Maybe it's not too late to get the call from Mickey...

Just out of curiosity I checked back with the Mickey Mouse Christmas phone call web-link.

It would appear that if you did not get the Christmas call from Mickey, (see earlier post) then you can CALL HIM! and he will break the news of your up-coming Disney vacation to your kids.

To get the special phone number to call, you need to go to the website and put in your Disney reservation number.

Disney Itinerary Planning Tips

As a "Disney Insider" I get sent various emails periodically from Disney. Today I got a link to some articles on Disney Travel planning. Many of these are good, particularly those helping you come up with suggested itineraries to get the most out of short trips to Disney World, but curiously a number of them were written (or last updated) in June 2005, so are somewhat out-of-date. For example, some of them refer to the Park-Hopper tickets which have been extinct since January of 2005... and most have no mention of the dining plan...

However, I include the link here anyway, as the nitty-gritty of "where should I go first, and what should I aim to see" is something that I am regularly asked. And there are good family-tested suggestions here.

Here's the link...

Did Mickey call your kids?

I have heard from two of my clients so far - so I know that Mickey did call some of you on Christmas day.

I'm intrigued...

Did you sign up?

Did Mickey call?

What did he say?

Please comment below!!

Disney World to get healthier food!

For all those of you that have experienced the dearth of healthy food options (particularly in the fast-food restaurants, rather than the sit-down restaurants) at Disney theme parks, (heartburn) relief is coming!

Disney announced recently that they are re-thinking their menus and will be phasing in more healthy options at the parks starting next year. As I understand it, as franchises are coming up for renewal, the less healthy ones are not being renewed and are being replaced with more healthful choices.

Personally I think this is a good move, as you are a captive audience to a large extent. As Canadians typically stay for close to a week at Disney World, by the end of that week it sometimes feels like you've been eating junk food for as long as you can remember - at least if you normally eat vegetables at home...

While some people will miss all that comfort food, I'm also pretty sure there'll still be at least some options for heavily-processed, refined-sugar-enriched, saturated-fat-heavy, sodium-enhanced food for the masses! It's just economics... see how successful Las Vegas was at re-branding itself as a "family" destination?!! Exactly...

Get Mickey to call your kids on Christmas Day...

Walt Disney World announced a really nice travel-related feature a couple of weeks ago. I could have posted it immediately, but I wanted to check into a bit, just in case it was too good to be true. (No, it's not a new special rate or anything, but it's pretty cute.)

If you have Disney vacation coming up in the New Year, why not have Mickey Mouse himself break the news to your kids?

If you have a Disney World booking, you can go to a special website, enter your booking number and a few other details, and Mickey will call your house some time on Christmas Day to let your family know that a visit to Disney is on the cards in the new year.

There are a couple of potential problems with this service, but as far as I can tell, they are not stopping people from at least signing up for the service - (whether Mickey calls or not, is another matter, but kids can't be disappointed by not getting what they didn't know they would be getting, right?...)

The first is that it is supposedly for NEW bookings only (after the announce date of 28th November). I have been completely unable to get a definitive answer if that is correct or not, or whether if you add an existing booking number you can arrange for the phone call, but at least one client has been able to sign up with a booking made before November 28th...

The second problem is that the service is supposedly not offered in Quebec. (This must be to do with Mickey not being able to speak French!). However, again at least one of my clients (a resident of Quebec) was able to sign up, so you should give it a go anyway.

My goal is to email each of my clients with holidays booked for January through March, about this service, hoping not to cause too much disappointment if it doesn't work. However, if you happen to be reading this blog before you get your email from me - why not try to sign up!

The weblink is here...

You will need your Disney booking number also...

Hope it works for you all!!

Disney Tests a "Future Stay" Program at Walt DIsney World

It's a move that travel agents (especially Disney Specialists* like me) will be watching with interest...

Clients staying at Disney's Port Orleans Riverside Resort Hotel in December this year, who book their next vacation before they check-out - can request that their travel agent (hopefully me, right!) receive credit (i.e. get paid commission) for that sale. Disney, while doing all they can to poach our clients with their overwhelming market reach, razzle-dazzle, liberal coatings of fresh pixie-dust etc. etc. are at least giving us the chance to make a final few dollars before we lose our clients for ever!!

No, seriously...
Disney have always been extremely good at direct marketing. They have also always supported travel agents. I suppose this new program does a bit of both - enabling our clients to take advantage of special prices (only offered at the time) but still have us work with them on their file.

This is a pilot project (at present) but if it is successful in generating lots of new bookings for Disney will likely go the way of the Disney Cruise Line, whereby you can get some significant savings by booking your next trip before you even get off the ship. While I have no problem with saving my clients money (I do that wherever I can) - I don't want to be cut out completely and not even be able to offer anything!

So - what do you need to know about this pilot program before you go...

You will be able to learn about the program through various materials - in-room marketing, signage and merchandising receipts - once you are in resort. The offer will be some kind of a reduction on your next trip, if booked there-and-then, some time before checkout.

The value will be real. There will be an advantage to booking before you leave. It may not be a giant benefit, however! And, know that the booking that you make while at the resort is restricted - i.e. you will not be able to make changes to date, resort, package etc after the fact. So be careful!

You are supposed to be asked whether you have a travel agent. If not, please leave me a comment here and I'll have words with Mickey...

Please remember your travel agent - if you got good service, useful advice, all-round value, help with airfare etc etc - and ask to have them credited. If you want them to be involved with the next trip you will need to contact them to let them know about the booking, as Disney will NOT contact them...

Know that if a better special comes along (which regular readers of this blog will know is very possible at certain times of the year) then you may have to cancel your original booking and re-book. This is something that we do on a regular basis, and we are very able to work out which package is better value for you, if you feel stuck or confused. Usually there are no change penalties, so do not assume that you will lose money.

Finally, if you FORGET to credit me (or another travel agent) all may not be lost. If, as mentioned above a better special comes along, then we can get back involved at that point.

Special offer over...

No more free pass upgrades...

As far as I can tell there are no "specials" going on for Disney packages these days - but continue to watch this space. As soon as I hear of anything - I'll post it!

Last Couple of Days for Spring Upgrade Special

Hi again! Sorry I haven't posted for a while. Just been too busy finishing up a lot of Disney bookings for the first few weeks of the new year. Amazingly, on selected dates, there is still availability on the Canadian upgrade special for travel Jan 1st through Mar 7th.

Last day to book (OR CHANGE) bookings is this Friday 15th Dec. So don't hang about.

Full details of the upgrade are described here.