Connecting rooms - guaranteed with two adults and minor children - I found out too late

[MaidMarian444]

Hi, just wanted to pass along this info in case it helps anyone else.

TLDR: If you have two adults in your party and minor children, WDW will apparently guarantee two connecting guest rooms if you book the rooms under a single reservation. If you have two reservations and haven't combined them yet, Disney cannot adjust two reservations down to 1 reservation if you already made your final payment and you have trip protection insurance.

Full story if anyone is interested:

Going with me, (adult) my sister (adult) and my daughter (11) and her daughters (8 and 5). We want to have my sister and I share a room while the kids share a connecting room. When we first booked in December 2022, I called and spoke to a cast member in reservations and she gave us two separate reservation numbers and put in a request for connecting.

Now the trip is two weeks away, I called again to confirm the request for connecting. A different cast member told me that if we have "two adults and minor children" in our party, Disney guarantees connecting rooms if we have the rooms under a single reservation. He was going to combine my reservations into one single reservation, but then realized that because I had purchased trip protection on my rooms and because I had already made the final payment, he could not adjust the reservations. I am a little unhappy that the first cast member didn't suggest this. But today's cast member said that he thinks there is a good chance we will get the connecting rooms because Guest Services added a note to the request.

I'll update this thread after my trip to let you know what we ended up with!

 

[DaniPoppins]

I think you have a very good chance that your rooms will be connecting. I feel like Disney is very accommodating when it comes to situations like yours. Every time we have asked for connecting rooms we got them. Make sure to check in at the front desk when you get there (even if you did online check in). If they didn't already give you connecting rooms, I am sure they will do their best to change it. But be prepared to wait some extra time for your rooms if that is needed!

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Hi, just wanted to pass along this info in case it helps anyone else.

TLDR: If you have two adults in your party and minor children, WDW will apparently guarantee two connecting guest rooms if you book the rooms under a single reservation. If you have two reservations and haven't combined them yet, Disney cannot adjust two reservations down to 1 reservation if you already made your final payment and you have trip protection insurance.

Full story if anyone is interested:

Going with me, (adult) my sister (adult) and my daughter (11) and her daughters (8 and 5). We want to have my sister and I share a room while the kids share a connecting room. When we first booked in December 2022, I called and spoke to a cast member in reservations and she gave us two separate reservation numbers and put in a request for connecting.

Now the trip is two weeks away, I called again to confirm the request for connecting. A different cast member told me that if we have "two adults and minor children" in our party, Disney guarantees connecting rooms if we have the rooms under a single reservation. He was going to combine my reservations into one single reservation, but then realized that because I had purchased trip protection on my rooms and because I had already made the final payment, he could not adjust the reservations. I am a little unhappy that the first cast member didn't suggest this. But today's cast member said that he thinks there is a good chance we will get the connecting rooms because Guest Services added a note to the request.

I'll update this thread after my trip to let you know what we ended up with!

Two rooms under a single reservation isn't a thing.

 

[MaidMarian444]

Two rooms under a single reservation isn't a thing.

There’s been a discussion here before (but I didn’t see it in time!) and apparently it is a thing but you might have to call:


https://www.disboards.com/threads/connecting-rooms.3904025/

 

[CaptainAmerica]

There’s been a discussion here before (but I didn’t see it in time!) and apparently it is a thing but you might have to call:


https://www.disboards.com/threads/connecting-rooms.3904025/

Interesting, that must be new.

 

[sponica]

Interesting, that must be new.

I feel like someone talked about being able to do it before COVID. Now maybe you just had to get the right person on the phone.

 

[Wood Nymph]

Interesting, that must be new.

It's called a multiple room reservation and we made one a few years ago. It just isn't well-known.

 

[lanejudy]

Connecting rooms are really never guaranteed at WDW. Even when it's stated on the reservation. There have been reports here over the years of folks who did not receive it, not even on the same floor. That said, WDW does try hard to accommodate the request, but if all being together in a single conjoined space is important WDW offers various types of accommodations such as cabins, family suites and larger villas.

 

[supersnoop]

Connecting rooms are really never guaranteed at WDW. Even when it's stated on the reservation.

I'm under the impression that it is guaranteed when you have more rooms than qualified adults. One adult with four kids booked in two rooms will get connecting rooms.

