Resort upgrade while on stay. Can you change for a few nights?

[Kbrb]

So im all booked for 2020. All star sports 14 nights with free DDP,

I really would like to do something special for the wife and my son. Is it possible to pay and move to another room for a few nights while on site? Id really love a castle view room if one is available. I cant book this in the uk as they remove my free dine the second i booked out of all star as they class it as another booking.

Failing that anyone have any other ideas of how to get around it?

Thanks

 

[Welsh_Dragon]

Have you tried logging on to the U.S. WDW site and booking directly but not linking the new booking on MDE? Or maybe booking through another site such as Hotel.com?

 

[SirDuff]

Are you trying to book/pay for both rooms on the nights you have the "special room"? Or are you trying to move back-and-forth between the resorts? If it is the latter, then is it a new booking - people do "split stays" but WDW doesn't really recongnise them and treats them as two/three/whatever separate bookings.

 

[Chrisizzle]

First, I am sure that Disney will be happy to take your money for an upgrade. It obviously depends on the availability of the rooms.

I’d think the easiest method would be on site and talking to concierge. You will have initiated your reservation with all assorted perks and they’d find some way to make your request happen.

I’d guess this is also the most expensive option too. We arrived for our vacation a day early. Disney was happy to let us add a night at the same resort and we didn’t even have to change rooms. However, it cost a fortune. I hoped they’d add the extra night at the same rate as our existing booking. Or, at least haggle to keep us from going to an off-site hotel for one night. I’m pretty sure we paid full price which was like 75% more than our other days.

Back to your specific situation, you mention losing the dining plan as your primary concern. Maybe just shorten your All Star stay with existing perks (dining plan). Then, add a room-only booking for the few days at the fancy place. From what I have read, promotions on room-only bookings can be a better deal than the dining plan anyway. Take the money you save and buy your own food for those extra few nights.

 

[Kbrb]

Are you trying to book/pay for both rooms on the nights you have the "special room"? Or are you trying to move back-and-forth between the resorts? If it is the latter, then is it a new booking - people do "split stays" but WDW doesn't really recongnise them and treats them as two/three/whatever separate bookings.

I tried to book with my agent. I wanted to split stay on the same booking. Seems disney wont allow it on the current deal and will remove my dining plan if i do. I think maybe i am going to end up having to keep the booked room and pay to have another room for a few nights mid stay, before going back to all star

 

[Kbrb]

First, I am sure that Disney will be happy to take your money for an upgrade. It obviously depends on the availability of the rooms.

I’d think the easiest method would be on site and talking to concierge. You will have initiated your reservation with all assorted perks and they’d find some way to make your request happen.

I’d guess this is also the most expensive option too. We arrived for our vacation a day early. Disney was happy to let us add a night at the same resort and we didn’t even have to change rooms. However, it cost a fortune. I hoped they’d add the extra night at the same rate as our existing booking. Or, at least haggle to keep us from going to an off-site hotel for one night. I’m pretty sure we paid full price which was like 75% more than our other days.

Back to your specific situation, you mention losing the dining plan as your primary concern. Maybe just shorten your All Star stay with existing perks (dining plan). Then, add a room-only booking for the few days at the fancy place. From what I have read, promotions on room-only bookings can be a better deal than the dining plan anyway. Take the money you save and buy your own food for those extra few nights.

This is the option that may work out the best. Was really hoping for a mid stay break but if needs be a end of trip change will do

 

[kaytieeldr]

people do "split stays" but WDW doesn't really recongnise them and treats them as two/three/whatever separate bookings.

Disney doesn't recognize "split stays" because they don't exist. No hotelier does. What DISers call split stays are actually consecutive reservations.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I tried to book with my agent. I wanted to split stay on the same booking. Seems disney wont allow it on the current deal and will remove my dining plan if i do.

Lose completely? Or does availability end when you change hotels?

 

[Chrisizzle]

This is the option that may work out the best. Was really hoping for a mid stay break but if needs be a end of trip change will do

I can say with 100% certainty that you would NOT want the upgrade in the middle. The All Star resorts are great fun, but they are NOT what you want to come back to after a few nights in a deluxe resort.

