Questions about different packages and free dining??

[asea86]

Ok I'm new at this so bear with me.... We were planning on our trip being the last week in may of 2012, we were also planning on the Poly. I looked at previous sales during that time and was hoping we would be able to get the 30% our rooms( we will need 2 because we have 7 ppl). So my question is will I save more if we do the may trip or should we wait for free dining later in the year- Does free dining even work with the Poly? Also we were planning on DDP for everyone. Or another question I had if we go ahead and book in August when the new rates come out can we change the reservation if a new or better deal comes out early next yr before the trip? Sorry for all the questions but this is our first trip and I'm trying to make it special for everyone without breaking the bank! Thanks for the help!

 

[vicki_c]

It is variable depending on how many in your party and their ages, but *normally* if you stay in a deluxe, a decent room discount is a better deal than free dining. But you have to crunch the numbers for your situation to find out.

And yes, if you book now, you can later apply a discount. You would have to call yourself and do it, and it is subject to availability. They don't always include all categories of rooms at all resorts.

For more details, check the Codes/Rates board which is sub-board to the Resorts board.

 

[Marionnette]

Ok I'm new at this so bear with me.... We were planning on our trip being the last week in may of 2012, we were also planning on the Poly. I looked at previous sales during that time and was hoping we would be able to get the 30% our rooms( we will need 2 because we have 7 ppl). So my question is will I save more if we do the may trip or should we wait for free dining later in the year- Does free dining even work with the Poly? Also we were planning on DDP for everyone. Or another question I had if we go ahead and book in August when the new rates come out can we change the reservation if a new or better deal comes out early next yr before the trip? Sorry for all the questions but this is our first trip and I'm trying to make it special for everyone without breaking the bank! Thanks for the help!

There are no guarantees of room discounts or free dining. But if you want to compare the two, you really will need to see what costs less overall. It really depends on a number of factors including how old the members of your group are, how big their appetites are, whether you can get tickets cheaper on your own, whether Disney is going to boost the cost of free dining by tacking on some sort of over-priced addon like the photopass book that is included in this fall's offer, and the rack rate of the room(s) that you end up booking.

There really will be no way of telling until Disney comes out with their offers next year.

You can always book your room when the rates come out in August but there's little point to doing that unless you are concerned that the Poly will sell out for your selected dates. As long as you have more than 45 days left prior to your arrival, you can make changes without penalty. If you book thru a travel agent, just make sure that they don't charge for any changes you make.

 

[woodkins]

You need to sit down with a calculator and work the different scenarios. Find the cost of the room at rack rate for your dates. Calculate the cost of the dining plan for your party (free dining at a deluxe resort gives you the standard dining plan, 1QS, 1TS, 1 snack per night's stay). Then calculate the room discount that may/is being offered (30-40% off rack rate). Multiply the savings per night by the number of nights you are staying and the number of rooms. Compare the different figures and then go from there.

 

[asea86]

Thanks for the info... me head is spinning trying to get it all figured out! Here's our party- We will have 1 child -6, 2 kids that will be 17 and 18 and the rest of 18. so basically 6 adults and one child!