******Official 2017 Free Dining Plan Watch, Wait, and Dream

[Rusty2rules]

The reason they are phasing out FD, which is what I believe they are doing, is because they don't need it anymore. They have no problems filling resorts, parks or restaurants, therefore, they don't need to offer such deep promotions. Some will start taking their trips elsewhere or taking shorter trips, but there will be new visitors to make up for that. Disney is not losing anything. Just my thoughts.

First of all, I do believe they want to phase out FD in the worst way. However, they're trending down as far as filling up resorts and parks. In their quarterly call (back in January?) they said attendance was down 7% as were advance reservations. I think they were hoping once the PR machine ramped up for Pandora that would change. I'm getting the feeling it didn't. A Florida resident posted earlier that she had gotten an email offer from Disney for 50% off tickets and $49/night at the All Star resorts...for Memorial Day weekend! South American travel to WDW is way down. The American dollar is strong. Look back at the Canadian posts through this thread and see what they're saying about the exchange rate. They keep increasing prices while cutting services. I think they might have plateaued as far as what the consumer is willing spend to go to WDW. And look at Universal. They've got Disney in their sights and they're coming after them hard. Unless something drastic happens with the economy, I honestly don't see those trends reversing. My guess would be FD sticks around in some form for at least a couple more years, until SWL opens. SWL is going to be a game changer. At that point all bets are off. I think Disney will be able to pretty much name their price once that opens, at least for a couple of years, until the newness has worn off.

 

[KimBean]

I think the details people are after are which resorts and rooms are excluded (esp CBR with the gift cards compensation), exact dates (especially those for POR which are often limited to earlier months), if park hopper on a 4 day ticket is the minimum requirement or if you have to have Park Hopper+, and also which dining plan the moderates will get.

Nothing much! Just that!

Below are my opinions nothing more. The 24th I'll get to see how right my gut is:

Didn't the Brazil site have the resorts? They were right last year.

I'm going with blacks dates. They didn't seem to be in question did they? I mean anymore than any other rumors are in question. He's been solid before.

The park hopper question is kind of silly. If you look at the reservation you cannot select both. You have to choose one. If it had to be plus than just park hopper would not have been listed in blacks comment or the Brazil site. Saying both automatically means it's a choice. If it wasn't a choice they both would have said - 4 day park pass with park hopper plus. Park hopper alone would not need to be mentioned.

Two sources and a ton of rumors are saying brace yourself for mods getting QS. This is probably the most rumor of all but I'd bet on it. I think everyone should plan accordingly and if it doesn't turn out then you got a nice surprise.

In my mind we are now waiting for 4/24 midnight - 4am EST. So I was surprised people are waiting on rumors.

 

[LucyBC80]

So if you're booking a new reservation for a value or mod on the 24th, do you pick QS dining plan, apply the offer and call later to upgrade to the standard plan or can you pick the standard plan and when you apply the offer it'll give you the price to upgrade?

 

[Kindermouse]

The reason they are phasing out FD, which is what I believe they are doing, is because they don't need it anymore. They have no problems filling resorts, parks or restaurants, therefore, they don't need to offer such deep promotions. Some will start taking their trips elsewhere or taking shorter trips, but there will be new visitors to make up for that. Disney is not losing anything. Just my thoughts.

If that is their thinking then its a very very different business model than DisneyLAND that's for sure.

This idea-I dont care if we lose some of the regular loyal visitors we have now-we will just get new ones and loose nothing-is not the business model at the others coasts Disney.

DL values its regulars and shows them appreciation because their MO seems to be very focus on keeping people coming back rather than depending on new visitors wanting to come each year. Actually the soft opening for Pandora for AP holders is one of very very few AP holder appreciation type events that I have seen WDW do. Crazy. The other Disney has worked hard to keep regulars coming back, keep AP holders renewing, keeping it affordable and adding value to those parks for regulars year after year. they raised AP prices yeah-but then they added in a monthly payment plan option so can still be affordable to mnost. They seem to be always working hard to keep changing out entertainment, parades ect. They dont have a set up that pressures people to plan their trips so far in advance because that isnt how most AP holders do Disney.

2 very different ways of doing businesses for two parks owned by the same company. Maybe WDW would do better to look at how successful it could be to focus more on keeping everyone coming back year after year by adding value year after year and not just relying on the big openings of new lands and keeps it coast effective for a variety or regular families. that just my 2 cents.

 

[Amanda999]

I wonder how many people they will lose being yearly patrons if they take away the table service from the moderate resorts and then eventually take away FD all together? ...

They would reduce/eliminate FD because they don't need it to fill the rooms.

(All 6 or so trips I've taken the past 2 years have had full capacity resorts; no trip was during a FD date. I was at Pop, ASMo, POR and BC.)

 

[KimBean]

Can you just cancel online and get a refund without actually phoning?

If you have the cancel button yes.

 

[KimBean]

what is this, and where did u get it, it looks great?

The cupcake says it all. It is BOG. Haha.

 

[Disneylover99]

If you have the cancel button yes.

When I hit my cancel button it gives me the phone number to call.

