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

[miprender]

And I don't see it as an onerous financial burden. $10/head for some people(I'm aware not all) is chump change. Especially on a multi-thousand dollar vacation. I'm kind of starting to view the fee as something akin to a "dining hopper." I make my ADR with the intention of keeping it, but if I choose to do something else then I can "hop" over to it without wasting vacation time on the phone cancelling. Paid my fee, no harm no foul. And it's Disney's policy to do so now.

Well in this household $50 for nothing is not chump change. We save all year for our vacation and to spend something for nothing is just a waste. I could buy a nice souvenier for that price.

Snurk, join me in embracing our selfishness and cavalierness. I have named our side The Dark Side.

I guess I am cavalier too even though I spend hours planning our ADRs, making special autograph books and this past trip even made outfits around some of those restaurants. YUP I guess I just don't care since I don't go along with this new policy.

I know we think Disney will not reverse this policy, but look what happened with the banks. One person started a petition(saw her on the news today) and now, because of public outcry, no more fees to use a debit card. Our voices mean something and we as a group can change this ridiculous policy!

It is if you have kids who want character meals....

I might have less issue if this was just signatures but I have never been in a character meal excpet H&V that was empty.

I have never seen any character meals (except H&V) either. Our ressie at CM was for 8 and we did not get seated until 9pm and more people were still waiting. I actually wished there had been some no shows because by the time we finished eating it was just too late.

Not to throw this thread too OT, but I've seen mention of some FP situation causing similar debate/divide. Can someone clue me in on what the deal is?

Is the issue that Disney is going to charge customers $10/FP for unused FPs? I mean, that's pretty cavalier/inconsiderate/rude for someone to take a FP out of the machine when they're not 100% committed to being at DHS 7 hours later for their TSMM FP - espeecially when another deserving family could have had that FP. How is Disney supposed to know how to staff the FP lines without a pinpoint measure of FP no-shows? Aren't there at least 2 CMs for every FP ride? That's a waste of money/resources to have a CM standing there with thumb inserted not collecting any FPs. Not to mention if they could they could take ride vehicles out of rotation to reduce the wear and tear and energy comsumption to save money if the ride isn't going to be at 100% utilization. Now that I think it through, I can see where Disney should be charging for an unused FP.

 

[DisneyCowgirl]

Can I get a clarification--do you lose your dining credit as well as your $10? I had not seen that in any of the information.

 

[Marshay]

Can I get a clarification--do you lose your dining credit as well as your $10? I had not seen that in any of the information.

You are only out $10/pp but if you can't find another restaurant to take your dining credits by midnight of the day you check out, you could end up losing your dining credits, too.

Probably won't happen b/c I'm sure you could eat somewhere (unpopular) at some awful time (9pm) but if you had an evening ADR on the day you check out and miss it, then yes, it's possible to lose that dining credit AND be charged the $10/pp.

 

[Colleen27]

I totally understand. But unfortunately, we all know what that would lead to...everyone playing the sick kid card. So what are they to do? At least in the beginning, I think Disney has to make it look like they will be taking a firm stance.

No, they don't have to. There have been many ideas suggested on this thread alone that would address the situation Disney is purportedly attempting to correct without penalizing families who do experience illness on vacation. Disney chose a very guest-unfriendly route when they could have 1) modified their approach to walk-ups to ensure tables are filled and/or 2) implemented no-show fees with a more reasonable cancellation window to keep tables full without charging families who are already dealing with problems that interrupt their vacation.

 

[Colleen27]

Does everyones kids get sick that much that this is the major concern? My kids have great immune systems. They take vitamins and they wash their hands and luckily they rarely get sick. But really even if one of them catches a slight cold they still need to eat something so we would still be going to dinner. They may only have some soup but they still need to eat. But if (heaven forbid) one of them was THAT sick that we couldn't make it I would understand why the $40 fee would be applied. It's the policy. I'm not saying I'd love to be out $40 but if my kid was that sick I would worry more about how to make them better than $40.

