Loving the new ADR policy...

[palhockeymomof2]

We just booked a trip the end of April and were able to get ADR at restaurants that never had openings in the past

 

[Colleen27]

You can call and cancel without being charged, if you call at least a day before or have ADRs at the many restaurants that do not require a credit card.

But that's a ridiculous point when it comes to illness. Few of us have the ability to know on Tuesday that one of our kids is going to wake up sick on Thursday, but that's what we have to have if we want to avoid these ridiculous charges. And sure, anyone who worries about it could just stick to the (less desirable) restaurants that don't require a credit card but that completely excludes character and fine dining so it isn't exactly an apples-to-apples solution. Not to mention that if current ADR patterns are any indication they'll probably add a CC guarantee to the remaining restaurants before too long because suddenly Yak & Yeti and Kona are the impossible-to-book ADRs while I can have my choice of times at Ohana and Le Cellier.

And the CC hold with a shorter no-penalty window would still deter many people from multiple bookings. Why? Because few will risk forgetting to cancel or missing the deadline because of factors outside their control. Besides, the computer is already programmed not to allow the same CC number to be used for two conflicting ADRs, so Joe would have to have 4 different credit cards to use to book those 4 dinners. That's just a lot to keep track of and most people won't go to that length or risk those charges for flexibility's sake.

 

[maxiesmom]

But that's a ridiculous point when it comes to illness. Few of us have the ability to know on Tuesday that one of our kids is going to wake up sick on Thursday, but that's what we have to have if we want to avoid these ridiculous charges. And sure, anyone who worries about it could just stick to the (less desirable) restaurants that don't require a credit card but that completely excludes character and fine dining so it isn't exactly an apples-to-apples solution. Not to mention that if current ADR patterns are any indication they'll probably add a CC guarantee to the remaining restaurants before too long because suddenly Yak & Yeti and Kona are the impossible-to-book ADRs while I can have my choice of times at Ohana and Le Cellier.

And the CC hold with a shorter no-penalty window would still deter many people from multiple bookings. Why? Because few will risk forgetting to cancel or missing the deadline because of factors outside their control. Besides, the computer is already programmed not to allow the same CC number to be used for two conflicting ADRs, so Joe would have to have 4 different credit cards to use to book those 4 dinners. That's just a lot to keep track of and most people won't go to that length or risk those charges for flexibility's sake.

Life has no guarantees. Unfortunately people behaved in such a way that Disney could no longer let them book and change ADRs at a whim. Too many greedy and unkind people hogging ADRS or not canceling, or not bothering to show up. The people who abused the system are the ones to blame, not Disney for making a business decision to try and fix things.

Who spends their life obsessing over what may happen? Do people not buy concert tickets becasue they don't know if they will be sick or not? At least at WDW you have a window of a day to cancel. With concert/theater/movie/sporting event tickets you get no time at all! Should I not buy concert tickets in the winter because it might snow and I might not be able to make it to the venue? I can't understand going thru life worrying What If? all of the time. And yes, I have had the misfortune to get sick and have family members be sick at WDW.

No one wants to throw away money. But if the $10 per person fee lets those of us who really want ADRs to get them, and keeps there from being tables sitting their empty, I'm all for it.

 

[WaltD4Me]

Life has no guarantees. Unfortunately people behaved in such a way that Disney could no longer let them book and change ADRs at a whim. Too many greedy and unkind people hogging ADRS or not canceling, or not bothering to show up. The people who abused the system are the ones to blame, not Disney for making a business decision to try and fix things.

Who spends their life obsessing over what may happen? Do people not buy concert tickets becasue they don't know if they will be sick or not? At least at WDW you have a window of a day to cancel. With concert/theater/movie/sporting event tickets you get no time at all! Should I not buy concert tickets in the winter because it might snow and I might not be able to make it to the venue? I can't understand going thru life worrying What If? all of the time. And yes, I have had the misfortune to get sick and have family members be sick at WDW.

No one wants to throw away money. But if the $10 per person fee lets those of us who really want ADRs to get them, and keeps there from being tables sitting their empty, I'm all for it.

Ironically, Disney Broadway has just announced "Worry Free Winter Ticket Exchange" Policy.

DISNEY THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS today announced the launch of a revolutionary pilot ticket exchange program for its Broadway musicals THE LION KING and MARY POPPINS. From now until March 10, 2011, customers can exchange their Disney on Broadway show tickets for performances between January 3, 2011 and March 10, 2011 into any performance currently on-sale after January 3. This service is available only to Disney on Broadway customers.

