In's and Out's of free dining

[mommy2allyandaveri]

When is it offered? Specific months of the year?

Is it a pin?

We've never been to WDW, is it even possible to get this pin?

Free dining is the only way we would be able to go I think so I want to somehow get that pin if possible.

 

[MEM]

For the past several years, you haven't needed a pin for free dining, if you travel during the late summer. Free dining requires booking a package at rack rate with park tickets. This past year free dining was extended into the Fall. There is no way of predicting when Disney might offer it - just keep checking these boards. Free dining doesn't apply to me because I'm a DVC member but I certainly hear folks talking about it on these boards.

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

Thank you SO much. The trip would be doable if we had free dining, that would be so awesome. Except for the 10 pounds I'm sure I would gain

 

[MEM]

When is it offered? Specific months of the year?

Is it a pin?

We've never been to WDW, is it even possible to get this pin?

Free dining is the only way we would be able to go I think so I want to somehow get that pin if possible.

I really believe you could plan a trip within a tight budget without free dining...folks on here do it all the time. I see that your kids are quite young - you might hold out for a discounted room at a Value resort and then share meals purchased out of pocket.

 

[Darcy03231]

I booked the last free dining promotion (we're going the end of May).

For value resorts the QSDP was offered (2 counter service meals and 2 snacks per person per day and a free refill mug).

For moderate and deluxe resorts the DDP was offered (1 table service meal, 1 counter service meal and 1 snack per person per day).

To get free dining you have to pay rack rate for your room. Depending on how many people are in your party, how you eat, and the time of year you're traveling, sometimes its better financially to take advantage of the room discounts and pay out of pocket for meals. The best thing to do is to pick your dates and price it out both ways.

 

[tlbwriter]

Free dining is the only way we would be able to go I think so I want to somehow get that pin if possible.

There are other discounts offered that will save you as much money as free dining - check out the DIS codes and rates board.

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

The problem is that we have to fly there. That adds on about $1800-$2000 to the cost of the trip. I just did a package on line and just to fly there, stay in a value resort and tickets would be $4200

That's a lot!

 

[leadfootlevi]

How old are your kids? Have you looked into kids stay and play free? The kids (under 9, I think) would get their tickets free this way (kids always stay free). Also look into the YES groups. You can get tickets deeply discounted for your whole party and book a room with one of the current promos. There are ways to save money on meals (garden grocer delivers so you could do breakfast in the room and do PB & J and other snacks), but plan to spend quite a bit if you only want to eat out on Disney property (some meals are definitely share-able, but others are not). Other ways to make Disney affordable - stay offsite, get a room with a kitchen so you can cook some meals, rent a camper and stay at the Fort (I don't think this would save a ton, but I haven't actually researched the cost but I know there are companies that rent campers and they setup and tear down for you so you don't have to haul a camper there).

Good luck!

 

[vicki_c]

The problem is that we have to fly there. That adds on about $1800-$2000 to the cost of the trip. I just did a package on line and just to fly there, stay in a value resort and tickets would be $4200

That's a lot!

A - don't get your airfare through Disney unless you absolutely know it's cheaper than what you could book yourself.

B - check the special offers link on the Disney home page to see if there is an offer available for your dates (can't remember what you said about your dates). There is current a Kids Play Free offer, and a room discount offer. Free dining may or may not be offered again for this year, but it might not be the best deal for your anyway. You just have to do the calculations yourself to see.

 

[DisneyMomma81]

Another vote for book your airfare yourself!

We had Free Dining *no PIN* when we visited WDW *10/09* it was fantastic - but too much food and a lot of time was spent eating. Don't worry about gaining weight, you'll do a lot of walking and sweating Also if you start your visit on the last day of FD you get it for your entire stay

Back then Values *we stayed at POP* got the reg dining plan ~ 1 TS/1 QS/1 snack per day ~ now the values get the QS plan ~ I think it's 2 *maybe 3* QS meals and 2 snacks per day. If/when we return to WDW I'd be fine having the QS plan for free - but the reg plan is fun - we did a lot of character meals and several nice TS meals in Epcot.

 

[Minniemouse07]

I would definitely do airfare separately!

Get a really good Disney TA (not your local one) lots of great ones around including Dreams Unlimited(sponsors the Dis boards), MEI/Mousefan, etc.

They will help you figure out the best deal FOR YOU. There are tons of different ones that pop up and just because it sounds cool...doesn't mean it will cost you less $$.

A good Disney TA will not only help you figure out the best deal for you...but will stay on top of new deals and reevaluate each time to make sure it continues to be the best option.

