Everything You Need to Know about Booking Disney....
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Sign Up for an Account!
You own your account. You create the user id and password and if you decide to leave out agency, you keep that account. So feel free to create the account with whatever username and password you prefer. You will have to associate with our agency by entering our CLIA- 00477713, and if you leave, you will simply remove our CLIA ID from your account (though any untraveled/pending reservations will still be under our CLIA and you will have to go back and forth until they are completed).
www.disneytravelagents.com
College of Disney Knowledge
In order to be eligible to sell Disney for our agency, you MUST FIRST pass the Disney College of Knowledge. Depending on your existing Disney knowledge, this may only take you a few hours, a weekend, a few days, etc. It just depends. Once you complete the College of Knowledge, please forward your certificate for me and if it is your first time passing the test, order your graduation kit.
Disney Collateral
If you are interested in sending out mailers or ordering material for a vendor table if you decide to do a vendor show, Disney will provide that material to you for free. In DTA, under "My Disney Tools", select "Disney Print Connection". The best bet is to browse the catalog and then select materials to customize with your agent information (the 300 DPI logo image in the google drive will work). Be aware though that some of the materials have minimum orders, so be sure to order at least 50-100 of some of them. If you get an error or an order that does not process, this might be why. You can also order non-agent specific materials from the Disney Collateral Store.
Disney Copyright
This is a separate registration and carries with it a lot of VERY specific rules. Be sure to review the terms and conditions before using any digital image from the copyright on your personal page, facebook page, website, or even collateral that you design.
Agent Benefits
Disney allows for agents who have an agent CLIA card (which must be approved and sponsored by our agency) certain benefits. For example, you can use 1 hotel reservation in WDW per calendar year. The discount tends to be very good and can be as much as 40 or so %. There are also ticket benefits, cruiseline benefits, Disneyland benefits, Adventure by Disney benefits. and more. In order to see what is available, you can check out the Agent Benefits area of the DTA website, or ask me some questions. Again, the discount is NOT available unless you have a CLIA and there are certain restrictions.
Touring Plans
Once you graduate the Disney College of Knowledge and you have booked your first Disney client (that is not you), the agency will pay for your first year of a WDW Touring Plans subscription. This will give you access to TONS of training information and searchable content about Disney. I also highly recommend subscribing to their announcements.
This account will also give you 3 other important perks:
1. Creating a "trip": Enter the client's reservation information and at some point in the planning process, be sure to use the room selection tool to create a fax request that will automatically be sent to the room assigner at the clients resort. Be sure to ask me if you are having trouble figuring out how to determine the best room in your client's room category. You can also search the resort/room information that is available on the website.
2. Advanced Dining Reservation Finder: Your subscription includes the ability to watch for two dining reservations that are not available at once. Personally, I have a list of open dining requests and I filter them in and out of my requests based on when the client is traveling and how hard what they are looking for is to get. For example, CRT is prepay and is one of the hardest to get if you miss it on 180 days out, so usually I will not create an ADR watch for that one unless I have to or I will wait until around 45-30 days out. It's not likely going to come through, which means it will sit out there the whole time. Most other reservations are a little easier. I would say you have about a 70-90% chance of getting anything else.
3. Crowd Calendar: It's very important once the client books that you very quickly figure out which days they will be in which parks. I know it seems terrible to have to make such big decisions so far in advance, but in order to do dining and fastpasses, they have to pick out which parks on which days. Use the crowd calendar to check out how busy the parks "may" be on the dates your client is visiting (be sure to mention the caveat that the information is based on past crowd levels and is not guaranteed).
If you find that the subscription is useful, I will be happy to renew it each year as long as you are continuing to book Disney at a certain level. If not, we will let the subscription lapse. It is VERY IMPORTANT that you NEVER send the client to this website! This website advertises the services of another agency pretty heavily, do NOT risk it. YOU are the expert, not a website.
