Disney Vacation Account service now available

[doconeill]

Someone pointed this out on Facebook, thought it would be of interest here...

https://disneyvacationaccount.disney.go.com/

(also www.disneyvacationaccount.com)

This might not be the best way to save (no fees, but no interest that I see), but it does offer some bonuses...

 

[McKelly]

I'd be afraid to do it, because then they can monitor how much money I have and decide I don't need a PIN code!!!

 

[akcire]

I wonder how the refund is generated? Can I charge payments, get credit card rewards then get a check refund? Beyond that no real incentive for me.

Although it does let you fund with a GC too so I guess in theory you could buy local GC deals and double dip with the extra 1/2 percent GC the program is offering. Not sure 1/2 percent is enough to bother. The other advantage is if you have a ton of low dollar GC it would consolidate.

I miss the old days of buying US savings bonds with credit cards. Government bought me a free flight every year.

 

[hsmamato2]

I don't see any benefit to this...what am I missing? It's just another way to earmark disney money...but I don't like it,b/c what if I decide to use the savings for something else? oooo.....that's why it's been created.....

 

[doconeill]

I don't see any benefit to this...what am I missing? It's just another way to earmark disney money...but I don't like it,b/c what if I decide to use the savings for something else? oooo.....that's why it's been created.....

You didn't seem to read much about it. The balance is partially or fully refundable if desired. There is no lock-in.

It isn't a savings account, however. You don't get cash back. Refunds will be transferred back to the original form of payment.

 

[goingtowdwwithkiddos]

ummmm thank you I have a year and a half I think it could be good to buy gift cards at target and be ale to add them instead of having to save them up Gonna think about it

 

[Marionnette]

Hmmm.

It says that it can be funded via debit card, credit card or gift card. I'm thinking that it would be a great way to combine all the Disney GCs that you purchase at Target into one place so that when it comes time to book or pay for your vacation, you don't have to read off a hundred GC codes to the CM at the other end of the phone line. Think of how much time this could save you and Disney phone operators!

 

[alymae1010]

"You'll also be eligible for a $20 Disney Gift Card for every $1,000 you spend on qualified vacation purchases with your Disney Vacation Account prior to December 31, 2015 (date subject to extension), up to a total $500 in Disney Gift Card(s) per household. Your Disney Vacation Account must be active for a minimum of 120 days at the time of spending in order to receive this bonus. Request your Disney Gift Card(s) 4-6 weeks in advance of your vacation date to allow time for delivery to your mailing address. "

So, I'm thinking:

1. Open account over 120 days before I need the funds.
2. Fund before I book my trip with money I saved in interest bearing account.
3. Get $20 Disney gift card bonus for every $1k I spend on my trip.

Am I missing something? Not sure why people don't think the $20 gift cards don't make this somewhat attractive.

 

[scottmel]

I use smartypig and love it! 1 percent interest and you can use funds for anything but I earmark vacation or new furniture or whatever. Love the app for the iphone too. My DD did this to save her money for a computer and it was great...

 

[goingtowdwwithkiddos]

long shot as this is a new service but does anyone know how extra such as food and souvenir money would work assuming you did not do dining plan ??

 

[Angie789]

This is probably obvious, but I am assuming you'd have to book your vacation direct with Disney to get the gift cards back? Our next Disney trip will be a DCL cruise, so I'd have to weigh out if this would get me more benefit than OBC through a travel agent. Thanks for posting this, OP!

 

[hsmamato2]

This is probably obvious, but I am assuming you'd have to book your vacation direct with Disney to get the gift cards back? Our next Disney trip with be a DCL cruise, so I'd have to weigh out if this would get me more benefit than OBC through a travel agent. Thanks for posting this, OP!

This is in the FAQ's...doesn't specify where you'd have to buy tickets....could it be a 3rd party like UCT?

Qualified vacation purchases include vacation packages for the Walt Disney World Resort or the Disneyland Resort, theme park tickets, room stays, cruise fare, and vacations by Adventures By Disney. Purchases of Disney Gift Cards are not qualified vacation purchases for purposes of this Bonus program.

 

[hsmamato2]

I could also see this being useful as a way to save the money ahead of time,funding with a cc that gives bonus points,accruing the points and earmarking the money...vs. just saving the money in a bank account...(only works well if I P.I.F. anyway,so no extra charges), then could possibly accrue up to $500 in Disney gift cards by using this service.....hmmmm....maybe this is interesting....

 

[doconeill]

This is in the FAQ's...doesn't specify where you'd have to buy tickets....could it be a 3rd party like UCT?

Qualified vacation purchases include vacation packages for the Walt Disney World Resort or the Disneyland Resort, theme park tickets, room stays, cruise fare, and vacations by Adventures By Disney. Purchases of Disney Gift Cards are not qualified vacation purchases for purposes of this Bonus program.

I would expect for the purchases to qualify, they must be direct from Disney. You likely wouldn't be able to make a direct purchase from this account from any third-party - you'd have to "refund" the money to yourself, and I'm pretty sure that doesn't count towards any of the rewards.

Think of it more like layaway, and less like a bank.

 

[hsmamato2]

I wonder how the refund is generated? Can I charge payments, get credit card rewards then get a check refund? Beyond that no real incentive for me.
.

I don't think so..... from the FAQ's....

How do I request a partial refund or get my money back from my Disney Vacation Account?

Partial refunds may be made to the original form(s) of payment, subject to a limit on the number of partial refunds (the current limit is 10 partial refunds). Full refunds may be made to the original form(s) of payment at any time. Please allow at least 5 days for us to process your refund. Your financial institution may need additional time to complete the transaction.

 

[hsmamato2]

From what I can see(not every detail covered in FAQ) is you have to input ALL your info,and buy straight from Disney itself to qualify for any discount cards.....if you request a refund, it will go back to your original form of payment, so don't lose those gift cards....you will accrue cc points, but they're only useable if you use the money for the purpose they intended,a refund= points not accrued-
It could be potentially useful, but IMHO in a very limited way. I still would rather DIY my trips, this service doesn't seem to save me any effort...

 

[petchie]

In the fine print it does say you can use a travel agent for the booking, so that is good!

On the other hand, these are the people bringing you MDE and FP+. You are really going to trust them with money that is not tied directly to a reservation?

 

[dmross]

In the fine print it does say you can use a travel agent for the booking, so that is good!

Yes, I officially used my Disney Vacation Account today with my independent travel agent and it was fine. I also talked to RunDisney, and the specially priced park tickets for participants can also be purchased with the account. Yay!

 

[kymom99]

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3235919&highlight=disney+vacation+account

Proceed with caution.