In what order does Disney try hotel discounts to increase occupancy?

[lentesta]

I found All-Star rooms on Priceline Express for $59/night this week ($76 with tax). It got me wondering about the order in which Disney tries discounting rooms to boost occupancy.

For example, selling on Priceline probably isn't the first move Disney makes - they have to pay commission, for example. So what is the first, second, etc. discount move that Disney makes? How far down the list is Priceline?

My guess is that the list looks something like this, in increasing order of desperation:

1. Regular rates
2. Discounts for the general public ("Magical Holidays" is the current discount for this week, 10% off value resorts)
3. PIN codes & other targeted, direct-to-consumer
4. CM and Travel Agent discounts
5. Priceline, Hotwire, etc.
6. ?????

If anyone knows what those steps are, I'd be interested in hearing about them.

ETA: Coronado Springs for $110/night and AKL for $151/night are other prices we've seen.

 

[Bolt]

Cast Member rates are pretty steady the entire year. Occasionally a few select hotels for a season get discounted with a code but I wouldn't really add them in the equation as they don't do 'get a deal for tonight only' type of stuff.

 

[teddisney]

I'd guess that Priceline and Hotwire are actually higher in priority, since people searching for rooms on the DW website are less likely to come across those "hidden" deals on PL or HW.

It protects the brand image a bit, so they're probably more willing to pay the commission to those sites than you'd think.

 

[disneyflush]

I would think these options would be way down at the bottom of the list. Disney would have to pay Priceline a (~)15% commission for booking their room which combined with the low price of the room doesn't leave much meat on the bone for Disney. That also makes me think that Disney could certainly book every room on property if they offered them at the prices being mentioned in Len's post which gives credence to Ted's post. This also drives home, to some extent, how many sales/marketing angles are tied to high room prices (DVC savings, the value of % discount offers, etc.). Great question Len.

Also pretty interesting in your Twitter post that people are getting Thanksgiving week bookings at the same crazy low rates (saw a Coronado Springs for $87 per night). No idea if this is some pricing glitch they will get corrected quickly or if this is reflective of low demand for a traditionally crowded time of year.

 

[HauntedPirate]

This is an excellent question/scenario. Does Disney want those rooms filled at a higher price and run the risk of rooms going unsold, thus sacrificing the room dollars and the guest spending, or are they willing to accept a lower price on the room to fill it, knowing that the guest on-site spending will follow? I know I'm very curious to know what methods they use to attempt to fill rooms, and in what order/lengths they are willing to go to fill rooms.

 

[tissandtully]

6 is definitely "Whoever wanders into All Star Sports gets a free stay"

 

[Mouse Trap]

Disney will gladly pay commission to an Expedia, Orbitz, etc than have an obscene amount of rooms empty. Of course there is some control, but it certainly protects the brand image by offering the hotels at rock bottom rates on third party sites than on the Disney website. It's far more common than you may think. A 10% commission is nothing if it means getting a family of 4 to spend a few days at WDW they wouldn't otherwise.

 

[Jon81uk]

I would assume there is some kind of occupancy tipping point where empty rooms "cost" money as you have housekeeping and front desk staff who are not busy enough. But also at the other end a point where they need extra staff (overtime etc) once you get close to the resort being fully booked.

 

[larryz]

I would assume there is some kind of occupancy tipping point where empty rooms "cost" money as you have housekeeping and front desk staff who are not busy enough. But also at the other end a point where they need extra staff (overtime etc) once you get close to the resort being fully booked.

My understanding is that Disney's manning is flexible enough to shift resources to/away from properties as dictated by occupancy rates...

 

[DisneyJoe]

Cast Member rates are pretty steady the entire year. Occasionally a few select hotels for a season get discounted with a code but I wouldn't really add them in the equation as they don't do 'get a deal for tonight only' type of stuff.

Same with TA rates.

 

[Slov72]

With these rates, how do you figure out what hotel is what?

 

[DisneyJoe]

I would assume there is some kind of occupancy tipping point where empty rooms "cost" money as you have housekeeping and front desk staff who are not busy enough. But also at the other end a point where they need extra staff (overtime etc) once you get close to the resort being fully booked.

When there are too many empty rooms, they strategically put people in certain buildings so that they can close a building or two - and this can artificially inflate room occupancy. For example, if there 10 buildings (All-Star Music), and they close a building due to not having enough guests or even maintenance, and the remaining 9 buildings are 90% full, the resort is at 90% occupancy, even though a building is empty.

 

[BigThunderMatt]

My understanding is that Disney's manning is flexible enough to shift resources to/away from properties as dictated by occupancy rates...

It is. They call it deployment. When one resort is having a slow week they'll transfer some of their Cast Members to other resorts that are higher occupancy to help them out when they're shortstaffed. It's more likely to happen to bellmen and concierge than it is Front Desk based on the resort as they generally staff that area just enough to the point that if they take more than a couple call ins everybody starts running around like the sky is falling.

