Everything We Know About Free Dining 2007

[CanadianGuy]

The code on the website here: http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/wdw/special/offerDetail?id=07_Q4FreeDineOfferPage is ZHW (scroll to bottom of page). I don't think it really matters too much but you can add it to your info.

Yeah.. I saw that... All the major sites are reporting ZHU so I stuck with that up till now. Since the code isn't really necessary for booking, I've decided not to muddy the waters.



Knox

 

[pta-mom]

Hey Canadian Guy...quick question for you...& sorry if it's already been answered elsewhere in this thread , however....I have booked an eleven night stay during free dining but forgot to ask the CM if my family's free dining was for all eleven nights or capped at ten.....any idea?

BTW, LOVE the name Knox!!! I think had I had a third son, that might have been his name!

 

[safetymom]

Packages can be booked up to 14 days now so no problems for your dining.

 

[pta-mom]

Thank you SafetyMom!!

BTW, are we related?

 

[safetymom]

I think we both must have been standing in the Mom line.

 

[Poohsmom]

While I don't think the answer to that is 'quite' so cut and dried ... I believe Disney estimated some number of current bookings as 'hoping for free dining' but that's just it -- it was an estimate. They'll know in a week or three how correct their estimates were. They may then adjust the room availability for free dining or extend the booking window.

OR -- they may leave things exactly as they are depending on how bookings continue thru the summer, they may then offer a PIN offer or general public code offer for a completely different discount during the same time as free dining.

I've heard that the response rate for their PIN offers (40% fiasco not withstanding) is very high and a discount offer of as little as 20% usually gets an excellent response and can cause a serious jump in bookings.

Personally.. I only book when I absolutely *know* I'm going.. usually less than 8 weeks before the actual trip. As a result, I tend to be willing to accept whatever room is affordable and available and only once was I able to take advantage of a PIN offer.

I know that I'm unusual in the way I travel. I'm not a family with kids and a wife and vacation and work schedules to work around. Nor is any given trip considered to be my 'one trip of a lifetime'.

Getting back to your question, there are many factors to consider the impact on the limited availability of free dining this year:

• this year they offered the bounceback program which was not in effect last year
  
• this year they offered a specific free dining promotion to the UK market during roughly the same timeframe. They didn't do that last year. Last year, UK people were generally left to find out about it on their own and very few did.. and some felt excluded.
  
• many more people booked this year in 'hopes' of free dining.. than did last year
  
• the travel market in general and WDW specifically is on an up-swing in attendance ..

So, all in all, more demand = fewer rooms available to discount.

Knox

Thank you Knox, I personally don't book until it has been released & I know I am going too. I just feel like it hurts all of us for people to book only on the hopes that there will be free dining. Lowers the amount of rooms offered! What was the "fiasco" ?

 

[CanadianGuy]

The 40% off postcard/emails were a PIN offer, but lots of people who didn't receive it were offered the discount by CM's anxious to make a sale.

I'm not passing judgement on that being right or wrong.. it was a heated subject of discussion on these boards for sure. But one thing that did accomplish, was to mess up the reporting on the success or failure of that PIN offer.

That's all.

Knox.

 

[Lmcinerny]

Anyone know if Free Dining is ever available to Annual Pass holders? We plan to just book a room on Labor day weekend for 3 days. At a Value resort.

 

[CanadianGuy]

You would have to book a package containing at least 1 day base tickets for everyone in the room.

The only exception would be if you chose to rent points and stay at a DVC resort.

Knox

 

[CanadianGuy]

I posted this in another thread today and thought I would copy it here..

Please Remember :

Free dining is not 'sold out' as it may appear from reading these boards sometimes.

A lot of the frustration on these boards is concerning members who want a particular resort and aren't willing or possibly able to accept another resort and for whatever reason can not accept a change in dates, just to get free dining.

Even just a cursory run thru the online booking tool tells me there are still lots of options available to the casual traveller who is flexible on dates, resort or both.

All Star Sports and Music both still have free dining packages available for 5 night/6 day packages on a number of different date ranges. Port Orleans Riverside and French Quarter both still have packages as do the FW Cabins. And there is LOTS of Deluxe availability (including AKL and GF on some date ranges)

IN FACT - Pop Century is available right now 9/21 to 9/27.

Where it gets dicey is you are a DIS-diehard and must have a particular view, or room type that simply isn't available.

Availability is out there and a CHOICE is STILL available.. at a number of different levels of resort and dates... IF you can be flexible on one, the other or both.

I find things are very tight around the weekend of the 17th of September for some reason. That's where availability is the absolute tightest... with no values showing for the 13th to the 17th today.

Knox

 

[Disneyfalcon]

Thank Knox!!

 

[gigi1313]

I find things are very tight around the weekend of the 17th of September for some reason. That's where availability is the absolute tightest... with no values showing for the 13th to the 17th today.

Knox

Knox,

i concur w/your post entirely...

it's my guess that because the weekend of 9/13 is Rosh Hashana and a 4 day weekend for those of us that get off for the Jewish Holidays (i.e. schools in the northeast) explains why it is tight for those dates... i know if we were unable to go 8/26 that was our 2nd choice

 

[5DisneyNuts]

Knox,

i concur w/your post entirely...

it's my guess that because the weekend of 9/13 is Rosh Hashana and a 4 day weekend for those of us that get off for the Jewish Holidays (i.e. schools in the northeast) explains why it is tight for those dates... i know if we were unable to go 8/26 that was our 2nd choice

Hey Gigi,
Another LI'er here...do you think the public schools will be closed both Thurs and Fri? Our calendars aren't made up yet (at least that's what they said but I find it hard to believe they don't know the answer regarding a major holiday)..
Thanks

 

[gigi1313]

my sis sits on a school board in suffolk county and they recently made up their prelim calendar and have both days off, so although it's not my district, it's what i'm going on...

 

[5DisneyNuts]

my sis sits on a school board in suffolk county and they recently made up their prelim calendar and have both days off, so although it's not my district, it's what i'm going on...

Great! Thanks for the info. I appreciate it.

 

[Cupmom]

My school district (Farmingdale) where I work and Massapequa where my kids go have off the two day for the Jewish holiday. I am going 8/26-9/3. Then it's back to work for me and the kids start on the 5th.

 

[LuvAriel]

Hey Gigi,
Another LI'er here...do you think the public schools will be closed both Thurs and Fri? Our calendars aren't made up yet (at least that's what they said but I find it hard to believe they don't know the answer regarding a major holiday)..
Thanks

I live in Westchester Cty, NY & our school calendar has been released & we have 2 days for the Jewish Holidays; Thursday 9/13 & Friday 9/14. due to this we booked 9/12-9/16, my DD will only miss 1 day!!!

 

[nowellsl]

New rooms are definately opening up, I booked All-star Music on the Monday for Disney Visa holders and have been checking every day to switch to POP. It finally opened up today and I was able to book it.

 

[pjohansen@marykay.co]

Well, our family has been booked at the Wilderness Cabins, through AAA. 9/22-9/29 , booked 6 weeks ago. Our agent told us that on 4/12, she would attempt to convert the DDP to free dining.
She was told that Free Dining is not offered for the cabins.
Has anyone here been able to take advantage of Free DDP with cabin???

 

[disneymom06]

Can I ask what time you called? I have been calling since last week when I booked and I get no where with any POP openings. I booked CBR but since we need two rooms the price difference is ALOT. Any advice would be welcomed. Thanks.