newbie needs help with flights...

[aalan]

i just found out today that for our march 23 cruise, we are scheduled to take a 12:45 a.m. late/early flight from denver to atlanta, arriving at MCO at 7:30 a.m.! this sounds awful! we booked through a local TA, and just assumed we would be flying earlier on friday, the day before the cruise. we booked flights with disney: does anyone know if this a lack of effort/knowledge on our TA's part, and/or disney being greedy and booking the cheapest flight possible? it clearly states in the brochure that you are supposed to leave the day BEFORE the cruise, obviously to avoid any possible delays, missed flights, worries, etc. i suspect both disney and my TA are at fault and will call them both tommorrow....this board is the best, and i just wish i had discovered it long before we booked our cruise.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Tell your TA that the air arrangements are unacceptable, and that you expect to get what the DCL brochure promises.

The 2001-2002 DCL brochure also says that if you're using the Disney Cruise Vacations Air Program from Denver, a "complimetary overnight hotel accommodations will be provided in a non-Disney resort."

Somebody may have thought they were doing you a favor by letting you remain in Denver through Friday. Or the daytime flights on Friday were fully booked because Saturday, March 23, is the start of Spring break for many midwestern schools, and lots of us are heading to Florida on Friday, March 22. But that's the Disney flight arranger's problem, not your problem.

In your message, you wrote, "it clearly states in the brochure that you are supposed to leave the day BEFORE the cruise, obviously to avoid any possible delays, missed flights, worries, etc." Actually, that's not the reason. From most eastern and midwestern cities, you fly on the the morning of your cruise, even though there's an obvious risk of missing the ship. From the western and mountain states, you fly the prior day because otherwise flight schedules won't get you to Orlando in time. So it's really not a matter of avoiding delays, it's just a matter of flight schedules.

You shouldn't have to deal with a sleepless night before you embark on your Disney Cruise. How awful!

Politely and firmly insist that they honor their written promise of a flight on the day prior to sailing and a complimentary "non-Disney resort" hotel room that night. If they say that's impossible because all coach seats from Denver to Orlando are full, or they have contracts with specific airlines, tell them to put you in first class or onto a different airline, or whatever it takes to get you into Orlando on the day prior to sailing.

Good luck! (I have to believe you'll be successful in getting this resolved quickly.)

I'll see you on the Disney Magic on March 23!

 

[Señor Ferrari]

I would definitely have your TA call and try to change the reservation, but if you quote the brouchure, they will quote it right back to you:

"Space may be limited for certain gateway cities and availability of any gateway city may be restricted or withdrawn without prior notice."

As was noted above, this is a busy travel day, and there may not be a flight available for you, especially one that the cruise line has bought in bulk. It's definitely worth trying to change. Flying from the west coast, we're supposed to have the choice of flying the day before, or on a red-eye, but on some dates, one or the other choice is unavailable.

Another option is to have your TA book your air separately and cancel the air. You'd have to do this quickly, as you're coming up on 30 days before your trip.

 

[aalan]

we talked to our TA and disney today with mixed results: our TA says that the red eye flight was the only choice ever made to him. there was not much "magic" at the disney side of things, the cruise line supervisor
we talked to was very stand-off-ish and kept claiming it was illegal for her to discuss the arrangements. we had our TA call her immediately after we talked to her, and he didnt have much success either. he will be talking to HER supervisor tommorrow, and so will WE, if we cant get what we want. we booked a march 23 cruise last july, so its hard to understand why there would have been any problems booking flights. i'm sure it will all work out in the end, but after spending thousands on this and many other wdw trips, this consumer is not happy with the mouse right now. i do appreciate the kind feedback from you folks above, thanks!

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Please keep us posted about how this works out.

I'm amazed that a DCL supervisor would claim it was "illegal" for her to discuss the flight arrangements. Gosh, I must have missed it when Congress passed that law.

Seriously, you have every right to expect DCL to provide travel arrangements consistent with those promised in their travel brochure. In return for the money you paid to DCL, they owe you flights from Denver on the day prior to sailing and a complimentary "non-Disney resort" hotel room that night.

You're not asking for anything unreasonable or inconsistent with the terms in the brochure. You're not asking for a specific airline or a specific routing. Sure, there are restrictions on changing your tickets, but you're not trying to change them as a matter of personal choice. You're just trying to get what DCL owed you in the first place.

Even discount ticket resellers such as Priceline won't put you on a redeye unless you give them permission to do so.

