New Ticket Upgrade Policy?

[SUSIEQ]

No more resellers for me either and I certainly won't recommend them either! I have a friend there today who was not able to upgrade the UT tickets she bought in November. The cm flat out told her it couldn't be done anymore. No one seems to know what's going on there!

That is pathetic! Please keep us updated. Thanks.

 

[NancyIL]

No more buying from resellers for me!!! I would never recommend it anymore either.

Me either. I have always bought from & recommended UT to everyone. I won't do either of these anymore.

As the saying goes, I think you are "biting your nose to spite your face"! The tickets from resellers are discounted, so use them as is - especially those bought before one or more price increases. I bought a 10-day non-expiring park hopper in July 2009 @ $481.95 from UCT. The new gate price of that ticket is $803.01! I used to upgrade those to APs until the price of the 10-day non-expiring hopper was more than the price of an AP - with no change given. Now I will save that ticket for shorter visits to WDW. In the future, I will buy what I need for an upcoming trip from a discounter like UCT.

I also bought two 5-day MYW tickets from UCT in August 2013 @ $280.09 each. My daughter used one last December, and I will probably use the other this December without adding park hopping. I still have a 7-day Universal park hopper that I bought in 2010 @ $99, so I will spend time there as well.

 

[DavidNYC]

Which is what $$$ amount? We are basing our information on "should"....and I'm still dealing with unknown ticket value.

I don't like companies, that change the rules in the middle of the game. Disney did this with cruises, that I booked onboard with a specific date in mind. A couple of months later, they changed the rules. We had to cancel 4 cabins because our date was 19 months out...not within the new 18 month requirement.

Several sites out there with historical prices. Presuming you just purchased before the most recent price change, you can find out what the gate price of your ticket was a few weeks ago pretty easy (I'd link to one but not sure if that's allowed). But if you google "Historical Disney Ticket Prices" you'll see lists.

Regardless, if UT is right on the new policy, you will still have saved money compared to if you bought from Disney directly. Just not as much.

 

[Missyrose]

Several sites out there with historical prices. Presuming you just purchased before the most recent price change, you can find out what the gate price of your ticket was a few weeks ago pretty easy (I'd link to one but not sure if that's allowed). But if you google "Historical Disney Ticket Prices" you'll see lists.

Regardless, if UT is right on the new policy, you will still have saved money compared to if you bought from Disney directly. Just not as much.

But the problem will continue to be that CMs may not know as much of this as the guests and it can sometimes be a battle to get Disney to adhere to its own policy.

Yes, it's simple for a person who knows they bought a five-day hopper in May 2012 to look up the historical data. But that same person then has to:

*Find a guest relations or ticket window CM who knows the current policy

*Hope they can find the information on how much the bridged value of that ticket is

And finally...

*Apply that credit correctly while processing the upgrade.

You keep saying how easy it should be for CMs to have this info in their computers but the fact of the matter is that info isn't in the Disney computers. So for it to be readily available to front-line CMs, Disney would have to overall the entire ticketing computer system.

 

[disfanforlife]

But the problem will continue to be that CMs may not know as much of this as the guests and it can sometimes be a battle to get Disney to adhere to its own policy.

Yes, it's simple for a person who knows they bought a five-day hopper in May 2012 to look up the historical data. But that same person then has to:

*Find a guest relations or ticket window CM who knows the current policy

*Hope they can find the information on how much the bridged value of that ticket is

And finally...

*Apply that credit correctly while processing the upgrade.

You keep saying how easy it should be for CMs to have this info in their computers but the fact of the matter is that info isn't in the Disney computers. So for it to be readily available to front-line CMs, Disney would have to overall the entire ticketing computer system.

I hate being a guinea pig. I may not even bother to try and upgrade my DD's tix to AP's. If i do, I will go in with the attitudes that it might not work. That way I won't be too disappointed. We are going to MK our first day, I think I will wait until our second day to try and do it at Epcot though.

 

[Missyrose]

I hate being a guinea pig. I may not even bother to try and upgrade my DD's tix to AP's. If i do, I will go in with the attitudes that it might not work. That way I won't be too disappointed. We are going to MK our first day, I think I will wait until our second day to try and do it at Epcot though.

