Can I Sneak a Guest Not on Reservation into my Disney Hotel?

[wdwfan22]

Surprised to find you on this side of this issue.

No, you can't do it. Capacity is not just four people but also two adults. Any adults more than two carry an extra charge. The appropriate thing to do would be to do two separate reservations. The first reservation would be for two adults and the second reservation would be for three adults. It avoids paying the extra charge for the entire trip but allows you to add your husband within the rules.

You do not need to do separate reservations. I've done this multiple times. The front desk can add additional guests at the time of check in for how ever many days they are staying.

 

[rt06]

No one is going to pay any attention to your husband.

 

[DisneyJoe]

You do not need to do separate reservations. I've done this multiple times. The front desk can add additional guests at the time of check in for how ever many days they are staying.

Agreed, this happens all of the time, I've done it myself, my family has, and so have many of our clients.

Yes, there is an extra adult charge for more than 2 adults in a room, but in most cases, when they are added at the front desk, that is waived, especially when they are only there for part of the trip.

 

[MrsG710]

This is what I was going to recommend. Take your existing reservation and break it up however you need to so Disney knows there are 2 nights where 3 people will be in the room.

If your husband is there in the middle of the trip, nights 4 and 5, you let them know ahead of time. They'll break the trip down into three different reservations, nights 1-3, nights 4-5, nights 6-8. They'll warn you (because they have to) that as a result of the split they can't guarantee you'll remain in the same room, but I've never heard of anyone who split up their reservation for any reason ever needing to move. It's a CYA thing in case they screw something up, that's all. But if you do it this way, they'll charge you the extra money for the nights he's there, but only those nights and everything's kosher.

The other option is the Slightly-More-Honest-But-Not-Totally approach of alerting the front desk on the day he arrives as if it were not planned (and hey, there's always the possibility he won't be able to join you after all, right?). At that point, the front desk can essentially choose to waive the fee (which might happen though I wouldn't count on it), or they'll do what I described above, cancel your existing reservation, set up a new reservation for those 2 nights with 3 adults, plus another reservation for the duration of the trip back down to 2 adults. The only drag with that approach is the time you'll have to spend at the front desk making that happen instead of enjoying yourself.

Husband is trying to come out for the end of the trip, not the middle, so I suppose I could just do it as two different reservations. I will talk with the front desk when I check-in to see if I can do that; like I said, I don't mind paying extra for the nights he'll be there, but my travel agent never gave me that option so I didn't know it was one. And you're right, I'm not even sure if he will get to make it to WDW so even your second suggestion could work. Thanks for the help!

 

[MrsG710]

Agreed, this happens all of the time, I've done it myself, my family has, and so have many of our clients.

Yes, there is an extra adult charge for more than 2 adults in a room, but in most cases, when they are added at the front desk, that is waived, especially when they are only there for part of the trip.

Really? I wonder why my travel agent told me I couldn't do it and he'd have to be on the reservation for the whole trip? I am okay with paying the extra charge, I just didn't want to have to pay it for nights he won't even be at the hotel. I will see what the front desk people can do for me. Thanks!

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Really? I wonder why my travel agent told me I couldn't do it and he'd have to be on the reservation for the whole trip? I am okay with paying the extra charge, I just didn't want to have to pay it for nights he won't even be at the hotel. I will see what the front desk people can do for me. Thanks!

Do you have a dining plan package for your stay? That makes a huge difference.

 

[MrsG710]

I've never done it at Disney, but I have stayed or have had guests stay at rooms without being on the reservation countless times throughout my life.
I say sneak 'em. Unless the Magicband/EME is an issue for the two days.

The extra guest is two nights/one day? You mean two days/one night?

MagicBand and ME won't be an issue. If he could make it he would be coming in late at night, doing Disney one day, and we'd all check-out the next morning so that's why I said two nights/one day. Some people have been saying that I can have him added to the reservation once he arrives so I will try to do that.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Husband is trying to come out for the end of the trip, not the middle, so I suppose I could just do it as two different reservations. I will talk with the front desk when I check-in to see if I can do that; like I said, I don't mind paying extra for the nights he'll be there, but my travel agent never gave me that option so I didn't know it was one. And you're right, I'm not even sure if he will get to make it to WDW so even your second suggestion could work. Thanks for the help!

I wouldn't bother with 2 different reservations, especially if there is any chance that he might not make it all. In that case, just a quick stop at the front desk would suffice when he shows up.

 

[MrsG710]

Do you have a dining plan package for your stay? That makes a huge difference.

No, it's a room only reservation.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

No, it's a room only reservation.

