Disney Resorts to start charging parking fees....

[lambdabeta]

That’s so weird. That hasn’t been my experience at all. Not only do they ALWAYS call me back, the person who will call me will send an email the day before. In it, they introduce themselves, give me their schedule in case I need to contact them, and finally, they let me know when I can expect their phone call. It may take awhile to hear from them but at least they’re thorough.

Heck, guest services will call me back even when I ask them not to.

Just to be clear, we are talking about using the email address guest.services@disneyworld.com to contact them directly and not going through the WDW website, correct? What you describe is what I experience if I contact Disney through their website.

ETA: You’re probably right about who is getting called back. I haven’t been keeping track, but now that I think about it, I know for sure people were reporting getting calls from DVC and Kalogridis, can’t be certain it was GS.

I’m sorry for the confusion, it’s late, I should be in bed.

Just wanted to clarify, I did send an email to guest.services@disneyworld.com. The message I got back was thank you for my email and if I wanted to talk to them I needed to call. I think this proves my theory that they keep track of guests who spend more money or go more often. We hadn't been in years so Dec was our first trip in a while. It sounds like you are a regular and they know that so you get a phone call and I don't.

 

[chelynnah]

Icing? I thought the room checks were the icing? Lol

For some, for others it was dogs, for others it was the AP changes 2-3years ago, and for those who have stuck it out through all of that, this is their limit.

Everyone has their tipping point, where the scales of value and experience for money tips the scale the other way. I think a lot of people have had that point on the edge for a while now. A few things have been slightly edging it over, but this one last thing dropped the scales firmly into the ‘not worth it’ side.

I don’t get to go often. I come from the UK. We stay offsite generally because it really is cheaper to rent a 3 bedroom villa offsite than a room on site. But I had my first onsite stay last year where I took my MIL for a quick break for her birthday, and DH and I have a plan in the works for a short trip next year. We can do it because we are getting a good FD offer for UK residents. It will likely be our last stay onsite as any longer Florida tripsare much cheaper offsite. We had considered a day or two onsite for our following trip, but that’s up in the air now. And we even suspect that either the trip next year, or the one planned for 2022 may be our last for a very long time.

Anyway, that was just a bit of background. Here’s where I see things now. A few of the ‘tipping points’ over the last few years I figured were just business decisions that may or may not have affected me and were personal decisions to how it affected others and their holidays. I have often silently rolled my eyes at some of the overdramatic responses to things, and been prepared to wait and see how things really pan out once in practice, but I still understood why people were having a problem, even if I didn’t agree. This one doesn’t affect me as we aren’t renting a car for this trip, and next trip was planned offsite anyway, but even I feel like this is the actual real tipping point. From this point onwards it really is a slippery slope. A couple of years back they hinted at adding resort fees. Everyone went ballistic and rightly so. The ‘resort fee’ at Disney is already in the massive additional price for the hotels that you’re already paying which includes parking, DME, magic bands etc. If you unbundle those and put them into a resort fee, then you’d better be reducing the room rates accordingly. I see this unbundling of the parking fees (with no corresponding room rate drop) to be exactly this. And as much as we were staring to enjoy the idea of staying on site now and then in the future, it’s only confirmed that we will continue staying offsite moving forward. I can only begin to imagine the prices and add ins that will now be in place by the end 2022

Edited to fix the autocorrect typos.

 

[jsand99]

Just wanted to clarify, I did send an email to guest.services@disneyworld.com. The message I got back was thank you for my email and if I wanted to talk to them I needed to call. I think this proves my theory that they keep track of guests who spend more money or go more often. We hadn't been in years so Dec was our first trip in a while. It sounds like you are a regular and they know that so you get a phone call and I don't.

I'm not sure how they are determining who gets a call. October will be my second trip and the first in my name. Mentioned that in my email and that we would be looking offsite in the future. Got a call back yesterday.

 

[dachsie]

Just wanted to clarify, I did send an email to guest.services@disneyworld.com. The message I got back was thank you for my email and if I wanted to talk to them I needed to call. I think this proves my theory that they keep track of guests who spend more money or go more often. We hadn't been in years so Dec was our first trip in a while. It sounds like you are a regular and they know that so you get a phone call and I don't.

I would not consider myself a regular. It will be 2 years since I made it there. And last time was the ROL debacle and I sent in an email on that and someone called me front george’s office then too. Before that my other stay on property was 2006. Have stayed off property a few times cause I was here for conferences

 

[Gryhndmom]

I don’t think this has been talked about. Sorry if it has.


I’m angry about this, but I’m also embarrassed.

Everyone in our life knows we go to WDW and stay at their resorts, so we often get asked for help. Each friend we’ve helped has balked at the current prices. What’s going to happen after the 21st? They’re going to think we’re crazy for paying that. I kinda feel like my reputation is on the line...

Anyone else feel this way?

One thing is for sure, next time a friend asks for advice, I am going to advocate they stay offsite.

