Can I use the British Disney site as a Dutchman?

[Dingdingding]

I'm currently planning for a Disneytrip next January or September and saw the great deals on the British and Irish Disney-websites. A tourguide at DLP also advised us to use the British website for our trip to WDW. But since I have no experience in booking a WDW-trip through the British website I was wondering if it is actually possible as a non-Brit (I'm Dutch) to use the British (or Irish) website to book a Disney vacation. Does anyone here have an answer to that?

Is it only the adres to send the tickets to (because I have friends living in the UK who offered to use their adress for that) or do you really need to have the British nationality? How does it all work out?

I'm not yet sure if I only need the ultimate tickets (and rent dvc-points instead of a hotel) or book an entire package (due to the fantastic deal at the moment).

 

[disneyholic family]

i assume you mean you're Dutch and live in the Netherlands, correct?

if so, then yes you can absolutely buy your tickets/package from disney UK.

the only people who can't buy from disney UK are those living in america and canada i think.

 

[disneyholic family]

i believe you can use the website if you live in the UK or the European Union.

For those who don't live in the UK or EU, they're able to call Disney UK and book over the phone.

We live in Israel, so aren't able to book online as you have to have a UK or EU credit card, but i called Disney UK on the phone and was able to book without any problem at all.

In fact, in august we'll be on a Disney UK package for the first time.
But for years, we've bought our ultimate tickets from disney UK even though we don't live in the UK.

 

[chmurf]

you can use the UK/IE website, no problem
as long as you're in the EU you'll find your country in the dropdown menu at checkout

As far as tickets go, if you only need those, they're etickets, so nothing shipped.

but they do ship to EU countries. We've been doing that for years (we live in France)

the Irish site will let you book in euros. But in the end it's the same "office".
If you're going for tickets only, you might as well wait until december, just in case the UK site offers the same deal as this year (25% off tickets)

note that if you buy tickets first, you no longer qualify for the free dining offer in case you decide not to rent DVC point, and decide to book a package at a later date.
to benefit from the UK free dining, hotel+tickets+dining must be purchased at the same time (package)

 

[Karin1984]

Hi fellow-Dutchie!

While being Dutch, I used the UK website in 2012 and 2015 to book my WDW trips. It was no problem and nobody asked about it.
The only problem I had in 2012 was that the UK reservation number wasn't compatible with the US website for booking my ADRs. But that was easily solved by phone back then. In 2015 no issues, also not with creating an online account for booking FPs.

Have fun!

 

[Dingdingding]

Thank you all very much!

the Irish site will let you book in euros. But in the end it's the same "office".
If you're going for tickets only, you might as well wait until december, just in case the UK site offers the same deal as this year (25% off tickets)

note that if you buy tickets first, you no longer qualify for the free dining offer in case you decide not to rent DVC point, and decide to book a package at a later date.
to benefit from the UK free dining, hotel+tickets+dining must be purchased at the same time (package)

I will book all the things at the same time (I am currently planning on one week at a Disney hotel and one week at a Universal hotel (because they are cheaper and we're planning to have two small trips outside Orlando) with a 14 days ultimate ticket at Disney and a package at Universal) with about 3 or 4 days at Universal, one or two days outside of Orlando (Cape Canaveral and Saint Augustine) and 8 or 9 days at Disney.

The only thing is; the earliest time I'm able to book the vacation will be in September (my girlfriend is still in university and doesn't know the dates of her exams yet), so I will probably miss the free dining package. I'm afraid that if I'll wait untill December I won't be able to get the good fastpasses (as we will probable go in the last week of January if that is feasible with her exams). Maybe the discount will still be worth it as I hope the fastpasses won't go as fast in January/February as the do in the summer.

 

[CosmicGirl]

Thank you all very much!



I will book all the things at the same time (I am currently planning on one week at a Disney hotel and one week at a Universal hotel (because they are cheaper and we're planning to have two small trips outside Orlando) with a 14 days ultimate ticket at Disney and a package at Universal) with about 3 or 4 days at Universal, one or two days outside of Orlando (Cape Canaveral and Saint Augustine) and 8 or 9 days at Disney.

The only thing is; the earliest time I'm able to book the vacation will be in September (my girlfriend is still in university and doesn't know the dates of her exams yet), so I will probably miss the free dining package. I'm afraid that if I'll wait untill December I won't be able to get the good fastpasses (as we will probable go in the last week of January if that is feasible with her exams). Maybe the discount will still be worth it as I hope the fastpasses won't go as fast in January/February as the do in the summer.

