Disney Vacation Accounts--discontinued!

[wifeof35]

Thank you for your participation in the Disney Vacation Account program. At this time, we are discontinuing the program and no new accounts or contributions are being accepted.

As a true Disney fan, and to show our appreciation for your participation in the program, below are four (4) options you can choose from. If you have more than one account with the Disney Vacation Account program, you may want to take action for each account.

Thanks again for your participation and for your understanding.

—The Disney Vacation Account Team


Ps: it does give 4 different options as to use the funds in your account, but I did not copy those in case everyone had different options.

 

[hiroMYhero]

Thank you for your participation in the Disney Vacation Account program. At this time, we are discontinuing the program and no new accounts or contributions are being accepted.

As a true Disney fan, and to show our appreciation for your participation in the program, below are four (4) options you can choose from. If you have more than one account with the Disney Vacation Account program, you may want to take action for each account.

Thanks again for your participation and for your understanding.

—The Disney Vacation Account Team


Ps: it does give 4 different options as to use the funds in your account, but I did not copy those in case everyone had different options.

Thanks for posting to alert others to check their accounts.

I believe the 4 Options are the same for all account holders. There's also a thread on the Rumors and News Board.

 

[Klayfish]

I just heard about this.

No joke...I just signed up for the account last Friday. So I've got a whopping $20 in it. Bummer.

Oh well, guess I'll just use PayPal to do the same thing.

 

[BrownHP800]

My wife got that email but strangely enough I did not. We both have accounts and only mine is active.

Now the web site says it is down for maintenance. The whole thing seems a little "fishy" to me. I will not log in until I see some official proof that the site was not hacked.

 

[tlmadden73]

It was an interesting program when I looked into it, but didn't seem very beneficial. Considering it is only 2 years old, they probably closed it because not enough people were using it or the overhead just wasn't worth it.

I hope people take this opportunity to find better ways to invest/save their money.
Putting your money in an account that only nets a 2% return (only usable at Disney) isn't a good investment. Letting someone else tie up your money for months for little return is not the best idea.

You are better off getting a Red Card at Target and buying Disney gift cards there every so often. $1000 in gift cards saves you $50 (straight up) .. while $1000 in the Vacation Club netted you a $20 Disney gift card.

 

[AngiTN]

It was an interesting program when I looked into it, but didn't seem very beneficial. Considering it is only 2 years old, they probably closed it because not enough people were using it or the overhead just wasn't worth it.

I hope people take this opportunity to find better ways to invest/save their money.
Putting your money in an account that only nets a 2% return (only usable at Disney) isn't a good investment. Letting someone else tie up your money for months for little return is not the best idea.

You are better off getting a Red Card at Target and buying Disney gift cards there every so often. $1000 in gift cards saves you $50 (straight up) .. while $1000 in the Vacation Club netted you a $20 Disney gift card.

Many people combined both. Bought gift cards at Target to deposit in the DVA
At least you could do that at the beginning. I haven't used it since it first launched so not sure if you could still do that or not. It was a great option then because that was before they launched the Gift Card website and could combine them there

 

[MagicPlanning]

It was an interesting program when I looked into it, but didn't seem very beneficial. Considering it is only 2 years old, they probably closed it because not enough people were using it or the overhead just wasn't worth it.

I hope people take this opportunity to find better ways to invest/save their money.
Putting your money in an account that only nets a 2% return (only usable at Disney) isn't a good investment. Letting someone else tie up your money for months for little return is not the best idea.

You are better off getting a Red Card at Target and buying Disney gift cards there every so often. $1000 in gift cards saves you $50 (straight up) .. while $1000 in the Vacation Club netted you a $20 Disney gift card.

It was a great investment. The account had to be open a while, but the money didn't have to be there. So that 2% investment was over a week's time for me, not months. I put in the money just before paying off our vacation.

 

[Micca]

We liked it but we'll somehow gird our loins and soldier-on.

 

[tlmadden73]

Many people combined both. Bought gift cards at Target to deposit in the DVA
At least you could do that at the beginning. I haven't used it since it first launched so not sure if you could still do that or not. It was a great option then because that was before they launched the Gift Card website and could combine them there

Well if you could deposit money WITH a Disney Gift card, than that isn't that bad of a deal as long as you don't let the money sit very long.

It was a great investment. The account had to be open a while, but the money didn't have to be there. So that 2% investment was over a week's time for me, not months. I put in the money just before paying off our vacation.

Maybe that is why they shut it down . .people weren't using it as a true savings account and leaving money in there long enough for Disney to do anything with. If people were just using it with a quick turnaround (like you said, a week) to get the bonus $20+ and then run, then I can see why it closed. It wouldn't be worth it for Disney to upkeep a system like that if they can't turn around and invest the funds inside it.

Plus they probably ran into competition with reward cards. Most credit cards can give you 2% on your purchases anyway .. so just putting your Disney Vacation on your rewards card would get you the same return with less hassle. (Just how the Target Gift Card is less hassle too).

 

[Alztybrn]

So I just had all my money transferred into a Disney eGift card. My concern with this, I now have these eGift cards sitting in my email box. How secure are they? They have the GC numbers, bar code to scan, PIN codes etc. If someone hacks my email, I have must lost all that money. Not sure what to do about it...

