Why won't Disney talk to customers?

[drag n' fly]

This is driving me nuts. We've got a tripped booked for next week, which we booked through Westjet Vacations, including air, Pop Century, tickets, etc.

So, being the prepared vacationer, we want to confirm our ressies etc are correct with Disney. Far too many stories of things being screwed up.

So, a month ago, we call Disney. They tell us they can't look anything up, we have to call our travel agent. Well, I know Westjet has the correct info, I want to make sure it's not screwed up on Disney's computer. So that's not really going to help, is it?

So, finally on one call I get given the info that once we get within five days of our stay, I can call Pop Century, and confirm they have the correct dates, number of people in the room, and if available, I can request adjoining rooms without too far of a distance to go for our grandmother in a wheelchair, etc.

So, we're five days out tonight. I call Pop Century, they have no idea what we're talking about, and transfer us to to CRO again. And once again, they refuse to even confirm that we have a reservation.

This is bloody ridiculous. A couple of weeks ago, we were investigating joining the DVC. Now, I just want to cancel the whole freakin' vacation, it's so bloody annoying.

So, what's the secret? How do you actually find out if your reservations are correct?

Always use a travel agent or book directly with Disney. Next time just find a travel agent who will book your flights and or vacation package for you if you want to book a package through Westjet. Westjet provides vacation packages. They are not technically travel agents. All you did was skip the middle man (that being the travel agent) and booked directly with the supplier. Your frustrations are noted however. You may want to let Westjet know your experience and mention better communication would have made foir a smaller headache. A Westjet representative posted on the Canadian board regarding your concerns. Were you able to follow up through her>?

 

[kaytieeldr]

The point of my paragraph was not to dispute the legal status of said entity, it was to point out that advice of "The company will call Disney on your behalf" is simply not true in this case.

I went back and checked this thread again, in case I missed it. Nobody said your – or any – Travel Agent/Agency will make calls, just that they should, that this is one of the services provided by TAs, that using a Travel Service precludes the customer from contacting the end provider directly:

Your agent would have to call and check for you.

You used a travel agent. You have to talk to them.

Your agent is supposed to do the work for you so you DON'T need to call Disney

Your TA owns the reservation till the moment you check in call her and ask her to call disney for you

Your travel agent actually owns this booking and as such is the only one who can talk to Disney on your behalf.

Good advice. Too bad I can't use it, since no one will call Disney.

You can still use the information when you approach the Front Desk. Knowing what you want, and the correct terminology, increases your chances of getting it – even then. And being willing to move the next day (if necessary, don’t offer this option up front) increases those chances even more.

Final documents? Sorry. Too funny. There are no "final" documents. A few minutes after you book, you get an email message listing the flights, the payment made, the resort name, a note that the package includes Magic your Way and Magical Express.

So, let me see if I’ve got this straight. You paid this airline’s travel sideline in full five months in advance for a trip to Disney World for at least three people – and you’re worried about DISNEY?


diznyfanatic – thanks for that excellent effort and research!!!!

 

[kaytieeldr]

OP, have you taken Disney's advice?

We assume Disney knows we're coming, but really have no way to confirm anything. There's no Disney confirmation or reservations numbers, etc. Calling them yields nothing, they tell you they can't look anything up and to call Westjet Vacations.

 

[Huff]

Question 1 Answer: Actually it's standard policy within the travel industry.

Not sure that is true. I have booked hotels through travel agents and then confirmed the reservation with the hotel. Done this many times. Just not with Disney.

Also, Disney is about the only resort where one can't reserve a specific room type such as number of beds etc. You can ask for king, two doubles etc. but you get what Disney feels like giving you. I know of no other resort in the USA that does this.

 

[grimley1968]

Not sure that is true. I have booked hotels through travel agents and then confirmed the reservation with the hotel. Done this many times. Just not with Disney.

Also, Disney is about the only resort where one can't reserve a specific room type such as number of beds etc. You can ask for king, two doubles etc. but you get what Disney feels like giving you. I know of no other resort in the USA that does this.

