Downtown Disney Hotel for 17 year old

[MILWDIANA]

My niece and a few of her friends will be in Orlando for 1 night in February. They hope to go to Downtown Disney the night they arrive and then spend a full day at the Magic Kingdom the next day. Are there any hotels preferably near Downtown Disney that would let a 17 year old book a room?? An extra bonus would be airport pickup also. But that is not a necessity.

[1DisneyNut]

It is hard to find the polices on age restrictions on a lot of the hotel websites. We have ran into that before. Each hotel usually has their own policies.

One thing I can say with fair certainty is the one making the reservation and ultimately responsible would need to be at least of adult age for any hotel. Therefore, at 17 it is very unlikely they would allow her to be the primary on the reservation.

Some hotels are relaxed and allow 18 year olds to make reservations but it is usually the lower priced chains/locations. Some of the nicer resorts usually require age 25 and a few 23. So really it just depends on the particular hotel policy.

I would suggest looking at the rates and amenities online and picking the one they like. Then call the hotel directly and speak with reservations. Most likely an adult can make the reservation with their credit card and then the niece/friends could actually pay with cash or a debit card once they get there. The credit card from the adult would be on file in case of any damages or incidentals. We have done this in the past without much trouble. The only problem we had was when they tried to check in, they asked for the credit card that was used to make the reservation and of course they did not have it with them because I was at home. Just have them make a note in the reservation explaining you made the reservation for your niece and they will be paying cash and will not have your card with them. It may take a phone call to clear it up at check in so be prepared but it should all work out fine.

[JerseyDad]

....does the 17 yr old have access to a credit / debit card with shared charging / use / access / authorization privileges granted from the primary card holder?

...if not ..then an "adult" ...someone over 18 or sometimes 25, depending on jurisdiction or hotel chain rules ...would need to make the reservation.

....if a card needs to be "presented" at check in (check with hotel regulations)...the credit card that would be used needs to have the user / holder name on it because it's technically illegal to sign you name to a credit card that has another person's name on it. Most banks will issue an "authorized user" card with their name ...and that will solve the problem

[MargaretMessler]

Perhaps hook her up with a prepaid credit card like you can buy at Walmart or Target, etc. Make sure there's enough on there to cover the cost of the hotel and and hold for incidentals? Then it would have her name on it for signing purposes?

[Scar]

I had no idea there were rules like this. Isn't it discrimination for a hotel to not allow certain adults access to their hotels for no other reason than their age? Really?

[JerseyDad]

I had no idea there were rules like this. Isn't it discrimination for a hotel to not allow certain adults access to their hotels for no other reason than their age? Really?


....well ...first, the credit card is the hotel's "ace in the hole" ...in the event that you "go rock-star" on the room and destroy it ....but for the most part it's just a way for them to more easily guarantee that they'll get paid.

....they also hold a security deposit in the event that you do stuff like smoke in a non-smoking room and they need to fumigate it ...or if you extend your stay ..it makes it easy for them to just bill the added days.

....being that it's only part of their 'rules' that insure payment ...it's not discrimination. (that does not mean it's not inconvenient many times)

....regarding the age thing ...in some / most states ....a minor cannot enter into a contract ...and that's exactly what booking a room in a hotel is ...a contractual agreement. If you take a look at a hotel bill, many have a ridiculous amount of legal disclaimer stuff on them ....as most contracts do.

[Scar]

Oh no, Jersey Dad, I'm not talking about securing a credit card...or being a minor... I totally agree with that. I'm talking about how some of these posts are saying that you need to be 25 years old to reserve a room. That's age discrimination to me.

[mickclub1955]

It's worse if you try to rent a car.

[1DisneyNut]

I had no idea there were rules like this. Isn't it discrimination for a hotel to not allow certain adults access to their hotels for no other reason than their age? Really?

A hotel is privately owned property. They can refuse anyone they wish. I don't see how you would think age discrimination would apply to private property. That is sort of along the lines of how people think that the right to free speech applies anywhere, so they can say whatever whereever they want but it really only applies to when you are dealing with the government, not private property or private citizens. They could turn you away because of your hair color or your political affiliation if they would like. It would be bad for business but it is their property and their decision. Many hotels do not rent to those under 25 because of high incidents of damage. This is especially true for beach front properties.....look at the rules for Panama City Beach condos and hotels for instance.

A pretty good example of private property law would be the private country/golf clubs that refused to allow certain races or women and were sued numerous times. They always won or the suit was dismissed because it was private property and they could allow/disallow whomever they wished. Does that mean it is right?.......No, but it is their right as private property owners.

[Scar]

A hotel is privately owned property. They can refuse anyone they wish.Anyone? Really? A hotel may be privately owned, but it serves the public. Now, I'm no expert on civil rights, but a hotel certainly cannot refuse anyone they wish. Perhaps age is not included in that law, but it should be if it isn't.

[1DisneyNut]

Anyone? Really? A hotel may be privately owned, but it serves the public. Now, I'm no expert on civil rights, but a hotel certainly cannot refuse anyone they wish. Perhaps age is not included in that law, but it should be if it isn't.

You are right, I went off in the weeds. There are the classes protected under the civil rights act for businesses serving the general public such as hotels. Age is not one of the protected classes though, they are primarily race and religion. A few cases have set a precedence broadening it to cover sexual orientation as well. The way a lot of businesses such as bars/night clubs side step around some of this is through broad interpretation of a "dress code" that sort of gets modified on the fly.

I got off on a tangent thinking about private clubs and private facilities which obviously are not open to the general public and therefore can refuse whomever they want.