thanks for the info...
but can someone explain what "
free Dining" is? do you go to a restaurant like Le Cellier and the meal is "free"??
Disney offers a Dining Plan.....there are different levels of the plan, but the basic plan costs $38 per night, per adult (kids are $10 I think per night). I say night because it's based on the number of nights, not days that you stay at a Disney resort. The basic plans gives you 1 Table Service meal, 1 Counter Service meal and 1 snack per night booked. So in other words, if you stay for 7 nights/8 days, then you will have 7 TS meals, 7CS meals and 7 snacks to use as you wish during your stay. A handful of restaurants "cost" 2 TS credits. So....yes, if you chose to use one of your TS credits at LeCellier, then your meal there would be free. A "meal" on the basic plan consists of one entree, one non-alcoholic/non-speciality drink, and one dessert.
The FREE dining plan, simply means that you get the same basic plan but you don't pay $38 per night, per adult for it. HOWEVER, you are required to pay rack rate (meaning no discounts) on the Disney resort room. You cannot get the free dining plan with AP discounts, coupons, codes,
AAA discounts, etc.
The free dining plan is typically announced in April, expires in late June (and this years expires next week). They are also limited to how many free packages are available for each resort. From the reading I've been doing here lately, they are sold out on the value and moderate resorts for this year's plan, and have been for several weeks. Your best bet if this is something that interests you, is to watch next year late March for rumors about when it will be announced...and jump in and book as soon as you can because the values tend to go quickest, mods next.
Some things to consider about free dining (the "down" side if you will):
August/September has traditionally been when the free dining occurs....it's hot and crowded during summer....and the weeks of the free dining are among the most crowded as families take advantage of free.
Once you book your room, you need to also immediately book all your Table Service restaurants.....they fill fast all year round, but during free dining, there are a lot of people vying for the same time slots, and a lot of disappointed families finding that they either have to pick less popular restaurants or go very off hours, however 8 or 9pm dinners with little kids can be troublesome!
While free is always nice, be sure to take a hard look at the numbers and crowd levels to determine if this is the best program for your family style. You'll have free food, but larger crowds, therefore less accomplished ride/show wise on your vacation. And sometimes, it's not financially a better deal to pay rack rate just to get free dining plan. The more adults you have in the room obviously the better deal, but I've seen room rates that are $100 off a night or more.....so hypothetically 2 adults and 2 kids would just break even on the "free" dining. And considering the heat and crowds, it wouldn't be my family's first choice of times to go. So, do the math before you believe "free" to be truly free. And then throw in the mix that ALL times of the year you can get significant savings staying offsite that would make paying for meals out of pocket still come out to a savings over paying to stay onsite. It all boils down to having to run the numbers for your family's situation.
Early December (before the holiday crowds that typically start the week before Christmas) is a wonderfuly time of year to go. Crowds are low, weather is cooler, there are many special events that only happen during the holidays (Candlelight Processional, Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, EPCOT's Christmas Around the World, all the parks and resorts being decorated to the nines for the holidays). Plus you're likely to get a lot more done in the parks during this time of year due to weather/crowds, which equates to a better bang for your vacation buck.
EDITED TO ADD: Oh yeah...almost forgot....on the dining plan, FREE or paid, you will be charged 18% gratuity on the value of your meal at all TS restaurant. In other words, if you dine at Le Cellier, for example: filet is $38, a drink is $3, dessert is $7.....so your meal value is $48....you will have to pay around $9 in required tip, even though you're on the free dining plan. Of course, if you were paying out of pocket you'd tip the same, just be aware that "free" doesn't mean no cost, because the tip is required, paying out of pocket you get to choose the amount of tip. So you'll need to budget some funds for tipping. CS meals and snacks don't require a tip.
. Put us on the list as bad parents too, as we pull our kids out of school as well 
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