Maybe you have done this, but the travel agent would have had to give you confirmation numbers, and other private details so you can inquire directly with the hotel. So this still would be a TA issue for the OP, and not a problem with Disney itself.

If a hotel, or anyone, lets anyone just call up and confirm reservations without confirmation numbers, etc. they'd be running smack dab into privacy law issues.

If I was staying somewhere that confirmed information for just anyone calling, I would cancel that ressie pretty quickly, I can assure you.

Also, if you want a room with bunk beds, for instance, at WL, that is a specific room type which has its own pricing.

 

[mom2taylorandemily]

We booked a trip with AAA last year and we had such a great time, we decided to book again with AAA this year and we extended our trip by 3 extra days. Going with a TA can be great, we got a great discount and she is a wonderful TA. Good Luck to the OP, I'm sure it can be frustrating, but just to let everyone know, last year I was able to call CRO and they infact did tell me that they did see my reservation but that they were unable to discuss it with me. But I didn't pursue the issue any further once the CM explained to me why they could discuss it with me. So, I then called my TA with my questions.

 

[PixieMama]

We used a TA for our upcoming trip (1st time we have ever used a TA for any trip) and while I think our TA is a ncice lady, she seems a bit... well, we'll say "disorganized". So I thought I would call our Disney Resort and confirm that they do have our reservation on file, but was also told that I would have to go through the TA since we did not book directly through WDW. Which in a way makes sense, but it would give me a little more peace of mind knowing that Disney has us for what we are supposed to have booked. Guess we will just have to keep our fingers crossed and hope all is correct when we get there!


Anyway, hope you enjoy your trip!

 

[marivaid]

Also, Disney is about the only resort where one can't reserve a specific room type such as number of beds etc. You can ask for king, two doubles etc. but you get what Disney feels like giving you..

That's not true. Except for Value resorts where king beds are usually reserved for handicap-accessible rooms, you can choose exactly which type of room you want ie : 2 beds or 1 king, bunk beds, ...

OP,you've been told about 30 times what the problem is yet you insist you know better than anyone. Disney is not responsible for the poor customer service you seem to be receiving from the company you booked your package with. At this point you are not Disney's customer, you're Westjet's.

 

[castleeto]

Don't be mad at Disney.

Although people are using the phrase "TA" it's the same when you use a travel vendor. You did not book directly through Disney, you used a vendor apparently called WestJet, even if they are an airline with vacations as a smaller business segment - that's who you used. The vendor owns your ressie now. You gave control to the vendor and so things don't get changed without that vendor's knowledge, you have to go through them.

Actually "bad" can happen when someone goes around their vendor or TA, that is why the industry doesn't allow it. The vendor or TA is a someone to keep everything straight. It's not a Disney policy, it's a travel industry policy. If you had booked a Hawaii trip through Pleasant Hawaiian, you'd have the same kind of problem.

If you prefer to manage your vacation yourself, you'll need to book it yourself. Don't worry too much, it will most likely be wonderful, just make sure all your documents are correct, take them and any confirmation documents with you.

Have fun!

As a former airline reservations employee who frequently booked ressies for TAs, I will back up what the above DISer said. It felt awful to have a customer call and want to check on their reservation, and we would just have to refer them back to their TA. But if we didn't, the TA would get very angry since the customer is considered "their" customer. I agree that it is a really frustrating policy, but unfortunately, that's how it works for now. If you want to avoid that in the future, book directly. I'm very sorry for your frustration and hope you have a wonderful, smooth vacation!

 

[petchie]

It really is to protect you. My sister ony books Disney with a Travel Agent so her ex's family cannot call and pretend to be her and get information on her trip. They are a tad vindictive and crazy.

She has to give the travel dates she is taking the kids to her ex, but now the crazy family cannot call and screw with her res.