For us, a slight cold wouldn't slow us down a bit. The problem is that we've had at least one puking episode on several different trips for various reasons (and not always the kids - morning sickness or migraines had me kneeling at the porcelain throne on more than one trip). And that does require staying in the room but isn't nearly serious enough to make me forget/not care about being charged $50 for nothing, on top of the money already lost to not being able to enjoy that part of the vacation or use those dining credits.

 

[mom2rtk]

You are only out $10/pp but if you can't find another restaurant to take your dining credits by midnight of the day you check out, you could end up losing your dining credits, too.

Probably won't happen b/c I'm sure you could eat somewhere (unpopular) at some awful time (9pm) but if you had an evening ADR on the day you check out and miss it, then yes, it's possible to lose that dining credit AND be charged the $10/pp.

Oooorrrr........

Maybe you could get a walk-up as a result of an empty table someone else got charged $10 a head for! So.... Disney gets YOUR $50 (for a family of 5), THEIR $50 and your dinner $$$$$ (either paid OOP of through the Dining plan you paid for)! Everyone wins, right? Oops.... ok........ Disney wins!

 

[Colleen27]

Yep, I have written to Disney and will write again for more clarification b/c I'm still unclear on 24 hours or full day... in addition to just thinking it's a non family-oriented policy.

We definitely have to speak up if we feel a change is necessary. Disney 'may' not change it at all and I dread that they may apply to all restaurants. But that's their choice ... a bad one IMHO but it's also a bad choice for me to just accept a lousy, non-family friendly policy, too at Disney, who promotes themselves as being the premier family destination.

I've written to Disney, both snail mail (because I do think that tends to be taken more seriously) and e-mail expressing my opinion about this new policy. I also e-mailed specific questions asking for clarification of the details, which I didn't get. I was very much hoping to have certain things in writing - specifically the no penalty for showing up a person short for an ADR, because that may apply to any ADRs I change between now and our trip (we still don't know if our 7th person will be coming) - but the response I received was just vague non-answers and quoting from the equally vague wording on the website.

I also wrote a second snail-mail letter specifically about the implementation of this policy. So far I've gotten answers from phone CMs that the deadline to cancel without penalty is 1) 24 hours, 2) before close of business on the prior day, and 3) before close of business two days prior, as well as conflicting info about how checking in with fewer people than are on the ADR will be handled. Disney is doing a dismal job of making sure their own employees understand the policy, but they're not likely to accept guest ignorance/misunderstanding (even if it came straight from a CM's mouth) as a reason to waive the fee.

I know it may not make a difference, but dining is too big a part of our travel style/priorities for me to remain silent about my disappointment/frustration in changes that make it much less likely/more stressful for us to continue to enjoy that aspect of Disney vacations.

 

[housemouse]

Nope, for my family I figured out it would cost us $40 if we don't keep our ADR let's say it's b/c DD is . However, the rest of the family will need to still eat, so now we spend $30-40 for a CS meal in addition to the $40 ADR charge. That's $80 for one meal. Now let's say my DD is still sick the next day and I had another ADR but couldn't cancel that in time yesterday b/c of the whole "full day" thing. Now that's another $40 and another $30-40 for CS.

$160 for two ADRs and I'm not even on the DDP.

This policy affects everyone -- DDP or not.

You missed my point entirely. If I decide for whatever reason that I can't make my ressie and it's too late to cancel, I now feel zero reason to call and cancel(whereas before this asinine policy I would have). I paid my "dining hopper" fee so that I don't have to waste vacation time on the phone. Still results in a no show,doesn't release a table for someone else, doesn't fix Disney's problem, just gives them $10/head. Not everyone CAN'T afford that. Some it won't faze at all.

