Free Dining Fall 2015? (and a whole lot more)

[ThistleMae]

I'm eagerly awaiting with the rest of you. I'm actually not interested in FD! Surprise! I got a good room discount at Poly and I'm happy with that. But....my daughter and her family of five NEED free dining to come with me this trip. I really, really, want to share the joy of Disney with them...so I'm on pins and needles, looking everyday, following this thread in eager participation of a FD offer. Fingers and toes crossed! Just keeping the vibe going here!

 

[joemess]

Crazy newbie question.....would it be worth signing up for Disney Visa and will I get the upcoming FD offer when it comes out early for the Visa people?

The Free Disney Debit Visa from Chase also is accepted as a Disney Visa. That won't cost you anything or effect your credit. You will just need to have the deposit amount available in that checking account.

 

[Gelfling_Jen]

I got this from the book "Buy ketchup in May and fly at Noon"; used the advice to book a trip to Florida last time and grabbed under $180 RT tickets NY-FL at around 3 months out

Which is the best day of the week to shop for airline tickets? Monday or Tuesday. That's when airlines often offer lower fares, and in fact, Tuesday is when most travelers buy tickets. Airlinesraise fares later in the week. What about the widespread belief that airlines offer the best deals from 12:01 to 2:00 am on Wednesdays? Some deals may be had at this time, but it turns out that isn't a widespread practice among the airlines. Shopping tips: 1. Weekday domestic fares change about three times a day, so sign up for e-mail alerts. 2. When you book your ticket, it's great to find a nonstop flight, but beware of "direct flights." Many of them stop once en route to their final destinations. 3. Before you buy, check out farecast.com, which will predict whether the price of your flight will go up, down, or stay the same during the next week.

When is the best time of year to buy domestic airline tickets? Early, but not too early. Shop around as early as you want, but airlines start offering the cheapest seats about three months in advance of a flight. Prices tend to rise within sixty days of flight and then again within thirty days of flight. If there are any seats left within twenty days, price often dip then. Airlines want to fill every seat, and last-minute deals are possibly to find, but don't count on it. Demand for flights is high, and carriers are more likely to punish procrastinators by hiking ticket prices within a week or two of a flight. The exception: When you plan to fly around the holidays, it's a good idea tin that case to lock in a price ASP if it seems reasonable.

I checked last night and prices went down again, by about $21 per person. I checked available seats on the flight back and they seem to be filling up so I went ahead and grabbed them! I'm sure I'll be kicking myself in June when the prices drop again but I got nervous thinking about the flight times I want selling out so I just decided to buy them now and not take the risk. I would much rather get into MCO at 11:30am as opposed to like 8pm and loose a whole day! Now to hold my breath until fall discounts are announced in the hopes that our check-in date falls within that (Sept. 29)! I originally wanted to wait in case we had to move dates but I'm locked in now lol.

 

[vrajewski10513]

I checked last night and prices went down again, by about $21 per person. I checked available seats on the flight back and they seem to be filling up so I went ahead and grabbed them! I'm sure I'll be kicking myself in June when the prices drop again but I got nervous thinking about the flight times I want selling out so I just decided to buy them now and not take the risk. I would much rather get into MCO at 11:30am as opposed to like 8pm and loose a whole day! Now to hold my breath until fall discounts are announced in the hopes that our check-in date falls within that (Sept. 29)! I originally wanted to wait in case we had to move dates but I'm locked in now lol.

September has always been included in the free dining, so hopefully that stays the same. If not, like others have said, you'll just have to work out a split stay and hopefully be able to get it for atleast part of your vacation.

and I'm with you on the flight booking... I'd rather pay a little more and have my desired flights secured then play the waiting game and end up with something less than ideal..

 

[lazer]

I'd say a slight to moderate increase in park crowds, and a large increase in restaurant crowds. FD is offered when many people can't go because of school, but there will be some who pull their kids out or have flexible work schedules who decided to plan a trip based on the offer. The biggest impact is to TS restaurants because many people will use FD to its fullest when they otherwise wouldn't do all of those TS meals. So ride lines will be a little bit longer, but more noticeably, getting a walk up at at TS restaurant will be much more difficult during FD periods. October is much more crowded than it used to be, which is why fewer FD dates are offered. Many people budget for a full price trip, and go with or without FD.

Just adding to this, we typically go each fall (but last year went to Universal instead). The years we were there without FD, we could walk up to most restaurants and get a table within 15 minutes. Not true so much any more. We've also seen an increase in ride wait times, but I think more people are just going in the fall than in say Fall 2006

 

[lock3130]

I signed up for the Disney Visa yesterday b/c I had a referral code for $200 Disney gift card AND I want to (hopefully) get an early jump on the free dining dates. Can anyone tell me how I would be notified about the free dining? Is it email or regular mail? Hopefully I signed up in time. Thanks!

 

[Camaro305]

I signed up for the Disney Visa yesterday b/c I had a referral code for $200 Disney gift card AND I want to (hopefully) get an early jump on the free dining dates. Can anyone tell me how I would be notified about the free dining? Is it email or regular mail? Hopefully I signed up in time. Thanks!

You'd be notified here (or other Disney sites) first. Disney Visa definitely won't notify you immediately.

 

[lock3130]

Ok, thanks. I'll keep checking like I have been.

 

[StarDreamer]

I didn't even get the email at all from Disney Visa last year.

