New credit card guarantees. Restaurant list, policy & common questions in 1st post

[maxiesmom]

Well, with the DxDDP loading the itinerary with signatures is pretty common. We have one almost every night; Epcot days are really the only time we book one-credit dinners. So between a signature dinner 5 nights out of 7 and one or two character breakfasts/lunches for our toddler, our itinerary has FAR more cancellation fee meals than not. I'm still fine-tuning our Jan plan but right now 10 of our 16 ADRs are on that list.

Hmmm. I wonder if Disney should consider maybe making an extra short cancellation window part of the deluxe plan?? A perk, if you will.

 

[maxiesmom]

This policy definitely has potential to hurt those who are most vulnerable in our society. While I am definitely grateful for my own families health (and as I've said before, this policy shouldn't have much impact on my particular family) it could be a huge issue for those who deal with day to day limitations that most of us are fortunate enough to not deal with. This new policy is potentially a lawsuit waiting to happen, IMO.

Not hardly. It is the same policy for everyone, regardless of health or any disability. And that is the cornerstone of any ADA act--equality. Not a seperate set of standards for disabled and abled people.

 

[mom2rtk]

There was some speculation awhile back that Disney may be trying to discourage this. I know there are a lot of dining plan users who load up on these two types of meals, because character meals are a good deal on the basic plan and signature meals are a good deal on the deluxe plan. (And sometimes they get tired of all this food - and decide they're not going to show up for one or more of the meals they booked.)

Maybe Disney intends as part of this policy to nudge the users of the dining plan into cutting down on the number of character and signature meals (and ultrapopular meals like Le Cellier lunch and 'Ohana dinner) and booking something else that isn't quite so popular - or isn't as good a deal.



They will still come. But they will either pick restaurants that aren't on the list (Sanaa is a favorite of some of my local friends, no risking money there), or book the ones on the list at the last minute - when they know they'll be coming.

I agree that part of this is to somewhat discourage too many of the highly coveted meals to a party. They have a product MANY people want. And their entire marketing department is working overtime to pack the parks day in day out. My guess is that they are getting some survey results back saying that the hard to get ADR's are causing some disappointment for all those new bodies they are trying to get to come to Disney. Instead of adding a couple new venues, it's far easier to subtly discourage people from taking up too many of the highly coveted spots.

Won't stop me though. We ate at CRT 3 times on our last trip! (plus nearly every other character meal available too!)They'll have to pry that blue goblet from my cold dead hand!

 

[MSLRAC]

Hmmm. I wonder if Disney should consider maybe making an extra short cancellation window part of the deluxe plan?? A perk, if you will.

I think that is a great idea because otherwise, I think this is going to have a bad effect on the DxDP.

 

[hannahdrewmom]

The bottom line is things happen... on vacation or not. But they happen alot more when you have kids. Disney=Kids. Therefore vacations in disney are going to have things happen. And just because it works in someone elses family doesn't mean it will work for all. Disney isn't going to be able to fix that. 24 hrs. does seem excessive but there are instances that even 3 hrs would hurt. It also seems skewed for larger families. If DH and I go by ourselves its $20 but add in the kids which is where the problems normally occur and our total will more than double! So I guess the bottom line is that we are going to be at the mercy of the CM's in charge. So it's going to be a lot of pixie dust hope.

The thought though that just because one person can't go everyone else still should doesn't fly with me. We go on family vacations because we are a family. If one person doesn't make it we revamp but we certainly don't expect one adult to take a bunch of kids to a signature restaurant by themselves that evening. It will work for some but not for all.

I personally hope that this crashes and burns. I will definately be rethinking our restaurant choices and we won't be doin gdxdp anymore. In the long run (my family) will save money as a result of this decision because I would venture to say we will eat cheaper than we normally would have buying the dxdp.

 

[maxiesmom]

I personally hope that this crashes and burns. I will definately be rethinking our restaurant choices and we won't be doin gdxdp anymore. In the long run (my family) will save money as a result of this decision because I would venture to say we will eat cheaper than we normally would have buying the dxdp.

