Cancelled by ABD: It DOES happen :(

[CrazyZeus1]

UPDATE: We got a surprise call from ABD today, and someone had been reviewing our case & saw that nothing was resolved. It was a wonderful phone call, and we left it feeling like ABD really DID care about what happened. We were also told the real deal...for that particular Vietnam itenerary, it was our family of three and a party of 18...and the party of 18 cancelled. The Disney agent is also handling all of the flight refund issue for us and is expediting our refund request for the cancellation fees.

I don't know if it was posting here, or posting on the FB ABD page, or if they just really WERE looking through our file and saw that nothing was resolved...but whatever it was, Joseph completely redeemed ABD for us. He gave us an answer about why it was pulled (which again, I understood they pulled it but didn't appreciate no reason), and he made it his priority to talk with both my husband and me each so that we could ask any questions and share any concerns. He was so disappointed that the other two ABD Disney reps we spoke with left us feeling like we weren't part of the "family"...and we honestly left the phone call feeling like ABD WILL help if there's an issue that needs attention.

It definitely sounds like others have had issues, and Disney really does have some improving to do in the cancellation arena. In our case, taking it to various social media outlets when we couldn't get a satisfactory answer on the phone perhaps helped...I don't know. But feeling acknowledged and heard makes a big difference, and I feel like Disney/ABD took to heart our issue and resolved it for us.

 

[Rapunzellover]

I wonder if other cancellations are for that reason (big party suddenly cancels, leaving less than 5, 10 people).

I can see why ABD would cancel and why they'd be vague about that.

 

[CrazyZeus1]

As Rapunzellover has said, ABD no longer offers an Early Booking Discount (they did several years ago). So if your TA is offering you a discount, it's coming from them, not ABD, just like OBCs do.

ABD has always (or as long as I've been aware of ABD) had an 800 number you can call to book adventures. And that was 2006. It does tend to be in smaller font up in a corner, which I guess I never noticed. I agree some sort of online booking would be nice, but booking directly with ABD is very easy to do. But, as you've said, you won't get those added bonuses that TA's can offer you.

Sayhello

We use our TA because on each ABD trip, her parent company offers HUNDREDS of dollars in rebate/discount/whatever. If you need a good TA, email me at crazyzeus1 at aol and I will send you her info...she has worked really hard at getting this Vietnam trip mess handled!

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

That is awesome, CrazyZeus! Call my cynical, but I suspect someone saw this thread and they were told to do damage control LOL.

 

[CrazyZeus1]

That is awesome, CrazyZeus! Call my cynical, but I suspect someone saw this thread and they were told to do damage control LOL.

I'm fine with that! It put us in contact with someone would WOULD do something, which is the end goal. I wish both of the other Disney agents we spoke with prior to today were as proactive as Joseph was today...perhaps the power of social media helped? I don't know. I just truly appreciate the call from Disney to address the problem and fix it.

 

[paddles]

Call my cynical, but I suspect someone saw this thread and they were told to do damage control LOL.

I agree!

On another note, you can book ABD trips through Costco and you get about 7-8% back in cash cards (even for the cruise add-ons)...it is totally worth booking through them! I can then call ABD directly with any questions/requests I have.

 

[carpenta]

We have done four ABD trips as well as two Tauck Bridges trips. Yes they have one tour guide BUT in each city they employ two to three local experts that guide you for the day. The experts we had were some of the best we have had in traveling. Our guide in Italy was super professional and it was the smoothest trip we have ever had. I think Tauck stays in a higher level of hotels BUT ABD stays in niche type hotels as in Germany castle stay. Tauck your tips are included in all Bridges tours as also they offer a free post or pre night stay in a hotel when you are a repeat customer.
After reading your post CrazyZeus, 1. do you have Joseph's phone number so we can all be treated like adults? 2. Do you think they can be retroactive and I can get my $600.00 back from the previous cancellation?.