You own your account. You create the user id and password and if you decide to leave out agency, you keep that account. So feel free to create the account with whatever username and password you prefer. You will have to associate with our agency by entering our CLIA- 00477713, and if you leave, you will simply remove our CLIA ID from your account (though any untraveled/pending reservations will still be under our CLIA and you will have to go back and forth until they are completed).
www.disneytravelagents.com
College of Disney Knowledge
In order to be eligible to sell Disney for our agency, you MUST FIRST pass the Disney College of Knowledge. Depending on your existing Disney knowledge, this may only take you a few hours, a weekend, a few days, etc. It just depends. Once you complete the College of Knowledge, please forward your certificate for me and if it is your first time passing the test, order your graduation kit.
Disney Collateral
If you are interested in sending out mailers or ordering material for a vendor table if you decide to do a vendor show, Disney will provide that material to you for free. In DTA, under "My Disney Tools", select "Disney Print Connection". The best bet is to browse the catalog and then select materials to customize with your agent information (the 300 DPI logo image in the google drive will work). Be aware though that some of the materials have minimum orders, so be sure to order at least 50-100 of some of them. If you get an error or an order that does not process, this might be why. You can also order non-agent specific materials from the Disney Collateral Store.
Disney Copyright
This is a separate registration and carries with it a lot of VERY specific rules. Be sure to review the terms and conditions before using any digital image from the copyright on your personal page, facebook page, website, or even collateral that you design.
Agent Benefits
Disney allows for agents who have an agent CLIA card (which must be approved and sponsored by our agency) certain benefits. For example, you can use 1 hotel reservation in WDW per calendar year. The discount tends to be very good and can be as much as 40 or so %. There are also ticket benefits, cruiseline benefits, Disneyland benefits, Adventure by Disney benefits. and more. In order to see what is available, you can check out the Agent Benefits area of the DTA website, or ask me some questions. Again, the discount is NOT available unless you have a CLIA and there are certain restrictions.
Touring Plans
Once you graduate the Disney College of Knowledge and you have booked your first Disney client (that is not you), the agency will pay for your first year of a WDW Touring Plans subscription. This will give you access to TONS of training information and searchable content about Disney. I also highly recommend subscribing to their announcements.
This account will also give you 3 other important perks:
1. Creating a "trip": Enter the client's reservation information and at some point in the planning process, be sure to use the room selection tool to create a fax request that will automatically be sent to the room assigner at the clients resort. Be sure to ask me if you are having trouble figuring out how to determine the best room in your client's room category. You can also search the resort/room information that is available on the website.
2. Advanced Dining Reservation Finder: Your subscription includes the ability to watch for two dining reservations that are not available at once. Personally, I have a list of open dining requests and I filter them in and out of my requests based on when the client is traveling and how hard what they are looking for is to get. For example, CRT is prepay and is one of the hardest to get if you miss it on 180 days out, so usually I will not create an ADR watch for that one unless I have to or I will wait until around 45-30 days out. It's not likely going to come through, which means it will sit out there the whole time. Most other reservations are a little easier. I would say you have about a 70-90% chance of getting anything else.
3. Crowd Calendar: It's very important once the client books that you very quickly figure out which days they will be in which parks. I know it seems terrible to have to make such big decisions so far in advance, but in order to do dining and fastpasses, they have to pick out which parks on which days. Use the crowd calendar to check out how busy the parks "may" be on the dates your client is visiting (be sure to mention the caveat that the information is based on past crowd levels and is not guaranteed).
If you find that the subscription is useful, I will be happy to renew it each year as long as you are continuing to book Disney at a certain level. If not, we will let the subscription lapse. It is VERY IMPORTANT that you NEVER send the client to this website! This website advertises the services of another agency pretty heavily, do NOT risk it. YOU are the expert, not a website.
Expert Advice
PROMOTIONS
I highly recommend checking on this site when you are looking for historical promos, Disney may not do the same thing every single year, but they are pretty predictable for the most part:
https://www.mousesavers.com/historical-information-on-walt-disney-world-resort-discounts/
APPLYING DISCOUNTS
Make sure to review the tutorial information available in DTA for how to apply discounts to an existing reservation. This is one of the biggest perks of booking with us is that we can sometimes access a discount before a client could call in. Take care to know how to make modifications and apply a discount BEFORE one is released so that you are not scrambling on discount day.
