2016 Free Dining Watch

[ml sumner]

Hi there. I had surgery to remove a kidney stone yesterday, and am having some lingering issues, but hope to be getting things under control finally. I'm about to go to bed for the night, but I'll check back in tomorrow as long as I can stay out of the ER. It's been a rough week!

Hope you get to feeling better soon.

 

[uetzb]

Hi there. I had surgery to remove a kidney stone yesterday, and am having some lingering issues, but hope to be getting things under control finally. I'm about to go to bed for the night, but I'll check back in tomorrow as long as I can stay out of the ER. It's been a rough week!

Well lookie there.... The gang's all here!!!

 

[SunnieRN]

Hi there. I had surgery to remove a kidney stone yesterday, and am having some lingering issues, but hope to be getting things under control finally. I'm about to go to bed for the night, but I'll check back in tomorrow as long as I can stay out of the ER. It's been a rough week!

Lots of pixie dust and good wishes for a speedy recovery!!!

 

[KT0191]

Hi there. I had surgery to remove a kidney stone yesterday, and am having some lingering issues, but hope to be getting things under control finally. I'm about to go to bed for the night, but I'll check back in tomorrow as long as I can stay out of the ER. It's been a rough week!

Oh man. I've had three kidney stones before..thankfully, never needed surgery. Sounds like yours was intense. Feel better soon.

 

[Just Love Disney]

Are we thinking we can safely catch some zzzz's tonight?

 

[The Dirty Steve]

Are we thinking we can safely catch some zzzz's tonight?

Yes...get to bed.

Lots of great stuff today, lots of good people back in the mix. I'm excited.

 

[jmbarnes101]

Hi there. I had surgery to remove a kidney stone yesterday, and am having some lingering issues, but hope to be getting things under control finally. I'm about to go to bed for the night, but I'll check back in tomorrow as long as I can stay out of the ER. It's been a rough week!

Having had kidney stone surgery and complications last fall, I was down for two weeks, I can empathize. I hope you have a quick and speedy recovery.

 

[choover2576]

I hope you feel better Smitch!

What is the typical room only fall discount for value resorts? If I'm reading the MouseSavers historical discounts correctly it is 10%-25% off for all resorts. Guessing that values get the 10% discount?

 

[SunnieRN]

Yes...get to bed.

Lots of great stuff today, lots of good people back in the mix. I'm excited.

Ok, now I'm super excited!!!!

 

[Tina O'Toole]

I apologize in advance for the length of this response/plea for advice or help.

I have been planning on this vacation for nearly a year. For those who have seen my original post, I am sorry for the repetition, but it is my family's first real vacation. My son will be 17, and heading to the military the next summer, so it is probably our last chance for a big family vacation. My daughter has been wishing for this. She is 10, and has been through 3 open-heart surgeries. She will most likely require a transplant at some point. This trip means so much. Because of this, I scoured the history of deals, and chose our dates based on them - 11/12 through 11/19. My husband, a 911 operator, had to put his request for these dates off of work in December. We are not flexible at all.

Now, I am seeing the rumor of 11/11 or 11/15. The 11/15 date scares me, and makes me believe I will not be able to get this deal. I am also seeing this rumor of DVC holders getting the first shot. I do not have a DVC. I am starting to think all of my planning is falling apart, and the promises I made my children will now be broken. I am seriously falling apart right now. I do not think I can do this trip without this deal. Please tell me if you think I am jumping the gun and there is hope. Perhaps there is another magical deal I am not aware of. I really don't want to tell my children I couldn't make this happen.

 

[Just Love Disney]

Yes...get to bed.

Lots of great stuff today, lots of good people back in the mix. I'm excited.

You're awesome! Can't wait to hear what you learned today. Sending good vibes for some October dates as well as an early DV release

 

[sshaw0715]

I apologize in advance for the length of this response/plea for advice or help.

I have been planning on this vacation for nearly a year. For those who have seen my original post, I am sorry for the repetition, but it is my family's first real vacation. My son will be 17, and heading to the military the next summer, so it is probably our last chance for a big family vacation. My daughter has been wishing for this. She is 10, and has been through 3 open-heart surgeries. She will most likely require a transplant at some point. This trip means so much. Because of this, I scoured the history of deals, and chose our dates based on them - 11/12 through 11/19. My husband, a 911 operator, had to put his request for these dates off of work in December. We are not flexible at all.

