News Walt Disney World renames certain room categories

[Weather_Lady]

Did you read the announcement?

They said quite clearly that anyone who booked under the old naming scheme would be getting rooms that were classified however they were classified before.

If you booked Lagoon when it was called Lagoon, there's absolutely zero risk that you get Pool. The change only applies to new reservations for people who book "Water." There is no bait-and-switch.


Yes, not everything is a grand conspiracy to screw people.

When you have a ton of different room categories, it's hard to honor people's requests when they ask for connecting rooms, high floor, near an elevator, not facing the bus stop, etc. You might only have a handful of rooms in that category when you have 10 different categories. When you have fewer categories with more rooms per category, you have more flexibility to move people around to honor their requests.

Connecting rooms are the number one request and they're hugely important to families with many small children. This will help those families tremendously.

I know what the e-mail said, but when I live-chatted a CM, they told me that wasn't really the case, and that I would no longer be eligible for any rooms that were formerly garden view but have now been upgraded to water view.

Thinking this had to be wrong, I called guest services to confirm, and asked if the change in designations meant I could still request a room with a view of the quiet pool at the Yacht Club (because those rooms were formerly garden view, which is what I booked). I was told no, that's now a different category (water view), and that all the e-mail really meant was that we'd still get a room within the new designation for our category -- that is, a resort view room. The CM with whom I spoke said we wouldn't be "grandfathered into" what the rooms used to be called or how they used to be classified, because "there's no way for the people who assign the rooms to even know when you booked -- all they'll see is what I see in the system, which has been updated with the new categories and now says that you've booked a 'resort view' room, and that's where they'll put you."

I didn't make this up. If the CMs were wrong, that's on them, but based on conversations I've been having with others on a Yacht/Beach Club-specific Facebook group, many other guests have been told the same thing I was.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I know what the e-mail said, but when I live-chatted a CM, they told me that wasn't really the case, and that I would no longer be eligible for any rooms that were formerly garden view but have now been upgraded to water view.

Thinking this had to be wrong, I called guest services to confirm, and asked if the change in designations meant I could still request a room with a view of the quiet pool at the Yacht Club (because those rooms were formerly garden view, which is what I booked). I was told no, that's now a different category (water view), and that all the e-mail really meant was that we'd still get a room within the new designation for our category -- that is, a resort view room. The CM with whom I spoke said we wouldn't be "grandfathered into" what the rooms used to be called or how they used to be classified, because "there's no way for the people who assign the rooms to even know when you booked -- all they'll see is what I see in the system, which has been updated with the new categories and now says that you've booked a 'resort view' room, and that's where they'll put you."

I didn't make this up. If the CM was wrong, it's on them, but based on conversations I've been having with others on a Yacht/Beach Club-specific Facebook group, many other guests have been told the same thing I was.

You're not going to get a free upgrade to Water View, I'm not sure why you would think you would be entitled to that. But you're also not going to get downgraded to the old Standard View. You're going to get Garden View, exactly like you paid for.

 

[dreday3]

???

How is that any different than it used to be?

Because now garden and standard are lumped into one.
So you can be paying garden price for a standard view. Therefore, no longer guaranteed a "nice" garden view.

Only way I see this as a benefit to the customer is if they keep resort view at the standard view price instead of bumping up the old standard price to garden view price.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

So you can be paying garden price for a standard view.

There's absolutely no evidence that this will be the case, you just made it up. We don't know if Resort View will be priced like Standard View, Garden View, or something in between.

It's just as possible that you'd be paying Standard price for Garden View.

 

[dreday3]

There's absolutely no evidence that this will be the case, you just made it up. We don't know if Resort View will be priced like Standard View, Garden View, or something in between.

Did you read the rest of my post before you fainted?

I addressed that.

 

[Weather_Lady]

You're not going to get a free upgrade to Water View, I'm not sure why you would think you would be entitled to that. But you're also not going to get downgraded to the old Standard View. You're going to get Garden View, exactly like you paid for.

