Official 2021 "Disney After Hours Boo Bash" Thread

[twodogs]

I tried to buy an October date earlier this week, but it sold out while I was in contemplation.... So I went ahead and got the tickets now that they opened back up. It did give me the option to "view more options" for getting the tickets other than "email". So I chose to have them shipped for free, but I also now see the tickets in MDE, so it also said I could just use my Magic Band. So it should be all good I hope!

 

[Airb330]

I'm really disappointed by this. I'm trying to keep an open mind and not just immediately jump to conclusions, but so far I'm pretty much failing at that.

Sigh ........

Same. I did not think they would do this and after being on the fence about it, I was glad I bought them. If anything I thought they'd add some Sunday nights.

The fact a lot of us waited on the phone (some for hours) to get these thinking it would truly be a limited attendance event. My date has been sold out (10/5) for awhile. If they went back and added 500-1000 extra tickets, eh, no big deal honestly. After seeing this thread, now it's feeling like MNSSHP for $160...

 

[gharter]

.I really feel cheated I bought tickets for the so called “limited capacity “

I understand that feeling, but Disney only said "limited capacity", they never said what that capacity was.
There are many post of people jumping to the conclusion that this was going to be extremely limited capacity.
We don't know what the capacity was going to be previously or what it is now that they have released more tickets. We won't know this until the events start and see it live..

 

[Grasshopper2016]

I'm a little saddened by all of the "read the fine print" talk. I don't think anyone is suggesting that we have a valid false advertising or breach of contract lawsuit. What they are suggesting is that Disney implied that they were selling us a certain product, took steps (listing many dates as sold out) that seemed to confirm that, and then, once they had our nonrefundable money, essentially announced that the product we bought is actually far less desirable, despite the comparatively high price.

Of course Disney protected itself legally with carefully chosen fine print. But it is sad that Disney resorts to that now. And, to me anyway, it is sad that people seem to keep defending them.

In truth, I was one of those people who read the fine print at the outset, and was skeptical of those who kept boldly declaring on these boards that this will be an after hours event with nearly walk-on rides, and thus it isn't fair to compare the price to a Halloween party. I went into this fearful that things would play out exactly this way.

I just wish that I had more faith in Disney. And I wish that Disney would do something to earn that faith.

 

[freshmanjs]

I'm a little saddened by all of the "read the fine print" talk. I don't think anyone is suggesting that we have a valid false advertising or breach of contract lawsuit. What they are suggesting is that Disney implied that they were selling us a certain product, took steps (listing many dates as sold out) that seemed to confirm that, and then, once they had our nonrefundable money, essentially announced that the product we bought is actually far less desirable, despite the comparatively high price.

Of course Disney protected itself legally with carefully chosen fine print. But it is sad that Disney resorts to that now. And, to me anyway, it is sad that people seem to keep defending them.

In truth, I was one of those people who read the fine print at the outset, and was skeptical of those who kept boldly declaring on these boards that this will be an after hours event with nearly walk-on rides, and thus it isn't fair to compare the price to a Halloween party. I went into this fearful that things would play out exactly this way.

I just wish that I had more faith in Disney. And I wish that Disney would do something to earn that faith.

How many tickets did they sell for each night during the first round? How many additional tickets did they make available for the 2nd round? Without knowing this, how can any of us have a view on how much less desirable the product got from the 2nd round expansion? Obviously, it is somewhat less valuable, but "far less"??? - not sure how you reach that conclusion.

 

[zebrastreyepz]

I'm a little saddened by all of the "read the fine print" talk. I don't think anyone is suggesting that we have a valid false advertising or breach of contract lawsuit. What they are suggesting is that Disney implied that they were selling us a certain product, took steps (listing many dates as sold out) that seemed to confirm that, and then, once they had our nonrefundable money, essentially announced that the product we bought is actually far less desirable, despite the comparatively high price.

Of course Disney protected itself legally with carefully chosen fine print. But it is sad that Disney resorts to that now. And, to me anyway, it is sad that people seem to keep defending them.

In truth, I was one of those people who read the fine print at the outset, and was skeptical of those who kept boldly declaring on these boards that this will be an after hours event with nearly walk-on rides, and thus it isn't fair to compare the price to a Halloween party. I went into this fearful that things would play out exactly this way.

I just wish that I had more faith in Disney. And I wish that Disney would do something to earn that faith.

Thank you. You said it better than me. When I complained about cost, many folks chimed in that my comparison to MNSSHP was unfair due to the benefits of an AH event which EVERYONE on board with living the AH events said meant significantly less waits for rides.

We come here for advice and the advice was that this was a fair deal. I can't pinpoint what Disney means by "less wait times" or any variation thereof. None of us can. It is a guessing game.

It looks like people on certain nights are about to be burned unless they add to this event.