You will want the upgrade to be your big finale. End with something special and head home.

 

[Minnie1222]

Can you stay at All Star for ~10 days under the first reservation? And have a second reservation at Polynesian or Grand Floridian for 4 days? If you want the castle view mid-week, you would probably need 3 separate reservations. I wouldn't pay for both All-Star and Castle at the same time.

 

[Mickey's Best Girl]

I can say with 100% certainty that you would NOT want the upgrade in the middle. The All Star resorts are great fun, but they are NOT what you want to come back to after a few nights in a deluxe resort.

You will want the upgrade to be your big finale. End with something special and head home.

This ^

Also, is a castle view a bookable, guaranteed category or is this a book a deluxe monorail resort, make a request and hope for the best?
Genuine question. I’m not a deluxe gal so I have no idea.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

I think your only options are either double booking - meaning keeping your 14-night stay at All-Stars and booking a second resort during that stay or booking All-Stars for a certain amount of night and then doing the deluxe stay at either the beginning or end of the trip (I would do end). If you were to do All-Stars, then leave altogether for a deluxe and then go back to All-Stars, you would be booking three separate resort stays and that would not work out well, economically, with a free dining promotion.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

This ^

Also, is a castle view a bookable, guaranteed category or is this a book a deluxe monorail resort, make a request and hope for the best?
Genuine question. I’m not a deluxe gal so I have no idea.

You can book "theme park view" at CR, Poly and GF.

 

[FSU Girl]

You can have two hotel stays at the same time, you just go online and book the second room, I've done this before. However, I don't think it makes much sense to pay for two separate rooms at the same time. Can you shorten your current stay by a few nights and then add on a second stay at one of the deluxe hotels? These would be considered two different booking and if free dining is over for you then you probably won't be able to have it on the second reservation, but it will allow you to only pay for one hotel night instead of two and you'll end your trip with a much nicer stay instead of going back to the other hotel, which could be difficult to enjoy.

 

[Kbrb]

Thanks for all the help guys. Seems the best option is to reduce the current stay to 10 or 11 days with the free DDP. Then probably use DVC points and head over to BLT theme park view and take the hit on the food for a few nights. As people have said end the holiday with a bang.

 

[Kbrb]

Lose completely? Or does availability end when you change hotels?

It would end as soon as i change hotel. They link to to stay and ticket. It makes staying split very hard. In affect to get free dine on two hotels you would need to buy two loads of tickets to.

 

[focusondisney]

It would end as soon as i change hotel. They link to to stay and ticket. It makes staying split very hard. In affect to get free dine on two hotels you would need to buy two loads of tickets to.

Yes, that is true for every free dining offer. As others have said, each resort stay is a separate reservation. Most people do exactly what you said: book the free dining stay then book a separate room only reservation at the second resort. I would try to keep the longer ticket if that is allowed. Then you don’t have to buy more tickets for the second stay. If you can’t keep the longer ticket, maybe plan a day or 2 of downtime during the first stay, so you can have those days to walk into MK while at CR. And if you really want the dining plan & are willing to pay for it, you can book a ticketless package wth dining for the 2nd hotel.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Yes, that is true for every free dining offer.

It's true for any promotion or discount. Example: package promotion ends during your single, trip-long reservation - you get the offer for the entire stay. Package ends the day before you change resorts - no discount on the second part of the trip.

I would try to keep the longer ticket if that is allowed.

I think they should be able to purchase tickets covering their entire number of park days, with the first reservation, then use them through the entire stay.

 

[focusondisney]

I think they should be able to purchase tickets covering their entire number of park days, with the first reservation, then use them through the entire stay.

I agree, but the OP is booking with the UK offer. I am not familiar with the rules for that promotion. I know they have a longer ticket available than US promotions, but not sure how it is tied to length of stay. Normally, he should be able to book longer ticket with first stay. Hopefully they stil can with the UK deal.

 

[Kbrb]

I am checking today, as far as I am aware it’s a 14 day ticket so should be able to roll it over. Will update when I get the low down