Questions about Anthony Travel

[solotraveler]

For those of you who have used Anthony Travel for your race registration and hotel for previous marathon weekends, a couple of questions for you...

--How are the hotel rates in comparison to rack rate?
--Are there limted choices on the resorts? Or do you just choose any resort available?
--How far out are the packages available and how far out did you book?
--Any minimum/maximum on the number of nights? Tickets included?
--Are the numbers of registrations they hold limited?

Sorry for all the questions... due to some unforseen circumstances, I'm not quite sure that I'll be able to register for Goofy before it fills so I want to make sure I have a backup plan if that's the case....

Thanks so much for your help!
Kevin

 

[MouseDogMom]

Kevin - We booked through Anthony for this year's marathon weekend and had no problems. My memory is fuzzy, but it seems that there was at least one hotel available in each category (value, mod, deluxe) - maybe two. The rates were at least as cheap as with a AAA discount (or I think an AP), which is why I used them. The marathon hadn't even filled when I opted to book through them, which I think was in July. We had to pay a small deposit initially (I think $200), then one more small payment, and then the balance was due about 30 days out. Then we had the option of buying park tickets through them, and they have discounts on those as well. As far as I'm concerned, if you don't have an AP, it's worth it to book through them just to get the discounted park tix. I think there was either a 2 or 3 night minimum, no maximum, on the room, and no limits on the park tickets, other than they have to be used with 14 days of the event for which they're purchased. As for limits of packages, it seems that they had packages available maybe as late as a couple of weeks before race date. I think I remember checking when Disney released those last slots, and they had finally closed their entries then.

I'm at work now and don't have all my files available, but if you want exact dollar amounts, PM me and I can give you details. I used them for the Minnie the first year too, and I really can't say anything bad about them. I've only dealt with them online, but everything has been smooth both times.

Jackie

 

[FireDancer]

I used Anthony Travel for the 2008 half because by the time I decided to do it the places were all filled and they had reserved spots. I always prefer to do the planning myself but I have no complaints with Anthony Travel.

There were limited resorts but they definitely had a wide enough selection to serve the value and luxury travelers. I went with POP for what it’s worth. There is also a minimum stay which I think is 3 nights but can’t remember.

There is one more thing I want to prepare you for. The running groups are entered all at one time but the race organizers and it is usually done around Thanksgiving. This means that if you try to confirm your reservation on the active page it won’t be there until it is entered in November. If you don’t see anything on the confirmation page by December 1st give Anthony a call and make sure you are entered. I would also make sure to get the Disney reservation number from Anthony Travel. They will give you an Anthony number but when you get a couple of weeks out you will want to get the Disney number.

Again, this is based on 2008 race weekend so they might have changed things since.

 

[blizzard]

I used Anthony Travel for the half this year.

We stayed at Pop Century. There was a minimum of three nights that had to be purchased with the runner entry. I was able to enter the half in July through AT (when the general entries were sold out in March). Also, an added bonus, we only paid the pre-increase rate for race entry last year. (They raised the prices along the way last year. I don't think they are planning that this year)

We had no general complaints about Anthony Travel. There was a minor mix up regarding children being recorded as adults on the reservation, but that was sorted out easily at check in.

I think you could probably find cheaper hotel rates if you can get any kind of discount, so I wouldn't necessarily recommend them if you can do things a la carte. If the race you want is sold out though, it is a good way to get in the race without having to raise money for charity.

As FireDancer mentioned, be prepared to wait for WDW to upload the group entries until October/November. If I recall, it was in time to submit a corrected qualifying race time, but not by much. (This was to have it confirmed before corral assignments - you can always do additional proof of time at the expo)

 

[hockeygirl]

I used Anthony Travel to register for the Goofy this year. I registered at the beginning of September and must have got one of the last few entries they had available because a few days later it was sold out. There was a 3 night minimum stay and you could choose from a variety of different resorts at diff. levels. We stayed at Pop Century and it was $94 a night plus tax. Not sure what that is in relation to the rack/regular rate, as I didn't even check it out because I needed the Goofy Entry. Keep in mind that the entry fee will also be higher through Anthony Travel as well. I believe it was about $25 more than registering directly through Disney.

As for confirming online, I was in the system by the middle of October. So, I guess it depends on when Disney gets to it. All in all, I had no problems with them and would use them again if I had to. If you are not sure about signing up and can't do it before Disney sells out through their site, Anthony Travel was great.

You could also check out marathon tours...I think Hawaii Jeff used them this year and I believe they may have been a little cheaper than Anthony.

 

[bubba73]

I also used Anthony travel and I also stayed at POP. The price was $94 and at the time I thought that was fine. Then when it was close to time to going, I was seeing ads all over the place for the same room for $49 per night. It would have been very nice to have been able to get some of that money back but unfortunately, that wasn't the case. (I want to say when I went thru AAA and stayed there, I paid $79 per night so I think it was a little higher. I can't be totally sure about that though.)

Bryan

 

[jeanneg]

For the past 2 years, I have used Marathon Tours and Travel and have been very happy with them. Even though I have an AP, it takes so long for the rate code to come out, I just bite the bullet and pay the MT&T rate. We have stayed at the Poly both times and their rates have been much better than rack rate. At first glance, it looked like Anthony travel had the cheaper rate, but MT&T included tax in their rate and that made a big difference. Also, I think Anthony charged for the 3rd and 4th person in a room and last year MT&T didn't (they did the year before)
Last year I actually registered for the race on my own and just used the tour company for the discount room. That way, I was in the system from day one. I also like that if you had to contact MT&T, they are very much available by phone. My daughter used Anthony Travel 3 years ago and she said it was a bit difficult to contact them. I will probably use MT&T again in 2010 because they get a better rate than I can and I've always been pleased with their service. Hope that helps!

 

[crazyoldmaurice]

Another Anthony Travel user here. I used them for the Half because it was already full. Everything went very smoothly with them. As far as their resort rates, every resort they offered was at a discounted rate, with the exception of POP Century, which was actually higher than the rack rate.

I would definitely recommend them, but understand you are pretty committed once you book. The one night deposit + race registration are non-refundable, and once you get to about Thanksgiving, you pay for the rest of it, and it that point it is completely non-refundable.

As others have said, I would prefer to book things separately myself, because you can probably do a little better with hotel rates, but if you are in a situation where the race is "sold out", they are a great second option.

EDIT TO ADD: They also are a great source for theme park tickets for the weekend. They offer some at significantly discounted prices.

 

[solotraveler]

Wow... I knew you guys would be a big help.. Sounds like there are a couple of viable options out there if I can't get registration squared away soon.. That certainly puts my mind at ease a bit.

Thanks again,
Kevin