People clueless about park reservations

[Meglen]

Daily we see news articles,forums posts and family's just failing to lock in park reservations. Disney needs to make a video and embed it on the main site when buying tickets/packages.

There is zero reason why anyone should not know this is a requirement now. When booking for a big party this video can be sent to family or a mailer sent if you want to older folks explaining the new systems.

The PR team is actively trying to hide this in there promos and I understand but in the end folks show up and can't even go to the park and that's the worst kinda pr.

Either scrap the system or actually force feed the info onto everyone. Disney do better.

 

[BorderTenny]

Have you ever worked a customer-facing job? No matter how blatantly you try to present information, people will still ignore it.

 

[Disneylover99]

Either scrap the system or actually force feed the info onto everyone. Disney do better.

The system is ridiculous. Forcing people into other parks just so they can park hop. No wonder crowds are huge. Scrap it!

 

[Meglen]

The system is ridiculous. Forcing people into other parks just so they can park hop. No wonder crowds are huge. Scrap it!

Agreed scraping should be the move but.. knowing Disney they won't.

 

[luv2cheer92]

Have you ever worked a customer-facing job? No matter how blatantly you try to present information, people will still ignore it.

Like how they used to plaster FP+ every.where. On the park maps, all over the site, sent you emails, even had the symbol on the plastic ticket cards. Yet people still didn't know about it or thought you had to pay for it. Some people will just never do what they need to do before a trip. Even when it is an expensive one.

 

[tvguy]

Hey, you didn't need a reservation for 65 years. Just takes time for the word to get out.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

If people are spending thousands of dollars for a Disney vacation, but go there not understanding the ticket and reservation system, part of me thinks shame on them. There is plenty of information out there on the Disney site. But during our visits earlier this year, we saw it - people not knowing what they had to do after arriving. I was sitting outside enjoying breakfast with a book and overheard a family making plans for the day. I finally decided to open my mouth and explain what they wanted to do wouldn't work instead of having them waste 1/2-day heading to a park they didn't have a park reservation to get in. Unfortunately, I expect that family was not alone. Maybe someday we'll get back to the no-park-res system again.

 

[declansdad]

Daily we see news articles,forums posts and family's just failing to lock in park reservations. Disney needs to make a video and embed it on the main site when buying tickets/packages.

There is zero reason why anyone should not know this is a requirement now. When booking for a big party this video can be sent to family or a mailer sent if you want to older folks explaining the new systems.

The PR team is actively trying to hide this in there promos and I understand but in the end folks show up and can't even go to the park and that's the worst kinda pr.

Either scrap the system or actually force feed the info onto everyone. Disney do better.

This is why you should use a travel advisor.

 

[Meglen]

Have you ever worked a customer-facing job? No matter how blatantly you try to present information, people will still ignore it.

Most my jobs are retail and I think this is why I know they are doing very little to educate. You are correct that no matter how much you shove int eh face of people they will still miss it but atleast try first. The little warning they offer is just not enough.

 

[_19disnA]

Doubt Disney could do anything else to prevent this issue. Probably these are the same people who go to the airport and act like they have NO idea what TSA is. Even when in line and various announcements are continually being made, I still see clueless people who act like the rules somehow don't apply to them.

 

[Meglen]

Doubt Disney could do anything else to prevent this issue. Probably these are the same people who go to the airport and act like they have NO idea what TSA is. Even when in line and various announcements are continually being made, I still see clueless people who act like the rules somehow don't apply to them.

Thats what I thought also but when it started to be asked daily from people on the forums here.. it means they are folks that are atleast here and know more than average and they still missed it.

 

[Allison]

You mean something like the disclosure at the top of their website under important information or the yellow caution alert about park reservations when you attempt to purchase a ticket or the alert to check park reservation availability when you are booking a resort reservation or the important notice when you make a dining reservation that you need a park reservation? Disney can't make anyone read something or watch anything. I can know from experience people just don't do it. That is on them.

 

[SteveH]

This is why you should use a travel advisor.

While I don't disagree it's much easier to just not go. I know we won't be going back anytime soon and the park reservation issue is one big reason not to go.. as well as that freakin' Genie.