 

[MaidMarian444]

The cast member I spoke to today definitely used the word “guaranteed” but that is all I know.

 

[Pyxie]

Make the room request and include NO other requests such as early arrival, etc., and you'll have a good chance of getting it.

 

[Mrs.AMC]

Connecting rooms are really never guaranteed at WDW. Even when it's stated on the reservation. There have been reports here over the years of folks who did not receive it, not even on the same floor. That said, WDW does try hard to accommodate the request, but if all being together in a single conjoined space is important WDW offers various types of accommodations such as cabins, family suites and larger villas.

Even when it states it on the reservation?
I mean, if you get really technical, no booked category is guaranteed since things can happen but they do indeed put connecting rooms guaranteed in writing

 

[lanejudy]

Even when it states it on the reservation?
I mean, if you get really technical, no booked category is guaranteed since things can happen but they do indeed put connecting rooms guaranteed in writing

And I've read posts over the years who had "guaranteed" on their reservation confirmation but arrived to different rooms, different floors, nothing available to move them to connecting. Maybe those were odd situations and not the norm, but it has happened more than just "rarely." There was another recent thread on this same topic, so maybe WDW is doing something different now, but if being together is really that important...book an accommodation that actually provides it (suite, etc.)

 

[Mrs.AMC]

And I've read posts over the years who had "guaranteed" on their reservation confirmation but arrived to different rooms, different floors, nothing available to move them to connecting. Maybe those were odd situations and not the norm, but it has happened more than just "rarely." There was another recent thread on this same topic, so maybe WDW is doing something different now, but if being together is really that important...book an accommodation that actually provides it (suite, etc.)

Thought you do realize they aren't always available, right?
I had never seen it in writing on a reservation prior to this year.
Heard it said verbally but not put in writing with the new method of booking 2 rooms in 1 reservation #

 

[Mrs.AMC]

I'm under the impression that it is guaranteed when you have more rooms than qualified adults. One adult with four kids booked in two rooms will get connecting rooms.

I'd love to see exactly what happens when they don't do connecting rooms in this case. I really don't care what folks have posted the internet happened to them I can't see a couple of 5 or 6 year olds in their own room

 

[Dave006]

Two rooms under a single reservation isn't a thing.

There’s been a discussion here before (but I didn’t see it in time!) and apparently it is a thing but you might have to call....

Yes it is a thing and as @MaidMarian444 suggested the way to make this type of reservation is by calling Central Reservations. It is not available online. It has been around for at least the last 10 years.

Dave

 

[Sammie]

When there is only one adult and multiple children under the age of 18, then it's more likely to be guaranteed. If there are two rooms and two adults, you can get split up. They try very hard to make it happen, but sometimes it just isn't possible.

 

[focusondisney]

When there is only one adult and multiple children under the age of 18, then it's more likely to be guaranteed. If there are two rooms and two adults, you can get split up. They try very hard to make it happen, but sometimes it just isn't possible.

Exactly! That’s the only instance I’ve ever heard of it being guaranteed. The two adults may want to be in the same room, but really if the rooms aren’t connecting, there is an adult available for each room.

I have read posts over the last year or 2 about how guaranteeing connecting rooms or even picking your room is a thing at other hotels. So maybe Disney is trying to move in that direction.

 

[enzy65]

Before booking online was a thing, we always called in and got 2 rooms under 1 reservation. 2 adults/2 children and always had connecting rooms.

 

[aerxo17]

For an August 2022 trip, I booked 2 standard rooms at ASMu. They were under different MDE accounts (mine and my friend's) but I made the reservations at the same time, with the same payment method, over the phone, and requested that we get connecting rooms, or at least rooms next to each other. The cast member I was speaking to said he would put a note on each reservation that the two rooms be together.

I paid a deposit with the original booking, and made another payment over the phone a few months later, with a different cast member. Since the rooms didn't look connected on MDE (but both rooms appeared on my MDE plans/account, despite my name not being on the 2nd room) I asked again, that the rooms be next to each other. the CM said "oh yeah, there's a note on here that they should be connecting rooms"

At check-in, we didn't received the rooms or section we requested via TouringPlans fax, BUT they were connecting rooms on an upper floor, like I asked over the phone and on my online check-in! Seems like Disney will always prioritize requests made through their system, over external requests, like thru TouringPlans.

This was just my experience, but I think your requests will be honored.