Please reread my post - you missed the point. I'm not looking for a "free upgrade" -- the rooms facing the quiet pool WERE GARDEN VIEW ROOMS, WHICH IS WHAT I BOOKED. I only paid for Garden View because I had the ability to request a room facing the quiet pool (if that was even necessary, since half of the fomerly-known-as-garden rooms at Yacht Club faced the quiet pool), since that's where we wanted to be. While Disney had no obligation to honor that request, the chance to get one was part of what I paid for, and I booked the only room category that would put me there. Now, Disney has reclassified all of the best Garden View rooms as Water View, with no notice to guests, and no chance to adjust our booking (as some dates are fully booked and no changes to room categories can now be made).

How would you feel if you bought a lottery ticket for a 1 million dollar grand prize, only to find out that the grand prize was later reduced to $1,000? It doesn't matter that you had no guarantee of winning -- you're still entitled to the chance to get exactly what you were told that ticket entitled you to at the time you purchased it, not a diminished subset of that.

UPDATE: Just for $&*% and giggles, I live-chatted with another CM ("Dora") today, asking whether those of us who had reserved Garden View rooms: (1) could request Garden View rooms that were subsequently re-designated as Water View after we booked and paid; or (2) if not, could we at least rest assured that we would NOT be assigned any rooms that had been designated as cheaper "Standard View" rooms at the time we booked and paid a premium for Garden View? This CM took several minutes to get back to me and claimed to have consulted with higher-ups in Guest Services. Their answer? "The issue is unsettled," Guest Services doesn't have a consensus as to what the e-mail to guests meant, and I should "CALL BACK IN JUNE OR JULY" and see what Guest Services has decided to do with reservations that were made prior to the change in room categories and room designations. (!??!) I'm starting to think the CMs just sit there with a Magic 8-ball...

 

[DisneyDebRob]

Please reread. I'm not looking for a "free upgrade" -- the rooms facing the quiet pool WERE GARDEN VIEW ROOMS. I only paid for Garden View in the first place because I had the ability to request a room facing the quiet pool (if that was even necessary, since half of the fomerly-known-as-garden rooms at Yacht Club faced the quiet pool), because that's where we want to be. While Disney had no obligation to honor that request, the chance to get one was part of what I paid for, and I booked the only room category that would put me there. Now, Disney has reclassified all of the best Garden View rooms as Water View, with no notice to guests, and no chance to adjust our booking (as some dates are fully booked and no changes to room categories can now be made).

How would you feel if you bought a lottery ticket for a 1 million dollar grand prize, only to find out that the grand prize was later reduced to $1,000? It doesn't matter that you had no guarantee of winning -- you're still entitled to the chance to get exactly what you were told that ticket entitled you to at the time you purchased it, not a diminished subset of that.

UPDATE: Just for $&*% and giggles, I live-chatted with another CM ("Dora") today, asking whether those of us who had reserved Garden View rooms: (1) could request Garden View rooms that were subsequently re-designated as Water View after we booked and paid; or (2) if not, could we at least rest assured that we would NOT be assigned any rooms that had been designated as "Standard View" at the time we booked and paid for Garden View? This CM took several minutes to get back to me and claimed to have consulted with higher-ups in Guest Services. Their answer? "The issue is unsettled," Guest Services doesn't have a consensus as to what the e-mail to guests meant, and I should "CALL BACK IN JUNE OR JULY" and see what Guest Services has decided to do with reservations that were made prior to the change in room categories and room designations. (!??!) I'm starting to think the CMs just sit there with a Magic 8-ball...

And the answer on that 8- ball always reads..” unknown”.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

How would you feel if you bought a lottery ticket for a 1 million dollar grand prize, only to find out that the grand prize was later reduced to $1,000? It doesn't matter that you had no guarantee of winning -- you're still entitled to the chance to get exactly what you were told that ticket entitled you to at the time you purchased it, not a diminished subset of that.

