Got an email from Disney I'm not sure I understand

[cruiser21]

I don't really care I rarely use cash, but I don't like options being taken away from people. It seems like we are headed towards a cashless society, and there is just something creepy about that. At least that's the way I feel about it.

 

[kenthanson]

What do you think the cash lose is on a daily basis in all of WDW? $5000 is my guess, but let's go conservative and say $500, now times 365 days that's $180xxx a year, that's a million dollars lost in the last 6 years.

 

[MomOfDisneyPrincess]

I have to agree with a PP who suggested Disney knows people spend more with electronic payment options. There are studies that show we spend less when we use cash. I'm sure Disney wants to make it as easy as possible to spend money with them and when we lose track of the balance adding up, we don't stop spending. When we get home and see that grand total, it's too late - the Mouse already his cheese.

 

[jodifla]

It will save them a lot not to have to deal with cash. I bet that is the motivator.

 

[djc9699]

As has been said, put the cash on a gift card. Easy peasy.

Except then you have a gift card that can only be spent at Disney instead of cash to take home. Sorry, but I pay cash in most instances and do not like that change.

 

[KBoopaloo]

I'm curious if someone who makes a dining reservation at Boma or Jiko is being informed too. Or just Lodge resort guests. That would also indicate if they are planning to implement this test to include all guests or just those staying there. If it's just Lodge guests that sort of tells you who the test is for.

I read on another site that yes, people making dining reservations (not just resort guests staying at Jambo House) are being made aware of the change as all goods and services at the resort other than tipping will be cashless during the pilot. It will be for all guests, not just those staying at the resort.

 

[AngiTN]

I read on another site that yes, people making dining reservations (not just resort guests staying at Jambo House) are being made aware of the change as all goods and services at the resort other than tipping will be cashless during the pilot. It will be for all guests, not just those staying at the resort.

I have one for Boma so we will see what I get

 

[gillep]

I am mostly cashless in day to day life, but I still don't like the idea of this, especially since in my last trip alone I had to use the gift shop twice to have them break $20 bills for tips for various things, it was quick and efficient, I cannot say the same for the AKL registration or concierge desks that almost always had long lines of people and took forever.

I wonder if Disney has large issues with counterfeit money, I know that I have seen more and more places check bills for authenticity, and I have seen countless reports of counterfeit money becoming more of an issue at US retailers (I am not saying this is the reason for the change, more a random musing from watching too many documentaries).

 

[allsaintsatx]

I work in a cash heavy business, and besides the one night deposit on a credit card, I always pay for my entire resort stay in cash, as well as all meals, souvenirs etc etc. This would definitely be a line in the sand for me. Dogs? Whatever. Magicbands that trace me all over the park? Ok. But tracing every penny that I spend on my own vacation by forcing me to "buy" gift cards or whatever the heck it is, is pushing it way too far. If they want to push all of these creepy traceable transactions then offer a 5% discount if you use your magic band, or a 5% upcharge if you pay in cash. That might seem unreal, but heck, they're charging money for extra fast passes now so nothing seems unbelievable anymore. Stuff like upcharges, tents at Space Mountain, buses you had to pay money for, the general consensus was "oh well if you don't want to pay the upcharge you can just take the regular bus, or just get a regular fastpass - these don't affect you if you don't opt into it" but this new deal does affect me, directly. It's forcing me to not pay cash at a disney resort which seems weird even to type. We were going to stay club level at AKL in April but considering they just kinda told their guests via email that next month hey, you better warm up your credit cards in 30 days for the trip you've been planning for 8 months cause we are not taking cash, who's to say it won't last til March? April? If this spreads all over WDW it might be time to go back to our Disneyland roots.

 

[dansdad]

I work in a cash heavy business, and besides the one night deposit on a credit card, I always pay for my entire resort stay in cash, as well as all meals, souvenirs etc etc. This would definitely be a line in the sand for me. Dogs? Whatever. Magicbands that trace me all over the park? Ok. But tracing every penny that I spend on my own vacation by forcing me to "buy" gift cards or whatever the heck it is, is pushing it way too far. If they want to push all of these creepy traceable transactions then offer a 5% discount if you use your magic band, or a 5% upcharge if you pay in cash. That might seem unreal, but heck, they're charging money for extra fast passes now so nothing seems unbelievable anymore. Stuff like upcharges, tents at Space Mountain, buses you had to pay money for, the general consensus was "oh well if you don't want to pay the upcharge you can just take the regular bus, or just get a regular fastpass - these don't affect you if you don't opt into it" but this new deal does affect me, directly. It's forcing me to not pay cash at a disney resort which seems weird even to type. We were going to stay club level at AKL in April but considering they just kinda told their guests via email that next month hey, you better warm up your credit cards in 30 days for the trip you've been planning for 8 months cause we are not taking cash, who's to say it won't last til March? April? If this spreads all over WDW it might be time to go back to our Disneyland roots.

