Disney *Should* Be Ashamed

[3DisneyFanz]

How can you modify the pat to an earlier time?

On our Wish cruise I just went back into the online check-in each day until they locked it just prior to the cruise. We were able to move up 15 minutes so “always getting an earlier time” doesn’t mean your jumping up a couple hours.

Keep in mind for the Wish if you want Hyperspace lounge you can’t reserve that until the Wi-Fi decides you are on the ship so outside of the first few groups your odds aren’t good.

 

[n2mm]

As a platinum I hate having to do checkin. I just checked in for my FIFTH Disney cruise since the start up. I cringe when I see the blue circle of death. I’ve spent way too much time checking in 2 and 3 cabins each time. Why can’t the different level get an hour advantage. I was hoping it would end, but just did it again last week. And don’t look forward to doing it two more times in September. Ugh. No perks for platinum.

 

[tidefan]

Then why not make a new CC level to separate them out? Platinum Plus? Titanium? Or give a $45 OBC to Platinums instead of the Palo benefit? Increase the discount in the shops to 15%? There are other things Disney could do but they have just basically said “we don’t really care about platinum guests anymore” by taking away all the perks.

Especially since on the Wish, most of the Palo dinner menu has gone to ala carte. There is a "limited" pre-fixe $45 menu, but it is just that. Limited.

 

[Snowwhyt]

Why is checking in and getting an early PAT so important to people?
You might be having a cardiac event over getting to port at 2 PM instead of 11 AM?

I guess to each their own - I couldn't care less about PAT's. I refuse to lose a second of sleep over it.

Just want to have a relaxing lunch that isn't 3 hours away from dinner. Especially after spending 4 hours loading/unloading vans/buses/car, transporting from Orlando to Port Canaveral, parking, dropping off luggage, waiting check-in, security, then check in at second desk, stand in line for pictures, do we still have to show something on the gangway?(skipped the testing tent but there was that too)
If it were possible to eat lunch using Disney transportation and I’d be fine with 2:00.
Just wondering if you grab lunch on your own before arrive? Maybe your able to drive your own car? People whom do not rely on Disney transportation have better and far more options. For them it’s a different circumstance.

At the latest we could get a rushed 9:30 breakfast at a Disney/airport hotel and hope to make it at 2:00. But that’s not likely. Disney transportation does not get you any lunch opportunities. Just extra lines before you transfer and leisurely bus ride.

 

[belle032]

I completely agree. Do any other cruises lines do it the same way as DCL?

I'm Platinum on another cruise line and since COVID, we can check in and choose our PAT 48 hours earlier than everyone else. Have never had an issue getting the arrival window we want.

We also receive priority debarkation and priority water shuttle boarding for tender ports. There aren't really any other experiences I need to scramble for, such as a brunch reservation, as all of that can be booked before I board.

Very surprised DCL doesn't do something like this? I'm only Silver on DCL, so I might just not be remembering the process, but just allowing an earlier date for check in seems like a relatively easy way to offer that perk.

 

[3DisneyFanz]

Just want to have a relaxing lunch that isn't 3 hours away from dinner. Especially after spending 4 hours loading/unloading vans/buses/car, transporting from Orlando to Port Canaveral, parking, dropping off luggage, waiting check-in, security, then check in at second desk, stand in line for pictures, do we still have to show something on the gangway?(skipped the testing tent but there was that too)
If it were possible to eat lunch using Disney transportation and I’d be fine with 2:00.
Just wondering if you grab lunch on your own before arrive? Maybe your able to drive your own car? People whom do not rely on Disney transportation have better and far more options. For them it’s a different circumstance.

At the latest we could get a rushed 9:30 breakfast at a Disney/airport hotel and hope to make it at 2:00. But that’s not likely. Disney transportation does not get you any lunch opportunities. Just extra lines before you transfer and leisurely bus ride.

You can submit your pictures ahead of time now to skip that step but there are still lots of touch points just to get on the ship. On our Wish cruise we were asked for our port arrival form when we dropped off our luggage, we were then checked again before we went into the port building. Once inside we were checked in and then went through security and after we got through security before we could head upstairs we were checked again by two different individuals. So there were 5 people plus security we had to stop and do the port arrival scan/document checks with just to get on the ship. Positive side was we were able to go straight to the room and drop off our carryons before heading up to deck 11 for lunch.

 

[MissDaisyofTexas]

Wow! I had no idea that the earlier check-in for platinum/gold/silver wasn't still happening. That stinks.

 

[jjgarv2106]

You can submit your pictures ahead of time now to skip that step .

Where/how can you do this? I'd love to reduce the number of hoops to jump through at midnight!

 

[3DisneyFanz]

Where/how can you do this? I'd love to reduce the number of hoops to jump through at midnight!

The poster I was responding to was still referring to taking pictures at the port.

 

[cvjw]

How can you modify the pat to an earlier time?

Just open up your online checkin on the app. Go and look at your PAT. It will show all the available times. I have been lucky to move up over an hour on 2 separate cruises!

 

[nmoody1]

I dont know what's worse.... waiting up til midnight or having to wake up at 5am because you live in the UK..... either perspective is frustrating and unnecessary. The castaway club benefits are truly devalued.... much like the onboard entertainment offerings

 

[Fuzzycaterpillar1]

Just open up your online checkin on the app. Go and look at your PAT. It will show all the available times. I have been lucky to move up over an hour on 2 separate cruises!

Thank you! What's the earliest PAT possible?

 

[DCLMP]

Why is checking in and getting an early PAT so important to people?
You might be having a cardiac event over getting to port at 2 PM instead of 11 AM?

I guess to each their own - I couldn't care less about PAT's. I refuse to lose a second of sleep over it.

