No more segmented vacations for ddp

[dzorn]

Well I will miss the option. Not to do day by day tayloring of the plans but to allow for DDP when we have guests that do not stay the full time we are there. With segementing we could add the guest for only those days and not all of them. Oh well back to no DDP and a little more cooking.

Denise in MI

 

[funhouse8]

Add us to the list that was going to add the DDP for a few days. Oh well back to the planning board. Now we will just have to get a wrist card at Epcot for F&W. Sad but no biggy, we are going to WDW

 

[maburke]

Not necessarily. Not everything is a win/lose scenario. In this specific case it is to a degree but even then, it's not 1 to 1 related to capacities, usage patterns, cash business lost, and many other factors. One of the ploys used is to get people used to doing certain things then take away the savings and see how many keep doing it. Another is to offer one thing as a savings while taking their money in other areas, Disney is good at both and more.

My main reason for pointing out the difference is that your post seemed to imply that they took it away because it was a benefit to the members and I do not believe that to be the motivation though the end point may be the same. It's like the valet parking issue, they didn't take it away to hurt members, they made a business decision related to realities and costs.

I agree. I think it's possible to offer things that guests see as saving us money, but that change our spending patterns such that Disney makes money.

For example: Let us buy TIW cards without annual passes!!!!

Then I, for one, will forgive all this segmenting business.

 

[csmommy]

I just got off the phone with MS, and I was told that if you already have segmented reservations, they will honor it. Hmmm... now I'm confused.

Typical................too many times I have called them, gotten info from one CM & then called back & was told something different from another one. I hope for those who had already segmented their vacation all goes smoothly.

 

[palhockeymomof2]

Typical................too many times I have called them, gotten info from one CM & then called back & was told something different from another one. I hope for those who had already segmented their vacation all goes smoothly.

I called MS this morning since we had already segmented our 9/28-10/2 trip due to my son and his girlfriend arriving on 9/29...around 11pm

so when I made the reservation we separated the first night since we would have 4 in the 2br for one night then 6 for the next 3 nights.....we just wanted the deluxe dining plan for the first night.....I had no trouble adding the plan to the one night just now.....my plan had been to add and pay for the plan 3 or 4 days before our trip...but after reading this thread I decided to do it today...I hope everyone else who has segmented their reservation has no problems adding the plan

 

[PEANUT1]

We have a trip in 38 days

I had planned to segment...do deluxe for three nights..take a night off and do regular for 2 nights take a night off...oh well.

I changed a bunch of my reservations and now have a much "lighter" more flexible schedule...this could end up being a good thing in the end.

 

[bastraker]

Just got off the phone with MS regarding our October trip. I already have the first 2 nights of our trip segmented from the remaining week.

I asked to have the deluxe dining added to the first segment(2 nights) and I was told NO. The dining plan has to be for the entire length of stay in the same room. I asked to speak to a manager since I am upset about this. I leave in 31 days and now I have to change my plans around. We are going with a group of 8 and it will be impossible to get different reservations.

I am so upset, I don't know what to do.

 

[Anjelica]

Yes, I'm pretty sure that is still considered 2 separate reservations (with 2 room sizes) so they should be independent of one another. I don't actually understand why they would link those all under one reservation # to begin with though. But I know they do or have in the recent past.

They actually did that to us earlier this year for our upcoming December vacation.

We booked a Studio for our first 3 nights (w/ DDP) and then a 2-bedroom for the last 9 nights (w/ DDP) - both at VWL. They put both of those stays under the same reservation number - at first. When I went to make my ADR's they were having problems making them past the first stay even though it was under the same reservation. I noticed MS actually ended up breaking apart the two stays with two seperate reservations and making my ADR's after that was a breeze.

 

[twinklebug]

They actually did that to us earlier this year for our upcoming December vacation.

We booked a Studio for our first 3 nights (w/ DDP) and then a 2-bedroom for the last 9 nights (w/ DDP) - both at VWL. They put both of those stays under the same reservation number - at first. When I went to make my ADR's they were having problems making them past the first stay even though it was under the same reservation. I noticed MS actually ended up breaking apart the two stays with two seperate reservations and making my ADR's after that was a breeze.