I don't. Because if it does crash and burn, and Disney continues to lose money having empty tables, they will just add another fee in somewhere or raise prices again. A company can't continue to do something that loses them money. And letting people make ADRs and not holding them to keeping them loses Disney money.

 

[kaytieeldr]

It doesn't happen very often, but when it does, Disney doesn't usually lose a dime. We SWAP ADR's for something closer to our resort.

Disney may not - but the individual restaurant easily could. Despite almost all venues being owned by Disney, each is expected to earn a certain amount of revenue.

Conversely, having to explain this - even once - is degrading. I'm sure some folks have no problem telling WDW all abbout their health issues to get the disability card at WDW, but not everyone feels that way. Another family member has severe food allergies. Simply put, people with food allregies seriously do everythign they can to avoid getting a reaction.

But nobody needs to explain their health issues to get a GAC, just their needs; and a GAC doesn't help at meals anyway, it's only valid at attractions.
Wouldn't a person with food allergies be less likely to make last-minute dining changes? Wouldn't they - especially an experienced Disney visitor - already have contacted the Special Dining Line and been contacted by a Chef, and be expected at the original location? Wouldn't changing those plans at the last minute be more risky than a $10 penalty?

 

[SmallWorld71]

Won't stop me though. We ate at CRT 3 times on our last trip! (plus nearly every other character meal available too!)They'll have to pry that blue goblet from my cold dead hand!

 

[Mkrop]

I don't. Because if it does crash and burn, and Disney continues to lose money having empty tables, they will just add another fee in somewhere or raise prices again. A company can't continue to do something that loses them money. And letting people make ADRs and not holding them to keeping them loses Disney money.

But if it makes some people not come back, then WDW loses money. If people go offsite bc of this policy WDW loses money. If the DVC owner now decides to cook in their villa instead of making that risky ADR, WDW loses money. If someone decides to eat counter service and split a meal instead of eating at the signature restuarant, WDW loses money. All of these could happen as a result of this new policy in my opinion.

Without good customer service,( and I see alienating a family with a sick child by charging then not to be good customer service,) a company will lose money too.

 

[Colleen27]

There was some speculation awhile back that Disney may be trying to discourage this. I know there are a lot of dining plan users who load up on these two types of meals, because character meals are a good deal on the basic plan and signature meals are a good deal on the deluxe plan. (And sometimes they get tired of all this food - and decide they're not going to show up for one or more of the meals they booked.)

Maybe Disney intends as part of this policy to nudge the users of the dining plan into cutting down on the number of character and signature meals (and ultrapopular meals like Le Cellier lunch and 'Ohana dinner) and booking something else that isn't quite so popular - or isn't as good a deal.

Or isn't in high demand, thus freeing up more of the popular/desirable restaurants for cash guests who don't view restaurants as interchangable... Someone who has DDP credits to use will settle for Kona if Ohana isn't available or Coral Reef in place of Le Cellier, while someone paying cash is likely to grab CS or go off-site if they can't get the meals they want.

 

[maxiesmom]

But if it makes some people not come back, then WDW loses money. If people go offsite bc of this policy WDW loses money. If the DVC owner now decides to cook in their villa instead of making that risky ADR, WDW loses money. If someone decides to eat counter service and split a meal instead of eating at the signature restuarant, WDW loses money. All of these could happen as a result of this new policy in my opinion.

Without good customer service,( and I see alienating a family with a sick child by charging then not to be good customer service,) a company will lose money too.

I think the number of people who will not do character meals because of the $10 fee is going to be very small compared to the number of people who will be thrilled they can book the meals and then keep their reservations.

Again, it is not like there are sick children all over the place at WDW. I know it happens but I think their number is being greatly exaggerated. By reading this thread you would think every time a family goes to WDW someone becomes sick. And that is highly unlikely.

 

[Snurk71]

I'm back...

I just wanted to encourage everyone that does not like the new day prior (it is not 24 hour - I want to keep pointing that out for folks that may have missed it) cancellation policy to voice your concerns to Disney. Despite some that say it's Disney's policy and they know best, good companies listen to their customers and react accordingly.

