Free Dining frustration <tiny vent>

[danielle782001]

I am a DVC member. I don't care at all that they are giving away the dining plan and I don't care if they get to sit-down. Advanced reservations are first-come and that is okay with me. I do agree that it stinks that we have to think about where we want to eat 6 months in advance but so what. It is the system. You figure it out, call 6 months before, and your in!

As far as special perks for DVC that takes away from others. I don't know of any that impact any one else. We get some discounts that many others are eligable for. We get nice rooms BUT we did pay for those when we purchased the membership and we pay dues every year. I would love free dining as a perk but I am not angry with others because I cannot take advantage of it too. DVC members are not special. We all love Disney. There are flaws in the dining system but don't feel upset with others as a result!

 

[luvtogo12]

Just returned from "free" dining and thoroughly enjoyed it. I ate at some places I have been wanting to try, no complaints from me.

My sister booked her trip for her and her family for the same time we were going and she got the free dining plan as well. The only difference is that I planned and she did not. As a result, she could not get any TS ADR's other than the 2 I booked for her (Well, she did manage to eat at Planet Hollywood 2 times. ).

So, here we are with the same package, paying rack rate for our rooms, no other discounts and/or codes but the incentive of free dining. She did not get ADR's she would have wanted, but since I planned I was able to get some I wanted. She would have been better off using a code and paying OOP for her meals.

Moral of the story...............it is all in the planning.

 

[grimley1968]

Agreed!

Also
I wonder if the same applies to my CRT and CG credit card ressies?...that it is for the actual table not just a spot in line?

I don't know, as I've not been to either.

My guess is yes, it would apply. I could certainly be wrong, though. Those are both tremendously popular, although they are not a dinner show like Hoop de Doo or the Luau. Maybe WDW took a lot of heat for booked up ADR's for those two restaurants, yet they may have had empty tables come ADR time, maybe because there was probably no penalty for not showing up. For all I know, though, they may have been like that at those restaurants all along.

Maybe they've learned their lesson at those two places, and will hopefully spread the carrot/stick approach (guaranteed table spot/penalty for non-cancellation) to most of the other restaurants soon. It is sorely needed.

 

[cavecricket]

So, in retrospect, my issue is not with free dining in general, it is with Disney releasing too many free dining incentives and DDP's without keeping up with the supply. Disney needs to rework their ADR policy to include cancellation fee's within a few days of the ADR, Disney also needs to build more TS restaurants if they want to continue with the DDP.

And when they are done, they can work on a cure for Cancer and ending World Hunger!---

Sorry if my rant offended anyone. I really do appreciate all of the feedback because y'all have made me see through different eyes and different scenarios which in the end, is the very reason for my post.

You are a bunch of wise folks!

Thanks Again!

 

[battricia]

I never said the DDP came out AFTER the free dining ... did I ?

you said it right here:

This was when free dining had just started, not sure if there was even a DDP yet,

And again, free dining IS THE DDP. So yes it is "in effect" during the promotion dates, because it is the SAME THING.

And you don't have to say you feel entitled to certain things, I'm pretty sure I'm not the only person who picked up on your entitlement attitude.

tricia.

 

[yngsj]

This is why we are not DVC members. We feel we receive more benefits and save more money just going when there is great promotions being offered.

 

[cavecricket]

you said it right here:




And again, free dining IS THE DDP. So yes it is "in effect" during the promotion dates, because it is the SAME THING.

And you don't have to say you feel entitled to certain things, I'm pretty sure I'm not the only person who picked up on your entitlement attitude.

tricia.

You are mighty judgmental... I am very sorry if people think I hold myself above everyone else because of the DVC.... lets not forget, the free dining does not even apply to DVC members.

Look, the point is the system sucks. Whether it is free or not. I don't know why people insist on dragging the DVC into this.

What if I had never been to WDW before. I would most likely not know about discount codes, so I would be paying for a room at "rack". What makes people feel like they always deserve something for free? or discounted? I am all for "deals" but arguing that the free dining is not "really free" because you dont get a discount on the room too is nonsense.

 

[keliblue]

We can, but I don't want to. They're more expensive than standard rooms, if booking through WDW itself (I am not renting points from someone or some entity I know nothing about), and I don't need a kitchenette, washer, dryer, or anything like that. I just want a nice room, with a bathroom, hopefully a nice view, and access to the resort's amenities.

Tearing down parts of resorts, such as CR and AKL, to build DVC villas takes regular rooms away. Not to mention it also creates a construction eyesore for those who paid to stay there during the construction.

Shoehorning villas in other resorts, such as at BC, does not add to their beauty in my opinion.

It's a timeshare, which is fine. I don't particularly care for timeshares, but as long as they don't intrude on my vacations, I'm fine with them. DVC, however, really is encroaching on the regular resorts, though, at least from this non-DVC guest's perspective.

