PIN Code Worked!!!!!!

[ttfn2u2pooh]

I received a PIN Code for Fall. I called asking if I could apply it to my existing reservation that had already been 100% paid for.

So excited to say that it worked!!! We saved $794 and not only that, we were pumped up from the concierge standard view to a concierge park view room. So, we have GCH Concierge Level Park View for 4 nights, 4-day Park Hopper passes and a Premium Character Meal for less than $2,900. Some may choke at that amount but knowing that this is were we set on staying, any type of discount would have been great. I never expected it to come down almost $800.

So glad I called to see if it would work... the fine print on the offer states that it cannot be applied to existing reservations. Well, I'm here to tell you, they did it with no questions!!!

Banana Dance anyone....

 

[FlameGirl]

That is super. Good for you!

I get no Disney PIN code love, ever. Tried every alleged trick there is, and nope.

 

[meljensmom]

Hi,
What is a PIN code?? How would I try and hunt one down?? LOL

 

[FlameGirl]

Hi,
What is a PIN code?? How would I try and hunt one down?? LOL

Disney sends out slashed hotel pricing to lucky people from time to time. You get a postcard with a personalized PIN code to get the reduced room rate, and they can't (as far as I know) be transferred.

So if you get one and can use it, thank your lucky stars.

 

[becpee]

Congratulations on your pincode!
What a great discount!

Wish we got pincodes in Australia

 

[JH87]

Yay congrats! Sounds like you got just the right CM to help you out

 

[Kauinohea]

Congratulations! Hope you have a great trip!

 

[alyssa810]

That is awesome!! We'll be there just before you! I miss the days of getting PIN codes....it's been years since we got one but having DVC sure makes it easier!

 

[meljensmom]

Ok...another stupid question....what is DVC?

 

[katiesmom2]

DVC is Disney Vacation Club

Don't feel stupid asking....there are lots of little acronyms on this board and it takes awhile to learn them all

Feel free to ask away...

 

[rysmomma242]

Want to share???

 

[LisainCalifornia]

Want to share???

It won't work--the pin codes only work with the email address that they are sent to. It isn't like a "coupon code".

You can typically get a pin code one of two ways:

1. Stay at the DLR (an on property hotel) and then you may be emailed one soon after for the upcoming season.

2. Go to www.disney.com and "save" an offer of a trip. By this, I mean go in and plug in dates 3-4 months out and click on "save this offer". You are under no obligation to pay for these offers--it is just like saving a shopping bag. Disney.com has been know to send offers to people who have "saved offers" linked to their accounts.

 

[ttfn2u2pooh]

First off let me just say that YES, I did have an incredible CM helping with on this. The whole phone call took about 45 minutes but it was so well worth it. It almost sounded like he had to recreate my reservation with the new discount because he was having a hard time getting the system to take the PIN code onto my reservation.

I'm not quite sure what it was that I did to get the PIN code. I will say, that the flyer came in my maiden name, not my married name which I've had for almost 3 years now. I don't think any codes could be transferred as it was linked to my name and it had to show that my name was included in the reservation/guest listing. At least, that's what he told me. The code was for 35% off room at GCH (DLH and PP were also included but we're staying at GCH) and for weekday stays only. Weekend stays were included but it was a much lower savings. I did try the "trick" a couple days ago when I went onto Disney.com, planned out my vacation and clicked on the save button but I that was not the trick to generating my PIN code because on Disney.com I used my married name and I only did that a couple days ago.

Either way, I'm hoping that others will get this same offer and that I'll get additional one's in the future... don't know if you use a code once that you'll get flagged as a "returning guest" and send you more to get you to come back.

