Booking a package trip or separately?

[de8212]

In the past I typically use a travel agent to handle the resort and tickets. Never had an issue. For this next trip I decided to see what the cost would be if I booked the resort and got the tickets separately.

Which way do you normally do it?

Is the best place to get tickets Undercover tourist? Is the price on the site the lowest or is there some type of code you enter to get the best price?


From the quotes I have received so far it seems to be ~$140 cheaper for me to do them separately. Not a ton but it's enough for me to look into this and confirm.

Any tips?

 

[erionm]

Is the best place to get tickets Undercover tourist? Is the price on the site the lowest or is there some type of code you enter to get the best price?

The mousesavers.com email newsletter (sent out on the 15th of each month) contains a special link to UT for an additional savings.

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

If you buy the tickets at rack rate, it'll be roughly the same as the package price. If you get any discount on the tickets (such as UT), you'll pay less separately than the package.

Also, if you get tickets separately, you'll be able to put them into your MDE, and play with the FP+ features prior to your FP day. Package guests can not do this.

Packages also have more restrictive cancelation terms, and an earlier payment in full date (though, almost always a smaller deposit).

 

[HopperFan]

Also if you have access to Tickets At Work, check their prices. They have had some decent discounts.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

There are pros and cons to both. If you book a package, you put down a $200 deposit which is fully refundable up to 30 days prior to check-in. If you cancel within 30 days, you lose the $200 or you can always re-schedule your reservation with a, possible, $50 change fee (sometimes waived under certain circumstances). If you book the room and tickets separately, you will have to pay outright for the tickets and, in the case of UT, once they are linked, they are non-refundable. If you think you will definitely go on the trip or go on a WDW trip at some point, buying the discount tickets may be your best bet. If you think you may cancel and never go to WDW, buying tickets outright, may not be a good choice.

 

[nkereina]

Only other thing I'll add is that by purchasing tickets separately, you wouldn't be eligible for any discounts that come out specific to packages. Free dining, for example, typically has a requirement of a ticket purchase to take advantage of the promotion. You would still be eligible for room only offers.

We have always purchased our Universal tickets from Undercover Tourist and have had good experiences. Best prices we've found. Order them well in advance of your FP+ date so you receive them and can link them on time. We've had it take as long as two weeks to receive them in the mail from Undercover Tourist.

 

[PSUGuy]

I've always assembled our trips myself to get control over flight times, car rentals and of course to save $$ by using UT. Also, we stay at Board Walk on rented DVC points through a gal we hooked up with on the DIS and we pay quite a bit less per point than what I'm seeing on commercial sites that rent points. I make a game out of it. I book a car as soon as a decent rate comes out, usually Dollar or Alamo. I cancel and re-book as better rates appear. I started out at $345 for a mid size car at Dollar, cancelled an re-booked 3 or 4 times and it looks like the best we'll do is $302 for the same car for 11 days. Not bad but last year, same company, car and days was $197 just a week later than we're going in Oct.

Bill From PA

 

[michellej47]

Random question.....this year we are going with a dance competition group, and we bought our tickets through the group. Since I am doing a room only reservation, I know I will have to pay a deposit, but can I still make payments along the way like you would a package?

 

[tobikaye]

Random question.....this year we are going with a dance competition group, and we bought our tickets through the group. Since I am doing a room only reservation, I know I will have to pay a deposit, but can I still make payments along the way like you would a package?

Yes, I do this every time. The only issue is that, unless they have updated the system, you have to call to make payments and cannot do this online for room only.

 

[PrincessArlena'sDad]

Yes, I do this every time. The only issue is that, unless they have updated the system, you have to call to make payments and cannot do this online for room only.

If you do online check in with a room only reservation, is there a place to pay for your room while doing that? Or, are the options either call to pay, or pay when you get there?

 

[tobikaye]

You cans setup the card to be charged, but it will not be charged until the morning of check in. At least that was the case last year when I did a room only.

 

[disney minnie]

Does each person still get the refillable mug when you purchase a package?

 

[raddisneyfan]

Always book package using Disney Visa so I get 6 months 0% interest.

 

[Hopefully]

Does each person still get the refillable mug when you purchase a package?

Yes. Each person or the Plan gets a refillable mug

 

[jfh]

After dealing with the hassle of two of our party book a package and two doing it separately I would never book a package unless I couldn't afford to pay more than $200 up front (in which case I probably can't afford to be going to Disney in the first place).

Book your room reservations and get your tickets separately. The additional flexibility and opportunities for additional savings far outweigh the perceived convenience of a package.

