Disney Dining

[Zooey72]

Hello all,

First post here and was hoping some of you could help me with some questions. Although all together I have probably spent more time at Disney than most here (2 semesters on their college program) I have only gone once since 1993 and things have changed since than. My family and I went in Sept 2006 and PAID for free dining (kicking myself in the butt now, didn't know to ask for it for free). We are going again in Sept 2007 and are hoping to get the free dining again. I also had a couple of questions.

First, one thing they pushed big in "traditions" (Disney orientation class) is that they wanted to go above and beyond what the customer expected. In Sept. I am going to be going on a grand gatherings vacation with about 25 of us. Needless to say this family reunion will cost us quite a bit (all staying at port orleans). Everyone else, (including my GFs kids) will be staying 7 days, but me and my GF would like to show up 2 days early and stay one day later than everyone. I would like to use the Disney Dining plan, but I do not want to be paying 10 days for kids that won't be there. It comes across to me that that is what I would have to do to get the Dining plan I want. Now I know I could fudge things by putting the kids in with relatives, but I would rather not if I don't have to. I talked to a Disney cast member and she said they could not accomadate me which made me think of calling back and talking to a supervisor because quite honestly my request does not seem outlandish - I only want to pay for what getting. Considering my family all together could buy a small house with the amount we are going spend I think a little consideration should be in order. At first I was going to see if on those days that it was just me and my GF if we could get the premium deal (just wanting to spend more $, why this should be an issue is beyond me) but that would not work.

Second, does the free dining look like it is going to happen? We will be there aug 31- sept 9. I heard some reports here that that might happen. If it doesn't does the annual pass or room alone rates look good? I don't want to pay full price how I did before.

Thanks for your time, I know it may seem like I am complaining a lot but when I worked there they told me their hardest customers were ex-employees. I see now that that is true

Oh, by the way. The first time I worked there I was a custodian in the Magic Kingdom. A handfull of times I was the guy on main street that waited for the horse to pooh. People are wierd, everyone wanted to get a picture of them and the guy who has that job lol. (also gives me a good story for kids saying 'you know what I did for a job when I was your age?') The second time I ran Star Tours. That was a lot of fun, loved the experience and if any of you have kids that are about to graduate I strongly reccomend you talk to them about the college program. It is a lot of fun, and you do earn some credits doing it.


Anyway, may the force be with you (because I won't be)


(couldn't resist)

 

[Katiebell]

Hi Zooey, and welcome to the DIS As you can see by my number of posts, I haven't been here that long, either

I'm a little confused by your situation. How many people -- exactly -- will be in your room, on your specific reservation? You, your GF and...some kids? How many? How old? And everybody is staying 7 days, but you and GF want to come 2 days early and stay 1 day later, with no kids? And the rest of the group doesn't want the DDP? Or they do, but only for the 7 days they will be there?

Nobody else in your group has to get the DDP -- only the people on your specific room reservation. I think in order to get it for just the 7 days you would have to have a separate booking for that time period? I'm really not sure. If you paid for the kids for the whole 10 days, could you possibly use up all of their credits even if they are only physically there for 7 of those days? I'm thinking if your group is doing a couple of 2 TS meals or shows, the kids would use up at least all of their TS credits, and snacks never have to be wasted, so you would get the full value of their plans. If any of the kids are under 3, you don't have to pay for the DDP for them anyway, but if any are 10 and over, then you have to pay the adult price.

If nothing else, you could always call back and ask nicely to speak to a supervisor. The CM will probably say something like, "I can get a supervisor for you, but first is there anything I can assist you with?" (I know, I work in customer service, and that's the first answer we are supposed to give). Then you can say, "ok, here is our situation and what we want...if you aren't able to help, perhaps I could speak with a supervisor as I know this is a little complicated..." The key is to stay calm and polite, and not get irate. If the first CM is good at their job, and they can figure out any way to accommodate you, then great! If not, perhaps a supervisor can -- that's why they get paid the big bux

 

[bicker]

First, one thing they pushed big in "traditions" (Disney orientation class) is that they wanted to go above and beyond what the customer expected.

That's been substantially curtailed in recent years due to rampant abuse -- folks learning about the policy and working the system.

I would like to use the Disney Dining plan, but I do not want to be paying 10 days for kids that won't be there.

The Dining Plan requires that all folks staying in the room be on the hotel reservation, and all folks on the hotel reservation have the Dining Plan paid for for the entire duration of the reservation. This isn't something that Disney will waive.

I only want to pay for what getting.

Given your circumstances, you'll likely be better off without the Dining Plan.