I don't know what I'm more excited about, the $$ savings or the fact that we'll now have a park view. And after reading my original post I need to say that I worded it incorrectly. We were not bumped up to a park view room by them without a cost. When he did the recalculating of the reservation he said that our standard view room was only $63 cheaper than a park view and asked if I wanted to switch to that. Well, who wouldn't do that?!?. I did ask if I could have a DTD view and he said that since we have the concierge level it probably wouldn't be the best idea. He told me that if we were planning on using the lounge services that the walk from the DTD view rooms to the lounge was really long. He said it was my option but I loved the fact that he was honest about where the rooms were located. The difference in price was only a couple dollars (between DTD & park view) so knowing that he thought it wasn't a good idea was nice honestly gladly accepted.

 

[Sherry E]

ttfn2u2pooh, I'm so glad you got a PIN! It's not the PIN code that "worked," however - it's whatever magic that happened/worked that got you the PIN code, and we don't know what that was!

There are PIN codes that go out randomly through the year, not just from the Saved Offers trick that I've been telling people about, and because of the fact that you saved an offer under a different name may indicate that your PIN came from another source. The Saved Offers trick (also a 35% off rate) is based on creating a "My Disneyland" account, which is different from just going to Disney.com and doing something. So there may be some difference in that angle of it as well, too.

​

Just for anyone who doesn't know the Saved Offer trick, here it is - and make sure to follow it step by step, as this is what has worked for me twice when I've tried it, and gotten me 2 PIN codes.

The trick is this - and it may or may not work, because a lot of people have tried to get PIN's lately and I think the limit may have been reached for a bit:

Make sure you create a "My Disneyland" account on the actual Disneyland Resort website. Many people visit the website and look up rates but they don't actually create My Disneyland accounts unless they need to buy something. Make sure you create the account, enter in all the necessary information to get on their mailing list, etc.

Next, make sure you are logged into your My Disneyland account. Don't sign out of it. Go to the Hotels/Book a room section and plug in the dates you plan to take your trip and your hotel of choice - for example, December 12 - 15, Paradise Pier Hotel, or whatever.

The DLR system will calculate your rate for you and it will appear on the screen.

Somewhere at the bottom of the offer that pops up on the screen it will give you an option to Save it. It will say Save or Save This Offer, or whatever. Make SURE to save it - this is the key. When you click Save, it will save to your My Disneyland account. You can even double check your My Disneyland account to be certain that it saved.

Don't buy anything, don't book anything, don't spend any money on the hotel at that moment. Just leave the Saved Offer in your My Disneyland account.

What will happen is that a sort of 'signal' will be sent to Disney Destinations, and they will see that you showed interest in booking a room BUT that you did not book anything at ther crazy rates.

More than likely, they will probably send you a PIN code within a few days to a few weeks after that, and it could be via e-mail or via regular mail. More than likely you will get a PIN that covers 3 different hotels, and the rate could be something like $163 for PPH, $186 for DLH, $227 for GCH - that kind of thing (depends on the dates you want). The rates will probably be slightly different than the rates I and others have received, but it will be a PIN code specifically for you, with prices for each of the 3 hotels.

If DLR is anticipating huge crowds during the window of time you want, most likely they will not send you a PIN that can be applied during that time - because, basically, they do not need the business if they already anticipate crowds, and so they don't need to attract guests. Instead, they may send you a PIN for a different time frame in the same month when they expect lighter crowds - so if you want to get and use a PIN, it will help if your dates are a little flexible!

Or, they could send you something for WDW instead. Or maybe nothing at all until the current wave of PIN's expire. At first this trick worked like magic for many people. Only recently did it start to falter! We may need to wait for the current PIN's to cycle out before another wave of them is sent out, or they may become available as the existing ones expire and go unused.

The most recent PIN code I received needed to be claimed by July 20th if I was going to use it, and it was good for 10/16 - 10/31, which was not the time frame I wanted. I'm sure other people will not be able to use their PIN codes at all, and theirs will probably expire in the next few days or weeks.

 

[christine*]

Your trip sounds like it'll be amazing! Congrats on the savings!