 

[KimBean]

When I hit my cancel button it gives me the phone number to call.

Then you have to call. I've cancelled online before. There buttons are a mystery. Who has them and whose work are a bigger mystery than FD.

 

[Rickat96]

When I hit my cancel button it gives me the phone number to call.

I believe (but not 100% sure)if you booked the reservation yourself- you have the modify/cancel button available- if you call in and let them book it- you cant modify cancel on the MDE and have to call. Not sure if a TA was used because I've never used one.

 

[anitsa123]

Me and my husband are thinking seriously buying into the DVC as much as we have pent there we could of have already paid it off. I know there are fees each year but the savings in the long run is what we are looking at.

 

[KimBean]

7 days
16 hours
40 minutes
48 seconds

 

[Kindermouse]

They would reduce/eliminate FD because they don't need it to fill the rooms.

(All 6 or so trips I've taken the past 2 years have had full capacity resorts; no trip was during a FD date. I was at Pop, ASMo, POR and BC.)

And yet according to their published numbers their revenues have gone down then year. I think they need to entice people to keep coming back after all or their numbers would be at least holding rather than declining. they might want to consider more discounts and not less

 

[Rickat96]

And yet according to their published numbers their revenues have gone down then year. I think they need to entice people to keep coming back after all or their numbers would be at least holding rather than declining. they might want to consider more discounts and not less

Agreed. Resorts at full capacity does not equal full attendance at parks.

 

[Srbright]

Ok.. let's disney phase out FD. We don't need wait.. for the promotion and discuss about plus and minus being onsite.. and crunch numbers .. excel sheets.. no 180 day dinner planning...
Just find out the budget what we can afford.. and decide offsite or onsite.. EASY
I hope offsite hotels take this as opportunity and come up some kind attractive plans which includes food .. transport


What's ur thoughts if disney phase out FD..

The phase out of FD isn't going to negate the 180 day dining reservations. We are going the last week of August before school starts. There are still Akershus and Tusker House available before 9 AM and CRT breakfast (9:40). We've never had problems getting reservations when we go during free dining.

The 180 day is much more of an issue for the "regular" and high season Times, not for times when there is free dining.

Stacy

 

[momto4obkids]

The phase out of FD isn't going to negate the 180 day dining reservations. We are going the last week of August before school starts. There are still Akershus and Tusker House available before 9 AM and CRT breakfast (9:40). We've never had problems getting reservations when we go during free dining.

The 180 day is much more of an issue for the "regular" and high season Times, not for times when there is free dining.

Stacy

I don't think you can generalize and say that's true for all free dining times.

We went last year from 11/25 to 12/3 for free dining and had a heck of a time with ADR's . I did get what I wanted right at 180 days, but there was basically no availability to tweek times or switch dates later on, at all. I belonged to a facebook group for dropping and swapping ADR's for November and lots of people were having trouble getting the ADR's they needed.

 

[cshell624]

So if you're booking a new reservation for a value or mod on the 24th, do you pick QS dining plan, apply the offer and call later to upgrade to the standard plan or can you pick the standard plan and when you apply the offer it'll give you the price to upgrade?

In previous years, I've always been able to upgrade from QS to TS when booking FD online.

 

[KimBean]

And yet according to their published numbers their revenues have gone down then year. I think they need to entice people to keep coming back after all or their numbers would be at least holding rather than declining. they might want to consider more discounts and not less

I have no idea but revenue being down doesn't necessarily mean that they have brought people to parks. It could mean costs are up??

 

[Greg36]

First of all, I do believe they want to phase out FD in the worst way. However, they're trending down as far as filling up resorts and parks. In their quarterly call (back in January?) they said attendance was down 7% as were advance reservations. I think they were hoping once the PR machine ramped up for Pandora that would change. I'm getting the feeling it didn't. A Florida resident posted earlier that she had gotten an email offer from Disney for 50% off tickets and $49/night at the All Star resorts...for Memorial Day weekend! South American travel to WDW is way down. The American dollar is strong. Look back at the Canadian posts through this thread and see what they're saying about the exchange rate. They keep increasing prices while cutting services. I think they might have plateaued as far as what the consumer is willing spend to go to WDW. And look at Universal. They've got Disney in their sights and they're coming after them hard. Unless something drastic happens with the economy, I honestly don't see those trends reversing. My guess would be FD sticks around in some form for at least a couple more years, until SWL opens. SWL is going to be a game changer. At that point all bets are off. I think Disney will be able to pretty much name their price once that opens, at least for a couple of years, until the newness has worn off.

I agree. I would also say that this year they have significant construction going on which is limiting rooms in the first place, they felt they still needed to offer a $75 per night GC offer at CB, and they offered major FD BB offers for a huge range of dates... All this even despite them having a brand new, half a billion dollar land opening up...

 

[TwoMisfits]

The thinking is that Disney has lost a majority of off-site vistors (in their lost attendance numbers), and that's why they still have increasing profits...the increased hotel, food, and ticket prices have offset the lost offsite visitors...

So, they aren't actually having problems filling their hotels yet - they are having problems getting people not at their hotels to still come to the parks in the numbers they were in the past...