?Book thru CAA or disney and req CAA discount

[tmli]

I believe the rules are the same as booking direct although I can't confirm that first hand. I will ask one of our TA's on Monday.

 

[digskat]

I believe the rules are the same as booking direct although I can't confirm that first hand. I will ask one of our TA's on Monday.

What office are you out of?

 

[digskat]

Okay...I may have done sonething bad but it is gonna work for my benefit. The Sarnia office called and gave me a quote including 2 day hoppers which I do not want. I requested 10 nights at either POFQ or ASMO and 1 day base ticket plus dining plan. (we still have 8 reg park passes and 4wp each left)..She told me if she had to call Disney later in the day she would and find out then get back to me...THis was last Monday or Tuesday...and still no word ???she has to wait and see if she will be calling them back for something???HELLO AM I NOT A POTENTIAL CUSTOMER?. So on Wednesday I called my local TA and asked for quotes (we have booked last two trips through her) I told her no big rush and she laughed and said well yeah it's for Nov! At this point I'm starting to fume...for some places you need to book PS well in advance (you would think these so called Disney specialists would know this)..Anywhoo I emailed the London CAA and had quotes for exactly what I asked for in less then 24hrs and an awesome deal $1960 us for the 4 of us at ASMO or just over $2400 for POFQ guess who I'm bokking with...so when the other two TA's decide to give me some of their time and call me back I'm gonna take great pride in telling them they are too late! Has anyone else had these types of trouble?

 

[Joann]

I popped into our caa travel place this afternoon to ask some questions and she told me all of them at the one in Burlington have gone thru the disney college of knowledge course because they book soooo many disney trips now!

 

[digskat]

I popped into our caa travel place this afternoon to ask some questions and she told me all of them at the one in Burlington have gone thru the disney college of knowledge course because they book soooo many disney trips now!

Well I am extremely pleased with the girl from the London office, she was way more helpful then the other two.

 

[tmli]

I am in the Kitchener, Westmount location...I am glad you found an agent you are happy with. This is the exact kind of thing you have to do. SOme people will put up with the kind of treatment you have received and book there anyways...That is not in my nature!!!

The disney college of knowledge is just an online course that any of us loyal dis'ers could pass with flying colors!!!! After completing it we may call ourselves a "disney specialist".....I did the course so I have seen it first hand.
My knowledge of Disney comes from my many trips and hanging out here too much on the dis....no course can replace real life experience.

That being said there are some excellent CAA agents selling Disney who have never been. These TA's are the ones who spend time researching the product, offer great customer service and talk to their customers when they return to gather more info for the next client.

PM me if you need more info. I can gather some info from home

 

[digskat]

Thanks Tracey I think we are gonna book with Dana at the London office we are gonna give her a call on Wednesday. Do you think POFQ is worth paying the extra $400? THanks Kathy

 

[tmli]

I really enjoyed POFQ. Even more than WL. I have also enjoyed all of my stays at POP. I think it comes down to how much that $400 translates to you...for some people $400 is alot harder to save then for others.

If it was me I think $40 a night is worth it. Just having the fridge and extra space. As well as the boat to dtd and the pol slide (very important to ds). You can also visit and use the facililities at POR.

When you book I would let Dana know (if you already haven't) that you appreciated her great service and how quickly she responded to you. Good agents like to hear that their efforts are appreciated.

Next trip we are at POR, because POFQ is not available.

 

[digskat]

Well it is something to think about, as for saving that's not a probem as we use our income tax to pay off the trip and this is way less then what we paid last year. I have told Dana in my emails how pleased I am. Thanks for your reponses as well. Well I'm off to Timmies before heading into the hospital for the day! Take Care Kathy

 

[Amps]

Been lurking here for months (14 to be exact) but I finally found a good reason to register. I've been planning to go on a trip to Disney with my girlfriend for a while now and I finally started getting some rates together.

Staying 7 nights in CBR starting May 26, 8 day park-hopper passes and a king sized room.

CAA (in Mississauga): $1670.26 USD including tax
Booking over the phone through disney with CAA discount: @$1661.94 US including tax

Now I really like the lady I spoke to at the CAA office and being able to walk in if I need anything is nice. Even still, I've decided to book through disney direct. I just prefer knowing that I'm not going through a middleman and if I have any problems, they're the people that can really help me. Also, CAA requires a deposit within 10 days of making a booking and want me to pay in full by March 12. With Disney I can make my deposit March 8 and pay the rest when I walk into the lobby. Having an extra 44 days of earnings to pay for my vacation just makes it feel like a no brainer.

Hope that was a little helpfull for people looking into rates.

