***free Dining...bad News!!!***

[bertalander]

Thanks for the good news, John! Love it!!!

 

[jenseib]

Why are you guys even asking now anyways? You know they aren't allowed to tell you.

On another thread, someone said their cousin is a CM and said it was coming out in April. But again, who knows if that is true. I really want to go, but my DH wants to wait a few years before we go again. I think doing free dining would be wonderful too, but by the time we go, with my luck, it will no longer be offered.

 

[ShhhQ]

We are gonna go with or without the free dining, but the free dining would help us to have more spending money while we are there!!!!

 

[kimsuenew]

We are gonna go with or without the free dining, but the free dining would help us to have more spending money while we are there!!!!

Absolutely!

 

[mom2mykids]

We were there the last week of Aug. last year and never heard a hint of a bounce-back offer... however, when we got back home I got on the DIS and other people who had just got back as well were offered it! So maybe it is hit or miss!

We went the middle of September and there was a flyer on the table of our room, when we checked in, offering the free dining if we re-booked before we left. Alas, we were unable to do that. Just couldn't have the kids miss a week of school again....especially since one of them would be starting middle school.

 

[tflood]

We are gonna go with or without the free dining, but the free dining would help us to have more spending money while we are there!!!!

My thoughts exactly

 

[sammi6]

Ya know, I have not cancelled yet, because I keep thinking I could do this. But then I think how tough her school district is. They have already threatened me once when my daughter was out of school in kindergarten for 6 days with extremely high fevers and then two days with double ear infections. I had doctors notes for both, it was excused and they "still" hauled me in. I told them next time they called me in, I would be coming with my lawyer. They backed off. So, it would be 5 days of unexcused absences and a slew of nasty letters from the school for the rest of the year. I am just not sure this is something I want to deal with. BUT, alas, I still have not cancelled. So, never say never, I guess.

Denise

Here, family vacation is an excused absence, thankfully, since September is when we like to vacation. I know that as my kids get older though, I won't be able to continue to do that, being that the work will get much harder to do at home. I can't believe they called you in when your child was only in kindergarten plus you had doctor's notes, that is just ridiculous!

 

[Goofy22]

Wow! Maybe I'll change my vaca from july to august to get the free dining if they offer it! I will have my eyes open in april! That would save me apprx $1000 or so! Good deal! This is a trip for my DD's 8th grade grad and if we switch to august and they have free dining this means she would be able to take a friend! that would be awesome! As it is we are going the end of July so it's close enough!

 

[kimsuenew]

Wow! Maybe I'll change my vaca from july to august to get the free dining if they offer it! I will have my eyes open in april! That would save me apprx $1000 or so! Good deal! This is a trip for my DD's 8th grade grad and if we switch to august and they have free dining this means she would be able to take a friend! that would be awesome! As it is we are going the end of July so it's close enough!

Just a "heads up"... for those of us there on free dining in 2007, our bounceback offer (the date range we had to choose from for 2008) was August 30, 2008 through September 27, 2008 (to get free dining).

I would imagine that if it is offered to all again this spring, those dates will be the same.

Only the UK gets earlier August (I think the first year the US was offered it, it was mid August as well). And the UK had to stay moderates and up for 2008, no value resorts!

Free dining for the US in 2007 started on August 26th, bounceback free dining 2008 begins August 30, the date range just seems to be dwindling!

I hope it is offered to all... here is a sprinkle of pixie dust!

 

[esdras]

I would imagine that if it is offered to all again this spring, those dates will be the same.

Only the UK gets earlier August (I think the first year the US was offered it, it was mid August as well). And the UK had to stay moderates and up for 2008, no value resorts!

Free dining for the US in 2007 started on August 26th, bounceback free dining 2008 begins August 30, the date range just seems to be dwindling!

Not necessarily. The dates have only been dwindling on certain offers, but not all. Here are the Free Dining dates:

2005: Free Dining (North America) Aug. 21 to Oct. 4 (45 Days)

2006: Free Dining (North America) Aug. 13 to Sep. 30 (49 Days)
2006: Free Dining (North America Round 2) Aug. 20 to Sep. 30 (42 Days)

2007: Free Dining (Bounceback) Aug. 5 to Sep. 29 (56 Days)
2007: Free Dining (U.K.) Aug. 12 to Sep. 29 (49 Days)
2007: Free Dining (North America) Aug. 26 to Sep. 22 (28 Days)

2008: Free Dining (U.K.) Aug. 10 to Sep. 27 (49 Days)
2008: Free Dining (Bounceback) Aug. 30 to Sep. 27 (29 Days)
2008: Free Dining (North America) ???

So, looking at these I haven't got a clue as to what the dates might be if Free Dining is offered to the general public.

Since the general public got the shortest window in '07, will the '08 bounceback be the short one with general public getting in the 40-50 day range?

Will it be identical to the bounceback? It hasn't been before.

Will it be a staggered start date, with identical end dates? That could have it start on either the 16th or 23rd of August.

In '07, it ended before the U.K. and Bounceback - which could mean starting on the 23rd this year (the closest equivalent date to last year's 26th) and ending around September 20.

