"Room Only" reservation question-help!

[indyanna]

We're arriving the night before our package begins. We were considering staying in a hotel near the airport and arriving at Disney first thing the next day, but now are considering just going on to the Wilderness Lodge for the night. Is it possible to make a separate reservation for room only that night? I already booked 7 days with the FTP and don't want to pay for a day in the park that we won't use.

If we can make a reservation for room only, will we have to change rooms?

I'm a "disney virgin" and need help from some of you more experienced DISers!

 

[cmwilson523]

I would suggest making a separate reservation for your first night if you want to stay at WL, otherwise your pass will last from the moment of check in and you will spend money on a day that you won't use.

With a separate reservation, it is always possible that you may have to switch rooms, but Disney Cast Members, being the helpful people that they are, try to keep you in the same room if at all possible. We have done this a couple of times at the Boardwalk (can't remember why we had two reservations but there was no pass issue because we have annual passes), and they have always been able to keep us in one room. But, there is never a guarantee on that.

All that said -- I would advise calling WDW and checking on the pass situation. Whether they charge you for the first day on your pass may depend on how late you arrive on that first day. Also, I have heard guests (in the interest of full disclosure: I am a Disney Store Cast Member) telling me that they were able to work out something with Central Reservations in which their passes did not "start" until the second day. I have not experienced this personally, so I don't know how it was done, but it is worth a call to WDW to check the possibility out.

Enjoy WL -- it is a fabulous resort, one of our favorites. If you have the chance, eat at Artist Point. It is one of the best restaurants on property -- food, wine list, service, and atmosphere are spectacular.

Hope that this info is helpful!

Catherine Wilson

 

[catheren]

Yes, you can book a room only ressie but it will be a separate ressie number and 1 night deposit due.

You will have to ck-in/out 1 night stay and then ck-in for the 7 night ressies.

As far as keeping your same room, that depends if the room you are staying in for 1 night will be reserved for another party. You could have notes on ressie linking together the 2 ressies and requesting you stay in the same room, if possible.

If I arriving at night and starting the FTP the next day, I would stay outside the park at a hotel near DTD. The shops are open late, you can get a head start on shopping for postcards and sovieners (sp?)

 

[whozit]

Yes, you can make a separate reservation for a room only. They will not guarantee that you will get the same room for both reservations, but I’ve seen posts on these boards saying they will usually try to accommodate you, just make sure that when you check in, you let them know that you have two reservations and would like to remain in the same room if possible.

An advantage to staying onsite (room only) the day ahead is that you’ll already be there, so can check in for your “package” early in the morning and your Ultimate Park Hopper pass is available and you can hit the parks first thing.

 

[indyanna]

If I do have to switch rooms (which really doesn't matter to me since I would have to pack up if I stayed offsite), what happens to our luggage in the time between rooms? Will WL stow it somewhere for us?

I really appreciate the help I've gotten on these boards!

 

[cmwilson523]

Bell services will take care of your luggage. Just call them before you head out and they will pick it up and stow it for you until your new room is ready. When you return from the parks that day and get your new room number, go by the Bell Services desk and they will send a Cast Member up with your luggage.

Along these lines, I would recommend checking in for your new reservation when you leave in the morning so that you don't have to worry about checking in after you get back from the parks. They will give you a card with a phone number on it that you can call after a certain time to find out what your new room number is and you *should* (assuming that all goes well) be able to just head up to your new room when you return to the resort. Ask the Guest Services Cast Member who checks you in to make sure, but I think that they should be able to reprogram your key cards (or give you new key cards then) without you needing to stop a second time.

Glad that the info has been helpful!
Catherine