Evening Magic Hours for Deluxe Guests Only

[Meglen]

See now, this is exactly why I’d be reluctant to rent DVC points. And I’m a solo traveller and I don’t have kids so I could take the loss on one of those good deals but why would I risk that? If I was a family on a limited budget there is no way I’d risk a family vacation on these limitations if I couldn’t absorb the potential loss. And forget hurricane season.

which is 100% the reason some dont. But some find the savings and risk it. I have done it 3 times now and so far zero issues and have saved a good chunk vs paying cash price for the same resort.

I am waiting till the other resorts open to choose if im renting again /swan or PoFQ if none are in my price range we just wont go. I dont think the EMH will impact this choice its about what im comfortable paying for a room if I get the perk than kool but if not than I knew it was outta budget and not worry my little head about it anymore.

 

[MATTERHORN]

Similar situation here. What we paid for a cabin + golf cart equals some deluxe rooms. This just feels icky.
.

Well, you could always switch to deluxe if you're paying the same anyway

 

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

I can’t imagine the uproar if they go to tiered or paid FP. The boards might blow up.

If? Lol, I think this is probably happening in the near future. And if/when the boards blow up over it, in my opinion it's for good reason. If they want to make certain resorts/resort categories more attractive, then add *extra* perks as needed. But taking away something that has been included for nearly a decade is bad enough - but to then go and give it back to just deluxe guests is like a slap in the face to those who scrimp and save for their value stays. I say this as someone who usually stays deluxe. As far as I'm concerned that applies to both the issue with the EMH and with fastpass+. Fastpass+ is pretty much necessary in order to have a good time in the parks, especially if you have young kids who can't tolerate hour long lines. Taking it away is in bad form, if that's what they wind up doing.

 

[ChipnDale79]

All true. But it doesn't change the fact that EMH's were not what they used to be. Once they started running until 11, they became pretty useless. People will stay up that late with no problem, but midnight seems to be the line they don't like to cross. I believe closing at the MK is at 11 now, at least until mid July, then 10 after that. I'm not happy with the early closings either, never understood how closing earlier made things safer. I'm not blind to Disney's faults, I just don't see the change in EMH's as one of them- and I'd say that regardless of what level of resort I'm at. Clearly, I wouldn't qualify on this trip if they were available.

Here's the thing for me and why i'm so upset about EMH not being offered to me. What you state above is part of the problem, its been take take take from disney, which includes cutting hours of the theme parks, or adding more parties that do take away from normal park hours as well, all while increasing the price time and time again. And now that they bring back EMH, its only for a select group of people, nevermind that i'm already paying a premium to stay on their property.

If i'm being honest, for me I was done when the parking fees were announced, I was ready to tell disney to screw off and we're going somewhere else. My wife wasnt, so we've been back since then. But now, this was it for her, she told me Wedsnesday night that she's finally on board with me for doing other things and coming back to disney only every 2 to 3 years instead of every year.

I really hope lots of other people do the exact same thing my family is. The only way we're ever get back to some idea of what it was, and what we paid for those rooms, is if people stop tossing money at them.

 

[ChipnDale79]

which is 100% the reason some dont. But some find the savings and risk it. I have done it 3 times now and so far zero issues and have saved a good chunk vs paying cash price for the same resort.

I am waiting till the other resorts open to choose if im renting again /swan or PoFQ if none are in my price range we just wont go. I dont think the EMH will impact this choice its about what im comfortable paying for a room if I get the perk than kool but if not than I knew it was outta budget and not worry my little head about it anymore.

real question, because i dont know, but what about travel insurance..would it cover a dvc cancelation?

 

[Meglen]

real question, because i dont know, but what about travel insurance..would it cover a dvc cancelation?

Some do now, you really have to look at the fine print. with the amount of people using air bnb I think the wording includes stuff like that. Just gotta put the cost and fall in the lines of the policy

 

[annadreamsofdisneyworld]

If you’re renting points do you have to pay in full up front? Usually 50% up front and the balance 90 days before arrival.

Also, the booking is non-refundable, correct? Yes, you need to commit to your stay.

So what happens if you have to cancel? You forfeit the money you paid to that point.

Or what happens if there’s like a hurricane or something so all the flights are cancelled? You eat the days missed. I have exactly this risk. We rented BWV $144/nt for this Sept. It’s cheap enough that I’m comfortable losing the money in that slim but possible chance.