MAGICAL EXPRESS
Make sure to set it up early enough so that you can order the clients tickets in plenty of time for them to receive them before their trip (at least 30 days). Here is the website where you can enter the client's flight and home information:
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/airport-transportation-reservation/
MY DISNEY EXPERIENCE
When a client books a trip with me, my first question is always about whether they already have an account or not. If they don't I sign them up and if they do, I ask then to temporarily change their password to something that is easy for me while we are planning. I usually request that they set it to "1disney23". This will also be enormously helpful if you are watching for any dining reservations. Sometimes you only have a minute to grab it and searching for a password can be a pain.
RESORTS
So, you will have to do your own research (both online and in person), but here are some of my general thoughts/impressions about the resorts that I share with my clients.
Value
Art of Animation (AoA), Pop Century (POP), All-Star Movies (ASMo), All-Star Sports (ASSp), and All-Star Music (ASMu).
The best value resort is Art of Animation. It's the newest resort on property, have a great main pool (with Finding Nemo sounds you can hear under water), and goes all out for that Disney feel. It's also reasonably close to the parks (except Animal Kingdom) so bus rides are not terrible. There are 2 major room types, the Little Mermaid room (which is a standard room that has 2 double beds in it and is in particular buildings that surround a quiet pool) and family suites (that come in 4 themes- Finding Nemo, Lion King, Cars, and "Family"). The Little Mermaid rooms vary anywhere from $180 on up to $250 depending on the time of the year or the the weekday versus weekend that you may be booking. The Little Mermaid Rooms are NEVER included in any promotion. The Family suites start at around $325 per night on up and usually ARE included in the promotion. If you can grab a promotional rate room, you can sometimes get it down to $265ish per night.
The next best value resort is POP. They are in the process of refurbishing all the rooms to look much more fresh and this is right next door to AoA so the bus rides are not bad. Sometimes you can catch a great deal on a Pop room if it is on promotion (which it is often included) and get them as low as $90/95 per night.
All-Stars- not much to say here, I can't stand these resorts. Loud, far from the parks (translation- long bus rides) and dated. The only perk to these is the price (I have seen them as low as $85) and the fact that All Star Music has some reasonably priced family suites.
Moderate
Caribbean Beach (CBR), Port Orleans Riverside (POR), Coronado Springs (CSR), The Cabins at Fort Wilderness (FW) and Port Orleans French Quarter (POFQ).
Generally, moderate resorts are included in most promos (although Port Orleans French Quarter sometimes is not) and prices tend to run anywhere from $185ish per night up to $250 per night and even higher for special rooms (like Pirate Rooms, Royal Guest Rooms, or Preferred rooms and suites). The thing that I do not like about 3 of the 4 is that the resort is HUGE. There are bus stops all the way around the resort. This means that every time you go to a park, you have to stop at 4 or 5 bus stops before you are even on your way there. Also, I am just not crazy about the setup and theming of the rest of them, Coronado doesn't even really feel like a Disney resort. Maybe it's just me. Fort Wilderness is okay, I am not crazy about the cabins, but the location is terrific. You really can't beat just having to take a boat ride to Magic Kingdom. The price is a bit higher than the other moderates though because of it.
My favorite moderate (by far) is Port Orleans French Quarter. It is sometimes not included in promos, but as a result, the standard pricing is a tad lower, and it is worth every penny. The resort is smaller, so even the worst building is just a short walk to the lobby's, bus stop, and pool. The grounds are lovely, the food at the quick and table service restaurants is great, the lounge is fun, and the pool and splash area are awesome. Couple that with (usually) not having to share a bus and being reasonably close to the parks, and I am sure you can figure why I love it. Oh yea, and a boat to Disney Springs. At least you get to avoid one bus.
Deluxe
The Contemporary Resort (CR), Bay Lake Tower (BLT), The Polynesian (POLY), the Grand Floridian (GF), Wilderness Lodge (WL), Boardwalk (BW), Beach Club (BC), Animal Kingdom Lodge (AKL), Animal Kingdom Kidani (AKK), Saratoga Springs (SSR) and Old Key West (OKW).
So, there are a LOT in this category, so I am just going to give you highlights. The thing with these is that most of them are very convenient to a park and that the accommodations tend to be more luxe. King or 2 queen beds, nicer grounds, better pools and restaurants, etc.