Now, I am seeing the rumor of 11/11 or 11/15. The 11/15 date scares me, and makes me believe I will not be able to get this deal. I am also seeing this rumor of DVC holders getting the first shot. I do not have a DVC. I am starting to think all of my planning is falling apart, and the promises I made my children will now be broken. I am seriously falling apart right now. I do not think I can do this trip without this deal. Please tell me if you think I am jumping the gun and there is hope. Perhaps there is another magical deal I am not aware of. I really don't want to tell my children I couldn't make this happen.

Have you ever contacted the Make a Wish foundation. These deals change from year to year, and no one knows what they will be for sure. It is all just pure speculation.

 

[Tina O'Toole]

Have you ever contacted the Make a Wish foundation. These deals change from year to year, and no one knows what they will be for sure. It is all just pure speculation.

Thank you for your reply. She is doing well enough right now, and does not need a transplant yet, so she would not qualify. Many kids with her condition do go on a Make a Wish trip because they are in worse shape. I am thankful she is doing so well. I am determined to find a way to make this work. I am just really hoping a good deal will remove some of the financial stress. We have had to put quite a bit of money into medical bills over the years. I don't think a room discount will make much of a difference, but the dining could be huge.

 

[wilkeliza]

Okay quick question and asking it here since it will actually be apart of my decision on if we do free dinning or not. When you buy a package can you upgrade your tickets before you pay in full and get to the parks etc? We have decided just holding onto the 2 4-day tickets we have would be smartest since we know we will use them and then just book free dinning since we are staying deluxe for a week straight. However, we don't yet know how many days we want to do WDW. We know minimum 4 at WDW but it could be 5 or 6. Will just depend on what we figure for Universal and if we want to go there or not.

 

[RedWolf95]

I apologize in advance for the length of this response/plea for advice or help.

I have been planning on this vacation for nearly a year. For those who have seen my original post, I am sorry for the repetition, but it is my family's first real vacation. My son will be 17, and heading to the military the next summer, so it is probably our last chance for a big family vacation. My daughter has been wishing for this. She is 10, and has been through 3 open-heart surgeries. She will most likely require a transplant at some point. This trip means so much. Because of this, I scoured the history of deals, and chose our dates based on them - 11/12 through 11/19. My husband, a 911 operator, had to put his request for these dates off of work in December. We are not flexible at all.

Now, I am seeing the rumor of 11/11 or 11/15. The 11/15 date scares me, and makes me believe I will not be able to get this deal. I am also seeing this rumor of DVC holders getting the first shot. I do not have a DVC. I am starting to think all of my planning is falling apart, and the promises I made my children will now be broken. I am seriously falling apart right now. I do not think I can do this trip without this deal. Please tell me if you think I am jumping the gun and there is hope. Perhaps there is another magical deal I am not aware of. I really don't want to tell my children I couldn't make this happen.

Don't panic, it's all still very much rumors and really the basis for the rumor is pretty slim, i.e. it's not inside information but just a TA saw a Free Dining add on a TA site that was then quickly removed which could mean anything.

I for one would not be surprised if it's a couple days earlier than the 15th. Historically, Jersey week has been blacked out from Sunday to Saturday (which for this year would be 11/6/-11/12). Based on that you would think FD would start on 11/13. Another reason for thinking it would start on 13th is that having the check ins run so close to Thanksgiving (21st) as others have said does not make sense. Really the only reason for thinking they would wait until the 15th was because F&W ends on the 14th but if they were really trying to prevent overlapping FD with F&W then why would then entire last half of September be included in FD.

Worst case if it really is the 15th (or anything after 12th) then you can always do a split reservation getting the meal plan from 15-19 with all your tickets booked under that reservation and then do a separate reservation for 12-14 for only a room and I am almost certain you will be able to get a Room discount on that which of course is not as good as free dining but will help offset some of the additional food expenses.

In regards to DV, they may or may not. 2 (Oct-Dec 2013, Entire 2015) out of the last 3 Free Dining promotions have NOT been opened to DVC early. So in the last 3 years DV has only gotten early release in 2014 and for September 2013. Even if there is early release as others have said things come open even weeks after FD is released. Last year I had to book a Pirate room at CBR on the day it was released but about a week later Standards started popping up at CBR and I was able to switch. Alot will also depend on what resort you want or if you even are particular about the resort. If you are open to Value or Moderate then that gives you ALOT of flexibility. One advantage you have is that 11/13-11/19 is a VERY slow week.

Not trying to give you false hope but certainly there is no reason to lose hope.

