, leaving close to $200 in my pocket. Then on Saturday when the park is the crowdiest we will go to knotts $25 for the senior and child ticket what we would have paid Disney to upgrade, and $35 for the adult tickets so just about a $20 more trip, but those are the days we would have eaten at groofys and arils, so we will save $200 for each of big meals, not to count the other meals we would have eaten but won't now. That putting another $200 in my pocket at least.

So far since Disney has gotten so money hungry, I have had to rethink our trips, this is turning into our biggest saving trip since the mid 90's when I use to take three of us for $1000, this trip will cost me only $2500, which saves me about $3000 over the trips just 2 years ago, and well over the that for the trip three years ago. But hey if Disney does not want me to spend my money there I will go elsewhere, I'm not a huge fan of knots, but I would rather save $1000 and go there if Disney thinks I'm going to buy a second ticket just for a few hours they are kidding.

Disney has really missed the mark on this one, I feel. I really hope once they are trying to figure out how to accommodate our requests. Money out of their pockets and into another Parks is quite a loss for them. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

Keep it simple. Make three points.

1) your vacation experience with Disney parks is one you and your family treasure. You are a family on a budget and you choose Disney, but the recent change to the park hoppers on top of the price increases have outpaced your ability to make a realistic budget for your trip.
2) while a 5-day trip might be good for most, it doesn't meet your needs for a couple of reasons. (come up with two reasons ... Small children who move slower and need more breaks, older adults who need the same, any disabilities in your party that mean you might move slower, you like to take your time and immerse yourself in the atmosphere that Disney has created in their parks that set them apart from everyone else, you travel a long distance and want to make the most of your vacation, etc.). Also note that for a family to take a week long vacation would mean they have 9 days available. With a travel day on either end, that means 7 days Friday to the following Sunday. Topping out at 5 days just doesn't make sense to you and doesnt meet your expectations for a vacation length.
3) the park hopper ticket policy is inconsistent with Disney policy at other parks and with executive statements made during the repenting week of DCA. WDW still offers extended stay park hoppers. Earlier in this thread is the quote from the Disney executive stating that this is a 6 day park.

Keep it simple. Three main points with supporting detail.

This sounds excellent to me. [Nice work, Pal! I always think of Soarin' Over California whenever I have a chance to say that.]

 

[Piglet99645]

I got another canned response to my second email. Response and my email that prompted it below.

Thank you for your continued correspondence with the DISNEYLAND® Resort.

We regret that you were not satisfied with our original response to you.
Please know that we understand the disappointments you have in the
decision to not sell tickets for longer than 5 days. We certainly do
hope that your family will be able to find ticketing offers that will be
acceptable for your upcoming visit. Again, your comments concerning our
DISNEYLAND® Resort tickets are appreciated. Please know that comments
such as yours are taken into consideration and we can assure you they
have been shared with the appropriate management so that they are aware
of your concerns.

Again, thank you for contacting us. Comments such as yours are welcomed
in that they assist us in evaluating our operation and our success in
generating happiness for our Guests. We hope you will have the
opportunity to visit the DISNEYLAND® Resort soon and that our
attractions and entertainment will delight you in every way.

Sincerely,

Michelle LaMore
DISNEYLAND® Resort
Guest Experience Services


Received date: 9/4/12




Original Message Follows: ------------------------

Thank you for your form response.


I do not understand why you would suggest that I buy a 5 day parkhopper
plus a 2 day parkhopper when, as I stated in my email, to do so would be
too expensive, and much more expensive than the prior 7 day parkhopper.


Please clarify why you want to exclude guests who want more of your
product, by charging them a higher rate for subsequent days. You just
made the park BIGGER (with Carsland) and tout DL Resort as a "resort
vacation" that is a "destination," but you think people should stay 5
days and get out?



This makes no sense!


Raise the daily rate for everyone, but don't penalize those of us who
wish to stay longer than 5 days and spend money in your resort.

 

[jory29]

I got another canned response to my second email. Response and my email that prompted it below.

It's a bit less canned but is probably going to start going out as the official canned response to anyone else who has written their displeasure at the first response. I find it strange DL has not yet written me back. I will give it just a bit more time. Next step will be seeing if the press is interested in running a story about this, in the hopes it encourages Disney to resolve this issue.

Disneyland stated to you: "We certainly do
hope that your family will be able to find ticketing offers that will be
acceptable for your upcoming visit."