Friends ask us for recommendations and we always ask what their price point is as it can be different for everyone . We genreally layout our pros and cons for onsite vs off-site and then let them choose. For us, we like being in the bubble, having EMH and being able to go back to the resorts to rest midday. All of these factors led us to by DVC BLT a few years ago. We will now let friends know there will be a parking fee and then they have to decide for themselves. As a friend of of mine likes to say “not my monkey not my circus “.

They will wait and see how bad reservations are affected before possible changing back. I assume this month and next, and possibly May most people are already booked. It will be summer/fall that they may or may not feel the backlash...if there is any.,

Agree! I posted many pages ago that it could be many months before they see if everyone who has said they are staying offsite actually do put their money where their mouth is as they saying goes.

 

[dres40]

Robert.Chapek@disney.com

george.kalogridis@disney.com

robert.a.iger@disney.com

Thank you ! Email sent to all 3 plus one to guest.services@disneyworld.com.

 

[rn448698]

Just sharing my recent (not so great) experience with guest services. I emailed them on 3/14 with two purposes: 1) to confirm that I wouldn't be charged for parking in April and 2) to express my disappointment in the new policy. I received an email response this afternoon confirming that I wouldn't be charged for parking. There was no attempt to justify the new policy or to give any indication that they at least heard my viewpoint. Very bizarre from a customer service standpoint.

 

[BillyRay_Omaha]

Disney Resorts are great, they have that Disney feel, Disney people know what I am talking about. That said we usually don't stay in Disney resort's simply because they are not worth the price IMHO ,one big perk was the free parking now that's gone.
We stay at the Hilton, Holiday Inn or Wyndham right next to Disney Springs those Hotels are in the perfect location and now they also get Extra Magic Hours. 5-10 min walk to Disney Springs is SOOO nice, same basic free bus transport to parks room's cost from 80-150$ and yes you pay a parking fee like $20 a day and resort fee like $20 a day, still cheaper and a better location than any Disney Value or Moderate Resort.
Love the bus options, 2 lines run to the Hotels so we can return to the Hotel on either, the other line will require a walk across the street no big deal, and when the Disney Springs Bus's start running we can simply goto Disney Springs from any park then walk to the Hotels, Perfect for us. Also love the Dolphin Swan hotels for the location so nice to walk to Epcot or Studios, 174-225$ with the same fees still 100-200$ less that and Boardwalk area Disney Hotels.

Any bets as to when Disney will start charging the 20-25$ per day resort fee at check in???

I say 2020

 

[lambdabeta]

I'm not sure how they are determining who gets a call. October will be my second trip and the first in my name. Mentioned that in my email and that we would be looking offsite in the future. Got a call back yesterday.

I would not consider myself a regular. It will be 2 years since I made it there. And last time was the ROL debacle and I sent in an email on that and someone called me front george’s office then too. Before that my other stay on property was 2006. Have stayed off property a few times cause I was here for conferences

You are both taking my response out of context. I was talking to someone who said they always got a call from guest services when they emailed them for any complaint not just parking fees. I responded in my original post that I did not have that experience with a general complaint. She asked if I had emailed the guest services address. I was answering that post. My answer has nothing to do with whether or not you received a phone call if you complained about parking fees. BTW, who did you email? Guest services or one of the executives. I want to see who is getting call backs. It seems people who have complained directly to the executives are getting quick responses.

@dachsie I don't know what you were referring to but it must have been something serious if you complained to guest services and received a call back from Kalogridis's office.

 

[littlestar]

This Frommer's article sums it up pretty well:

https://www.frommers.com/blogs/pass...-for-parking-at-hotels-decreasing-their-value

 

[Kevin355]

This Frommer's article sums it up pretty well:

https://www.frommers.com/blogs/pass...-for-parking-at-hotels-decreasing-their-value

He nailed it.

 

[Kevin355]

I actually looked at offsite house rentals and was *SHOCKED* at how much more I got for spending less than I would have spent at a Fort Wilderness Cabin. Private pool? Full kitchen? Multiple bedrooms? And it's a thousand dollars less? If I ever go back to WDW, I'll definitely be staying in one of these houses. If it weren't for this parking money grab, I never would have even looked. What's seen can never be unseen. I'm still shocked by how much I was overspending and what I was getting in return for those dollars.

And that is it in a nutshell. I didn't like the increases yearly in rooms, and the increases in park tickets, and the increases in DDP, but I was staying on property and considered it kind of a convenience fee. Now that Iger and group and trying to bleed me for every last penny, we started looking at condos or other lodging nearby.

 

[Iya]

This Frommer's article sums it up pretty well:

https://www.frommers.com/blogs/pass...-for-parking-at-hotels-decreasing-their-value

Yep, especially the fact Disney made $1.3 BILLION in profit (that means what is left after all the bills are paid) last quarter.

 

[DISNEY1975]

This Frommer's article sums it up pretty well:

https://www.frommers.com/blogs/pass...-for-parking-at-hotels-decreasing-their-value

Great article. Wish he mentioned that now offsite hotels ARE allowed the EMH and advanced FP selection.

I do love this quote...