 

[RedWolf95]

Had the Visa since 2013 and they often do not post the offers on their "Limited Time Offers" site either. They still do not have the current 30% offer on their website and it was released to Visa holders in advance in late March. Preparing for this years Fall offer, I called them the other night to see if there was somewhere they were announcing them or some list I needed to get on so I would be notified of the offers, and they had nothing. They pointed me to the same site i've been checking and they confirmed they had my email address correctly. They said that any announcements of promotions would come from Disney and not from them, so don't expect to get any advance notice from Visa. The best source appears to be right here on this board.

 

[Dislover1991]

Crazy newbie question.....would it be worth signing up for Disney Visa and will I get the upcoming FD offer when it comes out early for the Visa people?

I think it's worth it-I charge everything to it and just pay off the balance each month. Since January of this year, I've earned $75 in Disney Reward Dollars!

 

[seeingstars]

Add me to the list of people waiting to see if free dining will be around in September! We will more than likely be going regardless but it would be awesome if we can get it!

 

[twoolle]

We have 14 nights at POR booked, Oct 1-15. We're going whether FD is offered or not but of course it would be great. All our ADRs have been made.
I paid roughly 1/3 of the package off then opened a DVA. I've socked away the rest of the money for the package but I'm waiting out the 120 day period before I pay it off so I get the gift cards.
Here is my question: if FD is offered we'll likely have to change resorts. Would there be any detriment if I just book an entire new reservation, pay the deposit, then cancel the res I have now so I can cycle that money through my DVA and get the additional gift cards? I don't want to lose ADRs. But honestly, that is the only possible negative I can foresee.

Your ADR's will not be affected if you rebook and cancel. ADR's are tied to your name and not your resort booking. It seems confusing because you need the resort booking to get the 180+10 date to book, but after that it doesn't matter. You should be good to do your plan above, especially since you can book a new one online and then wait until phone lines slow down to call and cancel.

Crazy newbie question.....would it be worth signing up for Disney Visa and will I get the upcoming FD offer when it comes out early for the Visa people?

I know you got lots of answers on this and I would say it is worth it if you plan to go to Disney. But you should sign up ASAP as you must have the card in hand to book during the. Visa release. Also keep in mind you will have to call in during the early release, you can't book online until it opens to the GP.

Does anyone (possibly Smitch ) know how FD impacts crowds? Are the parks generally more crowded when FD is offered vs. no discounts (rack rate), or RO discounts?

We were there last year during free dining in late September. The parks were more crowded than expected but some schools were already on fall break. Plus there was a lot of Frozen hype going on. We found even the quick service locations to be very crowded. It was best to eat lunch early around 11.

 

[Kshell40]

We have the premier visa. We love it. Pay off each month. We out as much as we can on it that we would not have in past. Just need the be able to pay off. We always get advanced notice. For us it's worth it. We usually rack up 1,000 disney dollars every year to 28 months for a trip
The premier card also lets u pay off your trip 6 months interest free.

 

[Kristi113]

The UK free dining offer is released that day. I would be shocked if it was that early for the U.S. Current offers expire mid June. It could be after that, and if it is, I expect all dates could be released at that point.

I don't understand why UK gets it first. Seems a little unfair to me. Also, How do they know so far in advance when it is being released? Thanks

 

[ThistleMae]

I checked last night and prices went down again, by about $21 per person. I checked available seats on the flight back and they seem to be filling up so I went ahead and grabbed them! I'm sure I'll be kicking myself in June when the prices drop again but I got nervous thinking about the flight times I want selling out so I just decided to buy them now and not take the risk. I would much rather get into MCO at 11:30am as opposed to like 8pm and loose a whole day! Now to hold my breath until fall discounts are announced in the hopes that our check-in date falls within that (Sept. 29)! I originally wanted to wait in case we had to move dates but I'm locked in now lol.

One good thing about Southwest....and I don't know who uses which airline....but on Southwest if your particular flight price goes down, they will credit you that amount. You do have to use the credit within a year. This works great if you are planning another trip. I saved $ 60.00 on two tickets to Virginia because during this one week, the return flights went down to $ 82.00. I check every week. Hope this info is helpful to other travelers.

 

[ThistleMae]

I think it's worth it-I charge everything to it and just pay off the balance each month. Since January of this year, I've earned $75 in Disney Reward Dollars!

I have almost $ 400.00 in rewards for this years trip. I put everything on the card. But...I recently switched to another card that I can use toward travel, earning 2 points on every purchase. Either way, you are saving some $ for vacationing. I will use my $ 400.00 just for souvenirs....it's my treat to myself!

 

[aaarcher86]

I don't understand why UK gets it first. Seems a little unfair to me. Also, How do they know so far in advance when it is being released? Thanks

Their trips cost a boatload more than ours. Their deals are often better to help with that. They also have access to 14 day tickets.

I wouldn't call it unfair. It's a totally different can of worms coming from another country.

 

[prettypatchesmsu]

I'm starting to get the disney planning dreams now. Usually it is close to time to go and I dream I've forgot something or missed our flight etc. But last night I dreamed I woke up this morning and free dining started booking without any notice and I did not know it and it was already 10am!!! I was freaking out. Man was I relieved when I woke up...and checked this thread just in case Haha!

 

[Honeybee83]

I have almost $ 400.00 in rewards for this years trip. I put everything on the card. But...I recently switched to another card that I can use toward travel, earning 2 points on every purchase. Either way, you are saving some $ for vacationing. I will use my $ 400.00 just for souvenirs....it's my treat to myself!

We have a capital one venture card. We get two points redeemed toward anything travel related. In just one years worth of spending we were able to accumulate enough to take $800 off of our trip.