You're assuming that someone is not going to an ADR and still planning on eating that meal, which is not always the case. I could just as easily skip a CP ressie because there's no line at BTMRR, we're having a blast riding over and over, and we're way too full from the Dole Whips to want to eat anymore today. $10/ head is now cheaper than $30/head. Disney has given me a way to hang onto an ADR if I want it, but if I decide last minute not to go, it is now a no harm, no foul situation because I have operated within Disney's stated policy and paid my "dining hopper" fee. This was all in reply to some people labeling those who won't cancel an ADR because they are already within the too late window as "selfish and spiteful". The policy now is call waaay in advance or don't bother calling at all.

You also unintentionally artificially inflated your figures in an OOP scenario. You counted the cost of missing the meal($10/head) plus the cost of CS without subtracting the cost of what you would have spent if you have kept the ADR, which in all likelihood would have cost you more than $80. You are still only out $10/head on your meal. Does that make sense?

It's an asinine policy.

 

[buckeev]

We just got back from an AWESOME Halloween trip! While there I was receiving emails on my smartphone from WDW about my ADRs for the next day. These were coming to my phone about 24 hours before our appointment, sometimes 26-27 hours. Just to test the system, I tried to cancel-on line, using my DroidX AND my daughter's IPhone AND an IPad. Never worked. Between slow connections, no connections, dropped connections and other internet related issues, it wouldn't complete the process. Due to booking before the new policy started, we incurred no $ charges because we were "grandfathered", but future trips won't be so lucky.
Just to try to ease my concerns, I called the WDW Dining cancellation number a couple of times, from a bus...and from a park. What a joke. Due to bus noise and crowd noise, I could barely even tell there was somebody on the other end. One call took 25 minutes to get everything done-from start to finish. I even tried to call once from a BATHROOM in MK (at least it was fairly quite), but the call dropped about halfway through Jungle Book theme. I really don't want to be walking through parks, or sitting on Peter Pan Flight trying to make these cancellations before the penalty kicks in. Character meals are a BIG part of our park experience-especially for our Autistic son. We bend over backwards and nearly break our necks trying to get from Point A to Point B, but sometimes it's tough to make these ADRs in time.
Well...we're going back in mid December and I'm hoping a few kinks get worked out.

 

[Snurk71]

You missed my point entirely. If I decide for whatever reason that I can't make my ressie and it's too late to cancel, I now feel zero reason to call and cancel(whereas before this asinine policy I would have). I paid my "dining hopper" fee so that I don't have to waste vacation time on the phone. Still results in a no show,doesn't release a table for someone else, doesn't fix Disney's problem, just gives them $10/head. Not everyone CAN'T afford that. Some it won't faze at all.

You're assuming that someone is not going to an ADR and still planning on eating that meal, which is not always the case. I could just as easily skip a CP ressie because there's no line at BTMRR, we're having a blast riding over and over, and we're way too full from the Dole Whips to want to eat anymore today. $10/ head is now cheaper than $30/head. Disney has given me a way to hang onto an ADR if I want it, but if I decide last minute not to go, it is now a no harm, no foul situation because I have operated within Disney's stated policy and paid my "dining hopper" fee. This was all in reply to some people labeling those who won't cancel an ADR because they are already within the too late window as "selfish and spiteful". The policy now is call waaay in advance or don't bother calling at all.

You also unintentionally artificially inflated your figures in an OOP scenario. You counted the cost of missing the meal($10/head) plus the cost of CS without subtracting the cost of what you would have spent if you have kept the ADR, which in all likelihood would have cost you more than $80. You are still only out $10/head on your meal. Does that make sense?

It's an asinine policy.

housemouse, I like the way you think. You can articulate things/reasons that debate a point from the dark side, but you still acknowledge this is a poor policy and could have done better. That's all a lot of us are arguing about - not the the policy in general to help combat a "problem", but the details of how they're going about it.

 

[SmallWorld71]

How do you see selfishness by Disney in their new policy? NOT being snarky, just curious as the word selfish doesn't fit for me on Disney's policy.

Sorry, wasn't ignoring you. Been away from the thread for a short time and boy did it grow!

I'm not very good at articulating, but I'll try.

