A question that comes up often is WHY would someone use a Disney Vacation Planner…aka travel agent…instead of booking their Disney vacation themselves? I have booked my own trips directly with Disney. Disney makes it very dummy-proof…if you’ve been many times and know what to expect.
For those first time Disney visitors, I imagine all of the options and things to experience can be very overwhelming. A Disney travel agent is tasked with making a trip to any of the Disney parks, cruises or an Adventures by Disney vacation less overwhelming for the traveler. The traveler should be able to focus on enjoying Disney and getting lost in the details offered by the Happiest Place on Earth, and not worry about whether they remembered everything they should have planned for, if they’re missing something they would love, or finding something later that they wish they would have known about then. In addition to this great reason to use a Disney planner, I’ve put together five other reasons why using a TA makes so much more sense than booking directly.
- The price is the same whether booked through a travel agent or through Disney. Say what? In fact, Disney pays the travel agent for booking trips. Out of every package price, there is a percentage that is considered “commissionable.” I don’t think that this is a secret by any means. If the trip is booked through Disney, the Disney company keeps the money. If the trip is booked through a travel agent, Disney forwards that money to the travel agency. Many Disney Vacation Planners are your neighbors and friends, so the decision then becomes whether you want your money to benefit Disney or a local business and someone you likely know.
- We’ve all had to sit on the phone while trying to reach a customer service rep at some point in our lives. Usually, it’s not a quick wait. And the elevator music is often unbearable. Who really has time for that? This becomes the job of your travel agent and something you no longer have to worry with. A modification needs to be done to your package? You want Magical Express added to your trip? Guess what? It won’t be you having to call Disney’s customer service to get this done, as long as you booked through a travel agent.
- 180 days out for dining reservations…60 days out for fastpass+…the balance is due within 30 days…wait, can ADRs be booked at 7am and FP+ at 6am, or the other way around… There are definitely some people who look forward to this level of planning and organization. I’m one of them, which is why I began this Disney vacation planning adventure. Some people make some awesome flow charts, and know which reservations are going to be the most coveted and should be booked first (and here’s a tip: you will usually have better luck booking the most popular rides and dining towards the end of your trip). Many people, though, and especially those visiting for the first time, find this whole experience very overwhelming. Wouldn’t it be great to have the option to remove that overwhelming piece from the vacation? While travel agents don’t have magical ways of getting those high demand reservations, they have done it many times and may know a few things that work. One less thing for the traveler to stress about.
- It’s 5am, and your flight was just cancelled due to weather. You get to your destination but your checked baggage did not. One of your family members gets sick. While we all wish for the perfect vacation, anything can happen. When it does, do you want to try to figure out who to contact yourself to solve the problem, or do you want to make one call to your travel agent for some help? There are people who recommend booking Disney trips through wholesale stores such as Costco, in order to save a few dollars. However, when they have questions or a problem, they don’t have a contact to assist them. A travel agent is usually someone you become familiar with during the booking process and will take a text from you on a Saturday or Sunday night.
- Sales and promotions are released by Disney throughout the year. While you may have a general idea what part of the year usually see what types of promotions, no one really knows what a promotion will be until Disney decides to release it. How do you make sure you’re getting the best price for your Disney package then? It’s definitely not recommended that you wait until the release of a promotion to book a trip, unless you have a lot of flexibility in your life. It’s risky. You may not get what you want and have to settle on what is left for availability, or you may miss out all together. Disney may decide not to release a certain promotion at all, especially if they don’t need to drum up business. I have known people that booked their package themselves in advance for the time they can travel, and then had to check the website over, and over, and over… you get the picture. Just to make sure they were getting the best price on their package. Applying the latest discount is not going to be something Disney will do automatically. If a travel agent is used, however, they are notified when the the new promotions come out. A good travel agent will check the packages booked through them during those timeframes and make sure the discounts are applied to those trips that qualify. And the traveler will not have to do any checking themselves.
I could come up with more reasons to use a travel agent over booking a Disney vacation yourself. Disney travel agents do this work because they love it. They love working with Disney, and they love planning other’s vacations to Disney. A Disney visitor can take a deep breath and relax if they use Disney planner for their trip, and without that huge burden of the planning process, they can focus on enjoying the magic of the trip and making memories with their families. With a Disney Vacation Planner, you have the ability to be as involved as you want to be, and plan the parts that you want to plan.
