Why You Should Use A Disney Travel Agent
Using an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner (travel agent) can take the stress out of planning a Walt Disney World or Disneyland vacation, which can be a complicated and overwhelming task for the first-timer. Heck, even for a regular visitor, a Disney TA can make things a lot easier.
This is something we regulars often forget once we’ve learned the ropes. Thanks to years of experience, many of us veterans know all of the basics of planning–from where we should book ADRs, to the best FastPass+, to leveraging discounts and more–inside and out. However, the whole process is foreign and often daunting to newbies, which is why there’s serious value in using an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner.
If you’ve read other posts on the blog, you might be aware that we recommend Be Our Guest Vacations as our preferred Authorized Disney Vacation Planners. However, this isn’t merely a sales pitch for them. (In fact, we encourage you to recommend your favorite TAs in the comments.) My advice holds true irrespective of which travel agency you’re choosing. While some agencies and agents definitely do a better job and have more thorough knowledge of Disney than others, the vast majority of them are helpful. If you are overwhelmed planning, a Disney TA can help.
The first and biggest reason to use an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner is the service. Imagine the knowledge-base of this blog (assuming you think I’m knowledgeable), but in a form that can apply the tips here to your particular circumstances, preferences, and needs. That’s what a good Authorized Disney Vacation Planner provides. It’s a back-and-forth dialogue, and they’re there to hold your hand and give you personalized advice.
Unlike traditional, large-scale travel agencies, most Disney-specializing agents got into it not due to a desire to build some highly profitable business empire, but because they love Disney and really enjoyed planning their own trip. This is why I distinguish between “Authorized Disney Vacation Planner” (the words you want to look for) and traditional travel agents. The latter are professionals who book trips to myriad destinations, but don’t have a Disney focus. This usually means they don’t have the expertise to provide high-quality service for Disney destinations. (Which is a big reason I don’t recommend national, non-Disneycentric travel agencies when booking Disney vacations.)
Authorized Disney Vacation Planners are usually Disney fans who exclusively plan Disney travel. Most I’ve encountered over the years are good people. They’re mom and pop start-ups who are passionate about what they do. I’d say this is true 95% of the time, at least. And, because they’re passionate about Disney, they actually know about Disney. A traditional travel agent faces obsolescence because they were (basically) just someone to outsource the booking of vacations and had no firsthand knowledge of destinations to which they booked trips.
On the other hand, Authorized Disney Vacation Planners are only becoming more relevant thanks to the service and answers they provide in response to Disney vacations becoming increasingly complex. They know Disney inside and out (they are literally tested on it!) and have lots of first-hand experience. They will be up at the 180-day mark to make your ADRs, prepared to score you the prime FastPass+ selections, constantly monitoring new discount offers to see if they can reduce the cost of your trip, and generally able to assist with other facets of trip planning.
Beyond that, there’s no cost to you. Authorized Disney Vacation Planners are paid commission by Disney on the trips they book, so you’re not paying anything extra. I don’t know why Disney pays them, but my educated guess is because it’s essentially Disney ‘outsourcing’ the planning resources they’d otherwise need to provide. If you’re calling your travel agent, you aren’t calling Disney directly, tying up their guest services or other Cast Members.
This is win-win-win. Disney doesn’t have to deal with your questions, the Authorized Disney Vacation Planner is able to make money doing what they love, and you’re able to get free advice and help planning your trip. The biggest ‘winner’ there is arguably you. You have one contact who gets to know you, is responsive to your requests & questions, and feels a vested interest in making sure you have a great trip. You don’t call Disney, wait on hold for an interminable amount of time, and receive inconsistent answers from random Cast Members.
This is especially true in the era of My Disney Experience, MagicBands, FastPass+, etc. The Authorized Disney Vacation Planner is a liaison (or buffer!) between you and Disney, putting out fires and fixing problems as they arise. They save you headaches and stress in solving these problems. (Again, I speak from the experience of having to deal with these headaches myself–although things are getting better with these systems. I love Disney Cast Members in the parks, but my experiences have not been overwhelmingly positive on the phone.)
With all of that said, using a travel agent isn’t for everyone. Some people have obsessive personalities and like total control over their vacations, or actually enjoy spending hours reading blogs like this one (and thank you to those of you who tolerate all of my corny jokes! 😉 ). Although we used Authorized Disney Vacation Planners years ago, I’ll admit that this now describes me. I love figuring this all out for myself, and I’m a total control freak.
Even if you are a control freak like me, it might make sense to book through a vacation planner so they monitor discounts and be your liaison with Disney in the event My Disney Experience issues arise, while you can do the “fun” stuff like planning ADRs and FastPass+. Most vacation planners are as hands on or off as you specify, and it’s pretty easy to let them know what expect of them and what you’d like to do yourself.
