Yeah it's another gift card thread...

[LockShockBarrel]

OK please bear with me. I need someone who knows FOR SURE how this all works.

I am going to Disney later this year. I'm renting points through a friend of mine, and she's going to add the dining plan on for me. I also plan on going to MNSSHP.

If I do the Target Red card thingy it only saves 5% correct? So on $300 its only $15 that I'd save? Is it really only a benefit for larger amounts? If I do opt to do it, can I pay for the dining plan and/or MNSSHP with said cards? Is there a limit to how many cards I can use?

I know these questions have likely been answered but it seems the threads that I pick to look on are either too situation specific or its a lot of responses that are "I think you can do..." and then I get confused as to what's fact and what's guesswork.

 

[Lisa71]

You can pay for anything with them and there is no limit..I cannot bear to have someone enter 30 cards so we do not pay for every penny of our trip with ours,..but every penny saved is a penny saved! The gift cards are only not good at some kiosks that only take cash..otherwise all good!!

 

[Marionnette]

OK please bear with me. I need someone who knows FOR SURE how this all works.

I am going to Disney later this year. I'm renting points through a friend of mine, and she's going to add the dining plan on for me. I also plan on going to MNSSHP.

If I do the Target Red card thingy it only saves 5% correct? So on $300 its only $15 that I'd save? Is it really only a benefit for larger amounts? If I do opt to do it, can I pay for the dining plan and/or MNSSHP with said cards? Is there a limit to how many cards I can use?

I know these questions have likely been answered but it seems the threads that I pick to look on are either too situation specific or its a lot of responses that are "I think you can do..." and then I get confused as to what's fact and what's guesswork.

It's the same benefit for large purchases and small ones - 5% off of your purchase. Yes, 5% off of $300 is $15. I don't regard it as only $15. I see it as breakfast for a day, or as another souvenir pin, or anything else than I could spend $15 on. It's saved money. You wouldn't walk past $15 laying on the ground without picking it up, would you?

You can give your friend a stack of GCs to use for adding the DDP to your reservation. Member Services will accept them for payment. I would think that a friend would be willing to help you out with this.

You can pay for your MNSSHP tickets with them. Buy your tickets one at a time online and you can apply one GC and then a CC for the balance. If you make your purchase at a ticket booth, then you can use an unlimited number of GCs to pay for the tickets.

Since you're staying onsite, you can leave a CC on file when you check in and then use your Magic Band to charge anywhere they accept it. Go back to the resort and before your charges reach $1500, pay it off with your GCs. That way, you don't have to carry a stack of GCs around the parks in order to pay for things. If your charges reach $1500+ at a Deluxe resort or Vacation Club resort, then they charge your CC on file (the amount is lower for Moderates and Values). You will want to visit the lobby concierge before they do that in order to avoid having to get a refund on your CC.

I just got back from a short trip with a DVC stay. We didn't get the DDP because I don't consider it to be a good value for me. So, everything went on the Magic Band. The night before I checked out, I stopped in the lobby and took care of our room charges. There was no line and I wasn't holding anyone up that wanted to check in and get to their room. I combine both the Target REDCard and the Pharmacy Rewards discount to get 9.75% off the cost of the GCs. Where else are you going to get a discount on everything you buy at Disney?

 

[LockShockBarrel]

Its only me going so buying the halloween tickets thing isn't an issue. I also won't do charging to the room because I lose the park of my brain that says "hey stupid, you're not rich."

And yes $15 is $15 but if it was going to be a big hassle to do I was trying to figure out if it was worth it.

 

[Burnedout]

We did this. It is easiest for the person renting you the points to deal with the minimal amt of cards so try to buy larger denominations.

 

[robinb]

I used gift cards to pay my DVC Dues. If you end up needing more than a certain number of cards for your DDP (I think 10) then your friend will probably have to fax the numbers into Member Services. So, you will want to make sure you buy the $50 ones. I just typed the numbers into a document and scanned that to them. ALSO, if you cancel your trip for any reason that money will go back on the gift cards so don't lose them or throw them away! I scan them to make sure I have a record of them all until I use them so I can report them lost for some reason and I use them sequentially.

