Math not adding up on new 4 for 3 deal....

[RussellDisney]

McKiggan,

Not sure what you are saying here, but...it isn't buy 4 get 7, you know that, right? It is buy 4, get 3 for a total of 7. Perhaps you were being humorous and I missed a previous post.

I also disagree that "the rules of math in Disneyworld are different than math in the rest of the world ". Many of us have posted on this thread that our prices were fine. There have not been too many people who are saying they are being charged MORE for the buy 4 get 3 deal when they have compared properly.

I also disagree. I had a AAA package booked March 29-April 4 that I was (finally!!!) able to change to the 4/3 deal. The EXACT same package is now costing me EXACTLY $483.84 less, plus we now have the $200 card to boot!

 

[Luvamouse]

Miffy:

The 7/4 deal includes the tickets, but I just priced a 1 day ticket and backed the cost out for comparison purposes.

Not looking at AKL since it's too remote. I priced out WL on the 7/4 "deal" and that turned out to be about 1K more expensive (give or take 100 bucks).

If the 7/4 deal was REALLY buy 4 get 7 then a basic room at WL would work out to about $214/night or an extra $98 over our price at the Dolphin. But of course, as everyone on this thread and other have pointed out, the rules of math in Disneyworld are different than math in the rest of the world

Bottom line, even using the 7/4 "deal" it's hard to beat the Swan/Dolphin at $201/night.

McKiggan,

I'm sorry, when I re-read your post, I see that you are comparing WL to a cheaper deal at Swan/Dolphin and I do understand your use of 7/4 now

However, if you take the tickets out of it, WL should be $2953.13 for the 7 night rooms with tax and $1687.50 for the buy 4 get 3 free deal room portion. There should be a savings of more than $1265.63. Looking at the totals you present, it looks like your price check didn't total that.

When you say "I priced out WL on the 7/4 "deal" and that turned out to be about 1K more expensive (give or take 100 bucks)" are you comparing Swan/Dolphin to WL? Or the rack 7 nights WL vs. 4/3 deal at WL only? IIf the site did give a high price and you input the correct info (ndon't forget you must click the 4/3 link to make it work...) then perhaps you are one of the lucky winners of an incorrect total! But lots of us were dead on or actually a few dollars cheaper than the sum of the (discounted) parts.

Respectfully,

Heidi

 

[Miffy]

Miffy, Question I haven't seen asked of you, so I apologize if it has been corrected already...

If :
1) is 4 nights at Rack Rate and
2) is the buy 4 get 3 FREE, shouldn't they be identical??

Since the system is down, I get $305 x 4 x 1.125 for tax= $1372.50 Add in 2-1 day base tickets at $79.88 each and you get $1532.26 for 4 nights (ONLY) at Rack rate.

Now, paying for 4 nights RACK and getting 3 free, if you ONLY do the one day base ticket... You SHOULD be paying the same. But they are NOT the same length of stay.

The real difference is between $305 x 7 nights x 1.125= $2401.86 for 7 nights stay and the 4/3 deal at $1372.50 for a savings of $1029.38. (Edited to remind this is not including tickets!)

Again, sorry if this has been addressed, I am reading all the posts, but I see people popping up with theories that have already been covered.

Hi, Luvamouse,

Yes, they should be identical That's why the $.06 difference cracked me up so much.

And, of course, the savings over 7 nights at rack rate is huge, but I never had any plans to buy a 7-nights-at-rack-rate reservation of any kind, so I wasn't looking at that aspect of it.

I have a valid AP from a trip we took in May and had originally booked an AP-room-only ressie for our trip on January 20th. We're getting substantial savings on the B4G7 package compared w/the AP discount.

 

[sherabby]

The park passes included with the free deal are not hopper passes. They are basic so you have to pay extra for that option on all your days. Water park as well.

 

[Miffy]

Miffy:

The 7/4 deal includes the tickets, but I just priced a 1 day ticket and backed the cost out for comparison purposes.

Not looking at AKL since it's too remote. I priced out WL on the 7/4 "deal" and that turned out to be about 1K more expensive (give or take 100 bucks).

If the 7/4 deal was REALLY buy 4 get 7 then a basic room at WL would work out to about $214/night or an extra $98 over our price at the Dolphin. But of course, as everyone on this thread and other have pointed out, the rules of math in Disneyworld are different than math in the rest of the world

Bottom line, even using the 7/4 "deal" it's hard to beat the Swan/Dolphin at $201/night.