Scenario: Darling family has an ADR for Crystal Palace. They are unable to make it due to whatever (plug in whatever you think is a valid excuse that is beyond their control). They try to cancel with Disney but since it was not a travel delay or major illness, they are unable to do so without penalty. Now they are both hurt by the treatment they recieved from Disney and ticked off about the $ so they just go back to their room and deal with their problem and never cancel. Basically, they've been kicked while they are down and are now expected to do right by some guests even though Disney was not. This is the type family that was called "selfish" for just thinking about themselves.
Well, my point is, who is Disney thinking about when they don't allow the guest to cancel without penalty? Not the Darling family, that's for sure. Not the Incredible family who has been trying to get and ADR and is out of luck because there is now a no-show instead of a cancellation. By only thinking about their bottom line and not their guests in this situation, Disney is being selfish. Although I think a better word that selfish would be unsympathetic.

The irony is, although Disney may see themselves as benefitting from the above situation, I don't think they do. If they were to allow the Darlings to cancel without penalty and then let the Incredibles have the ADR, it's a win-win-win situation. The Darlings are not feeling slighted, the Incredibles have their ADR and Disney makes more $ since you know the Incredibles will spend more than $10 a person on their meal.

Hope that made sense.

 

[mom2rtk]

I do like the idea of Disney setting up the cancellation line and sending out reminder emails. So when they discovered the no-shows were a problem, why didn't they set up these user-friendly methods of trying to help the situation before implementing the heavy-handed penalties?

The other issue I have is that they want to put ALL the responsibility on the customer. Heaven forbid that they should invest in a user-friendly IT systems to make it EASIER to cancel.

And I'm sorry, but if you're going to do this, you need free wi-fi in ALL levels of resort rooms. I really don't want to invest the half hour so many of my calls to Disney take.......... to cancel an ADR. Online is far better, but not at $10 a day, thank you very much.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I thought I was done with this thread, but then I read another one today about a family whose flight was cancelled due to the huge noreaster this past weekend.

It's just one example of the kind of unpredictable event which causes folks to miss ADR's.

Which of us was able to predict this storm at 180 days?



On a related concept.....maybe this will go the way of Bank of America's $5fee....

 

[mom2rtk]

I thought I was done with this thread, but then I read another one today about a family whose flight was cancelled due to the huge noreaster this past weekend.

It's just one example of the kind of unpredictable event which causes folks to miss ADR's.

Which of us was able to predict this storm at 180 days?



On a related concept.....maybe this will go the way of Bank of America's $5fee....

I hope so. But I actually think there was some governmental strong-arming involved there. I'm not sure this will get the same level of attention.

 

[Mkrop]

I do like the idea of Disney setting up the cancellation line and sending out reminder emails. So when they discovered the no-shows were a problem, why didn't they set up these user-friendly methods of trying to help the situation before implementing the heavy-handed penalties?

The other issue I have is that they want to put ALL the responsibility on the customer. Heaven forbid that they should invest in a user-friendly IT systems to make it EASIER to cancel.

And I'm sorry, but if you're going to do this, you need free wi-fi in ALL levels of resort rooms. I really don't want to invest the half hour so many of my calls to Disney take.......... to cancel an ADR. Online is far better, but not at $10 a day, thank you very much.

Except this goes against the posters who dont want to be near a cell phone or computer, they wont get the email reminders and such.

I think Disney could be deemed "selfish" for not finding better more technology friendly ways to fill those seats.

 

[mom2rtk]

Except this goes against the posters who dont want to be near a cell phone or computer, they wont get the email reminders and such.

I think Disney could be deemed "selfish" for not finding better more technology friendly ways to fill those seats.

I don't like to be around my cell phone or computer on vacation. Heck, I'm quite certain I can't cancel anything on my 2007 flip phone! But huge numbers of people ARE. I know this because I walk into them on the walkways all the time with their heads buried in some terribly important twit or another (I know it's tweet, but this is far more fun).

