Picking up tickets early..

[crostorfer]

Ok. Let me preface this by saying I have no vested interest in this particular issue because I use military discounts.

Just for arguments sake here, say you got a room only discount for two nights before your free dining discount package begins. You purchased your tickets with the free dining package, and even though you paid full ticket price for those tickets, they are essentially tied to that discounted package. If you then picked up your tickets early, while on your room only discount, isn't that discount double dipping kind of? I don't know, like I said I would never do free dining, I am just asking because to me this seems along their line if thinking.

 

[Robo]

If you then picked up your tickets early, while on your room only discount, isn't that discount double dipping kind of?

Nope.

Just remove the "room" part of the equation, and look only at the TICKETS.
After all, the tickets are what are being picked up.

If a guest purchases a UT 5-day ticket (it is discounted and Disney has already made it's fee from that transaction,)
and at any point during his trip he wants to add "3 days" to that ticket, Disney will happily allow the upgrade for the cost of $8 per day.

Same scenario as above but, this time the guest shows up 3 days before the trip was originally planned.
Disney would still upgrade the ticket for 3 more days at the same price.
Nobody is injured, Disney gets its money... Happy all around.




.

 

[Lehuaann]

I have been lurking for a while and created an account just to ask this question. Can someone help me understand why you would need to pick up tickets early? Aren't the ticket tied to the reservation with the dining plan? If you have a second reservation that is room only prior to the free dining reservation, why wouldn't you have tickets with that reservation as well?

Disney tickets are front-loaded, meaning the first 3 days are the most expensive.

It would cost way more to have two separate tickets.

Is this more of a case for free dining and arriving on blackout dates. Just wondering if they would be more likely to give them out early if the guest does not have free dining?

I'm wondering this, too.

My split-stays before/after are completely covered under FD dates, but I don't want FD the entire time because I want to try different resorts. And the extra room-only nights I currently have booked, at close to $3000, cost almost as much as my FD package. I'm not happy.

I can totally see why Disney is doing this. Since this wasn't something you could do at the resort, the resort CM's weren't really trained in it. When we picked up our tickets early (which, BTW, I would have NEVER thought would be allowed in the first place until I read a thread on the DIS), we were issued them at DHS before we checked in. Then, we went and checked in at POP-where we had a one day room reservation, but we had to go back the next morning and re-check in. When we did so, they handed me my KTTW card, WITH the tickets. I had to tell them that we had already picked up our tickets, and she was confused and had to ask someone else how to reissue room keys without the tix. I can imagine plenty of people would keep that information to themselves.

Now, in this technology age, I would think this is an easy fix, but apparently the computers don't talk to each other when this is done, or at least didn't on my reservation.

I had a different experience. Last year the resort CM knew I had picked up my park tickets prior to checkin and combined the remaining portion of my package together like a pro.

The process was so well executed, the potential for duplicated tickets never-ever crossed my mind.

Ok. Let me preface this by saying I have no vested interest in this particular issue because I use military discounts.

Just for arguments sake here, say you got a room only discount for two nights before your free dining discount package begins. You purchased your tickets with the free dining package, and even though you paid full ticket price for those tickets, they are essentially tied to that discounted package. If you then picked up your tickets early, while on your room only discount, isn't that discount double dipping kind of? I don't know, like I said I would never do free dining, I am just asking because to me this seems along their line if thinking.

No. Picking up FD credits early? Absolutely.

 

[crostorfer]

Ok, I see what you are saying, but it's not the same thing. The tickets are required to be purchased with the package with the free dining. They can still be upgraded after pick up, you just can't pick them up early, because they are tied to package dates. They wouldn't want you to be on a room only discount and then be able to add $8 upgraded tickets to the rest of your free dining package. It doesnt make fiscal sense for them.

It doesn't effect me personally and I am not condoning this new enforcement of policy but I get why they are doing it. TDO seems to be on a belt tightening kick the past few months, it really makes me wonder what's next?

 

[Chipndalenut]

Honestly, I don't know what to believe,

BUT I can tell you that the 3 different people that I spoke to.. whether they were in Orlando or Utah, told me that you CANNOT pick up your tickets early. They understood my clients didn't want the free dining early, just the tickets and they told me time and time again that the answer is no.

SOOOO, in good conscience, being a TA I cannot tell my clients that they can book a room only for 2 days, then check in under free dining and get their theme park tickets early.. I just can't..

I am a TA also, but a Disney Specialist only. So I truely understand what you mean that you cannot tell your clients that they CAN get their tickets early in a situation like this. I was told today, once again, that you canNOT pick up the tickets BEFORE the package starts and the CM I spoke with from the "877" phone number said she has worked 3 days this week and EVERY DAY they have received an e-mail reminding them to tell all guests and TA's booking a package this way that they CANNOT get their tickets ahead of time. She said it must be a very important message because it has been sent every single day. So, that's what I know so far. I really appreciate the CM's who have been trying their best to help us out on here with this...THANK YOU

 

[Cheshire Figment]

GR calls DRC for approval to do it. Approval will not be given.

Here's an update, for what it's worth...