It's not a lottery ticket, it's a hotel room. You're not entitled to the chance of anything. All you're entitled to is the worst room in the category you booked, and you're entitled to it being clean, with all furniture and fixtures in good working order.

Also, unlike the lottery ticket, you have the ability to cancel for a full refund if you're unhappy with the inventory change.

And the answer on that 8- ball always reads..” unknown”.

It's not unknown! It's explicitly clear!

"You will still receive the exact room type you originally booked." They even used the word "exact." How could it possibly be any clearer than that?

Yes, fine, maybe there's a training issue and "Dora" on the live chat hasn't been fully brought up to speed on the changes here, but this implication that they're going to take people who have already booked Garden View and downgrade them against their will while keeping the money is made up out of whole cloth. It's not happening.

 

[drnilescrane]

"You will still receive the exact room type you originally booked." They even used the word "exact." How could it possibly be any clearer than that?

The only issue I see is, having some experience with this, on a technical level I don't know how they're going to achieve that. Unless they've put some attribute on the rooms with their historical view types. Or they've just relabeled the existing categories and won't move the rooms in the system until 2024.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Unless they've put some attribute on the rooms with their historical view types.

I imagine that's exactly what they did.

Dimension 1: Legacy Category
Dimension 2: New Category

Dimension 2 is the one that displays on the website but Dimension 1 is still attached to the metadata (for lack of a better term) for each room in the inventory.

If booking date was before May 15, rooms will be assigned based on Dimension 1. If booking date was on or after May 15, they'll used Dimension 2.

 

[DisneyDebRob]

It's not a lottery ticket, it's a hotel room. You're not entitled to the chance of anything. All you're entitled to is the worst room in the category you booked, and you're entitled to it being clean, with all furniture and fixtures in good working order.

Also, unlike the lottery ticket, you have the ability to cancel for a full refund if you're unhappy with the inventory change.


It's not unknown! It's explicitly clear!

View attachment 717974

"You will still receive the exact room type you originally booked." They even used the word "exact." How could it possibly be any clearer than that?

Yes, fine, maybe there's a training issue and "Dora" on the live chat hasn't been fully brought up to speed on the changes here, but this implication that they're going to take people who have already booked Garden View and downgrade them against their will while keeping the money is made up out of whole cloth. It's not happening.

My wife is a travel agent for mostly Disney and Universal. You can quote Disney.. show me what it says on their website.. trust the mouse.. but I know differently. Just believe me when I say that during the course of the year she hears from her clients that arrive and have to fight for what they “ originally booked”. Now I will say most, not all but most do eventually get what they booked( my wife) but the system is screwed up and no one should have to start their vacation with that aggravation with what they are paying.
I never said anything about downgrades so not sure why that was mentioned in your post referencing my response before. It should be what they client booked, or an upgrade that fits the clients needs.not all upgrades do. But never a downgrade as you mentioned.

 

[Weather_Lady]

Yes, fine, maybe there's a training issue and "Dora" on the live chat hasn't been fully brought up to speed on the changes here, but this implication that they're going to take people who have already booked Garden View and downgrade them against their will while keeping the money is made up out of whole cloth. It's not happening.

I've been told by 2 CMS now that that is exactly what is happening, and told by a third that Guest Services actually has no idea how this is going to work in practice. You can point to the Disney Destinations email all you like, but it's not unreasonable to worry that we may arrive at check-in, only to find out, to paraphrase of Inigo Montoya, that the words "exact room type" don't mean what we think it means, in the eyes of Disney.

 

[Weather_Lady]

I never said anything about downgrades so not sure why that was mentioned in your post referencing my response before. It should be what they client booked, or an upgrade that fits the clients needs.not all upgrades do. But never a downgrade as you mentioned.