This new policy represents an unprecedented breakthrough in flexibility for theatergoers. It allows Disney on Broadway ticketholders – in advance, without penalty and for any reason whatsoever – to change the date they see the show, any time in advance of their scheduled performance, up till noon on the day of the performance for which they are holding tickets. If a winter storm threatens, the anniversary trip can be postponed a week; if the boyfriend has to travel, the birthday present can be enjoyed a day or a week earlier; if the kids’ game gets rescheduled to evening, the Broadway family outing can be shifted to the matinee.[/B] Moreover, there is no limit to the number of times the tickets can be exchanged.
====================================================

Apparently Disney Broadway understands that even with the best intentions, things can and do happen that can't be helped.

 

[mom2rtk]

Ironically, Disney Broadway has just announced "Worry Free Winter Ticket Exchange" Policy.

DISNEY THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS today announced the launch of a revolutionary pilot ticket exchange program for its Broadway musicals THE LION KING and MARY POPPINS. From now until March 10, 2011, customers can exchange their Disney on Broadway show tickets for performances between January 3, 2011 and March 10, 2011 into any performance currently on-sale after January 3. This service is available only to Disney on Broadway customers.

This new policy represents an unprecedented breakthrough in flexibility for theatergoers. It allows Disney on Broadway ticketholders – in advance, without penalty and for any reason whatsoever – to change the date they see the show, any time in advance of their scheduled performance, up till noon on the day of the performance for which they are holding tickets. If a winter storm threatens, the anniversary trip can be postponed a week; if the boyfriend has to travel, the birthday present can be enjoyed a day or a week earlier; if the kids’ game gets rescheduled to evening, the Broadway family outing can be shifted to the matinee.[/B] Moreover, there is no limit to the number of times the tickets can be exchanged.
====================================================

Apparently Disney Broadway understands that even with the best intentions, things can and do happen that can't be helped.

LOL! That is classic. And the timing could not be better.

Maybe Disney found itself awash in cash with late fees in the theme parks division and decided to lighten up in other areas!

 

[maxiesmom]

LOL! That is classic. And the timing could not be better.

Maybe Disney found itself awash in cash with late fees in the theme parks division and decided to lighten up in other areas!

Umm, as that promotion went thru March 2011 you are a little late with it. Only a year.
Apparently it didn't stick. Good try though.

Kind of funny how no one could answer the question, though. Just found old news to try to shore up their point of view.

 

[WaltD4Me]

Umm, as that promotion went thru March 2011 you are a little late with it. Only a year.
Apparently it didn't stick. Good try though.

Kind of funny how no one could answer the question, though. Just found old news to try to shore up their point of view.

Touche' ... I did not mean to dig out old news. I found this on the front page of a Disney news site. I did see that dates, but didn't notice the year.

That being said, I do sometimes take things like weather into consideration. I live in Cleveland...home of the dreaded "lake effect" snow and I think twice before buying non-refundable tickets to something in January or February.

I will also say again...I have no problem with the policy, I just think the 24 hour notice rule is guest hostile. I also think it's incredible that you can't even get a straight answer as to whether it's 24 hours or a full calendar day or if there is grace period for being late or not. It's amazing to me that Disney would institute a police like this and then doesn't make it extremely clear how it will be implemented.

 

[Gymbomom]

If some small chance one of us were sick....I just don't think I would even think about the $40.00! Is $40 really all that much when you are going to Disney?

 

[Colleen27]

Life has no guarantees. Unfortunately people behaved in such a way that Disney could no longer let them book and change ADRs at a whim. Too many greedy and unkind people hogging ADRS or not canceling, or not bothering to show up. The people who abused the system are the ones to blame, not Disney for making a business decision to try and fix things.

Who spends their life obsessing over what may happen? Do people not buy concert tickets becasue they don't know if they will be sick or not? At least at WDW you have a window of a day to cancel. With concert/theater/movie/sporting event tickets you get no time at all! Should I not buy concert tickets in the winter because it might snow and I might not be able to make it to the venue? I can't understand going thru life worrying What If? all of the time. And yes, I have had the misfortune to get sick and have family members be sick at WDW.

No one wants to throw away money. But if the $10 per person fee lets those of us who really want ADRs to get them, and keeps there from being tables sitting their empty, I'm all for it.

Blame is a moot question, really. I do blame Disney because I believe that they as a business could have come up with a more guest-friendly solution before jumping to the extreme measure of a no-excuse-accepted, 2-day cancellation penalty, and for extending the penalty to restaurants that aren't generally booked solid, but that's beside the point.

