Dining plan before checking in?

[totallytigger]

We are staying at SOG our first two nights at WDW(blackout dates for military room discount). We then have to check out of SOG and check in to Wilderness cabins for the rest of our stay. My question is this: we will be on the dining plan and have a 9:15 am ressie at Akerhaus for breakfast our day of check in at cabins. Do we have to check in at Cabins before we can use the Dining Plan? There will be 5 of us to get up, showered, packed, check out, get over to cabins, check in, and get over to Epcot before 9am!!!! UGH!!!

 

[Robo]

That's a lot of traveling for a meal.

 

[delmar411]

We are staying at SOG our first two nights at WDW(blackout dates for military room discount). We then have to check out of SOG and check in to Wilderness cabins for the rest of our stay. My question is this: we will be on the dining plan and have a 9:15 am ressie at Akerhaus for breakfast our day of check in at cabins. Do we have to check in at Cabins before we can use the Dining Plan? There will be 5 of us to get up, showered, packed, check out, get over to cabins, check in, and get over to Epcot before 9am!!!! UGH!!!

Yes you do have to check in first to activate the plan. You can check in as early as 6am so just send one adult over to check in while the other gets everything together and into the car and drives to the resort and leave all luggage with bell services.

I wouldn't do this personally though. It will suck and likely end up with grumpy kids or adults or both.

 

[Love Tink]

On our trip two months ago, we moved from Beach Club to Port Orleans Riverside in the middle of our week, and our dining plan started when we moved.

We were able to check into our POR rooms from the front desk at the Beach Club. I don't think we got a room number, but we were able to check in and get our new KTTW with the dining plan activated.

I'm not sure whether every hotel does this, but it is worth asking. (I never would have thought to ask, myself, but luckily my husband did.)

 

[Robo]

On our trip two months ago, we moved from Beach Club to Port Orleans Riverside in the middle of our week, and our dining plan started when we moved.

We were able to check into our POR rooms from the front desk at the Beach Club. I don't think we got a room number, but we were able to check in and get our new KTTW with the dining plan activated.

I'm not sure whether every hotel does this...

Yes. All WDW resorts have "early check-in" to allow guests to get to the park activities before regular resort check-in time.

 

[joe1946]

I would just pay OOP for Akershus and check into the cabins later in the day.

 

[Love Tink]

Yes. All WDW resorts have "early check-in" to allow guests to get to the park activities before regular resort check-in time.

Yes, I know. But what I do not know is whether at the front desk of every resort you can check into another resort and get new KTTW without ever leaving the first property (which is what I was writing about).

I would just pay OOP for Akershus and check into the cabins later in the day.

Personally, I would find it terribly wasteful to spend $100-$200 to avoid a little hassle.

 

[momto2inKC]

We are staying at SOG our first two nights at WDW(blackout dates for military room discount). We then have to check out of SOG and check in to Wilderness cabins for the rest of our stay. My question is this: we will be on the dining plan and have a 9:15 am ressie at Akerhaus for breakfast our day of check in at cabins. Do we have to check in at Cabins before we can use the Dining Plan? There will be 5 of us to get up, showered, packed, check out, get over to cabins, check in, and get over to Epcot before 9am!!!! UGH!!!

Yes, you'll have to check in to activate the dining plan. Can one of you just get up earlier and run over and take care of it? That would be much easier than trying to get all 5 of you there.

 

[Autumnslight]

I had the same question for our December split stay, and I called Disney to ask about it. The Cast Member told me that since we have Magic Bands, as long as we do online check-in, our dining credits will be available on our check-in day, before we actually physically go to the second resort to check-in. I sure hope she was right! I'll have to check on this again when we arrive at our first resort.

 

[delmar411]

I had the same question for our December split stay, and I called Disney to ask about it. The Cast Member told me that since we have Magic Bands, as long as we do online check-in, our dining credits will be available on our check-in day, before we actually physically go to the second resort to check-in. I sure hope she was right! I'll have to check on this again when we arrive at our first resort.

She was wrong. My DH is a food&bev manager at WDW and runs into people all the time who haven't physically checked in and are trying to use their dining credits. It doesn't work. Those people end up paying for their food OOP. They can get the charge reversed at the resort and the dining credits applied once they check in but not at the restaurant.

 

[Autumnslight]

She was wrong. My DH is a food&bev manager at WDW and runs into people all the time who haven't physically checked in and are trying to use their dining credits. It doesn't work. Those people end up paying for their food OOP. They can get the charge reversed at the resort and the dining credits applied once they check in but not at the restaurant.

