should I book DLH now?

[CanadianImagineer]

Ok so our trip dates are Jan. 1-7. Should I be booking our standard room at DLH now - will we be left empty handed if we wait much longer?

If we were to book it now, we'd be using the AAA discount, so I have a few questions about that:
1. What IS the discount exactly?
2. The room rate changes significantly during our stay - will the rate for the most expensive nights carryon for the entire week, or do we pay for each individual night?
3. If we book with the AAA rate now, but a better deal comes along (say another 5/3 deal, amazing AP rates, etc.) is it possible to switch to these rates without penalty? How would we go about doing this?

Think thats about it for now.. Thanks!

 

[Sherry E]

Ok so our trip dates are Jan. 1-7. Should I be booking our standard room at DLH now - will we be left empty handed if we wait much longer?

If we were to book it now, we'd be using the AAA discount, so I have a few questions about that:
1. What IS the discount exactly?
2. The room rate changes significantly during our stay - will the rate for the most expensive nights carryon for the entire week, or do we pay for each individual night?
3. If we book with the AAA rate now, but a better deal comes along (say another 5/3 deal, amazing AP rates, etc.) is it possible to switch to these rates without penalty? How would we go about doing this?

Think thats about it for now.. Thanks!

CanadianImagineer - I know you have been very concerned about making a reservation and not missing out on any better rates. I am pretty sure the AAA discount is only 10%. I could be wrong. Are you planning on getting an Annual Pass before or on your January trip? If so, make sure you just book a room and ask for an AP rate now, and they will automatically apply a 10% discount to the room (because Disney itself does not even know yet what their room rates or discounts will be for that time frame, I am sure), and then you show them your AP when you show up, and you can get the AP before you check in to the DLH. Now If an even better AP rate comes along before your arrival date (and you can ask someone here on the board to check the AP calendar if you cannot access it yet, and we can tell you if better rates have opened up), then you call DLR back and say you have discovered this better rate and can they switch your reservation to reflect it. It should be no problem.

Now here is the key: when you call Reservations, make sure to book with the Central Reservations (Room-Only) section and not the Travel Company (packages) section. If you get room only, they should allow you to make all kinds of alterations to your reservation without a penalty. However, if you get a "package," you cannot make changes to that reservation without penalty. So make sure you ask for Room-Only reservations.

Now, if you are not planning to get an AP at all, then yes, just book with the AAA discount. You just have to put down a one-night deposit to book a room, and you can cancel up to 5 days before arrival with Room-Only. If you get a Walt Disney Travel Company package, there are different requirements and penalties for almost everything!

They will just charge you one nightly rate for all the nights, and whatever their computer system is showing now as the rate for January will be what they charge you, minus the 10% for either AAA or AP. And IF any good AP rates come along, those rates may vary within the course of a week, but they will just charge one rate for all the nights. Of course, you can double check all of this when you call Reservations. (I would call rather than book online so you can get confirmation on all of this before you put any money down!)

Have fun!

 

[albertamom]

CanadianImagineer - I know you have been very concerned about making a reservation and not missing out on any better rates. I am pretty sure the AAA discount is only 10%. I could be wrong. Are you planning on getting an Annual Pass before or on your January trip? If so, make sure you just book a room and ask for an AP rate now, and they will automatically apply a 10% discount to the room (because Disney itself does not even know yet what their room rates or discounts will be for that time frame, I am sure), and then you show them your AP when you show up, and you can get the AP before you check in to the DLH. Now If an even better AP rate comes along before your arrival date (and you can ask someone here on the board to check the AP calendar if you cannot access it yet, and we can tell you if better rates have opened up), then you call DLR back and say you have discovered this better rate and can they switch your reservation to reflect it. It should be no problem.

Now here is the key: when you call Reservations, make sure to book with the Central Reservations (Room-Only) section and not the Travel Company (packages) section. If you get room only, they should allow you to make all kinds of alterations to your reservation without a penalty. However, if you get a "package," you cannot make changes to that reservation without penalty. So make sure you ask for Room-Only reservations.

Now, if you are not planning to get an AP at all, then yes, just book with the AAA discount. You just have to put down a one-night deposit to book a room, and you can cancel up to 5 days before arrival with Room-Only. If you get a Walt Disney Travel Company package, there are different requirements and penalties for almost everything!

They will just charge you one nightly rate for all the nights, and whatever their computer system is showing now as the rate for January will be what they charge you, minus the 10% for either AAA or AP. And IF any good AP rates come along, those rates may vary within the course of a week, but they will just charge one rate for all the nights. Of course, you can double check all of this when you call Reservations. (I would call rather than book online so you can get confirmation on all of this before you put any money down!)

Have fun!

Awesome advice!