Is travel insurance an option? The brokers offer insurance. It certainly can help but it’s not cheap and for most scenarios won’t be a full refund.

I prefer renting thru owners privately on the boards. Still there’s a lot to learn about point charts, booking windows and Use Years. Then you are in a position to understand what an owner can or cannot do if you needed to cancel or reschedule. Some owners will let you change dates once, others do not. When changing dates you’ll probably need to take whatever resort still has availability, like SSR, OKW or AKL.

See now, this is exactly why I’d be reluctant to rent DVC points. I’m a solo traveller and I don’t have kids so I could take the loss on one of those good deals but why would I risk that? If I was a family on a limited budget there is no way I’d risk a family vacation on these limitations if I couldn’t absorb the potential loss. And forget hurricane season.

This is exactly why I won't do DVC. It's too big a risk. We already cancelled and rebooked our last trip 3 times due to covid concerns. We absolutely could not afford to lose the money if we couldn't go. We wouldn't be able to take another vacation. So we pay for value resorts knowing we have the option to cancel if needed.

 

[mi*vida*loca]

If? Lol, I think this is probably happening in the near future. And if/when the boards blow up over it, in my opinion it's for good reason. If they want to make certain resorts/resort categories more attractive, then add *extra* perks as needed. But taking away something that has been included for nearly a decade is bad enough - but to then go and give it back to just deluxe guests is like a slap in the face to those who scrimp and save for their value stays. I say this as someone who usually stays deluxe. As far as I'm concerned that applies to both the issue with the EMH and with fastpass+. Fastpass+ is pretty much necessary in order to have a good time in the parks, especially if you have young kids who can't tolerate hour long lines. Taking it away is in bad form, if that's what they wind up doing.

I think it'll be paid or tiered when it's released in it's new format. Now would they go the distance and make it for onsite stays only. Who knows.

 

[MJJME]

Look at the post-covid crowds flocking to WDW - IMO right now, they are getting much, much less in terms of value for their tickets. I would never choose to travel to WDW until I get the full value of my ticket. And honestly, my family isn't an early morning EMH group. no way. So even when that was a "perk" we never used it. Some families never stay late, so honestly will this after-hours perk matter to them?

I would love to see the makeup of existing travelers.........My guess is the majority are AP holders who have already paid or DVC owners who have to use or lose....remember its only at approximately 40% capacity right now...............DVC is booked solid and you cant find any rooms available.............people still had to use those points despite the parks being closed for months (i'm one of them)

 

[Princess Oma]

Would this particular happening be able to put blame upon the shareholders who kept all the directors-which include Bob Chapek- still in charge? Apparantly this along with all the other changes have to be approved and passed by the board of directors and I believe every year SHAREHOLDERS of Disney keep these people in office. It might be time for those who do own Disney Stock to take the reigns back and get new people in there.

 

[ChipnDale79]

Would this particular happening be able to put blame upon the shareholders who kept all the directors-which include Bob Chapek- still in charge? Apparantly this along with all the other changes have to be approved and passed by the board of directors and I believe every year SHAREHOLDERS of Disney keep these people in office. It might be time for those who do own Disney Stock to take the reigns back and get new people in there.

stock prices keep climbing. you wont see any change until that starts to fall.

 

[MJJME]

Would this particular happening be able to put blame upon the shareholders who kept all the directors-which include Bob Chapek- still in charge? Apparantly this along with all the other changes have to be approved and passed by the board of directors and I believe every year SHAREHOLDERS of Disney keep these people in office. It might be time for those who do own Disney Stock to take the reigns back and get new people in there.

Ha.....No way Jose.......You see the stock at its all time highs despite most of the parks division losing Billion's of dollars? Shareholders love Chapek.............He eliminated their $3b annual dividend to sink it into Disney+ right before the pandemic........&$(* luck? Probably, but its been a HUGE win for him

 

[Jennasis]

It would make me feel a bit better inhad a chance of going if they did this.

It IS an upcharge. You have to pay for Deluxe. You DO have a chance of going. Save more/longer. I remember when the spots they use for dessert parties were available for ALL guests to stand in/use to view fireworks. Then they started snapping up all these prime spots and charging a ridiculous premium for the dessert parties.



