Just Book Room Now?

[StarfishAndStingrays]

Hello everyone!
So I'm quite unsure of what to do when it comes to planning our January 2016 WDW trip!
Obviously, the Magic Your Way packages have no yet been released for January (boo!). I was told you can book a room only up to 500 days in advance, yet when I go to make room reservations, it still stops at December 2015. Is there something I'm missing here, or am I just going to have to (ever so impatiently) wait for Disney to release the packages?

 

[mousehockey37]

Hello everyone!
So I'm quite unsure of what to do when it comes to planning our January 2016 WDW trip!
Obviously, the Magic Your Way packages have no yet been released for January (boo!). I was told you can book a room only up to 500 days in advance, yet when I go to make room reservations, it still stops at December 2015. Is there something I'm missing here, or am I just going to have to (ever so impatiently) wait for Disney to release the packages?

Call. They will be able to help you book for anytime after December of this year.

 

[StarfishAndStingrays]

Call. They will be able to help you book for anytime after December of this year.

Thank you! I will do that! Do they only book the room or are the packages available over the phone as well?

 

[mousehockey37]

Thank you! I will do that! Do they only book the room or are the packages available over the phone as well?

Not sure. You can always ask, I'm sure they'll be happy to fill you in.

 

[StarfishAndStingrays]

Not sure. You can always ask, I'm sure they'll be happy to fill you in.

Thank you so much for your replies, I appreciate it!

 

[englanddg]

Discount deals for 2016 and the like will not be announced until later in the year. That's why the online system stops at Dec. 2015.

You can book your trip at regular price over the phone (including a Magic Your Way package), but your rate may change if rack rates go up. Likewise, you may find better deals closer to your actual trip after the discount deals are announced, so you may want to modify your reservation later.

As long as you are outside of the final payment window, you can make any changes to your reservation later without any consequences or further down payments required. After the final payment is made, any changes that result in a decrease of price will involve a change fee ($50 currently).

 

[StarfishAndStingrays]

Discount deals for 2016 and the like will not be announced until later in the year. That's why the online system stops at Dec. 2015.

You can book your trip at regular price over the phone (including a Magic Your Way package), but your rate may change if rack rates go up. Likewise, you may find better deals closer to your actual trip after the discount deals are announced, so you may want to modify your reservation later.

As long as you are outside of the final payment window, you can make any changes to your reservation later without any consequences or further down payments required. After the final payment is made, any changes that result in a decrease of price will involve a change fee ($50 currently).

Very good to know! I guess it wouldn't hurt to go ahead and book now if I can make changes once the packages are released. I wouldn't be spending more money by booking now though right? I mean, when the packages come out, I can still get one and change my previous reservations and end up spending more than if I had just waited, correct?

Maybe I'm just super paranoid. Sorry if these questions are annoying, heh...

 

[mousehockey37]

Very good to know! I guess it wouldn't hurt to go ahead and book now if I can make changes once the packages are released. I wouldn't be spending more money by booking now though right? I mean, when the packages come out, I can still get one and change my previous reservations and end up spending more than if I had just waited, correct?

Maybe I'm just super paranoid. Sorry if these questions are annoying, heh...

Well, it's always better to book now and change later than to wait, and be told there's nothing left. At least you would have something close to what you want and should a deal not come along, you've got the next 9 months to make up the difference.

 

[englanddg]

Very good to know! I guess it wouldn't hurt to go ahead and book now if I can make changes once the packages are released. I wouldn't be spending more money by booking now though right? I mean, when the packages come out, I can still get one and change my previous reservations and end up spending more than if I had just waited, correct?

Maybe I'm just super paranoid. Sorry if these questions are annoying, heh...

No, it won't cost you any more to book now. The deposit is the same if you book now or book later (it's always a flat $200). Your final payment date is set by your date of arrival (60 days out, as I recall, but don't quote me on that, but it is around that timeframe), and that's when your plans become "locked" (unless you want to pay the $50 change fee).

As deals are announced later (like Free Dining and late summer deals, etc) you can change your reservation to reflect those deals.

Always best to call rather than book through the site, imho.

 

[StarfishAndStingrays]

Thank you both! So I can still add on the flights later if I book the room now? Sorry, maybe that is a dumb question. I'm not the one paying for the trip, my parents are, so I want to get the best deal for them.

 

[mousehockey37]

Thank you both! So I can still add on the flights later if I book the room now? Sorry, maybe that is a dumb question. I'm not the one paying for the trip, my parents are, so I want to get the best deal for them.