 

[jacs1234]

That's so exciting. congrats. I just did the save your offer trick and I hope it works. I'll book it immediately if it does.

 

[TigerlilyAJ]

I don't know what I'm more excited about, the $$ savings or the fact that we'll now have a park view. And after reading my original post I need to say that I worded it incorrectly. We were not bumped up to a park view room by them without a cost. When he did the recalculating of the reservation he said that our standard view room was only $63 cheaper than a park view and asked if I wanted to switch to that. Well, who wouldn't do that?!?. I did ask if I could have a DTD view and he said that since we have the concierge level it probably wouldn't be the best idea. He told me that if we were planning on using the lounge services that the walk from the DTD view rooms to the lounge was really long. He said it was my option but I loved the fact that he was honest about where the rooms were located. The difference in price was only a couple dollars (between DTD & park view) so knowing that he thought it wasn't a good idea was nice honestly gladly accepted.

ttfn2u2pooh, that $63 up-sell the CM got you to do might be key in getting the PIN to work for your already existing reservation. I'm planning a trip far in advance (Oct 2012), so I've been asking about change/cancel policies everywhere I might book. When I spoke with a Disney CM about changes, Mary Lou said there was a $50 change fee if you were 31+ days out from your trip--BUT the $50 would be waived if your new plans cost more than the old ones. For example, I might book a GN hotel at the Disney website, then see a great sale on the DLR hotels and switch to PPH. Quite probably, the switch to a Disney hotel would still cost more than my original plans, so no change fee.

That sounds like a great view and a great deal. Enjoy!

AJ

 

[Sherry E]

Unless things have changed in the Reservations world over at DLR - and quite possibly they have changed or will be changing soon as the Resort expects a huge wave of guests to descend next year in anticipation of CarsLand and the completion of the huge DCA makeover - there is generally no charge of any kind to change a reservation or switch dates, switch discounts, switch hotels, etc.....IF you book through their Central Reservations/Room Only people, that is.

The way it has worked in the past is that if you booked some sort of package through the Walt Disney Travel company - and that "package" may or may not include tickets/Hoppers - there were more penalties and restrictions on cancelling, or changing reservations, and how much time you had to make those changes without penalty, etc.

By booking a "room-only" room, you generally have until 5 days prior to your arrival date to cancel with no penalty at all, and you can make multiple changes to a reservation up until that point with no penalty. I've switched discounts and applied better discounts to existing reservations, I've switched hotels, I've switched dates, I've added and subtracted days to my existing reservation, etc., and never incurred an extra cent because I usually get a room-only booking. Room-only bookings, thus far, have allowed much more flexibility if things arise that require changes to be made.

Remember, you have to be very careful what you're asking for when booking because there are "packages" without tickets included and people may think they are getting a "room-only reservation" when it's actually considered a package of some kind by Disney. And as soon as they consider it a package, that's when you run into the restrictions like "$50 change fee if you were 31+ days out from your trip," as mentioned by TigerlilyAJ above.

Also, it's always better (if you can swing it) to actually call to make the initial reservation rather than doing it online and calling later, specifically so you can talk to a CM and ask exactly what you are getting (room only booking or package with/without tickets), and what the limitations/penalties may be if you make changes. Sometimes they will or will not do certain things even if the fine print says otherwise. It's good to tell the CM on the phone, "I want a room-only reservation, not a package without tickets. Is that what I'm getting?"

Sometimes some of the PIN codes that float around through the year (not from Saved Offers) require a minimum 2-night booking. Those are usually considered some sorts of "packages." The PIN's that allow you to book only one night (if that's what you want) - and most of the Saved Offer PIN codes allow one-night bookings - are considered the "room-only" bookings.

You can probably still apply a PIN code to an existing room-only reservation without a fee, but you would not be able to apply a PIN code to an existing package (even a package without tickets) without incurring a fee.

 

[becpee]

Thanks Sherry E for your tips!