I am in the same position as CanadianImagineer, but looking at a mid-November trip. I have an AP, but have been waiting for AP9 (?) rates to come out. Good to know I could just go ahead and book in the meantime, just making sure to follow your specific instructions.

 

[Sherry E]

Awesome advice!

I am in the same position as CanadianImagineer, but looking at a mid-November trip. I have an AP, but have been waiting for AP9 (?) rates to come out. Good to know I could just go ahead and book in the meantime, just making sure to follow your specific instructions.

Yes, you can go ahead and book for November early - just to get a room reserved - and the DLR Cast Member will quote you whatever is in their system right now as being the regular rack rate for a room, minus the 10% discount for AP. And they will require a one-night deposit up front based on that rate. Now, in your case, there is almost certanly going to be a good AP rate in November unless it is on Thanksgiving weekend (and I THINK it will be AP9, not AP10 yet), but the November rates will not show up on the AP calendar until August, I would guess. So as soon as you see the rates for your dates appear in August, you call them and have them switch your room to the better AP rate (again, only through Room-Only/Central Reservations is there no penalty; Walt Disney Travel Co. will penalize you for any change!). Last year there were some great November AP rates at the hotels.

This is what I did last December. My initial reservation was for the weekend after Christmas at the GCH. As soon as I saw the AP rates for the weekend before our dates, I switched us to one week earlier and I moved us over to the PPH and shaved about $700 off the price in the process! Yes, I would have preferred the GCH for the holidays, but when I saw I could get us into the PPH for $700 less just one week earlier, how could I not jump on that?

 

[CanadianImagineer]

CanadianImagineer - I know you have been very concerned about making a reservation and not missing out on any better rates. I am pretty sure the AAA discount is only 10%. I could be wrong. Are you planning on getting an Annual Pass before or on your January trip? If so, make sure you just book a room and ask for an AP rate now, and they will automatically apply a 10% discount to the room (because Disney itself does not even know yet what their room rates or discounts will be for that time frame, I am sure), and then you show them your AP when you show up, and you can get the AP before you check in to the DLH. Now If an even better AP rate comes along before your arrival date (and you can ask someone here on the board to check the AP calendar if you cannot access it yet, and we can tell you if better rates have opened up), then you call DLR back and say you have discovered this better rate and can they switch your reservation to reflect it. It should be no problem.

Now here is the key: when you call Reservations, make sure to book with the Central Reservations (Room-Only) section and not the Travel Company (packages) section. If you get room only, they should allow you to make all kinds of alterations to your reservation without a penalty. However, if you get a "package," you cannot make changes to that reservation without penalty. So make sure you ask for Room-Only reservations.

Now, if you are not planning to get an AP at all, then yes, just book with the AAA discount. You just have to put down a one-night deposit to book a room, and you can cancel up to 5 days before arrival with Room-Only. If you get a Walt Disney Travel Company package, there are different requirements and penalties for almost everything!

They will just charge you one nightly rate for all the nights, and whatever their computer system is showing now as the rate for January will be what they charge you, minus the 10% for either AAA or AP. And IF any good AP rates come along, those rates may vary within the course of a week, but they will just charge one rate for all the nights. Of course, you can double check all of this when you call Reservations. (I would call rather than book online so you can get confirmation on all of this before you put any money down!)

Have fun!

Thanks again, Sherry, for the amazing advice! I'll have to go back and re-read that thoroughly..

As for buying an AP, the problem is that January 1 and 2 are blockout dates for the Deluxe AP, and we definitely will be going to the parks on Jan. 2. That said, I'm not sure that buying the Premium AP would be worth it (being almost $200 more than a 5 day hopper). If anyone has any math to contradict this please share!

 

[Sherry E]

Thanks again, Sherry, for the amazing advice! I'll have to go back and re-read that thoroughly..

As for buying an AP, the problem is that January 1 and 2 are blockout dates for the Deluxe AP, and we definitely will be going to the parks on Jan. 2. That said, I'm not sure that buying the Premium AP would be worth it (being almost $200 more than a 5 day hopper). If anyone has any math to contradict this please share!

Okay, I see. Well, look at it this way - your Premium AP - if you get one - will start paying for itself right away in the discounts you get. You will get 15% off of most food in both parks and at the hotels, as opposed to the 10% off you will get with a Deluxe AP. You will get 10% off of most merchandise (a few exceptions, but most) in the parks, hotels and at World of Disney, whereas the Deluxe has no discounts for merchandise (sometimes the CMs will give Deluxe holders discounts on merchandise anyway, but you can't count on it unless you have a Premium AP). I got my first Premium AP last Ocotber, and I only stayed for a weekend, but I came home with about $40-$45 more in my wallet than I would have without the AP.

But the Premium APs are expensive, so that may outweigh everything.