UK Free Dining package - advice for a newbie *UPDATE* I BOOKED!

[elaine amj]

Hi everyone,

I live in Canada and have traveled to WDW almost every year for the past few years - often using a Cdn or US travel package and using a US-based travel agent. I have invited my brother & his family (so 7 of us all together) for a trip to WDW in August 2017 so have access to booking UK packages - so feel very much like a newbie again!

When I first priced the trip earlier this year, I compared both UK and US free dining offers and found US prices to be better. I just priced out the UK free dining offer again (even though I know the offer has dropped to a US$100 gift card) and was surprised to find prices have dropped (or is it just me?).

I currently see:
- 2 bedroom (sleeps 9) at OKW with 14 day Ultimate tickets and free DDP = £8541 (USD 10,472 today)

When I checked in spring this year, 2 bedrooms were out of my price range and I got:
- 2 studios at SSR with 14 day Ultimate tickets and free DDP = £8830 (did prices drop or something?!)
At that time, the exchange rate was very different and this was about USD 12,514

Through US free dining, I currently can book:
- 2 POR standard rooms with 10 day WPF&M tickets = $5505.80 + $4992.34 = $10,498.14

At this point the UK deal looks better! Worried about losing the flexibility of US offers though.

Some UK-specific questions:
- I know the deadline for free dining is Oct 20. Is there a possibility that the free dining offer will return before next August? I guess another possibility is that Disney UK will offer new (cheaper) deals to entice UK travelers. I know they just released a 25% off tickets deal for us Canadians who have also been very hurt by the strength of the US dollar.

- Am I right...the cancellation penalty is £50 per person, so £350 for our group of 7? What if I only put 2 people on the reservation and add the rest later? While I am on the subject - CAN I add people to the reservation later? We have 2 grandparents we have invited to join us but they won't know until about 2 months out.

- How flexible are they with amending dates? We haven't booked our flights yet (plan to do so within the next 1-2 months) nor have any of us put in holiday requests with our respective offices.

- Is it better to book direct or with a TA? If so, which TA? I am perfectly capable of booking direct but usually use a Disney specialist TA to support a small business. A nice plus is I have someone I can turn to who can do some research/legwork on my behalf.

 

[pinklotusflower]

The pound against the dollar has crashed hence it is better for you paying in dollars, sorry can't help with your other questions as we don't get free dining with DVC

 

[elaine amj]

The exchange rate definitely made a big difference. But also when I checked before, 2 studios at SSR was £8830 whereas now, a 2 bedroom at OKW is just £8541. This is so much better now.

 

[BudgieMama]

Some UK-specific questions:
- I know the deadline for free dining is Oct 20. Is there a possibility that the free dining offer will return before next August? I guess another possibility is that Disney UK will offer new (cheaper) deals to entice UK travelers. I know they just released a 25% off tickets deal for us Canadians who have also been very hurt by the strength of the US dollar.

Free dining without any giftcard usually runs until sometime in November (can't access the site on the network I'm using right now), but after that it won't be a free dining offer, given historical patterns. There are other deals, but as we always book with the Free Dining (because it's great value for us) we don't bother keeping up with other deals!

- Am I right...the cancellation penalty is £50 per person, so £350 for our group of 7? What if I only put 2 people on the reservation and add the rest later? While I am on the subject - CAN I add people to the reservation later? We have 2 grandparents we have invited to join us but they won't know until about 2 months out.

Yes on the £50 per person. Not sure about adding people later.

- How flexible are they with amending dates? We haven't booked our flights yet (plan to do so within the next 1-2 months) nor have any of us put in holiday requests with our respective offices.

Depends entirely on availability. If they can, they will, but they can't always accomodate. If the cost of the package comes down, there's fees to be paid for that. Same price can be changed for free, or the difference paid for a more expensive package.

- Is it better to book direct or with a TA? If so, which TA? I am perfectly capable of booking direct but usually use a Disney specialist TA to support a small business. A nice plus is I have someone I can turn to who can do some research/legwork on my behalf.

I will only book direct. We don't tend to have the same kind of Disney specific TAs, and I hear every year of others struggling to get essential stuff from their TAs (like reservation numbers so they can book dining at 180 days or ticket details for 60 day FP booking). Some people have great success with their TAs, however. Not for me though.

That's the best I can help with your questions!

 

[Jon84]

Free dining without any giftcard usually runs until sometime in November (can't access the site on the network I'm using right now), but after that it won't be a free dining offer, given historical patterns. There are other deals, but as we always book with the Free Dining (because it's great value for us) we don't bother keeping up with other deals!

100% this, the next free dining offer will likely be for 2018 arrivals.