Again, anyone who thinks I'm living high on the hog because we stay Deluxe (and bought DVC years ago before the surge...because our Disney vacations are important to us. We made so many sacrifices to make it possible) is free to come work in my shoes for what we have. We are FARMERS. We work from 6am to 10pm EVERY SINGLE DAY. 365 days a year. I don't get days off. This is hard labor. Outside in all weather rain or shine, hot or cold, blizzards, heat waves, hurricanes. Shoveling manure, doctoring sick or wounded horses, lifting 50lb bags of feed and 75lb bales of hay, walking miles a day. If I want to take a vacation it takes an act of Congress to arrange it. I don't get paid vacation AND I have to pay someone to take care of the farm while I'm gone. Plus I lose income from having to cancel my riding lessons while I'm away. My vehicle is my farm truck and it's 19 years old. We are not wealthy. There are no 6 figure incomes. Oh and I also work a second P/T job three days a week (and that money goes toward our vacations).

I don't want anyone's pity. I am proud of what we do. I am proud of the sacrifices we make to be able to go on the trips we do take. Don't tell me I'm the 1% or elitist. I am a MIDDLE CLASS FARMER who has made specific choices and sacrifices financially to vacation where and how we like. If Disney decides to implement paid FP or some other system, I will have to retool our budget again.

I am sorry Disney changed things up. Yeah it burns...just like when they took away fireworks viewing for the dessert parties. Yeah, it stinks. FWIW, we always avoided EMH parks because they were so crowded as to be unenjoyable. Unless this changes the EMH crowds significantly, we will continue to avoid them.

 

[Brocktoon]

I can’t imagine the uproar if they go to tiered or paid FP. The boards might blow up.

The EMH for Deluxe really doesn't bother me too much ... but I am concerned with what might be coming with FP

 

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

The EMH for Deluxe really doesn't bother me too much ... but I am concerned with what might be coming with FP

Same. The availability/affordability of fastpass+ has the power to make or break our upcoming trip. Which is on rented dvc points, so we will be going either way. But depending on how they handle this, and how it impacts our trip, we may rethink our vacation plans for the next time.

 

[Illinois76]

Apples to oranges. Disney says ALL are given magical experiences blah blah, except now they figure no mod or value guests are worth the same. REEKS of elitism..
it won’t truly affect us but I have to say… I don’t like it At All. DISNEY, Do Better!

It’s all in the eye of the beholder.

As someone who stays at deluxe every time, given what it costs, I actually think it’s high time there’s more included with those reservations.

 

[AnnabelleTheTalkingTree]

It’s all in the eye of the beholder.

As someone who stays at deluxe every time, given what it costs, I actually think it’s high time there’s more included with those reservations.

I do agree with you that there should be more perks for deluxe - especially considering what they cost and the fact that they aren't really true deluxe as far as being compared with a "luxury" hotel anywhere else. I've stayed at a nicer hotels in Manhattan for less. So a few extra perks thrown at the deluxe resorts could help to improve the value. That said, i don't think that MORE perks for deluxe should mean NO perks for value/moderate, or LESS perks than they used to have before. Taking away from value/moderate isn't really the answer, and I say that as someone who usually stays deluxe one way or the other.

 

[Ashnicole919]

I completely agree!

 

[Scalemaster34]

Here's the thing for me and why i'm so upset about EMH not being offered to me. What you state above is part of the problem, its been take take take from disney, which includes cutting hours of the theme parks, or adding more parties that do take away from normal park hours as well, all while increasing the price time and time again. And now that they bring back EMH, its only for a select group of people, nevermind that i'm already paying a premium to stay on their property.

If i'm being honest, for me I was done when the parking fees were announced, I was ready to tell disney to screw off and we're going somewhere else. My wife wasnt, so we've been back since then. But now, this was it for her, she told me Wedsnesday night that she's finally on board with me for doing other things and coming back to disney only every 2 to 3 years instead of every year.

I really hope lots of other people do the exact same thing my family is. The only way we're ever get back to some idea of what it was, and what we paid for those rooms, is if people stop tossing money at them.

I expect lots will be turned off by this....

But then there are new generations of visitors that didn't know that parking use to be free or that everyone use to be able to stay in a park till 1AM (or later) during the summer, or that most the premium fireworks viewing areas use to be open to everyone. And they certainly don't remember the "seasons" at Disney where rates (resort and park) were based on the month, not the day (maybe soon the hour) you want to visit.

 

[Lee Matthews]

Why is it people who pay less to stay in value and moderate resorts kick off that the extra magic hours isn’t available to them but then also say that they’re unwilling to pay the higher price for deluxe?