free internet...anyone gotten lately? Specifically VWL?

[MichelleB]

There have been several posts since the first of the year about managing to get free internet at DVC resorts. Anyone lately? We will be at VWL starting Sat. and my DH is to check his work email throughout the week and we're hoping to get free access. If not there, is there anywhere on property that it is free (ie. wireless)?

 

[jekjones1558]

I am posting now using free WiFi from Big River Grill on the Boardwalk. Not a convenient option if you are staying at VWL, but if you happen to be here for dinner someday... I have also used free WiFi at the Panera near the Premium outlet, if you happen to be going there or to the nearby Shrine Church or Publix.

 

[nboicepardee]

Hi! Do you have to be eating dinner at Big River Grill or could you go in for just a drink and do some work? Thanks!

 

[Chuck S]

Free internet at DVC resorts is not yet available. According to the DVC Member website, it will be coming online later this spring, after "system upgrades."

 

[ktbugsmom]

I just returned Saturday from 8 days at BWV - no free internet. Called tech support - they said not yet, but I could confirm with front desk. Called front desk, they said "spring 2008". So - I paid the $9.95 per day... oh well.

 

[Anal Annie]

We were just at VWL over this past weekend and there was a notice on the table that it would be available in the spring. No specific date, it just said "spring"!

 

[jekjones1558]

Hi! Do you have to be eating dinner at Big River Grill or could you go in for just a drink and do some work? Thanks!

I am just using it from my balcony, so you could just sit on a bench and use it.

 

[ReneeQ]

We are currently at SSR, in The Springs section, and no free internet. DH also had to do some work, so we paid the $9.95. We have never paid for the internet here before, so I wanted to point out it's for 24 continuing hours per "session."

We arrived Sunday, and he didn't need internet that day. We waited until 9 pm Mon to sign up. That let him get online Monday night, Tues. morning and Tues. evening up until 9 pm. We were gone all day Wed, so he waited and signed up again Wed night at 9:30 pm. That let him work some last night (Wed.), this morning (Thurs), and again this evening (Thurs) up until 9:30 pm. We leave tomorrow (Fri), so he can wait til we get home. So we only had to pay the $9.95 twice, which wasn't so bad.

Just a tip I hadn't read before to stretch out your internet sessions.

 

[ktbugsmom]

ReneeQ,
That is a great suggestion. I do it that was as well - so for my 8 day trip, I only logged on and paid for 4 sessions. Still ends up being close to $50 (with tax) - but it is the price I pay for having to work while on vacation. It will be nice to save that $50 next year!

 

[manning]

reporting from OKW now and am paying for service. I have been here since the 13th. I ran into about 4-5 people who are upset about having to pay. They are more upset about being informed it would be available jan 1 than having to pay then finding out it would not be free until spring.

One person didn't pay attention about the charges and had a $70.00 charge and she said she was going to try for a refund when she got home.



We also stayed at AKV concierge for a few days and while I was sitting there reading the paper I overheard one guy blowing a gasket with the CM about having to pay. I thought they were about to throw the guy out.

Since we are here for only 29 days I just said to myself, "self, what is more important, fighting for about 20-40 dollars or having a good time". Good time won out. Why spoil a good vacation.

Only downside to report is the amount of rain we had. Not so much on how much, but scheduling things. We got spoiled with the last two years when weather was super good.

It is much better than the super cold and snow up north.


Today it will be only.......69.

A friend from the chicago area called the other day while I was sitting on the porch. It was 2 degrees there. I told him to hold on a minute while I put a shirt on as I didn't want to be inpolite. He said go ahead and rub it in.

 

[DebbieB]

reporting from OKW now and am paying for service. I have been here since the 13th. I ran into about 4-5 people who are upset about having to pay. They are more upset about being informed it would be available jan 1 than having to pay then finding out it would not be free until spring.

DVC never said available Jan 1. At the member meeting, according to Doc's notes, they said "in 2008". I agree they should have been more specific. When it was officially announced on the member website, it said "slated to be discontinued once system enhancements are in place this spring."

 

[jarestel]

For the folks who "need" the service for work or whatever, it would seem the paltry $10 a day is not that big of a deal considering the way money evaporates at WDW. I would think one would have a better chance of expensing the charge to an employer and getting reimbursement that way then by going the "DVC should pay me back since they said it would be free at some point in 2008 and it wasn't free on January 1" route. Good luck with that though.

 

[Simba's Mom]

DVC never said available Jan 1. At the member meeting, according to Doc's notes, they said "in 2008". I agree they should have been more specific. When it was officially announced on the member website, it said "slated to be discontinued once system enhancements are in place this spring."

You're right that they didn't say January 1 (I was at that meeting too). However, I feel very strongly that they should have given a date or at least specified that it's not until spring.

 

[manning]

usually when it is said in 2008 there will be those who will use Jan as the date.

I would have said sometime in 2008, we don't have a firm date and will post it when it is ready.

What I am disappointed in was not seeing that idiot at AKV being tossed out.

 

[DebbieB]

The thing is I'm not sure what is said at the member meeting is "official" or just "planned". I'm still waiting for the Boardwalk studio coffee tables and HDTV's that they announced in 2003.

 

[BroganMc]

I'm just hoping "spring" translates to "on or before April 20". That's when I check in, having moved over from Marriott's Cypress Harbour. It's a major pain going from free internet service at Marriott to an outrageous fee at Disney.

I've paid it before, in an every other day usage style. And for those of us working for ourselves, our companies DO NOT reimburse us. We just have to shell out extra from our income to keep our clients happy. Or we could just stay home and never travel. Perhaps that's what Disney prefers. Heck a burger at home is a helluva lot cheaper than at Disney.

I'm in the camp of "Disney is substandard in the hotel industry" on the internet issue. Getting those upgrades in is loooooong overdue.

 

[jarestel]

Free is definitely better than not free. But the cost isn't make or break for a typical DVC member. It's no more cash than a family of 4 buying waters or ice cream snacks in the park once a day. One is free to say they don't "need" the waters or ice cream and forego the expense if the price seems too high.

As I said, I like free stuff too, but at the moment it's not free so if I want to use the service, I need to pay the price. Which, in the total scheme of things at WDW, is not prohibitively expensive for the average budget.

 

[ReneeQ]

ReneeQ,
That is a great suggestion. I do it that was as well - so for my 8 day trip, I only logged on and paid for 4 sessions. Still ends up being close to $50 (with tax) - but it is the price I pay for having to work while on vacation. It will be nice to save that $50 next year!

We got home on Friday, and I haven't done much since!

I just wanted to comment on this. As I said before, this was our first time purchasing the internet at Disney. I am looking at my bill, and we were only charged $9.95 twice, there was no tax added to that price. So we spent $19.90 for two "sessions" of internet, which technically let us get online for four days (or partial days). Maybe in the past they added tax, but we were only charged the $9.95 per 24 hour session.

 

[DebbieB]

I've never had tax added to internet fees.

I'm at a Hilton right now in Glendale CA and they charge $9.95 per 24 hour use, same as Disney. I travel alot for business and have found the "high end" hotels charge while the "budget" ones don't. I think the budget hotels use it as a loss leader to attract guests, where the high end hotels don't need to.

 

[Lucky 11]

It is March now. Is there any mention of the free internet yet. We are coming on April 9th to OKW.