If we rent points for a vacation stay, can we take advantage of free dining offer?

[SilentRascal]

My family and I are trying to get a vacation lined up, but by renting points from some DVC members (as we recently discovered is allowable). If we're able to rent points and arrange for a stay in a place such as the Wilderness Lodge Villas, can we also book our tickets to be included in our stay AND take advantage of the current offer in which free dining is thrown in?

 

[bicker]

DVC members are not eligible for "free" dining. "Free" dining isn't free: You have to pay rack rates for the hotels, and DVC members, of course, don't.

 

[SilentRascal]

We ourselves are not DVC members, but as I've read, non-members are allowed to 'rent' points from actual DVC members in order to arrange a stay in the DVC resorts. Would that still apply?

 

[bicker]

I believe that is precisely what the OP was referring to. The Dining Plan costs DVC members about $38 per adult per day, about $12 per child per day, and must be booked for the entire party and for the entire duration of the stay.

 

[DebbieB]

The promotion is not just "free dining". It's "free dining with the purchase of a rack rate room". Renting DVC points is not a rack rate room. You can call CRO and get a DVC room at rack rate (if available) and get the free dining plan (studios start at $300 per night). Or you can rent from a DVC member and get the dining plan at the DVC price.

 

[CarolMN]

The short and simple answer is no. Even if you are renting points, you are not eligible for the free dining promotion.

When you rent points, it is a private transaction between you and the owner. Disney does not get involved. Before you commit, be sure you understand all of the owner's terms - they vary between owners. Most owners consider rentals to be non-refundable, so ask what options there may be if you have to make a change or cancel the reservation.

If you wish, you can add dining to your points rental reservation. Have the owner call MS and add it to your reservation before you arrive. It cannot be added at check in. The price is $37.99 per night per adult (ages 10 and older) and $10.99 per night per child (ages 3 - 9). You must purchase it for every night of your stay. You pay for the plan when you check in.

There is no minimum stay to add dining and no requirement to purchase tickets when you are adding it to a DVC point rental.

You may purchase your tickets anywhere - you do not have to buy them to add the dining.

Best wishes -

 

[rinkwide]

...If we're able to rent points...can we also book our tickets to be included in our stay AND take advantage of the current offer in which free dining is thrown in?

Sure, and don't forget to ask the renting member to also throw in an unlimited FastPass for each member of your traveling party.

 

[Chuck S]

Here's a good way to think of it, if you pay full cash rate and ticket purchase through Disney, they will give you free dining during the promotional period.

If you are renting points, you are renting from a member...just like you'd be renting an off-site rental home...Disney is not involved in the transaction, except to confirm the room. There is no direct profit to Disney to offset the dining cost, the profit goes to the DVC owner.

Disney has been relatively generous in allowing DVCers to book the dining at $38 per adult and $11 per child, DVC has never been allowed to book a pre-paid dining plan before, they were always part of a Disney Travel Company package. By the same token, AP holders have never been extended dining packages (even paid for) if they use an AP room rate...and that is still true today. Discounted room, no free dining.

 

[dianeschlicht]

DVC has never been allowed to book a pre-paid dining plan before, they were always part of a Disney Travel Company package.

Chuck, everything you say is true except this one small part. When we first joined DVC, we were able to buy a pre-paid dining/entertainment plan. Most DVCers didn't take advantage of it though, so they did away with it. I believe it was called "family food and fun" or something like that.

To the OP, renting DVC points gives you a great savings on deluxe type accommodations, so buying the dining plan in addition is still going to save you significantly over renting rack rate from Disney. Also, the MYW tickets are going to be of a similar price either way.

 

[bicker]

Sure, and don't forget to ask the renting member to also throw in an unlimited FastPass for each member of your traveling party.

Please be sure to put a smiley in your message when you're joking like that. The OP may not realize.

 

[Chuck S]

Chuck, everything you say is true except this one small part. When we first joined DVC, we were able to buy a pre-paid dining/entertainment plan. Most DVCers didn't take advantage of it though, so they did away with it. I believe it was called "family food and fun" or something like that.

True, but Food N Fun wasn't truly just a pre-paid dining plan, it also included bike and boat rentals as well as other recreational options. It was expensive if you bought it to use for dining only. The latter incarnation of Food N Fun was even stranger, pre-pay for $50 worth of food per day and get $55 in value, again, a very expensive option given the average TS meals were much less expensive in the early 1990s.

 

[castleri]

True, but Food N Fun wasn't truly just a pre-paid dining plan, it also included bike and boat rentals as well as other recreational options. It was expensive if you bought it to use for dining only. The latter incarnation of Food N Fun was even stranger, pre-pay for $50 worth of food per day and get $55 in value, again, a very expensive option given the average TS meals were much less expensive in the early 1990s.

True but you could use the $55/day credit any way you chose over your length of stay so with careful planning you could do three meals a day - We did the one with the bike and boat while staying at PO (1997) and used a pontoon boat for 2 hours that more than paid for itself. It was that boat ride that led to our DVC purchase. We went past the OKW villas and I said boy would I like to stay in that place pointing to the top floor of building 56. (Didn't even know it was DVC until the next day when we went to the sales center at BW and ended up buying 220 OKW points). A year later when we checked out of building 15 GV and into 2BR it was that very unit I had pointed to. Our ownership says we own part of building 55 right next door.

 

[Dean]

True, but Food N Fun wasn't truly just a pre-paid dining plan, it also included bike and boat rentals as well as other recreational options. It was expensive if you bought it to use for dining only. The latter incarnation of Food N Fun was even stranger, pre-pay for $50 worth of food per day and get $55 in value, again, a very expensive option given the average TS meals were much less expensive in the early 1990s.

It was pretty much break even for the food prior to the dollar credit. But if you used the recreation at all, it was a windfall.

 

[Dean]

True but you could use the $55/day credit any way you chose over your length of stay so with careful planning you could do three meals a day - We did the one with the bike and boat while staying at PO (1997) and used a pontoon boat for 2 hours that more than paid for itself. It was that boat ride that led to our DVC purchase. We went past the OKW villas and I said boy would I like to stay in that place pointing to the top floor of building 56. (Didn't even know it was DVC until the next day when we went to the sales center at BW and ended up buying 220 OKW points). A year later when we checked out of building 15 GV and into 2BR it was that very unit I had pointed to. Our ownership says we own part of building 55 right next door.

The problem with this version was that you couldn't combine it with other discounts. It was generally more expensive than using the DDE, even with the membership costs. I know a few people were able to combine the usage but this was not the norm.