Soooo Disappointed (my rant)

[SnoopyB]

I was so excited when I first learned about free dining, room discounts, etc., offered during the summer that I thought DH & I could finally take this trip without breaking the bank. So I went ahead booked air, did research (decided on Mod resort) & waited. Then when the room rate 30% off mod came out I booked the room thinking that when FD came out it would be even better.
However, after FD was offered and much research, I found that the Quick Service plan was actually better for us. But of course that meant paying for it at full price. Which was no problem has I got all hung up on the "everything's paid for in advance, no worries" thinking. Now after going back and forth again, I've decided to not get the QSDP and just pay for our meals out of pocket. I concluded that since it's just the two of us, and given that we would probably break even with the plan, we might as well just pay OOP and eat however we want rather than have paid in advance but be stuck to eating according to the preset plan.
....
Now, I'm feeling so disappointed that we are not getting these "great" discounts. I feel like I'm paying rack rate or what anyone would pay during value season...nothing special.
I paid more in airfare then I would have normally thinking that Disney's summer discounts would make it worth it. I am so not happy about this trip.

(I know I'm blessed; just wanted to get out the disappointment I'm feeling.)

 

[OllieDannyandMe]

Are you unable to still get the 30% off room-only rate? If so, that is a bummer.

I understand about needing to let out disappointment, so you can appreciate what you have. Here's wishing you a lot of pixie dust to get you back to a happy place!

 

[snykymom]

Isn't marketing wonderful? You think somehow that the pre-paid meal plans are wonderful "discounts." But they're not! At least not for everyone! (Disney is still making money on the deal, you can be sure.) They may end up being discounts for people who like to eat exactly as the meal plans are set out. If you don't, they're no bargain. What difference does it make if it's prepaid if you're overpaying??

I don't do the dining plans for exactly the same reason as the OP - I don't want to be locked into eating that way. If I want lunch in Morocco and dessert in France, I can do that, but not if I'm on the meal plan (without paying extra of course). If I want an appetizer instead of a dessert, I can do that, but not if I'm on the meal plan. If I want a counter service one night rather than the table service I'm booked for, I can do that without worrying that I have to "find" a new TS or lose that pre-paid money. If I want a TS I can do it without worrying that I only have a CS left.

Disney Math makes people think it's always a savings, but it's often not. Let your head win over all the marketing that hits your heart!

 

[IMGONNABE40!]

I am not sure why you are disappointed? You are still getting 30% off on your room, and made a conscious decision that that is a better deal for you. Also sounds like a sound financial decision not to purchase a dining plan. You ARE saving money over rack rate. And, many seem to be complaining about airfares this summer.

Okay, hope you feel better!

 

[SnoopyB]

Thanks Ollie, snykymom and IMGONNABE40!.
I do already have the 30% room discount. I know it's all in perspective so yes I do feel better.

thanks for listening(reading )

 

[ZuZugal]

Thanks Ollie, snykymom and IMGONNABE40!.
I do already have the 30% room discount. I know it's all in perspective so yes I do feel better.

thanks for listening(reading )

room discount has always been a better deal for my family than the dining plan. I LOVE to get the room discount...you aren't paying rack so you are doing well so far! we tried the dining plan once...and I didn't like the fact that we were paying full price for lodging. The dining plan drove me crazy since we don't even eat a sit-down meal every day.

Be happy!! focus on the positive and you will have a great trip!

 

[dclfun]

It sounds to me like you're getting the better deal. No sense in paying rack rate for "free" dining if you aren't going to want to dine like the plan dictates.---Kathy

 

[minnie_michelle]

We did a rather cheap trip last year by taking the room discount and then paying OOP for all our meals. We even went to the extreme of looking at menus online to get an idea of how much we might spend at each park on food as well on the meals at restaurants that we had made reservations at. With that estimate I set aside that amount of money in my bank account and while we were there I kept track of how much we actually were spending and when we ran out a day early we were able to just snack and eat cheaply the last day so we didn't go over budget and feel bad about it (which would have ruined our vacation honestly...I'm crazy about budgeting and money)

 

[Tinkerbellie16]

You are getting the room discount which is great! If you want to add the QSDP, you can!!! But you have to determine if it is worth it for you. It sounds like it isn't, so don't worry about it. Nice thing about quick service is you can share items and only buy what you will eat. On the dining plan, you get dessert with EVERY meal. I know that many of our desserts went partially eaten or we even declined it While it ended up being worth it for us even with those desserts, we also had 2 kids and THAT is where I see the majority of our savings (on the basic dining not QSDP).

Don't fret or worry, you got a deal with the 30% off and that's good!

 

[OhMari]

Me and my dh went this route 2 years ago.
Don't be afraid to share CS meals, you receive very large portions.
Order pizza from POFQ-my 2 boys came down for a weekend, and this was a life saver.
I don't know if you will be renting a vehicle, but there are resturants just down the road from DtD for 3/4 the cost of meals at WDW. If you don't have a vehicle, try some of the off places like on the Board Walk, or over at the Swan/Dolphin.
We had a buffet breakfast at the MarketPlace at the Dolphin for $11.00 a person and it is all Organic vegetables and fruit. Well worth the price. We ate there this past Spring and it was a nice surprise.

We choose one or two TS resturants that we really wanted to try and I used my Disney gift cards that I earned on a Rewards Site.

When I added up the difference, I think I just about broke even, but I had 40% off my room, not 30%, but this was 2 years ago in November. Keep watching the boards, WDW may up the discount to 40% off yet.

 

[Tyme4wdw]

Ok, you want the pre-paid feeling of everything. You have the 30% discount which is great! WooHoo! You can purchase cheaper tickets through Undercover Tourist website giving you a nice discount. WooHoo! What I would do next is figure out how much you would have paid for the Dining Plan or what you feel you will pay OOP by looking at menu's listed on allears.net and put that amount on a Disney Gift Card. Win/Win situation in my book!

You could have taken advantage of the Free Dining Deal, however, you would have paid rack rate on room and tickets of which you would have had to purchase through Disney instead of at a discount through Undercover Tourist.