Stay on points or get free dining??

[DizBub]

Two Double Beds. They are small.
We stayed at Old Key West once and the kids cried that they liked the sofa bed better.

That may have been before they switched out the mattresses when they did the refurb. I've heard the OKW beds were hard but we have stayed several times since the refurb and all beds have been comfortable.

 

[JamesA1]

When staying on point you have the option to add the dining plan to your stay.

Keep in mind that some restaurants offer DVC/AP member discounts assuming you have one or the other. That is what helped me to make a final decisions for my September trip since all my choices were discounted. For me the only change was that now a few meals will be lunch versus dinner and will not have to try and work in a lot of table service meals to take full advantage of the plan.

 

[sweetdana]

Two Double Beds. They are small.
We stayed at Old Key West once and the kids cried that they liked the sofa bed better.

The Dining Plan would only cost $166.77 a day.
The cheapest room would be $195 a night.

I personally don't find the dining plan a bargain for adults.
We still use it sometimes but we still have 2 kids under 10.
We will stop using it once they are 10.

for 50$ a night you save the points.. though I agree with your math. It is only not a steal, if you have so many points you are not, renting/transferring in points, or in borrowing mode, or on the threshold of buying more points.

I personally am always short, so it is a way to for 50$ a day get a resort room at a moderate. ... and get a partial dining plan instead of the whole stay or nothing..

***I also think the room rates were closer to 225 a night, but I haven't look at her dates/weekends/recently only off memory from maybe 2 yrs ago. still it would still be under 60$ a night for the difference. (assuming you are buying tickets and getting DP anyway.. You will also end up with 2 sets of mugs if you split and go to 2 different resorts.. )

 

[k3chantal]

We are coming in Sept- already booked the flight! Now I'm trying to decide if we should stay all 8 nights on points, or pay/stay at a moderate for a few to help with dining expenses.
Does anybody do that- or have any thoughts? My head is spinning with all of the possibilities and price break-downs.
Thanks in advance!

What about purchasing the TiW card and getting 20% off at most of the restaurants? We literally save hundreds when we buy it.

Also, if you stay with points and have at least a one bedroom, you can eat meals in the room. We always have breakfast in the villa.

It does concern me that you have booked your flight first. You may find yourself paying for a hotel room just because you can't find a resort you want to use your points on during those exacts dates.

 

[kreckl]

Thanks for all of the replies...
I booked the flight, because we got an amazing deal and didn't want to lose it ( $580 for 3 nonstop tix from Boston). I ended up booking what I never said I would do-3 resorts! We really wanted Bay Lake, and it became available but only for 2 nights. Our second choice was to try the WL for the first time ( well, not my choice but I was outnumbered) and that was available the last 2 nights. We have the AKJ in between. I was getting nervous that we wouldn't get anything!
We always do a split stay with 2 resorts- love that- and have done 3 once before. It will force me to be careful with packing
I think we will get TIW after all, but will have to check out that calculator. I started watching the video but haven't figured it all out.
Last year we saved 40% on our park tickets doing a DY program, but it's different now so the savings isn't much. I will have to price AAA too, and may get the DP for part of our stay because its definitely worth considering if we do some expensive dinners. I think we now have the option of getting it 3 different ways.???

 

[k3chantal]

Thanks for all of the replies...
I booked the flight, because we got an amazing deal and didn't want to lose it ( $580 for 3 nonstop tix from Boston). I ended up booking what I never said I would do-3 resorts! We really wanted Bay Lake, and it became available but only for 2 nights. Our second choice was to try the WL for the first time ( well, not my choice but I was outnumbered) and that was available the last 2 nights. We have the AKJ in between. I was getting nervous that we wouldn't get anything!
We always do a split stay with 2 resorts- love that- and have done 3 once before. It will force me to be careful with packing
I think we will get TIW after all, but will have to check out that calculator. I started watching the video but haven't figured it all out.
Last year we saved 40% on our park tickets doing a DY program, but it's different now so the savings isn't much. I will have to price AAA too, and may get the DP for part of our stay because its definitely worth considering if we do some expensive dinners. I think we now have the option of getting it 3 different ways.???

Glad you could piece together a stay!! We have stayed at three resorts in one trip. VWL, Vero Beach, AKL. It is doable. I fell in love with VWL after that trip!!

 

[Deb & Bill]

Two Double Beds. They are small.
We stayed at Old Key West once and the kids cried that they liked the sofa bed better.

The Dining Plan would only cost $166.77 a day.
The cheapest room would be $195 a night.

I personally don't find the dining plan a bargain for adults.
We still use it sometimes but we still have 2 kids under 10.
We will stop using it once they are 10.

Not double beds at OKW. They are queen sized beds.

POR and CSR both have queen sized beds now, too. Not sure about POFQ, but CBR only has double sized beds still.

 

[boiseflyfisher]

Don't forget that TIW also gives you a discount on alcoholic beverages. If you like a drink with dinner, you can add that savings on to your total savings.

 

[sgtpet]

Having the annual pass it is not an option for free dining then. I am happy with TIW any how. The dining plan has gone downhill in my opinion since its early days.

 

[kreckl]

Thanks!