And given all the extra trouble you're going through, make sure the "non-Disney resort" hotel they select for you is a decent place and really qualifies as a "resort."

Again, good luck! Keep moving up the command chain at DCL until you get to someone who is willing to help you.

 

[albiats]

I would bet that the 'illegal' part that the CM was talking about is that she should be talking to the Travel Agent and not to the end consumer.

Once you establish a relationship with a TA, they are supposed to deal with the DCL reps and you deal with the TA. The TA gets their commissions from DCL and in turn, the TA is supposed to insulate DCL from many of the questions that can be answered without contacting DCL by using their reference materials.

I agree that in this case it does need to be resolved quickly but the TA should take the lead role in pressing DCL for the resolution.

Just my opinion

 

[aalan]

well, all has worked out as it should: our TA informed us today that we will be leaving early friday a.m., arriving at 4:00, and staying at the hyatt airport hotel as the brochure (and cruise line reps) promised. i called a business friend i recalled who went on the cruise last year, and the exact same thing happened to him: they booked a red-eye flight for his family...and he has a four-year-old son! all you have to say is "this is unacceptable." afterall, you are paying them big $$$. our TA admitted that a good part of the blame was his: he didnt realize there were other flight options available, and i suspect he is eating some of the addtional flight costs, but i doubt he is losing money. my advice for anyone out west is to be careful using disney for airfare, or better yet, just book your own flight/hotel as so many folks have done that i have read here on the boards. we're glad its straightened out and behind us: now we can look forward to our lst cruise without worrying.

best of all, 4 weeks from tonight we'll be there! thanks again to all those who posted comments: the web may be a lot of things, but it is a good thing when it can be used to inform and help out people.

 

[Dave_from_Marietta]

Glad you got it worked out.

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

That sounds a lot better!

Everything I've heard about the Hyatt Regency Orlando International is positive. And, of course, the convenience can't be beat. Still, I think that in classifying this hotel (which is in the airport terminal) as a resort, DCL is stretching the definition of "resort" quite a bit.

Arriving around 4:00 p.m., you can either take it easy around the hotel, which has an outdoor pool, two restaurants, and easy access to the airports shops and restaurants. Or you can rent a car for the evening and visit Downtown Disney, Disney's Boardwalk, Universal Citywalk, or other shopping/dining locations for dinner and a stroll.

Have fun!

 

[aalan]

horace:
we are just happy to be able to get a decent night's rest before the cruise. i realize the hyatt isn't really a "resort," but its not the motel six either. it will be just fine. my parents, who live in clearwater, may come over and visit for the night. even if they dont, a trip to downtown disney is a must!
see ya in four weeks!

 

[kcand sunshine]

We did Disney transportation also and they gave us a 5:25AM flight on Saturday. I am not very happy at all.If I had only thought to go down the night before!!!!!!! Luckily,my kids are 7 and 9 and hopefully will sleep on the bus. We get to Orlando airport at 10:00 with plenty of time to get to the port. I guess Disney does these very early flights in case there are delays.These boards are great! I have learned so much!!See you in 4 weeks!!!

 

[my3kids]

Horace Horsecollar...I don't interpret "Non Disney Resort Hotel" to mean a resort hotel, I interpret it to mean a hotel not on the Disney Resort grounds. It never occured to me it would be a resort, simply a hotel. Interesting take....anyone else like to comment on how they read that statement?

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

Originally posted by my3kids
I don't interpret "Non Disney Resort Hotel" to mean a resort hotel, I interpret it to mean a hotel not on the Disney Resort grounds.

Interesting point! The wording is ambiguous. The wording and capitalization in the 2001-2002 brochure is, "Complimentary overnight hotel accommodations will be provided in a non-Disney resort."

It doesn't say "a non-Disney Resort hotel" or "a non-Walt Disney World Resort hotel" -- just "a non-Disney resort." I read that as a resort not operated by Disney. They're putting aalan in a highly convenient, first class hotel in the airport -- but one that isn't a resort unless somebody considers any hotel with a pool to be a resort.

 

[Dave_from_Marietta]

Interesting point indeed. It sounded to me like they were promising a resort hotel not at Disney.

Doesn't really matter, though. The Hyatt is the best hotel near the Orlando airport and its convenience can't be beat. No reason to complain even though it's definitely <i>not</i> a <i>resort</>.

 

[Casey's mom]

Glad your flight arrangements worked out. A red eye flight would have been a tough way to start your trip!

Look forward to seeing you on the 23rd!