Trying to Help a Friend

[Epcotgal]

And now I need help from my friends here. I'm helping someone plan their Disney vacation and as many as I've planned this has been challenging. They are going the 1st week in October. I started helping them plan in Feb. I gave them links to all kinds of info and printed out what each dining plan consists of etc. They said they were not interested in character meals and booked the QS plan. They have just now told their kids about the trip and of course now they want to eat at at least 2 character meals. So I've been checking every hour on any openings. A co-worker told her to definitely eat in the castle and Chef Mickey's. I did well by not screaming out loud because I begged them to look at menus and character meals at 6 months out and we could always cancel a reservation. So now I'm scrambling. I did get them Tusker House and H&V. I told them I would continue to check for other openings. If they are doing 2 character meals it would be a better deal to upgrade from QS since the OOP cost of those meals will make up the difference. But she now asks if it will be a waste of money to upgrade if they don't want a sit down meal every day. Now I'm getting dizzy. The upgrade from QS won't be a deal if they end up with unused TS credits but don't have enough CS credits. Then again, if they stick with QS and pay OOP for 2 character meals they're not getting a deal. I'd suggest dropping the Plan and paying OOP but she really wants to be on the plan so they can order what they want without worrying about cost. Now, I've probably made you as dizzy as I am! Help please! Would appreciate any advice.

 

[TDC Nala]

Would it really be a better deal for them to pay for the regular plan to cover two character meals? If all they want is two TS then they will be fine sticking with the quick service plan. How many nights are they planning to stay? If it's not a long trip maybe upgrading could work for them. Otherwise they should just pay for the two TS meals they want.

The regular plan really saves money only if they will plan on doing a TS restaurant every day of their trip, especially if they choose a TS dinner every night.

As for not being able to book the restaurants they wanted, those are popular restaurants and since they didn't book them early, all you can do is keep looking to see if a spot for their party opens.