Hi, McKiggan,

IIRC, you have a 9-night stay booked at the Swan. Yes? I'm wondering if those 2 non-4/7 nights at whichever Disney resort you're looking at are killing the savings for you, since rack rate in March is probably pretty steep.

For the record, DH and I always stay at AKL, we go w/o a car, and we've never been disappointed with their bus transportation. For one thing, AKL doesn't share buses with any other resort. But it is farther away from MK and Epcot than the monorail and Epcot resorts. I totally understand if you like the convenience of being closer. I just wanted to defend my favorite resort.

 

[Luvamouse]

Hi, Luvamouse,

Yes, they should be identical That's why the $.06 difference cracked me up so much.

And, of course, the savings over 7 nights at rack rate is huge, but I never had any plans to buy a 7-nights-at-rack-rate reservation of any kind, so I wasn't looking at that aspect of it.

I have a valid AP from a trip we took in May and had originally booked an AP-room-only ressie for our trip on January 20th. We're getting substantial savings on the B4G7 package compared w/the AP discount.

Ah ha! I did think it was funny that they were off by $0.06 myself. I couldn't account for that!

I totally understand that you are getting a better deal with your AP. I just feel that WDW is getting a bum rap when some people aren't comparing the packages right and blame the system. Not that it is 100%... trust me...Mine is actually a few bucks cheaper than it should be. Shhhh....

P.S. Thanks for being so nice when I misunderstood your $0.06 price comparison! It is a good deal if you compare 7 rack to 4/3 discount. But it is not going to be better than every discount available.

Editing to say-- OMG! I just noticed I am a DIS veteran! Finally! It only cost me another trip to WDW to get that! How else can I justify being on here so much...

 

[McKiggan]

Hello Heidi:

I was comparing the relative cost of staying 9 nights at WL vs. 9 nights at Dolphin. The difficulty is that you can't really do an apples to apples comparison since Swan/Dolphin have different discounts/deals.

I think you are correct that what is causing the increase is the extra 2 nights at WL at rack rate.

Also the Swan/Dolphin AAA rate (about half the rack rate) is WAY better than the AAA rate for the other disney deluxes (10% off the rack rate).

If I was just staying 7 nights WL would be 2K vs 1400 at Dolphin. Taking into account the gift card the 4/3 deal is as good or better (since you can also access the dining plan if you want to. Not available at Swan/Dolphin).

My next time waster is to price out two reservations. One for 7 days on the 4/3 deal then using the AAA discount to pay for the extra two days on a separate res.

Cheers.

 

[Luvamouse]

Hello Heidi:


My next time waster is to price out two reservations. One for 7 days on the 4/3 deal then using the AAA discount to pay for the extra two days on a separate res.

Cheers.

Is that what we're doing? I consider it brain exercises Or I couldn't justify all this time doing math that isn't for MY ressie...

I'd be interested to see what you come up with. Seems like you really can't go wrong with the rates at the Swan Dolphin. What a huge AAA discount! Is that a special AAA rate? Or just the "stock" AAA there?

 

[McKiggan]

It's the normal Dolphin AAA discount.

Swan/Dolphin, because they are owned by Marriott/Sheraton chains, offer the same discounts that you can get in all their hotels.

I compare every year and I have never been able to find a disney discount rate at any of their deluxes that comes close to the AAA discount at S/D.

Being able to book a deluxe at $201/night. That is just a crazy great deal.

The trade off is we can't access DDP. But AAA members get 20% discount in the S/D restaurants (except Blue Zoo and Shula's). Also, my family are not big eaters, so it sort of works itself out.

 

[brergnat]

Is that what we're doing? I consider it brain exercises Or I couldn't justify all this time doing math that isn't for MY ressie...

I'd be interested to see what you come up with. Seems like you really can't go wrong with the rates at the Swan Dolphin. What a huge AAA discount! Is that a special AAA rate? Or just the "stock" AAA there?

Yeah...brain exercises...what she said. Good one.

Thanks for keeping this post so lighthearted. Sort of makes the whole thing funny...sort of.

I'll be interested to see what happens when the WDW site is operational again. I'm gonna see if the numbers change when I enter in the same dates again.