Southern neighbour here . We have booked in the UK before without any issues. As mentioned above, there used to be issues linking UK reservations, but that was no longer the case last time. I would recommend you compare the prices in pounds (UK site) and euros (Ireland site) before booking, because the exchange rate can make it more favorable to book in pounds. For 2017 pounds seem to be more favorable, but for 2018 it appears to be a draw at the moment. The benefit of booking in euros is that the price won't go up between booking and the final payment.

You can book now and change your dates later if you need to. That way you can benefit from the free dining offer, even if you change your dates later. As long as the total price of the package doesn't go down there is no fee to make changes up to 8 weeks before departure if I'm not mistaken. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I also think the free dining offer is usually available after the first booking window (6 July this year) but without the $200 gift card when staying at a moderate or higher. Imho it would be very difficult to beat this deal when renting DVC points, especially because availability can be a big issue when renting.

Groetjes!

 

[Woodview]

Reminder

Check out Flights from Schiphol to Dublin ..... clearing Customs & Immigration & Direct

to Orlando (MCO) With KLM or Aer Lingus

This works for my relations from Venry

 

[disneyholic family]

i prefer flying delta from schiphol, but i always buy my ticket from KLM...it's much cheaper than buying the same seat from delta...

 

[Dingdingding]

You can book now and change your dates later if you need to. That way you can benefit from the free dining offer, even if you change your dates later. As long as the total price of the package doesn't go down there is no fee to make changes up to 8 weeks before departure if I'm not mistaken. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I also think the free dining offer is usually available after the first booking window (6 July this year) but without the $200 gift card when staying at a moderate or higher. Imho it would be very difficult to beat this deal when renting DVC points, especially because availability can be a big issue when renting.

Groetjes!

Thanks for the great tip! I will look into that! Problem is that both of us are risk-averse people so I will have to find that in print somewhere. Otherwise I'm affraid we will wait till October even though there will be a chance we'll miss it. We don't mind missing the gift card but the dining plan would be a shame. It would be great if we could book with the dining package in October.

We're planning to fly via Düsseldorf instead of Schiphol. It is not further from were we live (near the Belgium and German border) and way cheaper (I have seen flights for as low as 350 euros to Orlando and back), while the Schiphol tickets I've seen were 450 at lowest point.

 

[Woodview]

Dingdingding

Do you know Venray , Wanssum .. And Well before New Bergen . ?

We will be there on the 7th August visiting Oma seeing the Zoo at Overloon & " Toverland " & then to " The Efteling "

Ice cream at " Cleavers "

 

[Dingdingding]

Dingdingding

Do you know Venray , Wanssum .. And Well before New Bergen . ?

We will be there on the 7th August visiting Oma seeing the Zoo at Overloon & " Toverland " & then to " The Efteling "

Ice cream at " Cleavers "

Yes absolutely, my grandmother lives in Deurne, one village over, and I near Helmond! I have a colleague living in Venray. I haven't been to Toverland yet, because my girlfriend isn't that into rollercoasters but planning to do so next fall.

You picked a great time to visit the Efteling, a new attraction in the style of Mystic Manor (Disney Hong Kong) opens today.

 

[CosmicGirl]

Thanks for the great tip! I will look into that! Problem is that both of us are risk-averse people so I will have to find that in print somewhere. Otherwise I'm affraid we will wait till October even though there will be a chance we'll miss it. We don't mind missing the gift card but the dining plan would be a shame. It would be great if we could book with the dining package in October.

We're planning to fly via Düsseldorf instead of Schiphol. It is not further from were we live (near the Belgium and German border) and way cheaper (I have seen flights for as low as 350 euros to Orlando and back), while the Schiphol tickets I've seen were 450 at lowest point.

Here it is in print, focus on sections 9 and 10b. You can change the country from Ireland to the UK if you prefer to pay in GBP vs. EUR. I did the calculations in a spreadsheet and for 2018 the prices in EUR are pretty good. In previous years it was often a lot more beneficial to book in GBP even taking the conversion fees into account, but given the uncertain situation in the UK for the next couple of years I've decided not to risk it and I will book in EUR for the first time, even if the deposit is slightly higher (about 6-7 EUR more). This way I know what I will have to pay in 14 months without being dependent on the exchange rate.