 

[Marionnette]

Its only me going so buying the halloween tickets thing isn't an issue. I also won't do charging to the room because I lose the park of my brain that says "hey stupid, you're not rich."

And yes $15 is $15 but if it was going to be a big hassle to do I was trying to figure out if it was worth it.

The biggest hassle, as I see it, is transporting the little buggers to Orlando. You will only have 6 $50 GCs. I had enough to pay for a DVC PAP voucher, and also extras for food and souvenirs. Plus, I purchased $1500 worth for my brother and needed to get those to him when we met up. Those were two pretty big stacks of GCs and I carried them in my shoulder bag because I refuse to put anything valuable in my checked luggage.

Redeeming the GCs is the easy part.

 

[LockShockBarrel]

I have a pretty large wallet and usually clean out all the stuff I don't need like rewards cards and that sort of thing before I go, I could stuff them in there.

I think what I'll end up doing is trying to figure out really what I'd typically pay cash for or would get ahead of time. So in theory, I can use these cards on my MNSSHP ticket, for tips at sitdowns, F&W booths and the dining plan, correct?

Also since we're here, let's make sure I understand how to do this whole business correctly shall we? I go to Target, I sign up for the redcard. It links into my checking account. I must have the right amount of money there to make said purchases. I then purchase the GCs using the redcard to save 5%. I do this at the service desk and ask for a manager if they give me trouble. Does that sound right? I guess my concern there is doing the redcard and then have them be all "no no no". Then again I do have a friend that's some sort of manager at my closest Target, I could ask him that...

 

[bluespiano42]

Can't help you with Target, but I know for a fact that you can get a pack of 3 $50 gift cards at Sam's for $142.98 - comes out to 4.6%. You can use as many as you want - I just got done using them to finish paying for my next trip - used around 30 at once - took my TA just a few minutes to do.

 

[eyor44]

The last couple of times I did DDP with a DVC stay, I had the plan added just a couple days before we traveled and then paid for the DDP when I checked in with gift cards. This was about 3 years ago, so that might not be allowed anymore but the rule then was if it was added 2-3 days out, you didn't have to pay for it right when you added it.

For a stack of gift cards. In January, I had a stack of about 10 with $50 each on them, plus 3 others with odd amounts. I took them to Guest Services at MK and they combined them all into one card for me. Took about 10 minutes and totally worth it. The CM didn't mind at all.

 

[Marionnette]

The last couple of times I did DDP with a DVC stay, I had the plan added just a couple days before we traveled and then paid for the DDP when I checked in with gift cards. This was about 3 years ago, so that might not be allowed anymore but the rule then was if it was added 2-3 days out, you didn't have to pay for it right when you added it.

For a stack of gift cards. In January, I had a stack of about 10 with $50 each on them, plus 3 others with odd amounts. I took them to Guest Services at MK and they combined them all into one card for me. Took about 10 minutes and totally worth it. The CM didn't mind at all.

DVC members can wait until 48 hours prior to check in to add a dining plan to their stay but it must be paid for in full at the time that it is added. The days of walking into check-in and adding it on the spot are long gone.

As of right now, there is no way to combine Disney GCs. Sometimes, you will get lucky and a CM will magically push it through somehow, but I wouldn't be lugging $500 in GCs around with the hopes of finding that one CM.

 

[lilkimmyk]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I do remember reading a few times on these boards that you can take your GC to any Disney Store and they can combine them all to one card before your trip. That is, of course, if you have a store somewhere close. I've never done it but plan to before my trip next year. My closest store is 45 min away but in a huge shopping area so I can have great excuse to shop while there.

 

[Marionnette]

Correct me if I'm wrong but I do remember reading a few times on these boards that you can take your GC to any Disney Store and they can combine them all to one card before your trip. That is, of course, if you have a store somewhere close. I've never done it but plan to before my trip next year. My closest store is 45 min away but in a huge shopping area so I can have great excuse to shop while there.

Again, this is very much a case of YMMV. The official word is that they cannot be combined. Every once in a great while, a CM or store manager will sprinkle some pixie dust on a guest and override the system to accomplish it. It's always worth a try, just don't count on it.