I just got off the phone with a CM from the "877" number we have to use as agents. I told her about the big dicussion on this subject. She said "yes, previously you could pick up the tickets in advance but NOW, I have worked the passed three days and EVERY DAY we have received the same e-mail reminding us to let the guests know that they CANNOT pick up tickets until their package starts."

She also said "This must be a pretty important message because they continue to send it to us daily."

That's what I know for now........

About five days prior to arrival date is when reservations are transferred from WDTC/CRO to the Resort where the reservation will be. Once that happens WDTC/CRO is out of the loop.

If a Guest want Early Package Ticket Pickup, they go to a theme park Guest Relations Window and the interaction is between GR and the Resort. CRO has no control at this point.

And I check the Advisories section of The Hub daily. Normally something of this significance will stay up for several days; such as the advance notice of "Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room Opening Soon at Magic Kingdom" having gone up today and shows it will remain until August 15. There has been nothing posted to the Advisories on this subject.

 

[stitch34]

I can totally see why Disney is doing this. Since this wasn't something you could do at the resort, the resort CM's weren't really trained in it. When we picked up our tickets early (which, BTW, I would have NEVER thought would be allowed in the first place until I read a thread on the DIS), we were issued them at DHS before we checked in. Then, we went and checked in at POP-where we had a one day room reservation, but we had to go back the next morning and re-check in. When we did so, they handed me my KTTW card, WITH the tickets. I had to tell them that we had already picked up our tickets, and she was confused and had to ask someone else how to reissue room keys without the tix. I can imagine plenty of people would keep that information to themselves.

Now, in this technology age, I would think this is an easy fix, but apparently the computers don't talk to each other when this is done, or at least didn't on my reservation.

mickeyluver37 - yes, same thing happened to us last year. we were reissued tickets again at check in. we didn't have it noted on our reservation that we were pickign them up early - were we supposed to? Was spur of the moment that we decided due to weather to arrive a day earlier and just went to DTD to pick up our tickets before switching resorts/checking into our package the next day.

 

[Chipndalenut]

Cheshire Figment.....Thank you for your continued help. Do you think Disney will get all of the departments on the "same page" at some point or is there a specific reason why they tell "Reservations" to say one thing and let GR do another? That is the part I can't figure out.

Thank you again for all of your help. Really appreciate it !!

 

[crostorfer]

mickeyluver37 - yes, same thing happened to us last year. we were reissued tickets again at check in. we didn't have it noted on our reservation that we were pickign them up early - were we supposed to? Was spur of the moment that we decided due to weather to arrive a day earlier and just went to DTD to pick up our tickets before switching resorts/checking into our package the next day.

And there you have it, situations like this totally explain why they would suddenly enforce policy. These two situations had honest people who did the right thing. I would bet more often than not people just smile and say "thank you".

 

[tjmw2727]

Ok, I see what you are saying, but it's not the same thing. The tickets are required to be purchased with the package with the free dining. They can still be upgraded after pick up, you just can't pick them up early, because they are tied to package dates. They wouldn't want you to be on a room only discount and then be able to add $8 upgraded tickets to the rest of your free dining package. It doesnt make fiscal sense for them.

It doesn't effect me personally and I am not condoning this new enforcement of policy but I get why they are doing it. TDO seems to be on a belt tightening kick the past few months, it really makes me wonder what's next?

I don't see the difference in picking up tickets early (no problem for me in the past) and using them after your package ends. Either way you pay the same price for the tickets and can use them for 14 days.

So what's the difference between a 3 day package with park tickets picked up and used 2 days early and then adding another 2 days before expiration for a 5 day totaly ticket. Vs a 3 day package, add another 2 days, check out and keep using the days again a 5 day ticket?

IMHO either way Disney gains because you are in a Disney park for 5 days instead of 3 spending money vs in Universal or Sea World spending money there for 2 of the 5 days.

My guess is that it is a computer issue - either the guest relations not doing all the steps to notify the resort that you have the tickets, or the resort having trouble separating your tickets off the package at check in. Either way this could result in double ticketing. I hope Disney can solve the computer problem and continue to allow early pick up of tickets purchased with a package.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Cheshire Figment.....Thank you for your continued help. Do you think Disney will get all of the departments on the "same page" at some point or is there a specific reason why they tell "Reservations" to say one thing and let GR do another? That is the part I can't figure out.

Thank you again for all of your help. Really appreciate it !!

Judy and I were both fairly high-level Federal employees until we retired. We would always tell people:

"Before dealing extensively with The Walt Disney Company we thought we worked for the largest bureaucracy in the world."

 

[doconeill]

In all these years Disney has never gotten anybody on the "same page" on most anything. And consolidation of "duplicated" business units, like CRO, just makes it worse.

 

[phyllis1966]

Aww, jeez - I just made the mistake of telling my work-and-traffic-stressed DH about this whole situation, and he said lots of things I can't repeat on a family board, but the gist of it is that he'd rather change back to an 8-day MYW pkg. without FD, than get to GR 1 day early and have an argument with someone because the policy has changed. Having an argument and not being able to visit a park while paying GF rates for that first night is enough to ruin his vacation, or so he says...now I really have a dilemma...