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

Just got a message today that our January 2016 Vietnam trip was cancelled. Our travel agent is trying to help us unravel the flight mess because we had already bought tickets on our own....what a day. I thought a cancelled ABD itenerary was a "unicorn"...a mythical thing that never REALLY happened. Well...it does...poo.

We are rebooked for the December Christmas itenerary, and Disney is *supposed* to be giving us a refund on the cancellation penalty for our flights, but it's such a headache, especially with such complicated flights to get ALL the way to Vietnam!

This would have been our 5th ABD trip and now I'm so nervous about taking it....

Glad to hear that it looks like your costs will be reimbursed.

I am puzzled as to why it's so "complicated" to book a flight to Vietnam.

 

[CrazyZeus1]

Glad to hear that it looks like your costs will be reimbursed.

I am puzzled as to why it's so "complicated" to book a flight to Vietnam.

It was complicated because there's no "quick" way to get there! Our outbound went DFW to Hong Kong to Ho Chi Min...return was Siem Reap to Hong Kong to LAX to DFW. Just lots of legs

Then we were very purposeful about which exact type of plane we chose based on seats and entertainment, lenths of time at each airport, etc. It was much more involved then just picking a flight to Vietnam!

 

[lost*in*cyberspace]

That sounds about right.

 

[Calfan]

I think Tauck trips sell out because they have been around a long time, as Sayhello mentioned, and they have a very loyal customer base, because they offer an excellent product. The Bridges trips sell out consistently, just like the World Discovery trips. Many of the people I've traveled with on TB trips have heard of ABD or have taken an ABD trip. The company with the best cancellation policy is Thomson Family Adventures. They never cancel a trip, regardless of the number of people booked.

We are planning to do China in 2016 and were pretty set on booking ABD (barring any unfavorable itinerary changes or a prohibitive price increase once 2016 itineraries are released in June), but this whole thread has caused me to look seriously at Thomson Family Adventures given their guaranteed departure policy. Their itinerary appears to be priced pretty comparably to the ABD itinerary, but it is 3 days longer. It includes everything I most want to do in China that the ABD includes (the Great Wall, Terra Cotta warriors, Pandas, Gumdrop Mountains) and also has more biking and hiking activities that are very appealing to me. I don't think the hotels Thomson uses are quite as nice as the hotels on the China ABD, but I can probably live with that. Thomson also caps their trips at around 20, which is much better, in my opinion, than the 44 that ABD now allows. I was originally disappointed that the Thomson trip does not include Hong Kong, but it ends in Shanghai, and with Shanghai Disney opening, we could extend for a couple of days in Shanghai and hit the park, so I don't feel as strongly about the Hong Kong portion of the ABD. Unless ABD offers some guaranteed departures for China that fit my desired dates or does something to the itinerary to make it too good to pass up, ABD may lose my business to Thomson because of this cancellation policy ridiculousness. I've never heard of an ABD China trip being cancelled, but I'm not sure I want to risk it. As others have pointed out, it is not just about being able to recoup costs. That can probably be managed by booking air through ABD, etc. The real issue is having your major annual vacation plans pulled out from under you such a short time prior to departure that there probably aren't many realistic substitute options.

 

[CaliforniaGirl09]

I received my response from ABD, which appears to be canned and includes the usual need for flexibility in the case of safety concerns, etc. (duh! Which obviously wasn't what i was talking about!). Anyway, there was one part that I thought was interesting as it seems to be different than the response some of you were getting. "Knowing how important your travel plans are, we will always notify Guests no later than 60 days prior to the trip departure date in the unlikely event a trip cancellation is required." (The bold is mine).

 

[Calfan]

I received my response from ABD, which appears to be canned and includes the usual need for flexibility in the case of safety concerns, etc. (duh! Which obviously wasn't what i was talking about!). Anyway, there was one part that I thought was interesting as it seems to be different than the response some of you were getting. "Knowing how important your travel plans are, we will always notify Guests no later than 60 days prior to the trip departure date in the unlikely event a trip cancellation is required." (The bold is mine).