WOW... I sure see alot of "I" "I" "I" in your posts... Walt Disney made WDW for all to enjoy, that includes those of us who own DVC and paid dearly for it. We don't mean to "intrude" on your vacation... As for tearing down resorts, creating eye sores etc... I think the DVC's are breautiful and just another way to enjoy a vacation. That is why you have value, Mods and Deluxe & DVC's ...right ?? To make all walks of life happy

As for the Free Dining, I think we all forget that Disney is there to make a buck.. September is notorious for low attendance due to Hurricanes. Free Dining is offered 1 month out of the year. If you don't like being there, you have 11 other months to choose from..

Ohhhh and FYI... I do own DVC but we have also booked our Sept trip at POP Century.. with as many kids as we have, Free dining was a nice perk.

 

[Amyrlin]

No problem with your post until I got to the end, in fact I agree....However, I do not feel "special" because I am a DVC member, NOR am I on the DDP, I never said I was on the DDP.

Please leave the DVC / Non-DVC politics out of this. I just wanted everyone to know why I did not have the free dining. Because free dining is not available to DVC members.

I do see where you are coming from, and the point yu are making, I also agree with some parts of it (in terms of the lack of capacity issue, but not the limiting of the DDP ). However, you borught the DVC politics into it (to me it makes no difference). I can only answwer you I the way that you post comes across. Maybe it is not coming across in the way you meant it.

One correction, the last part should have if you have paid for your DDP or are paying OOP, but I think you saw the point I was making.

 

[LizinSTL]

Hey guys!

Just wanted to note that all of our ADR's are in place before I begin my rant...

I was just wondering if anyone else feels it is a tad foolish of Disney to practically refuse "paying" customers for those that have free dining?

Our last visit was almost ruined due to no availability at high end restaurants, yet all the tables around us at the Yachtsman were "free diners"....we save money all year to be able to dine like kings and we spent most of our trip dining counter service while others flooded the sit downs w/ their free dining.

I am the first to jump at freebies and I think it is a great marketing scheme, but I feel that it does have some flaws.

There should be more guidelines. Like, not applicable during busy dinner times.
Or heck...seeing as how it is "free" how bout only allowing the free dining to be used at counter service locations? People can't be upset if it is free right...then they may be more likely to spend actual cash in the sit downs...

Sorry to complain but will the free dining ever end? We have to deal with it again on this trip! ack!

Does anyone else feel this program has some flaws?

I wrote to Disney after last year and received a reply that they had received more then a few complaints/concerns about the free dining.

< Incase anyone is wondering why I don't have "free dining" it is because I am a Vacation Club owner, and even though I pay dues all year long, this "perk" does not apply to us>

Again, kudos to anyone having the free dining but what about the rest of us?!

Thanks for the vent!


You have no idea if those around you are "free diners" or paying for the DDP, do you? Did you ask everyone? Your suggest to limit "free diners" to cs is absurd, imo. You knew when the free dining promotion was scheduled, yet you planned your trip at the same time two years in a row? You could have booked a value resort room and one day tickets and received free dining yourself.

Some folks are visiting this year during "free dining" but got a better deal on a package by paying for the ddp and taking the discount on the package. Should they be banned from nicer restaurants too? Or is it ok for people who "pay" for the DDP to eat there at the same time as you? <tic>

 

[ReneeA]

This is why we are not DVC members. We feel we receive more benefits and save more money just going when there is great promotions being offered.

Us too. We prefer to travel that time of year anyway due to the nature of my DH's work.

DVC is wonderful, but when a family of 4 can go stay in a moderate resort for 9 days with dining and 8 day park tickets for only $1460, why should I spend a minimum of $15,000 and then $600 a year (approximately) for maintenance dues.

It doesn't make sense for us, personally.

Oh, and for the OP...we were never asked if we were there with "free" dining. We actually met quite a few people that had paid REAL MONEY for the DDP during the promo. They either booked too early or too late, or hadn't even heard of the promo but decided to pay for it. It ended up saving us about the same amount of money that the "Pay for 4, get 3 free" promo from previous years.

 

[cavecricket]

Hey guys!

Just wanted to note that all of our ADR's are in place before I begin my rant...

I was just wondering if anyone else feels it is a tad foolish of Disney to practically refuse "paying" customers for those that have free dining?

Our last visit was almost ruined due to no availability at high end restaurants, yet all the tables around us at the Yachtsman were "free diners"....we save money all year to be able to dine like kings and we spent most of our trip dining counter service while others flooded the sit downs w/ their free dining.

I am the first to jump at freebies and I think it is a great marketing scheme, but I feel that it does have some flaws.

There should be more guidelines. Like, not applicable during busy dinner times.
Or heck...seeing as how it is "free" how bout only allowing the free dining to be used at counter service locations? People can't be upset if it is free right...then they may be more likely to spend actual cash in the sit downs...

Sorry to complain but will the free dining ever end? We have to deal with it again on this trip! ack!

Does anyone else feel this program has some flaws?

I wrote to Disney after last year and received a reply that they had received more then a few complaints/concerns about the free dining.

