WDW Daily News

UPDATE: April 6, 2020 – Disney Wonder Sailings Cancelled Through End of June
The Canadian government has announced that it will not allow any ship with more than 500 passengers to dock in any Canadian port until July 1, at the earliest. Given that your clients’ sailing on the Disney Wonder is scheduled to embark and/or debark in Vancouver and Disney Cruise Line has not been able to secure an alternate homeport, it is necessary to cancel their sailing.

In light of this cancellation, Disney Cruise Line is offering your clients the choice of a 125% future cruise credit to be used for a future sailing within 15 months of their original sail date, or a full refund. The credit has been automatically added to their account. Guests and travel agents may place a reservation on hold by applying it as a payment option when booking a new reservation online. The future cruise credit can be added to the booking once you reach the checkout screen. 

The following sailings on the Disney Wonder will be cancelled:

• 9-Night Hawaiian Cruise 4/29
• 10-Night Hawaiian Cruise 5/8
• 7-Night Alaska Cruise 5/18
• 7-Night Alaska Cruise 5/25
• 7-Night Alaska Cruise 6/1
• 7-Night Alaska Cruise 6/8
• 7-Night Alaska Cruise 6/15
• 7-Night Alaska Cruise 6/22
• 7-Night Alaska Cruise 6/29

Please contact a member of our reservation team at 1-866-325-6685 or 407-566-7797 only if you are unable to book a new sailing online. 

Please note that your commission is protected on the original sailing cancelled by Disney Cruise Line. For reservations that were booked using a future cruise credit from a sailing previously cancelled by Disney Cruise Line, commission on a second sailing will be earned only if the sailing commences and will not be earned if the sailing is cancelled by Disney Cruise Line. In this instance, commission will be paid following the standard commission payment process.

*The future cruise credit is equal to 125% of your clients’ original voyage fare and is only valid for sailings departing within 15 months of your original sailing. The future cruise credit is applied per person and is non-transferable, non-refundable and has no cash value. Standard prevailing rates apply and Guests are responsible for any balance due after the future cruise credit has been applied. If your clients end up not being able to use the future cruise credit, they will be eligible for a refund up to the amount of their original voyage fare. Standard cancellation policies and terms and conditions apply to future sailings. Guests who previously received a future cruise credit are not eligible for an additional future cruise credit.

Here is a message from Disney to Annual Passholders:

Dear Valued Annual Passholder, 

This is a truly unprecedented time for all of us, and we want to thank you for your patience as we work through the many details related to the temporary closure of the theme parks. We recognize this may be a challenging time, so we wanted to share how we will assist our Annual Passholders. 

Active Walt Disney World Resort Annual Passes who have paid in full will be extended for the number of days the parks are closed. The new expiration date will be reflected on the Annual Passholder’s account prior to the reopening of the theme parks.  

As an alternative, in lieu of an extension of their passes, Passholders who have paid in full may choose to receive a partial refund for the theme park closure period. Information will be provided soon on how to choose this option.  

Our Annual Passholders are some of our most loyal guests, and we stand ready to help during this incredibly uncertain time. If you have any questions, please contact V.I.PASSHOLDER Support at (407) 939-7277. We do anticipate heavy call volume and appreciate your patience as we answer all inquiries. 

Following the announcement in March that several titles would be delayed due to the global health crisis, The Walt Disney Studios today announced updates to its upcoming release schedule. Disney’s Mulan is now slated to open on July 24, 2020, with Disney’s Jungle Cruise moving to July 30, 2021; while Marvel Studios’ Black Widow will arrive in theaters on November 6, 2020, with The Eternals moving to February 12, 2021.

The Walt Disney Studios also announced today that it will debut its new live-action feature film Artemis Fowl exclusively on Disney+. The release date will be announced soon.

Based on the best-selling young adult book by Eoin Colfer, Artemis Fowl stars newcomer Ferdia Shaw in the title role alongside Lara McDonnell, Josh Gad, Tamara Smart, Nonso Anozie, Josh McGuire, Nikesh Patel and Adrian Scarborough, with Colin Farrell and Judi Dench.

“With audiences largely unable to attend theatres in the current environment, we are thrilled to offer the premiere of Artemis Fowl on Disney+,” said Ricky Strauss, president, Content & Marketing, Disney+. “Director Kenneth Branagh and his spectacular cast take viewers right into the vibrant fantasy world of the beloved book, which fans have been waiting to see brought to life onscreen for years. It’s great family entertainment that is the perfect addition to Disney+’s summer lineup.”

Below is the updated release schedule through 2022, beginning with Disney and Pixar’s Soul, opening June 19, 2020:

2020

Soul (Disney and Pixar)—June 19, 2020

Mulan (Disney)—July 24, 2020

Empty Man (20th Century Studios)—August 7, 2020

The One and Only Ivan (Disney)—August 14, 2020

The Beatles: Get Back (Disney)—September 4, 2020

The King’s Man (20th Century Studios)—September 18, 2020

Death on the Nile (20th Century Studios)—October 9, 2020

The French Dispatch (Searchlight Pictures)—October 16, 2020

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie (20th Century Studios)—October 23, 2020

Black Widow (Marvel Studios)—November 6, 2020

Deep Water (20th Century Studios)—November 13, 2020

Raya and the Last Dragon (Walt Disney Animation Studios)—November 25, 2020

Free Guy (20th Century Studios)—December 11, 2020

West Side Story (20th Century Studios)—December 18, 2020

The Last Duel (20th Century Studios)—December 25, 2020 (limited)

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While most of us are sitting around our homes and missing Disney, let’s have some fun. Take this Disney quiz and see how good you are at guessing various characters solely based on a color palette.

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Without a clear idea of when its parks will be able to reopen, Disney announced plans to furlough non-union workers and stop collecting payments for its annual park passes.

