The Truth About Disney Promotions

Recently Disney released a new set of travel promotions for travel to the Walt Disney World Resort for Fall 2013, including the highly anticipated Free Dining offer. Regarded as the most popular of any Disney promotion, it is no surprise that the phone lines were flooded with guests and travel agents trying to take advantage of the reduced prices with new reservations or modifying existing reservations.  Imagine the frustration of holding on the phone line for hours (reports of 9+ hours were common) only to find out that they were “sold out” of the resort you were hoping for.  How does that happen?  Can that even be true?  Doesn’t Disney literally have thousands of rooms?  How can they all be sold out?  The reality is, they are not…technically speaking.

When creating a promotion Disney, much like other hotels and airlines, allocates a percentage of rooms at each resort to be eligible for that promotion.  When the number of rooms available drops below that percentage, the offer is sold out.  As rooms are cancelled that doesn’t necessarily mean that it would open up another room for the promotion.  Until that magic percentage level is reached, the resort will continue to be sold out for the promotion.  On the flip side, that means not all hope is lost.  Rooms cancel daily.  Plans change, things happen and when they do, rooms are added back into inventory so if you were one of the ones who were unable to get the reservations you wanted, keep trying.  You never know when or if that availability may open up again.

It is also important to note that there are always exclusions to Disney offers. Generally speaking specific resorts and room catagories will not be included due to capacity and/or demand. Port Orleans French Quarter is almost always excluded from special offers, as are the newer villa properties. Therefore, consider being flexible with your resort choice if you are having a difficult time modifying or planning your trip. Weight the importance of resort compared to savings and decide what is going to be the best option for your party. Sometimes, especially with little ones, location can make or break a trip.

Good luck!