Fall/Winter AP rate news!

Lollipop Mom

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[EDITING TO BRING THE INFO CURRENT! (otherwise known as my first novel...buckle up, it's a long one! :earseek: ]

Fall and Winter AP rates are on their way out but there are a couple of new twists now!

There's a new twist to the AP rate game! Disney has released a new program for passholder rates. It is called the "Passholder Best Rate Program" This program is only available for booking online and should guarantee passholders who book with it the best available rate to the general public or passholders. It is currently available for booking online for check ins from 8/8/05 - 11/26/05. (From what I was told by guest services dates through 12/19/05 will follow shortly)

The details on this offer:
-must be booked online
-must be booked at least 120 days or more in advance
-one night NONREFUNDABLE deposit will be required at the time of booking. No 14 day hold, no 5 day cancellation policy.
-an ADULT AP must be used, a child's pass will not work.
-only ONE ROOM per pass may be booked with this offer as opposed to 3 rooms which was the standard previously.
-to book yourself on the passholder portion of the Disneyworld.com web site, you will need an ACTIVATED ADULT annual pass. A travel agent can book for you with a voucher but you must have the voucher or an activated pass on hand to book this offer.


What they are saying is that they guarantee passholders the lowest rate available to the general public. This excludes membership rates (AAA), resident rates or group rates. They are saying they will automatically reduce your rate for you without you calling if a lower rate for passholders or the general public are released later. You will not have to watch for these discounts and call, they will automatically be applied.

THE RATES YOU WILL FIND FOR 10/8 - 11/26 ARE RACK RATE AS OF NOW. THEY ARE NOT DISCOUNTED. This is NOT a release of AP codes, just the roll out of a new program. It sounds as though they will still have the same AP rates released as we've seen before but they are likely to be VERY limited because of this new program. No one has been able to give a difinitive answer as to if the AP rates as we know them will continue to be released as they have been in the past. We expect they will be, but we don't know for sure yet. I'll update this post as new info becomes availale (as well as in a reply for those who may not re-read this first post).

This likely means changes to the AP rate policies such as requiring a pass or voucher number to book or hold the rates and quite possibly a much stricter cancellation policy, possibly a nonrefundable deposit requirement. It raises a lot of questions such as:

-why not at least match AAA rates? if I have a AAA reservation, with a 5 day cancelation policy and a better rate, why should I book a room at rack rate with a nonrefundable deposit if you can't guarantee me a discount at least as good as AAA in the end?

-what about people who are just purchasing an AP voucher? they can not book anything untill they receive the voucher?

-what about PIN codes? will they match those? what if I have a room booked with this plan and I get a pin code offer, can I apply the PIN to that ressie or do I have to cancel and lose my deposit in order to use the PIN (assuming the rates will not match the PIN rates since they are not general public rates)?

-if I'm booking a split stay, both of my deposits would be nonrefundable. That's a big risk.

-if the rooms are already booked at rack rate with nonrefundable deposit, what is the motivation to discount them at all?

-what about non-room discounts? The free dining offer made for hurricane season did not discount the rooms, just the dining. With this plan, will I get some sort of discount to compensate for not being able to add the free dining or am I out of luck b/c one is a package and one is room only?

At this point, it's a big gamble!

Here is the official statement from Disney on this new offer:

Introducing Our Passholder Best Rate Program

Planning a vacation in a few months? Then it's time to try our Passholder Best Rate Program! Now Passholders booking a Disney Resort room online under the Passholder Best Rate Program at disneyworld.com/passholders can rest easy knowing they have received our best room rate offered to the general public* at that time for the room and nights booked. And, if we subsequently reduce our room rate to the general public for the same room and nights you booked online under this Program, we will automatically reduce your room rate to match that lower rate.

Rooms must be booked at least 120 days in advance and, unlike our normal cancellation policy, a non-refundable deposit of 1-night's room charge and tax must be paid at the time of booking. Currently this program is only available for arrivals through 12/19/05. The number of rooms and nights available for this Program is limited and rooms are not available every night. This Program is subject to change or discontinuance at any time and without notice.

* Does not include group rates, auction rates or rates conditioned on group/club memberships or other specified eligibility requirements.

See Important Program Requirements below:

Enjoy this great rate at a great time to visit! Happiest Celebration On Earth is in full swing with new attractions, including Soarin'™, Cinderellabration, and Lights, Motors, Action™ Extreme Stunt Show.