 

[Chipndalenut]

Judy and I were both fairly high-level Federal employees until we retired. We would always tell people:

"Before dealing extensively with The Walt Disney Company we thought we worked for the largest bureaucracy in the world."

OK...NOW I get it...

I guess we'll take our chances and ask GR when we get there, but have our back-up plan READY !!

Thank you

 

[Traveliz]

Aww, jeez - I just made the mistake of telling my work-and-traffic-stressed DH about this whole situation, and he said lots of things I can't repeat on a family board, but the gist of it is that he'd rather change back to an 8-day MYW pkg. without FD, than get to GR 1 day early and have an argument with someone because the policy has changed. Having an argument and not being able to visit a park while paying GF rates for that first night is enough to ruin his vacation, or so he says...now I really have a dilemma...

With an 8 day trip I would approach it like this. "Looks like we have a change of plans, no longer able to get tickets early so that first day we will..."

Looks like you are going mid November so you would have a chance at the Christmas decoration hoping from hotel to hotel. Additionally staying that long at the GF, the first day would be a great day to really enjoy the hotel (the pool, love that lobby!, watch fireworks from wherever you do that at the GF). You make the point that you are paying GF rates so enjoy the GF! Don't make it shower and sleep hotel experience only.

I would definitely not give up free dining because I cannot get into the park one day.

Liz

 

[Robo]

I would definitely not give up free dining because I cannot get into the park one day.

Looks like nobody will have any problems getting their tickets early, anyway.

With what Cheshire Figment has explained above, the "tempest in a teapot" has boiled away, as far as I can see.

 

[bumbershoot]

And I check the Advisories section of The Hub daily. Normally something of this significance will stay up for several days; such as the advance notice of "Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room Opening Soon at Magic Kingdom" having gone up today and shows it will remain until August 15. There has been nothing posted to the Advisories on this subject.

Isn't that interesting. Someone who works directly with tickets isn't getting any sort of advisory about this...

And there you have it, situations like this totally explain why they would suddenly enforce policy. These two situations had honest people who did the right thing. I would bet more often than not people just smile and say "thank you".

If this truly is happening, it would again be an example of customers getting punished for CMs not doing their jobs well. The CMs should be checking for this, and if they don't know it can happen, that means they aren't trained properly. A disney problem being put onto the guests...

 

[habsfan71]

About five days prior to arrival date is when reservations are transferred from WDTC/CRO to the Resort where the reservation will be. Once that happens WDTC/CRO is out of the loop.

If a Guest want Early Package Ticket Pickup, they go to a theme park Guest Relations Window and the interaction is between GR and the Resort. CRO has no control at this point.

And I check the Advisories section of The Hub daily. Normally something of this significance will stay up for several days; such as the advance notice of "Walt Disney’s Enchanted Tiki Room Opening Soon at Magic Kingdom" having gone up today and shows it will remain until August 15. There has been nothing posted to the Advisories on this subject.

I'm hoping that some of the difference of opinions relates to picking up tickets at the resort vs. at the parks as you have stated previously in a post.

I also don't see what Disney is loosing, whether you use some days before a FD or other promotion as opposed to using it after The way I see it, if they let you pick up your tickets early, you go to the parks early - likely will spend $ at the park you attend. If you are staying offsite, there is the possibilty that not all meals will be purchased at Disney, but is this worth the risk of turning people off....

We have taken the FD offer and have booked a room only rate for 1 night. On our arrival date, we arrive quite early and would have spent the day at a couple of parks - probably would be buying at least one meal OOP + snacks + possibly going to see Wishes at MK. I was definately going to buy the "terrace fireworks package" - but not knowing for sure whether we will get our tickets the day we arrive - I will not take the chance. Now I know the terrace package will sell out regardless, but based on this, we may not even go to MK that night and spend some $ there. Instead, we may just stay at our hotel. So how is Disney gaining by enforcing this policy...

Looking forward to how this unfolds, we still have 78 days until our vacation, and I'm looking forward to hearing the experience of other people trying to get their tickets in advance. BTW, when I called on Wednesday to make the change to my package, my CM never mentionned one way or the other, whether we could request our tickets early....

 

[DisneyBamaFan]

Isn't that interesting. Someone who works directly with tickets isn't getting any sort of advisory about this...

Agreed, but CF has not said in a defacto way that this isn't correct. Interested to hear 1st hand experiences since this "change" was communicated.

 

[jcieutat]

Here is my situation. Our vacation with free dining is for Nov 27th - Dec 4th. This gives us 7 days in the park. We went ahead and added the 8th day to our tickets. We have booked a room only reservation at our resort for Nov 26th. One way or another I will get my park passes on Nov 26th. We will be paying for 3 (x 4 people) meals out of pocket that day in the park so they are definitely getting their money.

I am paying for 8 days and just choose to enter a day before my free dining package instead of a day on the back end to keep from taking my child out of school for another day. If anything, Disney is making out better on the deal since we are going to have to pay for our meals by arriving early instead of on the back end where they would pay for the meals with the free dining offer.

How could anyone think this would be double dipping?