Why is Disney doing this? (with international guest)

[zanzibar138]

What about Australians, do you guys know if this will this work for us?

Seems like it will impact all international guests the same. I hope they're working on a fix urgently - I'm really surprised they would still roll it out while this is an issue!

 

[focusondisney]

Well, I’ll throw out a different take., probably unpopular. The UK gets some deals that US citizens can’t, like free dining before released to the US, & 14 day tickets with extra perks. They even used to get 21 day tickets. Those are things I know of, not sure if there are other offers to other countries or not. Sometimes you get a benefit, sometimes you don’t.

 

[zanzibar138]

Well, I’ll throw out a different take., probably unpopular. The UK gets some deals that US citizens can’t, like free dining before released to the US, & 14 day tickets with extra perks. They even used to get 21 day tickets. Those are things I know of, not sure if there are other offers to other countries or not. Sometimes you get a benefit, sometimes you don’t.

I'm an Aussie. We get nothing lol! Sure, those of us in the know *can* buy the 14 day tickets (yes, I have for our upcoming trip), but there also doesn't seem to be anything technically stopping Americans from buying them either.

 

[Neener16]

Well, I’ll throw out a different take., probably unpopular. The UK gets some deals that US citizens can’t, like free dining before released to the US, & 14 day tickets with extra perks. They even used to get 21 day tickets. Those are things I know of, not sure if there are other offers to other countries or not. Sometimes you get a benefit, sometimes you don’t.

I get what you’re saying, but these are also people who often come for 2 weeks, or more. It seems like this would be very attractive to Disney. So they buy tickets for 14 days or 21 days but can’t book anything until they get here? That is a huge disadvantage in my opinion.

 

[TuttiLinda]

Well, I’ll throw out a different take., probably unpopular. The UK gets some deals that US citizens can’t, like free dining before released to the US, & 14 day tickets with extra perks. They even used to get 21 day tickets. Those are things I know of, not sure if there are other offers to other countries or not. Sometimes you get a benefit, sometimes you don’t.

Well, I’m Brazilian and we don’t have any extra deal or benefit. We are only loosing here.

 

[Disneylover99]

Well, I’ll throw out a different take., probably unpopular. The UK gets some deals that US citizens can’t, like free dining before released to the US, & 14 day tickets with extra perks. They even used to get 21 day tickets. Those are things I know of, not sure if there are other offers to other countries or not. Sometimes you get a benefit, sometimes you don’t.

Yes. Lots of people get different deals for tickets, resorts and packages…….Florida residents, AP holders, DVC, Disney+ subscribers, Disney Visa card holders, etc….

But this is something completely different IMO. If you’re staying at a Disney resort, you should get the same ride booking advantage as anyone else staying at a Disney resort.

As it stands now, people in the States who are not staying at a Disney resort have an advantage over International travellers staying at a Disney resort. I can understand why people are bothered by this.

 

[zanzibar138]

Yes. Lots of people get different deals for tickets, resorts and packages…….Florida residents, AP holders, DVC, Disney+ subscribers, Disney Visa card holders, etc….

But this is something completely different IMO. If you’re staying at a Disney resort, you should get the same ride booking advantage as anyone else staying at a Disney resort.

As it stands now, people in the States who are not staying at a Disney resort have an advantage over International travellers staying at a Disney resort. I can understand why people are bothered by this.

This hits the nail on the head perfectly! We pay the same as anyone else to stay onsite and not only can we not access what has arguably become the biggest benefit, but have actually been significantly disadvantaged even compared to those staying offsite. It's not like they're offering discounted rates for international travellers.

 

[Disneylover99]

This hits the nail on the head perfectly! We pay the same as anyone else to stay onsite and not only can we not access what has arguably become the biggest benefit, but have actually been significantly disadvantaged even compared to those staying offsite. It's not like they're offering discounted rates for international travellers.

As a Canadian, we pay roughly 30% more with our exchange rate. Lol.
How’s the Aussie dollar?