You can find the exact same prices as a travel agent. I don’t know why there’s this mistaken belief out there that some travel agents find better or worse prices when it comes to Disney–any variance in pricing is a result of games Disney plays with its inventory and special offers at different times. All you do by ‘comparison shopping’ with vacation planners is waste their time and yours.
The advantage they do provide when it comes to price is that they are knowledgeable and diligent about discounts, and are more likely to get the best discount applied to your package. Take Free Dining, for example. I know several Authorized Disney Vacation Planners who were up all night Sunday into Monday morning, getting Free Dining applied to existing packages by 5 a.m. By contrast, if you waited until 7 a.m. to call Disney to book Free Dining–or found out about it days later–a lot of availability was already gone. So, in that sense, they are finding better prices for many of their clients, but it’s indirectly as a result of that knowledge and diligence.
If you’re convinced that a travel agent is for you, there are a few things to consider when choosing one. First, while I think it’s poor form to comparison shop or seek information without actual intent to book through them–as this is their job and they’re only paid on bookings they actually make–I do think it’s a good idea to make sure you “click” with an agent after requesting a quote.
It should be pretty easy to tell based on their first email or two whether they’re someone you want to work with, but if you’re still unsure, request a quick phone call. You are trusting this person with your vacation and (potentially) will communicate with them a lot, so you should make sure they aren’t impersonal or will treat you like a number. This is typically a total non-issue, as most vacation planners I’ve encountered are incredibly pleasant and enthusiastic, but it’s good to double-check if things don’t seem right from the get-go.
Second, make sure they’re providing the level of service detailed here. If you want someone to make your ADRs, FastPass+ bookings, or make recommendations with things like stroller rental, make sure those are things they do. Not all agencies offer the same services, so be sure the one you’re considering will help in the areas you’d like assistance.
Finally, they have to know their stuff. Confirm they’ve been to whichever Disney destination you’re considering (and have been there recently). If you’re planning a Walt Disney World trip, you don’t want a Disneyland regular–they’re totally different destinations from a planning perspective. If you’re taking a Disney cruise, your travel agent having stayed at every Walt Disney World resort hotel is meaningless. You get the idea. I’m not saying they need to spend 50+ days per year in the parks, but you want them to know their stuff.
Most of the time, this is a non-issue. As mentioned above, the majority of Authorized Disney Vacation Planners are doing this because they are fans who are passionate about planning vacations. Failing that, Disney actually tests them on their Disney knowledge.
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Your Thoughts
If you’ve used an Authorized Disney Vacation Planner, how was your experience? Which Disney TAs do you recommend? Any other tips you’d like for choosing a vacation planner? Share your thoughts and questions in the comments below!
Firstly, thank you so much for your blog!!!! I am planning a trip from Australia in May for 6 people (3 generations) and your blog is helping me so much!
Sadly before I read your blog I booked accommodation etc through Disney direct and missed out on ADRs 190 days out because I didn’t know about it.
Is it worth it, or even are we able to, switch to a Disney vacation planner now ? We arrive mid May for 7 days.
Hi Chris! I hope you had a nice Disney trip. If you need help with future Disney trips, I know a great Authorized Disney Travel Agent: Catherine with Destination Orlando Etc. Her Facebook page is Catherine Destination Orlando.
I am so sad to have read this now, 48 days before our vacation. I really had no idea what we were getting ourselves into when my husband suggested we “Do Disney” at Christmas. As a point of clarification, for others, can the agents you suggest work with people who are staying off site?
I want to be an agent who sending student to work in Disneyland, who is the person I should get contact.
Thank you so much for this post! I am a big fan of your blog and was so happy when I stumbled upon this post. My husband and I have traveled to Disney World two times before and planned everything by ourselves. We decided to use a Disney Authorized Travel agent for my 30th birthday trip this summer after reading your praises and went with Be Our Guest Vacations.
I have to tell you that planning our upcoming trip has been such joy because of the work of the company and the wonderful agent that worked with us. Our agent was very knowledgeable, thorough, and helpful. She was able to help us get all of our top choice picks for dining reservations and FP+ reservations. She woke up very early on our 180 day and 60 day mark to book everything and was a key factor in helping this trip be the best planned that we have ever gone on.
I am so happy and confident knowing that when we go to Disney World this summer that our trip will be perfect and a lot of that is thanks to your suggestion of using a Disney authorized travel agent, specifically Be Our Guest Vacations. Thank you!
I am a new TA and I LOVE this article. I will be sharing on my social media sites. Thank you!! 🙂
Thank you for this post! As owner of an authorized Disney agency, (agencies are authorized, not the agents ) I truly appreciate you putting this information out there!
