Disney Resorts to start charging parking fees....

[UncleMike101]

I sent an email to George Kalogridis and Bob Iger's mailboxes and Disney guest services. Someone reached out to me today from Mr. Kalogridis's office. He did state that they have received a wave of outreach. I implore to everyone that is frustrated by this change to make your voice heard. Change only happens when there is a reason.

Can you post the e mail address's that you used?
I copied three address's yesterday and it looks like they may be bogus.

 

[KaptKaveman]

Thank you all for posting the email addresses of the people responsible for this fiasco. I added my email to the litany(hopefully) people who have complained.

We just got annual passes for the family for Christmas so it seems like we are a captive to this(at least until next June). I already told the family I thought we should stay at the Contemporary this June but after that I feel like we will be staying off site. Its truly a shame, we normally stay Deluxe so the extra 24$ really isn't out of reach but its just beginning to get hard to justify.

In my email i told them that I understand Walt Disney World is a business and businesses are out to maximize profit. I am really down capitalism but this idea just seems to be a all around bad business decision. We normally stay deluxe as I mentioned and we being onsite we normally have 1 TS and 1 QS meal per person(4). I am a bit of a miser so we usually share a little here and there and we don't get alcoholic drinks so I usually budget 140$ per day for meals. Does Disney think we are going to continue to spend that if they push us offsite? Throwing away 140$ to try to gain back 24$? Not only that I also mentioned in staying offsite we would be saving money, maybe enough money to give Universal a try for a couple of days on our next trip? I am not a business man or financial guru but this seems like a very bad decision.

 

[WildMouser]

'guest.services@disneyworld.com'; 'George.kalogridis@disney.com'; 'robert.a.iger@disney.com'. Agreed, thanks to the poster who posted these previously. That is where i obtained them as well. I did mention in my email and conversation that this was increase was on top of so many other impactful decisions this year (increase in resort rates, increase in park tickets) and degradation of services (bus route changes, amenities). One of the things really egregious is that the parking fee varies depending on the resort classification. He said that it was due to the fact that deluxe resorts have less parking overall. Not a good answer IMO.

 

[Farro]

That will only last until they have to close WDW due to lack of patronage.
A look at the past history of US businesses shows that when the patrons become jaded by price increases, quality drops, and perceived poor return for the dollars spent, those businesses close down.
A good example are the malls in the US.
They are shutting down over exactly those issues.
WDW is nothing more than a business that provides entertainment to the Public and when the Public feels ripped off they stop patronizing.

Nah. Malls and brick & mortar stores are closing due to the giant called Amazon (we've got to stop them!!!) and online shopping as a whole.

 

[Denise W]

Just a warning lol if you have only done DCL for a cruise you may be underwhelmed with another line ... I know I can’t do another line after DCL ... it’s like a deluxe resort with deluxe dining for one cost , I do love DCL does not nickel and dime as much as others.

Well, I have been on 8 Disney cruises and have moved on due to their high prices. I have also cruised on Carnival, Celebrity, NCL, and RCCL and have 4 more RCCL cruises planned. I feel DCL nickle and dimes you just as much (if not more) than other cruise lines. For a while our servers would give us the speech almost every night that we needed to give them an ""excellent" review on the survey. That never happened on the other cruises I took.
Denise

 

[Denise W]

I have never been any where that charged for parking a hotel. Paid guests would receive a parking pass.

I was in Niagara Falls this summer and had to pay for parking at my hotel.
Denise

 

[DISNEY1975]

I was in Niagara Falls this summer and had to pay for parking at my hotel.
Denise

But did you pay $600 a night for your hotel, plus parking, only to return to said hotel and find no parking available?

 

[Denise W]

I paid almost $300 a night and did not use the car while we were there. It remained parked in their lot while I was there. Casinos in the area also charge for parking.
Denise

 

[Tink-osophy]

I'm not sure Disney really thinks its comparable to other businesses or that it's standard within any industry. "Industry standard" is a convenient response on this occasion. Another time, it's that Disney is an industry leader and an innovator, which is what it should be.

 

[bryanb]

I agree. Just adding $24 a night to a week long stay is not cheap and needs to be evaluated with planning costs. My room at Bay Lake Tower is more expensive than a room at the Four Seasons. It'll probably be my last stay on property for a while. I just don't understand why they didn't just increase the prices of their hotels. People expect those to go up and wouldn't have complained at all, but doing it this way makes the charge in your face and a ton of people are complaining to them

When you look at the booking engines and compare prices, you might know it's there (like sales tax or airline extras), but it's not the first thing that pops out at you. If Disney increased the price of it's (already very expensive) room rates, they would look even worse compared to the off-site competition. I'm sure Disney has been frustrated for years that other hotels get away with parking charges and resort fees. But I hate that trend of semi-hidden fees, and just because others are doing it, doesn't mean I want Disney to do the same.

