New Ticket Upgrade Policy?

[stargazertechie]

You had issues? But ultimately, were you able to upgrade?

Should have clarified- I had issues several years ago (before they started messing with price bridging at all) and ultimately was NOT able to upgrade. UT made good though and refunded our original ticket purchase.

I was simply speaking to the fact that people have been running into CM's that either don't know policy or feel like being the ticket police for years, and that we can't count one or two anecdotal stories, or second or third-hand reports to confirm or deny a change in current policy.

 

[Kat913]

Well, I crunched my numbers and decided I didn't want to worry about this any more. I contacted UT and made arrangements. It's a little freaky because they need you to place your new order before you send the old ones back, so for a while I'll have both on my credit card. But they're great to work with and there's no fee if you're exchanging. So you just have to cover your shipping to get the old ones back to them. The only way I'm losing money is if I would have gotten traditional bridging, and that's less than $40. It pays to work it out and make your own decision.

I wish all of you that don't have this as an option good luck and hope some pixie dust comes your way. I still haven't heard back on my email inquiry to Disney (big surprise), but I will come back and post it for you if I get something that is helpful.

Can I ask you when you purchased your original UT tickets that you are returning? I went through this whole thing with them just prior to this whole upgrrade mess (wanted to add a day to 3 tickets because we were able to get later flight home for our August trip.)
They originally said no problem that they would do it as you described & then a few hours after that sent me an email saying they were sorry but they could not take my tickets back because I had purchased them prior to them stocking the new rfid tickets.

 

[digiMom]

Can I ask you when you purchased your original UT tickets that you are returning? I went through this whole thing with them just prior to this whole upgrrade mess (wanted to add a day to 3 tickets because we were able to get later flight home for our August trip.) They originally said no problem that they would do it as you described & then a few hours after that sent me an email saying they were sorry but they could not take my tickets back because I had purchased them prior to them stocking the new rfid tickets.

Sure! I just happened to buy them the day before the most recent price increase in February, so the ones I exchanged were RFID tickets. That's a bummer they won't exchange your tickets for you... Hopefully you can do a easy upgrade when there and won't have a problem. If Disney could just state a consistent policy it would really be nice. Irregardless of if this policy has indeed changed or not. I think most people are mostly upset and stressed over the uncertainty of it. Good luck!

 

[Kat913]

Thanks for responding. I'll just have to hope for an easy upgrade experience. I don't mind paying a little more but what I won't do is pay for 3 one day tickets just to spend a few hours in the park that last day. It just stinks not knowing before I go & that only 3 of us out of the 6 will be short a day since plans had already changed when I purchased the next batch of tickets so I ordered the correct # of days for those.
Sending pixie dust for all of us that are in this boat & hoping those with future upgrade experiences will post their results.

 

[ladeedeb]

Can I ask you when you purchased your original UT tickets that you are returning? I went through this whole thing with them just prior to this whole upgrrade mess (wanted to add a day to 3 tickets because we were able to get later flight home for our August trip.)
They originally said no problem that they would do it as you described & then a few hours after that sent me an email saying they were sorry but they could not take my tickets back because I had purchased them prior to them stocking the new rfid tickets.

If you have the pre-rfid tickets, exchange the tickets for rfid when you get there. Those will be current tickets. Then you should be able to upgrade them for current gate price difference, I think. If I am wrong I am sure someone will correct me, but I believe someone on this thread mentioned they were able to do it this way just recently.

Good Luck.

 

[Lizard Valley]

I haven't read the whole thread, but I'm here now, and I just upgraded UCT tickets about 2 hours ago - I added days and made them NE.

I knew exactly how much it would cost me (by comparing their gate price value today, and what it would cost to buy the exact ticket I wanted to end up with directly from Disney, including taxes). The UCT tickets were definitely bridged. Saved me 100$ per ticket

 

[michelle06]

I haven't read the whole thread, but I'm here now, and I just upgraded UCT tickets about 2 hours ago - I added days and made them NE.

I knew exactly how much it would cost me (by comparing their gate price value today, and what it would cost to buy the exact ticket I wanted to end up with directly from Disney, including taxes). The UCT tickets were definitely bridged. Saved me 100$ per ticket

Thanks so much for posting your experience. May I ask for more info? How long ago did you buy UCT tickets? Before a price increase? Did they bridge to the current gate value? Did the CM automatically give you the right price or did you have to say or ask "the magic words - bridging"?
Thanks again for posting!!! It's so good to hear a positive experience as this is stressing me out!

