Planning a November 2015 trip; whats the best gameplan to keep things inexpensive?

[mjallemand]

The girlfriend and I have tentatively nailed down the dates of 11/14 though 11/21 as our 2015 trip dates. We like to keep things as cheap as possible while still staying onsite for the perks such as free bus travel, the dining plan, etc. As such, we've always (and likely always will) stuck to the value resorts.

On our previous two trips, in 2010 and 2012 respectively, we didn't take advantage of any special promotions or discounts outside of the usual rate fluctuations that come from booking during off periods. In 2010 I flat out didn't know free dining existed and in 2012 we booked early enough that by the time free dining rolled around we didn't want to change our reservation in any way so we didn't screw anything up.

So, for this year we're shooting for the least expensive on-site package possible, either through room discounts or free dining, whichever offers the better value...though it's seeming like free dining offers the better deal of the two for value resorts. ($600 to $800 cheaper by my estimates.)

My initial thought was to book our package ASAP and then call to get the difference for the free dining should the offer become available. This was shot down almost immediately, as apparent the phone lines are flooded when free dining pops up, and it's just not worth the time or effort.

So my next ditch effort is to wait it out and hope Free Dining pops up around the same time it did last year and jump on it as soon as possible. Thoughts on this? I also intend on signing up for a Disney Visa card soon so I'll be able to get in on the "early" booking week for free dining.

 

[cbrown1007]

I am a TA and I plan to book my personal November trip before free dining comes out... Only so I can get dining reservations at my 180 days out! I have a few clients that are doing the same, some others I have written down to book online the morning free dining is released. So it just depends what you want to do. The phone lines are super busy that day. But last year, I had a list of 5 clients I was calling for, so it wasn't too bad.

 

[amber_cntrygrl]

I considered waiting until free dining was released for our November trip, but decided to just go ahead and book, just in case it was released after my 180 days. If you want to go ahead and book, but don't want to worry about sitting on the phone all day the day it's released, you could book through a TA! They're free, and they'll sit on the phone for you.

 

[mjallemand]

Do we have a ballpark date as to when a Free Dining offer for the Fall would arrive?

Basically, I want to set a deadline for myself, and if the offer doesn't appear by then, I'll just suck it up and book normally.

 

[The Dirty Steve]

If you want to set a deadline, I would say June 15th. Last year it was early, middle of May. But your most important thing to remember is the 180 days for ADR's. If your dates of travel are early November, I would go ahead and make a reservation so as soon as your 180 days gets here, you can make the dining reservations. That reservation can be cancelled when and if the Free Dining Promotion drops. You will have to pay the $200 deposit to hold it but that is fully refundable up to 45 days before your trip. But, remember, Disney decides whether or not to do these promotions off of how many rooms they need booked. You and others that make reservations before hand, could cause the promotion to get slimmed down or get cancelled all together.

Our family has been the last 2 Thanksgivings. We have held off both times until the promotion was opened up to the public. Both times, we have gotten exactly what we wanted.

 

[mjallemand]

Well, I'm thinking I'll probably sign up for a Disney Rewards Visa Card just so I can get that one-week head start on free dining, should it be offered this year.

 

[The Dirty Steve]

Unless they bypass the Disney Visa offer, which has happened.

 

[mjallemand]

Ugh. I just can't win.

 

[The Dirty Steve]

Best advice is relax. I'm a little tweaked right now since there are really no good rumors about free dining. But from doing this many times, it works out in the end. As it gets closer, rumors will start popping up. The next thing you will see is that people are starting to get PIN codes in the mail or by email. After that, you will hear about the UK offer for Free Dining and you know the US offer is just around the corner. What dates are you traveling?

 

[mjallemand]

Current plans are 11/14-11/21.

 

[The Dirty Steve]

Those dates are normally included if they offer it. The last several years, there has been a thread dedicated to info on the Free Dining promo. Lots of rumors are posted but there are a select few who are trusted sources, that normally have the goods when it comes to forcasting what is to come. Let me see if I can find one of those old threads from last year. I remember exactly who you should be listening to but will need to check on what their user names are/or what they have changed to.

 

[The Dirty Steve]

So, after much searching, I have finally found the board I mentioned yesterday. I have posted a link for it down below. The OP, in my opinion and many others on here, is the most reliable source for leaks. He is not on here very much, but if he says anything, I listen. If you read through the thread listed below, you can find some others to follow along with as things start to break loose!!

www.disboards.com/threads/free-dining-2014-discussion.3261805/

If you have any other questions, let me know!!

 

[mjallemand]

So how does free dining work? If I'm a Disney Visa cardholder will I be required to call or is it something that's easily bookable on the website? Does it require a promo code or will it just be automatically removed from my total at checkout?

 

[The Dirty Steve]

If you are a card holder, you will need to call. You can also choose to go through a travel planner but that will take a little control away from you. By that, I mean that you can not call and make changes to your reservations, the travel planner will have to do that for you. Your initial deposit must be charged to your Disney Visa regardless.

We have used a planner for our last two trips at Thanksgiving. She is very good at what she does and it takes a lot of the headaches of the process away. I am a bit of a control freak as is my wife, but we trust her to do what she says she will do. When a promo is released, we normally know when it will start and she plans to be on the phone to make our reservations for us. We just sit back and wait for her to send us our confirmations. Then, she will call in at our 180 Day mark and make the dining reservations for us. Best of all, it's FREE. She receives payment for her services from Disney and there is no cost to us. Chances are you will also know someone that does this or you could use one of the national travel agencies that specialize in Disney vacations.

 

[mjallemand]

Ah, I didn't know a call will be required.

I don't particularly mind calling, I'll just jot down all the details before getting on the phone (Check-In/Check-Out dates, Park Tickets, etc.) and take care of it.

I realize I'm jumping the gun on all of this anyway, I'm sure once a tiny murmur of rumors about the dining offer pops up, I'm sure a thread will pop up along with it.

 

[The Dirty Steve]

Once a rumor hits, you will see a post pop up on the boards. Then, everyone will start searching to find more info to substantiate it. At some point, we will have some concrete info, normally about a week before the promotion drops. Then you'll see those threads go crazy, normally having to open several threads after that one is officially shutdown due to the number of posts. Then, everyone will post what they are wanting resort wise, followed by what they got after the promo goes live. March, April and May, there will be a ton of activity!!

 

[Mary*Poppins]

Just so you know you can only get quick service free dining if you stay at a value resort during the free dining periods, I wasn't sure if you knew that or not

 

[mjallemand]

Just so you know you can only get quick service free dining if you stay at a value resort during the free dining periods, I wasn't sure if you knew that or not

From what I understand Quick Service dining is free, but you can pay an upgrade fee ($18.xx per day if I remember correctly) to move up to the next level of the dining plan.

 

[The Dirty Steve]

You are correct...minimal charge for the upgrade if you stay in a Value.

 

[sharadoc]

From what I understand Quick Service dining is free, but you can pay an upgrade fee ($18.xx per day if I remember correctly) to move up to the next level of the dining plan.

You are correct...minimal charge for the upgrade if you stay in a Value.

Depending on the number of people in your room, the amount to upgrade to a moderate hotel is less than upgrading your dining plan from QS to TS.

FYI - last year, the OP of that thread mentioned above was attacked because his information was not 100% correct and he has not posted since August. People on here can get testy!

Also, last year POR was excluded from Free Dining, we assume because too many people booked it in advance, hoping to switch to Free Dining. But Disney saw plenty of rooms booked and decided that they didn't need to include POR in the deal since they didn't need to fill up the resort. So beware!!!