Free Dining Advice....what do I need to know?

[melissajv]

Love these boards....the advice has been amazing and right on! SO......my family and I are headed to Disney in three weeks. It will be my first ever trip in August and my first ever Free Dining trip. We are in Disney 8/16--8/26 staying at POR. I have all my ADR's set. I am not worried about the heat....I was there last June and those that were there too know what I am talking about!!

Is there any advice that you can give me in regards to Free Dining.....anything I need to know that you found worked for you? Anything you would do differently? I believe we learn a lot from what we do well and what we wish we would have known ahead of time!

I am slightly nervous about storms but figure its summer in Florida.....aka I won't melt!

Thanks in advance...your the best!

 

[Robo]

Is there any advice that you can give me in regards to Free Dining...

Arrive at your ADR's early and check-in...
BUT, expect to be seated "late," however (especially in later bookings.)

Overall, expect the times that you spend at meals to be quite a bit longer than "normal."

(Some may be just fine, but don't plan anything "too soon" after the scheduled meal.)

 

[Pills]

A couple of things about the dining plan:

While the table service restaurants separate the kids menu from the regular one, counter service places do not. So, if you're planning CS for more meals than are on your plan, and your kids can eat cheaply, it will be worth it to pay for their meals occasionally and keep your CS credit for something more expensive. Alternatively, if they can share a larger CS meal, you can save a credit that way, too.

You don't pay for children under 3 only if you're eating at a buffet; otherwise, you have to use a credit or pay for them. I've seen some exceptions to this (Akershus).

 

[bluejasmine]

Exactly what I was gonna say Robo! Plus keep up with your receipts so that you can keep up with your credits left (had a problem once) and can also see what FD can save you. I always did this and b/c of that I actually purchased DDP this trip (used another PIN) b/c I KNOW how much DDP can save you!

WGPE is a GREAT use of a CS credit as well as Sunshine Seasons

SC are great for breakfast but save some credits for those amazing home made ice cream cookie sandwhiches or desserts from Starring Rolls or Main St Bakery, Norway Bakery, Frech Bakery and Sunshine Seasons

Ohana, Le Cellier,Boma great 1TS credits plus lots more to many to name those are just some of my faves..

If you have DXDDP Narcossee and Calli Grill are great TS that take 2 credits per person but so worth it

 

[Pills]

Exactly what I was gonna say Robo! Plus keep up with your receipts so that you can keep up with your credits left (had a problem once) and can also see what FD can save you. I always did this and b/c of that I actually purchased DDP this trip (used another PIN) b/c I KNOW how much DDP can save you!

We did this a few years ago and had a $150 bill taken care of by the DDP. I've sworn by it since then.

Oh! Remember to tip! Gratuity is NOT on the plan!

 

[Iwant2BAprincess]

verify your credit counts each time you get a receipt and hang on to them just in case you need to know where you left off at-Our first trip our youngest was still 2 but when the hotel did our Spirit of Aloha tickets they accidentally charged us (2 credit no less) for them-I caught it that night at dinner and they fixed it no problem but I am very aware of where my credit counts should be from now on.

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

Avoid EMH's. We go every year during free dining and they are madhouses. The other times of year they aren't to bad, but free dine-ers are value minded and want all the bang for thier buck they can get, so with shortned park hours they use the EMH's to squeeze in more hours. We have found they are not worth it in any cases during FD.

 

[Ress76]

If possible at this point, make your ADRs for later dinners and earlier breakfasts (lunch didn't really matter) because we found we wasted a lot of time getting to the ADRs and then waiting to be seated. This trip, if the ADR is pretty much our first/last "event" of the day, I think we won't feel like we were "wasting" time.

 

[webstah]

Avoid EMH's. We go every year during free dining and they are madhouses. The other times of year they aren't to bad, but free dine-ers are value minded and want all the bang for thier buck they can get, so with shortned park hours they use the EMH's to squeeze in more hours. We have found they are not worth it in any cases during FD.

So, do they walk around with big Fs on their foreheads? Just curious as to how you know they're all free diners.

 

[Mousemom]

Our first two trips w/free dining went great. Our last trip, September 09, we had a couple of things happen.

1. We ate at the counter service in mexico. Somehow the CS was deducted but they also billed our room for the food. Luckily I save all my reciepts and had this to show when we checked out.
2. We always like to leave our tips in cash, not just at WDW but even at home. There were 7 of us in three different rooms so the bills were separate but the gratuity was already added on to each bill. We all left the gratuity in cash but they charged the room for it again. We had to talk to the manager to get this corrected. (this happened twice)

Other than that we have had no problems w/free dining and love it!

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

So, do they walk around with big Fs on their foreheads? Just curious as to how you know they're all free diners.

