Quick Question About DLP Payment (First Post!)

Clopin Au Chocolat

Once a year we turn all Paris upside-down...
Joined
Nov 3, 2017
Hi everyone! This is my first post so sorry if I mess anything up/ask something really dumb!

My friend and I (both adults in our early 20's) recently got back from a great 2-day trip to DLP. We stayed off property and booked through a cheap non-Disney package deal provider.

We had such a good time during our Halloween trip that we're thinking of getting AP's and planning a larger trip for 2018, staying in a Disney resort, booking more expensive meals, staying for more nights etc. If I'm reading on the DLP site correctly, you just have to have your hotel/meals paid for 70 days prior to your holiday? There's no set payment plan, I can just pay when I like?

Sorry for the newbie question, this is my first time planning a big DLP trip and I'd love some advice from the pros!
 
Hi everyone! This is my first post so sorry if I mess anything up/ask something really dumb!

My friend and I (both adults in our early 20's) recently got back from a great 2-day trip to DLP. We stayed off property and booked through a cheap non-Disney package deal provider.

We had such a good time during our Halloween trip that we're thinking of getting AP's and planning a larger trip for 2018, staying in a Disney resort, booking more expensive meals, staying for more nights etc. If I'm reading on the DLP site correctly, you just have to have your hotel/meals paid for 70 days prior to your holiday? There's no set payment plan, I can just pay when I like?

Sorry for the newbie question, this is my first time planning a big DLP trip and I'd love some advice from the pros!

If you are just planning one trip, getting AP might not be worth it. Im sure someone who has APs will explain better

I have booked the hotel and park package through Disney a few times. Meal plans / vouchers are optional, you dont have to get a meal plan. With a meal plan you pay in advance for your meals, it is added to the cost of your package. When you check in to your hotel, you are then given the restaurant vouchers. Each category of meal plan has specific restaurants and specific set menus in the restaurants. If you want to eat something different from the specified menu you can add money to the voucher. I have never got a meal plan, I just pay at the restaurant.

If you book a restaurant through the restaurant reservation phone line, it is just a reservation. You will pay at the restaurant, ether with a meal voucher or with cash / card.

1. Booking online through the website
When you book online through the website you pay the full amount at the time of booking. You will create a MY DISNEY ACCOUNT on the website and when you log in you will see your hotel and trip details. When you book restaurants they will also show up here, if you book the meal plan vouchers, they will show up here.

2. Booking over the phone
When you book over the phone you pay a deposit of 30% at the time of booking. The balance is due on or before 30 days before arrival. There is no payment plan. You can either phone up again and pay the balance OR you can pay online, through your MY DISNEY ACCOUNT.Just be careful though, sometimes the call centre people can be very pushy and will do their best to get you to add extras like the optional dining plan, character meals, breakfast and anything else they can sell you. Be firm and and tell them no I dont want any extras.

Also you dont have to book through the Disneyland website for your country. Disney has different websites and different deals and offers for different countries. Do your homework, the best option for you may be on a different country, not the one you live in

http://www.disneylandparis.ie/
http://www.disneylandparis.co.uk
http://www.disneylandparis.fr
http://www.disneylandparis.de
http://www.disneylandparis.it
http://www.disneylandparis.nl
http://www.disneylandparis.be
 
If you are just planning one trip, getting AP might not be worth it. Im sure someone who has APs will explain better

I have booked the hotel and park package through Disney a few times. Meal plans / vouchers are optional, you dont have to get a meal plan. With a meal plan you pay in advance for your meals, it is added to the cost of your package. When you check in to your hotel, you are then given the restaurant vouchers. Each category of meal plan has specific restaurants and specific set menus in the restaurants. If you want to eat something different from the specified menu you can add money to the voucher. I have never got a meal plan, I just pay at the restaurant.

If you book a restaurant through the restaurant reservation phone line, it is just a reservation. You will pay at the restaurant, ether with a meal voucher or with cash / card.

1. Booking online through the website
When you book online through the website you pay the full amount at the time of booking. You will create a MY DISNEY ACCOUNT on the website and when you log in you will see your hotel and trip details. When you book restaurants they will also show up here, if you book the meal plan vouchers, they will show up here.

2. Booking over the phone
When you book over the phone you pay a deposit of 30% at the time of booking. The balance is due on or before 30 days before arrival. There is no payment plan. You can either phone up again and pay the balance OR you can pay online, through your MY DISNEY ACCOUNT.Just be careful though, sometimes the call centre people can be very pushy and will do their best to get you to add extras like the optional dining plan, character meals, breakfast and anything else they can sell you. Be firm and and tell them no I dont want any extras.

Also you dont have to book through the Disneyland website for your country. Disney has different websites and different deals and offers for different countries. Do your homework, the best option for you may be on a different country, not the one you live in

http://www.disneylandparis.ie/
http://www.disneylandparis.co.uk
http://www.disneylandparis.fr
http://www.disneylandparis.de
http://www.disneylandparis.it
http://www.disneylandparis.nl
http://www.disneylandparis.be

Thank you so much--this is insanely helpful! Will have to chat with my friend to see if APs will be worth it for us. We may end up going twice a year, so will see. Thanks again, really appreciate you taking the time to answer!
 
I agree with this - sometimes APs are cheaper, sometimes not! I've had two APs for separate years when I was able to visit DLP more than once - and I was always able to find Disney hotels room only cheaper on external websites (Expedia) than by booking through Disney. For our next trip, my sister and I considered APs again but actually the deal we got meant it was better value to go 4 nights/5 days on a package. So, there's no hard and fast rule - once you know when you want to go, you can start to check out prices and deals, just bear in mind that new deals might come out closer to the time!
 


I agree with this - sometimes APs are cheaper, sometimes not! I've had two APs for separate years when I was able to visit DLP more than once - and I was always able to find Disney hotels room only cheaper on external websites (Expedia) than by booking through Disney. For our next trip, my sister and I considered APs again but actually the deal we got meant it was better value to go 4 nights/5 days on a package. So, there's no hard and fast rule - once you know when you want to go, you can start to check out prices and deals, just bear in mind that new deals might come out closer to the time!

That's a really good point about deals coming out closer to the time--thank you so much for your reply :)
 
If you see a good price you might be able to book a hotel on an external site at a fully cancellable rate (many sites offer this), then you could change closer to the time if a good deal came out! I do this all the time to hedge my bets!
 
Remember if you book a hotel in one of the disney hotels through the disney site then your tickets will be included including arrival and departure day. If you want to book room only you need to ring them for the price but will often find it is less cost effective to book the package.
Annual passes are more useful when staying off site
 



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