Well, doing flights separate isn't going to hurt anything. When we went last time we had everything broken apart. Flights, car service, lodging, tickets, etc... We just kept track of all of it.

 

[StarfishAndStingrays]

Well, doing flights separate isn't going to hurt anything. When we went last time we had everything broken apart. Flights, car service, lodging, tickets, etc... We just kept track of all of it.

Oh gotcha. Well I believe my parents want to book everything through Disney. Flights, Magic Express, etc. So I just wanted to make sure I would still have the option to add flights to our Disney reservations once the packages are released.

 

[mousehockey37]

Oh gotcha. Well I believe my parents want to book everything through Disney. Flights, Magic Express, etc. So I just wanted to make sure I would still have the option to add flights to our Disney reservations once the packages are released.

I have no experience with that. So maybe someone else can chime in for you there.

 

[StarfishAndStingrays]

I have no experience with that. So maybe someone else can chime in for you there.

Thank you for all your help though!

 

[englanddg]

Oh gotcha. Well I believe my parents want to book everything through Disney. Flights, Magic Express, etc. So I just wanted to make sure I would still have the option to add flights to our Disney reservations once the packages are released.

You save nothing by booking flights through Disney. There is no advantage, and the discount is nominal.

Better to go through the airlines/travel sites directly.

Even if you book your flights separately, you can still link your flights (by flight number) to MDE and you'll still have the free Magical Express from MCO to your resort and back.

 

[StarfishAndStingrays]

You save nothing by booking flights through Disney. There is no advantage, and the discount is nominal.

Better to go through the airlines/travel sites directly.

Even if you book your flights separately, you can still link your flights (by flight number) to MDE and you'll still have the free Magical Express from MCO to your resort and back.

Oh wow, I didn't know this at all. I will double check the prices because I guess I hadn't noticed that. I'm glad you said something! Thank you!

 

[mousehockey37]

Oh wow, I didn't know this at all. I will double check the prices because I guess I hadn't noticed that. I'm glad you said something! Thank you!

Yeah, if, for example, you can get flights on Frontier Airlines for $59, you'd be crazy to go through Disney and have them fly you on USAir for $159 and have that be seen as a "deal". So, yeah, competitively shop around for your airfare.

 

[hollymc3]

Hello everyone!
So I'm quite unsure of what to do when it comes to planning our January 2016 WDW trip!
Obviously, the Magic Your Way packages have no yet been released for January (boo!). I was told you can book a room only up to 500 days in advance, yet when I go to make room reservations, it still stops at December 2015. Is there something I'm missing here, or am I just going to have to (ever so impatiently) wait for Disney to release the packages?

I'm curious if you ended up booking on line and if so were you able to do the whole package? We are going Jan 2016 too! I can't wait to book and start counting down!

 

[FrostyNaples]

No, it won't cost you any more to book now. The deposit is the same if you book now or book later (it's always a flat $200). Your final payment date is set by your date of arrival (60 days out, as I recall, but don't quote me on that, but it is around that timeframe), and that's when your plans become "locked" (unless you want to pay the $50 change fee).

As deals are announced later (like Free Dining and late summer deals, etc) you can change your reservation to reflect those deals.

Always best to call rather than book through the site, imho.

The flat rate deposit is for packages.

If you book a room only, the deposit is equal to one nights stay, which depending on your resort could be more than $200.

 

[MickeyMomV]

You save nothing by booking flights through Disney. There is no advantage, and the discount is nominal.

Better to go through the airlines/travel sites directly.

Even if you book your flights separately, you can still link your flights (by flight number) to MDE and you'll still have the free Magical Express from MCO to your resort and back.

Just to add a little to this... Disney does not book South West, Allegiant, or any other "discount" airline. So you usually save a bit by booking flight seperatly and just calling disney and giving them your flight info for the paperwork and DME reservations. For our last trip in February we saved $900 to $1000 for a family of 3 doing flight on our own. We booked everything else though Disney.

Somebody can correct me but I believe next years prices should be set by the end of next month and you should be able to book your package then. If you book room only now at "2014" prices and add a package later they will bump the room price to the "2015" prices and your savings might not be as much as you think it should. So if you are not adding a meal plan package you will really want to take a look at the price break down and see if it is worth the changes (you will have to figure this part out as Disney NEVER breaks down the prices for you). For our October 2013 trip we booked the package with no discounts in March and then went to add the new "promo" in July/August after the new prices came out and the same exact package went up $150 with the discounts because room, dining, and park tickets all went up in price.