CPs get tons of discounts, not only at Disney, but at places all around Orlando! Local restaurants, hotels, and shops offer Disney Cast Members discounts...because we're just...that...cool. :) These discounts aren't so easy to know about in advance--they're called TEAM Discounts (I'm sure 'TEAM' is a cute acronym) and are listed on the HUB (which I won't have access to until I check in) and in a book that I can get once I get down to Florida. But Disney is fairly open about the discounts they offer, and, boy: even just that list is enough to make me want to sign up for the CP all over again!
For one thing, I get discounts on dining at Disney. I get a 20% discount, which can also be used by those eating with me. This will definitely come in handy as I complete my first big mission at WDW: eat at every restaurant in the World Showcase at Epcot. First down? Probably gonna be Akershus, the restaurant in Norway. What in the world do Norweigans eat, anyway? Inquiring minds want to know. For some reason, I'm thinking a lot of fish...
I also get a discount on merchandise. And since I'm going to be surrounded by merchandise all day, I can see me finding lots of things that I just have to come back on my day off to buy. That is also a 20% discount. But even better than the regular merch discount: I'll get to shop at Property Control, otherwise known as Cast Connection. This is where they send discontinued and overstock merchandise, and only Cast Members are allowed to shop there. Basically it's the ultimate Disney outlet! The discounts here range from 50-75% off original in-park prices. How cool is that?
Now it's time for the two biggies: resorts and...drum roll...park admission! Here is what everyone needs to keep in mind: I get some pretty sweet discounts, and if you want me to get you some deals, you better be nice to me between now and August. Are you listening (reading), family?
Ah, I'm just kidding of course. (But, no. Really. Be nice.) But the deals are pretty awesome. On resort reservations, there are two different deals Cast Members can get. If I stay in the room, I can get up to a 50% off discount (depends on the season--busy times for the resorts, I can't get as big of a discount). These reservations are unlimited. If I won the lottery between now and August, I would never even have to stay in the CP housing--I could just stay in a different Disney resort every night of the semester.
If I don't stay in the room, and just get a reservation for someone else, then the discount is only up to 40%. These are limited to 5 reservations. The length of the stay is unlimited, however, so that really is quite a few discounted nights when you think about it. And even though I'm assuming each room would count as a separate reservation, I don't know about that. (See? As much as I hate to admit it, sometimes I don't know everything.)
And now, the grand-daddy of all "I know someone at Disney who can get me a discount" discounts...park admission. Of course, I get in for free as often as I want while I'm there. Definitely sweet. But that doesn't help you, my friend, family member, or slightly creepy stranger who is trying to figure out how to bum tickets off of a blogger you've never met. For all of you (except you, creepy stranger), I get 6 Main Entrance Passes. These passes can be used to get up to 3 other people in. That means if I use one of my passes to get in two people, well, I've basically lost a free ticket. 3 people...6 times. It was a little confusing for me at first, but maybe I'm the only one out there who has trouble understanding this. 3 people...6 times. These tickets are Park Hoppers, which means that my guests can leave and enter as many different Disney parks as they'd like on the day that I get them in.
So, now you all know all about the super sweet discounts I can get for my friends and family. Let the schmoozing begin! ;)
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Other people can not use your merchandise or dining discount, just FYI. You'll learn this as a merch CM. The discount can only be given to CMs. That is, if you walked up to the register with, say, your mom, the only way to get a discount is for you to be the person physically handing the money over. If you're using a credit card, it must have the CM's name on it. Same goes for the Disney Store discount.
ReplyDeleteAnd, while 20% off of dining sounds sweet, they automatically add back in 18% gratuity.
Oh, and if you want the really sweet deals, wait until the end of the year for the Holiday Celebration stuff.
And just a heads up: Disney doesn't like stuff like this given out to the public, so I'd be really careful what you're posting in here.
Added: Cast Connection and Property Control are not the same place.
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