As a Disney Resort Guest, you can also enjoy these Disney Resort benefits:

Renowned Disney service 24 hours a day
Spectacular pools
A beautifully themed Resort in the heart of the Disney magic
Complimentary Transportation (motor coach, water launch, or monorail) throughout the Walt Disney World® Resort
Important Program Requirements
Program only available to adult passholders booking online at disneyworld.com/passholders. Passholder may only book one room per reservation. Reservations must be made by adult Passholder with Passholder's credit card. Passholder must present his or her valid Pass at check in.


More thoughts:
===========
Piecing together info from the 20 some off CMs I spoke with yesterday (or more accurately, 7 or 8 of them who actually took the time to go over all of this with me and seemed to either know what was happening or at the very least, know who to go to with questions about it) here's what my speculation is (basically what the CMs I spoke with all seem to think this will likely mean....of course we could ALL be wrong...who knows at this point! :rolleyes: )

-I don't think this is the end of AP rates as we know them but I do think that some of these policies are going to carry over. I think we'll still see them, but that their availability will be very limited. A big part of the reason they will be limited is that it will encourage people to book with this new "program" in the future. If they are booked with the program and a discount comes out, then they are guaranteed to get it. If they play wait and see, then there is a good chance the availability will be gone. That would leave you saying "darn, I wish I'd booked this on that program!"

-I think very likely we will see some of this policy become standard for AP rates, namely needing a pass or voucher to book the rates (YES, it does say on the TA web site you can book with a voucher...I haven't tried it yet but it does say a voucher # can be entered). I would wouldn't be surprised if they limit our ability to do a 14 day hold on rates in the future as well. If that is the case, then these 2 things combined mean that you can not book a rate till you have the voucher IN HAND. By the time you order and then receive the voucher, the rate you wanted may no longer be available. I've sent an email and told any CM I spoke with that I would love to see the option to allow you to book the AP rate either with a valid passholder ID #, a voucher # or if you are willing to purchase a voucher in the same transaction as putting down the deposit. That would allow "new" passholders to book the rates and still ensure that people booking them have paid for an AP. This eliminates the problem of people abusing the AP rates when they aren't actually passholders.

-I wouldn't be surprised if they modify the online booking at disneyworld.com to allow you to book with a pass voucher. Untill they do, or if they don't end up doing it, you can book with a voucher with a travel agent. There are many reputable Disney specialist agencies around. Working with a specialist agency should eliminate that "I know more about Disney than my TA does thing." None of us charge for our services and I am not aware of a single specialist agency that imposes any restrictions like their own cancellation fees etc. This may end up being true not just for this "best rate program" but for booking AP rates with a voucher at all.

-cancellation policy: I was told last year by a CM that there was talk of making ANY discounted room only reservation have to follow package booking rules, balance due 45 days out and $100 cancelation fee for 5-44 day out cancellations, $200 for less than 5 days out. I wouldn't be surprised if we start to see that now. TA discounted rooms are like this now, they follow package guidelines from deposit to payment due to cancellation polcies even though they are room only reservations and not packages. This nonrefundable thing is what I suspect they will get the most complaints on. It's possible they will move towards a 45 day out policy which will be better but still a BIG change for lots of people. One CM I spoke with said that a while ago, like 18 months ago an idea was tossed around where they would offer some really terrific discount off of rack rate, but that the catches would be it would have to be booked really far out in advance and would have a nonrefundable deposit, it was also suggested that the deposit would be 1/2 the cost of the booking so you'd get a really great deal for booking 6 months in advance but you'd have to give them 1/2 up front and have it be nonrefundable. He said that was just tossed around as an idea and he thought it had been abandoned but was now wondering it we may see something like that. Offer great rates but stiffer conditions and more limitations on booking. Time will tell.

What I'm recommending to clients is this...if you already own a pass or know for sure you are buying one because of the ADMISSION discounts (ie you will be going to the parks enough that it makes good $ sense to have it to save on admission) and you are already booked at rack rate and know you'll be staying at this resort no matter what, then go ahead with it. If any one of those conditions doesn't fit then sit tight and wait. If you don't already own a pass...don't bite. If you are not willing to stay in your room even without a discount....don't bite. If you have AAA...don't bite.

A big concern I have for clients is that Disney has left a nice little loop hole. They are saying that they will match any discounts to the room. Well, what about this free dining offer or if they do some stay X # of nights and get 2 X # of day tickets free (like Universal does) then the ROOM is technically not discounted, is it? it's the additional features that are discounted. Features not available to you with a room only booking so the argument could be made that it is not comparing apples to apples.

