Paying with Magic Bands - when do charges process?

[TXStormtrooper]

If we touch pay for meals, souvenirs, etc. with our Magic Bands, when do those charges actually process? Do they go onto our resort bill and process at the end of our stay? Do they process onto our credit card immediately? If we want to use gift cards or cash for those things, do we need to use them to pay in the parks, or can we charge them via MagicBand and use the gift cards and/or cash on the day before we check out to clear the bill at our resort? Are we stuck actually having them charge onto the credit card we give at check in? We'd rather not take a bunch of cash into the parks, but don't want a bunch of daily charges on our credit card, either.

 

[CAbryan]

At the end of your stay you will get an itemized statement of all charges. You can pay it off with cash or a CC.

Make sure to remember the PIN you choose. You will need this to charge with your band.

 

[POOHsie]

You accumulate room charges as your trip goes along. Each level of resort has a cap on charging. Estimated Cap: Value - $500, Moderate - $1000, Deluxe - $1500. When your charges reach the cap, the charges are put thru to your payment method on file. Then you are clear to accumulate up to the cap again (and CC credit limit). Your charges for the day will show up on your folio during that same day, late night charges show up next am. It's possible that some last minute charges will hit after you've checked out, and you'll get an email with a record of the extra charges.

At the end of your stay you will get a folio. We leave the resort without going to the lobby for check-out, so our charges are automatically processed. I'm guessing you can go to the lobby and pay off your charges by your payment method of choice.

You could check with the front desk during your trip and make payment(s) toward your room charges before you reach the end of your stay.

 

[Hopefully]

As PP said, the Magic Band charges accumulate on your room account up to your maximum limit which is $500 Value, $1000 Moderate, and $1500 Deluxe.
You can put a gift card on your account any time after the first charge, we could not do it before that. Then the charges will be paid down by the gift card.
If you have any balance over the gift card amount, it is charged to the credit card on file at about 3 AM on your checkout morning. So if you have charges that you do not want to go on the credit card on file be sure to settle them the evening before checkout.

 

[MinnieDaisy]

You can put a gift card on your account any time after the first charge, we could not do it before that. Then the charges will be paid down by the gift card.
If you have any balance over the gift card amount, it is charged to the credit card on file at about 3 AM on your checkout morning. So if you have charges that you do not want to go on the credit card on file be sure to settle them the evening before checkout.

Thank you for that info, we were wanting to use a giftcard!

 

[skriegerjr]

At the end of your stay you will get an itemized statement of all charges. You can pay it off with cash or a CC.

Make sure to remember the PIN you choose. You will need this to charge with your band.

Don't forget you can also pay off with Disney Gift Cards. I will note, that on our last trip, Nov 2-10, I stopped by the night before we checked out, got a statement of our charges, and was told I could pay it off the next day when checking out. I did ask at that time, if it would be ok to use our Disney Gift Cards, and was told absolutely. By the next morning, the statement was already on our door, and had already charged the Credit card on file. I did go and ask that they refund the card and paid the balance with gift cards.

I will admit, using the band was super easy, and also made it easy to lose track of how much was spent. Both my wife and I were speculating that we thought we spent between $300-$400 on the bands over the course of our 8 nights, and when I got to the desk, it was only $180. I was shocked and thought for sure there was a mistake, so I asked to see a print out, and sure enough, day by day, that was it. We did use Gift Cards while we were there for most things, but for tips, and adult beverages or anything else not included with the dining plan, we just showed the band. I'm sure some people will feel it helps them overspend, but for us, we thought it added a lot of convenience to our trip.

 

[SyracuseWolvrine]

The hotel room charges (including all charges made using your Magic Bands) will be processed automatically at approximately 3am on the morning of checkout. So, if you want to use cash, gift cards, or some other method of payment, go to the front desk the night before you check out to settle your bill.

(they CAN take the other payment and refund the CC after it's been charged, it just takes some time, and the issuing bank of the CC may be slow to post refunds on your statement)

 

[Daisybell911]

Can you make a payment with cash each day when you get back to the resort? I want to get a track of what I'm spending at the end of each day otherwise I may end up with a $1000 bill at the end and I thought it was $700! lol

 

[lily2521]

A bit off topic, but is it only the adults magic bands that can charge things? I'm assuming the kids won't be able to charge?

 

[Crystal824]

A bit off topic, but is it only the adults magic bands that can charge things? I'm assuming the kids won't be able to charge?

Children's bands don't have charging privileges. I actually tested the theory this past trip. My four year old wouldn't wear her band so I wore it with mine. Once I went to pay and accidentally used her band. It didn't work.

 

[lily2521]

Children's bands don't have charging privileges. I actually tested the theory this trip. My four year old wouldn't wear her band so I wore it with mine. Once I went to pay and accidentally used her band. It didn't work.