 

[laurabelle]

I had booked the 4 for 7 deal at the Beach Club for next June...then a Diser friend on another thread I hang out on put a bug in my ear and mentioned the Dolphin. Hubby works for the fed. govt. I wasn't sure if the discounts for next year were even out yet, but I checked the rates and sure enough, I was able to book a standard room for $155/night including taxes/resort fees. That's a savings of over $600 for 7 nights and an 8 day base ticket (purchased from Undercover Tourist via Mousesavers newsletter link) compared to BC!

 

[McKiggan]

Please forgive me if this has been asked and answered. I couldn't find a definitive answer after reviewing the thread.

Are the quotes on the disney website for the 4/3 (or 7/3 or whatever it's called) inclusive of tax? Maybe that's why my number crunching seems off.

I noticed the astrisk that says "There is no tax on this package" Since they HAVE to charge tax, I thought that meant tax was extra.

But maybe it means there's no tax because it's already included?

If that is the case, then the comparison between WL and S/D is alot closer because my S/D rate of 201 is before tax and resort fees. All in it comes to $236/night or 2133 for 9 nights.

If I combine the 4/3 and AAA for last 2 days here's what I come up with for 9 nights at WL (Can't check the disney site but using the rack rates from mousesavers)

4/3 4 x 375 = 1500
AAA 2 x (375 x .9) = 675
total 2175 (2446 taxes included)

When the disney site come back up again I will have to run the numbers.

Cheers.

 

[Miffy]

Please forgive me if this has been asked and answered. I couldn't find a definitive answer after reviewing the thread.

Are the quotes on the disney website for the 4/3 (or 7/3 or whatever it's called) inclusive of tax? Maybe that's why my number crunching seems off.

I noticed the astrisk that says "There is no tax on this package" Since they HAVE to charge tax, I thought that meant tax was extra.

But maybe it means there's no tax because it's already included?

If that is the case, then the comparison between WL and S/D is alot closer because my S/D rate of 201 is before tax and resort fees. All in it comes to $236/night or 2133 for 9 nights.

If I combine the 4/3 and AAA for last 2 days here's what I come up with for 9 nights at WL (Can't check the disney site but using the rack rates from mousesavers)

4/3 4 x 375 = 1500
AAA 2 x (375 x .9) = 675
total 2175 (2446 taxes included)

When the disney site come back up again I will have to run the numbers.

Cheers.

Hi again, McKiggan,

I utterly adore this thread, so I was very happy to see a new post!

The price quotes in my previous posts all include taxes. I do believe you're correct and that the "there's no tax on this package" statement means that there's no additional tax on the package.

But...afaik, the rack rates listed on mousesavers do not include taxes, so the 4 nights would be $1500 + tax. I'm not sure what that is at WL but it's not zero.

I hope the Disney site comes back up soon. We Mickeymath Geeks need more numbers to play with!

 

[McKiggan]

Yes the mousesaver prices are before tax. So I added the taxes after figuring the 4/7 and AAA discounts.

When I was comparing; I was using my pre-tax rate at the Dolphin. I didn't realize the disney site was giving me the after tax rate. "There is no tax on this package"...oh brother.

We shall see if I can get a more accurate comparison when the disney site gets back up again.

 

[djm99]

Boy things have changed. I was searching on the net to see the old 7 days for the price of four. It was called Disney's Fairytale Vacation. It was pretty much the same except the ticket was much better. I hope Disney extends this vacation package over the summer. I can only travel the end of July or Early August.

Disney's Fairytale Vacation package-Seven-Nights for the Price of Four!
Enjoy seven nights in a Walt Disney World® Resort Hotel, plus Theme Park tickets and specially-created framed character art, all for the price of a four-night package!** Now with three extra days to play, there’s never been a better time for some Disney magic. But hurry, you must book by June 29, 2003. Valid for travel July 4 - Oct. 30, 2003.

• 7-night packages from $499* per adult/ $275 savings per adult
• $266* per junior (ages 10-17)/ $99 savings per junior
• $212* per child (ages 3-9)/ $80 savings per child

Your Disney’s Fairytale Vacation Package Includes:

• Accommodations for seven nights at a Walt Disney World® Value Resort Hotel
  
• Ultimate Park Hopper Ticket that provides admission to all Walt Disney World® Theme Parks, Water Parks, and more throughout your package stay
• Specially-created Mickey’s PhilharMagic print and pin together in a frame (one per room)

• Keepsake Walt Disney Travel Company luggage tag (one per person)
• Packages of varying lengths and other resorts available. Add low-priced airfare, travel insurance, car rental and more with one convenient phone call.
• *Rates are available most nights 7/4-8/23/03 and 10/2-10/30/03, and are based on adult double occupancy at a Disney Value Resort. Lower rates may be available most nights from 8/24 to 10/01/03. Savings are based on non-discounted seven-night package rate for the same package after 6/29/03.