 

[Airb330]

Maybe this was the plan all along. Save some tickets for later, but it seems doubtful. I personally assumed wait times longer than the DAH events from 2018 but significantly less than a traditional party. Maybe even longer wait times than the VAH events. Even with todays events, it still may be quite limited. Who knows. As @freshmanjs said, unless we have real #, it's really all a guessing game.

To show SOLD OUT, then release tickets 2 weeks later isn't giving a lot of us much faith now though. The appearance is "Oh this is quite popular, let's add 5,000 tickets to each night. We won't need to even staff up more, it's pure profit for longer wait times."

 

[cakebaker]

I don't think anyone is suggesting that we have a valid false advertising or breach of contract lawsuit

There are plenty of complaints that it's bait and switch- which is illegal, but it's not even close to bait and switch. They told us what the event was. There were no implications of anything, but there were assumptions. They promise a limited event (yeah, every day is limited) and shortER waits- shorter than what? But that's all they promised and honestly, it wasn't fine print, it was right there to read. I don't begin to defend Disney on this one, but they told everyone up front what they were buying.

 

[Juventus]

As a Canadian I was hoping for an August trip but needed to wait until this past Monday to see if certain covid travel measures were going to be lifted here( we had to pay to stay in a government approved hotel andquarantine for 3 days ($$$) when returning then quarantine at home for another 1.5 weeks).
I panic bought 2 tickets to this event BEFORE the Monday announcement due to all the sellouts.
I got lucky because the Monday announcement was what we thought it would be: eliminating the aforementioned requirements so we booked flights.

I'm glad it all worked out but if feel like I got screwed around a bit here.

 

[CSLucas]

There are plenty of complaints that it's bait and switch- which is illegal, but it's not even close to bait and switch. They told us what the event was. There were no implications of anything, but there were assumptions. They promise a limited event (yeah, every day is limited) and shortER waits- shorter than what? But that's all they promised and honestly, it wasn't fine print, it was right there to read. I don't begin to defend Disney on this one, but they told everyone up front what they were buying.

But they changed the goal posts as a marketing trick. To me it's the same as those spam emails that urge people to "act fast and buy X product that has already sold out 10 times!" when everyone knows the random junk being sold is always going to be available. The difference here is that everyone believed Disney when they said things were sold out. If they wanted to set a higher capacity on ticket sales from the get-go that's fine - but don't publish that events are already sold-out when they aren't. As soon as they published sold-out dates, they told people who were on the fence that "yes, we are being honest with you, this will be small crowds". By going back on that they absolutely have done a bait-and-switch. If you bought a limited edition art print, it sold out, and then the next week the gallery suddenly added more, you would be mad. Even if you don't know the original #, it doesn't change the fact that something was limited, and then suddenly the limit changed.

 

[cakebaker]

But they changed the goal posts as a marketing trick. To me it's the same as those spam emails that urge people to "act fast and buy X product that has already sold out 10 times!" when everyone knows the random junk being sold is always going to be available. The difference here is that everyone believed Disney when they said things were sold out. If they wanted to set a higher capacity on ticket sales from the get-go that's fine - but don't publish that events are already sold-out when they aren't. As soon as they published sold-out dates, they told people who were on the fence that "yes, we are being honest with you, this will be small crowds". By going back on that they absolutely have done a bait-and-switch. If you bought a limited edition art print, it sold out, and then the next week the gallery suddenly added more, you would be mad. Even if you don't know the original #, it doesn't change the fact that something was limited, and then suddenly the limit changed.

To make more tickets available to an event that you only promise will have limited capacity is simply not bait and switch. They never said what the capacity was and they never said it would be small crowds. They said the waits would be shorter and I'd bet anything they will be shorter than an average park day- they just aren't going to be the same as a traditional after hours- but Disney never promised they would be.

Does it come off as a little underhanded to suddenly add more tickets? Yup. I'm really surprised they were so in your face about it but it's just another case of Disney pushing the envelope to see how much they can get away with. Mark my words, that new supply will sell out too. Some people who couldn't get the dates they needed are thrilled. It would seem no matter what they do, enough people will accept it. As long as that's the case, it's just going to get worse.

 

[MamaCrystal]

I mentioned our disappointment with the apparent capacity increase to a DVC cast member today and was told to email through the DVC site, and was also given the general guest services email. I've emailed DVC. I know it's not much, but it is something. Yes, we bought tickets with vague parameters set (although all the After Hours events fans convinced us doubting MNSSHP fans that capacity should at least be very low at Boo Bash). Yes, we were duped because it now appears the original parameters have changed.

If Disney did, in fact, increase capacity since we purchased tickets, the value of our tickets automatically declines. We of course have no way of knowing for sure because there is no transparency from Disney. I stressed in my email that Disney should at a minimum be transparent about what their guests are buying. This situation has made me realize it's crazy to buy tickets to an event without knowing how the capacity of the event compares to a normal park day. The capacity limit is a huge part of the value, and Disney should state how many tickets are being sold for specific events. It may seem like a losing situation for them at first, but people will be more willing to pay higher prices for limited events if Disney shows that they're taking capacity limits seriously and not changing the value of an event after people have already paid for it.