Second, does the free dining look like it is going to happen?

It looks like something will be announced sometime over the next two weeks, but we really don't know what.

 

[Katiebell]

First, one thing they pushed big in "traditions" (Disney orientation class) is that they wanted to go above and beyond what the customer expected.

That's been substantially curtailed in recent years due to rampant abuse -- folks learning about the policy and working the system.

In every customer service job I've had, they've told us in training, "Go above and beyond! Surprise and delight your customer! Uh, but...don't give any credit, don't give them anything free, keep your call times under 6 minutes, and make sure they never, ever call back..." So, I guess I'm just supposed to "surprise and delight" them with how great the company is, and my lil' ol' charm... Trust me...it doesn't go that far...

The Dining Plan requires that all folks staying in the room be on the hotel reservation, and all folks on the hotel reservation have the Dining Plan paid for for the entire duration of the reservation. This isn't something that Disney will waive. Given your circumstances, you'll likely be better off without the Dining Plan.

They aren't necessarily better off without it, are they? It depends on how many kids, the ages of the kids, and what meals/shows they have planned for the 7 days the kids will be with them, doesn't it?

If it's Zooey & GF for 10 days, and kids for 7 of those days, they will have to buy the DDP for the kids for 3 days the kids won't actually be there.

If any of the kids are under 3, then no charge at all.

If the kids are 3-9, then it's $11/day -- $33/child for the 3 days. For one kid, not too bad. For two kids -- $66 -- maybe. However, if they are planning any 2 TS meals or shows during the 7 days the kids will be there, then yep, it's worth it, because the credits will definitely not be wasted.

If the kids are 10 and over, that's when it could really get costly. $39/day = $117 extra per "adult" child for those three days. Then it would ONLY be cost effective if they are doing 2 TS meals/shows or some extra TS meals (like character breakfasts) during the 7 days the kids will be with them.

Just making sure...as long as everyone assigned to their hotel room has the DDP for the 10 day length of stay -- that's within the rules, isn't it? Even if the children don't show up until day 3 and leave on day 9?

 

[bicker]

In every customer service job I've had, they've told us in training, "Go above and beyond! Surprise and delight your customer! Uh, but...don't give any credit, don't give them anything free, keep your call times under 6 minutes, and make sure they never, ever call back..." So, I guess I'm just supposed to "surprise and delight" them with how great the company is, and my lil' ol' charm... Trust me...it doesn't go that far...

Indeed. Remember, "The customer is always right"? Well, no. It was never that. That's all customers remember, but the gurus who cooked it up would remember it as, "Make the customer feel as if they're always right." That tenet came about because customers rewarded businesses that made them feel special in that way. However, that's no longer relevant, because customers, as a group, have changed, motivated these days more by saving money than by feeling like they're right.

There's a thread on the Community Board where we've listed dozens of services that Disney has curtailed or eliminated due to abuse. It's interesting reading if you haven't seen it yet.

They aren't necessarily better off without it, are they?

Seemed that way to me. You're right that the OP didn't provide exact numbers, but it sounded like more than half the party, for three days, would be "excess". Without adding in the value of extra appetizers and dessert that folks would typically not have ordered if not on the Dining Plan, the Dining Plan doesn't generally save folks enough money to cover that amount of "excess" IMHO.

If any of the kids are under 3, then no charge at all.

Kids arriving and leaving on their own, under the age of 3? I did assume that we're talking about tweens or at least teens here.

Just making sure...as long as everyone assigned to their hotel room has the DDP for the 10 day length of stay -- that's within the rules, isn't it? Even if the children don't show up until day 3 and leave on day 9?

Disney won't say, because they sometimes require everyone to present themselves at check-in. In reality, the way things are actually structured, the only thing that is assuredly allowed is making three separate reservations. The rest is a negotiation, on a case-by-case basis. Don't rely on anything you are told verbally -- get it in writing, so the next person you have to negotiate with won't change things up on you.

 

[Katiebell]

There's a thread on the Community Board where we've listed dozens of services that Disney has curtailed or eliminated due to abuse. It's interesting reading if you haven't seen it yet.

I'd be very interested -- can you provide a link? Even PM it to me if you like.

Honestly, little things can make a customer feel special and appreciated. Being polite, remembering their name, sincerity, really listening to their concern and trying to solve it -- or at least acknowledging their feelings.

