Connections

[Susie Dismom]

Thought about looking into Connections. Cannot locate website - anybody able to link me? Thanks.

 

[patsal]

Try www.connections123.com. You can also link in through MYPoints and get points plus the gas card for joining. Check out Mousesavers.com for complete details. Much of the info. there is better than the info on the Connections website.

 

[Sheree]

is there an expiration date for the vouchers?

we're going end of August

want to join and cancel but want to make sure the dates work!

 

[Humpbacks1962]

I hope anyone thinking about buying those vouchers takes the time to look up the restaurant menus, current prices and adds it all up before paying...

Wanda

 

[BedKnobbery2]

I actually spent an evening (yes, I have no social life) just me, my calculator, and the WDWIG menus section to see whether it was worthwhile to purchase the Q&C vouchers. This is what I found:

Didn't do much research on the Breakfast vouchers, but it seemed to me that most of the buffets were cheaper than the vouchers, making these not a great bargain.

The Quick and Casual vouchers will almost always save you money IF you would have ordered all the things you get with the voucher (an entree, a sidedish--if not included in the entree, a drink, and a dessert). Sometimes, though, that money is merely pennies. In some cases, the deals were outstanding--at those places marked on mousesavers. If you have a big enough appetite, or 2 people with small appetites, you'll do well with them. Normally, I don't get dessert with lunch, and in most cases eliminating that from your cost would make it cheaper to pay cash than to use a voucher.

The Lunch Sit-Down Meal vouchers, I didn't have time to sift through them. The next evening I'm bored and feel like feeding my disney obsession, I'll probably do an analysis for that too.

I'm kinda playing with the idea of making a Vouchers Info Page that is more thorough than the mousesavers one...maybe including what people who've used them in the past have experienced. I'll need a few bored evenings for that, I think. LOL

BK

 

[Humpbacks1962]

Breakfast vouchers aren't much of a bargain any way you look at it, but the others trap you into selecting the most expensive items in the menu in order to save a couple of bucks. In my case, I do not eat red meats so if the most expensive item is some steak, there goes my savings. Regardless of your feeding preferences, you have to order only the higher priced items or you end losing money.

True, you have to have a HUGE apetite to eat everything you prepaid but overall, once you figure in the numbers, meal taxes (at 6%, last time I figured in a higher number), gratuities, Connections vouchers aren't a deal to die for. And that is, even if you keep yourself from tipping.

If you want to eat well at a discount, it seems like using AMEX, DC, AAA, Entertainment book or any other give you better deals. At least with those you are free to pick and choose what you like and still save money.


Wanda



PS: The thought of a webpage dedicated to report experiences with Connections vouchers is amusing, especially when they don't do it themselves and the moment you grab a calculator to challenge the savings claims, you wonder if anyone else did!

 

[patsal]

Quick and Casual's expire May 31, 2003, Breakfast Feature expire May 31, 2003, Feature Lunch are currently expiring on May 31, 2002. I'd wait to order only if you are considerin the full lunch feature meal. Keep in mind that many people have differing opinions on the"'value" of connections. You'll need to do your homework and decide what is best for you and your own family's eating habits.

 

[iwannago!!]

I guess for us we have figured the value based on sharing meals. For instance.. My friend and I are taking our girls (7). We have purchased some Q&C vouchers for $11 each. Our plan is to only use 1 at a time so not to waste food. We figured our girls can easily share a childs meal (chbrger/chix nuggets - fries, drink) for $5ish. We figured that if we were buying individually, we would probably both be getting our chicken wraps or burgers drink etc.. BUT with the voucher, we will go ahead and get that bacon double cheeseburger or jumbo chicken wrap and split it! We will let our girls split our dessert and we will share our fries/drink. We do realize that it would be about the same cost (not too much savings - generally speaking) to order the big items and share them anyway.. but we probably just wouldn't do it.. and we would end up wasting food.

OR we have figured we could spend 2 vouchers and split something between the girls and us both..

Ya know what.. plain and simple, I got the vouchers to binge out at B&C!! hahaha!
And we will use them at Peco Bills and Tusker house too

 

[disneyfan551]

Does anyone know if you can get the pressed pot of coffee @ Kona's for the breakfast voucher? I've asked on the rest. board, and I haven't received a response yet. The voucher is good for a juice, "entree", hot beverage, and a sweet item.