I would try it at every guest relations you pass until you can find someone who can do it correctly. And if you have anyone tell you flat out that it cannot be done, call UT and get them involved. They have been great in the past when it comes to making things right for their customers when Disney isn't adhering to its own policy.

 

[disfanforlife]

I would try it at every guest relations you pass until you can find someone who can do it correctly. And if you have anyone tell you flat out that it cannot be done, call UT and get them involved. They have been great in the past when it comes to making things right for their customers when Disney isn't adhering to its own policy.

Thanks Missy, I appreciate it, but I don't want to spend too much of my vacation on it. I know I got a "good deal" on the 5 day tix for my daughters so If I can't upgrade them for the gate price of when I purchased them then so be it. I do not regret buying tix from Ut. I plan to just use the rest of them when I know my trip is for whatever the number of days I have on the tickets. This is the first year we ever bought AP's. If I don't get them for my daughters on this trip I still have orbitz tickets I can use for them in December.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

I initially had problems upgrading my ticket in October--before this alleged changed in policy. The fact is MANY MANY CMs, including supervisors, simply don't know how to bridge tickets.

For anyone who has UT tickets and is planning on upgrading my advice is this: DO NOT go to Guest Relations. Go to a ticketing window and DO NOT ask to upgrade. Instead, ask if the CM knows how to price bridge tickets. If the answer you get is no, then move on to another CM at another time. I was initially told my price to add a day would be over $100 per ticket. A supervisor backed up this guest relations CM. I left guest relations, walked out of Epcot, and walked to a ticketing window, where instead of asking if I could add a day, I asked if the CM knew how to price bridge, he said yes, I paid my $10/ticket to upgrade, and we were all set within a few minutes. These interactions happened literally minutes apart. The difference was that one CM knew the ticketing system better than the other. You just need to find a good one, and IMO, the CMs who are at the ticketing windows, the ones who only deal with tickets, are more likely to know how to price bridge in general than the guest relations CMs who deal with every guest problem under the sun.

 

[MamaBear58]

I would try it at every guest relations you pass until you can find someone who can do it correctly. And if you have anyone tell you flat out that it cannot be done, call UT and get them involved. They have been great in the past when it comes to making things right for their customers when Disney isn't adhering to its own policy.

This. Besides, there's an argument that you have no claim against Disney anyway, because you're UT's customer. So have UT advocate if you're not getting what you believe UT sold you, because if you're correct, UT has an interest in making it right.

Also, if you didn't print from UT's website the representations it made the day you bought the ticket, then you'll have to rely on whatever you received from UT. Have copies of it when you go to Guest Relations. If it's a hard ticket that you receive from UT, copy the front and back if you'll need to relinquish the hard ticket at any time before you get to Guest Relations (not sure how UT tickets work). Point is, go armed with evidence of your "contract" with UT to prove what you're entititled to, if anything.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

I have a question - aside from the bridged cost adjustment - will Disney still allow us to upgrade tickets purchased from an outside vendor? Example - if I buy a 5 day ticket from UT, can I upgrade it to a 10 day ticket or an AP?

I am less worried about saving every possible dollar on the bridging than I am the ability to upgrade the ticket.

 

[cigar95]

. . . . but the fact of the matter is that info isn't in the Disney computers.

Do we know this to be the case?

 

[jimandami]

I have a question - aside from the bridged cost adjustment - will Disney still allow us to upgrade tickets purchased from an outside vendor? Example - if I buy a 5 day ticket from UT, can I upgrade it to a 10 day ticket or an AP?

I am less worried about saving every possible dollar on the bridging than I am the ability to upgrade the ticket.

From UT reports, yes you should be able to upgrade. However, a couple people are reporting certain CMs have refused to allow them to upgrade.

 

[BuckeyeBama]

From UT reports, yes you should be able to upgrade. However, a couple people are reporting certain CMs have refused to allow them to upgrade.

Thank you.

 

[michelle06]

Can someone help me with historical pricing? I have googled it, and am still confused as it is not always clear if the price they give is before or after a mid-year price increase. I bought 5 day tickets on June 3, 2013 immediately after a price increase. I thought the Feb 2014 increase only affected 1 day tickets. Is that wrong? So, I am thinking the gate price when I bought them was $289adult/$270kid. But I'm not sure. I was thinking that my tickets should be worth the current value though if Feb did just increase the 1 day tickets like I thought.
Boy, this is such a mess and so confusing! I was so looking forward to adding 1-2 days for $10/day. We may just have more pool time!

