How do you book your disneyland trip?

[kniquy]

I am very familiar with WDW and have never used a travel agent to plan or book, especially now with being a DVC member.

We (my family of 5) are in the beginning stages of planning a Disneyland trip - possibly next summer or the following year. Pricing and school vacations might dictate what time of year we choose.

What resources have you used with booking/planning your trip? travel site such as travelocity etc?
Would you book your room through the DL website as a package or not?
Any ticket deals out there if you purchase from a 3rd party (approved) vendor?
Book your own airfare or just bundle with your package?

Or would you use a TA if this was your first trip out there? I was going to contact Dreams but it doesn't give me the option to select dates for next year yet.

We would consider a couple days in the San Diego area as it seems that 4-5 days at DL might be enough. Would you do at the beginning or end of your trip.

 

[ParkHopper1]

While I may use third part sites to research option I ALWAYS book direct in the end....two reasons...flexibility and service. If you book a room only reservation at an on site hotel you can cancel no penalty up to 5 days out. Similar with off site. Cancelation and change policies are much more liberal booking direct then with third party sites with can be nightmares with problems or last minute changes.

Also, third party bookings are bottom of the barrel when it comes to customer service should conflicts arise. You will be the first to be walked and last to get upgrades or added amenities since there is zero loyalty tot he brand or property when booking through third party.

That is all true for hotel, airfare and car rentals. There is nothing these days a travel agent can do for you that you can't do better yourself though research.

 

[sherilaine]

I book the hotel with the hotel directly just because I hate using third party travel sites as they often limit room selection/cancellation options. I book flights directly with the airline. I book rental car through Costco. I book my tickets either directly through Disney or I will buy them through a third party as I have gotten some deals before. I would never book a package as I don't find there is any cost saving and I find the terms and conditions are often more restrictive.

 

[DisBuckMan]

We're kinda doing the same plan in two weeks. We're staying DVC, as I was lucky enough to be able to book our room at the 7 month mark. 4 nights/days at DL, because like you, it seems like that is more than enough.

We're flying into San Diego a week from Saturday. Staying between San Diego and Escondido on Saturday night and hitting the San Diego Safari Park on Sunday. Sunday night, we'll drive to Anaheim for our stay at the Grand Californian. We'll do DL/CA Mon, Tue, Wed, and Thur, then drive back to San Diego Thursday night. We're doing Sea World on Friday, then fly back out on Saturday.

We struggled with picking two of three in San Diego, between the zoo, Sea World, and the Safari Park, and ultimately settled on the Safari Park and Sea World. We've done all three before.

 

[kniquy]

We're staying DVC,

I know how hard it is to get a room at 7 months at the GC DVC. I could look into a points transfer for the 11 month advantage, but even with that i would need just over 200 points to get a 1BR --- definitely an option to consider.

 

[smartlabelprint]

I book flights and hotel direct.

I book tickets through last minute travel club.

 

[BadPinkTink]

I book off site hotels direct with the hotel

I book Disneyland tickets through Last Minute Travel Club

I book flights direct with the airlines

I book ADR direct through the Disneyland Website

I only book direct and other than Last Minute Travel Club, I only book direct with the airlines and hotels.

Disneyland is very different to WDW. There are only 3 onsite hotels and many people WDW Vets included feel that they are not worth the money. Many of the off site motels on Harbour Boulevard have a shorter walking distance than the onsite hotels. Crowd wise , the mornings from opening to lunch time are the least crowded so early entry is not as important as at WDW. ADR only open at 60 days and are no where near as stressful. You do not need to be online right at the 60 day time. Most people only book ADR 40 or less days, some people only book ADR the week or day before. There is no magic bands or Fast pass ++ Fast passes can only be obtained on the day, once you are in the park.

 

[gerilyne]

When i book non-Disney travel i will use 3rd party sites if the savings is significant but for the most part I have started booking direct. For Disney, I book through them. It is just easier to have it all in one place (except air travel, that I book with Alaska) and it makes changes super easy when I have wanted to upgrade or change things around.

 

[AndreAggie]

We're DVC too. If you have some flexibility in your dates, you can possibly grab a room at the 7-month mark. We have 5 nights booked in a 2-bedroom villa at the end of this month. We bought SoCal CityPass tickets. They include tickets to Legoland, Sea World, and 3-day park hoppers to Disneyland. You can add on San Diego Zoo at a discount (we did). We're flying into San Diego and plan to visit the USS Midway. Then we're staying in Escondido a couple nights while we hit the safari park and legoland, then make our way to Anaheim. We plan to pay the up-charge to make our DL tickets either 4 or 5 day tickets.

We booked airfare on our own.

We have a fantastic TA we use for Disney cruises and other trips, but with DVC, we did this one on our own. We booked a character breakfast at the 60-day mark without any problem.

 

[hlbtimes2]

I've used Disney travel, Costco (which uses Disney travel) and I've booked everything on my own direct with hotels and airlines and thru booking sites. It really depends on what specials Disney travel is running and what cash I have on hand to work with. I do like the little perks thru Costco, but I like the candy cane in motel and its not on their list.

For my trip later this month I booked my air thru expedia to get the points. I booked my motel (candy cane) direct thru them as they don't use any booking sites. And I ordered my hoppers thru ARes travel. I counted recently and this is trip 15 in the last 17 years.

 

[tarheelalum]

Skip the middle man and always book direct. You will save money at Disneyland booking direct and save yourself a lot of headache if something comes up and you need to change plans or cancel.

 

[DisBuckMan]

I know how hard it is to get a room at 7 months at the GC DVC. I could look into a points transfer for the 11 month advantage, but even with that i would need just over 200 points to get a 1BR --- definitely an option to consider.

1br's aren't nearly as hard to book at GCV as studios and 2br's are. You may be surprised by the availability. It is spendy pointswise, though.

 

[CharleneTheDM]

Hmmm!

I get the Disney tickets online direct but for flight and hotel I do it on Expedia after price checking from hotels direct.

 

[WebmasterMaryJo]

If you do book with a travel agent, I'd like to recommend Dreams Unlimited - they would cost the same as booking through Disney, they will help with any questions, and it's through their generosity that we have these boards to talk about Disney and other stuff.

If you're interested for a quote, you can click on the picture below:

 

[Nohal]

We booked the airlines direct, off site hotel (Park Vue Inn) direct, and tickets through the Disneyland web site. I always book my Disney vacations though their web site. I know I could have saved money booking the tickets for Disneyland through another site. Some here recommended a third party for tickets, which would have been cheaper, but I always feel more secure booking direct.

 

[DisBuckMan]

I booked Grand Californian Villas through DVC as stated above.
Booked our free flights with points on Delta, and booked our rental car and other 3 nights' hotel stay through Delta's website.
Bought tickets through ARes.

 

[theluckyrabbit]

In addition to all the great advice you're getting above, this thread will give you lots of good information to help with your planning: A DLR Guide for WDW Vets.

 

[deetman]

I’ve purchased park tickets through Ares, Union Advantage, and LMT club.

I’ve never seen better prices than LMT, and it’s always pain free.

 

[nicolita3]

I almost always book through costco.

 

[hootey]

Disney Travel