POLY is the best. Theming is fun, rooms are great, the pool is insane, dining is incredible (arguably the best quick service at any resort), and 2 great bars/lounges (if you have a chance you MUST check out Trader Sams). Oh yea, and Dole Whips! Being right on the monorail line is incredibly convenient for parents with young kids and you can also walk from the Poly to the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC), so you can even grab an Epcot monorail very easily. This resort is a slam dunk, but the prices reflect that and it sells out FAST.
Grand Floridian is a close second, but the outer building rooms are very far from the main lobby, so make sure you request a particular room. The resort itself is lovely, lots of dining options, a spa (with a special princess hairdo option), and lots of Disney magic everywhere. Since this one is on the monorail line, it's very convenient to Magic Kingdom for the little ones. It has a very luxurious and classy feel, but the pricing reflects that and its convenience. It doesn't sell out as fast as the Poly, but that's only because it's a lot bigger.
Wilderness Lodge is a GREAT alternative for someone who wants the convenience of a monorail resort without the pricetag. It has a luxurious "lodge" feel and has just as many wonderful eateries and pools as the Poly and the GF, but with rooms starting at like $325, it can save a bundle. I have seen some rooms on sale as low as $250 or so per night, so you really can catch a deal. While it is not on the monorail, it does have a ferry back and forth to Magic Kingdom and any time you can take a short boat ride to avoid a bus, it's a win.
Boardwalk and Beach Club are great options for couples and adults. The pool at the Beach Club is one of the best pools on property, but what's awesome about these 2 resorts is their proximity to the back entrance of Epcot. You can hoof it or hop on a boat to either Epcot or Hollywood Studios, making these two resorts a great option for someone spending time in either park. They tend to sell out quickly during Food & Wine and Flower & Garden, so the pricing can be a bit high those times of the year.
Animal Kingdom Lodge and Kidani are great options for families who are not as worried about spending a ton of time in the parks and are really interested in the experience. The animals are incredible and the Lodge is so awe inspiring that it's kind of a shock the first time you walk in. They both have fantastic pools but the lodge has a few restaurants, including the best breakfast on property at Boma (ask for the juice). Bother resorts are VERY convenient to Animal Kingdom park, but a good 20-30 minute bus ride to all other parks.
Those are my favorites, the other resorts I am sort of unexcited about. I don't want to go into too much detail, but here's one reason why for each. I much prefer the Lodge and Jambo house to Kidani, only because Kidani is in a different building that is not convenient.
Contemporary Resort and Bay Lake Tower- the resort has a very old feel. The Contemporary embodies the 1980's in style and the design causes the roar of children from Chef Mickey's to travel as high up as the 14th floor. No thanks. Even with the monorail, not worth the price.
Saratoga Springs is a bit quieter and very convenient to Disney Springs, which is nice, but the resort is HUGE and getting to any park is a pain.
Old Key West is decent, I prefer it to Saratoga because the rooms are a bit bigger and more comfortable (also, boat to Disney Springs), but it is the same problem as Saratoga in that it is SO big that there are at least 5 bus stops around the resort property.
NOTE about villas: Some deluxe resorts will have a listing for the resort and then a villa, for example. the regular resort rooms at the Poly are at the "Polynesian Village Resort", but then there are also "Polynesian Villas & Bungalows". Essentially, Disney owns a percentage of the DVC villa inventory and is renting them out as resort rooms. They are just as good as the regular resort rooms but can sometimes be a bit cheaper because the bed setup is sometimes not great and because they tend to be a bit further from the main lobby and transportation area. If this is the only type of room at the deluxe resort the client is interested in, I urge you to take a look at the floor plan for the available room before offering it to the client. Many of the studio villas, for example, only have a Queen bed and a sofabed in them. Some clients may not be interested in that.
PARKS
More information to come.
Disney Springs
More information to come.
MORE INFORMATION COMING
I highly recommend checking on this site when you are looking for historical promos, Disney may not do the same thing every single year, but they are pretty predictable for the most part:
https://www.mousesavers.com/historical-information-on-walt-disney-world-resort-discounts/
APPLYING DISCOUNTS
Make sure to review the tutorial information available in DTA for how to apply discounts to an existing reservation. This is one of the biggest perks of booking with us is that we can sometimes access a discount before a client could call in. Take care to know how to make modifications and apply a discount BEFORE one is released so that you are not scrambling on discount day.