In this light I share a story from Discover (the credit card company). A few weeks ago I received a note that they were taking away the service/function of generating one-time, secure account#s online for safe use. Well, Discover heard from its customers that they wanted the service and today I received the note that they've reinstated the function. Discover didn't think they needed the function - they have all the necessary measures in place to protect its customers without the one-time account#s. But the customers felt better with the one-time numbers, so Discover listened. A good case example of listenting to your customers and providing good customer service.

So opposers, make sure to make your voice heard with a note to wdw.guest.communications@disneyworld.com.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

Not hardly. It is the same policy for everyone, regardless of health or any disability. And that is the cornerstone of any ADA act--equality. Not a seperate set of standards for disabled and abled people.

I disagree. While this is going beyond what has been explicitily clear so far; there is an implcation being made that if you cancel too many times, you'll face some sort of eventual penalty...

Under the ADA:
"-4.1100 General. A public accommodation may not impose eligibility criteria that either screen out or tend to screen out persons with disabilities from fully and equally enjoying any goods, services, privileges, advantages, or accommodations offered to individuals without disabilities, unless it can show that such requirements are necessary for the provision of the goods, services, privileges, advantages, or accommodations.

ILLUSTRATION 1: A restaurant has an unofficial policy of seating individuals with visible disabilities in the least desirable parts of the restaurant. This policy violates the ADA because it establishes an eligibility criterion that discriminates against individuals with certain disabilities and that is not necessary for the operation of the restaurant. The restaurant may not justify its policy on the basis of the preferences of its other customers."

also:

III-4.1400 Surcharges. Although compliance may result in some additional cost, a public accommodation may not place a surcharge only on particular individuals with disabilities or groups of individuals with disabilities to cover these expenses.

(The example given is a pharamcy on the second floor of a historic building that offers home delivery in place of adding elevators. The pharmacy can't charge disabled folks a delivery fee.)


It seems to me like this is getting into a very gray area....

The ADA is also pretty clear that simply saying guests with disabilites could dine some place else is not okay. It's not even okay for say - a theater to say that guests in wheelchairs can only go to certain performances.

Sounds to me like it is legally questionable for Disney to impose a fine or other punishemnt on guests who can't go to dinner because of their disability. Put this in context that individuals who are staying at WDW are kind of stuck on property, and may well have prepaid for their meals. Indeed, this may be part of why all WDW resorts - even Disney's value resorts - offer pizza delivery. If you are unable to leave your room - at least you can get some kind of food delivered during normal dining hours.

Think about it in this perpective. A family made plans for their child with a severe ailment to go to 1900PF. The child can't go because the child has a flair up of some kind. Disney is really going to impose a fine on the family? Or put that family on a penalty list because they had too many cancelations?

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I also think locals are a big part of WDW customer base, and that this is going to hurt that part of their business. I'm sure lots of them have TiW and AP's and are currently willing to come to WDW just for dinner. The locals I know have done this. I just don't see local folks coming to WDW for dinner and risking the $20+ when they could eat offsite for much less and no fee, at least not nearly as frequently.

We're fairly local (an hour away), which is why I love this change. We now have a much better chance of getting into a restaurant we want, if we get up & decide to go to WDW for the day. As it is now, if we can't get into a restaurant we want to eat at, we do something else that day.

I just wanted to encourage everyone that does not like the new day prior (it is not 24 hour - I want to keep pointing that out for folks that may have missed it) cancellation policy to voice your concerns to Disney. Despite some that say it's Disney's policy and they know best, good companies listen to their customers and react accordingly.

Do we know that for sure, or did it come from a CM over the phone? If it came from a random CM over the phone or from a general email, I wouldn't take that as a fact. They are famous for interrupting things incorrectly. I'm not saying that isn't the case, I'm just curious where the info came from. Personally, I'll wait until the official policy change to see what the specifics are.

I disagree. While this is going beyond what has been explicitily clear so far; there is an implcation being made that if you cancel too many times, you'll face some sort of eventual penalty...

Where did you read this? This is the first time I've heard it mentioned. Nothing I've read has implied that is the case. I could have just missed it though.

 

[Snurk71]

Do we know that for sure, or did it come from a CM over the phone? If it came from a random CM over the phone or from a general email, I wouldn't take that as a fact. They are famous for interrupting things incorrectly. I'm not saying that isn't the case, I'm just curious where the info came from. Personally, I'll wait until the official policy change to see what the specifics are.