 

[elaine amj]

This is all REALLY helpful info! We're considering all our options at this point. I have a feeling we will bite the bullet and take the UK deal. Its the same cost as 2 rooms at POR using the US free dining deal. A 2 bedroom villa would be AMAZING!

 

[elaine amj]

By the way, how flexible are they with changing names on a reservation? I have one person who is unsure and if he doesn't come, I will be inviting someone else.

 

[elaine amj]

Just have to share my excitement - I booked!! Today was the last day to get the $100 gift card and we bit the bullet!

This is a multi-family trip with multiple countries - and for the first time out of all my trips, I am traveling with my brother who is a UK resident! This gave us a lot more options for bookings. Back in the spring, I had priced out Disney UK packages and with the exchange rate then, the prices were just too high for us. I did a bunch of number crunching and the US deals were better. In September, I was at WDW and ended up booking a bounceback free dining through my US-based travel agent.

In October, I decided to check the UK packages again one more time. Turns out they added an additional discount to the deluxe villas. That plus the HUGE drop in the pound suddenly made the UK packages a really good deal.

Long story short, for the same money as 14 nights for 2 rooms at POR with DDP for the 7 of us with 10 day MYW with WPF&M, I got a 2 bedroom villa at OKW with 14 day ultimate tickets and DDP. This will be much more comfortable with us in the long run, especially since my niece is 3 years old. Even better, one or two grandparents are likely to join us - and our villa can sleep 9. I prefer SSR overall, but I finally ended up choosing OKW for the extra space.

Initially, I was pretty sure I was going to book direct with Disney. However, after getting a bunch of quotes from UK travel agencies, I chose OrlandoAttractions.com. I learned all kinds of interesting things when comparing quotes.

- UK agencies are able to offer discounts and offers over and above Disney's quotes, unlike the US which typically offer exactly the same prices and discounts as direct bookings with Disney. We got a quote that was about 5% cheaper than Disney. On an £8541 package, we saved £425. They also offered free tickets to the WonderWorks Magic Comedy Dinner Show for free. I could have gotten 3.5% cashback through topcashback if I booked direct. But I finally decided that getting an extra £125 was worth going through an agency. I checked a lot of reviews, etc, exchanged several emails, and finally got comfortable enough to book. Plus, they are a sponsor on thedibb and I like the agency's interactions I have seen there.

- UK agencies will price match. Several other agencies agreed to price match the offer we got from OrlandoAttractions.com after their quote was higher.

- most UK agencies charge CC fees. This was a bit of a shock to me. That ruled out many agencies for me as that is a deal breaker. I like the extra protection AND my points!

- UK agencies often hold your funds and then pay Disney when final balance is due. Many US agencies just use your CC to pay Disney directly (which I prefer). I was rather nervous about it but ended up agreeing to this after making sure I chose an agency that is ABTA-bonded. This meant that my money is insured. This is particularly important since I plan to pay off the bulk of the holiday about 7-8 months before I need to (otherwise I'll twist myself into a knot worrying about exchange rates - I'm paying most of it in US dollars).

- some UK agencies can accept credit cards with a US billing address. I was worried about this. The agency at first said no to me when they found out I don't live in the UK. They were good after I explained that my brother (who is a UK resident) was the lead guest. They said we will have no issues paying with a variety of credit cards and we can pay however much we want whenever we want until the balance is paid in full 10 weeks before. So for anyone worried about a US billing address - I tried it today and they accepted it just fine.

- UK agencies prefer the phone. In many cases, I had a hard time finding email addresses - although eventually I was able to connect with everyone via email. Most take about a day or so to respond. Very unlike US agencies who often handle the bulk of communications via email.

- UK agencies often charge extra fees. Granted this happens in the US too - but it seems more common in the UK. Our agency will charge us £20 to add someone and £70 to remove someone. My US travel agent ALWAYS does any modifications for free. I also found out about all kinds of various admin fees (Have to be VERY watchful).

- many UK agencies don't offer package holidays. I was VERY surprised to find that many places were purely ticket brokers. It was honestly very difficult to find agencies who advertised booking the Disney free dining packages. Mostly Google searches just turned up tons of places selling Disney tickets with NO option to book packages. For example, I found one Disney-specialist travel agency...but they ONLY advertised Disneyland Paris. Didn't see a single thing on their website offering WDW bookings. I could have emailed to ask - but I didn't. I also couldn't find any way to book just the package (without the flights) on places like Thomson Cook or Virgin Holidays.

Overall, I was pleased with my experience and learned a lot! Right now, with the exchange rate - booking via the UK is MUCH cheaper than anything I could find through the US. I plan to pay off most of the trip by November since I am paying in USD and would worry too much about the exchange rate.

 

[Jon84]

Sounds like it worked well.

Through reading that I was wondering if you'd pay soon to take advantage of the rate, and you are so that's worked out really well. Enjoy!!