Deceptive DVC Benefits offering (Africa Trek Tour discount)

[Boardwalk III]

Hi all,

I love the DISBoards and don't believe I have ever posted a complaint here - my apologies for the lengthy post. However I just experienced an unpleasant situation concerning the DVC 15% discount on the Wild Africa Trek tour. We have a special trip planned in March with our grown sons and their girlfriends (8 adults) and are using points for 3 rooms at BWV. We spent a lot of time a month ago planning our schedule and making ADRs etc. As part of that we decided to pick one tour and all agreed on WAT at AK. I told our entire party that we would be entitled to a 15% discount on this tour based on the DVC benefits offering on the website, and we picked the one day and time that works for all of us based on our other plans.

However when I called to book the tour I was told that we couldn't get the discount for "that time of day" (10:15 am). The tour CM didn't seem to understand why but did say we could get it later in the day. Unfortunately that doesn't work for us so I went ahead and booked the tour we needed and figured I would sort it out with DVC later. Well I called DVC today and basically was told that I couldn't get the discount on that particular tour, and that because the website benefits offer reads "tour prices vary by season" there was nothing she could do.

I find this to not only be deceptive but really unethical. Yes, the tours do vary by price by season and we are willing to pay whatever the prices are for that season. However if you look at the benefits page it leads one to believe that the 15% discount will be applied to whatever the pricing is for that season. And the fact that the CM told me that we could get the discount later in the same day has nothing to do with season. Thus DVC has put me in an uncomfortable situation of asking my guests to pay 15% more for their tickets with no discount. At a difference of almost $200 for 7 tickets I simply don't find this to be acceptable.

I have just sent off an email to Member Services with a screenshot of the benefits offer (attached here) and am hoping they will honor the discount. Happy to post outcome.

I am a long term and very happy DVC member but in my 17 years as a member I don't think anything has annoyed me as much as this. Thanks for letting me vent!

 

[disneynutz]

DVC offers discounts for one main reason, it make more money. They use DVC to fill open slots at less popular times or to move merchandise. The other big reason is to be able to advertise the events or discounts to prospective buyers as an inducement to sell DVC contracts. It also helps with member satisfaction knowing that these things are offered even through many will never use them. It's just the way business is.

Bill

 

[bumbershoot]

That said, your email will likely be useful to them as they add "vary by season and time" to the benefits listing.

 

[miTnosnhoJ]

I am sorry for your bad experience. We received the discount for a 9:30 WAT last December. I think I reserved it several months in advance, like 6 or 7, but I added a third person 2 weeks out.

 

[Simba's Mom]

I think that stinks! I'm glad you contacted member satisfaction. I can't help but wonder (and hope) that maybe you encountered a couple of unknowledgeable CMs, and this will be corrected to your satisfaction. Please keep us posted.

 

[BLLB]

I agree with you! The price may vary by “season”; but it doesn’t say the discount is unavailable by
“Season”. I hope they can assist you in figuring it out.

I called once for an issue, was told I couldn’t do what I wanted. Asked on these Boards, and they suggested I call and talk to a different CM. I called back and the issue was resolved. Hope you have the same luck.

 

[GotLabradors]

By season is one thing, but by hour is a whole other ball game. All that being said, my husband and son did this tour 2 years ago and said it was worth every penny.

 

[TeeKo]

I think that stinks! I'm glad you contacted member satisfaction. I can't help but wonder (and hope) that maybe you encountered a couple of unknowledgeable CMs, and this will be corrected to your satisfaction. Please keep us posted.

I had the same experience. I could have the DVC discount in the afternoon but not for the morning time slot. This was in March 2015.
So I think it's the way it is.

 

[Boardwalk III]

Thanks for all your replies. I would have absolutely no issue if this was transparent. For example, the DVC discount for Hoop Dee Doo is only applicable for the last show each evening. Clearly stated and gives folks the ability to make a choice and plan accordingly. Because we have such a large group I planned well and made this tour reservation at 180 days out. If I had known ahead certain tours were not going to accept the discount perhaps we could have planned our ADR's etc differently. Even now, it seems to be a mystery on any given day as to which tours are eligible for the discount and which aren't. Not very Magical or DVC-like in my opinion

 

[SL6827]

That sounds awful for the OP.

 

[Boardwalk III]

Thanks for all your replies. I would have absolutely no issue if this was transparent. For example, the DVC discount for Hoop Dee Doo is only applicable for the last show each evening. Clearly stated and gives folks the ability to make a choice and plan accordingly. Because we have such a large group I planned well and made this tour reservation at 180 days out. If I had known ahead certain tours were not going to accept the discount perhaps we could have planned our ADR's etc differently. Even now, it seems to be a mystery on any given day as to which tours are eligible for the discount and which aren't. Not very Magical or DVC-like in my opinion

That sounds awful for the OP.

Thanks - I'll survive First-world problems given everything that's going on in the world for sure. But annoying nonetheless!

 

[Sugardimples]

I'm not sure that this is not a mistake on the part of the CM booking the tour. The 45th Anniversary Discount is only valid for tours starting after 11:30 am. The Passholder Discount does not have this stipulation on the DVC site. Call back and ask for a supervisor.

 

[anitatina]

Wow, I'm surprised their policies aren't clearly stated in the fine print. It seems they should absolutely honor whatever is written in plain text on their own website. Please update us on how it goes!

 

[Deb & Bill]

When we did the Wild Africa Trek, we did a discounted tour later in the afternoon. We were done with the tour right as the park was closing for the day, like 6PM or so. Some tour times are busier than others. So they discount the ones that don't fill up. Kind of like discounting the number of points needed during the various seasons (like Adventure Season is a lot less than Premier Season).

 

[Wakey]

Nickle and diming, it's probably massively overpriced anyway. DVD/ Disney need to stop screwing it's best customers for every penny.

 

[disneynutz]

This is a pattern for DVC and Disney. Before DCL added the new ships, DVC could only book DCL cabins on points that were deemed available to DVC and it was based on what was left over.

Bill

 

[twinsouvenirs]

Thanks for all your replies. I would have absolutely no issue if this was transparent. For example, the DVC discount for Hoop Dee Doo is only applicable for the last show each evening. Clearly stated and gives folks the ability to make a choice and plan accordingly. Because we have such a large group I planned well and made this tour reservation at 180 days out. If I had known ahead certain tours were not going to accept the discount perhaps we could have planned our ADR's etc differently. Even now, it seems to be a mystery on any given day as to which tours are eligible for the discount and which aren't. Not very Magical or DVC-like in my opinion

I totally agree. It's one think if the rules are crazy/restrictive but clear. It's another if they're not honored. "Prices varying by season" does not at all indicate blockout times. It indicates that the underlying price varies by season, it doesn't modify that 15% discount.

 

[Deb & Bill]

But, to me, "prices varying by seasons" means I'd better call to get the price.

 

[mustinjourney]

What? You've never heard of morning season and afternoon season?

Seriously though, that is frustrating. I would call back and go up the ladder and see what is going on. If that doesn't work, you could just say that you'd like to cancel and see if they balk at losing out on several thousand dollars of revenue. Of course, they might have plenty of people waiting to sign up behind you, so it might not make a difference to them.

Good luck!

 

[Deb & Bill]

When I look at the Disney website under tours and events, I find out the price for WAT is from $189.00 to $249.00. What price were you basing your discount on?