 

[Lilly0704]

Many people combined both. Bought gift cards at Target to deposit in the DVA
At least you could do that at the beginning. I haven't used it since it first launched so not sure if you could still do that or not. It was a great option then because that was before they launched the Gift Card website and could combine them there

That's what I did, sort of. I naught gift cards at Sams club for roughly 5% off, paid with my 1.5% cash back credit card, then put it in my dva to get the $20 bonuses. All within a week of paying for my vacation so it wasn't like I was losing interest in the bank. Was able to save a few hundred dollars this way. I'm sad it's closing!

 

[cmwade77]

So I just had all my money transferred into a Disney eGift card. My concern with this, I now have these eGift cards sitting in my email box. How secure are they? They have the GC numbers, bar code to scan, PIN codes etc. If someone hacks my email, I have must lost all that money. Not sure what to do about it...

If you are concerned, get one physical gift card and then use http://www.disneygiftcard.com to combine them.

 

[helenm29]

So I just had all my money transferred into a Disney eGift card. My concern with this, I now have these eGift cards sitting in my email box. How secure are they? They have the GC numbers, bar code to scan, PIN codes etc. If someone hacks my email, I have must lost all that money. Not sure what to do about it...

I KNOW! I called Disney and they said it's not their policy to move these e-cards over to hard copies so we are screwed! there must be some way around this! I printed a copy of my e-gift card to put in my safe if there is any problem and I have a copy in my wallet...I can't think of anything else to do. I honestly don't know why they can't transfer then to regular cards...you have all the information they gave you and it's THEIR e-card!!!

 

[helenm29]

If you are concerned, get one physical gift card and then use http://www.disneygiftcard.com to combine them.

they won't let you! I tried and then I called Disney to find out why! I'm currently on hold with them..(small world playing!)they are asking supervisors..now they are telling me to call disney vacation account again! So, they told me to print out the information, delete the e-mail and go with a paper copy....What? if you are a Klutz like me, it will get wet or torn and that will be that!

 

[cmwade77]

So sad, yet another cost savings tool gone. Add this to the fact that Target has recently told me that they are phasing out Disney Gift Cards and we end up with very few options left.

As far as I am aware once Target sells out of current inventory the only options for discounted Disney Gift cards will be:

• BJ's (Do not need to be a member to order these online and there is no extra charge for not being a member and ordering Disney Gift cards, but if you don't have BJ's close, you do have to wait for shipping, which takes about a week and a half)
• Sam's Club (Online there is a limit of one $500 gift card per person, not sure about in person)
• Costco (Only in store at a very limited number of locations)
• Target (If your store still has them in stock, they will still sell them and they do qualify for the Red Card discount)

 

[cmwade77]

they won't let you! I tried and then I called Disney to find out why!

How strange, you can combine other eGift cards onto physical cards. Another option would be to just pay for your vacation now with the gift cards.

 

[danielocha30]

My wife got that email but strangely enough I did not. We both have accounts and only mine is active.

Now the web site says it is down for maintenance. The whole thing seems a little "fishy" to me. I will not log in until I see some official proof that the site was not hacked.

It's true Disney ended it, today I close my account and request a E-gift card option with my balance and I got a email with the card, I also print a statement before, when you request the refund the account is automatically closed. People will have until September 27 to choose how they want their refund, afterwards all funds will be returned to the original payment form either gift card or bank accounts, if you choose a e-gift card now you get a % more of whatever your balance is.

 

[JohnneeO]

Regarding the options, here is my Summary.

If you are looking for the best bonus, Option #3, with a $5 minimum Disney GC, offers the best return (>=5%) for those with less than $100 in your DVA. If you have more than $100, than option #1 is a redemption in a Disney GC, with a straight 5% bonus on top. For those with accounts open a long time, and with multiple sources of co-mingled funds, I could see some issues with where the Option #3 refund is credited.

I cannot imagine why anyone would take option #2, unless booking a specific offer is contingent on payment from a DVA (which I don't think it is). Otherwise, you are always better off using Option #1 and its 5% bonus to pay off the same vacation Disney is hoping you will book. For example, if your vacation cost $1,050, and you have $1,000 in your DVA, then Option #2 forces you to cough up an additional $50 on top of your DVA balance. OTOH, Option #1 generates a $1,050 Disney that pays off your vacation entire cost.

 

[danielocha30]

I KNOW! I called Disney and they said it's not their policy to move these e-cards over to hard copies so we are screwed! there must be some way around this! I printed a copy of my e-gift card to put in my safe if there is any problem and I have a copy in my wallet...I can't think of anything else to do. I honestly don't know why they can't transfer then to regular cards...you have all the information they gave you and it's THEIR e-card!!!

get a screenshot of the card and any CM will be able to scan the barcode to process the payment as a hard copy gift card

 

[JohnneeO]

So sad, yet another cost savings tool gone. Add this to the fact that Target has recently told me that they are phasing out Disney Gift Cards and we end up with very few options left.

As far as I am aware once Target sells out of current inventory the only options for discounted Disney Gift cards will be:

• BJ's (Do not need to be a member to order these online and there is no extra charge for not being a member and ordering Disney Gift cards, but if you don't have BJ's close, you do have to wait for shipping, which takes about a week and a half)
• Sam's Club (Online there is a limit of one $500 gift card per person, not sure about in person)
• Costco (Only in store at a very limited number of locations)
• Target (If your store still has them in stock, they will still sell them and they do qualify for the Red Card discount)

First I have heard that Target is phasing out Disney GC's. Do you have a third party source to confirm this?