Our first disney cruise, we booked ourselfs. But on that cruise we met our TA and here family! There was a good click.
Since then we booked 2 transatlantic and wdw vacations.
We are from Belgium and USA based DreamFinderTravel did a awesome job.
I’m a long time traveler to WDW ( 20+ trips in as many years) and even worked there so I tend to plan on my own, however I have used an Authorized Disney Travel Agent twice from different companies when traveling with others. Both times weren’t great experiences, once because of Disney and the other because of the agent themselves. That hasn’t turned me off completely, but vigilant.
The first time I was doing an Adventures by Disney, and booking through an agent means a proportional discount. Unfortunately, both before and after the trip Adventures by Disney used my planner’s address instead of mine. That meant my pre-trip planning book, pre-trip welcome gift, and post-trip follow ups all get mailed to the agent. Some of this was time sensitive, and even though both we and our agent kept clarifying this to Disney it still didn’t work. It also means my yearly gift goes to the agent, who with the other mail doesn’t always get around to forwarding it.
The second time I was doing a Disney cruise with a group that was using the agent to coordinate the various reservations. This particular agency kept mixing the reservations and rooms, so I ended up being adding on to another person’s Palo dinner or linked to a port adventure. It also meant I had other people’s information like their emails.
Both of these were from well known agencies; I still see the advantage in some scenarios but I recommended still being watchful.
Here in Latin America is the worst thing you can do, because most of them are not specialized. They have no idea about discounts or ADRs or anything. And the worst part is that they overcharged you. On my last Disney trip I found out an extra $250 USD scatter around in different items so I wouldn’t notice it (such as transportation, hotel room, tickets, etc.) So of course I ended it up doing it myself if I wanted it to save money and time
My family and I were on WDW during thanksgiving this year, it was my nephew’s first time at Disney so we were really excited about it. Giving the fact that we are not US residents we booked a package with “TA that specializes with Disney vacations ” in my country (Bolivia)
It was sooo bad !! First of all they gave us the reservation numbers in order to link those to My Disney Experience accounts, we had pay for two rooms and 3 days before arriving we notice only one room was linked, and they insisted that it wasn’t their mistake and we have to solve it by ourselves, the manager even insinueted that we were trying to get money from them just for the fun of it!
Then we had to go through hell to get our FastPass+ for the main attractions once we arrived in Orlando because they told us we didn’t have to select the attractions, we just had to go to the FP line and show our Magic Bands.
Now we are talking to the BOG agents and I have to said, we feel more confortable just with the emails we’ve exchanged than with the face to face talks I had with the other travel agent.
I hoped we have a better time at WDW on this next trip
I’m a frequent WDW visitor and have mostly booked myself, but the last two visits I’ve used Dreams Unlimited and have been very happy with them. I do a lot of my planning myself, but I like sending a list of restaurants I want to visit and having the agent put together an itinerary to match up lunches and dinners at different parks with the days they have extra magic hours, and other such jigsaw-puzzle-assembly. Plus the advantage of having someone on top of late-announced discounts is worth it by itself.
Where can I find a list of authorised official partners? I’m based in Australia and would be keen to speak with someone but not sure if the US based agents would support our request/booking
Thanks
Marika
I’m not sure where you might find that information.
Almost every travel agency that specializes in Disney is virtual, so I don’t see why you wouldn’t be able to use one of those. (Perhaps they aren’t able to work with non-US clients? I doubt such a restriction exists, but I don’t know for sure.)
Finding an Australian-based Disney-specializing travel agent seems unlikely, and I’d definitely go with a Disney-specializing agent in the US over a generalized travel agent in Australia if you have to choose. 🙂
Thanks Tom. I’ll get in touch with the one you recommended. While I enjoy planning and researching Disney has me quite confused!! I think the planner is a great way to go.
Thanks again
Marika
We had the same concern but Be Our Guest Vacation Inc explain that they can book everything except the flights, hope you find it helpful
I like to use a mix of planning myself and also using a Disney TA for things I don’t want to do. For example, I enjoy reading blogs like this, planning where I’m going to eat, what time I’ll do FP+, things like that. That’s fun for me.
What is not fun is monitoring discounts, calling Disney, trying to get them applied, and monitoring what special offers are currently available. Anyone who has ever been on hold for Free Dining Plan for HOURS the day it is released knows this pain, and knows exactly why a Disney TA can come in handy.
This year, our TA had Free Dining applied to our vacation package the day it came out BEFORE I EVEN WOKE UP, lol. She must have been up at 4 a.m. Not something I ever want to do again, and why I will always use a TA in addition to planning myself.