 

[disfanforlife]

I haven't read the whole thread, but I'm here now, and I just upgraded UCT tickets about 2 hours ago - I added days and made them NE.

I knew exactly how much it would cost me (by comparing their gate price value today, and what it would cost to buy the exact ticket I wanted to end up with directly from Disney, including taxes). The UCT tickets were definitely bridged. Saved me 100$ per ticket

Yay! That is great to hear! What park did you do the upgradee at?

 

[disfanforlife]

Thanks for responding. I'll just have to hope for an easy upgrade experience. I don't mind paying a little more but what I won't do is pay for 3 one day tickets just to spend a few hours in the park that last day. It just stinks not knowing before I go & that only 3 of us out of the 6 will be short a day since plans had already changed when I purchased the next batch of tickets so I ordered the correct # of days for those.
Sending pixie dust for all of us that are in this boat & hoping those with future upgrade experiences will post their results.

I am heading down next weekend and I plan to post my experience. Looking forward to a great trip no matter what happens with out tickets!

 

[jimandami]

On our way to airport now and will try to bridge DH ticket to AP...will post later!

 

[DisneyAndRedSox]

Thank you everyone for the updates. I got 7 day base tickets at AAA at the old price, now that Universal went up we are thinking of scrapping it and adding 2 days at WDW. I can not believe how much this trip is costing compared to previous trips because of ticket prices, at the rate we are going this is going to cost almost as much as our Aulani trip that was just cancelled due to snow.

 

[SUSIEQ]

On our way to airport now and will try to bridge DH ticket to AP...will post later!

Good Luck!!!

 

[troll181]

I haven't read the whole thread, but I'm here now, and I just upgraded UCT tickets about 2 hours ago - I added days and made them NE. I knew exactly how much it would cost me (by comparing their gate price value today, and what it would cost to buy the exact ticket I wanted to end up with directly from Disney, including taxes). The UCT tickets were definitely bridged. Saved me 100$ per ticket

Did u use the ticket first or upgrade before u entered the park?

 

[disfanforlife]

On our way to airport now and will try to bridge DH ticket to AP...will post later!

Have a great time! And good luck!

 

[Lizard Valley]

Thanks so much for posting your experience. May I ask for more info? How long ago did you buy UCT tickets? Before a price increase? Did they bridge to the current gate value? Did the CM automatically give you the right price or did you have to say or ask "the magic words - bridging"?
Thanks again for posting!!! It's so good to hear a positive experience as this is stressing me out!

Sure I bought the UCT tickets in early February, so just before the price increase.
When I bought them, there was a 65$ per ticket savings. The price increase added another 40$ savings or so. Yes they bridged to the current gate price.

- Purchased UCT tix: 6-day with PH, WPF&M no expiration tickets. These tix had the best savings at the time (65$). Paid 544$ each with Mousesavers link.
- Gate value before the price increase: 607$
- Gate value after the price increase: 650$
- Upgraded to 9-day PH, WPF&M, NE. Gate price: 772$
- Difference of 122$. This is exactly what I was charged.

I'm not sure that "bridging" is the magic word...I don't think the CM's know exactly what that means. In other words, I think the computer tells them what the ticket is worth, and that depends on whether the ticket has been used or not.

My CM was quite confident when she told me it didn't matter if the ticket had been used yet. Then we discovered that one of the 4 tickets hadn't been used to enter a park (a different CM at a park guest relations window didn't prioritize the tickets properly, so I ended up using the 'wrong' ticket to enter the park that day). This obviously affected the value of that ticket, and it was different than the other 3.

So she had to fix that first, then do the upgrades. First she quoted 143$, and I said that wasn't right. Then she said 130$, nope still not right. Then she said 122$ - Bingo! We joked around that I wanted to keep going to see how low she'd go. She explained that she had missed a button that she needed to click.

The upgrade part was pretty quick, maybe 10 minutes. The fixing of the other CM's mistake took an hour!

In the end, they gave each of us 3 extra FP+ for our troubles, so now I have 6 for today (my last day). I wasn't planning on going to a park, but it's kind of hard to pass up....

 

[stephanielovesmickey]

Thank you so much for sharing your experience! I have a similar situation (Upgrade MYW UCT tickets to AP next week) and I am so glad to hear everything worked out for you!

Have a great trip!

 

[digiMom]

I received a response from Disney today. I'm going to share my email first. I included specific information to my case in the hopes that it would get me a more specific answer.