This will be an interesting twist from this point on. It will be interesting to see what other changes will follow. :rolleyes1
 
Lollipop Mom said:
Fall and Winter AP rates are on their way out but there are a couple of new twists now!

There's a new twist to the AP rate game! Passholder rates for 8/8/05 - 11/26/05 are available now...sort of! (Rates through 12/19/05 will follow shortly!)

Disney is telling us that these rates will be the lowest possible discounts but they've added a catch or two. The rates will be available only for booking online but you can only book 120 days in advance so people travelling at the end of that time frame have to wait a bit longer. They will require a NONREFUNDABLE deposit at the time of booking, no more 14 day holds on passholder rates and no 5 day cancellation policy anymore. In addition, to book yourself you will be required to enter an activated pass number. As far as I have been told, a travel agent can book for you with a voucher or with purchasing a voucher at the time of the reservation.

WOW! So did they tell you when they'd be released? Does this mean only I can book the AP rate (at 120 days) or can my TA (we're using DU). I bought separate trip insurance... would that cover the nonrefundable deposit? And are they indicating that these AP rates will be lower than the most recent ones?

Sorry for all the questions, but I'm really shocked at the moment!
 
HI, I just wanted to let you know..I booked yesterday AP RATE FOR SEPT.
$89. dollars a night..I was told I could cancel 5 days in advance with no problem...I wonder if I could get cheaper then that, staying in moderate hotel. please let me know if I can pay less than this because I will..I sure don't plan to cancel..I've been waiting to long for this trip...
 
Lollipop Mom said:
Disney is telling us that these rates will be the lowest possible discounts but they've added a catch or two. The rates will be available only for booking online but you can only book 120 days in advance so people travelling at the end of that time frame have to wait a bit longer. They will require a NONREFUNDABLE deposit at the time of booking, no more 14 day holds on passholder rates and no 5 day cancellation policy anymore.

Sorry but that is a bunch of crap. Not what you are saying but what they are doing. Only for online booking and you can only book during a certain time period and nonrefundable.

:mad:

ETA:
I don't mind having to have the AP or whatever, but I don't like only giving us a 3 month window for planning. I like to have things planned out a little sooner than that. Besides if you go at a popular time of year I can imagine the online system will be overloaded on the 120 day mark for people to get the rooms they want. Since the AP rates already go so quickly I can see the system shutting down and some people missing out and a lot of upset people.
 

You know, I really can't answer all of that. The CM I spoke with wasn't even 100% sure of everything yet and had to call guest services who was surprised someone was asking about it because it was literally just released. A guest services CM is supposed to be calling me back with more info later.

What I do know....
-must be booked 120 days or more in advance
-they say it will be the lowest available discount, not necissarily lower than what's out now, just lower than any other discount they release to the general public
-I'm not sure about the disneyworld.com web site but on the travel agent web site you have to enter either a pass # or voucher #
-it is not available for call in at this point. The CM I spoke with said from what he was hearing from guest services it sounds like *maybe* it will be a situation where you can book less than 120 days out by calling in but that it will be a higher rate than the online rate. That was his iterpretation and not something said directly by guest services so that may or may not end up being true.
-guest services says a NONREFUNDABLE deposit required IMMEDIATELY, the TA web site says 45 day cancellation
-trip insurance usually covers the nonrefundable fees but only for covered reasons and they can be tricky with those reasons so be sure to use a company that your TA has experience with and knows how they deal with things (I'm sure if DU recommended them, they would be fine :) ).

This is completely new to everyone. The CM I talked to didn't know what I was talking about untill I had him look at the travel agent site and see the button that said "Click here to book Passholder rates for 10/8 - 11/26." and then we had to talk to guest services to fill in the blanks.

It changes the AP rate game quite a bit!
 
mercydisney said:
HI, I just wanted to let you know..I booked yesterday AP RATE FOR SEPT.
$89. dollars a night..I was told I could cancel 5 days in advance with no problem...I wonder if I could get cheaper then that, staying in moderate hotel. please let me know if I can pay less than this because I will..I sure don't plan to cancel..I've been waiting to long for this trip...

The OP meant 10/8 starting in October this new change will happen. You won't get any cheaper than the rate you have now.
 
HI, I just wanted to let you know..I booked yesterday AP RATE FOR SEPT.
$89. dollars a night..

You have a 5 day cancel b/c it is under the old way of booking them. As far as if it would be cheaper booking online (there is a button for rates before 10/8 too), I can't tell you that right now...the whole online booking engine is down right now. I guess while they get this thing active. I'll let you know what I find out!
 
