Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(regular, holiday, peak, value, and such) to describe its seasonal calendar, however,
that it's hard to keep up without a scorecard. To confuse matters more, the dates for
each season vary from hotel to hotel. Our advice: If you're set on staying at a Disney
hotel, obtain a copy of the
“
Disney Resort Travel Sales Center California Brochure
,”
which is described.
If you have a hard time getting a copy of the brochure, forget trying to find the
various seasonal dates on the Disneyland Resort website. Easier by far is to check
them out on the independent-of-Disney
mousesavers.com
site described in tip four
on the next page.
Understand that Disney seasonal dates are not sequential like spring, summer,
fall, and winter. For any specific resort, there are sometimes several seasonal changes
in a month. This is important because your room rate per night is determined by the
season prevailing when you check in. Let's say that you checked in to the Disneyland
Hotel on April 19 for a five-night stay. April 19 is in the more expensive peak season
that ends April 20, followed by the less pricey regular season beginning April 21. Be-
cause you arrived during peak season, the peak season rate will be applied for your
entire stay, even though more than half of your stay will be in regular season. Your
strategy, therefore, is to shift your dates (if possible) to arrive during a less expensive
season.
3. ASK ABOUT SPECIALS
When you talk to Disney reservationists, inquire specifically
about special deals. Ask, for example, “What special rates or discounts are available
at Disney hotels during the time of our visit?” Being specific and assertive paid off
for an Illinois reader:
I called Disney's reservations number and asked for availability and rates…. [Be-
cause] of the
Unofficial Guide
warning about Disney reservationists answering only
the questions posed, I specifically asked, “Are there any special rates or discounts
for that room during the month of October?” She replied, “Yes, we have that room
available at a special price….” [For] the price of one phone call, I saved $440.
Along similar lines, a Warren Township, New Jersey, dad chimed in with this:
Your tip about asking Disney employees about discounts was invaluable. They will
notvolunteerthisinformation,butbyaskingwesavedalmost$500onourhotelroom
using a AAA discount.
4. LEARN ABOUT DEALS OFFERED TO SPECIFIC MARKETS
The folks at
mousesavers.com
keep an updated list of discounts for use at Disney resorts. The
discounts are separated into categories such as “for anyone,” “for residents of certain
states,” “for Annual Passport holders,” and so on. For example, the site once listed