I used a travel agent for the first time for my trip to WDW in October 2015. At first I was hesitant because it can be hard to trust someone you haven’t met. I’m so glad I took the plunge. My TA, Beth answered all of my questions, answered questions I didn’t even know I had, and provided me with a ton of information. She went above and beyond to make my family’s trip extra magical, save us time, and provided us with tips to save money while in the parks. My husband was not looking forward to the trip. The agent asked about his interests and planned a golfing outing for he and my son. She also worked hard to pick other activities that he would enjoy for the rest of the trip. I’m so glad she went the extra mile to help because my husband has now been converted into a Disney fan! I’m so glad I worked with Be Our Guest Vacations.
We’ve visited 4 times in 10 years. We planned the first 3, the last time we used an “Authorized” agent. Honestly, beside sending a few generic emails regarding payments & the 180/60-day warnings, she really wasn’t helpful. She didn’t offer any advice… on anything. She basically dismissed the (only) 2 questions we asked. The need to go thru her for any changes/requests for our stay seemed unnecessary being there wasn’t any value to offset the inconvenience.
My in-laws just booked thru an agent in Feb for July. They haven’t been in 20 years and the agent never suggested the importance of making advanced ADRs if they’d like to eat at any popular places. I realize they can’t hold everybody’s hand, but what exactly do they do beside sending a few form-letter reminders? Meh.
I’d be curious to know who you used (feel free to email me: tom[at]disneytouristblog[dot]com) so I can note this for future reference. There are two particular agencies that are notorious for this type of thing, but I don’t want to post the names here because even those agencies have some really good agents.
It’s unfortunate that you had a negative experience like this, but I can assure you that all–most–are not this bad. Most of the TAs I know are monitoring discounts very closely, are up early making ADRs and FP+ when those windows open, etc.
Not all agencies and agents do those things–but many do.
Did Heather ever give you the name of the agency she had a bad experience with? I’d like to avoid that agency…please email me the info if you have it since I know you can’t post it. Besides the agency you recommend, is Mouse Savers a reputable agency?
Thanks!
No, she did not.
Mousesavers is a website, not a travel agency. With that said, they are a reputable and highly-trusted website and I would not hesitate to use any travel agent that they recommend.
Timely post for me. We’re about 90% certain we’ll be making a first time Disneyworld/Orlando vacation in late Sept. early Oct. (should know for sure if it’s a go in the next week or two), I’ve been in the fantasy planning mode for about a year now. My family and I are veteran Disney Land visitors and although we’re lose in our planning when we actually get to the parks I’m an avid pre-planner (blogs, crowd calendars, message boards) but Disneyworld is a different beast entirely. This will more than likely be a once in a long time kind of trip and seeing as how it will be a first time for the whole family and we’ll be celebrating 2 birthday I’m really looking at staying completely in the Disney bubble but anytime we can save on costs ….. I work in the hospitality industry and have access to room, car, and ticket discounts but that will mean staying off property (for the room rates) so between thinking about what are the best deals and thinking about advanced dinning and fastpasses I’m feeling a bit overwhelmed. Going to look very seriously at a authorized agent as a result of this post. I’m not adverse to planning, find it fun actually, but I do feel like I’m in a bit over my head with this one.
They will steer you toward the Disney package (because that’s the way they can get paid), emphasizing this as a “special” occasion- make it special 😀 😀 😀
You can speak to an agent about the trip, and feel them out for how helpful they might be. But if they seem generic & distant, you’d probably have an easier time just doing it yourself.
I currently have a reservation for three room$ at the Contemporary for a kids and grandkids vacation. We have been to Disneyland/world about six times. i decided to try an agent for the first time because so many people recommend them. I chose one from a highly thought of company. I will never use one again. I thought they would find the good deals/upgrades to help save money. I am a passholder and when I discovered that an upgrade from the garden wing to the tower with park views became available, I could not change my reservations with Disney because they were made through a travel agent. This upgrade was worth about $200 per room per night which for me was about $3000. i was on a trip at the time and it was a weekend so the travel agency was closed. It all worked out after leaving several irritated phone messages and about a frustrating 24 hour wait. My point is: it’s actually fun and easy to do the planning and I would have been thoroughly p*ssed if it would have cost me that much and the opportunity for the grandkids to watch the fireworks from their own rooms. My travel agent has done absolutely nothing which I could not have done better and easier.
My travel agent has done absolutely nothing which I could not have done better and easier.
Yes, this. I don’t know what it’s like for the agents… maybe they get many people starting reservations, asking a million questions, then not following thru with the trip? It seems like they are just calling it in, literally. Not offering *any* tips or advice lest they get stuck answering too many questions and tending to too many details.