So for true split stays, where we move rooms (and sometimes resorts) we HAVE to have those reservation numbers separate to put the DDP on just one part? Our upcoming stay has us at BWV and then Kidani - but they're both under the same reservation number. What you're saying is if I want to add DDP for jsut those first 2 nights I need MS to issue unique reservation numbers for the stays... wonder how they do that without releasing the rooms as I know there are waitlists out there waiting to grab them.

 

[Chuck S]

Just got off the phone with MS regarding our October trip. I already have the first 2 nights of our trip segmented from the remaining week.

I asked to have the deluxe dining added to the first segment(2 nights) and I was told NO. The dining plan has to be for the entire length of stay in the same room. I asked to speak to a manager since I am upset about this. I leave in 31 days and now I have to change my plans around. We are going with a group of 8 and it will be impossible to get different reservations.

I am so upset, I don't know what to do.

How long it your entire stay? Would it work to add the standard DDP to your entire stay rather than the Deluxe to only 2 nights? You can use two credits for any Signature dining you may have planned wioth the Deluxe plan, and then have a few additional credits for the remainder of your stay.

 

[DHar]

Wow what a disappointment. I now have to make changes to my dining reservations because of this. Another reason to add fuel to the fire with DVC. Starting to make me mad to be honest.

mad is an understatement...we have had our reservations for NYE since the 11 month mark and now i call today to add a person and was told that the people leaving 3 days early will be charged for the days they arent there...is there anyone to talk to besides a supervisor...i am pissed....no advance notice...i guess someone just woke up one day and decided to change it back.....

 

[twinklebug]

mad is an understatement...we have had our reservations for NYE since the 11 month mark and now i call today to add a person and was told that the people leaving 3 days early will be charged for the days they arent there...is there anyone to talk to besides a supervisor...i am pissed

Other than splitting stays, this is another case where they need to break out reservation numbers to treat the days differently. The addition or reduction of people in a room. Call back and tell the MS person you need 2 different reservation numbers for this reason. If you're told no ask the MS person to be escalated to a manager who can help you. Please Let us know how it went.

 

[Chuck S]

mad is an understatement...we have had our reservations for NYE since the 11 month mark and now i call today to add a person and was told that the people leaving 3 days early will be charged for the days they arent there...is there anyone to talk to besides a supervisor...i am pissed....no advance notice...i guess someone just woke up one day and decided to change it back.....

That has always been the rule for cash reservations, and until they started segmenting, for DVC reservations, too. Disney probably saw that segmenting was costing them $$, and decided that DVC should follow the same rules as the cash guests.

I would also imagine that the cash reservation arm was getting a lot of questions about "Why can DVCers segment and not cash guests....I'm going to rent DVC points, it'll be cheaper anyway." I can see cash reservations not wanting to lose onsite cash room reservations to DVCers renting their points because of the DDP segmenting.

And no doubt, they were losing $$ because DVC allowed changes because of people coming/going during a reservation. Again, DDP was never designed for the way many DVCers travel. It is designed as a way to compete with all-inclusive vacation packages for the normal cash guest that stays a week or less.

 

[DHar]

Other than splitting stays, this is another case where they need to break out reservation numbers to treat the days differently. The addition or reduction of people in a room. Call back and tell the MS person you need 2 different reservation numbers for this reason. If you're told no ask the MS person to be escalated to a manager who can help you. Please Let us know how it went.

they told me if we have a 2 br in a standard veiw and those people leave early but we stay in a 2br standard room we will not be moving rooms so it it still one reservation.....trust me the supervior i spoke with his ear was on fire!!!!!!

and at this point we would need to make a new reservation and that wont happen



just called back...if you are staying at the same resort in the same room typre and category you HAVE TO HAVE THE SAME RESERVATION NUMBER...you either have to change resorts or room type / category........

 

[csmommy]

Question - what if you move room types within the same resort. Does that qualify for different dining plans.

Example:

2 night studio - DDxP
3 night 1 bedroom - DDP

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

OK folks... the people you are talking too did NOT do this. They have no control Being rude, abrasive etc... does no good. Fire off your emails to Claire and management, but don't abuse MS cast members (including the supervisors) (But wasn't the "we got rid of Jim Lewis party" group so happy because "everything will be so much better now???)

