Who was at WDW the last week of Sept. the last few years for free dining?

[dclfun]

We've gone the last three years for FD and are going again this year so I guess you can see our family feels it's a great deal. We are DVC members and live locally so we visit often but for this promo the best rates are had with a value resort so that's what we book. We book a longer stay due to the heat and lack of stamina to be out in that heat all day long in the parks. My kids enjoy the pools and resort amenities vs. being park commandos like we sometimes do on shorter trips. We relax and enjoy conversation over the TS meals which we often don't do during other trips where we cook something quick in our villa or dine at more CS locations. The busses have been crowded, the food court swamped in the am, and of course ADR's have to be booked way in advance for the more popular locations but it's still a fun time to be there. The rides themselves don't have long waits nor are the parks crowded- everyone's in a TS restaurant! I agree with the poster who said booking TS at lunch is a good idea. Too many people get caught up in "getting their money's worth" and booking the most expensive restaurants for dinner/ordering the most expensive items on the menu vs. just enjoying what works best for your family without regard for what the cost is- it's free anyway! Dining at lunch in Sept. gets you out of the major heat of the day and often the daily rainshower too, plus going back to your room to relax/swim after lunch and then hitting the parks when it's cooler or evening EMH works really well and you don't go to sleep on an overstuffed tummy. During this timeframe we've also been able to enjoy the Pirate/Princess party and MNSSHP party at MK ( depending on your dates). If you are heat sensitive and flexible with dates though then late Nov/early Dec is also value season but w/o FD. You then get the holiday decorations and events too which is an added bonus. Gosh...there really isn't a "bad" time to be at Disney.---Kathy

 

[auntie]

Well, I just received an AP(whooo hooo! ) for Mother's Day. Now I'm thinking that since we have a WL reservation during the last week of Sept. for free dining, if I might be better off waiting and going during a period that offers a good AP discount and just pay for the dining.
I understand that staying at a value resort or even a moderate resort is great for free dining, and certainly more of a value than paying full rack rate at a Deluxe resort. I go back and forth with is it really "free" if I'm paying full rack rate. Given that we will have to deal with the crowds.
We have visited Disney in August..so I'm aware of the heat situation. Our favorite time has been May, when it's warm but not quite as humid as the summer months. I guess with getting the AP pass, it's got me re-thinking whether I should be booking a free dining at a deluxe resort, paying full rack rate. If I might be better off waiting for an AP discount time period..which is likely to come after that, and simply paying for the dining. Or just use the Dining Experience card available to AP holders. I do have ADR's for the free dining period, so I'm not concerned that we wouldn't be able to use our TS credits..but I also like our dining experience to be pleasant, and would hate to have that ruined by crowds and angry dissatisfied patrons.
I've got time to think it over, ....I am just wondering if there are AP holders who book Deluxe and think it's worth it? Or whether I'd be better off waiting for another time. Appreciate the input.

 

[treeface]

I have been there the past two years during the last week of September and also in 2002 (before FD). We have found it to be a nice time to visit, despite the heat and the lovebugs. The lines for the attractions are much shorter and with ADR's made at the 180 day window, we've never had a problem getting the ADR's we wanted. We do sometimes eat at less popular times so that has probably helped, but we try to keep similar schedules on vacation as we have at home. We always take the earliest breakfast seating (especially in the parks, the unobstructed view is awesome) and then either a 3:30 lunch (our dinner) or a 4:30 dinner.

We aren't going this year as DS6 is in school and all my DVC points are being used for a 2BR for the whole family at Christmas this year (no girls only trip in September )

We would definitely visit at this time of year again if DS wouldn't miss too much at school.

 

[dclfun]

Someone did a spreadsheet not too long ago comparing the per night costs with FD at the different resorts against a room only discount rate with the DDP added on but I can't remember the title of the thread. The savings started to disappear once you got into the deluxe resorts and also depended on how many in your party. If it's a family of four with two adults and two children ( who still are the age for children's pricing then it would be a closer call. If it's just two adults then you'd probably be better off with an AP discount to which you can now add the DDP or just using your DDE. Congrats to the OP on a wonderful Mother's Day gift!---Kathy

 

[auntie]

Someone did a spreadsheet not too long ago comparing the per night costs with FD at the different resorts against a room only discount rate with the DDP added on but I can't remember the title of the thread. The savings started to disappear once you got into the deluxe resorts and also depended on how many in your party. If it's a family of four with two adults and two children ( who still are the age for children's pricing then it would be a closer call. If it's just two adults then you'd probably be better off with an AP discount to which you can now add the DDP or just using your DDE. Congrats to the OP on a wonderful Mother's Day gift!---Kathy

Thanks, it is a great gift, and I am thrilled to have it. Gives me some different options as far as discounts go. We would be four..two adults..and the kids are 16 and 20. My older son is booking his own room, and He usually takes one of them in with him. When we had a code last year, we added the dining and thought it was great. Just the convenience of it was nice. Thought the cost was worth it since we're feeding all adults. Only now for end of Sept. we'd be pretty much paying rack rate for the free dining at a Deluxe resort. Doesn't seem as great a value. Which had me thinking I might be better off if they do come out with an AP rate for that time period(which according to mousesavers they did come out with one on June 20th of last year) and simply paying for the dining or using the DE card..or a combo of both. My husband and I would have AP's.
I'll have to try and find the thread you are referring to. I don't think anyone is willing to switch to a value or moderate resort to make the dining more of a value...we've spoiled ourselves at the WL and prefer to stay there.

