Is there a disadvantage to paying off room only reservation upfront?

[AngiTN]

Naw. They lied. They like taking whatever outlier reason there is to blame not getting a RR text. Not sure why “it’s not an absolute” is so hard for them to say, but it’s the truth.

Online checkin NOW sets up the charging account.

But not last year when her trip was. The card given during online checkin last year did set up the card that they would charge the rest to.

No one has to check out, so there’s no card normally given at check out.

You totally misunderstood
Checkout = when you purchase the stay in the first place. Remember, you checkout and pay for 1 night or pay $200?
That is when you provide the card to use for paying for the room
Not during online checkin
That is for room charging
Not resort payment of the room overnight charges

And they may have lied but maybe not
I think it's more that's their best answer
I have had it happen. Our card got lost and they couldn't run the payment for the balance for our resort. Not authorized. Lost. Bottom line is same result as we had to process the payment in person

 

[dansdad]

You totally misunderstood
Checkout = when you purchase the stay in the first place. Remember, you checkout and pay for 1 night or pay $200?
That is when you provide the card to use for paying for the room
Not during online checkin
That is for room charging
Not resort payment of the room overnight charges

And they may have lied but maybe not
I think it's more that's their best answer
I have had it happen. Our card got lost and they couldn't run the payment for the balance for our resort. Not authorized. Lost. Bottom line is same result as we had to process the payment in person

The card they run to pay off the room balance on check in day is the card linked to your MDE account, not the card you used to pay the deposit (if different). By linking the card to MDE you are authorizing them to run the card for the balance due on check in day. When you check out and pay the deposit you are only authorizing that charge.

For example, you use a credit card to pay the deposit to make a room only reservation. You don't link a card to your MDE account. When you arrive to check in you will have to provide a payment method to pay the balance. They will not run the card you used to make the deposit.

 

[buzznina]

Not everyone may have the thousands of dollars laying around in their bank account waiting to pay off the balance close to check-in day. We buy discounted GCs throughout the year ($50 here, $100 there) and that is how we pay for our trips, and again I am getting 5% on my $$.

 

[cmwade77]

If you mean Disney gift cards bought from Target the only disadvantage is you MUST keep every card in case of cancelation as they will process the refund back to that individual card so you'll need it to in order to use the funds in the future.
If you actually mean Target gift cards, then I'm not sure what you mean because Disney won't take a Target gift card.

Actually, you don't have to keep every gift card. You go on Disneygiftcard.com and combine multiple cards into one, up to $1,000 each. You can have up to 5 cards saved per Disney account (make additional accounts if necessary). Then use this gift cards, if more ey had to be refunded, it will be refunded to said cards. If you somehow lost said card, just buy a new one with a small dollar amount and transfer money over to the new card.

 

[AngiTN]

Actually, you don't have to keep every gift card. You go on Disneygiftcard.com and combine multiple cards into one, up to $1,000 each. You can have up to 5 cards saved per Disney account (make additional accounts if necessary). Then use this gift cards, if more ey had to be refunded, it will be refunded to said cards. If you somehow lost said card, just buy a new one with a small dollar amount and transfer money over to the new card.

Right. Never said anything about combining cards. Simply that you have to keep every card used to pay. Combing isn't addressed one way or another. But you do have to keep every card you use to pay on the account. Be that 2 or 20

 

[cmwade77]

Right. Never said anything about combining cards. Simply that you have to keep every card used to pay. Combing isn't addressed one way or another. But you do have to keep every card you use to pay on the account. Be that 2 or 20

But not if you have it saved on Disneygiftcard.com

That saved my but once before.

 

[NeedMoreMickey]

Like others I buy GC from BJs, on-line because usually a better deal than in the store. Combine the cards on the Disney Giftcard site which takes a little bit of work because you can only have a few active cards at one time. Pay off the room about 10 days before we go. I try to time the order of the gift cards so I get the reward points before our trip.

 

[cmwade77]

Like others I buy GC from BJs, on-line because usually a better deal than in the store. Combine the cards on the Disney Giftcard site which takes a little bit of work because you can only have a few active cards at one time. Pay off the room about 10 days before we go. I try to time the order of the gift cards so I get the reward points before our trip.

Especially when they send emails with an additional 5-10% off because you have bought so many in the past.

 

[JeninTexas]

I called yesterday to make a payment on my room only reservation. I paid with a gift card. The CM told me to hold on to the GC in case I had to cancel so I could get money back if I needed a refund for any reason. I told him that I wished someone had told me this before because I had already paid hundreds of dollars with gift cards and I don't have any of them anymore. He said not to worry, that there was a way Disney could give me credit even though I no longer had the GC's. I sure hope I don't have to cancel, but if I do, it seems like there is some way to get a GC refund without the actual GC.

 

[writerguyfl]

Lastly, you completely ignore the potential of an unforeseen expenditure. If you had to carry a balance on your credit card due to an unfortunate life event, you’re now paying 18ish percent on your vacation package money. That adds up real fast.

I don't live my life assuming that an "unfortunately life event" might happen at any moment. As such, I don't factor that into my decision to occasionally pre-pay a vacation a month or two prior to that vacation.

But, if you want to play the "you completely ignore..." game, you're ignoring the fact that it doesn't take forever to get a refund from Disney. (I used to work there in the Disney Reservations Center.) It's pretty much an immediate process, although it might day a few days for the bank to return those funds. It's not going to take weeks. So, you're gloom and doom scenario of paying interest isn't one that should be happening.