What does that mean? You have already stated you can not afford to add anything else onto the 5 day Park Hopper Pass. Does it mean take it or leave it? Does it mean, try to go online to Craig's List or Kijiji to 'find ticketing offers'? Obviously none of us here condone purchasing fraudulent tickets, but I'm not sure how they think you may 'find ticketing offers that will be acceptable' for your upcoming visit when they already know that you are unable to purchase additional tickets. Does it mean, 'Enjoy your free day at the beach with your family', or 'enjoy spending your money at Knott's Berry Farm instead of with us?'

Your dedication to this is awesome, thank you for that!

Let's not give up yet, everyone. It will be so nice to be able to have 6 or 7 day Park Hoppers again, and I intend to keep this thread going, to motivate us to work together to get things changed. We're not asking for an amazing feat. We are asking for a more than reasonable request, so fingers crossed this will happen soon!

 

[Piglet99645]

Disneyland stated to you: "We certainly do
hope that your family will be able to find ticketing offers that will be
acceptable for your upcoming visit."

What does that mean? You have already stated you can not afford to add anything else onto the 5 day Park Hopper Pass. Does it mean take it or leave it? Does it mean, try to go online to Craig's List or Kijiji to 'find ticketing offers'? Obviously none of us here condone purchasing fraudulent tickets, but I'm not sure how they think you may 'find ticketing offers that will be acceptable' for your upcoming visit when they already know that you are unable to purchase additional tickets. Does it mean, 'Enjoy your free day at the beach with your family', or 'enjoy spending your money at Knott's Berry Farm instead of with us?'

This is why I thought it was canned, because I've already stated the tickets they offer are no longer budget-friendly....... and yes I thought it was weird. As if we can get tickets somewhere else? I've searched and the only legitimate ways to get tickets vary little in price.

I do think there is something to the demographic argument.... somehow those of us who loiter more than 5 days are not who they want around.... unless we are willing to pay a premium for the privilege of doing so.

Thank YOU for taking the lead on this.

 

[lurpee]

Yesterday I went to AAA to get a quote on on our vacation. The woman I had been speaking with before wasn't there, but another woman was--and I don't think she was as experienced as the other woman. When she was asking me questions I saw on her form that there was a selection for six or more days Park Hoppers. It reminded me about the change and I said, "I heard that they no longer sell Park Hoppers past five days, so I was thinking about getting myself an annual pass". She replied, "I don't think so, we just had someone do seven days". I'm assuming that they did a five and two day park hopper and she doesn't know. But it made me think that if fraud is the issue, and I know there are other solutions around that, but it seems like for those traveling with a travel agency, they should be able to do longer PH's. It still wouldn't be "fair" but at least an entity that Disney trusts could vouch that this family is flying or traveling to Anaheim and staying at a hotel. I wish they would do that at least.
Kerri

 

[jory29]

This is why I thought it was canned, because I've already stated the tickets they offer are no longer budget-friendly....... and yes I thought it was weird. As if we can get tickets somewhere else? I've searched and the only legitimate ways to get tickets vary little in price.

I do think there is something to the demographic argument.... somehow those of us who loiter more than 5 days are not who they want around.... unless we are willing to pay a premium for the privilege of doing so.

Thank YOU for taking the lead on this.

Yes, the other tickets from other places vary only a small amount in price, and why are the trying to steer us to other sources anyway? Unless, as you say, they prefer locals - which I can't see locals purchasing as much merchandise plus they receive a 10 - 15% off of their food. Profit can not be as good, although I suppose since they go far more often during the year, it adds up. ARE we a demographic they don't want, and if so, why? Interesting that we have to pay a premium as you say, that's exactly what it is.

Yesterday I went to AAA to get a quote on on our vacation. The woman I had been speaking with before wasn't there, but another woman was--and I don't think she was as experienced as the other woman. When she was asking me questions I saw on her form that there was a selection for six or more days Park Hoppers. It reminded me about the change and I said, "I heard that they no longer sell Park Hoppers past five days, so I was thinking about getting myself an annual pass". She replied, "I don't think so, we just had someone do seven days". I'm assuming that they did a five and two day park hopper and she doesn't know. But it made me think that if fraud is the issue, and I know there are other solutions around that, but it seems like for those traveling with a travel agency, they should be able to do longer PH's. It still wouldn't be "fair" but at least an entity that Disney trusts could vouch that this family is flying or traveling to Anaheim and staying at a hotel. I wish they would do that at least.
Kerri

Excellent point, they should allow longer Park Hoppers to be purchased from authorized sources, (who print up a name and address, even photo ID sticker, etc.) The only problem currently is, those who purchase them can still sell them, etc. The fact though, is that those who purchase longer day Park Hoppers ARE staying in hotels, etc. and so if they are purchasing them, you can bet they will be using them. If Disney allows an authorized seller to sell the longer Park Hopper passes who can print up names and addresses, then Disney should also check for ID at the gates for those longer Park Hopper passes. If Disney says they are not big sellers (which they told me), then it won't take very long for those 'few' tickets to be checked for ID at the gate. Win/win, Disney. Please think about it!