 

[NeverlandPixie]

If you booked via westjet.com, using your online profile, you may view your itinerary by logging into the website and choosing the option 'My Bookings'. You may also confirm your itinerary by calling their Sales Super Centre at 1-800-538-5696. You may request a copy of your itinerary via email or fax for future reference.

WestJet Vacations will also forward requests for specific room types, bedding configurations, and other room requests to the hotel; however they cannot guarantee they will be available.

Hope this helps.

 

[TDC Nala]

In a third party booking, the travel agent or vendor is the primary reservation holder. Disney will discuss the reservation with the primary reservation holder. It's the agency or vendor's responsibility to provide you with information.

I hope no one will yell at the check-in desk person when they had nothing to do with any of this.

 

[stacy6552]

You really can't compair DVC with a travel-agent-in the middle-reservation. I have said countless times to countless people to always book directly with Disney (this includes not using the internet). Disney takes care of people like no one else. And as a DVC member we feel the love even more.

 

[tasha99]

I used to work in Reservations for Royal Caribbean (both individual and group bookings) and we could never give direct guests information that was specific to their travel agent booking. What if the person calling was really a disgruntled ex who just wanted to mess things up? What if they were fishing for information? In groups, you often had several cooks trying to stir the soup in addition to the agent--believe me, that could be a nightmare.

Now with cruises, there were true emergencies. Occasionally a careless agent wouldn't get back to a client even if a name was spelled incorrectly. In those cases, if the cruise was leaving in a couple of days, I would call the agent myself and ask them to make the changes. I even had agents just give me the okay to change and release any information--that was fine. If I couldn't reach the agent, I would get a supervisor to approve the change, but I wouldn't even bother if there was more than a few days till sailing (since I knew the answer would be "have the agent call.")

Another issue is financial. At Royal Caribbean, guests who book directly get different invoices than travel agents do. For some reason, people tend to get ticked off if they find out their agent is earning commission on their cruise. Travel agents are supposed to work for free lmao: )

 

[tjmw2727]

I understand it perfectly. I even support the need to limit changes to the bookings etc to the TA.
I dispute the need for Disney and others to hide the current status and information from the end consumer.

Nobody is hiding anything, just protecting their customer which unfortunately is Westjet not you. FWIW any destination would handle the situation the same way. A cruise, a beach vacation, universal and Disney, when you book through any agency they own the reservation and your contract is with them not the destination.

To compare, its like me trying to call and check on your reservation - not OK. Westjet is the owner of the reservation, you paid them, they booked the vacation and they paid Disney not you. All Disney has on file is Westjet # XXX and as such they have no way to verify if XXX is you or me.

I am really sorry your having trouble with Westjet and I would be frustrated as well but it really isn't Disney but Westjet that is not cooperating with you. At this point I would just hold fast to all the information you have and relax. 99.9% of Disney reservations go smoothly, its the small % we hear about that makes us worry.

A related story - I once did a favor for my FIL and booked a r/t flight online for my mil & fil. The price was much better than booking via phone and they were unable to do it themselves online. Well my fil called all the time to check on the flight, confirm his seats, ask about meals etc and at one point inquired about changing seats. Long story short he messed up his seat assignment and then blamed me. I now totally understand why TA's work the way they do and I don't book flights for him anymore.

TJ

 

[2forMe]

The point of my paragraph was not to dispute the legal status of said entity, it was to point out that advice of "The company will call Disney on your behalf" is simply not true in this case.



Good advice. Too bad I can't use it, since no one will call Disney.

People keep mentioning "taking control" of the vacation. I really have no interest in doing that. All I wanted to do was confirm that Disney has the correct dates and number of folks in the party entered into their computers.

We've already seen several stories here about messed up reservations, both through TA's and through Disney. So allowing customers to double check things and prevent mistakes is a *good* thing, right? Both Disney and customer benefit. It preserves the agent relationship, as you have to go back to them to get updates and changes made, since the consumer would be "read only".

Actually you can call West Jet vacations and speak to someone who can confirm your vacation package. I had looked into going to WDW through them not that long ago and spoke t a real live person and asked a bunch of questions.