 

[Meglen]

You mean something like the disclosure at the top of their website under important information or the yellow caution alert about park reservations when you attempt to purchase a ticket or the alert to check park reservation availability when you are booking a resort reservation or the important notice when you make a dining reservation that you need a park reservation? Disney can't make anyone read something or watch anything. I can know from experience people just don't do it. That is on them.

You know the websites that pop up a video when doing something. So before you purchase it should fill the screen and play. ! important message! and play a nice 2 min planning video. This video can be sent to anyone (for other memebers who need to plan but didnt buy the tickets). This can also be linked to offsite ticket places. If disney wants to make everything so darn complicated they need to do more than tiny print.

 

[OrangeBirdGirl]

There's just some people that don't bother researching anything for a vacation. A podcast had a topic once about researching travel. It said how people will spend hours researching a washing machine, yet they'll just book a trip someplace and be done. Don't look into anything about where they are staying or any sort of pre-planning you need to do. Their point was why would you research a washing machine and not put forth the same amount of effort on a vacation that you are spending alot more on.

I remember our last trip pre-COVID (Jan 2020). There was a couple sitting in the quick service and the husband and wife were fighting as wife planned trip and never knew about getting FP+ so now they sat at Disney without being able to get any FP for the main rides. I felt a little bad for them. But if they spent 5 minutes online researching their Disney trip, they'd know about FP+.

 

[Allison]

It isn't tiny print. This is disclosed in multiple places. At some point it is on the traveler and the information is available in enough places that not knowing isn't on Disney. That is the case here.

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

This is why you should use a travel advisor.

People have issues with that too. Lack of knowledge happens at all levels even when it shouldn't.

There have always been posts about such and such travel agent didn't know about specific deadlines, or when to book such and such ADR, or provide their customer with the information. I read an interesting Trip Report about a particular "Tammy" and quote the OP said "Tammy, if you're reading this, you suck so hard."

Here's the description:
"My mother was working with a (non-Dreams) Disney agent. Friend-of-a-friend type thing. So far I think all this agent did was make park reservations and complain about her commission. She was unable/unwilling to make any dining reservations for our stay, so my mother was left to her own devices to try and navigate the hellscape that Disney World has become. The agent didn't even warn about trying to make dining reservations, which meant my mother was trying to book table-service for a group of 10 three weeks ahead of time. It didn't happen."

**Also note using Dreams does not mean you'll get a perfect travel agent either. The above is just one of enough I've read over my time here on the DIS.

 

[Meglen]

It isn't tiny print. This is disclosed in multiple places. At some point it is on the traveler and the information is available in enough places that not knowing isn't on Disney. That is the case here.

People have issues with that too. Lack of knowledge happens at all levels even when it shouldn't.

There have always been posts about such and such travel agent didn't know about specific deadlines, or when to book such and such ADR, or provide their customer with the information. I read an interesting Trip Report about a particular "Tammy" and quote the OP said "Tammy, if you're reading this, you suck so hard."

Here's the description:
"My mother was working with a (non-Dreams) Disney agent. Friend-of-a-friend type thing. So far I think all this agent did was make park reservations and complain about her commission. She was unable/unwilling to make any dining reservations for our stay, so my mother was left to her own devices to try and navigate the hellscape that Disney World has become. The agent didn't even warn about trying to make dining reservations, which meant my mother was trying to book table-service for a group of 10 three weeks ahead of time. It didn't happen."

**Also note using Dreams does not mean you'll get a perfect travel agent either. The above is just one of enough I've read over my time here on the DIS.

Which is also my point when its literally peoples job to know the info and they still miss things... something more needs to be done. I think this issue is bigger than folks just dont research. Some people buy from 3rd party sites and never see the wdw page. So if the 3rd party places had a disney made planning psa I think it would help.

 

[Christine]

I haven't even considered going to the parks, mainly because of the reservation system; however, maybe it should just be that when you purchase a park ticket at this point, it *must* have a reservation done with the purchase? I don't know why I thought I heard that was the case but maybe that was Disneyland.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

This isn't a new problem, however. The park reservation system is just the latest. But in years past, we would cross paths with folks who had no idea they could get fast passes in advance, and when they arrived for their reservation, the 'good' FP's were gone. Or the same with ADRs. Before spending money and traveling anywhere, domestic or international, people need to educate themselves to be sure they understand and also be sure it's a destination they want to spend their money.