Also, it basically adds to the price of a rental car for people who fly in. I guess they're hoping that people will not bring a car in order to save $13-$24/night... but then make up for it by buying extra expensive meals on-site and staying away from other Orlando area attractions.

I am guessing Disney is doing this because Universal Orlando is doing it. They have different prices for parking at their hotels. Remember, they want to follow industry standards. So I guess the old statement WWWD (What Would Walt Do) is now WWUD (What Would Universal Do). Who knew Disney would be following Universal's lead?

Seriously! Universal was the first to start with tiered pricing (with upsells for shorter wait times) and demand pricing (at various times of the year). Disney has been letting Universal experiment with this stuff first before jumping in, whereas they used to be the leaders and Universal would match Disney.

Disney did charge for WiFi at first. It was about $10 a day.
Denise

I had always wondered why expensive hotels could get away with charging for wi-fi, whereas any old roadside motel gave it away for free. I heard a podcast about this and the answer was obvious: because they can. Cheap hotels know their customers won't pay it, and it has nothing to do with the cost of providing the wi-fi. Also, in expensive hotels, you have business travelers whose companies will definitely shell out the money to make their workers more productive. For now, at least, they probably calculated people wouldn't be willing to pay for wi-fi. But if we prove our willingness to pay, they would definitely take our money.

As an update. I just received a phone call from George Kalogridis' office. The woman I spoke with did not try the industry standards line with me, likely because I had extensively refuted that claim in my email, she mostly just apologized to me that I had such negative feelings over this, and wanted to let me know how much we are valued as WDW resort guests. I was very kind on the phone, but I was firm that this did not in any way make me feel valued, and that I would not buy any of the excuses that I have previously heard laid out. I was very clear that I feel that WDW properties lag behind industry standards in many ways, and that this was only diluting the overall product. It was nice to receive a call, and she let me know that my letter was extremely extensive and provided many thoughtful points. She said George reads all his correspondence and that she would also share this call with him. Not exactly satisfying, but I didn't expect to bring about change either.

I also just received a call from George's office. The secretary was very nice and had obviously read my letter. We had a nice chat. I told her that I had been coming to WDW since before Epcot was built and I hate seeing the magic disappear. She never once mentioned industry standards but I also had mentioned that in my email. She hoped that I would be coming back soon. I told her that since the magic was being dwindled away little by little that I would probably take my vacation dollars elsewhere. She did say that they are getting a lot of calls and emails. I do feel like they at least have heard me, nothing may change on Disney's end, but they are listening.

I'm really glad you all talked with the executive offices. More than most businesses, Disney execs do actually worry about guest feedback which is why they also invest so much money into surveys. You're right that nothing might change (as I'm sure the analysts have also given their calculations), but at the very least, next time there's a decision like this you'll have added to the chorus of voices that are a counterbalance to what the finance department probably says. Also, when a decision like this is made, it isn't just one person. In a huge company, rarely is any big decision one-sided and unanimous. Your feedback will give those people who disagreed with the parking fees more ammunition in future discussions about fees. (Source: I work for a big company, and have used customer feedback to influence decisions.)

I did get an email asking if they could call me for whatever that is worth, I don't think they will enjoy the conversation.

Maybe they will enjoy the conversation! It's not personal for them (as long as you're respectful and don't make it personal). The fact that they want to talk to you shows that people do care about what you have to say.

Not unless they make some significant improvements to their onsite transportation.

Absolutely and if history is a guide, I don't expect to see Disney do anything to fix the issue either.

Not to mention, industry standard pricing.

$31.50 Resort Fee last I checked. That said, The Swolphin is usually significantly cheaper than comparable Disney resorts even with the added fees. I've even seen both under $100/night (before the taxes and fees) on random days (orphan rooms between conventions/events). Plus, I earn starpoints and status with SPG/Marriott there. I have already stayed 4 nights at SPG Hotels completely free this year on points earned from paid stays at SPG Hotels and my SPG Amex.

I love SPG too and the Swolphin is one of my favorite places. I still hate the industry trend of resort fees, but I have also found those random sub-$100 rates. Sadly, I haven't found those bargains lately.

'guest.services@disneyworld.com'; 'George.kalogridis@disney.com'; 'robert.a.iger@disney.com'. Agreed, thanks to the poster who posted these previously. That is where i obtained them as well. I did mention in my email and conversation that this was increase was on top of so many other impactful decisions this year (increase in resort rates, increase in park tickets) and degradation of services (bus route changes, amenities). One of the things really egregious is that the parking fee varies depending on the resort classification. He said that it was due to the fact that deluxe resorts have less parking overall. Not a good answer IMO.

Yeah the only reason they charge more is because they think people are willing to pay more. There's just no nice way to say that, so they have to make it about something else.