 

[zanzibar138]

As a Canadian, we pay roughly 30% more with our exchange rate. Lol.
How’s the Aussie dollar?

I wasn't even going to mention that lol! It's bad at the moment. We pay 50%+ more.

 

[Disneylover99]

I wasn't even going to mention that lol! It's bad at the moment. We pay 50%+ more.

Yikes! Sorry about that!

 

[nherbert]

There is a petition on change.org to fix this for international guests (this is the short link) the long link is in the other thread about the changes to lightning lanes: https://chng.it/j4fkYT2BMd

 

[JackosinDIS]

Just received a reply to the email I sent to guest services early yesterday. Not good news. View attachment 871523

Just to add insult to injury, you are now being gaslighted by Disney! What a BS response.

 

[Suger Mag]

you would think reading these threads that folks are already using the new version of LL... There are a lot of wild speculations (of course it is the DIS).... but no one really knows yet, including DIsney LOL.... I expect there will be testing and tweaking before (and after) it actually rolls out in a month's time. All the same I am glad my trip is October, those first few wild days of late July -August are going to be interesting...

 

[zanzibar138]

you would think reading these threads that folks are already using the new version of LL... There are a lot of wild speculations (of course it is the DIS).... but no one really knows yet, including DIsney LOL.... I expect there will be testing and tweaking before (and after) it actually rolls out in a month's time. All the same I am glad my trip is October, those first few wild days of late July -August are going to be interesting...

While it's definitely possible that there will be tweaks before, during and after the roll-out of the system, I wouldn't call it 'wild speculation' when multiple people have actually received communication directly from Disney confirming that international guests will not be able to access the system until they land in the US. Hopefully this issue will be rectified before roll-out, but in the meantime it's worth international guests planning for the system to be rolled out as Disney have confirmed is their intent.

Even if it is fixed quickly, the fact that Disney have announced it as is seemingly without concern over how this will impact international guests has understandably left a bit of a bad taste for some of us.

 

[Minnie1222]

Just to add insult to injury, you are now being gaslighted by Disney! What a BS response.

Maybe we're getting this generic response because they don't know what we're talking about. There was a rumor about AP holders NOT being able to book 7 days in advance even if they were staying on site. As far as I know, Disney still hasn't dispute that rumor either.

 

[Minnie1222]

Even if it is fixed quickly, the fact that Disney have announced it as is seemingly without concern over how this will impact international guests has understandably left a bit of a bad taste for some of us.

Announced where?

 

[ChipTheRescueRanger]

Just received a reply to the email I sent to guest services early yesterday. Not good news. View attachment 871523

Not really Pre arrival if you have arrived is it now Disney !

 

[zanzibar138]

Announced where?

I was referring to the general announcement for the new lightning lane system, which is on their website.

I wouldn't expect them to 'announce' any potential disadvantage to international guests, but it has been confirmed several times in writing directly from Disney in response to questions from various people. It may be the case that this is only happening because they don't know the full details yet, which would just come down to poor communication within Disney. However, when it has been reported in every Disney blog and clearly confirmed by Disney in writing, I think it's fair to expect that people will assume there's some level of truth to it and start to try to plan around it, particularly those who have upcoming trips. Or, as some people have done, express their disappointment to Disney in the hope that with enough demand, the (actual or perceived) situation will be improved.

If it turns out that we've all got the wrong end of the stick and there's no issue, then that's a great outcome and I think (though we might question Disney's public relations skills) we will all be more than happy to eat our words.

 

[Minnie1222]

I was referring to the general announcement for the new lightning lane system, which is on their website.

As of this moment, there is nothing on their website indicating the exclusion of international guests from the pre-selection. So far we've been interpreting what we've read or heard from someone else. I'm hoping it will resolve in your favour, otherwise I will sign your petition as well.

 

[itf]

Got to say I'm glad I'm finishing my trip just before this comes in, but I'd assume it will be circumventable with a VPN and a fee free credit card as most of Disney's other booking restrictions are.