I think the "downgrade" was a reference to my post. The CMs I talked to said that "exact room type" in the email means that since I booked Garden View at YC, I'll be assigned any of the newly-designated Resort View rooms, because that's the category that Disney considers to be the equivalent (mid-range) room type. When I've pointed out that the new "Resort View" category is neither the "exact room type" nor its equivalent, because it now includes rooms that were formerly designated Standard View (cheaper than Garden View, with undesirable views), I've been unable to get a clear answer from Disney as to whether I could end up getting assigned one of those re-designated Standard Rooms. 2 CMs said yes, I could end up in a downgraded (f/k/a Standard View) room, because the room assigner will have no way of knowing what I originally booked or when: the screen in front of them will only say I'm now in a Resort View room. A third CM said that Guest Services hadn't figured out whether there was a way to allocate rooms one way for guests who booked prior to the room designation change, and another for guests who booked after, but that I should call back later in the summer to see if they'd found a solution.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

the room assigner will have no way of knowing what I originally booked or when

That is incorrect.

The entry-level CMs on the reservation line have no idea what they're talking about. What you're doing here is the equivalent of bus driver construction rumors.

 

[Weather_Lady]

That is incorrect.

The entry-level CMs on the reservation line have no idea what they're talking about. What you're doing here is the equivalent of bus driver construction rumors.

They're the only option we have for seeking clarification at this point (until Iger gives me his cell number), and if they tell me they've spoken with higher-ups in Guest Services to get their answers, I have no reason to doubt them. This isn't like hearing a random rumor from a bus driver: giving guests correct information about Disney ticketing, hotels, etc. is literally their job!

It's not the end of the world: I have my plan of action in place and know how to respond in the event that what the CMs are saying could happen, happens -- the purpose of my postings has simply been to make others aware of the possibility. After 20+ years of legal practice, I know enough about corporate puffery not to place my trust in a single sentence of an email which is open to multiple interpretations.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

They're the only option we have for seeking clarification at this point (until Iger gives me his cell number), and if they tell me they've spoken with higher-ups in Guest Services to get their answers, I have no reason to doubt them.

There's great reason to doubt them, in the sense that what they told you is incoherent.

Your booking category is directly tied to the rate you're going to be charged, and remember that you're not *actually* charged until check-in.

If you booked a garden view room for $500, and a standard room would have been $450 under the old model, and a resort view room will be $480 under the new model you can't say both 1) they're going to charge me $500 and also 2) they might assign me one of the old $450 rooms because they can't tell what I booked.

 

[Weather_Lady]

There's great reason to doubt them, in the sense that what they told you is incoherent.

Your booking category is directly tied to the rate you're going to be charged, and remember that you're not *actually* charged until check-in.

If you booked a garden view room for $500, and a standard room would have been $450 under the old model, and a resort view room will be $480 under the new model you can't say both 1) they're going to charge me $500 and also 2) they might assign me one of the old $450 rooms because they can't tell what I booked.

I'm not going down this rabbit hole with you any further. I shared the information I was told, which is that I absolutely could get assigned one of those old Standard rooms, despite having paid for a Garden View room, because the Resort View category (to which all Garden View reservations have already been converted in Disney's system) includes both. You can disagree with it and question the sources all you like, but nobody knows what's going to happen (or what isn't going to happen) until it does.

Also, Garden View rooms (at least, at the YC) have been converted to "Resort View" rooms on the Disney website and are offered for exactly the same price, which would seem to confirm what the CMs told me about Disney considering Resort View to be the functional equivalent of the category formerly known as Garden View (even though as a practical matter, they are not -- Disney didn't just change the name, but upgraded all the best Garden View rooms to Water View, and reclassified a number of Standard Rooms as Resort View. They're selling a different set of rooms, under a different name, and pretending they're the same as before.)

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I shared the information I was told

But you weren't told the information by a room assigner!

What you shared is like saying "this is what a hippopotamus keeper at Animal Kingdom told me about fireworks safety procedures at Epcot."