Hello and welcome to the first of many posts I will probably make about Disney. I am tentatively thinking of our first ever family Disney trip for about a year from now. I chatted on the phone with a local mom/disney agent and she was great, seems to offer a ton of help and concierge services but I was really surprised that she charges a $250 fee. I thought typically travel agents don't charge a fee? Am I being swindled?
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I am pretty sure that the person we used was free when we went a few years ago. She made all our dining reservations and sent lots of options and info for things like where to stay and the fast passes. It was super helpful.
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No clue! I'm a local mom and I'm going to look this up as an awesome side hustle!
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Disney travel agents are supposed to be free, yes - they get paid by Disney. I’ve heard great things about Magical Vacations Travel, or Touring Plans (an outstanding Disney website) recently started an agency: https://touringplans.com/travel
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Disney pays the agent's commission. Most agents that book for Disney do not charge the clients. Maybe if she was looking for extra $ or if she offers more that the average agent? Im pretty sure there are some amazing agents that don't charge though. Try joining the Smart Moms for Disney/Disneyland groups. They help plan a lot.
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@Chuckles: @erinbaderin: @sckim: Thank you! This is helpful. She was really sweet and I guess it's just her business model but I really don't think she's offering anything "extra" for the charge.
@agold: Right? Sounds like a great side hustle to me lol
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As others have said, agents are paid by Disney. I know one agent who is now charging a base fee is doing so because so many people are cancelling their trips due to the endless and changing pandemic. As she is not paid until clients travel, it is a way to ensure that her work is paid for in the event of a cancellation.
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@LadyDi: Did you ask her? I'm curious about what she would say.
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@Corduroy: I did. She said the agency she works for implemented the fee in May, prior to that their services were free. Based on what she said she does (making reservations, booking the property, provided maps, itineraries, recommendations, etc) it seems like it's the same as what's offered by other agents. She is really nice and helpful but I have a hard time justifying the cost if I can get the same or similar service elsewhere. $250 sounds like a lot to me!
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@LadyDi: That is a strange business model!
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