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Disney’s U.S. theme parks are closed, but the company has found a way to transform one of the parks’ signature items into a tool to help those on the frontlines in the fight against the novel coronavirus (COVID-19).

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At this time, the Walt Disney World and Disneyland Resort call centers will not be taking any new bookings for the months of April and May. New bookings for Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort and Aulani Resort will be available for stays starting June 1, 2020. 

As a reminder, Walt Disney World and Disneyland theme parks, Disney Resort hotels, the Disney Springs area, Downtown Disney and Aulani Resort are currently closed and a reopening date has not been identified. For guests who are interested in modifying their existing travel dates or making a new reservation for a future vacation, reservations are currently available for travel dates June 1 and later.  As always, Guests are able to modify these bookings if Walt Disney World, Disneyland or Aulani Resort opens before or after that time.

The call center will continue to be able to assist agents in rebooking their Clients for the special offer currently available at Walt Disney World Resort.

Just to clarify to our readers the Free Dining Offer is NOT AVAILABLE FOR NEW RESERVATIONS. Several other Disney fan sites have mislead their readers by not providing the full details in their headlines and thus guests think it is an offer available to the general public for ANY reservation after June 1.

Below is the official wording from Disney. Notice that the offer is only for Reservations that were Booked for March 16 through May 31, 2020 AND the travel has to take place between June 1 through September 30, 2020. If you are a DVC member, or Annual Passholder this offer does NOT APPLY to you as you already have tickets or have a DVC room stay.

A Special Walt Disney World Offer for Eligible Guests

For additional information on the temporary closures at Walt Disney World
We appreciate your ongoing support as we continue to adjust our operations and offerings for our valued clients.

Below is information about a Walt Disney World summer recovery dine package. We expect to provide you with more information on Monday about offers for Disneyland Resort and Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa.

Eligible Guests can take advantage of a vacation package offer that includes accommodations at a select Disney Resort hotel, park admission and a Disney dining plan – valid for arrivals most nights June 1 through September 30, 2020 when you book through May 31, 2020.

This offer is valid only for Guests who booked a vacation package or room reservation to stay at a Disney Resort hotel from March 16 through May 31, 2020 (even if the park opens before then). Offer not valid for reservations cancelled before March 1, 2020.

Important Details

• Cannot be combined with any other discount or promotion.
• Advance reservation required.
• Length of stay is 2 nights-14 nights
• Ticket requirements: 2-day minimum; all ticket types included (i.e., Base, Park Hopper, Water Park & Sports, Park Hopper Plus
• Offer excludes the following room types: campsites
• Children ages 3 to 9 must choose from the children’s menu, if available.
• Gratuities are not included.
• Theme park admission is required for some dining locations.

This offer is subject to availability. Everyone in the same room must be on the same package. Theme park tickets valid for admission beginning on date of check-in and must be used within a limited number of days, depending on length of stay and ticket. 

Dear Members,I know the last couple of weeks have been a challenge for all of us. As we navigate the rapidly changing COVID-19 environment, we continue to make decisions focused on the health and wellbeing of our Members, Guests and Cast Members. Today I want to share another update with you.As a result of this unprecedented pandemic and in line with direction provided by health experts and government officials, Disneyland Resort and Walt Disney World Resort will remain closed until further notice. This closure affects all Disney Vacation Club properties, including Disney’s Vero Beach Resort, Disney’s Hilton Head Island Resort and Aulani, a Disney Resort & Spa.During this temporary closure, it is our priority to continue providing you with helpful and efficient service, even as the majority of our Cast Members are working remotely, including those in Member Services and Member Accounting.Until the decision is made as to when the resorts will reopen, all reservations scheduled for arrival during the closure time will be automatically cancelled by Disney Vacation Club on a week-by-week basis. Members do not need to cancel the reservation online or contact Member Services. In light of the unusual circumstances and to provide more flexibility, Disney Vacation Club established a temporary cancellation policy to supplement our existing cancellation rules. Details include:Vacation Points returned due to a cancellation of a resort reservation will not be placed in a holding account and will be returned to the current Use Year. This applies to all reservations checking in within the next 30 days.When a reservation involving Borrowed Points is cancelled, the Borrowed Points will be returned to the Use Year they were borrowed from. This applies to all reservations regardless of arrival date. Please allow up to 15 business days for this process to be completed.The following existing cancellation rules continue to apply:Reservation Points returned due to a cancellation of a Disney Collection Resort reservation will be returned as Reservation Points to the current Use Year.Reservations made with points Banked from the previous Use Year will be returned as Banked Points to the current Use Year.One-time use Points will be returned to the current Use Year as one-time use Points.In addition, some Members may have questions about reservation cancellations involving Points that are set to expire soon. At this time, we are evaluating the banking and expiration policy and the use of certain Points impacted by the closures. As a part of our evaluation process, we need to be considerate of the impact any changes could have on future inventory availability for the Membership overall. A decision will be made when we better understand how long COVID-19 will impact our operations.As we anticipate high call volume in the days ahead, we encourage you to use the Disney Vacation Club website for general information – and we ask that you contact Member Services only if you need assistance with an existing reservation. Any Member who would like to book a new Disney Vacation Club Resort reservation or modify an existing reservation may do so through the Member Online Booking Tool.We realize that disruptions related to COVID-19 are altering your family’s vacation plans, and we thank you for your understanding during this unprecedented time. It is our commitment to stay focused on serving you with ongoing communication and updates.We look forward to “welcoming you home” as soon as we can.

While Disneyland and Walt Disney World had initially planned to close through March in an effort to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus COVID-19 and comply with shelter-in-place guidelines, the U.S. Disney parks have now announced that they will “remain closed until further notice.”

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