Booking a Disney Hotel On-Line or Travel Agent?

[pokee99]

Hey everyone,

I do almost all of my travel planning by booking resverations on-line. One of my friends said that with a Disney vacation (where you are planning to stay at a Disney hotel, especially), it is good to book through a travel agent, not only so you can get package deals and special discounts, but also so you can buy cancellation insurance (since Disney vacations makes you pre-pay).

Normally when I book a hotel on-line, I book with a credit card guarantee and can cancel with no penalty up to 24 hours before the trip. With a Disney hotel and tickets, it's all prepaid and 100% non-refundable, correct? And normally I book flights where I can pay $50 to make a change to the itinerary...so changing plans is usually never a big consideration in our house.

I would love some advice on how to plan my trip without having a heart attack that all our money will be gone in the event we have to cancel due to illness, emergency or bad weather/canceled flights. I'd also like to know how far in advance I should book a stay at or a package with the DLH for mid-March 2011. Thanks in advance!

 

[caimakale]

This was discussed in a thread yesterday (not sure which one though). If you book a Disney hotel only reservation, by calling reservations directly, you don't have to pay for the room upfront. You are only billed one nights stay plus 15% tax. The deposit is refundable up to five days before your trip and you don't have to pay in full until you arrive.

 

[DahliaRW]

And you can convert a room only reservation to package if a good deal comes out and if a better rate comes out you can call and have it applied to your reservation.

 

[PinkBudgie]

This was discussed in a thread yesterday (not sure which one though). If you book a Disney hotel only reservation, by calling reservations directly, you don't have to pay for the room upfront. You are only billed one nights stay plus 15% tax. The deposit is refundable up to five days before your trip and you don't have to pay in full until you arrive.

This came up in a thread I started because I asked about the cancelation policy for DLR hotels. Sherry had great info but it came down to you had up until 5 days before the trip to cancel for a room only. Once you have a package, it gets harder to cancel.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2549238

 

[pokee99]

This came up in a thread I started because I asked about the cancelation policy for DLR hotels. Sherry had great info but it came down to you had up until 5 days before the trip to cancel for a room only. Once you have a package, it gets harder to cancel.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2549238

This is AWESOME information - thanks soooo much! I am very happy I can make a room-only reservation with a one-night deposit. Those pre-paid packages scare the heck out of me with two little kids, planes, border lines, weather and all of the other variables that can put a hitch in our plans!

This thread keeps talking about calling and talking to Central Room-Only reservations, but I don't see a phone number anywhere. Does anyone know if there's a 1-800 number? Also, it appears as though you can do a room-only reservation on-line - and they take the one-night's deposit...BUT...I am very suspicious about the fact that they do not list their cancellation policy anywhere on the reservation page. I would like to see this in writing somewhere. Not that I don't believe you guys, but I always like to see that stuff in writing. Anyone know where the link is to their room only reservation cancellation policy?

Also - to stay at the DLH, it's currently $460. per night (including taxes...OUCH!). We're not going till mid-March...typically you can get 30-40% off by waiting closer to the date you travel, correct?

Thanks!

 

[DahliaRW]

There is a toll free number if you're a disney visa card holder. If not it's the normal 714 number and you pay for the call.

The rate most likely will go down (or there will be a package deal) and you can get your reservation adjusted accordingly. You also get 10% off if you're an AP holder, so do the math and it might be worth buying one for the discount (and sometimes there are deeper discounts for AP holders too - but they aren't published for march yet).

 

[Sherry E]

This is AWESOME information - thanks soooo much! I am very happy I can make a room-only reservation with a one-night deposit. Those pre-paid packages scare the heck out of me with two little kids, planes, border lines, weather and all of the other variables that can put a hitch in our plans!

This thread keeps talking about calling and talking to Central Room-Only reservations, but I don't see a phone number anywhere. Does anyone know if there's a 1-800 number? Also, it appears as though you can do a room-only reservation on-line - and they take the one-night's deposit...BUT...I am very suspicious about the fact that they do not list their cancellation policy anywhere on the reservation page. I would like to see this in writing somewhere. Not that I don't believe you guys, but I always like to see that stuff in writing. Anyone know where the link is to their room only reservation cancellation policy?

Also - to stay at the DLH, it's currently $460. per night (including taxes...OUCH!). We're not going till mid-March...typically you can get 30-40% off by waiting closer to the date you travel, correct?

Thanks!

There actually used to be a direct line to Central/Room-Only Reservations. It was not the main 714 number. It was a separate extenson/line for Central. Somewhere in my masses of scribbled notes from previous DLR hotel stays I jotted down the number. If I can ever find it again, I will post it but it may not be valid anymore - OR it may just take you to the main reservations number now.

In any case, you don't have to use that specific number. You can call the main reservations number that's listed on the DLR website. See, things changed a bit when the Walt Disney Travel Co. moved some of its reservation CM's into the same area (Central) where the regular, non-package reservation CM's are. So they all may take turns picking up lines for each other's departments, but you would still have to specifically ask to make a Room-Only reservation and not a package if that's what you want.

If you are unsure about the cancellation policy and need confirmation, you might want to just make the Room-Only reservation on the phone - that way you will hear the CM explain the policy to you and you can be sure that you are not getting anything that is even remotely considered a package.

 

[caimakale]

When I get home, I'll edit out my reservation specific information on my confirmation letter for the GCH and post it so you can see the cancellation policy.

 

[roobug]

For us we use a travel agent it's easier I don't have to go through the headache of finding a good package they do that for you. Also the few times we've had to make changes to our vacation due to canceled flights our travel agent did all that so we didn't have to stress about it - we got to go on with our day and our travel agent called us to let us know all the new info. That was a life saver for us and makes our vacations much less stressful. Could I get a better deal on my own yeah probably - but with a travel agent they can do all the stressful stuff and I get to plan the fun stuff - so it's worth it to me.

 

[farmfresh]

We've booked direct sometimes, and sometimes through an agent. I have booked room only by phone with no problem, and have also used the room only online bookings. This trip is booked by our travel agent (who is amazing!). He looked at the best option...direct, or through a wholesaler, and in the end booked it as as package for us through Disney direct. We have the 3-5 deal ticket, rooms at great rates, extras (lanyard, tags, Mttm, and preferred seating (only no Aladdin anyway!). Cost us no more to use his services, and of course it's very convenient to tie in with all the other travel arrangements.

Using a travel agent won't cover you for changes necessarily, unless they have gone to a wholesaler and the wholesaler is prepared to make a change.

You also mention other issues like cancelled flights... some general travel insurance might be worth looking into...covering you for flights and hotels. Might be cheaper than getting it individually.