Oh, and I did a lot of checking and found that Disney will still give me the package tickets rates even though I'm getting a room-only discount. Worked out to be $20 less then Ticketmania. EDIT: Just double checked and it works out to be $11 cheaper through Ticketmania. Will I still be able to load those passes onto my room key?

Chris

 

[Debbie]

Will I still be able to load those passes onto my room key?

I've heard that you can. Personally, I've always just carried the park pass as well as the room key. It's not really a bother. Maybe next time, I add the pass to the room key, just for fun.

 

[digskat]

Well I booked thru CAA yesterday...POFQ 10 nights one day base and dining plan for the four of us, $2469 US. Now if Nov would only get here! Just joking! Now I have to start planning and researching where to eat! But that is half the fun!

 

[tmli]

Congrats!!! You will love it. I am holding out for POFQ...I have POR booked but I call every second day to see if FQ has opened up!!

 

[digskat]

Thanks for all your help Tracey. Good luck on getting into POFQ, I'm so looking forward to our trip. Oh yesterday my former TA called and gave me the quotes, I thanked her but told her the awesome deal thru CAA and she said she could not compete with that. I told her that I wanted to book early d/t ADR with the dining plan and she said she understood. I guess you snooze you lose! I am so please with the CAA agent!
Oh I never thought to ask you 'til now. Dana said there were some perks that you get when you book with CAA, do you remember what they are? I was trying to remember everything to tell Dave and can't
there is:
CAA prefered parking
Something from Planet Hollywood
and Photopass
If you don't mind reminding I'd appreciate it THanks Kathy

 

[Joann]

Our caa gives you prefered parking a planet hollywood gift and 1 free entre at planet hollywood per bookingand something else I think not sure but the above 3 are forsure

 

[madonna31]

First off - congrats on the GREAT rate!! In my opinion, it's DEFINITELY worth the extra $$$ for a moderate level resort.

I thanked her but told her the awesome deal thru CAA and she said she could not compete with that. I told her that I wanted to book early d/t ADR with the dining plan and she said she understood. I guess you snooze you lose!

As a Disney Specialist Agent, I just want to defend your TA that this was not a matter of 'you snooze, you loose.'

Here's the thing, what I loved most about Disney as a tour operator is that no mater where who you go to in order to book a Magic Your Way package, it was always the EXACT same price no matter what. And furthermore, when Disney releases discounts, such as CAA rates, AP and FL resident rates etc, again everyone can obtain that discount for you, no matter WHO you book through (TA or otherwise) For example, I can call up and get the CAA rate on room only for a client just the same as they can call Disney up themselves to obtain it.

In the past, I always gave kudo's to Disney for taking care of the people who push vacations to their parks by being fair in this department.

Until now. After I read how you saved on your Magic Your Way Package by going to a CAA TA, I had to call Disney to inquire because to the best of my knowledge, you could only get a CAA discount on room only.

I was told that "guests can ONLY get that deal by booking through a CAA travel agent"
I was beside myself, I always stood up for Disney in that they are nothing but fair to each of their travel partners and expressed my anger on the topic.
"well" she began, "AAA is one of our biggest customers and they asked Disney to give them a break by making a contract for a discount on the Magic Your Way packages and Disney obliged."

Hence the reason that more CAA agents are familiarizing themselves with Disney. If you were a travel agent and knew that your company was the ONLY one in Canada who got such a substantial discount on the Magic Your Way packages, wouldn't you do everything to make certain you could sell Disney to anyone who walked through your door?

Point I am making is that your original TA could not of 'met' that deal no matter what. She COULDN'T get that same discount seeing as she is not employed by CAA.

So, it's wasn't a situation of 'who snoozes, loses' - but rather - 'who ever gives Disney the most money wins'.

 

[digskat]

Hi Madonna,
Let me explain, what I meant by you snooze you lose, comment. As you may have seen in a previous post, when I called my TA who I have booked with two years in a row, because we had a great rapport the two previous trips, actually laughed at me when I told her the dates we were looking for and when I told her that I wasn't in a big hurray for the quotes ....Told me "Well yeah we are talking Nov!". I guess you could say I was a little hurt. It did not seem that she was too interested or some what annoyed in me asking so soon. We tend to book early and pay off the balance as soon as we get our income tax return. SO this is what I meant by "you snooze you lose". Our CAA agent from London was very quick to respond also, and seem very eager and interested. Had my original TA seemed a little more eager and not made me feel like I was a nuissance I would have considered booking thru her again. I might add that the two previous trips book thru her we had some troubles..ie trip #1 arriving after a 21hr drive to the hotel only to be told they did not have our reservations.....Trip #2 - we did not receive any of our paperwork until 21/2 weeks before departure, when we asked the TA if she was concerned as we were she did call Disney to sort out the trouble. So I think that her attitude towards me on the phone when discussing this years trip and the fact the TA from CAA was wonderfully accomodating and the steal I mean deal we got is what made up my mind. I am sorry if you took offense to my post/comment, but I guess this was just my way of venting rather then taking out on the TA.