 

[OKW Lover]

Haven't read this entire thread so its possible somebody already asked this question....
Why didn't they just (quietly) increase room rates? Would anybody have noticed? If they wanted to earn $x revenue per resort from this parking fee they could instead have just increased the room rate. Yes, not everybody is going to park a car overnight. So, instead of charging those with a car say $20 a night at a resort that typically has 50% of its guests with a car they could have just raised the nightly room rate by $10 across the board. Nobody would be the wiser.

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

But did you pay $600 a night for your hotel, plus parking, only to return to said hotel and find no parking available?

That's actually how it is in a lot of cities. That or they don't offer parking and you pay to park in a garage or the like.

 

[mom2rtk]

Haven't read this entire thread so its possible somebody already asked this question....
Why didn't they just (quietly) increase room rates? Would anybody have noticed? If they wanted to earn $x revenue per resort from this parking fee they could instead have just increased the room rate. Yes, not everybody is going to park a car overnight. So, instead of charging those with a car say $20 a night at a resort that typically has 50% of its guests with a car they could have just raised the nightly room rate by $10 across the board. Nobody would be the wiser.

Because they want to increase room rates AND charge for parking. And raise both annually.

 

[Disneylover99]

I paid almost $300 a night and did not use the car while we were there. It remained parked in their lot while I was there. Casinos in the area also charge for parking.
Denise

The summer can be pricey in Niagara Falls. Hope you got some casino and dining vouchers, a Clifton Hill funpass as well as complimentary breakfast out of that.

 

[DISNEY1975]

Haven't read this entire thread so its possible somebody already asked this question....
Why didn't they just (quietly) increase room rates? Would anybody have noticed? If they wanted to earn $x revenue per resort from this parking fee they could instead have just increased the room rate. Yes, not everybody is going to park a car overnight. So, instead of charging those with a car say $20 a night at a resort that typically has 50% of its guests with a car they could have just raised the nightly room rate by $10 across the board. Nobody would be the wiser.

Because they dont profit all the room rates. Many offer discount room rates, convention priced room rates through travel agents, and pay travel agents commision, which is a percentage of the cost of the room.

Parking fees are all for Disney.

Maybe I could swallow it better if the rooms were cheaper, and parking at the resorts was plentiful, but since neither is what is happening, I cant understand where they think this is OK with the guest. Just knowing the parking issues I have had in the past now having to pay them to deal with driving around 10, 15, 20 minutes looking/waiting for a spot makes my blood boil.

I used to stay on the monorail loop and pay the ridiculous price for the convenience. But since each of the last 2 times I have been at the Poly, the monorail barely worked each day and when it did work, coming back to the resort at night was a nightmare due to everyone and their mother knowing it stops at the TTC and uses the resort monorail just like the express, it was anything but convenient and I decided it was time to get off the monorail.

Now its time to get off the whole train.....

 

[Denise W]

The summer can be pricey in Niagara Falls. Hope you got some casino and dining vouchers, a Clifton Hill funpass as well as complimentary breakfast out of that.

We got the free breakfast at the hotel! We had already done all the touristy things on our last trip, so we walked around, took the hop on hop off bus, then drove up to Barrie to visit friends.
Denise

 

[Disneylover99]

That's actually how it is in a lot of cities. That or they don't offer parking and you pay to park in a garage or the like.

You mean you actually pay for parking and when you go to park, there are no available spots left?

 

[Fldisneyfamily4321]

Well, I have been on 8 Disney cruises and have moved on due to their high prices. I have also cruised on Carnival, Celebrity, NCL, and RCCL and have 4 more RCCL cruises planned. I feel DCL nickle and dimes you just as much (if not more) than other cruise lines. For a while our servers would give us the speech almost every night that we needed to give them an ""excellent" review on the survey. That never happened on the other cruises I took.
Denise

I have never had that experience but don’t doubt some have ... I have been able to have great cruises on DCL and get off with a 300.00 bill without ever feeling like I had to buy anything extra .. we do shop and such but that’s our choice to do but other then brunch we don’t tend to pay OOP for anything extra.. plus with such amazing service I’m good with the cost ( still cheaper then a trip to the parks )
We got a amazing “ Disney moment “ where they opened the closed 11th deck buffet restaurant for our party of 12 for a private dinner with menues from all restaurants on board to pick from .. they even had several waiters in dress whites standing there to chat, do magic tricks for the kids and give us anything we needed or wanted ! It was absolutely AMAZING ... they set up a long row of tables along the windows with table clothes and nice plates and such .. it was magical for sure !

 

[Soldier's*Sweeties]

You mean you actually pay for parking and when you go to park, there are no available spots left?

I didn't see the last few words of the post I quoted. That's where speed reading will get ya!

 

[DISNEY1975]

You mean you actually pay for parking and when you go to park, there are no available spots left?

I think the poster means the hotel doesnt offer parking and you have to pay to park close by in a garage or lot. Its like this in Boston, but the hotel rates are anything near what they are at Disney. If you do pay $600 - $1000, you are typically in a suite with butler service, champagne waiting for you, terry robes, concierge service, fully stocked mini bar etc...