News Early Entry Eliminated at Disneyland - Will Walt Disney World Be Next?

[Sirwalterraleigh]

I paid $150 for Pop, and it was clean. I really don't expect a hotel, especially an upper tier Hilton, to have a SHOE in the nightstand. I actually haven't been happy with Hilton for that reason lately. Even the Hilton Hawaiian was not up to what I'd expect for that price. I've been happier with Marriott, but I digress.

I travel a good bit and have a pretty good idea of price ranges for hotels. I cannot knock Pop Century. You have Skyliner access and can easily get to DHS and Epcot (I am a fan of the Skyliner... especially since my parents are DVC members and own at Beach Club. Much easier to get to DHS than the stupid boat). The buses at the value resorts run better than the deluxe resorts. The food at Pop is actually really good. They have 24 hour mug refill stations. The only negative thing I can really say is they tend to put the teenagers there. I will sometimes upgrade to preferred for that reason.

I also am not paying sticker price...I paid $150 for Pop on my last trip as I said, then one night at Contemporary for just over $300 (I got upgraded to the main tower...that will never happen again). I got a bounce back rate and splurged for BC for just about the same rate. That pool area...

I think what does make Disney resorts stand out is the staff. The staff at other hotels can be great, but Disney staff are always fantastic. The staff at the Hilton Head Island DVC location KNOW MY NAME. I mean, I have been there with my parents a good bit, but to learn my name? That's next level. I've also had staff at BC remember me as well. The only other hotel where that happened was a Fairfield in San Diego, but honestly, that hotel was a unicorn. Their staff was great and it was a gorgeous property.

My point is you can’t compare different locations so easily.

Anaheim is pricey. Next to the airport is definitely pricey. Orlando is about 500 hotels catering mostly to tourists in what is still a lower income kinda area. I totally get that poo beats a rundown chain…I love pop…but generally speaking Disney hotels are way overpriced for the name.

And it’s bout $250 most of the time now

 

[StarWarsGirl]

My point is you can’t compare different locations so easily.

Anaheim is pricey. Next to the airport is definitely pricey. Orlando is about 500 hotels catering mostly to tourists in what is still a lower income kinda area. I totally get that poo beats a rundown chain…I love pop…but generally speaking Disney hotels are way overpriced for the name.

And it’s bout $250 most of the time now

But here we have your point: proximity. You're paying in part for that as well. Because you cannot get into the parks as quickly off-site as you can from an on-site hotel. A better comparison would be Swolfin verses Disney resorts.

Cheapest I see via Google for Swan is about $274. Which isn't too bad for getting the same benefits and proximity except you get dropped off at TTC for MK. But it only gets 3.8 stars from TripAdvisor and 4.3 from Google reviews. Nearby Boardwalk gets 4.3 stars from TripAdvisor and 4.7 from Google Reviews. Pop Century gets 4.1 from Trip Advisor and 4.5 from Google Reviews.

Which has been my experience as well...the chains have just not been as good post Covid. Uni's resorts also run more expensive and also get better reviews. If I went to Uni (which I have always said this) I absolutely would be staying on property there as well.

 

[dlfan1313]

Well... there goes my absurd hope that they would eventually just roll LL into the cost of admission.

 

[Ayla]

It'd be completely idiotic to remove them from WDW, which means it's probably set to happen in 2027 (2026 is locked in and can't be removed now, at least not for EU/UK guests).

They can remove/stop offering it anytime they want to.

 

[Splash4eva]

…and the management wants that?

Was thinking the same thing. The cynical side is saying to myself Disney is finding a way to get people out of quick lines to bang stuff out into a position of paying for said advantage.

 

[Disstevefan1]

I heard it’s one LL per person PER STAY not a free one per day of your stay?

They are even cheapos when they are giving out something that costs them zero to provide!

 

[esskay]

They can remove/stop offering it anytime they want to.

To some guests, yup. But as they found out when they tried to make people pay for resort parking, they couldn't do that to UK/EU guests who had already booked. Thats a big no no and they'd be liable for huge fines from advertising authorities.

It's prominently advertised as a free perk of staying on site, so if you've paid for a resort stay and they then remove one of those perks after the fact that's false advertising, and the ASA love a good case of false advertising to tackle.

 

[tanc]

Chapek kind of decisions here. Why have early opening? Less buses, less workers to pay!

A bit off topic but:
It’s kinda unfortunate because DL is now my home resort. I’ve been enjoying it so much more than WDW lately. I booked DL hotel with DVC like 11 months ahead but unfortunately no EE is not enough to get rid of my reservation. But in the future, I’ll probably just stay at Hyatt regency and uber to DL.

 

[Ayla]

To some guests, yup. But as they found out when they tried to make people pay for resort parking, they couldn't do that to UK/EU guests who had already booked. Thats a big no no and they'd be liable for huge fines from advertising authorities.

It's prominently advertised as a free perk of staying on site, so if you've paid for a resort stay and they then remove one of those perks after the fact that's false advertising, and the ASA love a good case of false advertising to tackle.

You seem to think UK/EU laws apply to the United States.

 

[TrainsOfDisney]

My point is you can’t compare different locations so easily.

Anaheim is pricey.

I usually pay about the same. The Hilton in Anaheim is usually about the same price as the Hilton at Disney Springs. They are both outdated but the one in Anaheim has a real Starbucks where I can use my Hilton credit so they are the clear winner.

Usually on both coasts I’ll try to score a deal on Priceline these days.

 

[esskay]

You seem to think UK/EU laws apply to the United States.

You seem to think Disney is a US only operation.

You can't possibly not grasp that if a company advertises in a country, and sells something (especially a protected category like tourism) to citizens of that county that they are in some way not liable for what they sell.

Again - Disney knows this. This isn't new. They complied when they introduced paid parking at resorts, UK/EU visitors were exempt for approximately 18 months due to advertising law. Baffling why you feel this is some sort of argument you can shout against. It's a factual statement (and a very widely known one that's existed for decades), not an opinion.

And to be clear, nobody’s saying UK law applies in the US. The point is: when Disney (or Virgin, TUI, BA, etc.) sells a trip to WDW here, they are bound by UK/EU consumer law at the point of sale. That’s why UK guests were exempt from parking charges for 18 months. Disney knows this and already complies. And again - not an opinion, it’s just the basics of consumer contract law.