My Email:

"I'm hoping you can clarify something for me. I purchased (4) 5 day Park Hopper tickets from Undercover Tourist. I just happened to do so the day before your most recent price increase in February. I got this particular ticket because I'm not sure how many days I'll ultimately need and because it provided the biggest savings. This is the first time I'm purchasing tickets this way; in the past I've gotten them through you as part of a package.

I visit the Disboards and there is currently a lot of discussion as to what your current policy is for adding days or options to third party tickets. There also seems to be inconsistencies in what people are experiencing when they attempt to upgrade the tickets at the parks. Before I open my tickets, I would appreciate clarification on what to expect when I try to upgrade these tickets while on my trip.

(1) Where is/are the best place(s) for me to do an upgrade?

(2) What should I expect to pay for this upgrade? Is it an extra $10 a day? Or an extra $10 a day plus the difference of the gate price at the time I purchased the ticket and the current gate price? Or an extra $10 a day plus the difference of the gate price at the time Undercover Tourist purchased the ticket and the current gate price?

(3) What should I do if I get there and I can't find someone who knows how to properly upgrade the ticket according to your current policy.

Thank you so much for your help. I appreciate your help."

Disney's Response:

"Thank you for contacting Walt Disney World Ticketing.

You may upgrade your tickets at our ticket windows at any of the four parks, Magic Kingdom, EPCOT, Disney's Hollywood Studios, Disney's Animal Kingdom. Your tickets may also be upgraded at any of our Guest Relations locations at the four parks or Downtown Disney. You would pay the difference between how many days you have on your ticket and how many days you're adding. You would be provided with the exact amount at the time of the upgrade. All Vacation Planning and Guest Relations cast members are properly trained to correctly process upgrades.

All multi day ticket upgrades must be done in person at Walt Disney World Theme Parks within 14 days of first usage. Any one day Walt Disney Theme Park ticket must be upgraded on the date of usage.

An upgrade applies the current value of the ticket towards the purchase of a new ticket of equal or greater value. Remember, tickets are non-transferable and must be used by the same person for all days the ticket is valid.

Return to the Walt Disney World Resort during the upgrade window and visit any Guest Relations location at our Theme Parks or Downtown Disney. Our Cast Members will be happy to assist you with determining the best upgrade option for your needs.

We hope this information is helpful and we look forward to future opportunities to entertain you."

I hope this helps somebody. If you'd like me to try and get them to clarify anything in their response, let me know and I'll see what I can do. It seems to me that they're saying the upgrade is based on current gate prices. Is that how you guys read it? If that's the case then their policy and how it's executed should be the same as it's been.

 

[Robo]

It seems to me that they're saying the upgrade is based on current gate prices. Is that how you guys read it? If that's the case then their policy and how it's executed should be the same as it's been.

Unfortunately, it sounds like a bit of ambiguous rhetoric to me.

I'm not trying to be argumentative, but the person responding didn't give you any solid number info.

And, THIS iine...

All Vacation Planning and Guest Relations cast members are properly trained to correctly process upgrades.

is so, SO, SO sadly incorrect, unfortunately.

I am very HOPEFUL that, in fact, NOTHING has changed in regard to upgrades, and that Authorized Discounter tickets
will be bridged to NEW and CURRENT gate price for the purposes of upgrades.

Fingers crossed for you, and
THANK YOU for posting this (such as it is.)

 

[digiMom]

Unfortunately, it sounds like a bit of ambiguous rhetoric to me.

I'm not trying to be argumentative, but the person responding didn't give you any solid number info.

And, THIS iine...


is so, SO, SO sadly incorrect, unfortunately.

I am very HOPEFUL that, in fact, NOTHING has changed in regard to upgrades, and that Authorized Discounter tickets
will be bridged to NEW and CURRENT gate price for the purposes of upgrades.

Fingers crossed for you, and
THANK YOU for posting this (such as it is.)

Not to worry, not argumentative. I agree. I decided personally that I'd just upgrade directly UT so I wouldn't have to worry about it anymore. But this is what they sent me, so I posted it so you guys could see and analyze it. And I agree, I hope nothing's changed... Well, except maybe it being more consistent in person with whatever the policy is...

 

[Order66]

An upgrade applies the current value of the ticket towards the purchase of a new ticket of equal or greater value. Remember, tickets are non-transferable and must be used by the same person for all days the ticket is valid.

And there still lies the question. What is "current value" and how is it decided? They aren't really answering that part.

I also am returning my tickets to UT and repurchasing tickets I don't have to worry about upgrading. I'm slightly less stressed out now.



regards