Think there will be free dining in 2010?

[jeepgirl30]

I've been begging DH for a family Disney trip for a few years now. I took DD for a mom/daughter budget trip 3 yrs ago and have been dying to go back with DS too. He was too young at the time (for us!). DH is NOT a disney fan. He says he has been there twice and it was the same both times.

Well for Christmas DH told me we could go IF I save the money and pay cash, duh! We've been really good about paying cash for everything. We do a family beach trip every summer and he insisted we keep that and the Disney trip would be extra I need to save the money for in addition to his beach trip. We go with other families, his college buddies!

Anyway, the other stipulation from him is "if we are paying the money the hotel better blow me away". So forget Value! He is not a hotel snob at all but we stayed at CSR in the past and he said he did not want to go below that. However, we need to keep it within reason. No GF!

He also is sports obsessed and will want to hit ESPN a few times. I would love to stay at either BC/YC or BI but omg, the price! We will go in Sept so we have the Value rates on our side. I'm considering WL because of the price difference but I really think BC is more his liking with the location so close to ESPN.

I'm just confused if I should go ahead and book no with no code, no free dining or if I should hold out for free dining. When would discounts show for September?

WWYD??

 

[maggiew]

If there is no free dining, the Dolphin is a nice place. And it is near Epcot and ESPN zone too.

We stayed at Beach Club last year and it was fabulous, but expensive.

Maggie

 

[jeepgirl30]

If there is no free dining, the Dolphin is a nice place. And it is near Epcot and ESPN zone too.

We stayed at Beach Club last year and it was fabulous, but expensive.

Maggie

I have stayed at the Dolphin for conferences and do like it however I forgot to state DH insists everything is prepaid so I want to do the dining plan, I believe the Swan/Dolphin do not offer that option.

 

[squirrel]

The bounceback has been offered already. I think they will still have free dining in 2010. It should be announced in April or possibly the end of March. The bounceback offer for Free Dining ends on Sept. 30th. So that should be the last day of Free Dining unless Disney changes it when they announce the Free Dining in the spring.

Have you looked at POFQ or POR? If you book at a Deluxe Resort the Free Dining is usually not the best deal - a room discount would be better.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

It sounds to me like you'd be much better off going without him .

I would go ahead and book the room. You can always add the free dining later (or any other discount code) if it comes out. You may find it cheaper to do room only discounts though (we stayed at POR in August for $94 a night in a king bed room [which is more expensive than a standard room]) or I've heard you can get some great deals renting DVC points and going that way (through the DVC rent/trade board). As far as having everything prepaid, you could certainly buy the tickets for a discount in advance through the mousesavers link to undercovertourist.com and then purchase a gift card for however much you want to budget towards food (it's technically prepaid that way ).

WL and AKL are usually the two cheapest deluxe resorts (we've never paid more than $200 a night at WL). Good luck!

 

[momof1princess]

i say, if he wants to be "blown away", let him chip in on the trip. on my dime, he can go where i can afford to stay or he can stay at home. nothing wrong with a value resort. i've also stayed at CBR, and it's nice, but not so nice i'd pay 60+ dollars more per night.

 

[jeepgirl30]

i say, if he wants to be "blown away", let him chip in on the trip. on my dime, he can go where i can afford to stay or he can stay at home. nothing wrong with a value resort. i've also stayed at CBR, and it's nice, but not so nice i'd pay 60+ dollars more per night.

I did not mean to make him sound like a tyrant!

My money/his money both = OUR money! I'm the one that handles the checkbook and the bills, he just wants me to put away money so it is all paid and we do not charge anything. I am torn because I want everyone to be happy. I love Disney and am so excited. I posted here on the budget board because I want to be sure I get the best *deal* whatever way we go and not pay rack rate!

I stayed at a value with DD. We were fine there but I found it a bit small. If I went with just the kids I'd probably do value again. But I think the extra cost would be justified for the full family vacation. Being so close to ESPN would be a good thing for DH and probably DS too. I could even probably leave DH at ESPN for an afternoon.

 

[DisneyRunner2009]

I booked free dining on 4-10-2009, I believe it was the first day of the offer. I see the current offer has to be booked by 3-27-2010. If there is free dining, I believe it would be the next offer based on past history. Recently, it seems one offer expires and there is a new one the next day.

 

[momof1princess]

I did not mean to make him sound like a tyrant!

My money/his money both = OUR money! I'm the one that handles the checkbook and the bills, he just wants me to put away money so it is all paid and we do not charge anything. I am torn because I want everyone to be happy. I love Disney and am so excited. I posted here on the budget board because I want to be sure I get the best *deal* whatever way we go and not pay rack rate!

I stayed at a value with DD. We were fine there but I found it a bit small. If I went with just the kids I'd probably do value again. But I think the extra cost would be justified for the full family vacation. Being so close to ESPN would be a good thing for DH and probably DS too. I could even probably leave DH at ESPN for an afternoon.

i understand, DH and i are the same way, lol-we prefer to pay cash and not charge anything. depending upon the size of your family, you might try a suite at the all-stars (sports? movies?). it's a value resort, but a larger room and if i'm not mistaken, it's near the ESPN zone. my DH is choosy about where we eat-a VERY picky eater and he'll go without before he'll "make do". i suppose all men have their quirks, lol. no doubt with all the tips on these boards, you'll find a way to make it work.

 

[KimFIGFern]

It sounds to me like you'd be much better off going without him .

The last 2 times I went, I didn't take my hubby. As much as I would like him there, he is not happy ... and that makes us all miserable. So, we went without him and were all happy (including him).

The last 2 times we went were during free dining. One time in Sept. and just recently in Dec. (I received a PIN). Good luck and hope you get to go!

 

[Jen_in_NH]

You may want to look into renting DVC points. I just did it 3 weeks ago for our trip. We got to stay at AKL, which we never would have paid for normally. You wouldn't get free dining, but the price for the room might more than make up for it.

 

[blanq]

I have stayed at the Dolphin for conferences and do like it however I forgot to state DH insists everything is prepaid so I want to do the dining plan, I believe the Swan/Dolphin do not offer that option.

Okay, I just don't get your thinking here at all. You want to do the DDP because your DH insists that everything be "prepaid"? Prepaid to me means you have the money to pay your entire vacation BEFORE you take your vacation; it does not literally mean all of your nickles and dimes need to be sent to WDW before you leave. Now, if you want to partake in the DDP because you just want it, then just say so. That is a different matter altogether.

I would wait to book your vacation. Begin setting aside money every month in the meantime. You are very far out on when you want to travel (I am assuming later summer early fall since you have your eye on free dining), and the discounts for that period should come several months before you want to travel, unless bookings are low and then discounts may be offered sooner. There has been information posted that Disney may try to scale back on discounts in the later part of next year; who knows if their plan will fly. They have offered a variety of discounts consistently and for many years.

I also want to mention that free dining is hardly "free". You get that perk at the expense of paying rack rate for your room. Don't automatically disregard a hefty room discount and paying for your food OOP. Do the math before you settle on an option. Renting points from a DVC owner (see the rent/trade board) is a fabulous option that allows you to get very nice accommodations (say BCV), at a very reasonable price.