 

[CSLucas]

To make more tickets available to an event that you only promise will have limited capacity is simply not bait and switch. They never said what the capacity was and they never said it would be small crowds. They said the waits would be shorter and I'd bet anything they will be shorter than an average park day- they just aren't going to be the same as a traditional after hours- but Disney never promised they would be.

Does it come off as a little underhanded to suddenly add more tickets? Yup. I'm really surprised they were so in your face about it but it's just another case of Disney pushing the envelope to see how much they can get away with. Mark my words, that new supply will sell out too. Some people who couldn't get the dates they needed are thrilled. It would seem no matter what they do, enough people will accept it. As long as that's the case, it's just going to get worse.

You are right - it doesn't fit the definition of bait-and-switch, but I think the way the marketing was done and the way that Disney approached this comes close to that line and completely justifies people feeling like they were given an inferior product. I think most people on here are using the term bait-and-switch not strictly per the definition, but more as a way to succinctly explain the sentiment of being tricked (which I absolutely think people were, albeit in a clever way that puts the blame on them instead of on Disney).
And yes, I think you're right that the dates will sell out again, which is even more of a shame because it looks like it will mostly be those later dates that get increasingly crowded, which will further lure people into buying tickets because the first few events probably will look limited (again, not illegal, and not a bait-and-switch, but definitely a frustrating trick!). Not surprising (I'm the only non-Disney fan in my family so I basically view the entire "Disney experience/selling the concept of happiness" as a huge trick), but it is annoying.

 

[Mrs~Incredible]

I would be upset if I had tickets to a “sold-out” night. To me, the price point higher than MNSSHP made me think it would be more like AH. Time will tell.

 

[freshmanjs]

I mentioned our disappointment with the apparent capacity increase to a DVC cast member today and was told to email through the DVC site, and was also given the general guest services email. I've emailed DVC. I know it's not much, but it is something. Yes, we bought tickets with vague parameters set (although all the After Hours events fans convinced us doubting MNSSHP fans that capacity should at least be very low at Boo Bash). Yes, we were duped because it now appears the original parameters have changed.

If Disney did, in fact, increase capacity since we purchased tickets, the value of our tickets automatically declines. We of course have no way of knowing for sure because there is no transparency from Disney. I stressed in my email that Disney should at a minimum be transparent about what their guests are buying. This situation has made me realize it's crazy to buy tickets to an event without knowing how the capacity of the event compares to a normal park day. The capacity limit is a huge part of the value, and Disney should state how many tickets are being sold for specific events. It may seem like a losing situation for them at first, but people will be more willing to pay higher prices for limited events if Disney shows that they're taking capacity limits seriously and not changing the value of an event after people have already paid for it.

I'm quite sure that Disney is on top of the pricing and capacity limits for special events to a far greater degree than any random people on a message board. They know what they are doing to make money.

If you think it's crazy to buy the tickets, then you should not buy the tickets. That doesn't obligate Disney to disclose more information, nor does it suggest it would be a good idea for them to do so.

 

[cakebaker]

“although all the After Hours events fans convinced us doubting MNSSHP fans that capacity should at least be very low at Boo Bash)”

Not all of them. There were a lot of us warning about it. At times I felt like a broken record. But people tend to listen to the opinions they like and the warning that this was never going to be a traditional after hours event wasn’t well received.

 

[MamaCrystal]

“although all the After Hours events fans convinced us doubting MNSSHP fans that capacity should at least be very low at Boo Bash)”

Not all of them. There were a lot of us warning about it. At times I felt like a broken record. But people tend to listen to the opinions they like and the warning that this was never going to be a traditional after hours event wasn’t well received.

At least you tried I personally never saw comments warning that it wouldn't be similar to other after hours events, but it's impossible to read everything! I consider this situation a valuable lesson learned.

 

[TCRAIG]

Maybe I’m in the minority but I wasn’t expecting ‘limited’ to be any guarantee of ‘extremely limited’ - I have no problem if Disney added more tickets to the pot…I bought mine expecting to enjoy the event no matter what…I mean, I’ve been to sold out MNSSHP and MCMCP and still had a great time and rode rides and enjoyed the costumes and overlays and decor, etc

 

[sheila14]

Well I guess I will just trick or treat and get my money back that way!!!! I walk fast anyways so I can get to each stop rather quickly!!!

 

[jods]

When I bought my tickets for Boo Bash the CM told me it wasn't a Halloween party but an after hours event. I said that made me happy because I prefer an after hours event. I think they absolutely marketed it as such. I didn't read the fine print but I would have bought tickets either way. I'm not thrilled they opened a sold out event though.