2013 Free Dining Watch

[faindrops27]

We are having a Disney Wedding, here's my question

We are only staying at the Polynesian 2 nights from 29th Sept to 1st Oct 2013

Would we be able to get the free dining? There is us 2 and our 2 year old

I have booked room only and flights separate with Virgin (We are from UK)

You are not in the promotion dates sorry.. But congrats on the wedding!

 

[bellesbeauty05]

I'm a Disney Chase holder, but I've never booked the day FD is released, until this year. My question is do you have to put you entire trip on the card? We are booking through AAA and there are 3 families going and I didn't know if it had to all be put on the CC?

 

[smitch425]

I'm a Disney Chase holder, but I've never booked the day FD is released, until this year. My question is do you have to put you entire trip on the card? We are booking through AAA and there are 3 families going and I didn't know if it had to all be put on the CC?

You will likely need to put $200 on the card. If you have already made the deposit with a different form of payment, you can just make a $200 payment towards the balance. Someone here said that they gave their Visa number to the agent to verify that they were eligible, but paid another way, but that is certainly not the norm.

 

[TheDisney411]

I'm a Disney Chase holder, but I've never booked the day FD is released, until this year. My question is do you have to put you entire trip on the card? We are booking through AAA and there are 3 families going and I didn't know if it had to all be put on the CC?

You have to put down a minimum $200 payment with your Disney Visa on each reservation to apply the FD discount under the DV FD code. The balance can be paid in any manner of payment, it does not have to be paid off with the DV.

 

[Coconuts]

BOOOOOOOO! I can't believe that the first time we were considering going to WDW in the summer they are not going to include August in FD. We could really only go this year if we got FD and we can't take DS out of school. Nuts.

 

[faindrops27]

BOOOOOOOO! I can't believe that the first time we were considering going to WDW in the summer they are not going to include August in FD. We could really only go this year if we got FD and we can't take DS out of school. Nuts.

When does school start? I take my kids out always I make sure I contact the principal and teachers before hand to get homework assignments to be completed. The administration always encourages family vacations.. We've only had to leave my high school aged son behind, once as he had to much going on between band practice, sports, etc.. Sorry you are having to miss out. It amazes me how some schools encourage family travel, and other schools give parents such a hard time..

 

[carlacv]

Does anyone know what kind of FD the moderates get?

 

[smitch425]

Does anyone know what kind of FD the moderates get?

Regular DDP

 

[Coconuts]

When does school start? I take my kids out always I make sure I contact the principal and teachers before hand to get homework assignments to be completed. The administration always encourages family vacations.. We've only had to leave my high school aged son behind, once as he had to much going on between band practice, sports, etc.. Sorry you are having to miss out. It amazes me how some schools encourage family travel, and other schools give parents such a hard time..

It's not that they discourage family vacations, but they don't encourage missing the time either. School starts 9/4 and they really wouldn't miss much the first week, but my kids really love the first week of school, seeing all of their friends, meeting their new teachers, etc. They would never want to miss the first week. Then unfortunately the work gets loaded on starting week 2 and sports and clubs start that week too. Darn kids; they are ruining my WDW trip!

 

[RUSTYGATOR]

Ok, Rusty I really do not know about booking through outside sites. I only direct book with Disney.. Advice I have for you is bringing the little one a stroller for naps.. You may be surprised at how long kids can actually go at Disney! If it were me, I would look into changing arrival dates to take advantage of FD. It truly is wonderful for a family. Eating breakfast in your room while getting ready for parks in the morning,(bagels, cereal bars packed from home) a Qs lunch around 11:00, followed by an early dinner around 5:00 p.m. is how we tailor our dining. Which leaves the evening open for if you need or want to head back to the resort for a swim, whatever. Remember there are plenty of dining options at disney resorts as well as parks. Have a look at allearsnet.com dining menu's. Whatever you decide have fun and enjoy!

Thanks for the advice. There is no way my wife and kids can miss 2 weeks of school to get free dining. My wife is a teacher and skipping two weeks of pay would not be a good thing. Especially after kids and her have 2 1/2 months of summer vacation. Looking to go somewhere around early August, but could go earlier. However, it seems that prices drop around the 4th of August so that is likely when we'll go.