Cool, then I would definitely go with just telling the front desk when he arrives. Much simpler, and you won't be breaking any rules either.

 

[MrsG710]

Cool, then I would definitely go with just telling the front desk when he arrives. Much simpler, and you won't be breaking any rules either.

Perfect, that's what I will do then! Thank you for the advice!

 

[wdwfan22]

Really? I wonder why my travel agent told me I couldn't do it and he'd have to be on the reservation for the whole trip? I am okay with paying the extra charge, I just didn't want to have to pay it for nights he won't even be at the hotel. I will see what the front desk people can do for me. Thanks!

If i'm not mistaken Travel agents can not add guests for a portion of the reservation. Only the front desk has the ability to do this.

 

[DisneyFans4Life]

If all your husband is doing is meeting you to do a park, going back to the hotel to sleep and then you guys check out the next morning...why even go through all this trouble? Have fun at the parks, come back to pack and sleep, and then check out. I don't see the point in going through all this with a front desk...

 

[cornandacobb]

No one is going to pay any attention to your husband.

 

[Polydweller]

The OP is talking 3 adults in a room and knows that there is the extra person charge. To those counselling to just go ahead realize that you are telling the OP to commit fraud. Yes, it is fraudulent to avoid paying a room charge. Most housekeeping staff are told and trained to look for this kind of fraud. It carries the possibility of being charged and/or banned from the property if caught. Nobody should be advising breaking the law.

Since the OP knows about the charge and is willing to pay for the nights he is there then they should deal with this at the front desk who will only charge for the nights he is there. They cannot charge for nights when there isn't the extra occupancy though they may ask him to checkin and check out.

 

[dreamfinder]

Really? I wonder why my travel agent told me I couldn't do it and he'd have to be on the reservation for the whole trip? I am okay with paying the extra charge, I just didn't want to have to pay it for nights he won't even be at the hotel. I will see what the front desk people can do for me. Thanks!

Are you dealing with a TA who specializes in Disney? And not just one at your local agency who books all the Disney trips, but someone who really and truly get it? If they don't, then they most likely wouldn't know. And even if they did know, seeing as how they don't get a commission from having the front desk make the change, what's in it for them to tell you.

The front desk can do it no problem, shouldn't take them more than a few minutes to get it all set.

 

[MrsG710]

Are you dealing with a TA who specializes in Disney? And not just one at your local agency who books all the Disney trips, but someone who really and truly get it? If they don't, then they most likely wouldn't know. And even if they did know, seeing as how they don't get a commission from having the front desk make the change, what's in it for them to tell you.

The front desk can do it no problem, shouldn't take them more than a few minutes to get it all set.

Yes, my travel agent is one that specializes in Disney. Someone mentioned that TAs may not have the authority to add guests to the middle of a reservation like the front desk can so maybe that's why it wasn't mentioned to me... But now that I know that is an option for us I will be doing that if my husband ends up going. Thank you for the help!

 

[Minnesota disney fan]

This topic actually came up on our last trip. It was just my husband and me, but my daughter called to say she could come to WDW for 3 nites. This was a complete surprise, and we kicked the idea around of not notifying the front desk. This seemed wrong somehow. So, I went to the front desk and explained that our daughter had surprised us with an unplanned trip for a few days. The CM at the desk said this was fine, but just added her name to the booking. She said she would book her as a "day guest" and she would not be charged at all. I thought this was very thoughtful of the CM. The CM also said that when she arrived, per limo, that there would be no problem with her being admitted to our resort at all. When she arrived at the guard station, the guard had her name an welcomed her to the resort.

So, I guess being honest is the best policy, in our case! She did buy tickets at the park,and spent money on food and extras

 

[LuvtheGoof]

So, I guess being honest is the best policy, in our case! She did buy tickets at the park,and spent money on food and extras

Being honest is always the best policy, regardless of the situation. It really is a pity that way too many people are only looking at how they can game the system to get away with something.

 

[DisneyFans4Life]

My mother-in-law had a hotel (off property) for a couple nights to help out with a Special Olympics event. My wife and I and our two year old daughter were at Disney for the day, so my mother-in-law suggested after we left Disney to come stay with her for the night and then we'd go have breakfast at Chef Mickey's the next morning. The three of us got to her room around 11:30pm and left by 7:30am.

So based on what some have said on this thread, we should have gone to the front desk to ask about being added to the reservation and that what we did was fraudulent? Sorry...call me dishonest or judge however you want...but I just don't see going through all that trouble for the 8 hours we used the room. This is getting turned into something way bigger than it needs to be IMO.