AP Holders: Should Disney "Stop the Clock" on passes until there is a Vaccine for COVID-19 ?

[midaroco]

I never said I wanted a refund. I want to get some flexibility. And it absolutely makes sense to anybody that plans vacations.

That's not "entitlement" or "egregious". It's common for a company with good customer service to do in extraordinary situations. They should be bending over backwards for annual pass holders. No way should they hid behind fine print like you suggest.

You were given flexibility, you simply don’t like the flexibility that was provided to you.
en·ti·tle·ment
the belief that one is inherently deserving of privileges or special treatment.

 

[Disney Bobby]

You already had this option, yet you chose to purchase an AP. If what you wanted was 14 day park hopper tickets, perhaps you should have purchased those instead.

You can use the refund of approx. $3.50 a day to apply toward these park hopper tickets!

No, what should happen is we should get some flexibility in making up what we reasonably expected to get when we purchased the passes. If not, Disney should come to terms with their customers with some flexibility.

 

[New Mouse]

Oh, now that is an interesting argument.

But.... don’t out of state/overseas AP holders pay more, not less? How does that fit your argument?

Because the prices and advertised value are based off of an assumption on both the guest and company side for someone out of state compared to one trip options.

The difference in price for Florida residents isnt because Disney is making a nice gesture to locals, they perceive they will get more value out of them long term with ancillary spending. Like it or not, you are just a $ at the end of the day when Disney looks at you.

 

[Disney Bobby]

You were given flexibility, you simply don’t like the flexibility that was provided to you.

Because maybe it wasn't really flexible.

en·ti·tle·ment
the belief that one is inherently deserving of privileges or special treatment.

It's not "inherent" when you pay for it.

 

[jo-jo]

Just to add to the mix of how one uses an AP. We started an AP on Nov 30 with a 9 day trip, had a 9 day trip planned beginning of May and a 9 trip is planned for early Nov. using up lots of DVC points. That's the way we have done it for years. Do three trips, skip a year and start again.

The summer months are too hot for us, the middle of winter we are afraid to travel with possible storms. So the idea of getting a pause or a 2 week tickets sounds amazing to me,. Adding the days to our AP would do nothing for us since we wouldn't take another trip so close or during Christmas season....not even taking into account finding DVC rooms for that time...., so we would do the refund. The refund would give us maybe $200-$300, but we'd still have to pay another $300-$400 for new tickets to take the May trip we are missing.

 

[dlavender]

There really isn’t a one size fits all that will work so I am just accepting this as a loss that was unavoidable.

We got 10 days out of our APs. Really wanted to get 20 in to make it “worth” it. But I realize that isn’t going to happen. We paid retail for our visits and I can make peace with that.

 

[vinotinto]

I have just seen this from Tom Bricker...
‘April 18, 2020 Update: It turns out our guesses above were wrong. Perhaps naively, we assumed that a refund would be given for the remaining dates, effectively canceling your Annual Pass. Per reports from multiple commenters on our Facebook page, the refund will be given based for the closure period, with the Annual Pass still valid thereafter. This means the refund will be neither immediate nor calculable until the closure ends. This might work out better for some people (and certainly Disney), but is a disappointing development…that we probably should’ve seen coming.’

I think this means that if WDW is closed for 40 days, you either accept a refund for 40 days, but your end/renewal date remains the same or receive a 40 day extension.

That is a very different story.

This is how I always understood it: if the parks are closed for 60 days (hypothetical), once they reopen you have two options
1) get a refund for the 60 days they were closed (your pass expiration stays the same)
2) do not get a refund, but your expiration date is extended 60 days

What some are saying in this thread is that those options do not work as well for those outside Florida that paid for their Platinum or Platinum Plus passes thinking they would get some specific trips and dates out of their pass.

 

[Aurora0427]

If they do not allow my husband and I to do anything beyond their current options, they are out the little bit they will be paying us for the refund period but they would be losing (or delaying until we can travel again) thousands of dollars in potential revenue between our almost 2 weeks of accommodations for a large party, 10 or so TS meals (again for a large party), even more QS meals, snacks, souvenirs, etc. The small bit of flexibility on their end means we can take a very expensive trip sooner than later. Lots of flexibility on their end could even mean an extra trip snuck in that we would not even consider if we didn’t hold active passes.

As a customer I am a drop in the bucket to Disney, but that little bit of flexibility that costs them next to nothing gets them a whole lot more back.

Same here.... if they’d allow us and my parents to freeze our passes until there’s a vaccine or a treatment or basically zero cases, they earn a ton of money off of us. We live in San Diego and come 1-2 times a month. We stay overnight and eat at TS and QS restaurants. Sometimes we stay on property. Very rarely do we leave without buying something we don’t need! My parents visit multiple times a year and we were planning on doing overnight trips with them at least three times, including one stay at the Disneyland Hotel. They’ll end up losing money on our family without a pass freeze, and like you said two families are a drop in the bucket, but there are more people who feel like we do.

 

[Disney Bobby]

There really isn’t a one size fits all that will work so I am just accepting this as a loss that was unavoidable.

We got 10 days out of our APs. Really wanted to get 20 in to make it “worth” it. But I realize that isn’t going to happen. We paid retail for our visits and I can make peace with that.

Yeah, I almost feel bad even worrying about it. Lots of people which much bigger problems to deal with whether it be their health or their jobs.

 

[ChipnDale79]

Wrong. I said they were valid for the next year, so they would expire within a year. That way people would have some flexibility. Doesn't even have to be a one for one day ticket, maybe just 14 days of tickets that would expire within a year.

And no, you can't make everyone happy. But, this involves the happiness of current pass holders, which isn't you, so don't get so high and mighty thinking you know what is right or fair to us when it's really none of your business and doesn't affect you.