You can put a cash deposit against your room account and charge everything back to your room. No need to warm up the credit card and you're still paying for everything with cash.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

This is the stupidest thing I've heard yet. Disney is going to refuse money? Won't be staying at the AKL in the foreseeable future.

 

[brooke789]

Doesn’t really effect us as we rarely use cash. But I always feel like we need some for backup for any trip. For WDW we pay for everything with MagicBand but carry a backup credit card, just in case. Then we carry a $20 again just in case. If they stick with this we’ll drop the $20 next trip!

 

[ArwenMarie]

The only thing that is annoying about this to me is that it's not 100% cash. So you still have to make sure you have cash if you want to tip your housekeepers etc. It would be nice to be able to do that electronically too.

 

[disneyAndi14]

Does this mean at the end of my stay when I pay all my charges, since I put everything on my MB then I pay our last night with gift cards and of course cash because I sometimes go over slightly that I can’t pay with cash?? It is not a big deal to me but I usually always have to pay a little cash at the end.

You can save money buying gift cards for everything the 5% off at Target and Sam’s club does add up when you buy a lot.

 

[dansdad]

Does this mean at the end of my stay when I pay all my charges, since I put everything on my MB then I pay our last night with gift cards and of course cash because I sometimes go over slightly that I can’t pay with cash?? It is not a big deal to me but I usually always have to pay a little cash at the end.

You can save money buying gift cards for everything the 5% off at Target and Sam’s club does add up when you buy a lot.

Yes, as the announcement stated you can use cash when paying room charges.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I take about $200-300 in cash with me to WDW for tipping at the airport and resort and if I buy something on a cart in the parks that doesn't take card. I don't like carrying huge amounts of cash because I'm afraid I'll lose it and if I lose a huge amount of cash on vacation it would ruin the trip. I actually rarely carry cash when not on vacation.

With that said, I don't think this will work. And I agree that they are doing it because you spend more when you only use your MB or CC.

 

[gdrj]

The outrage by some seems a bit over the top. OHHH the Humanity!!!

This is a test, but it might be the wave of the future in general. IT may or may not fly, you adapt. I remember it was going to be the downfall of Disney when they changed fastpasses, or magic bands were introduced, or more recently they took clocks out of some rooms. I usually bring about $300-$500 in cash with me and usually come home with the full amount.

At this resort being off the path is probably why they are testing. While there are plenty of non-guest visitors, it probably has the least.
I would not doubt that 95% if not more of all transactions are non-cash. For little Suzie who saved her pennies up and wants to spend cash, Mom and Dad can figure out a plan.
I would think that there is potential to automate (in the future) some of the checkout procedures reducing staff levels due to the inability to higher staff. Some chain restaurants you see the ability to order and pay for food and drinks off of a tablet, In theory this allows a server to handle more tables. You could have self-checkout in a "redesigned store" even. I'm not saying that is what is happening but could be options in the future. I will guess that there will be some way for guests to pay with cash but they are not promoting it, so the 99% of the people who will just grab their credit card and move on.

I've gotten to the point that I tell my wife NO dont pay cash use the Disney Visa, or the airline Visa, for the points.

 

[buzznina]

As has been said, put the cash on a gift card. Easy peasy.

Because you cannot turn those GCs back into cash if you do not use them. We use GCs but also have $$ on hand as well.

 

[amylevan]

The outrage by some seems a bit over the top. OHHH the Humanity!!!

It's the disboards, most things stir up an outrage.

That said, I have to admit to being a bit on the annoyed side of this one, and very glad that our stay next month is at BC and not at AKL like originally considered. If I want a $3 soda, I want to pay cash, not put it on my CC. The same goes for most small transactions. I don't carry a ton of cash on me, but we do carry some and use it for small purchases.

And yes, research shows that you spend less when you spend cash.

 

[gdrj]

It's the disboards, most things stir up an outrage.

That said, I have to admit to being a bit on the annoyed side of this one, and very glad that our stay next month is at BC and not at AKL like originally considered. If I want a $3 soda, I want to pay cash, not put it on my CC. The same goes for most small transactions. I don't carry a ton of cash on me, but we do carry some and use it for small purchases.

And yes, research shows that you spend less when you spend cash.

Now this seems like a reasonable reaction. I actually prefer using the CC so I dont have loose change etc, but I understand your point.