MAGICAL EXPRESS
Make sure to set it up early enough so that you can order the clients tickets in plenty of time for them to receive them before their trip (at least 30 days). Here is the website where you can enter the client's flight and home information:
https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/airport-transportation-reservation/
MY DISNEY EXPERIENCE
When a client books a trip with me, my first question is always about whether they already have an account or not. If they don't I sign them up and if they do, I ask then to temporarily change their password to something that is easy for me while we are planning. I usually request that they set it to "1disney23". This will also be enormously helpful if you are watching for any dining reservations. Sometimes you only have a minute to grab it and searching for a password can be a pain.
RESORTS
So, you will have to do your own research (both online and in person), but here are some of my general thoughts/impressions about the resorts that I share with my clients.
Value
Art of Animation (AoA), Pop Century (POP), All-Star Movies (ASMo), All-Star Sports (ASSp), and All-Star Music (ASMu).
The best value resort is Art of Animation. It's the newest resort on property, have a great main pool (with Finding Nemo sounds you can hear under water), and goes all out for that Disney feel. It's also reasonably close to the parks (except Animal Kingdom) so bus rides are not terrible. There are 2 major room types, the Little Mermaid room (which is a standard room that has 2 double beds in it and is in particular buildings that surround a quiet pool) and family suites (that come in 4 themes- Finding Nemo, Lion King, Cars, and "Family"). The Little Mermaid rooms vary anywhere from $180 on up to $250 depending on the time of the year or the the weekday versus weekend that you may be booking. The Little Mermaid Rooms are NEVER included in any promotion. The Family suites start at around $325 per night on up and usually ARE included in the promotion. If you can grab a promotional rate room, you can sometimes get it down to $265ish per night.
The next best value resort is POP. They are in the process of refurbishing all the rooms to look much more fresh and this is right next door to AoA so the bus rides are not bad. Sometimes you can catch a great deal on a Pop room if it is on promotion (which it is often included) and get them as low as $90/95 per night.
All-Stars- not much to say here, I can't stand these resorts. Loud, far from the parks (translation- long bus rides) and dated. The only perk to these is the price (I have seen them as low as $85) and the fact that All Star Music has some reasonably priced family suites.
Moderate
Caribbean Beach (CBR), Port Orleans Riverside (POR), Coronado Springs (CSR), The Cabins at Fort Wilderness (FW) and Port Orleans French Quarter (POFQ).
Generally, moderate resorts are included in most promos (although Port Orleans French Quarter sometimes is not) and prices tend to run anywhere from $185ish per night up to $250 per night and even higher for special rooms (like Pirate Rooms, Royal Guest Rooms, or Preferred rooms and suites). The thing that I do not like about 3 of the 4 is that the resort is HUGE. There are bus stops all the way around the resort. This means that every time you go to a park, you have to stop at 4 or 5 bus stops before you are even on your way there. Also, I am just not crazy about the setup and theming of the rest of them, Coronado doesn't even really feel like a Disney resort. Maybe it's just me. Fort Wilderness is okay, I am not crazy about the cabins, but the location is terrific. You really can't beat just having to take a boat ride to Magic Kingdom. The price is a bit higher than the other moderates though because of it.
My favorite moderate (by far) is Port Orleans French Quarter. It is sometimes not included in promos, but as a result, the standard pricing is a tad lower, and it is worth every penny. The resort is smaller, so even the worst building is just a short walk to the lobby's, bus stop, and pool. The grounds are lovely, the food at the quick and table service restaurants is great, the lounge is fun, and the pool and splash area are awesome. Couple that with (usually) not having to share a bus and being reasonably close to the parks, and I am sure you can figure why I love it. Oh yea, and a boat to Disney Springs. At least you get to avoid one bus.
Deluxe
The Contemporary Resort (CR), Bay Lake Tower (BLT), The Polynesian (POLY), the Grand Floridian (GF), Wilderness Lodge (WL), Boardwalk (BW), Beach Club (BC), Animal Kingdom Lodge (AKL), Animal Kingdom Kidani (AKK), Saratoga Springs (SSR) and Old Key West (OKW).