I also wrote to ABD yesterday (and linked this thread) and received the exact same canned response as CaliforniaGirl. Word for word! My email to ABD was more specifically targeted to the China ABD, but the response didn't address China at all in terms of whether a China trip has ever been cancelled, etc. I still feel like the 60 days referenced in the responses CaliforniaGirl and I received is too close to the departure date. I suppose it's possible that other tours might have openings around the same dates in order to salvage a vacation, but it doesn't seem likely. Switching to a different departure with ABD also seems like it could be difficult at such a late date given the need to request time off from work, etc. By 60 days, I think most people would need to be locked in with certainty for specific dates.

 

[TXTransplant]

When I went through my back and forth with ABD via my TA, no one ever mentioned 60 days. And I specifically asked if there was a point at which ABD could confirm my trip. My TA said ABD said no. Maybe something was lost in the translation...

60 days is awfully close to 75. Why not just confirm at the 75 day mark, when final payment is due?!? I don't understand the point of waiting another 15 days, although I'm sure ABD would say there is one.

 

[sayhello]

I received my response from ABD, which appears to be canned and includes the usual need for flexibility in the case of safety concerns, etc. (duh! Which obviously wasn't what i was talking about!). Anyway, there was one part that I thought was interesting as it seems to be different than the response some of you were getting. "Knowing how important your travel plans are, we will always notify Guests no later than 60 days prior to the trip departure date in the unlikely event a trip cancellation is required." (The bold is mine).

That's interesting, because it's not the policy as it's written on the website. The website still says:

We reserve the right to cancel a trip at any time prior to its commencement for any reason, such as if there are too few Guests, or if the quality of the trip or the safety of the Guests would, in our opinion, be compromised, such as may result from unforeseen circumstances (acts of God) or other circumstances beyond our reasonable control.

I may send an email to ABD just so that I can hold onto that response to have it in writing!

Sayhello

 

[carpenta]

We MUST schedule our vacation times at least one year in advance, period. We don't have the option of switching 60 days or 6 months out. I don't know the minimum numbers necessary to "break even" on an ABD trip but I would suspect it would be 50%. (just a guess). When groups go below 50% of total I would think adjustments can be made such as transportation and hotels to cut overall costs. Buffets and hotel rooms are usually per person charge. Other family tour companies seemed to be able to function with the maximum occupancy of the tour being 20 people. A good company should be able to tailor their product to the environment they find themselves at any given time.

 

[CrazyZeus1]

I hope ABD is reading this thread, and sees the large number of Disney trips in everyone's signatures. ABD, you have a group of people who are loyal to Disney, but see a flaw in the system, where people are WILLING to pay a premium price for a premium product...but we just need the reassurance that things will work out!

 

[cmcgardner]

Thank you to the original poster for this thread. And I am glad that ABD contacted you and answered your questions and are taking care of you. I have to admit that this thread has been very eye opening and a little stomach turning. We leave for our first family ABD in less than a month and I wasn't really aware of all of the fine print and didn't buy our plane tickets via ABD. My DH and I loved our first (adult only) ABD and are even thinking of booking another adult trip for 2016, but all of this makes me so nervous. I am going to have to really think about our future plans. I would be crushed if I had child care for 3 kids lined up and a trip paid for and tickets purchased only to have it canceled. I guess I will see how our trip goes and go from there. (Another poster stated that she hated the Central Europe ABD so now I am very very curious to see how ours goes.)

ETA: I really need to update my signature. We probably have at least 8 trips to add. So yes, we are HUGE Disney fans.

 

[Cinderella's Slipper 2015]

I'd be interested in your experience on the Central Europe ABD cmcgardner. We are looking at booking this one for 2016.

 

[Calfan]

I'd be interested in your experience on the Central Europe ABD cmcgardner. We are looking at booking this one for 2016.

Cinderella's Slipper, we did the Central Europe ABD last July and really enjoyed it. Our favorite is still Scotland, but I wouldn't hesitate to recommend Central Europe (putting aside this alarming cancellation thread). Here is a link to my Central Europe trip report in case you want to read about our experience:

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3304874