 

[caracap]

We went last year Sept 22nd-27th, and will be back again this year the 20th-26th. It is very crowded Friday- Sunday, not as crowded Monday, and very quiet Tuesday- Thursday (my sister was there on the other days, I wasn't) The restaurants were busy, but with ADR's it didn't matter. Some restaurants were even taking walk ups, like Tony's, The Plaza & Playhouse Dine (forgot the real name) It was very hot, but I didn't mind it because it made packing very easy. I didn't have to pack sweaters or pants. Also, if you go on a water ride and get wet you dry within minutes!! Wait times on weekends were 10-60 minute waits. 10- being It's a Small World, 20- Pirates & 60 minutes like Soarin or Space Mountain. During the week, Small World was walk on, Pirates maybe 10 minutes, 30 minutes for Space, and Soarin was always 45-60 minutes.

 

[Reaper0Bot0]

I was there in the middle of September of 2007. It was pretty damned hot and very humid. The restaurants were a bit nuts, but I was able to get a table at a few decent joints at Epcot without a reservation. I honestly think that complaint is a tad overdone. I'm not saying it was easy, but it was possible to get a table for two from time to time.

The rides had pretty easy lines, mostly. I booked for the last week of September this year, and I cannot wait.

 

[dclfun]

Since the OP is a party of four adults wanting two rooms then the room only AP rate or a good code is probably a better value, esp. since the dining plan has changed. With adding on the grats now and an appetizer if you want one, it's no longer "free" even during FD. Alot too depends on your dining habits and whether you are choosing more TS restaurants just because they're included with the DDP or you'd really rather dine at CS and spend more time enjoying attractions or your resort. We paid to add the DDP to our December ressie last year when staying with our DVC points for 7 adults/5 nights. It was costly but well worth it since everyone came from different states and we really wanted the dining time to visit with each other over a nice meal, something my Navy son doesn't often get ( time or fine dining ). We joked that it would be our last time adding it now that the grats are removed. Even though we paid over 1,300 for the DDP for that trip at least there were no extra charges to budget for. Now the DDE card makes more sense. Gosh, we have to work hard for our vacations to figure out which is the best way to go! At least you know which resort you want which is half the battle.---Kathy

 

[tinklvr64]

We were there last Sept 21-24 and it was Hot and Humid and Crowded. Forget eating if you dont have an ADR...I was prepared for shorter lines and less crowds....NOPE!

 

[g3pak]

2 things:

1) I was the OP and just asking what it was like in the last week of Sept the last few years

2) some say it is crowded, some say no one is around. To clarify- are the restaurants crowded but the parks not? I have all of my ADR so I am not worried about that. Just wondering how long we will wait in line.

 

[dclfun]

Sorry OP- I didn't find it crowded at the parks except for Labor Day weekend. Yes, the restaurants are crowded but I still saw people at GS at our resort who had no advance ADR's and were able to get some- perhaps not their first choice but they were happy. If you have your ADR's then you're all set and should have a great vacation. It will be hot, humid, and hopefully happy.---Kathy

 

[knightje]

Sorry OP- I didn't find it crowded at the parks except for Labor Day weekend. Yes, the restaurants are crowded but I still saw people at GS at our resort who had no advance ADR's and were able to get some- perhaps not their first choice but they were happy. If you have your ADR's then you're all set and should have a great vacation. It will be hot, humid, and hopefully happy.---Kathy

I couldn't agree more. All I wanted to warn about are the very long lines at the Food and Wine Festival booths the first couple of days (weekend) of the event. But the ride lines in all parks have been relatively short in the past.

 

[GrumpyDad1974]

We've been there last 2 yrs. the last week in sept., first time we paid for ddp (i was unaware of free dinning ) and thought it was great, the only problem was my wife wanted to "wing it" when it came to dinning. NEVER AGAIN. Last yr. (free dining ) I was prepared with adr's everywhere and everything went smooth. This yr. free dinning and adr's everywhere, less spontonaity? but too bad. We thought the crowds were low, some long lines so we used some fastpasses. The weather nice to swim, sometimes to hot but we tried to take breaks from the heat. yes there were rain showers and downpoors but it did not last....
good luck

 

[Brer Shay]

We're taking our fourth late Sept trip this year, so we think it's a good time to go. Yes, the weather is warm - hi 80's/lo 90's and there is often a 10-15 minute shower in the late afternoon. Wait times in the park do seem longer since they started offering free dining, but are still very reasonable. Yes we make use of FastPasses on rides, but others are less than 20 minute wait. We have stayed at both value and moderates - bus lines make me think that the value resorts are particularly busy with free dining offering. POFQ was not busy on our last Free Dining experience - at the resort in general, the pool, or the food court. Dining in the parks was very tight the years Free Dining has been offered, don't think many got in without an ADR.

Bottom line, we think it's a great time to go. Plan your meals ahead of time (even by calling ahead day of if your party isn't too big) and some afternoon breaks (either poolside or in A/C attractions) if the heat bothers you.