What matters is how the policy changes behaviour, both the undesirable behaviour it hopes to eliminate and the desirable behaviour of guests like me who may now decide to avoid those restaurants rather than gamble on the fee. All indications are that there has been a precipitous drop in ADRs at the effected restaurants, and some of that is no doubt an actual loss of customers rather than simply fewer double bookings.

To me there's a big difference between a concert or sporting event or other one-time thing and ADRs. I can and have sold tickets via Craigslist or StubHub on the rare occasion that it looked like illness or unforeseen circumstance would prevent us from attending; I can't do that with an ADR that I can't make. And a concert is one day, not counting on a full week of good health while traveling. DH's business limits us to winter travel so we're usually at WDW at/near the peak of cold/flu season so cancellation penalties have the potential to really add up.

 

[WaltD4Me]

If some small chance one of us were sick....I just don't think I would even think about the $40.00! Is $40 really all that much when you are going to Disney?

Of course if someone is sick that is first concern, but I remember a few years ago taking my niece, she got a stomach bug that had us spending most of two days at the resort and having to cancel three ADR's. Today that would have cost the six of us $180. Bad enough to have a sick child on a trip, but to add insult to injury Disney is going to charge you for it?

And while it's great that for your family there may only be a small chance of someone getting sick, the policy also really bothers me for people who know full well ahead of time that there may be medical issues that will force them to cancel. For a company that prides itself on being incredibly handicapped accessible, what should those with pre-exsisting medical issues do? Not book ADR's at any of those restaurants because they have a condition that they know issues can easily arise from that will cause them to cancel some ADR's?

 

[mom2rtk]

Of course if someone is sick that is first concern, but I remember a few years ago taking my niece, she got a stomach bug that had us spending most of two days at the resort and having to cancel three ADR's. Today that would have cost the six of us $180. Bad enough to have a sick child on a trip, but to add insult to injury Disney is going to charge you for it?

And while it's great that for your family there may only be a small chance of someone getting sick, the policy also really bothers me for people who know full well ahead of time that there may be medical issues that will force them to cancel. For a company that prides itself on being incredibly handicapped accessible, what should those with pre-exsisting medical issues do? Not book ADR's at any of those restaurants because they have a condition that they know issues can easily arise from that will cause them to cancel some ADR's?

Not to mention the escalated costs for medical care in a tourist mecca.

It's just adding insult to injury.

 

[maxiesmom]

And while it's great that for your family there may only be a small chance of someone getting sick, the policy also really bothers me for people who know full well ahead of time that there may be medical issues that will force them to cancel. For a company that prides itself on being incredibly handicapped accessible, what should those with pre-exsisting medical issues do? Not book ADR's at any of those restaurants because they have a condition that they know issues can easily arise from that will cause them to cancel some ADR's?

I do agree with you on this one. I hope Disney has or will find a way to be more flexible with those who have a disability, and don't know how they will feel one day to the next.

I wouldn't even be opposed to having a smaller window for those on the Deluxe Dining Plan. Maybe have an 8 hour window be part of the upgrade.

However I still think the majority of ADRs that are missed are not because of illness, but because a family either just didn't really want that ADR, or found some other excuse why going to the meal ended up being too inconvenient. Not because someone truly became ill.

 

[Gymbomom]

However I still think the majority of ADRs that are missed are not because of illness, but because a family either just didn't really want that ADR, or found some other excuse why going to the meal ended up being too inconvenient. Not because someone truly became ill.

 

[mommyof3princess27]

I have not used this new policy yet as the places we scheduled last trip, wasnt on the list. I hope that when I do book these places for our next trip, we will all be able to make it! But with a big group of 17ppl and this new policy, i think every family will have their own ressie so I am not 'paying' if they dont show up!

 

[Gymbomom]

I have not used this new policy yet as the places we scheduled last trip, wasnt on the list. I hope that when I do book these places for our next trip, we will all be able to make it! But with a big group of 17ppl and this new policy, i think every family will have their own ressie so I am not 'paying' if they dont show up!

I wonder if you could explain it to your family that it is like a "deposit". Get the $$ from them in advance and give it back to them the day of. It really is just character and signature that is impacted by this change.

 

[mom2rtk]

I have not used this new policy yet as the places we scheduled last trip, wasnt on the list. I hope that when I do book these places for our next trip, we will all be able to make it! But with a big group of 17ppl and this new policy, i think every family will have their own ressie so I am not 'paying' if they dont show up!