Agreed. A lot of people on this forum make vacations waayyy more stressful than need be. My cruise out of San Diego I had a 1130 PAT and didn't get on the ship until 3pm. Instead of waiting out in the hot sun for two hours like everyone else because Disney was 2 hours behind we walked down the street to a Mexican restaurant and had the best Nachos I've ever tasted. My son says it was best embarkation he's ever had. At least our room was ready when we got on the ship.

 

[DisneYE]

An early PAT is just nice. You get to enjoy the ship for a couple extra hours, Cabanas isn't crowded yet, and the stress of travel ends as soon as you walk onto the ship. But it's not just PATs, it can also be a scramble for on board activities or popular excursions when your booking window opens.

And it's not just on DCL. Disney is requiring these late night or early morning stress events for so many of their experiences these days, such as getting a dinner reservation or Genie plus reservations. It's a lazy and uncreative way to handle high demand products.

Sure its nice to have an early PAT.
But is it worth so much that you overly stress over it, possibly causing a cardiac arrest (authors words, not mine) LOL NO.
A cruise is supposed to be stress free and that's how we approach it.
If we can get what we want (early PAT, early dining, some tastings, a decent port adventure), that's great.
If not, we don't care. We're just happy to be on the cruise.
It's laughable to me to see people stressing over PAT's, missing booking an excursion to see the dolphins or not being able to book a beer tasting.

 

[DisneYE]

Agreed. A lot of people on this forum make vacations waayyy more stressful than need be. My cruise out of San Diego I had a 1130 PAT and didn't get on the ship until 3pm. Instead of waiting out in the hot sun for two hours like everyone else because Disney was 2 hours behind we walked down the street to a Mexican restaurant and had the best Nachos I've ever tasted. My son says it was best embarkation he's ever had. At least our room was ready when we got on the ship.

Right?
Had a similar experience on our latest cruise. We had a later PAT, 1.30 I think, we boarded at 2-2.30 pm and instead of rushing to cabanas we went to our SR, it was ready and we just dropped all our bags there. We still made it to the buffet and in fact because it was nearing closing time, it was the quietest we've ever seen cabanas on any prior sailing day, and this was an almost full ship.
Also, we were still able to book Palo and a couple of tastings after the sail away party and we even changed our rotation to late dining as we forgot we had early and my DD wanted late.
A full ship, a late PAT, a late boarding and still managed to get most of what we wanted. All stress free.
Don't sweat the small stuff. Vacations are part of the small stuff in life. A cruise is the ultimate "small stuff".

 

[auntlynne]

[I just read this thread. And I’ve checked in for a cruise (on DCL) twice in the last year. But I must have cleared my memory (real one, not computer). And check-in for all cruises gets muddled together. So forgive me if I am way off on anything.]

Everyone is checking in at the same time? Yikes. As many have pointed out, Disney IT is not known for great quality.

It’s been 11 years since I had to pick a time but I would accept not having a ”show up anytime PAT.” … But I think they could return to staggered check-in dates, allowing priority in selecting PAT based on Castaway level. It would still give a benefit for loyalty while allowing for control of passenger flow during check-in. And once testing is gone, consider a return to the days of anytime PAT for Platinum. (But do they really need to space out check-in at 15 day increments? It has to be tough reading others’ success in acquiring reservations and having to wait months to try yourself.)

As to why an early arrival - time on the ship. Already mentioned is the opportunity to eat lunch just hours before early seating for dinner. Or even getting to eat in Cabanas or an MDR at all.

… Smart, savvy cruisers - especially those on the short cruises - know that boarding day pool time has typically been one of the best times to get pool access without being in people soup.

And then there is onboard booking for Palo, etc., or making reservations for Hyperspace. Early bird often gets the worm. (And those who spend part of their cruise checking for cancellations.

…. Yes, early seating is a “reward” for booking early. And has to be requested, as Second Seating is the default, no matter your Castaway Level.

 

[cvjw]

Thank you! What's the earliest PAT possible?

I am not sure. I moved from 12:45 to 11:30 on a cruise next month. May be even earlier PATs.

 

[auntlynne]

Thank you! What's the earliest PAT possible?

I’ve had 11. I think it might be around 10:30 Or 10:45.

 

[brentm77]

Sure its nice to have an early PAT.
But is it worth so much that you overly stress over it, possibly causing a cardiac arrest (authors words, not mine) LOL NO.
A cruise is supposed to be stress free and that's how we approach it.
If we can get what we want (early PAT, early dining, some tastings, a decent port adventure), that's great.
If not, we don't care. We're just happy to be on the cruise.
It's laughable to me to see people stressing over PAT's, missing booking an excursion to see the dolphins or not being able to book a beer tasting.

I get it. But it doesn't need to be the ridiculous midnight rush. Even if it's just a nice to have, there is something about the process that makes it stressful. It's so unnecessary. And if they are going to do it, at least invest in better IT. Disney using this type all-at-once system for cruises and the parks isn't a customer focused way to run things.

A little vision and creativity would go a long way to avoid having customers associate stress with their brand.

 

[auntlynne]

I get it. But it doesn't need to be the ridiculous midnight rush. Even if it's just a nice to have, there is something about the process that makes it stressful. It's so unnecessary. And if they are going to do it, at least invest in better IT. Disney using this type all-at-once system for cruises and the parks isn't a customer focused way to run things.

A little vision and creativity would go a long way to avoid having customers associate stress with their brand.

A time other than midnight does seem like a great idea. As a night owl (in Central Time - so 11pm), it’s great for me. For people who need nighttime sleep, ugh.

There have been too many reports of System Maintenance occurring at check-in time. Another example of situations where the administrator isn‘t an end-user.