Free dining not so free?

[sweetcanadian]

We have the free dining plan, staying at csr for 10 nights 11 days with 5 days in the parks with waterpark & more option added on travelling from a more expensive city in canada with the equivelant of 3 adults all around (son is 13) for 1500pp so i would say it is pretty good, i cant even get an ai in mexico for that price.

Upgraded to a royal room & going down $300 is a good deal i would say.

 

[Nancyg56]

There's no myth, and your cynicism is showing .

People can call this promotion whatever they want; Disney calls it what it is: Dining Plan Free. They even clarify now to avoid... confusion? criticism? cynicism? The promotion is "... Dining Plan free with your non-discounted room".

Nobody criticizes other promotions - kids stay/play free, buy four (days) get three free, %-off room discounts. Why so much criticism over this one, given that Disney has never misled anyone about the promotion? Beginning in 2005 - the year the Disney Dining Plan began - it's always been advertised as "the Dining Plan free".

I never understood the criticism of this promotion either. I believe that consumers need to understand what they have purchased. We always check the difference in package prices and choose the one that works best for our family.

For my family the "free" DDP promotion has been the best choice for us twice. I just run the numbers.

 

[MrsPete]

Of course it's not really free.
No business stays in business by giving product away without compensation!

What they do for promotions is they charge you enough for one thing (in this case, the room) so that they can "give you" another thing and say it's "free". Several other people have mentioned "do the math" -- they're right. You always have to check for yourself and compare to other options to see whether this is worthwhile or not.

For our family, we've never found that "free dining" was worthwhile. Two reasons: 1) On Disney trips, we go to visit the parks and make the most of every ticketed day. Free dining encourages a leisurely pace and lingering at big meals, which isn't what we want to do at Disney -- other vacations, yes, not Disney. 2) We tend to eat two meals a day at Disney. We get up and have breakfast, then we have a mid-afternoon meal . . . and back at the hotel (late) we'll have a fairly large snack. This is how we prefer to eat at the parks, and I don't think it's all that uncommon. So, for us, "doing the math" involves the cost of only two meals, and "the math" can't work out unless you figure in three fairly expensive meals.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Of course it's not really free.
No business stays in business by giving product away without compensation!

What they do for promotions is they charge you enough for one thing (in this case, the room) so that they can "give you" another thing and say it's "free".

As i said above, it really is "a Disney Dining Plan free" with your non-discounted room. Walt Disney World is very open about their rack rates.

Again, simply because people choose to misname or misunderstand the promotion as Free Dining doesn't make that the promotion. WDW is clear about the actual offer.

 

[bpesch]

The bottom line is that with any promotion, you have to do your homework. It's especially important that you know all the information before you get on the phone. The Disney cast members go through some of the information so fast that if you don't know what is going on, it's easy to become confused and not get the best deal. When it comes right down to it, "free dining" is not always a good deal for everyone. The only way you'll know if it works for you is to do the research before booking.

 

[MickeyP]

Disney certainly knows their audience. If they can convince you it's FREE DINING, then they've done their job. They have also mastered the "get them in a restaurant, disperse everyone evenly throughout the park" plan.

 

[roxannex]

I have to say that after staying off site for several trips, we would not go back to Disneyworld without getting the dining plan. I don't think I'm crazy, but I am pretty sure that Disney has raised food prices to the point that we felt totally gouged without the plan. It's not so much that I think it's a deal, but its really stressful to feel like I don't want to buy any food because it's so overpriced. At least with the dining plan, I don't know!

 

[the5marions]

I don't think there is any problem with the way Disney does its Free Dining. You have a choice: discounted room OR free dining. Do the math and figure out which one gives you the best vaule for your money.

 

[maxiesmom]

I don't think there is any problem with the way Disney does its Free Dining. You have a choice: discounted room OR free dining. Do the math and figure out which one gives you the best vaule for your money.

Right. I've only went the Free Dining route a few times, when I knew we wanted to have a lot of sit down meals anyway. Most times we just use a pin code for a room discount. If you don't eat a ton, then stick with the room discount.

 

[momto2inKC]

There's no myth, and your cynicism is showing .

People can call this promotion whatever they want; Disney calls it what it is: Dining Plan Free. They even clarify now to avoid... confusion? criticism? cynicism? The promotion is "... Dining Plan free with your non-discounted room".

Nobody criticizes other promotions - kids stay/play free, buy four (days) get three free, %-off room discounts. Why so much criticism over this one, given that Disney has never misled anyone about the promotion? Beginning in 2005 - the year the Disney Dining Plan began - it's always been advertised as "the Dining Plan free".

I also don't understand why it draws so much criticism. Book the promo and you get the dining plan free...FREE. Just like a room discount, the room is discounted. There are no hidden fees, they didn't raise the price of other parts of your package to cover what part is free/discounted. I could book 20% off room rates and save $50 a day or book free dining and save $200 a day. Free dining always wins out.