Of course the problem with this is that you might not be seated together, or really even near each other with separate ADR's. I've never booked for that many, so maybe that wasn't possible even with one ADR? Not sure, but something to consider.

 

[Colleen27]

I do agree with you on this one. I hope Disney has or will find a way to be more flexible with those who have a disability, and don't know how they will feel one day to the next.

I wouldn't even be opposed to having a smaller window for those on the Deluxe Dining Plan. Maybe have an 8 hour window be part of the upgrade.

However I still think the majority of ADRs that are missed are not because of illness, but because a family either just didn't really want that ADR, or found some other excuse why going to the meal ended up being too inconvenient. Not because someone truly became ill.

I hope so too but the early reports don't seem to reflect that, at least not yet. It is possible that they're coming out with a firm no-exceptions stance now that will soften after word gets out that the policy has teeth, but it is equally possible that the bean counters will want to hold onto that small additional revenue and the no-exceptions stance will be permanent.

As to your second paragraph - Now there's an idea I'd get behind! Since the DxDDP (and platinum and premium packages) derive value from booking many ADRs, specifically the types of ADRs affected by the new policy, a shorter cancellation window would be a great selling point of the plan. It would certainly change my thinking because it would be a very, very rare occasion for someone in my group to get so suddenly ill that we'd cancel with <8hrs notice... It is the 36-48 hours of the new policy that is problematic.

 

[mom2rtk]

I don't like the idea of different cancellation windows. Either is far and reasonable or it isn't.

I think they should allow everyone on a dining plan to schedule one TS per day (more for DX of course) equal to the number of dining credits they have..... without a cc guarantee. After all, they are in ESSENCE pre-paying for those meals anyway. Additional exposure seems like overkill.

I also think that's all they should be allowed to book on the 180 + 10. After that, everyone would be subject to the same cc guarantee policies as anyone else.

Really, this policy does not prevent anyone from booking a dinner in every park then cancelling right before their trip, as long as they are a good record keeper. If you watch the cancellation threads, it's really infuriating to see people cancelling 'Ohana every night of the week but the one they opted to keep. Yes, it's nice of them to cancel. Yes, it's great that they posted it for ohers to read. But for the poor person hoping to book at 180 or 170 days who gave up looking, it's nuts.

 

[Colleen27]

Really, this policy does not prevent anyone from booking a dinner in every park then cancelling right before their trip, as long as they are a good record keeper. If you watch the cancellation threads, it's really infuriating to see people cancelling 'Ohana every night of the week but the one they opted to keep. Yes, it's nice of them to cancel. Yes, it's great that they posted it for ohers to read. But for the poor person hoping to book at 180 or 170 days who gave up looking, it's nuts.

And it shifts demand to the non-policy restaurants, perhaps genuinely due to people not wanting to gamble on cancellation fees or perhaps because now it is "safest" for those who want multiple ADR "flexibility" to book non-penalty restaurants in all 4 parks. When we changed our dates at maybe 35 days out the only restaurant I've been unable to get for our new schedule is Yak & Yeti, and both Kona and Teppan Edo took some patience (stalking the reservation site for cancellations, and I still don't like the time I got for Kona). If I wanted to book Ohana on every one of the three nights that I was trying to find Kona, however, I could have, and Le Cellier was open for both lunch and dinner on the day I was looking for Teppan Edo.

 

[chainkid]

For small groups the new plan will probably be a hit but for anyone who goes in large family gatherings it will prevent big family dinners as I would never make a ressie for any family other than my own immediate one on my credit card so each person is now on their own. We will either eat at restaurants without a penalty or eat non disney. My family will be upset as I usually book them the hard to get places in advance and since I won't be doing it any longer do to this plan they will have to fend for themselves . I have made and cancelled reservations or downsized when a person is ill so I know even with the best of intentions life happens. I had a mother in law get extremely ill and have to leave by ambulance. The last thing I was thinking about was my ADR's for that night. Getting hit with such a steep penalty seems abit callous if extenuating circumstances don;t matter. If it were just me and my husband I would probably enjoy being able to walk up to any restaurant on a whim but Disney has always been about advanced planning and anyone who organizes large groups knows how much planning goes into making a magical vacation . Now in the past if you didin't call and cancell a ressie for a large group then you could get a penalty but you didin't have to do it 24 hrs in advance and you didn't get billed if 1 person out of 25 didn't show up for whatever reason and it happens in a large group. No one can control those things . Well disney can now but in our case they will lose our business to other places