Convince me ... DVC rental or Free Dining

[mjr0483]

If you don't maximize your value with DDP, then pass. My personal preference is to go on our own. If one person is sick or isn't feeling well, then you aren't wasting entitlements. I also like go your own snacks since you aren't limited to what's on the plan or using a snack for an undervalued item. And you also avoid that last day snack rush.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

We did free dining in 2017 and for my family of 7 it was a HUGE savings. We typically spend AT LEAST $450 a day on food, so for us it was an excellent value. We had the standard plan though. For me I’d stick with the free dining (and maybe upgrade it to standard). If you can only activate your tickets a day early maybe do a pool day, check out the resorts, free campfire/sing along with chip and dale at FW, lots of non park stuff to do

 

[5kidsmommy]

We had a similar dilemna this trip. We had booked at FD offer at POFQ. The biggest con for me was the trip with FD was a week earlier than my original plans. We put in a waitlist for a Poly Studio for our originally desired week. When the request came through I looked more closely at the numbers. We decided to go with the Poly reservation. It will end up being about $300 more total for the entire trip. I think in our case it is worth it. First I like the idea of staying at a deluxe better. Obviously it is a better location. Also my husband likes having a sofa in our rooms. When we stay at hotels elsewhere we always pick hotels with a sofa. Our youngest, who is coming on the trip, is autistic and we have a lot of resort time. So resort amentities are key. I like having a patio for early and late outside time to unwind.

The biggest key for us is that the dining plan doesn't fit our eating style. We aren't table service people. It'sjust too much time and honestly more food that we like to consume. We also don't drink enough to justify it. I did the math and our dining costs will be lower than any of the dining plans even with one table service thrown in.

 

[mrsswat]

My two cents is go for the bigger resort, spend more time enjoying it and RELAXING!! Make it a true VACATION!!

 

[bcuinohio]

You have a little more flexibility by booking direct through Disney. Cancellation when renting points is very limited.

 

[nkereina]

Do you know if there is any availability? I know August is a lower crowd time these days, but now that we’re into the 7-month booking window, the pickings might be a bit slim, especially for the less expensive rooms.

Not trying to discourage DVC if it’s what you want, but if it’s not available, that narrows down your choices.

This. Sorry if I missed a response, but has OP confirmed availability? Late August is entering Fall season, which is the busiest time of year for DVC. Certain resorts can be particularly difficult to book this time of year as well.

If there is availability that's acceptable to OP, renting DVC is my choice. We almost always eat for cheaper when not on DDP, simply because we don't eat the way the dining plan is set up. Gratuity also adds to the cost. When you pay OOP for your meals, you have more flexibility to order what you want and share items, and you could also do a grocery delivery for easy breakfasts or snacks in your villa.

If there is no availability, I would book two nights at CBR before the package starts and just take it easy, visit Disney Springs, enjoy the pool. You can also easily take the Skyliner to the Epcot area resorts for meals and a change of scenery.

 

[lilsonicfan]

I am sorry, I lost this thread!

So the short answers: Yes, there was availability at Poly for the dates I wanted. In a studio, which we would have made work, as the 1 bedrooms at other properties were too $$$ anyway. However, we are now stuck between two possible trips, one being to Europe with a cruise and extra days in Rome, and the other being WDW. One kid wants to go to Europe, the other two to WDW. So we still have both trips booked but what I have now done is extend our dates at WDW in the other direction so we will have 6 nights at CBR with free dining. It will be the QS plan, which is probably better for us - while I like planning, I don't like planning what I'm going to eat 6 months from now, and I don't mind not having more formal sit down meals.

Thank you to everyone who responded. It was so useful to me to read the different points of view here. Since we have free dining, if we do stick with the WDW trip I may see whether I can "age up" my younger two as they are pretty voracious eaters and not likely to be happy with the kid choices at each meal.

 

[lilsonicfan]

Although now I'm re-thinking this plan at all since room discount + CAN resident ticket offer would be $1,000 (USD) less over the six nights.
Looks like my family of 5 would have to eat $167 of food per night to make up the difference.
Maybe the alcoholic drink inclusion will make it worthwhile

 

[NMF]

The question is what kind of DVC rental are you booking? Are you trying to get a studio (if so, I hear it's difficult to get a studio at anywhere that's not OKW and Saratoga Springs...), or a 1 or 2 BR? If you want the 1 or 2 bedroom for the space, splurge on the space. The room at Caribbean beach might feel tight for 5 people.

I always feel like the dining plan pushes so much more food on you than you'll actually want to eat... however, if it's free with the hotel reservation, that's a food expense you don't have to worry about.

 

[SharonZ]

Before you make your decision, make sure you understand all that's involved with renting points for a DVC and their cancellation policies and payment arrangements.

 

[ClapYourHands]

Although now I'm re-thinking this plan at all since room discount + CAN resident ticket offer would be $1,000 (USD) less over the six nights.
Looks like my family of 5 would have to eat $167 of food per night to make up the difference.
Maybe the alcoholic drink inclusion will make it worthwhile

I think it would be relatively easy to eat $167 worth of food per day.

First, you’d be getting 5 refillable mugs. While they are only good at the resorts, they can be used at any resort, not just your own. This means free coffee in the morning, sodas when poolside, and a quick drink whenever you’re passing through food areas. You can even stop off at the Boardwalk for a refill when passing between Epcot and DHS. They would cost $20 each out of pocket.

If you use the snack credits wisely, you can get three meals a day out of the DDP. The cinnamon rolls at Gaston’s tavern are one snack credit, and can easily be shared for breakfast. Some restaurants haves sides that count as a snack credit, but which can make a meal for a lighter eater or when combined with another snack item.