In the end, what people do with their money is up to them. I think kylenne says it better than I would here:

Bottom line is that people are different, and human psychology when it comes to spending is very complex and not something to be underestimated even if it personally doesn’t make sense to you.

 

[AngiTN]

The card they run to pay off the room balance on check in day is the card linked to your MDE account, not the card you used to pay the deposit (if different). By linking the card to MDE you are authorizing them to run the card for the balance due on check in day. When you check out and pay the deposit you are only authorizing that charge.

For example, you use a credit card to pay the deposit to make a room only reservation. You don't link a card to your MDE account. When you arrive to check in you will have to provide a payment method to pay the balance. They will not run the card you used to make the deposit.

Curious. That hasn't been what's happened to our rooms. They always use the card I use to pay the deposit and that is not often the card I have linked in MDE.

 

[AngiTN]

I called yesterday to make a payment on my room only reservation. I paid with a gift card. The CM told me to hold on to the GC in case I had to cancel so I could get money back if I needed a refund for any reason. I told him that I wished someone had told me this before because I had already paid hundreds of dollars with gift cards and I don't have any of them anymore. He said not to worry, that there was a way Disney could give me credit even though I no longer had the GC's. I sure hope I don't have to cancel, but if I do, it seems like there is some way to get a GC refund without the actual GC.

I'd say you have as equal a chance that CM was wrong as they were right.
Prior experience by pretty much everyone who has had a refund processed to gift cards is NOT what you were told.
Their experience has been they had to have that specific gift card and trying to get something else has bordered on the impossible. I guess in the end Disney found a way but it was far from a headache and very nerve-wracking. I would never have used the phrase "not to worry" as it was indeed, a worry.
Unfortunately, the issue is the CM that gave you that info is not the CM that even knows how to do the refunding so they weren't really qualified to give that advice so casually. They should advise to keep it as that makes it easier on everyone.

 

[JeninTexas]

I agree @AngiTN. The CM certainly could have been giving out incorrect info. I imagine that this issue does come up occasionally and Disney has a way of making it work out ok, but I'm sure it probably is worrisome and a tremendous headache. I just wish I had been told to save all the other GCs I previously paid with. Oh well, absent some unexpected tragedy, we are going in August, so I don't think it will be a problem. I just wish I had been advised of the GC refund process before I paid a lot of money using gift cards.

 

[NeedMoreMickey]

I called yesterday to make a payment on my room only reservation. I paid with a gift card. The CM told me to hold on to the GC in case I had to cancel so I could get money back if I needed a refund for any reason. I told him that I wished someone had told me this before because I had already paid hundreds of dollars with gift cards and I don't have any of them anymore. He said not to worry, that there was a way Disney could give me credit even though I no longer had the GC's. I sure hope I don't have to cancel, but if I do, it seems like there is some way to get a GC refund without the actual GC.

This is why I transfer GC to one that I keep all the time, special one with Mickey playing golf. I always have that card and pay with that card.

 

[goofynut41]

I pay on mine a little at a time till I go so its all paid for when I go. If I kept the money in the bank it would be gone cause I cant hang onto money...

 

[AngiTN]

I pay on mine a little at a time till I go so its all paid for when I go. If I kept the money in the bank it would be gone cause I cant hang onto money...

This is a key point
We all know our own personal weaknesses and how we need to work our own personal vacation budgeting to suit them
What works for one may well not work for another but neither is wrong or right.
The last thing one should judge another on is how they opt to pay for vacation

 

[elaine amj]

The money is already sitting in gift cards and not earning money in a savings account. So that shoukd not be a consideration.

The only annoyance is if you use several methods of payment and change your mind one one of them. E.g. if you paid with gift cards and a credit card. Then get a good gift card deal and want to switch the payment made by the credit card to a gift card.

I prepaid a chunk of a trip I booked with a credit card. Then I paid another chunk with a different credit card. After a while, realized I really wanted it all on the second credit card. Asked if I could get the first chunk of money refunded. The CM tried but the only resolution was to cancel and refund the entire reservation to both methods of payment. So I didn't proceed.

 

[FutureDisneyEventPlanner]

Sorry- I meant Disney gift cards purchased from Target. I was apparently typing faster than my brain was working . Thanks for the replies. It sounds like it will be a better idea to keep that money in my account until closer to the trip.

I usually pay mine off a few weeks before. I don't like to go knowing I have to pay when I get there, but I also don't like to do it too far in advance.

 

[Dashzap]

there was a way Disney could give me credit even though I no longer had the GC's. I sure hope I don't have to cancel, but if I do, it seems like there is some way to get a GC refund without the actual GC.

Yes, they can send a form with the refund request, noting that the original gift card(s) were lost, and have new gift card(s) issued. If you are getting a refund from cancelling a reservation, the CM needs to have the cancellation on "hold" while the form gets to billing, so it doesn't automatically get refunded to those original gift cards.

I think you have to sign for the new gift cards when you receive shipment.

 

[Dashzap]

I prepaid a chunk of a trip I booked with a credit card. Then I paid another chunk with a different credit card. After a while, realized I really wanted it all on the second credit card. Asked if I could get the first chunk of money refunded. The CM tried but the only resolution was to cancel and refund the entire reservation to both methods of payment. So I didn't proceed.

.