 

[AliceandAriel]

This sounds like a huge mess. I'm far too hesitant to buy tickets from any third party reseller with the worry that they won't let me upgrade. If my most recent trip has shown me anything, it's that some times you don't know how long you're going to be down there. Normally the best answer is to just skip the parks for a day, but that would drive me batty.

 

[DavidNYC]

Do we know this to be the case?

At some point it will have to be there. If this actually is the new policy (regardless of whether it's being implemented yet) you would think they'd update the databases to give the appropriate credit.

Listen - I could be wrong and they don't update the computers at all and make a huge mess of this, but it seems this new policy could end the need to take that bridging step. If WDWInfo has all the historical prices on their website, the Disney computers should be able to pull it up. I'd give it a few weeks and see what comes along. Frankly - this whole process does not need to be difficult at all and surprised it has been so inconsistent.

But the alleged new policy while not as friendly as the old one, does make sense and can be easy to implement if programmed correctly.

 

[DavidNYC]

Can someone help me with historical pricing? I have googled it, and am still confused as it is not always clear if the price they give is before or after a mid-year price increase. I bought 5 day tickets on June 3, 2013 immediately after a price increase. I thought the Feb 2014 increase only affected 1 day tickets. Is that wrong? So, I am thinking the gate price when I bought them was $289adult/$270kid. But I'm not sure. I was thinking that my tickets should be worth the current value though if Feb did just increase the 1 day tickets like I thought.
Boy, this is such a mess and so confusing! I was so looking forward to adding 1-2 days for $10/day. We may just have more pool time!

$289/$270 is correct for a 5-day base on June 3, 2013. BUT - and this is where the confusion is coming in - did you buy them from a reseller? If you bought from a place like UT on June 3, it is likely that they were still selling tickets on June 3 from their stock of tickets issued before the price increase meaning the gate price would be $268/$250. But - you also would have been buying the tickets from UT before they increased their price.

[Edit - note all these prices are without tax]

 

[smitch425]

Can someone help me with historical pricing? I have googled it, and am still confused as it is not always clear if the price they give is before or after a mid-year price increase. I bought 5 day tickets on June 3, 2013 immediately after a price increase. I thought the Feb 2014 increase only affected 1 day tickets. Is that wrong? So, I am thinking the gate price when I bought them was $289adult/$270kid. But I'm not sure. I was thinking that my tickets should be worth the current value though if Feb did just increase the 1 day tickets like I thought.
Boy, this is such a mess and so confusing! I was so looking forward to adding 1-2 days for $10/day. We may just have more pool time!

The most recent increase was for all tickets, not just one day. Here is a chart of prices for single days...

http://allears.net/tix/tixincrease.htm

I'll try to find one for multi days and post it.

ETA: Does this one help? Looks like the most recent price increase is not listed, though.

http://allears.net/tix/MYWhistory.htm

 

[KAT4DISNEY]

And now Allears has this on their website (Sorry if I missed it already being posted):

"Last week, after the All Ears Newsletter had been mailed, we became aware of an unannounced change in Disney's policy regarding tickets that were purchased from non-Disney sources. Several guests reported that when they attempted to add a day to their Magic your Way ticket that was purchased from a non-Disney source, they were refused and told that they would have to spend more than $100 for a single day ticket. Several tried at both their resort concierge and at a guest relations window and were told the same thing.

We called the Disney Ticketing office and and spoke to a supervisor. We were told that commencing with last week's price increase "3rd party tickets can no longer be upgraded to passes at a pro-rated rate, have days added, or have options added at a discount." A different call to a second Disney source confirmed it but added that this does not affect AAA.

On the basis of that, we changed our ticket FAQ to reflect the new policy. More refinement of the policy will likely become known as time passes. We will keep watching the situation and listening to our readers' comments about any problems or successes they have had in this area. - March 3, 2014"

http://allears.net/pl/ticket.htm#credpass

Again - clear as mud. This all makes no sense even from a business stand point of Disney. If correct we'll head somewhere else rather than pay for a new ticket.

 

[cigar95]

And now Allears has this on their website (Sorry if I missed it already being posted):

That sounds just like what they posted over the weekend and then took down. Anyone see any difference?