Good to know, thanks!

 

[Hootch]

A bit off topic, but is it only the adults magic bands that can charge things? I'm assuming the kids won't be able to charge?

I know with pre check in, ten and above have charging privileges automatically. You can get that changed at the front desk.

 

[Marionnette]

You accumulate room charges as your trip goes along. Each level of resort has a cap on charging. Estimated Cap: Value - $500, Moderate - $1000, Deluxe - $1500. When your charges reach the cap, the charges are put thru to your payment method on file. Then you are clear to accumulate up to the cap again (and CC credit limit). Your charges for the day will show up on your folio during that same day, late night charges show up next am. It's possible that some last minute charges will hit after you've checked out, and you'll get an email with a record of the extra charges.

At the end of your stay you will get a folio. We leave the resort without going to the lobby for check-out, so our charges are automatically processed. I'm guessing you can go to the lobby and pay off your charges by your payment method of choice.

You could check with the front desk during your trip and make payment(s) toward your room charges before you reach the end of your stay.

There's a discussion on the Resorts Board where people are posting that their credit/debit cards have been charged before their purchases have reached the published thresholds for the resorts. One person reported that they are pushed the charges through when spending reached about $500 of the $1000 limit for a stay at a moderate resort.

http://www.disboards.com/threads/billed-before-1000-at-por-and-other-weird-billing-issues.3408106/

 

[Marionnette]

Can you make a payment with cash each day when you get back to the resort? I want to get a track of what I'm spending at the end of each day otherwise I may end up with a $1000 bill at the end and I thought it was $700! lol

Yes, you can do that. You can also just ask for a printout of your current folio without paying down the balance.

 

[ArielRae]

Little off topic but can you still make returns of WDW purchases at your local Disney Stores?

 

[Figmentmommy]

Children's bands don't have charging privileges. I actually tested the theory this past trip. My four year old wouldn't wear her band so I wore it with mine. Once I went to pay and accidentally used her band. It didn't work.

You can authorize your children to have charging privileges on their bands. My children have always been able to charge to our room using their bands. On our last trip they asked at check in if we would like all the bands to have full privileges. There isn't a general restriction on children having charging privileges. It's really up to you.

 

[Figmentmommy]

If we touch pay for meals, souvenirs, etc. with our Magic Bands, when do those charges actually process? Do they go onto our resort bill and process at the end of our stay? Do they process onto our credit card immediately? If we want to use gift cards or cash for those things, do we need to use them to pay in the parks, or can we charge them via MagicBand and use the gift cards and/or cash on the day before we check out to clear the bill at our resort? Are we stuck actually having them charge onto the credit card we give at check in? We'd rather not take a bunch of cash into the parks, but don't want a bunch of daily charges on our credit card, either.

Anything you pay for on your bands will go on your room account which will eventually be applied to the credit card on file if you don't pay for it in another way first. Each resort level has a limit and your charges are usually settled overnight before your check out day. However, on our December trip we were surprised to see our credit card charged about half way through our week long trip - long before we hit our $1000 limit- and then the remaining balance was charged before check out. This is feedback others have shared on the DIS as well. So if you want to pay with a gift card or some other method I would suggest checking at the front desk every couple of days and pay it off a few times rather than waiting until the end if your stay - regardless of how much or how little you charge.

 

[bumbershoot]

When your charges reach the cap, the charges are put thru to your payment method on file.

That's how it is supposed to work, at least.

A bit off topic, but is it only the adults magic bands that can charge things? I'm assuming the kids won't be able to charge?

You can put charging on a child's band if you wish. As others said, 10+ will get it automatically. Disallow that if you wish, or just don't tell the kid the PIN, if that's not what you want.

There's a discussion on the Resorts Board where people are posting that their credit/debit cards have been charged before their purchases have reached the published thresholds for the resorts. One person reported that they are pushed the charges through when spending reached about $500 of the $1000 limit for a stay at a moderate resort.

http://www.disboards.com/threads/billed-before-1000-at-por-and-other-weird-billing-issues.3408106/

Yep, was going to post that. Thanks for doing it! It's really good info for those assuming it will still be all the same as it used to be.

 

[POOHsie]

There's a discussion on the Resorts Board where people are posting that their credit/debit cards have been charged before their purchases have reached the published thresholds for the resorts. One person reported that they are pushed the charges through when spending reached about $500 of the $1000 limit for a stay at a moderate resort.

http://www.disboards.com/threads/billed-before-1000-at-por-and-other-weird-billing-issues.3408106/

I appreciate the update, for myself and for every Disney resort guest's benefit. I posted my comments 1-1/2 yrs ago. Seems this is a Zombie thread -- but still it's a very important topic. I will definitely change what I post, and change my room charge payment habits!