So, there are a LOT in this category, so I am just going to give you highlights. The thing with these is that most of them are very convenient to a park and that the accommodations tend to be more luxe. King or 2 queen beds, nicer grounds, better pools and restaurants, etc.
POLY is the best. Theming is fun, rooms are great, the pool is insane, dining is incredible (arguably the best quick service at any resort), and 2 great bars/lounges (if you have a chance you MUST check out Trader Sams). Oh yea, and Dole Whips! Being right on the monorail line is incredibly convenient for parents with young kids and you can also walk from the Poly to the Transportation and Ticket Center (TTC), so you can even grab an Epcot monorail very easily. This resort is a slam dunk, but the prices reflect that and it sells out FAST.
Grand Floridian is a close second, but the outer building rooms are very far from the main lobby, so make sure you request a particular room. The resort itself is lovely, lots of dining options, a spa (with a special princess hairdo option), and lots of Disney magic everywhere. Since this one is on the monorail line, it's very convenient to Magic Kingdom for the little ones. It has a very luxurious and classy feel, but the pricing reflects that and its convenience. It doesn't sell out as fast as the Poly, but that's only because it's a lot bigger.
Wilderness Lodge is a GREAT alternative for someone who wants the convenience of a monorail resort without the pricetag. It has a luxurious "lodge" feel and has just as many wonderful eateries and pools as the Poly and the GF, but with rooms starting at like $325, it can save a bundle. I have seen some rooms on sale as low as $250 or so per night, so you really can catch a deal. While it is not on the monorail, it does have a ferry back and forth to Magic Kingdom and any time you can take a short boat ride to avoid a bus, it's a win.
Boardwalk and Beach Club are great options for couples and adults. The pool at the Beach Club is one of the best pools on property, but what's awesome about these 2 resorts is their proximity to the back entrance of Epcot. You can hoof it or hop on a boat to either Epcot or Hollywood Studios, making these two resorts a great option for someone spending time in either park. They tend to sell out quickly during Food & Wine and Flower & Garden, so the pricing can be a bit high those times of the year.
Animal Kingdom Lodge and Kidani are great options for families who are not as worried about spending a ton of time in the parks and are really interested in the experience. The animals are incredible and the Lodge is so awe inspiring that it's kind of a shock the first time you walk in. They both have fantastic pools but the lodge has a few restaurants, including the best breakfast on property at Boma (ask for the juice). Bother resorts are VERY convenient to Animal Kingdom park, but a good 20-30 minute bus ride to all other parks.
Those are my favorites, the other resorts I am sort of unexcited about. I don't want to go into too much detail, but here's one reason why for each. I much prefer the Lodge and Jambo house to Kidani, only because Kidani is in a different building that is not convenient.
Contemporary Resort and Bay Lake Tower- the resort has a very old feel. The Contemporary embodies the 1980's in style and the design causes the roar of children from Chef Mickey's to travel as high up as the 14th floor. No thanks. Even with the monorail, not worth the price.
Saratoga Springs is a bit quieter and very convenient to Disney Springs, which is nice, but the resort is HUGE and getting to any park is a pain.
Old Key West is decent, I prefer it to Saratoga because the rooms are a bit bigger and more comfortable (also, boat to Disney Springs), but it is the same problem as Saratoga in that it is SO big that there are at least 5 bus stops around the resort property.
NOTE about villas: Some deluxe resorts will have a listing for the resort and then a villa, for example. the regular resort rooms at the Poly are at the "Polynesian Village Resort", but then there are also "Polynesian Villas & Bungalows". Essentially, Disney owns a percentage of the DVC villa inventory and is renting them out as resort rooms. They are just as good as the regular resort rooms but can sometimes be a bit cheaper because the bed setup is sometimes not great and because they tend to be a bit further from the main lobby and transportation area. If this is the only type of room at the deluxe resort the client is interested in, I urge you to take a look at the floor plan for the available room before offering it to the client. Many of the studio villas, for example, only have a Queen bed and a sofabed in them. Some clients may not be interested in that.
PARKS
More information to come.
Disney Springs
More information to come.
MORE INFORMATION COMING