I think the official policy reads as "day prior". I spoke with a CM on the phone and a supervisor, both said the new policy will mirror the current "2 days prior" policy in that they measure the cancelation according to when the dining line closes at 10:00 PM EST (for a call) or 11:59 pm EST for online. I gave both specific restaurants and meal times to check. Both put me on hold to check/verify and came back with the same answer.

You can still wait for an official policy. But I believe the official policy is going to state "day prior" which isn't as definitive as the timing I've offered.

 

[MELSMICE]

The thing with that is, if I cancel 3 hours ahead of time, that's plenty of time for Disney to add a walk-up to take my reservation.

Many people have said this & I've been meaning to ask...........how does anyone know that 3 hours is enough time for Disney? I'm not aware of how their system works.

Maybe it's only updated once or twice a day........say midnight & 12 noon or 6 a.m. in the morning or something. Everyone is assuming that as soon as an ADR is cancelled it's automatically in the system that the cancellation has been made & that table is now available.

Does anyone know with 100% certainty that this is the case?

I dunno, I think it is hard to claim that customer satisfaction will not be good when this hasn't even had time to fly yet. Don't forget that for all of our thoughts on the subject, Disers are actually a very small percenage of the people that go to WDW. Maybe this whole thing will crash and burn once put into practice for a few months. Maybe things will work out great. Hard telling. But we sure can't claim that this idea is too one sided as of now. To do so is only opinion, and not even a majority opinion.

I agree. Give this a chance before slamming it & playing the doom & gloom card with sick children, disabled guests, torrential downpours, etc.

I think the number of people who will not do character meals because of the $10 fee is going to be very small compared to the number of people who will be thrilled they can book the meals and then keep their reservations.

Again, it is not like there are sick children all over the place at WDW. I know it happens but I think their number is being greatly exaggerated. By reading this thread you would think every time a family goes to WDW someone becomes sick. And that is highly unlikely.

I also agree. I think this will change dining habits of some, but I also believe those people that choose not to dine at certain restaurants will be replaced by someone else.

But if it makes some people not come back, then WDW loses money. If people go offsite bc of this policy WDW loses money. If the DVC owner now decides to cook in their villa instead of making that risky ADR, WDW loses money. If someone decides to eat counter service and split a meal instead of eating at the signature restuarant, WDW loses money. All of these could happen as a result of this new policy in my opinion.

I'm sure what Disney will potentially lose from one family will be replaced by another.

 

[trainingupmy4princes]

You know, I really hope they get their online ADR system straight before rolling this thing out.

Earlier this month I got FOUR emails after booking a Whispering Canyon breakfast. Three of the emails had as subject lines "Walt Disney World Dining Reservation Cancelled." All three of the emails then proceeded to tell me my reservation at Whispering Canyon was CONFIRMED.

The fourth email actually had the correct subject header and also confirmed the dining reservation.



So then today, I log in to the website to look again at the ADRs. Whoa, what's that? Tokyo Dining? I didn't book Tokyo Dining, I booked Teppan Edo.

So I comb through emails and sure enough, there's a confirmation email for Teppan Edo. And then there's also a cancellation for Teppan Edo and a confirmation for Tokyo Dining.

It's certainly possible I accidentally did this... it's the most reasonable explanation, after all. (But it's WEIRD because at no time--none--was I playing that evening Epcot reservation, and not ONCE did I consider Tokyo Dining--always wanted Teppan Edo. And I doublecheck the page with the confirmation number on it, and everything, because I copy and paste info straight from there into my planning spreadsheet. And my planning sheet says Teppan Edo too.) <---Despite that though I do think it's got to be some error on my part...

But anyway. Point is... the online ADR system is not great. Sending me four emails about one ADR--three of them with the wrong subject header?

And even in cases where it IS the guest's fault and the book the wrong dinner, thinking they booked something different--UGH! People who accidentally book Chef Mickey's when they meant to book Crystal Palace, and then show up at Crystal Palace... will be charged a no-show fee for Chef Mickey's?