We've been to Disneyland so I'm familiar with the parks and the food prices. I guess since we are only likely to get a room discount and those prices are passed down to online travel booking sites, shouldn't I just go for the cheapest prices I can get which would be something like hotels.com for 10% off the reduced room rates, plus 7% cashback at TopCashBack.

I know you get a ticket discount when you purchase together, but for 2 adults/ 2 kids under 9 you save $120 on 10 day tickets with a Magic Your Way package. I probably can do that or better with a ticket reseller, including the one recommended by this site.

So is there any reason not to book through a online travel site? Nothing in the magic your way package is that big of a deal.

 

[aaarcher86]

Supposedly they are included, but I'm still a bit skeptical of that. If they are, they would have to be VERY limited. I will be anxious to see if anyone on this board gets a FD discount on those rooms come May 9. I say have a back up resort or room category, just in case.

I'm with you. Since I think they said campsites are included and they usually aren't either, I almost wonder if exclusions just haven't been given quite yet.

We'll see!

 

[aaarcher86]

Thanks for the advice. There is no way my wife and kids can miss 2 weeks of school to get free dining. My wife is a teacher and skipping two weeks of pay would not be a good thing. Especially after kids and her have 2 1/2 months of summer vacation. Looking to go somewhere around early August, but could go earlier. However, it seems that prices drop around the 4th of August so that is likely when we'll go.

We've been to Disneyland so I'm familiar with the parks and the food prices. I guess since we are only likely to get a room discount and those prices are passed down to online travel booking sites, shouldn't I just go for the cheapest prices I can get which would be something like hotels.com for 10% off the reduced room rates, plus 7% cashback at TopCashBack.

I know you get a ticket discount when you purchase together, but for 2 adults/ 2 kids under 9 you save $120 on 10 day tickets with a Magic Your Way package. I probably can do that or better with a ticket reseller, including the one recommended by this site.

So is there any reason not to book through a online travel site? Nothing in the magic your way package is that big of a deal.

No hard reason not to, no. Biggest reason for me is not being able to call Disney directly about the reservation - that can peeve off some people, but if you know that going in it isn't a big deal.

 

[smitch425]

I'm with you. Since I think they said campsites are included and they usually aren't either, I almost wonder if exclusions just haven't been given quite yet.

We'll see!

The campsites are not included. Danny clarified that the name of the resort has "Campgrounds" in its name, and that the sites themselves are excluded.

 

[aaarcher86]

The campsites are not included. Danny clarified that the name of the resort has "Campgrounds" in its name, and that the sites themselves are excluded.

Oh really? Well, there goes my theory. I hadn't checked back since it was initially announced. Good to know.

 

[mgjmom615]

Is the free dining for the quick service only?

 

[smitch425]

Is the free dining for the quick service only?

Values will get QSDP and mods and deluxes will get regular DDP. You can pay to upgrade to a higher plan no matter where you stay.

 

[TheDisney411]

Oh really? Well, there goes my theory. I hadn't checked back since it was initially announced. Good to know.

Still, I'll believe it when I see it

 

[brizzer79]

When does school start? I take my kids out always I make sure I contact the principal and teachers before hand to get homework assignments to be completed. The administration always encourages family vacations.. We've only had to leave my high school aged son behind, once as he had to much going on between band practice, sports, etc.. Sorry you are having to miss out. It amazes me how some schools encourage family travel, and other schools give parents such a hard time..

We are going 9/7 to 9/15 and taking two kids out of school. The school supported it and we are going early (during review time). The school even helped me arrange for a tutor for the week before we go to get the work out of the way so they could enjoy the vacation. The week before we go our girls will stay at school for an extra hour and a half and work on their school work. Talk to the school... most are great.

 

[ilanakan]

The promo isn't for overseas visitors?

 

[TheDisney411]

The promo isn't for overseas visitors?

No, that is not correct. Most UK visitors book through the UK site and get separate promos and discounts than US guests and through the US WDW site.

I don't know what country you are in, but I believe you said you were already booked through the Disney, so you will be able to call US Disney reservations, when the FD codes are released, and have them add the FD discount to your existing reservation. If you booked through a travel agent then the agent will have to call to have the discount added.