The deposit is £50 per person or €65 and you can change until 56 days before arrival without losing the deposit if the total price does not go down. If the price does go down you will have the pay an amendment fee which is equal to the deposit. I have spent hours going through all the details of the terms and reading posts about amendments, so I believe to be well-versed in the terms and conditions by now . I will be booking later today but just for one person to keep the deposit low. We're not sure yet how many people will be in the room so that makes it difficult to decide whether or not a higher resort category will be worth it with the better dining plan. But for €65 I'm willing to lock in the deal with the $200 gift card, because availability does become more scattered as the end date for free dining nears. You can add people to the room later in which case you will have to pay the £50/€65 deposit per person when you add them. They will also get free dining, and the cost of their ticket will be added to your final balance. So all in all the risk is £50/€65.

You can cancel up to 56 days before arrival if you need to and in that case you would lose the deposit, but with the flexibility in changing dates, changing resorts, adding or removing nights, adding people, etc. it would be a shame to let the deal slip away.

By the way, you can book free dining for 2018 until November 6, 2017 (see terms at the bottom of the page) but the gift card is expected to go down to $100 after tomorrow and will eventually disappear (maybe in August?). If you intend to stay in a moderate resort today or tomorrow would best to lock in the deal, but if you intend to stay in a value resort you can wait until November 6, assuming there is availability.

How long are you intending to stay?

 

[Dingdingding]

Here it is in print, focus on sections 9 and 10b. You can change the country from Ireland to the UK if you prefer to pay in GBP vs. EUR. I did the calculations in a spreadsheet and for 2018 the prices in EUR are pretty good. In previous years it was often a lot more beneficial to book in GBP even taking the conversion fees into account, but given the uncertain situation in the UK for the next couple of years I've decided not to risk it and I will book in EUR for the first time, even if the deposit is slightly higher (about 6-7 EUR more). This way I know what I will have to pay in 14 months without being dependent on the exchange rate.

The deposit is £50 per person or €65 and you can change until 56 days before arrival without losing the deposit if the total price does not go down. If the price does go down you will have the pay an amendment fee which is equal to the deposit. I have spent hours going through all the details of the terms and reading posts about amendments, so I believe to be well-versed in the terms and conditions by now . I will be booking later today but just for one person to keep the deposit low. We're not sure yet how many people will be in the room so that makes it difficult to decide whether or not a higher resort category will be worth it with the better dining plan. But for €65 I'm willing to lock in the deal with the $200 gift card, because availability does become more scattered as the end date for free dining nears. You can add people to the room later in which case you will have to pay the £50/€65 deposit per person when you add them. They will also get free dining, and the cost of their ticket will be added to your final balance. So all in all the risk is £50/€65.

You can cancel up to 56 days before arrival if you need to and in that case you would lose the deposit, but with the flexibility in changing dates, changing resorts, adding or removing nights, adding people, etc. it would be a shame to let the deal slip away.

By the way, you can book free dining for 2018 until November 6, 2017 (see terms at the bottom of the page) but the gift card is expected to go down to $100 after tomorrow and will eventually disappear (maybe in August?). If you intend to stay in a moderate resort today or tomorrow would best to lock in the deal, but if you intend to stay in a value resort you can wait until November 6, assuming there is availability.

How long are you intending to stay?

Thanks! I have decided to book later today for 8 nights in Saratoga Springs (the total vacation will be two weeks). I really want the more expensive dining plan with table service and then Saratoga Springs is actually cheaper than Port Orleans Riverside in our case! I have considered booking for 14 nights but I want to have more flexibility in booking my return flight as I will book the flights in november when it is more certain if we can go on this trip. I also want to have the option to amend the dates if needed and then our vacation would be shorter than two weeks) She should have the result of her exams early November and we can cancel untill mid-November.

I will book the rest of the vacation (flights, Universal, car, 6-8 more hotel nights at a different location) in November when the reservation is permanent. I'm considering booking nights in Universal's Cabana Bay (because of the price and we'll go three or four days to Universal), Yacht Club (I'm planning to propose to my girlfriend on this vacation and I want a more romantic location for that (I know she'd want someplace a bit more secluded than the actual themeparks) for max. Two nights (as it would be over my normal budget so that is the absolute limit I can afford there), or someplace else.

Thanks for the one-person-deposit tip! I will use that!

 

[CosmicGirl]

Thanks! I have decided to book later today for 8 nights in Saratoga Springs (the total vacation will be two weeks). I really want the more expensive dining plan with table service and then Saratoga Springs is actually cheaper than Port Orleans Riverside in our case! I have considered booking for 14 nights but I want to have more flexibility in booking my return flight as I will book the flights in november when it is more certain if we can go on this trip. I also want to have the option to amend the dates if needed and then our vacation would be shorter than two weeks) She should have the result of her exams early November and we can cancel untill mid-November.