And okay, you can say tough luck in the case of online ADRs--customer's mistake, they pay price. What about when a phone CM makes a mistake? (There's a thread not too far down about exactly that.)

The whole system is just so buggy and IMO untrustworthy--can't believe they're now going to add cc-holds on top of that.

I agree their system need some serious work. Our last trip I made all our ressies, we get down there and the front desk calls as they had our family of 6 down for the Hoop twice at the same seating. I was like um no we weren't planning on eating at 2 tables. So they canceled one group of 6 and kept the other. We get there and what do ya know they gave away both our tables as they didn't understand that only one group of 6 was canceled. We stood around forever and they finally let us in we were squeezed into a clearly too small table. We were seated so late they were serving dinner so we missed the salad and part of the show. We were also Cat 3 seating when we had reserved Cat 2. My DH who works in the computer industry is not impressed with their online tech systems and how wonky they are. Now add CC's to that mess and I will have to scour my cc charges every night on vacation.

 

[Colleen27]

Many people have said this & I've been meaning to ask...........how does anyone know that 3 hours is enough time for Disney? I'm not aware of how their system works.

Maybe it's only updated once or twice a day........say midnight & 12 noon or 6 a.m. in the morning or something. Everyone is assuming that as soon as an ADR is cancelled it's automatically in the system that the cancellation has been made & that table is now available.

Cancellations become available immediately. That's why the cancellation threads exist - so that if someone posts a that they will be cancelling an ADR that someone else is looking for they can coordinate a time to both be in the system at the same time. I've tested it myself, as have others, and there is no delay between cancellation and that ADR being re-added to available inventory.

 

[Snurk71]

I agree. Give this a chance before slamming it & playing the doom & gloom card with sick children, disabled guests, torrential downpours, etc.

Customer satisfaction has already taken a hit before the program is even in operation - whether we've been impacted by it yet or not because we all have the potential to be impacted by the policy. There are more than 2 voicing a dissatisfaction with the policy. It may not reduce your satisfaction with Disney, but it's a pretty clear fact that it has impacted others. I'm sure someone will try to argue that point though.

I think this will change dining habits of some, but I also believe those people that choose not to dine at certain restaurants will be replaced by someone else.

I'm sure what Disney will potentially lose from one family will be replaced by another.

Smart business minds think in the long-term, not the immediate short-term. No one has an endless supply of customers.

Smart business people also understand it costs a lot less to keep a current customer than to gain a new one. Lots of studies proving this fact out too.

 

[Cafeen]

There was some speculation awhile back that Disney may be trying to discourage this. I know there are a lot of dining plan users who load up on these two types of meals, because character meals are a good deal on the basic plan and signature meals are a good deal on the deluxe plan. (And sometimes they get tired of all this food - and decide they're not going to show up for one or more of the meals they booked.)

Maybe Disney intends as part of this policy to nudge the users of the dining plan into cutting down on the number of character and signature meals (and ultrapopular meals like Le Cellier lunch and 'Ohana dinner) and booking something else that isn't quite so popular - or isn't as good a deal.

They will still come. But they will either pick restaurants that aren't on the list (Sanaa is a favorite of some of my local friends, no risking money there), or book the ones on the list at the last minute - when they know they'll be coming.

If that were true, it'd fall right into that cash grab scenario that many are entertaining. It also fits Disney's recent trend of saying one thing and doing another. That makes me even more skeptical about the true roots of the policy.

And yes, Sanaa, is amazing

Not hardly. It is the same policy for everyone, regardless of health or any disability. And that is the cornerstone of any ADA act--equality. Not a seperate set of standards for disabled and abled people.

Equality? Not quite. It's about equal access (and equal judgment), but for that access there need to be different standards. Handicapped parking, ramps, and automated doors are examples. If were about equality in standards, they'd have to deal with it like the rest of us. At least, that portion of it.