/
Yikes. I wonder if you'll be able to book a new reservation on-line and then cancel your existing one (i.e. via phone?). I don't know if a discount will be worth all the trouble or not. We're paying rack rate (for RPC and LVC at the Poly). A discount would be great, but I don't know if I want to risk not being able to get what rooms I want (having to wait until 120 days and going on-line).

It should be very interesting. BTW, on your first post you said 11/27 and this one says 11/29. Do you know which it is because we check in on 11/29.

Thanks for the heads up and help!
 
oops...It's 11/26. I will say that the online booking buttons are only for through 11/26 but the CM I spoke with said this deal is already in place for check ins through 12/19. There just isn't a button for 11/27-12/19 yet b/c none of those dates are within 120 days yet.
 
Is this only for TA (the online booking) now? Or is this on the WDW site for everyone?
 
I had a feeling this was coming. Just this year, cast are now able to book their discounted ressie online too. I figured since this software was developed, it was only a matter of time before AP holders would be next. Actually I think this will be a great new addition and welcome it. As an AP holder for 10 years, it's nice seeing them change things for the better. My only concern is the "nonrefundable deposit". I'm wondering if your plans change, if this deposit will be "transferable" to another reservation, which would not be too bad. Since I have used the cast online reservations recently, the only problem I have had is booking more than one room. I hope this is addressed in the ap holder site--I believe this is also a problem on the regular online ressie site. One of us always has an activated pass, so that's not a problem for us. It sounds interesting! Thanks for the advance information.
 
Well, I hope with these new rules and restrictions the discounts are FANTASTIC. (one can dream, right? :wizard: ).

The no refund policy feels like a kick in the teeth to its most loyal customers, IMO, but I am glad they are enforcing that you hold an AP or voucher to allow booking.

Thanks for the info!
 
The OP has posted this is not avail right now. Its just being rolled out and giving us a heads up.



Lollipop Mom said:
Don't call...the rates are not available for phone in right now. They may be later but at a different rate from online, the CM wasn't sure. The online booking engine still isn't fully functional yet.
 
As far as I know right now, it's not on the disneyworld.com site right this minute but it will be shortly. It will be in the passholder section so without an ACTIVE AP you won't be able to book it online. I was told there are no plans to open online booking up to people with a voucher, it must be ACTIVE to do so (disneyland has required having the AP # to book the rates for a while now so I figured it was coming for Disneyworld). They may reevaluate that since you can't activate an AP till your trip starts but I have no idea on that.

My email inbox has just been flooded with emails since posting this...I'll say here I have no idea what the rates actually are. The CM couldn't give me that info.
 
This could be great news. The only thing that scares me is what if an offer for the free dining (at rack rate) is rolled out after you've made your non-refundable depost and it happens to be a better deal for you?

Could you at least apply your reservation (dates at rack rate prices) without losing the deposit for booking a room in the first place? Or would they treat it as completely new and you lose the advantage of the free dining from the cancellation charge on the original reservation?

interesting...... :confused3
 
Lollipop Mom said:
As far as I know right now, it's not on the disneyworld.com site right this minute but it will be shortly. It will be in the passholder section so without an ACTIVE AP you won't be able to book it online. I was told there are no plans to open online booking up to people with a voucher, it must be ACTIVE to do so (disneyland has required having the AP # to book the rates for a while now so I figured it was coming for Disneyworld). They may reevaluate that since you can't activate an AP till your trip starts but I have no idea on that.

My email inbox has just been flooded with emails since posting this...I'll say here I have no idea what the rates actually are. The CM couldn't give me that info.

So, how do you buy an ACTIVATED AP? I hope someone posts the rates/discounts they get. I wouldn't want to buy an AP, activate it 3 months before my trip, and then the rates not be as good as the MYW Dining Plan.

Boy, WDW sure knows how to throw a kink in things!
 
Crud, I just realized that, because we always split stays, we're gonna have TWO non-refundable deposits at two deluxes. Crud, crud, crud. I wish they would fix that - I think customers should only have to pay one deposit per trip, always felt that way but now more than ever.
 
jenjersnap said:
Crud, I just realized that, because we always split stays, we're gonna have TWO non-refundable deposits at two deluxes. Crud, crud, crud. I wish they would fix that - I think customers should only have to pay one deposit per trip, always felt that way but now more than ever.

AAARRGGGH! That's us too! We're splitting the GF and Poly. I didn't even think of that. I'm wondering if the discount will be worth the hassle or if I should just keep the rack rate and add dining instead (it's a very good deal for our family of 5, even if we pay for it).
 














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