Help, anyone!?!

only 9 days to go.... and still have to order my vouchers! (Yes, I am one that believes they can save you $...but I'm not gooing to start a debate about it!! )

 

[patsal]

I'm with you on both reasons for connections, heck I'm on vacation and I'll eat however I want and since I have paid for the tip in the cost of the voucher I have no problem not leaving more. I bought many for my trip and wil buy more for next spring break. On the pressed pot, I believe you may use it, but since I have never tried it I don't want to commit to that answer. There must be someone out there who knows the answer!

 

[Buckleybunch]

BedKnobbery2
I'm kinda playing with the idea of making a Vouchers Info Page that is more thorough than the mousesavers one...maybe including what people who've used them in the past have experienced. I'll need a few bored evenings for that, I think. LOL


If you need information, I would love to help..


we used the quick and casual vouchers in Jan. We used them for myself and Dh. We had the kids split meals because they aren't big eatters except our oldest. So she shared with the 3 little ones and ate some of mind. We normally got the brownies for desserts and took them to eat while waiting for a parade.
I felt that we got our money out of the vochers. If nothing else I like having some of our meals pre-paid. I have already started to purchase the q & c vouchers for our Oct/November trip.

Linda

 

[Took]

About the breakfast vouchers, these are a better value when one considers that tax and 15% tip are included with the voucher. Once one includes these "extras," the vouchers become an OK deal for breakfasts at Cindy's and other pricier character meals.

 

[patsal]

Took you are absolutely right on that. I have found that with a family of four 2 adults,2 children that we save using the breakfast feature.
1900 Park Fare saved about $9
O'hana saved about $13
CRT, Restaurantasaurus and Cape May about the same. It may only be a few dollars, but it really adds up over the course of 7-14 days.
The Full feature Lunch vouchers also save us a bundle if we choose to have our big meal in the late afternoon at
San Angel, Prime Time, Rainforest,Sci Fi, or CRT

I'l know more updated information when I return in July!

 

[chris1gill]

Disneyfan551, the press pots are included, but I don't think adding that makes the breakfast a good deal... If I recall, we ate there, with 2 pressed pots & 2 adults breakfasts, 2 kids breakfasts for 39 & change... So, definitely triple check that one, because I recall making the decision to pay cash even with the pressed pots added in.... We love the Kona Cafe by the way, we eat there every trip! (and they are out of pressed pots at least half the time!!!)

 

[leslieh]

My daughter just used the Q&C lunch vouchers at beaches and cream. Their bill was close to $100.00 for 4 people with everything. I cant imagine the waitress getting a 15% tip on $42.00 worth of vouchers. I told my daughter to leave a tip (since I was a waitress for 10 years) she left $15.00. (I had to claim %7 percent of my sales everyday, no matter how good/bad the tips were) Ill be sure to ask a waitress when we visit in June

 

[chris1gill]

Hi Leslieh,

The waitress wasn't tipped on the 44.00 you paid for the vouchers, she's tipped 15% on the 100.00 bill... they write the full cost of your meal on the voucher & they get 15% of that... We also used our vouchers at B&C and it was awesome... we bought our neighboring table a kitchen sink with the dessert from the second voucher... We used two vouchers, fed 2 adults & 2 kids off of it & got the kitchen sink... so we paid 22.00 & the bill like yours was well over 100.00 when we left... This is the one restaurant Disney ISN'T making money off of with the vouchers....

 

[leslieh]

The waitress kept getting them to order more stuff, they thought it must be the total. But how can disney charge 11.00 and give 25.00 worth of food and add 15% to the total. Well we can still leave extra for the super service and stuffing.

 

[LKS]

I read that one of the reasons the servers encourage you to order the most expensive items when you use the vouchers is that they get tipped on the total bill, not the voucher price. Now that is probably only true for the breakfast and luncheon vouchers which are designed as sit-down meals, because the quick and casual are really supposed to be counter service. That being the case, I would wonder if the Q&C being used at Beaches and Cream really includes the tip? Who would get the tip then, at, say Pecos Bills?

 

[patsal]

Remember these are the same vouchers they "give" with the pkgs. they are not in business to lose money, but it kind of even's out in the end. There is a reason the vouchers are not a good deal all the time in every place. The waitstaff does get tipped 15% based on the check, not what you pay for the vouchers. Peppermarket also allows the use of the Q&C vouchers and you do get a tip added onto your total there as well.

 

[pilgrimage]

I asked a server at Beaches and Cream about tips and he said that he is paid a 15% on whatever we purchased--so he highly encouraged the more expensive items such as the kitchen sink. I still left a couple of extra dollars. For us it was a great value without dessert--and with two people we settled on the banana split.