Edited to add: Kerri, if you do find out if a 7 day Park Hopper was purchased, would you be able to let us know? Thanks!!

 

[Piglet99645]

I wonder if they are trying to steer people who w ant more Disney over to wdw?

It still doesn't make sense. Just thinking.

 

[lurpee]

Edited to add: Kerri, if you do find out if a 7 day Park Hopper was purchased, would you be able to let us know? Thanks!!

Of course but I won't find out until the Monday after this one. After I posted this I received a call from the woman from AAA that I had spoken with last year when we started thinking about DL. I guess they must get something for booking trips because she called me from SEA-TAC airport to ask if I wouldn't mind waiting for her to get back next weekend to work on this. I told her that would be fine. That will be my first question though!

 

[Susie63]

Has anyone heard anything more from Disney? Any news about people being able to upgrade?Any news about....anything?

 

[jory29]

Has anyone heard anything more from Disney? Any news about people being able to upgrade?Any news about....anything?

Nope, nothing yet from my end - anyone else have anything to comment on? I will wait a few more days - to be sure Disney isn't coming up with a good response. I would like to get in contact with a reporter soon if I don't hear from Disney, to see if they will want to run a story about this. It is my hope that with media attention, Disney will want to help us.

It's still one of the most ridiculous things I ever heard of. Not being able to buy a longer than 5 day park hopper. Seriously.

 

[jen541]

I have received two canned responses this week, just doing my part and keeping you all informed. Sorry not better news.

 

[korg]

Yesterday I went to AAA to get a quote on on our vacation. The woman I had been speaking with before wasn't there, but another woman was--and I don't think she was as experienced as the other woman. When she was asking me questions I saw on her form that there was a selection for six or more days Park Hoppers. It reminded me about the change and I said, "I heard that they no longer sell Park Hoppers past five days, so I was thinking about getting myself an annual pass". She replied, "I don't think so, we just had someone do seven days". I'm assuming that they did a five and two day park hopper and she doesn't know. But it made me think that if fraud is the issue, and I know there are other solutions around that, but it seems like for those traveling with a travel agency, they should be able to do longer PH's. It still wouldn't be "fair" but at least an entity that Disney trusts could vouch that this family is flying or traveling to Anaheim and staying at a hotel. I wish they would do that at least.
Kerri

I didn't read the entire thread so forgive me if this has already been mentioned but I believe WDW allows more than 5 day park hopper passes to be purchased. I just checked their site and they list up to 10 days and you can customize so perhaps the travel agent had a ticket form for WDW rather than DL?

 

[lurpee]

I didn't read the entire thread so forgive me if this has already been mentioned but I believe WDW allows more than 5 day park hopper passes to be purchased. I just checked their site and they list up to 10 days and you can customize so perhaps the travel agent had a ticket form for WDW rather than DL?

They could have, I don't know. I'll find out Monday or Tuesday I think.
Kerri

 

[jory29]

She was very pleasant and kind. Unfortunately, all she can say at this point is that they have documented all of our concerns, in regards to ticket media changes that will affect guests on many levels. They compile all of our comments/complaints and send it in, so then Disney is aware, she stated. So, they definitely do forward it on, and internally, it will be decided what to do about it. She stated it is not yet to be seen what will happen.

I get the feeling though, that they understand that it is going to make for some pretty poor customer relations (and probably profit) if they keep those 6, 7, and 8 day Park Hopper passes discontinued. So I think I would like to wait just a little bit more, before approaching the press to see if they want to run a story.

I feel like we will see some changes soon, not by what she said, but just my own personal opinion, as it does seem there are large numbers of us writing and phoning in about this. I did ask if there is anyone else that I can speak to regarding this, but apparently there is not, this is as high of a level as it gets. She also apologized that it took so long to get back to me. The original person who wrote me the first time had been on holidays, and when I didn't hear back from her, I had sent an email many days ago that had not been responded to until now.

I would like to encourage everyone to continue to write in your concerns if you have not yet, and if you have written in, if you have a personal story to go along with your reasons for requiring a lengthier than 5-day pass, please write a heart felt letter that will let Disney know that we Disney - we love it so much we want our Beloved 6, 7, etc. day Park Hoppers back.

Thanks to everyone in this thread, and to the lurkers as well who have written in to Disney to express their concern over the new ticket media changes. Each and every single email and phone call counts!