 

[lanejudy]

Book your room reservations and get your tickets separately. The additional flexibility and opportunities for additional savings far outweigh the perceived convenience of a package.

There is an added twist to this decision now with the new tickets.

Tickets purchased with a package (resort + tickets, resort + tickets + dining) will have a valid period equal to the length of the resort reservation. You can buy 3-day tickets with a 7-night package and use the tickets on any 3 days during your reservation. If you do a room-only and purchase your tickets separately, the new tickets have a limited "use" window. For the same scenario, those 3-day tickets must be used within just a 5-day period so you would need to plan your park days to fit. That may or may not be an issue for people, depending on their specific plans.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[Court7321]

We have always booked separately. We book our rooms through whichever site is cheapest -Disney, Undercover Tourist, Expedia, etc. We buy our tickets from Undercover Tourist through the link in the mousesavers.com newsletter (subscribe to get the newsletter, this is the only way to get the link to cheaper tix). I guess you do have to pay for your tix up front, but I've never really considered this to be an issue. For some crazy reason if we had to cancel our trip, the tix never expire so I know they wouldn't go to waste, and hotels are always able to be canceled up to a certain date.

 

[Farro]

There is an added twist to this decision now with the new tickets.

Tickets purchased with a package (resort + tickets, resort + tickets + dining) will have a valid period equal to the length of the resort reservation. You can buy 3-day tickets with a 7-night package and use the tickets on any 3 days during your reservation. If you do a room-only and purchase your tickets separately, the new tickets have a limited "use" window. For the same scenario, those 3-day tickets must be used within just a 5-day period so you would need to plan your park days to fit. That may or may not be an issue for people, depending on their specific plans.

Enjoy your vacation!

This exactly!

But if we are staying 9 nights and buy 9 day hoppers (we don't go to park on day 10) - we are fine to still book separately since we will have a ticket for each day, correct?

 

[vinotinto]

This exactly!

But if we are staying 9 nights and buy 9 day hoppers (we don't go to park on day 10) - we are fine to still book separately since we will have a ticket for each day, correct?

Correct! A 9-day hopper is valid for 13 days. So, you are good!

 

[vinotinto]

Summary of the main differences in booking your tickets and hotel separately:

1.Discounted Tickets - You can get discounted tickets through UT, or other reputable vendors, like Tickets at Work, if you buy them separately.

2. Need Different Tickets for People on Same Room - If you are traveling with people in the room that want/need different tickets, then having them separate is an advantage. For example, a person joining in only for part of the stay, or some who want to hop and some who do not. In a package, everyone must have the same exact tickets. Separately, you can just purchase what you need for each person. That has not affected us, but I can see how it could affect families that, for example, one parent needs to join a few days later because of work, or leave a few days earlier.

3. Deposits and Room Balances - When you book just the room (not a package), you pay a one-night deposit, completely refundable up to 5 days in advance, and the balance is due on check-in. If you cancel 1-4 days in advance that deposit is nonrefundable. You need to pay for your tickets up front, which can be a big chunk of change. With a package, you pay a $200 deposit and your entire balance is due 30-days prior. Cancellations made 29 days to 2 days prior to arrival have a cancellation fee of $200 per package, but if reservations are cancelled 1 day prior to arrival or later, the full package price is non-refundable.

4. Have Non-Park Days Planned - If you have a lot of non-WDW park days planned and are planning to spread your ticket days along a longer period of time, your may do better with a package. The package tickets can be used anytime during that stay. However, separate tickets will expire within the specified period of time:

• 1-day – The ticket expires on the selected start date.
• 2-day – The ticket expires 4 days after the selected start date.
• 3-day – The ticket expires 5 days after the selected start date.
• 4-day – The ticket expires 7 days after the selected start date.
• 5-day – The ticket expires 8 days after the selected start date.
• 6-day – The ticket expires 9 days after the selected start date.
• 7-day – The ticket expires 10 days after the selected start date.
• 8-day – The ticket expires 12 days after the selected start date.
• 9-day – The ticket expires 13 days after the selected start date.
• 10-day – The ticket expires 14 days after the selected start date.

5. Some Offers Require a Package - Play, Stay Dine (January through early March) and Free Dining offers (select dates in late summer and December) require a package with Park Hopper tickets.

Edit to add:
6. Split stays - Having separate tickets or package tickets with your FIRST reservation will allow you to make FPs for your entire stay and access tickets for your entire stay. If you have a split stay, and your tickets are part of your second (or third) reservation, you will NOT be able to make FPs for your prior, non-package stay and, according to the new ticket rules, you will not be able to access these tickets until your package check-in date. So, for split stays, separate tickets allow the most flexibility.