Online check in and free upgrades

FaithTrustPixieDust · #1 03-19-2012, 05:30 PM

Last year my friends got a surprise free upgrade from moderate to deluxe. Upon check in, they were told their resort was overbooked, so they were whisked away to the Beach/Yacht Club. (cue: theme song from The Jeffersons)

It was during the busiest spring break week, and it turned out to be a very smart move for Disney. The parks were at capacity, and closed mid-day a few times during their stay. Being at a deluxe"saved" their vacation, in their minds anyway. Now that they have tasted the sweet life of deluxe resorts, they can't fathom going back to moderates or (gasp!) values. More importantly, it's within their means to stay at deluxe level.

I've always wondered how the free upgrades get selected behind the scenes. Also, how do you suppose online check in impacts this process?

Strmchsr · #2 03-19-2012, 07:18 PM

Online check-in doesn't make a difference.

As for how upgrades are chosen - they happen, as you mentioned, during times when the resort is overbooked or, for marketing purposes, Disney wants to target a family. You mentioned the family not wanting to go back to moderates and that is often particularly the purpose of upgrading someone. It's almost like a pin code. They think if they can get you to the deluxe now, you'll always want to do deluxe. So, if their super top secret demographics people figure out you could probably afford the deluxe, they might target you for the upgrade. Sometimes, though, they're just random.

mom2morgan · #3 03-19-2012, 09:54 PM

Wouldn't online check in take away the possibility that your family might be "targeted"? It just seems like it would be much more impersonal.

spoiledraf · #4 03-19-2012, 10:04 PM

Same thing happened to us many years ago. Booked at the CBR for our first on site stay. Got a note from Disney they were overbooked and wanted to put us in the BC. Since then we have spent one night in a moderate which was a scary check due to a few of the folks in line with us (Lady looked like she just got done changeing the transmission in her truck) and one night in a value where we witnessed the start of a divorce with some of the most colorful language you ever heard. Since then we have been all deluxe. We did get one incredible upgrade when they put us in the Steeplechase Suite (Presidential Suite) at the Boardwalk.
Next up, first time at Poly in 84 days.

floridamom · #5 03-19-2012, 11:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mom2morgan

Wouldn't online check in take away the possibility that your family might be "targeted"? It just seems like it would be much more impersonal.

I believe that some upgrades are assigned even before you check in online. Twice I have gone to check in online and when I clicked to see details of my room, I noticed that we had been bumped up a category or two in terms of view (at a deluxe) from what I originally booked and paid for. Once it was actually to concierge level. I imagine these upgrades are done when assigning rooms to "balance inventory."

At other times it has *seemed* that upgrades have been at the discretion of the cast member at Check-in, perhaps in response to us mentioning it was our anniversary or some other special occasion.

In either event, I believe two big reasons we have frequently received upgrades are 1) we are usually only there 2 or 3 nights so they aren't taking a prime room out of commission for too long, and 2) we continue to come back, and our pattern over the past several years has progressed from staying mostly at values/mods to almost exclusively deluxes. (Guess they have identified that we're suckers and their plan has worked.)

Polynesian Dweller · #6 03-19-2012, 11:51 PM

I'll give some info from my hotelier background. Upgrades are a business/marketing. Sometimes the are given for operational reason like a room that need maintenance and had to be removed from inventory, balancing staffing, etc. Sometimes they are a marketing tool as Strmchsr says.

What they aren't is random, they are always for the bysiness purposes of the hotel. Every hotel has policies about how upgrades are awarded and room assigners and front desk must follow those and are almost always required to justify an upgrade when it is given. That's because there is a cost in lost revenue with an upgrade so there must be an accounting for that.

So, you'll get an upgrade only if doing so meets those policies and online vs at the front desk registration should not impact on that.

#1donaldfan · #7 03-20-2012, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spoiledraf

Same thing happened to us many years ago. Booked at the CBR for our first on site stay. Got a note from Disney they were overbooked and wanted to put us in the BC. Since then we have spent one night in a moderate which was a scary check due to a few of the folks in line with us (Lady looked like she just got done changeing the transmission in her truck) and one night in a value where we witnessed the start of a divorce with some of the most colorful language you ever heard. Since then we have been all deluxe. We did get one incredible upgrade when they put us in the Steeplechase Suite (Presidential Suite) at the Boardwalk.
Next up, first time at Poly in 84 days.

Gosh, I had no idea that we moderate resort people were below deluxe resort people's standards. I've never gone on vacation and checked in with my "oil changing" clothes on, matter of fact I don't remember seeing anyone, anywhere in Disney that dirty, EVER. Also, I gather that those whom stay at deluxe resorts don't divorce or get spots on their clothes.....

MNNHFLTX · #8 03-20-2012, 01:43 PM

Moderator Note--everyone please stay on topic. We do not want this thread to become a debate on resort "class" wars.

Complimentary upgrades do sometimes happen, usually because of certain categories of rooms being overbooked. That said, you are probably more likely to get an upgrade from a standard-view room to a preferred view room at the same resort, since the standards are cheaper and usually the first ones booked up. From what I have seen, it is very uncommon to get bumped up to a higher grade resort (say, from moderate to deluxe).

mom2morgan · #9 03-20-2012, 05:36 PM

*wading in delicately* just to say that I think we can assume with the high costs of Disney, that the entire experience is mainly only available to a certain socio-economic demographic; I think all of us are probably folks who can comfortably afford to spend a pretty big chunk of discretionary income, so we're probably far more "alike" than we are "different".

LarryBoy · #10 03-21-2012, 10:09 AM

The only upgrade I ever got was from the Garden Wing of the Contemporary to the Tower, and it was fabulous. It was pre-Christmas so my guess would be that the Garden Wing was overbooked. I had no idea that they ever did complete resort upgrades.

Quadstriker · #11 03-21-2012, 04:41 PM

Has anyone tried the 20 dollar trick at Disneyworld? How'd it go if you did?

mom2morgan · #12 03-21-2012, 05:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quadstriker

Has anyone tried the 20 dollar trick at Disneyworld? How'd it go if you did?

ooohhh....I'd think that would backfire since it is so "unDisney"...but I guess with what resort staff get paid (as in, not much) it COULD work. I'd be too scared to try!

MNNHFLTX · #13 03-21-2012, 07:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Quadstriker

Has anyone tried the 20 dollar trick at Disneyworld? How'd it go if you did?

I absolutely wouldn't recommend it. Aside from standard tipping positions, like restaurant servers and valet parking attendants, Disney World cast members are not allowed to accept tips. You would be putting them in an awkward position as well as yourself.