Only two out of eight Free Dining offers have lasted less than 30 days - so trying to figure out exactly when (if it happens) the general public dates will fall is likely impossible.

It might very well be a very short window, but I think there's enough history that we can at least hope for an offer with a longer time-frame.

And, of course, this all depends on what the demand has been for Free Dining from the Bouncebackers and Brits... as if Disney will give us those numbers.

 

[BabyPiglet]

They said that last year. And the year before that. And the year before that.

I actually had a CM tell me they was a 99.9% chance they were going to offer it, and to look out for April.

CM's don't know much more than us, take everything they say with a whole shaker of salt.

They will most likely offer it. And if they don't I'm sure it will be replaced with something equally as great.

 

[esdras]

They will most likely offer it. And if they don't I'm sure it will be replaced with something equally as great.

Exactly. This is HURRICANE season. Free Dining has been great for getting attendance up over the last few years, but to depend on only the U.K. and Bounceback to keep the numbers up isn't likely. There will be SOME sort of General Public discount for that time period. Historically, (thanks again to mousesavers chart, this is what has been offered...

2004:
8/1/04-8/28/04 "available to anyone" room-only code offered 6/27/04, exp 7/31/04
8/1/04-8/28/04 package discounts for general public offered 6/27/04, exp 7/31/04
8/29/04-9/29/04 "available to anyone" room-only code offered 7/19/04, exp 8/28/04
8/29/04-9/29/04 package discounts for general public offered 7/19/04, exp 8/28/04

2005:
8/21/05-10/4/05 package discounts for general public ("free dining") offered 6/2/05, exp 7/3/05 and offered 7/21/05, exp 8/20/05

2006:
8/13/06-9/30/06 package discounts for general public ("free dining") offered 4/4/06, exp 6/4/06
8/19/06-9/30/06 "available to anyone" room-only code offered 7/10/06, exp 8/18/06
8/19/06-9/30/06 package discounts for general public offered 7/10/06, exp 8/18/06
8/20/06-9/30/06 package discounts for general public ("free dining") offered 6/2/06, exp 6/25/06

2007:
7/29/07-9/29/07 room-only discount for general public offered 6/28/07, exp 7/28/07
7/29/07-9/29/07 package discounts for general public offered 6/28/07, exp 7/28/07
8/26/07-9/22/07 package discounts ("free dining") for general public offered 4/12/07, exp 6/24/07

There will be either Free Dining, room-only or some sort of package promotion for the general public over the August-September time frame. Whether the Package or room-rates would be as good a discount as Free Dining depends on so many factors - the discount, length of stay, size of family visiting, resort level, etc.

I'm fully expecting a discount greater than the 20% off accomodations I currently have on my package - my only concern is that I want the release date of all the promotions for that time frame to come out before the first week of July - allowing me to tweak (if necessary) our ressie BEFORE making the final payment.

 

[DISNEYDUET]

A coworker just booked her trip for Aug 23-29 and her Travel Agent got her free dining. Just a heads up!

 

[DeeCeeSW]

A coworker just booked her trip for Aug 23-29 and her Travel Agent got her free dining. Just a heads up!

How interesting. Why would they offer your coworker those dates but offer a bounceback to me last August for this August with free dining starting on August 30th? Reading the post above, tho, shows me that a variety of dates are released each year. I did not know this. If your coworker has managed to snag free dining for dates before 8/30 then maybe there is hope for those of us who did not book.

Still, I have a 40% off room-only code. I wonder if I make out better keeping that instead of switching to free dining (if offered).
And even tho it would be "free," wouldn't we have to tip for all of our TS meals bc of the changes to the dining plan?

 

[DISNEYDUET]

How interesting. Why would they offer your coworker those dates but offer a bounceback to me last August for this August with free dining starting on August 30th? Something doesn't sound right. Are you sure it's free dining? If your coworker has managed to snag free dining for dates before 8/30 then maybe there is hope for those of us who did not book.

Still, I have a 40% off room-only code. I wonder if I make out better keeping that instead of switching to free dining (if offered).

She was told it was free dining. I don't keep up with any of it anymore since we are DVC members. This will be their first trip so I can't pick her brain but so much since she has no idea what I am talking about half the time.

 

[jenseib]

I doubt very much she got free dining. Alot of TA's sell free dining by saying stuff like "it's like eating for free once you get there" Because you have paid for it up front and won't have to pay out of pocket. Or the TA quoted her a price saying that the dining was included and your coworker could've thought the dining was free. When I researched my trip last year, I talked to several different TA's and they all had lines like that. And some really didn't know alot and acted like the dining would be free, but it really isn't. One even told me that you got a days dining with every day of ticket you purchased. Which is not true. It's per night you stay and has nothing to do with the tickets you purchase.

 

[mpls_mm]

I am glad you said that, i was ready to start cold colling TA's.

 

[Goofy22]

That would be awesome since her dates are exactly a month later than mine I could do that! I hope she is right and it is free dining I know ill be there then!