< Incase anyone is wondering why I don't have "free dining" it is because I am a Vacation Club owner, and even though I pay dues all year long, this "perk" does not apply to us>

Again, kudos to anyone having the free dining but what about the rest of us?!

Thanks for the vent!


You have no idea if those around you are "free diners" or paying for the DDP, do you? Did you ask everyone? Your suggest to limit "free diners" to cs is absurd, imo. You knew when the free dining promotion was scheduled, yet you planned your trip at the same time two years in a row? You could have booked a value resort room and one day tickets and received free dining yourself.

Some folks are visiting this year during "free dining" but got a better deal on a package by paying for the ddp and taking the discount on the package. Should they be banned from nicer restaurants too? Or is it ok for people who "pay" for the DDP to eat there at the same time as you? <tic>

Actually, I booked 11 months ago.... was hoping the free dining was not going to be around another year. I do believe I would have needed to book a value for the 2 weeks in order to get 2 weeks worth of free dining. Cant imagine they would give you 2 weeks worth of free food for 1 night at the PoP

As I have said already, the problem is the "reservation" policy. It needs tweaking.

Just because the free dining does not allow for a room discount too does not mean your dining is not really free...its just another of Disneys incentives to get bodies there in "slow" times....which is really funny because the last time I checked....Sept and Oct are pretty jammed now with MNSSHP and the F&W

 

[Sammie]

As to free dining since Disney is doing record business right now, I think you will Free dining offered less and less.

As to the fact that free dining causes restaurants to be crowded so does going the week of 4th of July, so therefore a seasoned traveler would avoid those times unless they were taking part of the free dining offer, which has been pointed out very well by many is not that free at all.

To Grimley:As to DVC, better get used to that, it ain't going anywhere, it is Disney's cash cow right now and they are only getting started.

Also if you have not been on your trip yet, you will sometimes see that after you arrive you can call dining from your room and get last minute cancallations.

 

[dbriggsq]

Just wanted to chip in here. Unfortunately we don't have the luxury of being able to plan holidays months in advance.
We recently booked a few night's stay in late September / early October at OKW and when I phoned to make some ADR's (for 2) none of the ones we wanted were available. I did think it was interesting though that the CM first asked me if we were on the dining plan - would it have made a difference to availability if we were - just a thought!

 

[battricia]

would it have made a difference to availability if we were - just a thought!

No it would not have. They simply ask this so that if you ARE on the dining plan, and you book an ADR at a restaurant that is not a participant, they can tell you before hand, so you don't get there, eat and say 'no one told us this wasn't on the DP! We even called!'

tricia.

 

[twinspluscade]

We heard them answer yes, when asked by the waitstaff if they were on the free dining plan

They don't ask if you're on the FREE dining plan. . They ask if you are on the DINING PLAN. I know because we went last year during free dining--but we PAID for our dining plan. Yep, paid for every penny of it. And the servers always asked us if we were on the dining plan. No one sitting around us would've known if we had gotten it free or not.

This year, we are getting it free, I'm happy to say. . I felt like the biggest fool last year paying for it when so many others got it free.

 

[StrollPatrolMom]

This post annoys me. Its the 2nd time in as many days I've seen a vent about free dining, as if those of us who booked it are somehow entitled to less. I booked a ton of ADR's for our vacation...14 TS meals to be exact, so yes doing the math we'll be paying for some OOP...so I guess on this logic I only get to eat half my meals. As someone else pointed out, we pay full price for our rooms, and the promotion is meant to fill vacancies that would otherwise remain empty...nothing in life is "free", and if they began to restrict free dining to make people feel like second class citizens for being shrewd enough to take them up on their marketing ploy...well, Disney is going to have a lot more vacancies to fill...

 

[Stacy_C]

Ummm...OP, you do realize that since your vacation doesn't start until 9/30, the biggest majority of free diners will be gone by then...considering the "FREE" dining promotion ends on September 22 and the "free" dining bounceback promotion ends on 9/30. So, all you would have left is the "free" diners or "bouncebackers" who checked in on or before 9/22 or 9/30 and their vacation extended past those dates. So, I'll reiterate that I don't think the "free" diners are your enemy and actually have minimal impact on your upcoming trip. So, knowing this information, your argument holds even less water with me than it did in the first place.

 

[battricia]

LOL stacy! I should have checked that before I even posted, but why would I be surprised? The OP obviously has not much of a clue when it comes to any of this.


tricia.

 

[dbertola]

My husband and I were there last year during free dining(we were not on it b/c I didn't know about it then) but we were able to eat where ever we wanted and we were just walk ups. I kept calling for ADR's ahead of time and was told nothing was available so we tried when we got there and waited no more than 15 minutes anywhere. This year we are going with our kids for free dining. I did make ADR's but I just kept calling up until yesterday and was able to get what I wanted. But I have found in the past that the more popular restaurants do fill up fast so you really need to plan. I liked it better when you called 90 days in advance because at 180 I might not know where I will be either.