40% off vs. free DDP??? Help please!

[DoodlesMom]

Of COURSE, my friend got a frikkin' code today considering that we had to drag them with us last year I'm Anyway, they had no intentions of returning this year UNTIL she got the 40% off code. Now she's considering going when we are but having a hard time convincing her DH especially since she's unsure if the 40% code is better than free DDP. Can anyone give her an idea of the difference? It would be her, DH, 5yo DS, & almost 3yo DD. Which do you think would be the better deal for them?

 

[choirfarm]

It depends on whether they decide to stay at a deluxe, moderate or value. For example, a value room would cost approximately 47 dollars a night for 7 nights with the buy4 get 3 deal. It would cost approximately 49 dollars a night with 40 percent off. So you would be trading 33 to 35 dollars a night for free food. For us, we had to get two value rooms and then I priced out what we would typically eat and the cost was about the same either way, but we would eat better with "free" dining. Remember to add in tips, however. Now if they want to stay in a deluxe, then the 40 percent off would probably be better, but crunch the numbers.

Christine

 

[TnTWalter]

Why don't you punch in the dates at disney's website.

Free dining super easy. Punch in dates and tix you plan to get. [Disney website defaults to adding park hoppers and water park and more so check what you want]. This amount is what you'll pay with free dining. Just remember to add money for tips and extras just in case. $100-$200 at most [depends on how much fine dining, etc.].

To figure the 40% off.... here's how I do it.

STEP 1

I plug in room only for the dates. Remember this number for later calculation.

STEP 2
I multiply above number by .60 to get the amount after the 40% discount. Save this number also for later.

Now on the screen add the park tix and dining for Total.

Now you have a total WITHOUT the 40%.

STEP 3
Subtract out the number you had in step 1.
And add back the number from step 2.

Now you have idea what 40% discount will provide [the 40% is on the ROOM portion of the package].

It sounds complicated but it's fun and addictive.

Trish

 

[disneysuncat]

I'm staying in a deluxe for 9 days, and after running the numbers every which way, the 40% off saved me $358 more than free dining would. I feel very lucky to have gotten the 40%!

 

[michelle1]

I was going over this myself since we have gotten our first 40% pin code and after doing some calculations I figured that for us it's better to use the pin code for a deluxe but use the free dining for a moderate or value. This works for my family because we aren't huge eaters and really don't care too much about table service or the buffets so the free dining would only save us money if we chose a value or mod since with free dining you have to pay rack rate.

 

[Colleen27]

Of COURSE, my friend got a frikkin' code today considering that we had to drag them with us last year I'm Anyway, they had no intentions of returning this year UNTIL she got the 40% off code. Now she's considering going when we are but having a hard time convincing her DH especially since she's unsure if the 40% code is better than free DDP. Can anyone give her an idea of the difference? It would be her, DH, 5yo DS, & almost 3yo DD. Which do you think would be the better deal for them?

It depends on where they plan to stay. The dining plan will cost them $91/night for their family (counting the youngest as free/under 3), so the question is whether 40% is a better discount than that. So for the 40% off to save them more, they have to be looking at a resort with a rack rate of $227.50 or above.

For us, as a group of 2 adults, one junior and one child, the 40% off is a slightly better deal at most of the deluxes, but the real advantage of the PIN is the better choice in travel dates and the option to go when it isn't quite so hot as the Aug/Sept free dining period.

 

[TnTWalter]

Yes we used our pin last year to go Fall break and stayed at the POLY.

It was FABULOUS.

And something I wouldn't have been able to justify otherwise!

 

[Rylee]

Of COURSE, my friend got a frikkin' code today considering that we had to drag them with us last year I'm Anyway, they had no intentions of returning this year UNTIL she got the 40% off code. Now she's considering going when we are but having a hard time convincing her DH especially since she's unsure if the 40% code is better than free DDP. Can anyone give her an idea of the difference? It would be her, DH, 5yo DS, & almost 3yo DD. Which do you think would be the better deal for them?

Free Dining is DIRECTLY equal to the number of paying adults and children in their party, multiplied by the number of NIGHTS they are staying.

For a 40% off code, the savings will vary depending on which resort they choose, the time of year they are traveling, and the number of nights they are staying.

 

[connie1042]

We had the free dinning at cbr. With that I had to buy 2 one day park hoppers. I called today and switched to 40% off military code with dinning, and we did not have to purchase the 2 one day passes. So CBR with dinning for 7 nights came to 1266. If you add for the tickets it willbe another 125. I am not getting the park hopper unless I need it. So total comes to 1291. I think that is pretty good.That is for 2 of us. Now I could of kept the other ressie and put the tickets away for future use, and I would of came out better. But right now I am trying to save anything I can get.

 

[SGMCO]

For us Free Dining is well worth it--because it is more likely to
be offered to the General Public than waiting for a Code to come.
We save $117.00 per night and stay in a MOD during Value Season
$149.00 per Night--subtracted $117.00 from $149.00 and I don't think I
could get a Mod for $32.00 per night (if I could--I want that code).
We are 3 Adults (since my DS is over 10). Plus our food demands are covered
we just have to pay tips for TS--(I like to have a nice TS meal--great brake
from the parks--I can order anything on the menu I want to eat without
worrying about how much it cost--I would hate to eat CS for a whole week just
to save money--been there done that--it gets old real quick).
We have to purchase park tickets (we are not AP holders) so that is not
a negitive for us--we go to the parks on our visit, that's why we are going
to WDW (not just to stay and eat at a resort).