Ok, so now I’m high and mighty.....alrighty

 

[mamapenguin]

I'm sure they are covered legally, but what you are legally obligated to do and what you should do ethically as a company can be two different things.

I completely agree with you, it’s about goodwill. It is also common knowledge that it is less expensive to retain a current customer than to try and attract a new one.

 

[midaroco]

Yeah, I almost feel bad even worrying about it. Lots of people which much bigger problems to deal with whether it be their health or their jobs.

 

[Disney Bobby]

Who are you to judge? You are here discussing it too.

In the end, everybody still has to handle their business. So, no, I don't feel bad discussing it.

 

[skyp4WDW]

What some are saying in this thread is that those options do not work as well for those outside Florida that paid for their Platinum or Platinum Plus passes thinking they would get some specific trips and dates out of their pass.

Exactly!

 

[ChipnDale79]

I completely agree with you, it’s about goodwill. It is also common knowledge that it is less expensive to retain a current customer than to try and attract a new one.

Disney hasn’t been providing “goodwill” for a few years now. They also haven’t cared about their current customers in a few years either, hence the continued price hikes on everything including annual passes. Maybe the coming bad economy will make disney reconsider.

but don’t count on it.

 

[disney rules]

I don’t work for Disney, or own their stock. I have an AP, and had a trip scheduled for 10 days in May that obviously isn’t happening. So I, myself, am impacted by this as well. I just think the overwhelming sense of entitlement and expectation is egregious. I’m not saying there are not some valid points, however they are the minority given that Disney has made a fair accommodation for what is transpiring. We have to also be accountable, as consumers, for the purchases we make and honor those purchases if we expect business to do the same. For the folks bragging that they spend $30,000 a year at WDW, then complaining they want a refund of $800 for their AP - it makes absolutely no sense. The majority of folks on here seem to have purchased an annual pass not for the intent of it, rather specifically to use within a one to two month period. You can’t purchase something that is intended for annual use, then expect to be compensated by the company you purchased it from because you have personal factors that limit your use of the product.

Sure you can. If the product is out there, you make the purchase because it works for you, not because you may get lucky and it might work out. I knew i was making two 14 day trip within the year, so the product available made sense or I would not have purchased it. Disney knows that there are familes that can only go during the summer because of school/work, etc, and these families should be looked as good faith.

 

[karen4546]

I can not get the information i need regarding my current AP RENEWAL VOUCHER from DVC member service, ticket customer service or anyone. I have been on the phone with different departments-including hold time for 1.5 hours.

Here is my concern:

Our Platinum Annual Passes were to expire December 18, 2019. I got the email to renew but I wanted to renew to the GOLD AP since we bought DVC in May 2019. I was directed to member services and was able to RENEW to the Gold AP at the renewal rate. I was told I needed to go to guest services to activate the Gold AP renewal passes.

Here is what I want to do:

I would like to pay the difference between the renewal price and a new pass to get new passes instead of the renewals. Why? Because if we can't go at the end of May and use them then the next time we will use them is September. I told the Ticket CM and DVC member services and member services said I could go to guest services and maybe do that. What do you think?

Also, she said my renewal expires December 08 not the 18th. I renewed online over the phone on December 8, but my Platinum pass did not expire unitl December 18 and so why does my voucher have December 08? Because if that is the case then they owe me money from the Platinum Pass - I guess I could take that up with guest services also.

Also, will the extension to APs make us have a NEW EXPIRATION DATE? I would think so since if they extend it say 2 months and in my case that would be February and so my RENEWALS would be February not December. If they don't give NEW expiration then the annual passes are not good for 12 months. In my case, it would only be good 10.

Last thing.... TIW is going to be extended also, right??

 

[midaroco]

Who are you to judge? You are here discussing it too.

In the end, everybody still has to handle their business. So, no, I don't feel bad discussing it.

As I assume this was meant for me, I will ask you what judgement did I make?

The irony is that not only are you the one judging, your statement regarding everyone still having to handle their business is quite contradictory to your opinions regarding the Walt Disney Company trying to handle their business.

 

[midaroco]

Also, will the extension to APs make us have a NEW EXPIRATION DATE? I would think so since if they extend it say 2 months and in my case that would be February and so my RENEWALS would be February not December. If they don't give NEW expiration then the annual passes are not good for 12 months. In my case, it would only be good 10.

Last thing.... TIW is going to be extended also, right??

They will have a new expiration date.
Also, yes - TIW is extended as well.

 

[elaine amj]

Freezing would be a fantastic solution for me. I have had a lengthy recovery (I am still dealing with fatigue!) from a bout of pneumonia I got at the end of December (ironically from a Christmas/NYe trip to WDW) and am nervous about the virus. On top of that, my DH is still in recovery from cancer. So we have underlying factors and will not be leaving our house when the world goes back to normal.

We bought our APs to use from Dec 2019 to Dec 2020 for a special celebration year. We had planned at least 5-6 trips or more this year and were super excited. We managed two trips before the shutdown.

Now even if they open up, I don't know if we will feel safe enough to go for a good long time. We are pretty sure we will not go for our family extravaganza trip we had planned for the end of August. We have slim hopes of makeup Christmas trip.

But no - even with the extension of dates that have been announced, we will not get the use out of our passes that we planned. I don't want a refund (especially since we bought our APs before that massive increase early last year). I just want to go to our happy place. But not if it poses an undue risk to our health. So we have resigned ourselves to "wasting" our passes.

A freeze that would allow us to wait until we personally feel safe to re-activate our passes would be ideal. Not something I would demand they do, but will make us feel so much happier about giving Mickey more and more money when we finally get to go back! Believe me - once it is safe, we will be back at Disney with our ears on and handing over our money as many times as possible!