Disney Club discount for 2003?

[nicanna]

HI,

I really want Poly concierge, so I have a temporary reservation for November 2003. They cannot give me any Disney Club package or rates because they are not available yet. They also said they cannot garuantee that I will be able to get the Club discount because sometimes hotels do not offer concierge rooms with this discount, it just luck and I have to keep calling back to see if the D.C. rates for 2003 have come out yet and have them check if they can apply it to my concierge room. Am I going about this the wrong way? Thanks for your time..

 

[zulaya]

You are doing everything right. The DC rates won't come out until late September/early October. And the CM is right, sometimes concierge discounts are available, sometimes not. And even with a DC discount, it's only going to be 10% at a deluxe resort.

If you plan to be there for 7 park days, getting an AP might be beneficial because AP rates *sometimes* yield a 30-40% discount, but those wouldn't be avialable until 2-3 months out, and again nothing is guaranteed.

My advice is if you can't afford it, don't book it and count on a discount. Tha'ts just asking for a bigger bill than you can handle.

You have a ways to wait, but when the time comes, start watching the boards and people will post when the deals are out for your timeframe.

 

[SuzyQue]

DC rates for the following year were released on Oct. 15 in 2000 and Sept. 28 in 2001. So you should have the answers to your questions at least a year before your trip. ~~

 

[Tess]

We usually book our vacations at least a year out (not this year though since we didn't plan on going). I book the res for the room type/resort we want as soon as I have dates. Then, I will call back mid-September until the DC rates come out (watching these boards closely around that time helps too). If I'm able to get a DC I take it (don't make the mistake of booking a package or your might hinder your ability to cancel without penalty--get room only). Once I get that discount I will then continue to check for AP or other code discount that will better our position.

This season has been exception since the 9/11 catastrophe. The discounts came out and were still available after 1/1/02! Kind of an unheard of situation from my experience. We booked with a DC rate in January, changed to a code rate the following month, and finally an AP in March. Granted, I've seen deeper discounts--but at least the discounts have been fairly plentiful and easily obtained. I can't say that's been the case in year's past.

As to the concierge discounts--it's true that these are usually VERY limited. Do not believe any CRO/WDTC reservationist who indicates these rooms are NEVER discounted. It's simply not so and I've had discounts during our past three stays. I must admit that this year it was very easy to move from discount to discount even though we are booked in concierge.

Good luck!