It wouldn't take 100% involvement to make it worthwhile. And even though that 2007 flip phone is usually buried at the bottom of my backpack, I would like the option of pulling it out to cancel if it made MY life more convenient and I had a decent signal.

 

[buckeev]

...But huge numbers of people ARE. I know this because I walk into them on the walkways all the time with their heads buried in some terribly important twit or another (I know it's tweet, but this is far more fun). ...

..... and I had a decent signal.

Sorry if that was you that I knocked over getting off the bus at TTC...my face buried in my poorly lit, battery hog smartphone...frantically trying to cancel an ADR 1-1/2 days from that point-in-time, but I got a better signal extending my arm as far as possible to the Northeast...at least until the rain started...then my non-waterproof phone had to be covered up....and as everybody knows, you can't walk up the monorail ramps while addressing important phone issues (like canceling ADRs in time to avoid "chump-change" fees ...) without running into a few kind folks who were smart enough to put all of their ADR eggs into that one Chef Mickey basket...knowing with full confidence they'd never have an issue with a baby, an upset stomach or...perhaps...an Autistic son's meltdown.

(disclaimer: most of this was a purely fictional...well kinda...and no offense is meant....at least to fellow Dis'rs)

 

[mom2rtk]

Sorry if that was you that I knocked over getting off the bus at TTC...my face buried in my poorly lit, battery hog smartphone...frantically trying to cancel an ADR 1-1/2 days from that point-in-time, but I got a better signal extending my arm as far as possible to the Northeast...at least until the rain started...then my non-waterproof phone had to be covered up....and as everybody knows, you can't walk up the monorail ramps while addressing important phone issues (like canceling ADRs in time to avoid "chump-change" fees ...) without running into a few kind folks who were smart enough to put all of their ADR eggs into that one Chef Mickey basket...knowing with full confidence they'd never have an issue with a baby, an upset stomach or...perhaps...an Autistic son's meltdown.

(disclaimer: most of this was a purely fictional...well kinda...and no offense is meant....at least to fellow Dis'rs)

LOL! Thanks for not posting what I said when you knocked me over..... At least it was for something important!

So are you saying my life won't magically improve if I were to trade in my 2007 flip-phone for a newer smart-ish phone? I think it's time for a new one, but it might be worth keeping around just to continue embarrassing my kids...

 

[buckeev]

LOL! Thanks for not posting what I said when you knocked me over..... At least it was for something important!

So are you saying my life won't magically improve if I were to trade in my 2007 flip-phone for a newer smart-ish phone? I think it's time for a new one, but it might be worth keeping around just to continue embarrassing my kids...

..

LOL...for goodness sakes...that's what "non-smart" phones are best for!!!

I could be driving pert-near any vehicle made for what I'm spending with stinkin' Verizon!!! (and I did remind them of that several times this weekend while trying to get the roaming capabilities updated, and trying to find out how much it cost to get a phone and a signal that actually works in the Happiest Place...).
My significant other was not impressed with my "technical prowess".

 

[Colleen27]

We just got back from an AWESOME Halloween trip! While there I was receiving emails on my smartphone from WDW about my ADRs for the next day. These were coming to my phone about 24 hours before our appointment, sometimes 26-27 hours. Just to test the system, I tried to cancel-on line, using my DroidX AND my daughter's IPhone AND an IPad. Never worked.

That's not surprising. Disney designs their site for Internet Explorer and it often doesn't function on other browsers. If I can't cancel a dining reservation on my fully equipped gaming desktop using Chrome or Firefox, what kind of chance does a streamlined browser running on far less robust mobile hardware have? And it sounds like the cancellation line is just another phone number to access the same long, slow process of trying to actually get to a CM, so that isn't going to be any help either. Nothing like making cancelling as frustrating as possible and then implementing fees because more guests don't do so of their own volition!

Yours isn't the first report I've read of the e-mails coming at the 24hr mark either, which I find interesting since according to several CMs and at least one supervisor (thanks again Candle!) that's too late to cancel without penalty.