 

[Tina O'Toole]

Don't panic, it's all still very much rumors and really the basis for the rumor is pretty slim, i.e. it's not inside information but just a TA saw a Free Dining add on a TA site that was then quickly removed which could mean anything.

I for one would not be surprised if it's a couple days earlier than the 15th. Historically, Jersey week has been blacked out from Sunday to Saturday (which for this year would be 11/6/-11/12). Based on that you would think FD would start on 11/13. Another reason for thinking it would start on 13th is that having the check ins run so close to Thanksgiving (21st) as others have said does not make sense. Really the only reason for thinking they would wait until the 15th was because F&W ends on the 14th but if they were really trying to prevent overlapping FD with F&W then why would then entire last half of September be included in FD.

Worst case if it really is the 15th (or anything after 12th) then you can always do a split reservation getting the meal plan from 15-19 with all your tickets booked under that reservation and then do a separate reservation for 12-14 for only a room and I am almost certain you will be able to get a Room discount on that which of course is not as good as free dining but will help offset some of the additional food expenses.

Not trying to give you false hope but certainly there is no reason to lose hope.

Thank you so much! I am going to try to just relax. I think I am stressing so much because so many people are counting on me to make this happen. Hopefully more concrete info will be out soon. I didn't realize how the split stay worked, but that might be an option. Thank you for helping me to realize there is still some hope.

 

[RedWolf95]

Thank you so much! I am going to try to just relax. I think I am stressing so much because so many people are counting on me to make this happen. Hopefully more concrete info will be out soon. I didn't realize how the split stay worked, but that might be an option. Thank you for helping me to realize there is still some hope.

No problem I added a little more info to the post regarding your DV concern too. Take care and just keep wishing for some pixie dust.

 

[RedWolf95]

Had not seen this posted yet. Essentially same rumor we have heard along with just some general info based on previous years, BUT what is most hopeful is the statement "There is a noticeable gap during the month of October leading many Disney insiders to suggest that this unofficial list may be incomplete."

http://www.disneyaddicts.com/will-disney-free-dining-released-2016-6228/

 

[PirateD]

I apologize in advance for the length of this response/plea for advice or help.

I have been planning on this vacation for nearly a year. For those who have seen my original post, I am sorry for the repetition, but it is my family's first real vacation. My son will be 17, and heading to the military the next summer, so it is probably our last chance for a big family vacation. My daughter has been wishing for this. She is 10, and has been through 3 open-heart surgeries. She will most likely require a transplant at some point. This trip means so much. Because of this, I scoured the history of deals, and chose our dates based on them - 11/12 through 11/19. My husband, a 911 operator, had to put his request for these dates off of work in December. We are not flexible at all.

Now, I am seeing the rumor of 11/11 or 11/15. The 11/15 date scares me, and makes me believe I will not be able to get this deal. I am also seeing this rumor of DVC holders getting the first shot. I do not have a DVC. I am starting to think all of my planning is falling apart, and the promises I made my children will now be broken. I am seriously falling apart right now. I do not think I can do this trip without this deal. Please tell me if you think I am jumping the gun and there is hope. Perhaps there is another magical deal I am not aware of. I really don't want to tell my children I couldn't make this happen.

Definitely hang in there! I remember panicking a couple of times last year when some of the rumors were going around but it all worked out. There's no way of knowing until the official release but I do know that you can get lots of good advice on how to make it work here on the Dis even if it isn't as early as your initial check-in date. There are lots of ways to save some money here and there. I really hope it will work out for you and your family!

 

[chewysmom]

Thank you for your reply. She is doing well enough right now, and does not need a transplant yet, so she would not qualify. Many kids with her condition do go on a Make a Wish trip because they are in worse shape. I am thankful she is doing so well. I am determined to find a way to make this work. I am just really hoping a good deal will remove some of the financial stress. We have had to put quite a bit of money into medical bills over the years. I don't think a room discount will make much of a difference, but the dining could be huge.

HLHS? Sounds like it. My sweet son had HLHS, but sadly he didn't live past the first surgery. I know what we all went through for those short three weeks that he lived-I can't imagine everything you and your family have gone through! Much love-I hope you guys are able to go and have just an awesome vacation!

I will say this-like others have said-don't panic right now bc of rumored dates-they absolutely can change last minute. Just keep your eyes peeled for black562 or dirty Steve to come along w/a pretty solid offer-you'll know when just by the way it's posted. (Ah, for some good reading, dig up past FD threads-they are a hoot! But really long. )

Anyway, I just wanted to wish you luck. You've got this, mama!