I had to do this yesterday for the local hospital. I did NOT chew out the poor hourly employee who told me they had screwed up my account. I called the person in charge and explained to him what they had done wrong LOL! (He had the power to fix thier system, poor hourly employee would have been clueless on how the adjustment was posted wrong!)

Honestly, since this was never an announced benefit they didn't have to announce it was cancelled. They do that with lots of "trails" etc.... I bet that if you were not on the DIS (or one of the other sites) you never knew you missed this

 

[DHar]

OK folks... the people you are talking too did NOT do this. They have no control Being rude, abrasive etc... does no good. Fire off your emails to Claire and management, but don't abuse MS cast members (including the supervisors) (But wasn't the "we got rid of Jim Lewis party" group so happy because "everything will be so much better now???)

I had to do this yesterday for the local hospital. I did NOT chew out the poor hourly employee who told me they had screwed up my account. I called the person in charge and explained to him what they had done wrong LOL! (He had the power to fix thier system, poor hourly employee would have been clueless on how the adjustment was posted wrong!)

Honestly, since this was never an announced benefit they didn't have to announce it was cancelled. They do that with lots of "trails" etc.... I bet that if you were not on the DIS (or one of the other sites) you never knew you missed this

if you can get me a number for claire or upper management i'd be more than happy to call them.....

 

[dvcmom72]

Honestly, since this was never an announced benefit they didn't have to announce it was cancelled. They do that with lots of "trails" etc.... I bet that if you were not on the DIS (or one of the other sites) you never knew you missed this

I would be one of those people who never knew I missed this! I've been a DVC member forever...but only on the DIS since July...NEVER knew about this until I started reading this thread about it being discontinued. And to be honest, it never even crossed my mind that I'd want the DDP for only part of my stay...I either wanted it or I didn't. Though I can see why people are upset about this, especially people who already have vacations booked.
I agree with you though, please don't take this out on the people who answer the phones. I feel really bad for them right now. Having worked with the "public", I know how difficult it can be.

 

[Chuck S]

they told me if we have a 2 br in a standard veiw and those people leave early but we stay in a 2br standard room we will not be moving rooms so it it still one reservation.....trust me the supervior i spoke with his ear was on fire!!!!!!

and at this point we would need to make a new reservation and that wont happen



just called back...if you are staying at the same resort in the same room typre and category you HAVE TO HAVE THE SAME RESERVATION NUMBER...you either have to change resorts or room type / category........

Perks come and go without warning, it has always been this way. Expect nothing more, ever, than what is laid out in your legal agreements. Everything else is gravy that will sometimes work for you, and sometimes will not.

Chewing out a supervisor or other CM is pointless, and actually hurts the image of all DVCers in the eyes of the company, figuring we could never be satisfied. Remember the uproar when we couldn't even purchase the DDP? Now they are simply making us play by the DDP rules that have ALWAYS been published. Nothing was ever in writing from DVC about segmenting. Technically, it should never have been allowed in the first place. If you are one of the lucky ones who were able to take advantage of it, good for you. For the rest of us...well, we knew the officially published rules from the beginning of the DDP.

 

[tjkraz]

Honestly, since this was never an announced benefit they didn't have to announce it was cancelled. They do that with lots of "trails" etc.... I bet that if you were not on the DIS (or one of the other sites) you never knew you missed this

Agree, a formal announcement was not warranted.

HOWEVER, for the past 11 months Member Services reps have been segmenting reservations and telling members that they could call back just a few days before their trips to add the dining plan to portions of the stay. That information has proven to be incorrect.

If it were me, I would probably send an email to member satisfaction very briefly explaining that I made my reservation ___ months ago and was explicitly told that I could call up to 48 hours before arrival to add the DDP to a portion of the stay. See what sort of response that yields.

Everything I have heard points to this being a decision that was out of DVC's hands. We're about 30 hours into this and so far there has proven to be zero wiggle room. I would say there is still SOME small chance that DVC is able to gain an exception for existing reservations.