Charging privileges/credit card question

[Golfer21]

If I leave my credit card on file so I can have charging privileges, will they hold or freeze a certain amount of credit up front? Don't laugh, but I'm only going to have $300 credit left after paying my room balance and buying tickets. I'm just afraid they'll require like $500 available credit or something.

[SBETigg]

No, they don't! It always surprises me. They do have certain limits, depending on resort, that they will charge the card when you reach and start your tab over again. I stay deluxe and I think it's $1500 there and lower for mods, still lower for values. So there's no hold, but once you charge x amount on your room key, they'll take the charges from your card. But you don't even have to have them get it from your credit card. You can pay the balance down by cash or check before the limit is reached.

Welcome to INTERCOT!

[Jimenyfan]

We usually leave a credit card on file and then change our form of payment before we leave depending n what account we will be using. The night before we leave I usually get a print out of our charges and write a check or give them our debit card to take care of the bill.

[CleveRocks]

You've received good information above. I'll just add some.

When you set up a room charge, you can set it uo for any amount you want, up to a maximum limit. Those limits are $500 for Value resort guests, $1,000 for Moderate resort guests, and $1,500 for Deluxe resort guests. But remember, those are UPPER limits ... you can choose to set it for lower if you wish.

If you present plastic, they won't place a hold on any amount ... in fact, they won't even check to see if you have that much credit available to you! They will swipe the card and run a charge of zero dollars and zero cents. If the charge is approved, this lets them know that the account is active rather than closed or non-existent.

As noted above, nothing will be charged until you reach your room charge limit OR until roughly 3:00 a.m. or so on your check-out day. Before either of those occur, you are free to pay down or pay off your room charge account with any other means.

Perhaps more importantly for you, you don't even need a credit or debit card to set up a room charge account. You can just as easily do it with cash or travelers checks or even Disney Dollars. No matter how you back up the room charge, it works the same way. In other words, when you present your room charge card for payment at a shop or restaurant, the cashier has no way of knowing whether you backed up your room charge with a platinum American Express card or a truckload of rolled pennies.

[TheRustyScupper]

Don't laugh, but I'm only going to have $300 credit left after paying my room balance and buying tickets.

1) No problem.
2) In fact, people FREQUENTLY don't have enough balance for the charges.
3) If this happens, you get a note under the door on check-out day.
4) You are asked to take care of the balance in a different manner.
5) Most either pay cash or do another card.

NOTE: People do walk out without paying the balance when the card doesn't take. They get a polite letter later at home asking for payment arrangements.

[ljv1975]

I'm glad you asked this!
So, just to be clear - if I charge something to my room each day, they will just keep track of all the charges and charge the card in one lump sum at the end of the trip instead of three or four individual charges each day? I've never charged anything to a room before, so this is all new to me!:blush:

[kakn7294]

1) No problem.
2) In fact, people FREQUENTLY don't have enough balance for the charges.
3) If this happens, you get a note under the door on check-out day.
4) You are asked to take care of the balance in a different manner.
5) Most either pay cash or do another card.

NOTE: People do walk out without paying the balance when the card doesn't take. They get a polite letter later at home asking for payment arrangements. Thanks for this info! I was wondering what happened if there wasn't enough credit on the card to cover the charges. I've never given a credit card due to my fear that I would overcharge - I never knew before Intercot that there was a limit based on your resort level either.

[sillyolbear]

You can also elect to have some of the Keys to the Kingdom cards in your party have charge privileges and others not. Just tell the cast member at check-in which members of your party you would like to have charging privileges.

[TheRustyScupper]

You can also elect to have some of the Keys to the Kingdom cards in your party have charge privileges and others not. Just tell the cast member at check-in which members of your party you would like to have charging privileges.

1) Each person can also have their own credit card used.
2) You don't have to have all the charges going to one credit card.
3) Sure helps not having to sort out the charges later.

[Beast_fanatic]

I'm glad you asked this!
So, just to be clear - if I charge something to my room each day, they will just keep track of all the charges and charge the card in one lump sum at the end of the trip instead of three or four individual charges each day? I've never charged anything to a room before, so this is all new to me!:blush:

Yes, they accumulate the charges and place them all at once. If you reach your limit before you check out though, you'll end up with a charge when your limit is reached and then one when you check out. You can get a copy of the charges that have been made against your room at any time, and you'll get one on your day of check-out so you can make sure all the charges are accurate.