 

[madonna31]

Oh my digskat, I am SO very sorry, I quite obviously mis-read what you meant by 'you snooze, you lose'.

I did indeed read the whole thread, I just misunderstood, as much as I like discussion boards, if there is one thing that I dislike about them is how difficult it is to know what someone is referring to when they make a comment, again I'm sorry.

For the record, I can not argue with you in the least about a TA who doesn't really 'care' especially when planning for WDW. I totally agree how that must of been a HUGE disappointment for you. (PLEASE tell me that she was just a regular TA and not a Disney Specialist)

I am sorry if you took offense to my post/comment, but I guess this was just my way of venting rather then taking out on the TA.

No you have nothing to be sorry for, I'm sorry if you took offense to mine. Like you, my previous post was more of a vent about Disney giving CAA TA's the ability to book a discounted MYW package

Again, sorry for the confusion, now back to your regularly scheduled thread.

 

[digskat]

Oh my digskat, I am SO very sorry, I quite obviously mis-read what you meant by 'you snooze, you lose'.


of been a HUGE disappointment for you. [I](PLEASE tell me that she was just a regular TA and not a Disney Specialist) [/I] :rolleyes:



It is perfectly fine Madonna! :thumbsup2 I can understand your frustration. Now my original TA had a certificate from "Disney's College of Knowledge", so I don't know if this is what qualifies her as a Disney specialist? Sometimes I felt I knew more than her in the Disney Dept....likely because of being there, these boards and reading. It wasn't only this TA that upset me either, the original one I called from CAA gave me a quote with 2 day hoppers, I told her I did not need the 2 day hoppers but that I would like quote with DDP and 1 day base ticket as we have 8 days left on a previous ticket. She said i she had to call Disney back in the next few days she'd call me with the quote..Well I am still waiting 1&1/2 weeks later and still no response. My decision was mainly due to London's CAA agent, she really did her job. Gotta Go! Everything is pixiedust: !! I agree with misunderstanding some one's comment they can really be taken out of context at times.

 

[madonna31]

Now my original TA had a certificate from "Disney's College of Knowledge", so I don't know if this is what qualifies her as a Disney specialist?

Ick...to me that certificate means nothing. The test you take to be able to call yourself a 'Disney Specialist' is beyond easy. It's just Q and A on WDW, DL and DCL, open book exam to-boot.

Personally, I think Disney should change what they classify as a 'Disney Specialist' to either a) a more difficult way of testing or b) (what Universal does) and that is, you must show RECEIPTS of your stay on property before you can claim yourself a 'specialist' because nothing beats first hand experience.

Sometimes I felt I knew more than her in the Disney Dept....likely because of being there, these boards and reading.

Believe me, chances are you DO know more then her in the Disney department. What you described was EXACTLY the reason I became a Disney Specialist in the first place, you see when planning my honeymoon, I got SO frustrated that no TA in my area came close to the knowledge I had of the parks and resorts, I ended up booking through an Disney Specialist agent in the United States. When I came back from my honeymoon, I decided that I was going to become that real 'Disney Specialist' who didn't exist in my area.

I hate that there are TA's out there who have a little certificate on their wall and that allows them to be an 'expert' on the subject, mainly because it gives real first-hand experienced Disney Specialists a bad name when these agents give out incorrect information, and that happens MORE often then not. More imporantly, with these types of TA's, the quality of helping a client plan for WDW goes out the window, especially when they don't advise clients to book dining in advance. Without proper planning, a vacation to Disney can certainly be ruined.

I told her I did not need the 2 day hoppers but that I would like quote with DDP and 1 day base ticket as we have 8 days left on a previous ticket.

Uggh...don't even get me started. A lot of that has to do with them not understanding how Magic Your Way works and what stuff like 'hopper' and 'water parks and more' really mean.

You know who is the worst for that - believe it or not - Disney phone reps. Whenever I have to call to book and I request "...base tickets..." they ALWAYS interrupt me with "you mean your client isn't taking the water parks and more option - why not?" and I answer "um, because they only want to go ONE day to the water parks, which turns out to be cheaper then buying it with a Magic Your Way package..." I honestly think that some of Disney's phone reps are worse then regular TA's when it comes to Disney.

I hate that a TA will just 'sell more' to get more commission, when being a true Disney Specialist should not be about any of that.

My decision was mainly due to London's CAA agent, she really did her job. Gotta Go!

That's GREAT to hear. I'm glad that you were able to find a TA to really work up to the 'Disney Specialist' title. And the AWESOME price only makes it that much better!