August vs. October

[1sttimedisneymama]

we are currently booked at Pop in October but it looks like if we booked in August we would save $400 with the awaken summer deal. Should we switch or will there be discounts on October? A friend told me you almost never pay "rack rates" unless it's around a holiday.

 

[Hootch]

There will most likely be offers for October. Last year the "free dining" offer was released in late April. Whether that is beneficial depends on the group using it. There were some dates blacked out for the offer. There were additional discounts added in July. See below.

http://www.mousesavers.com/historical-information-on-walt-disney-world-resort-discounts/#2015

Availability may be an issue. The Food and Wine festival at Epcot is going on all of October. Disney releases discounts to draw people. The F&W festival draws in people so they may not have many rooms at the discounted rate - "free dining" also draws people in.

 

[AshleeH]

My husband talked to Disney (about an unrelated issue - not deals) a few weeks ago and the CM said October is filling up fast and looking to be very crowded. Not to say that there won't be any deals, but I just wouldn't plan my vacation around that expectation. Free Dining is used to fill up the hotels - if hotels are already full to the point that requests are difficult to grant (that was our issue and the reason for our call), there's no incentive to offer Free Dining. But you never know.

 

[1sttimedisneymama]

We decided on September instead

 

[Hootch]

Early September is one of the lowest crowd times. Hydrate and consider midday breaks.

 

[AshleeH]

September is ideal for lack of crowds - not an option for us because of schedules, but I would go in a heartbeat if given the option.