One of the reasons I suggested the OP might want to request a supervisor is because in a call center, supervisors aren't held to the rigid time schedule the front-line reps are. If you ever call anywhere for customer service, and the rep is nice and friendly at the beginning of the call, but at about 4 minutes they are sounding impatient or trying to rush you off the phone, it's probably because they have an expected "Average Handle Time" of 5 min 45 seconds, and that includes typing any notes about what they discussed with you and performing any tasks they told you they would, and then they better be ready for the next call. The first Disney Dining rep I spoke with was so friendly and so helpful, I found myself asking a lot of questions, and he was giving all of this great info...then I stopped and said, "Wait, I work in a call center...am I messing up your handle time?" Right away he answered something like, "Nope, they worried about that for a while, but now they want us to focus on giving friendly helpful service and making sure all of the guests concerns are resolved" Little did I know what a gem he was -- the other reps I've spoken to were nice enough, but certainly not nearly as helpful. Wish I'd gotten his name so I could call his supervisor with a commendation.

Seemed that way to me. You're right that the OP didn't provide exact numbers, but it sounded like more than half the party, for three days, would be "excess". Without adding in the value of extra appetizers and dessert that folks would typically not have ordered if not on the Dining Plan, the Dining Plan doesn't generally save folks enough money to cover that amount of "excess" IMHO.

Kids arriving and leaving on their own, under the age of 3? I did assume that we're talking about tweens or at least teens here.

OK, OK... I think we had very different pictures in our heads of this scenario... Not surprising, because sometimes I read too much between the lines.

I pictured a LARGE family gathering staying for 7 days. Zooey and his GF wanted to come 2 days early, and stay 1 day late, and for the 7 days everyone else would be there, his GF's kids would be in the room with them. I was picturing little kids, being brought to the gathering maybe by Grandma or Auntie, something like that. Since he said "kids" we know there is more than one, and there can't be more than three, or they couldn't stay in one room, right? Here's a real example of reading between the lines: Zooey said he's only been to WDW once since 1993 when he was in the college program -- so I calculated, "20 years old in 1993, so 34 in 2007, his GF's kids can't be that old..." Man, I'm Nancy Drew and Agatha Cristie all rolled into one!

(OK, Zooey...now is the time you are supposed to jump back in here and tell us the facts...)

If the kids are 10 and over, then yes, 3 extra days of DDP for them at $117 per kid is a significant expense...but could still be worth it if during the 7 days the group was planning on a couple of 2 TS meals or shows.

Don't rely on anything you are told verbally -- get it in writing, so the next person you have to negotiate with won't change things up on you.

I don't rely on much unless it's printed in a national publication, addressed to me on company letterhead, or carved in stone. And American Airlines gets really annoyed with me when I keep dragging stone tablets around in my luggage...

 

[karrit2000]

If you book with the free Dining it will cost you nothing for all the members of your party. If you have to pay for DDP that is another issue entirely and you need to weigh the cost to decide if it's worth it to split up your reservations. This should be a non-issue if you make 3 reservations to cover the dates you need for the differing party sizes. Just tell them when you check in and they will most likely just make you check at the front desk each day you have a new reservation to get the updated room keys to match. Actually you could just do 2 reservations because if the kids leave a day early they have no way of knowing there are less people in the room that night. Last year I booked the package for an extra day that I was going to be there alone because my friend was going home the day before me without any problem. we made use all our TS credits because we booked a dinner at Brown derby that required 2 TS so with the extra night it worked out well for us. Just remember that the past offers required you to pay rack rate for the room, no discounts, and purchase at least a 1 day ticket for each member of your party. So if you have 2 separate reservations you will need to have tickets on each reservation to get the free dining.

 

[bicker]

I'd be very interested -- can you provide a link?

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=961228

Honestly, little things can make a customer feel special and appreciated. Being polite, remembering their name, sincerity, really listening to their concern and trying to solve it -- or at least acknowledging their feelings.

Absolutely, and I think that is what folks still see coming out of Traditions, rather than the, "going above and beyond," Zooey72 mentioned.

I was picturing little kids, being brought to the gathering maybe by Grandma or Auntie, something like that.

Hehe... "assuming facts not in evidence..." Surely if that is the case, that would change things.

(OK, Zooey...now is the time you are supposed to jump back in here and tell us the facts...)

We're dying of suspense.

I don't rely on much unless it's printed in a national publication, addressed to me on company letterhead, or carved in stone.

 

[castleri]

If you do get free dining you may need to put the children on someone else's room reservation anyway. It was reported last year that everyone had to be at check in when you checked in. Since the children will not be arriving the same day you could have a problem. I would be certain to ask it they can be added on day three when they get there if this is the case. If not you may just have to pay for the extra days or put them on somebody else's room.