Questions regarding switching hotels

[TheDoleWhipper]

Hello! Lately we have been thinking about switching from the DLH to the PPH for our trip in June to save money, since there are still rooms left at the PPH for our dates according to the disneyland official website. We have already booked (with a travel agent), but we have been able to make changes to our vacation package simply by emailing her. The thing is, those changes were "upgrades", and changing from the DLH to the PPH would be a "downgrade" since we would be spending less money. Is there a penalty or fee for changing your reservation to a lower priced hotel like the PPH (vacation package)? If so, what would be the fee for changing hotels, or would it depend on the package? Our TA told us that our vacation package (booked officially with disney) is 100% refundable until May, but if we rebook, we would have to pay a higher price for the tickets since we originally booked before the price increase. Sorry if I am being confusing lol.

Another question is that do you think that we would regret it if we switched to PPH? It wouldn't be a theme park view, just a standard. We have been looking forward to this vacation since March 2014, so I don't want us to spend the whole time wishing we would of stayed at the DLH. We are kind of used to higher-end hotels, and if we stayed offsite it would mess up our early entry / park day schedule. The rest of the family doesn't care much about which hotel, but me being a disney fanatic and all, I am sure it would put a damper on my attitude and excitement knowing we are staying at a lower tiered hotel. But me also being a teen, I could buy use that money we saved for some much-needed clothes and makeup lol. Is the paradise pier hotel all that bad, or should we stick with the DLH and not worry about anything?

Thanks for your help!

 

[mom2rtk]

What your TA said sounds right. You can cancel a package with no penalty until 45 days out. And rebooking would likely trigger the higher ticket prices.

 

[bumbershoot]

PPH is fabulous, and hardly a lower tier hotel, but you're booked and have been booked for a year. Changes would indeed likely trigger at least the fee, if not a total repricing of the whole thing. Stop overthinking, stop thinking about it LOL, and just go with what you have, IMO.

Since you're a teen as you mentioned, you're almost certainly not the one paying for this, so let the parents figure this out IMO.

As for cost of fees, the ones that booked this package probably got the list of fees sent to them, so they would know.

 

[Sherry E]

The PPH is not bad at all, and you'd probably like the cute sun/surf/beach theme that can be found around the property and in the rooms. But unless your family really wants/needs to downgrade I think I'd probably leave the reservation as is and stick with the DLH (which you will probably love as well). It could be tricky to rework the reservation without incurring the new ticket prices (as Janet and Molly mentioned above) and a possible fee, and, as a result, I don't know if all that much money would be saved to make the downgrade worthwhile, if any. Packages are always a tiny bit trickier to switch/change than just booking "room only" reservations anyway.

 

[TeresaR]

I would stick with staying at DLH at this point. With what the others have said $$$ wise look at it this way. The distance to the parks isn't that much farther than PPH, the theming of the hotel is just as unique and special in its own way AND it was the original hotel. Now granted it has been moved since it first opened but many of us still consider it the first hotel there when Walt built Disneyland. And I think having the theme park view is certainly worth the money and the memories you will have long after this trip is over. Just something to think about there.

 

[Geemo]

If you think you could save money by switching, check with your TA. See what your options are and if there are any fees related to your change request. If you do save enough to make it worth the change, go for it.

Geemo

 

[TheDoleWhipper]

Thank you everyone for your helpful replies! We will probably just stick with our original plans of staying at the DLH. Thanks again!