Interesting. I guess I'm not surprised that the Cast member was incorrect, but it's definitely a little annoying. Good to know now though! We'll probably try the dining plan credits at our ADR for the heck of it anyway (anything could happen with this crazy system!), then just charge the meal to the room and sort it out later that night at the resort. For me, that's VERY preferable to trying to get from AoA to AKL to check in, then back to Magic Kingdom in time for rope drop!

 

[edwardv2]

Interesting. I guess I'm not surprised that the Cast member was incorrect, but it's definitely a little annoying. Good to know now though! We'll probably try the dining plan credits at our ADR for the heck of it anyway (anything could happen with this crazy system!), then just charge the meal to the room and sort it out later that night at the resort. For me, that's VERY preferable to trying to get from AoA to AKL to check in, then back to Magic Kingdom in time for rope drop!

When is your trip as I had the very same question? I'm there Dec 11-19 and switch to CBR on Dec 12 so will let you know my experience then. Based on this thread, I'm with you and will just go to the parks and have my meal and sort it out later. Better than trying to get from one resort to another before the parks open.

I'm hoping with Magicbands this will change in the future similar to how the tickets to enter the parks works. Seems if you scan your MB upon entry, that should be a sign you are there and the dining plan should be active.

 

[Autumnslight]

When is your trip as I had the very same question? I'm there Dec 11-19 and switch to CBR on Dec 12 so will let you know my experience then. Based on this thread, I'm with you and will just go to the parks and have my meal and sort it out later. Better than trying to get from one resort to another before the parks open.

I'm hoping with Magicbands this will change in the future similar to how the tickets to enter the parks works. Seems if you scan your MB upon entry, that should be a sign you are there and the dining plan should be active.

Looks like we'll have to see how it works out first! We have a room only stay at AoA 12/6 & 12/7, then switch to AKL with a dining plan on 12/8. We plan to leave AoA the morning of 12/8, hit rope drop at MK, have a dinner ADR, then go check in to AKL late in the evening of 12/8.

We'll be picking up our tickets a day early, so that we can go to a park on 12/7 as well. It would be nice if they'd let you activate your dining plan early like that too, but oh well.

 

[Love Tink]

She was wrong. My DH is a food&bev manager at WDW and runs into people all the time who haven't physically checked in and are trying to use their dining credits. It doesn't work. Those people end up paying for their food OOP. They can get the charge reversed at the resort and the dining credits applied once they check in but not at the restaurant.

On Tuesday, August 27, we used our dining plan credits at two restaurants (Be our Guest and Biergarten) and several snack locations without having physically been to the hotel.

We handled the process at the front desk of our first hotel in the morning, did not go to our second hotel until 10:00pm - and had absolutely no problem using any dining plan credits that day.

 

[edwardv2]

On Tuesday, August 27, we used our dining plan credits at two restaurants (Be our Guest and Biergarten) and several snack locations without having physically been to the hotel.

We handled the process at the front desk of our first hotel in the morning, did not go to our second hotel until 10:00pm - and had absolutely no problem using any dining plan credits that day.

Thanks for that info. It makes me slightly more optimistic. This is the way it should work IMHO. I'll definitely ask at WL on Dec 11 and see if we can get checked in to CBR for the next day.

 

[tobikaye]

We handled the process at the front desk of our first hotel in the morning, did not go to our second hotel until 10:00pm - and had absolutely no problem using any dining plan credits that day.

The problem here for the OP is that they are staying at SOG. I do not believe that SOG is connected to the WDW resorts system so I doubt they could check in at SOG for their FW stay.

 

[delmar411]

On Tuesday, August 27, we used our dining plan credits at two restaurants (Be our Guest and Biergarten) and several snack locations without having physically been to the hotel.

We handled the process at the front desk of our first hotel in the morning, did not go to our second hotel until 10:00pm - and had absolutely no problem using any dining plan credits that day.

Yes but you did check in, no one said you have to go to the new hotel, just that you have to be checked in. That is the difference. If they manage to check in, then they are active.

 

[edwardv2]

Yes but you did check in, no one said you have to go to the new hotel, just that you have to be checked in. That is the difference. If they manage to check in, then they are active.

To clarify further, does online check in count as "checking in"? I was led to believe in another forum that online check in wasn't adequate to activate the dining plan.

 

[rlovew]

To clarify further, does online check in count as "checking in"? I was led to believe in another forum that online check in wasn't adequate to activate the dining plan.

No! the person whose credits were activated physically checked into their hotel from their previous hotel. The biggest issue with this would be if you had special requests as the front desk will not ever know since you have already checked in by the time you arrive. I assume if you did this you would get a text with your room number and never even need to go by the 2nd hotel's front desk.