Let's see I went the 4 years before free dining at that time and the 4 yrs since and the crowd patterns and behaviours are different. You can also hear while you are checking in for your ADR and hear the people in front of your state if they have DDP. Same thing with checking into your resort and hearing people talk on the way to the parks. Have you ever been during free dining?

OP also check out Goofy's Candy Shop to use up your snack credits, they have some great options and huge treats. We got a few cookie bars and krispie treats from there and split them for breakfast some mornings. There is a thread on the restraunt forum with a list of what snacks are on the plan and what meals will give you the biggest bang for your buck.

 

[TandLMommy28]

I always think it's funny when people say "Those people are trying to get the most bang for their buck" as if it's a bad thing. Read The Millionaire Next Door, people. That's all I'm saying.

 

[webstah]

Let's see I went the 4 years before free dining at that time and the 4 yrs since and the crowd patterns and behaviours are different. You can also hear while you are checking in for your ADR and hear the people in front of your state if they have DDP. Same thing with checking into your resort and hearing people talk on the way to the parks. Have you ever been during free dining

As you can see from my signature, I have been at the same time both before and since free dining.
I also know that the percentage of rooms set aside for free dining is not a large percentage compared to the total number of rooms.
I also know that at the same time, people have taken advantage of the 25/30/40 discounts that are being offered Many of these people also take advantage of the EMH at the parks, so according to what you are saying, they also must be out the get the biggest bang for their buck, and are value conscious, as are anyone who takes advantage of AP discounts, TIW cards, etc... You seem to want to blame one group of people, and have used some very generic classifications that could be considered offensive.
Free dining is a discount that works for some people, and not for others. These people come from all walks of life, and all income levels, as well as several different countries. (the UK offers room discounts AND free dining)
Some take advantage of EMH, and some don't.

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

As you can see from my signature, I have been at the same time both before and since free dining.
I also know that the percentage of rooms set aside for free dining is not a large percentage compared to the total number of rooms.
I also know that at the same time, people have taken advantage of the 25/30/40 discounts that are beiog offered Many of these people also take advantage of the EMH at the parks, so according to what you are saying, they also must be out the get the biggest bang for their buck, and are value conscious, as are anyone who takes advantage of AP discounts, TIW cards, etc... You seem to want to blame one group of people, and have used some very generic classifications that could be considered offensive.
Free dining is a discount that works for some people, and not for others. These people come from all walks of life, and all income levels, as well as several different countries. (the UK offers room discounts AND free dining)
Some take advantage of EMH, and some don't.

See my signature (and I don't list off site trips FWIW), we go other times of the year too and the Sept EMH crowd patterns are very different from other times of the year. Let me know what you think of the crowds in early Dec, early Feb, late May and mid July and then tell me if you think Sept crowds and VALUE SEASON (disney's terms, not mine) visitors behave differently. I like to save a $ or $$ as much as the next guy and thats how we can go as much as we do.

 

[tami82]

if you get early dinner seatings you most likely will not be waiting around too long to be seated. I think the later the reservations sometimes you have to wait for people to clear out, if you get first seatings you dont have that problem. I try to make most of mine early 4:30 5:00.

 

[melissajv]

Thanks for all the advice.......I was not planning on doing EMH's this year. Have done them in the past and find them to be a mixed bag. I have younger kids so its not a problem to hit rope drop but they are usually done by dinner or shortly after!

Has anyone ever been there during a "tropical event"? Just wondering......my 8 year old son is obsessed with weather! It also causes a lot of worry for him. We had a tornado warning in MI a few weeks back and we are just recovering!

Thanks again

 

[mom2rtk]

if you get early dinner seatings you most likely will not be waiting around too long to be seated. I think the later the reservations sometimes you have to wait for people to clear out, if you get first seatings you dont have that problem. I try to make most of mine early 4:30 5:00.

That's my tip too. Later seatings at character meals can be really delayed even without free dining. You can negate that entirely by getting one of the first seatings for whatever meal you are having.

 

[aceys_h0ney]

My biggest tip, eat at Wolfgang Puck Express in DTD. We ended up eating there 3 times lol. Best value but great food!

 

[mom2rtk]

Thanks for all the advice.......I was not planning on doing EMH's this year. Have done them in the past and find them to be a mixed bag. I have younger kids so its not a problem to hit rope drop but they are usually done by dinner or shortly after!

Has anyone ever been there during a "tropical event"? Just wondering......my 8 year old son is obsessed with weather! It also causes a lot of worry for him. We had a tornado warning in MI a few weeks back and we are just recovering!

Thanks again

Fall free dining is was the first of its kind. It was set up to draw people back to the parks when

1) It's still hotter than sin out side
2) the kids just went back to school and
3) it's peak hurricane season.

 

[Tamdude]

I read Pirategirls first post in this thread and can't figure out what she said that has offended you.... "value minded"....and "bang for buck" she is not saying these things as an insult.... she just seems to be making an observation that EMH is busier during that time of the year due to all the promotions.