**Number of packages available for this promotion is limited. Available most nights from 7/4 to 10/30/03 at selected Walt Disney World® Resort hotels. No group rates or other discounts apply.

 

[Luvamouse]

Hi again, McKiggan,

I utterly adore this thread, so I was very happy to see a new post!

The price quotes in my previous posts all include taxes. I do believe you're correct and that the "there's no tax on this package" statement means that there's no additional tax on the package.

But...afaik, the rack rates listed on mousesavers do not include taxes, so the 4 nights would be $1500 + tax. I'm not sure what that is at WL but it's not zero.

I hope the Disney site comes back up soon. We Mickeymath Geeks need more numbers to play with!

So now we're, Geeks, Miffy?? Hey I resemble that remark!

 

[Luvamouse]

Please forgive me if this has been asked and answered. I couldn't find a definitive answer after reviewing the thread. I'm shocked that it might not be clear...as mud.

Are the quotes on the disney website for the 4/3 (or 7/3 or whatever it's called) inclusive of tax? Maybe that's why my number crunching seems off.

I noticed the astrisk that says "There is no tax on this package" Since they HAVE to charge tax, I thought that meant tax was extra. Maybe it means there's no tax because it's already included? I agree with this. Seems to be the only logical answer as my price on WDW was to the penny what my TA gave me as the with tax price. Others found that the math seemed to support this also.

If that is the case, then the comparison between WL and S/D is alot closer because my S/D rate of 201 is before tax and resort fees. All in it comes to $236/night or 2133 for 9 nights. If I multiply it by the 12.5 %, I get $226 per night. Is the tax higher for S and D? I know that the different areas of the property have some variation in tax rates.

If I combine the 4/3 and AAA for last 2 days here's what I come up with for 9 nights at WL (Can't check the disney site but using the rack rates from mousesavers)

4/3 4 x 375 = 1500
AAA 2 x (375 x .9) = 675
total 2175 (2446 taxes included)

Looks right to me too! Don't forget the savings from getting the extra 3 nights on your ticket!! You could...buy snacks!

When the disney site come back up again I will have to run the numbers.

Cheers.

So which one would you do McKiggan, if it were $320 different? Still the S and D? Or WL?

 

[Miffy]

So now we're, Geeks, Miffy?? Hey I resemble that remark!

I've been thinking we might want to call ourselves the Mickey Math Club.

If we're a club, I guess we need a song. Maybe something like:

Mickey Math. Mickey Math.
Forever let us hold our slide rules high, high, high, high.
Come along and price a quote, the trip is never free.
Package deal, room only, travel to Disney.

 

[disneyfan55]

I've been thinking we might want to call ourselves the Mickey Math Club.

If we're a club, I guess we need a song. Maybe something like:

Mickey Math. Mickey Math.
Forever let us hold our slide rules high, high, high, high.
Come along and price a quote, the trip is never free.
Package deal, room only, travel to Disney.

Funny you should mention a slide rule. I don't think many even know what they are anymore! There was one in the Smithsonian (sp?) this past weekend and I was explaining how it was used to my stepdaughter and her husband. I don't think now we could do without a calculator, many things like the sliderule have gone by the wayside!! Nice song!!

 

[brergnat]

So, I have a question for anyone doing the 4+3 during PEAK SEASON:

DID YOU CHECK TO SEE WHAT YOUR ROOM RATE IS?

Because, if you are going during Peak season, you can bet that you are being charged the weekend rate for all 4 of your "paying" days. I put in a bunch of different weeks, all during peak season, at different hotels, and when I did the math, it ALWAYS came out that they charged the weekend rate (which is $20/$10/$4 higher at Deluxe/Mod/Value than the weekday rate) as the room rate x 4. This will cause variances of a few dollars if you are staying Value up to the whopping $40-something overage I'm experiencing with my Polynesian reservation. If you are doing this deal, you are definitely staying at some point on a Friday and Saturday night, which is when the rates apply.

I guess this is just the way of it, but I don't think it's right. Guess this is where they say "Gotcha!" A few dollars here...a few dollars there...adds up!