Staying at CB in just about a month for the second time. I have checked in online (at Pop!) and at the desk (at previous visits to CB, and AOA ), but I see so many recommendations on social media now about NOT checking in online. I understand checking in at the desk gives an extra touch, buttons, etc. but I don’t remember any coupons or additional freebies.
What other coupons or perks might you get?
Any building recs for CB are welcome. We have two rooms (standard, and standard with 5th sleeper). The last time we had preferred rooms at CB but now we are going standard.
I don’t know if there is any difference with online vs checking in at the desk but I do both. We don’t use magic bands and pick up room keys at the desk. When I check in I see if everything is attached to the room key. I usually have a car so it doesn’t take any extra time.
Same. The one time that I was unhappy with my room assignment I was able to request a change and give specifics through the app chat. It was resolved and a new room was assigned in short order, and then I was able to go directly there
I don’t see much point in waiting to do in-person check-in. For me it is just a delay in getting situated, and depending on the day/time/resort that might be a decent delay. Although those CMs equipped with iPads do seem to be generally pretty readily available to assist.
I’ve done it both ways. Online check-in lets you attach a credit card to the room (if it hasn’t been linked already). I often have the time to stop at the front desk when arriving to do it the old fashioned way, including getting the key cards or asking for a different location, but also I like to get the hotel map from them with my room number in writing and the building marked. The map really helps me find my way around, plus it makes a nice souvenir from that trip.
Oh I will say that I often wait til my flight is confirmed on time and that my trip will not be delayed. I had a guest once who had completed online check in and then her flight got canceled. Because she had completed check-in, it was a little trickier to undo and get her trip moved than if she hadn’t already checked in. At least that’s what they told me.
If people are talking about coupon books as an advantage to checking in at the desk, they most likely have a package, and those things were not sent to them ahead of time. You can always swing by the desk and pick these up, even if you check in online.
I am three for three getting my room ready text as soon as I give the gaurd my name, when using a car, and having done room check in online. My arrival times were 2:00 pm, 7:50 am and 12:30 PM. So I am a true believer! Love going straight to my room after parking my car.
I’ve only been doing WDW stays for a few years now, and I have had mixed issues with getting the room ready text- meaning, there has been two times I didn’t get them.
Stopping by the desk at All Star Sports to check in this summer (we needed key cards) was very helpful. When the CM heard I had a car, she changed my room so I would be closer to a parking lot (some construction was going on). So when I went in Nov, I opted to not check in online & go to the desk, and it was helpful to have a conversation with the CM, as she could have given me my preferred Preferred building, but not the first floor, and it was better for me to have first floor in another Preferred building.
We didn’t get to our resort in October until around midnight. I had already checked in, but I still went through the lobby because we desperately needed help with our luggage. I was happy with our room location, though.
We always do online check-in months ahead of time, or ASAP in the case of BLT, which our wait-list went through about a month out.
This past trip, for the BLT portion, we got a room not ready text around 4ish, but it wasn’t terribly long time afterwards that we got a room ready text but it told us we needed to go see a CM at check-in. That was weird. So when we got to BLT, I checked in with a CM and they didn’t know why it said that. She told us our room and we went straight there. I wondered if it was because our actual room was nothing like our room request. In fact it was actually the complete opposite of any of our requests.
Have tried online check-in multiple times, but always seem to hit a snag and need to go to desk anyway.
Giving it a try again next week; hoping to skip the desk with my 10pm arrival time!!!
Has anyone found that their room requests sent for them by Touring Plans were ignored when they did the online check-in? In the past, I have called and added room location requests and have always been assigned a room very similar to what I requested. For this trip, I have Touring Plans submitted requests and am a little nervous about doing online check-in.
As long as I have not edited the room request section on the online checkin form, my TP request seems to have been taken into consideration, even if not completely fulfilled. I don’t give any room preference when doing online check in in case that overrides the TP request.
I always do online check in months in advance and always have my room requests that are sent by TP met. I make broad requests and not requests for specific rooms. In 2025 I asked for bld 45 in Jamaica at CBR, the Zebra trail at AKL, a new refurb room at POR, and bld 4 at Pop, checked in online months ahead, and had all of those requests met.