"Adding nearly $200 onto what is already an extremely expensive one-week vacation (an average room in a Deluxe hotel, such as the Contemporary Resort pictured above, is already $450 to $700 per night) seems petty and can only engender deteriorating goodwill from guests."

 

[famsen]

I got a call this morning (yes Sunday) from Bob Iger's and George's executive offices in response to my recent email expressing my dismay over the resort parking fees. The representative said she will be passing all my concerns and input to Bob and George. She said she understands why I would be upset given that I told her I chose to drive 18 hours there and back to Disney World every year and nothing more has been done to improve my resort parking experience to justify the new charge. I also brought up the room checks. At first she said it was to make sure everything in the room is in working order like the air conditioning. She said it is a "very quick" look into the room that is non disruptive. I said we always decline housekeeping at least a few days during our stay because we don't like people in our room. We have valuables and the safes are very small in the rooms. I told her I always call right away if anything is not in working order. Then she said it was for all guests safety due to recent events. I said that doesn't make sense to me because anyone who wants to do harm will hide their nefarious items under the bed or in suitcases. If it is such a quick check they would never find anything anyway. So the call ended with her thanking me and I thanking her and everything allegedly will be passed on to the higher ups. I felt I was l was being heard. The call lasted about 15 minutes. It was a good give and take. I encourage everyone to write.

 

[JulieT3]

Count me as one more person that voiced my displeasure by sending an email to the Bobs and George. I, too, received a call from a CM (ironically while I was in Hollywood Studios) who pretty much fed me the same lines that everybody else was fed.
I also asked if Disney would be willing to refund me for the annual pass renewals I purchased last month (our current APs expire in April, so we hadn't used the renewals yet). The woman I spoke with checked on that and got back to me the same day, letting me know that I could "return" all 4 APs. After taking a few days to really think about my decision, I called back today to confirm that I would like to cancel my AP renewals. It was HARD to break the Disney addiction cycle, but I'm actually glad I made that decsion. Every time Disney pulls something like this, I get frustrated and complain (mostly to my family), but I never do anything about it. I feel like I've been one of their many enablers in their endless quest to provide less for more. Quite honestly, after going 2-3 times/year for 8-10 days each time, my kids were becoming pretty jaded. I'm looking forward to trying something new! I have no doubt we'll head back to Disney for another trip in a few years, and I'm thankful to many of you that my eyes have now been opened to some great offsite options.

 

[jsand99]

You are both taking my response out of context. I was talking to someone who said they always got a call from guest services when they emailed them for any complaint not just parking fees. I responded in my original post that I did not have that experience with a general complaint. She asked if I had emailed the guest services address. I was answering that post. My answer has nothing to do with whether or not you received a phone call if you complained about parking fees. BTW, who did you email? Guest services or one of the executives. I want to see who is getting call backs. It seems people who have complained directly to the executives are getting quick responses.

@dachsie I don't know what you were referring to but it must have been something serious if you complained to guest services and received a call back from Kalogridis's office.

Sorry for the misunderstanding. I emailed the three executives and guest services.

 

[DisneyDeb83]

Forgive me if this has been answered already, I haven't read all the posts. If Disney doesn't have a problem making their hotel guests pay for parking, why aren't they charging day guests? I remember parking at Poly when we had a dinner at Ohana and they checked to make sure we had a reservation. Wouldn't that be a requirement at the Epcot area resorts to make sure people weren't parking there to walk over to the parks?

We have a annual pass that expires in September and have been twice already on rented points. Taking a short trip to ASMU in a few weeks, no rental car, and another DVC rental in September. We were considering renewing but are definitely taking a break after this, even though the parking fees won't affect us.

 

[MinnieMouse2017]

We live about 3 hours from the parks. Hubby and I obviously drive up. We are AP holders, so we don’t pay for parking at the parks.

The All Star room rates for a cleaner and nicer Motel 6 room are already kind of nuts. Adding parking fees on top of that? I’m less likely to stay on property. I usually only stay here if I do a solo trip to the parks, so now the room rate will have to be low to get me to stay there if I’m adding this extra fee in.

I just had two recent off property stays at Air B and Bs. One was a 3 bed/3 bath town home in good condition for about $100 per night for our week stay. We only had to drive 12-15 minutes to most of the parks.

On another trip we stayed 4 nights in a 3 bed/2 bath single family with private pool for about $200 a night.

If you are already paying to rent a car, it makes sense to save and stay off property. I understand you lose the 60 day FP benefits.

I’m someone who hates the food on Disney property, so I’m happy to eat someplace else.

The parking fees will probably dissuade me from another short stay at the Contemporary.

 

[lambdabeta]

Sorry for the misunderstanding. I emailed the three executives and guest services.

Thank you. It seems the call backs are for people who have emailed the executives. I don't know if anyone has gotten a call back if they only emailed guest services. I emailed GS days ago and only have gotten the canned answer that they received my email. I have now emailed all three of the executives that have been listed in this thread. Thank you to everyone who posted the emails. I will report back if I now get a phone call. Can anyone who has received a phone call and only emailed GS let me know? I think emailing the executives has a greater impact than GS because they don't get very many complaint emails.