The bottom line is things happen... on vacation or not. But they happen alot more when you have kids. Disney=Kids. Therefore vacations in disney are going to have things happen. And just because it works in someone elses family doesn't mean it will work for all. Disney isn't going to be able to fix that. 24 hrs. does seem excessive but there are instances that even 3 hrs would hurt. It also seems skewed for larger families. If DH and I go by ourselves its $20 but add in the kids which is where the problems normally occur and our total will more than double! So I guess the bottom line is that we are going to be at the mercy of the CM's in charge. So it's going to be a lot of pixie dust hope.

The thought though that just because one person can't go everyone else still should doesn't fly with me. We go on family vacations because we are a family. If one person doesn't make it we revamp but we certainly don't expect one adult to take a bunch of kids to a signature restaurant by themselves that evening. It will work for some but not for all.

There have been several scenarios laid out so far where the entire party would cancel for one sick person. Single parents, the meal is mostly for the sick child, the family wants to eat these meals together, etc. It doesn't matter so much if it happens every time, but if you have H&V planned for your 2 year old, are you really going to take just your 15 year old if the 2 year old is sick?

We're fairly local (an hour away), which is why I love this change. We now have a much better chance of getting into a restaurant we want, if we get up & decide to go to WDW for the day. As it is now, if we can't get into a restaurant we want to eat at, we do something else that day.

Do you though? The amount of ADRs available between 180 and 1 day will be roughly the same. We don't know yet what the restaurants plan to do when they receive the cancellations a "full day" out. (There have been two different interpretations of this "full day"). They could very well adjust scheduling gearing toward the remaining reservations, making it more difficult to get a walk up or late ADR.

Do we know that for sure, or did it come from a CM over the phone? If it came from a random CM over the phone or from a general email, I wouldn't take that as a fact. They are famous for interrupting things incorrectly. I'm not saying that isn't the case, I'm just curious where the info came from. Personally, I'll wait until the official policy change to see what the specifics are.

So far, 2 calls have been placed and they have different responses. Snurk was told that they could cancel by 11:59pm for the next day. The author of the articles when this first came out were told that they'd have to cancel Tuesday for Thursday.

The official policy is what's posted in the first post, coming from the internal Disney information system (aka The Hub).

Where did you read this? This is the first time I've heard it mentioned. Nothing I've read has implied that is the case. I could have just missed it though.

In another thread (I think the community boards one) CF had posted further information about the policies

.

1. It seems that the list is all "signature" restaurants and all with character meals. Note that Akershus is the only World Showcase restaurant included, butr that is the only one with Characters.

2. The internal notice said exceptions (refunds) can be made in exceptional circumstances. This would be Guest Recovery and go on your permanent record.

Many people have said this & I've been meaning to ask...........how does anyone know that 3 hours is enough time for Disney? I'm not aware of how their system works.

Maybe it's only updated once or twice a day........say midnight & 12 noon or 6 a.m. in the morning or something. Everyone is assuming that as soon as an ADR is cancelled it's automatically in the system that the cancellation has been made & that table is now available.

Does anyone know with 100% certainty that this is the case?

When we cancel now, we see the ADR immediately. Logic tells us that this means the restaurant gets an update of our reservation status as well.

Now, they very well may not, but that's a bigger problem with the system itself and instead of pushing that problem on to the customers, they need to fix it.

I'm sure what Disney will potentially lose from one family will be replaced by another.

The cumulative effect of recent and rumored policies may start to dry up that reserve of replacement guests. The money grabbing that they've been doing lately, with profit over customer service instead of customer service driving profits will be another thing to dry up the flood of guests.

Word of mouth goes far too, by potentially alienating guests to whom life happens, they're going to be less likely to return, and more likely to tell their friends "it's not worth it". This happens when a service company lets profits rule over the service they provide.

Cancellations become available immediately. That's why the cancellation threads exist - so that if someone posts a that they will be cancelling an ADR that someone else is looking for they can coordinate a time to both be in the system at the same time. I've tested it myself, as have others, and there is no delay between cancellation and that ADR being re-added to available inventory.

The question does remain, as I mentioned above, regarding whether or not the restaurants get updated. It would be interesting to know how real time their system is. I do know of people who were told there was no availability for a walk up, walked around the corner and made and ADR, came back and it was in their system. This leads me to believe it's halfway working. New reservations get updated immediately, but canceled may not. Still doesn't mean the customer should be the one working around their system though.