I will book the rest of the vacation (flights, Universal, car, 6-8 more hotel nights at a different location) in November when the reservation is permanent. I'm considering booking nights in Universal's Cabana Bay (because of the price and we'll go three or four days to Universal), Yacht Club (I'm planning to propose to my girlfriend on this vacation and I want a more romantic location for that (I know she'd want someplace a bit more secluded than the actual themeparks) for max. Two nights (as it would be over my normal budget so that is the absolute limit I can afford there), or someplace else.

Thanks for the one-person-deposit tip! I will use that!

Good morning!

Just to clarify for the number of nights: you can move the check-in date forward or push it back without changing the number of nights, so your vacation would not necessarily become shorter if you amended dates to match the flights. That said, I do understand why you would prefer to do a split stay if you're going to Universal, because you would be "paying" for dining (in the hotel rate) while you're not in Disney.

For the splurge nights you could look into renting, but I have to admit that I have no idea how availability is in January/February. It's important to know that DVC availability is completely different than what you see when doing a dummy cash booking at a DVC resort. They allocate a certain amount of rooms to points and the rest to cash bookings, even when it makes no sense at all. We went to Aulani last September and even though cash bookings were wide open and the resort was no where near full while we were there, it was impossible to add nights using points. The same thing happened at AKL in December: I could only get one night for a last-minute trip but when checking in the CM told me the place was half empty. It's a strange revenue management system, but unfortunately there's nothing we can do about it. The point is: you need to be a bit flexible when renting close to arrival and you have to take what you can get.

Your 180+10 dining window is coming up very soon, so would you like any recommendations?

Btw, having booked yesterday I have just discovered that Disney UK have a refer-a-friend thing. Would you be interested in that? We would both get an extra $100 gift card.


For Universal it could be worth it to look into buying one annual pass so you can book an AP rate. You can book the rate before buying the AP, you just have to show it when you check in. Buying UK tickets and upgrading one of them when you're there before you check in is also an option.

 

[Dingdingding]

Good morning!

Just to clarify for the number of nights: you can move the check-in date forward or push it back without changing the number of nights, so your vacation would not necessarily become shorter if you amended dates to match the flights. That said, I do understand why you would prefer to do a split stay if you're going to Universal, because you would be "paying" for dining (in the hotel rate) while you're not in Disney.

For the splurge nights you could look into renting, but I have to admit that I have no idea how availability is in January/February. It's important to know that DVC availability is completely different than what you see when doing a dummy cash booking at a DVC resort. They allocate a certain amount of rooms to points and the rest to cash bookings, even when it makes no sense at all. We went to Aulani last September and even though cash bookings were wide open and the resort was no where near full while we were there, it was impossible to add nights using points. The same thing happened at AKL in December: I could only get one night for a last-minute trip but when checking in the CM told me the place was half empty. It's a strange revenue management system, but unfortunately there's nothing we can do about it. The point is: you need to be a bit flexible when renting close to arrival and you have to take what you can get.

Your 180+10 dining window is coming up very soon, so would you like any recommendations?

Btw, having booked yesterday I have just discovered that Disney UK have a refer-a-friend thing. Would you be interested in that? We would both get an extra $100 gift card.


For Universal it could be worth it to look into buying one annual pass so you can book an AP rate. You can book the rate before buying the AP, you just have to show it when you check in. Buying UK tickets and upgrading one of them when you're there before you check in is also an option.

Thanks! The thing was that I thought it was easier to book more nights arter the first reservation than to subtract nights from the original reservation.

I saw most dvc resorts were completely full in the two month mark except deluxe studios at Saratoga Springs and Old Key West and some of the 1 bedrooms in the more expensive options. So I will check what is available by then asside those two and otherwise just book Universal. If it would be just one or two nights in a more deluxe dvc resort like beach club or boardwalk that would be fine.

I have some restaurants in mind (flying Fish Cafe, Be Our Guest for lunch, that 50s style restaurant in Studios) but haven't looked that much yet so some recommendations would be great!

Yes, of course I'm interested in the referal! Your help is greatly appreciated!

Thanks, I will look into that Universal thing!

 

[Dingdingding]

I have booked! Thanks everyone! I'm really excited and cant wait till November (when it wil be permanent) and January (when the trip is due)!