 

[Epcotfan21]

@lentesta this is certainly interesting. Another poster in the resort forum posted a in a thread about Priceline Express deals and listed all the "descriptions" that Priceline uses for each of the Disney Resorts. Combine that with the Hotel Canary and you should be pretty closed to guaranteed of knowing which Disney Resort you're booking.

 

[Gabe1]

I found All-Star rooms on Priceline Express for $59/night this week ($76 with tax). It got me wondering about the order in which Disney tries discounting rooms to boost occupancy.

For example, selling on Priceline probably isn't the first move Disney makes - they have to pay commission, for example. So what is the first, second, etc. discount move that Disney makes? How far down the list is Priceline?

My guess is that the list looks something like this, in increasing order of desperation:

1. Regular rates
2. Discounts for the general public ("Magical Holidays" is the current discount for this week, 10% off value resorts)
3. PIN codes & other targeted, direct-to-consumer
4. CM and Travel Agent discounts
5. Priceline, Hotwire, etc.
6. ?????

If anyone knows what those steps are, I'd be interested in hearing about them.

ETA: Coronado Springs for $110/night and AKL for $151/night are other prices we've seen.

Keep in mind AKL doesn't have a pool currently which pretty much results in guests having to stay indoors at the resort or hike over to the DVC. Pool view room balconies overlook a construction site in the atrium area. You can go see the animals but that is about it AKL for the next few months.

Coronado currently has many of their nicer things closed beyond the Tower being built.

• Lost City of Cibola Pool
• Lost City of Cibola Kiddie Pool
• Jaguar Slide
• Dig Site Spa
• Iguana Arcade
• Siestas Cantina Pool Bar***

So likely why they are turning up on Priceline. Wouldn't doubt if the Caribbean has also had their time on Priceline over the past year. We over 3 weeks stayed at Pop, Contemporary, French Quarter and Riverside from the last week of August through the middle of September (work, convention and then vacation) and the resorts were not empty by any means but they were not close to full either most of the 22 days minus Labor Day weekend. A true tale is often the QS restaurants of the resorts during peak times of the morning. Guests normally don't resort hop for a QS breakfast at a different resort. For our stay in and out of the QS food courts, a breeze.

Now finding a room for Mickey's Birthday weekend, a challenge.

 

[monothingie]

This sounds like a question for the official WDWMAGIC Travel Agency.

@Kingdom Konsultant
@wannabeBelle

 

[Ricky Spanish]

So $59 a night/$76 with tax?
That's almost 30% tax, right?
Why so much tax, or what am I missing?

 

[wannabeBelle]

As DisneyJoe and Bolt have said, certain rates for Cast members and TA's are fairly constant however the rooms allocated to each might change, I have definitely seen that happen. I have heard that Priceline, Hotwire etc purchase rooms at a wholesale rate and then re-sell them at the rate that is seen online, however that was not from an official source so I cant swear for that one. I dont know if there is an "official" order on discounts and if there is, it is not something that I would know. Sorry Len!! Marie

 

[Master Yoda]

So $59 a night/$76 with tax?
That's almost 30% tax, right?
Why so much tax, or what am I missing?

Sales tax (6.5%-7% depending on the county) plus hotel room tax (12.5%-13% depending on the county).

On behalf of myself and all other Florida residents that do not have to pay state income taxes thanks in part to the hotel room tax, I thank you.

 

[Tony the Tigger]

I found All-Star rooms on Priceline Express for $59/night this week ($76 with tax). It got me wondering about the order in which Disney tries discounting rooms to boost occupancy.

For example, selling on Priceline probably isn't the first move Disney makes - they have to pay commission, for example. So what is the first, second, etc. discount move that Disney makes? How far down the list is Priceline?

My guess is that the list looks something like this, in increasing order of desperation:

1. Regular rates
2. Discounts for the general public ("Magical Holidays" is the current discount for this week, 10% off value resorts)
3. PIN codes & other targeted, direct-to-consumer
4. CM and Travel Agent discounts
5. Priceline, Hotwire, etc.
6. ?????

If anyone knows what those steps are, I'd be interested in hearing about them.

ETA: Coronado Springs for $110/night and AKL for $151/night are other prices we've seen.

I think you left out:

1. FL resident discounts, which are better than 10% off to the general public discounts.

2. AP discounts, which are sometimes the same as, and sometimes better than FL resident discounts.

In my experience, Priceline (etc.) discounts are similar to the going AP rate at the time. The rates you’re quoting now are unusual.

Also, at times we’ve seen:

3. Non-standard AP targeted, limited discounts. I believe it was last year sometime AP’s got an email offering values for $49-ish per night, for a very short set of dates.