For example, we (me, dh, dd10, ds5) booked in August 2010 for our August 2011 trip. When we booked we did so w/ free dining. Since then deals have been coming out of the woodwork...35%, kids stay/play free, and we received TWO PIN codes... guess what, for US...free dining is still the best deal because dd will be turning 10yo a few weeks before our trip and will now be an "adult." If she was still a "kid" something else might have been better...but in our case, this is it...so far!

 

[lisaross]

It is usually offered for mid august to mid october.

You should try and get a disney visa because card holders can book it b4 the public - not sure when the deal comes out i'm thinking maybe April?

When is it offered? Specific months of the year?

Is it a pin?

We've never been to WDW, is it even possible to get this pin?

Free dining is the only way we would be able to go I think so I want to somehow get that pin if possible.

 

[Vacation Lover]

I really believe you could plan a trip within a tight budget without free dining...folks on here do it all the time. I see that your kids are quite young - you might hold out for a discounted room at a Value resort and then share meals purchased out of pocket.

Disney has the "kids stay & play free" deal going on now, which would work nicely for OP. Info is HERE. Basically, once you pay for your room & adult tickets, the kids tickets are free. This saves you $418 on 4 day tickets, which might be enough to cover out of pocket dining expenses for your family.

 

[mommy2allyandaveri]

Thanks so much for all the tips. Our trip would be next year so the stay and play is out for us right now, but I will keep my eyes open.

I haven't gotten any pins for WDW yet, only DL.

The $4200 price I listed was with me doing airfare on my own. Best I could find was $1770 through Southwest.

 

[LisaNJ25]

Thanks so much for all the tips. Our trip would be next year so the stay and play is out for us right now, but I will keep my eyes open.

I haven't gotten any pins for WDW yet, only DL.

The $4200 price I listed was with me doing airfare on my own. Best I could find was $1770 through Southwest.

Are you doing base tickets or are you adding on hoppers or any extras? You can save money by dont hopping. We dont bother with it anymore. Also, if you are going in 2012 its way to early for anything out for than.

 

[trainingupmy4princes]

The problem is that we have to fly there. That adds on about $1800-$2000 to the cost of the trip. I just did a package on line and just to fly there, stay in a value resort and tickets would be $4200

That's a lot!

That's a lot for airfare. I usually buy airfare separate as I can always find a better deal. When we lived in Portland,OR we would usually pay $200 sometimes less but maximum would be $250/person. Look for southwest deals or airfare sales . You should be able to get that airfare for less. We loved free dining for our family as it does save a lot if you plan well. We did a lot of character buffets as my boys could eat a lot even when young. And they loved getting autographs and pictures without waiting. Good luck.

 

[scribega]

Another thing to remember, Disney lets you make payments on your vacation. We book our September 2011 vacation a couple of months ago and I make an online payment every week. It really helps lessen the blow of the cost of the trip.

 

[DisneyMomma81]

I concur ~ no need to hop, 1 park per day was plenty for us.

Let's see 10/09 2 A 2 K - POP *we didn't pay for a preferred room - our location was great - 9 nights. Two A 9 day park tix + one A & one K 8 day tix. Free Dining!! Our total I swear was just under $2K. *But maybe it was closer to $2400 - I think $1900 was what was left after the $500 deposit we made when we booked it.

**I just plugged in similar dates *9/29-10/8 2011* and ages, 8 day basic tix *I didn't include dining *or any other offers* cause we had it free and you are hoping for FD and got a total of $2212
*This was at POP.

 

[scribega]

We don't hop either. We stay at Pop in non-preferred room.
We are going Sept 24-Oct 1 (7 nights). Two adults and two kids (4 & 7) with free dining and it is $1868.

 

[Dismom55]

One thing that may help you rest a litte easier is you are looking at air fare so far out, you may be able to get a better deal closer to your trip. I have read the suggestions that the DDP may not be the best for you and depending on how much your kids eat, they may right, what it boils down to is start saving NOW, put money for the WDW trip in a separate interest bearing account with the $$ target what you know it is to be without any freebies or discounts. Then keep an eye here on Disboards and the Disney site, you never know when something good will come your way, also keep checking the airlines, do not book until you come across a great deal and are confident you will have the money for the WDW trip. You have a better chance of getting a deal if you plan to go off season, meaning the times when travel and Disney are less populated.

If you are coming across the country this may be out for you, but we always rent and drive to WDW, first it actually saves us money even with a hotel stop enroute and gas, plus we like the freedom.

Good Luck with getting every thing you are hoping for.