Free Dining Watch 2009 - Dates Released!! Update post 1

[KimRaye]

oh and also on gratuity. hmmm. I dont suppose I can leave a tip in DDs? lol I said that to my Mom and she yelled at me..said noo you dont do that!! lol

OK, I think I know what Mom means but, I know what you mean, too. When you get the bill, add the tip, and pay with DDs. Same thing.

I am by far NOT an expert but, as far as I remember, DD$ are welcome anywhere in Disney! Shops, parks, etc. Non-Disney places maybe not tho, like Planet Hollywood, McDonald's, etc. Make sense?

 

[connorsgram]

Last year when we had free dining, we put the tip ( and anything extra) on the room charge. Then when we checked out we used Disney Dollars to pay on that bill. This also means you don't have to carry cash or Disney Dollars with you.

 

[k5thbeatle]

Ugh! Free dining during F&W festival? They must be hurting for sure! DDP is worst idea they ever came up with!

 

[KimRaye]

WHY do you say that? So many of us are enjoying it and only you object, so far?

 

[mom2rtk]

Ugh! Free dining during F&W festival? They must be hurting for sure! DDP is worst idea they ever came up with!

Quite the contrary, we're very excited about it!

By the way, haven't they done it this time of year for years now????

I believe this was all started to get crowds back in the parks during this time of year after the big hurricane season in 2004......

 

[PrincessTiffany]

Ugh! Free dining during F&W festival? They must be hurting for sure! DDP is worst idea they ever came up with!

Free Dining always crosses over into the beginning of F&W.

Free Dining is what has kept us coming back for the last three years. It saves us about $1,600.00 on the price of our trip. In my opinion, it's one of the best things WDW has come up with in a long time.

 

[twinsticks]

just received a goofy pin code post card today for free disney dinning for dates 8/23/09-10/1/09 and 11/29/09-12/17/09 going with another family for a grand gathering 12/1-10....thanks disney pin gods!!

 

[micknpluto]

I got one of those pin codes in the mail today. I wont be able to use it... only one disney vacation for us this year.. Hopefully we can utilize free dining again next year!

 

[Bete]

just received a goofy pin code post card today for free disney dinning for dates 8/23/09-10/1/09 and 11/29/09-12/17/09 going with another family for a grand gathering 12/1-10....thanks disney pin gods!!

Would you share when your e-mail expire; up to what time can you book this offer?

Is this offer straight dining plan plus (with table service like the fall offer)across the board no matter which resort you stay at? The last goofy e-mail promo conditioned value resorts with only the Quick service dining plan for free.

Thanks for the help.

 

[twinsticks]

Would you share when your e-mail expire; up to what time can you book this offer?

Is this offer straight dining plan plus (with table service like the fall offer)across the board no matter which resort you stay at? The last goofy e-mail promo conditioned value resorts with only the Quick service dining plan for free.

Thanks for the help.

Yes I can use it at any of the resorts 1 snack--1 counter service and 1 table service book up until 10-3-09

 

[amberg@eastlink.ca]

just a tip a good friend passed along to me yesterday/early this morning via facebook. yesterday was her day to call for her adr's. she called first thing and got all but two that she wanted. was told they werent avail. she was persisitant and called back 20 minutes later and got into both of them. so i guess if you dont at first succeed try again!

 

[mccarts]

I am a DVC member and am never offered free dining. I think this is unfair to members. They should at least offer a discount. I see people getting free plans and hotel deals.

Can anyone tell me how you find out when Disney Visa offers free dining?

Thanks

 

[ZeroToHero]

I am a DVC member and am never offered free dining. I think this is unfair to members. They should at least offer a discount. I see people getting free plans and hotel deals.

Can anyone tell me how you find out when Disney Visa offers free dining?

Thanks

You find out via here or other places that are about Disney. Don't count on Visa telling you.

And the reason that you don't get free dining offers is because you're already locked in. You already go to Disney. They're trying to get other people to come, ones who aren't already getting deals and showing up. They know that you'll come, they offer this so that more people spend more money.

ETA: And technically, if you have more than two people, it's actually a discount to book a Value resort, but not stay there, using the free dining, while staying on your points at your villa at the same time. At least, it should be. Do the math for your family.

 

[wildernesslodgelover]

I am a DVC member and am never offered free dining. I think this is unfair to members. They should at least offer a discount. I see people getting free plans and hotel deals.

Can anyone tell me how you find out when Disney Visa offers free dining?

Thanks

You CAN get free dining...just book a room at rack rate like everyone else does. That is the requirement.

I am going to WDW during free dining, but I'd rather use my FL resident dicount...or in this case, rent points from a DVC member and stay at the BCV. For the way my family eats, the free dining is not as worth it to us as staying at a great resort for a small amount of money. Plus...we have the DDE card (or whatever it is called now) and get 20% of food and drinks.

Do you also go to the movies at night and complain that you want the matinee (day) pricing, since it is not fair that you have to work all day? Or go to dinner during a prime time and demand the early bird pricing? It's kind of the same idea with the free DDP. It is there to entice people to stay on property that maybe otherwise wouldn't.

Next year I may take advantage of that great free DDP program, but right now, I am THRILLED to stay at BCV on points.

 

[enchantingodin]

I am going to WDW during free dining, but I'd rather use my FL resident dicount...

Do you happen to remember when the Sept discounts came out for FLRs? We're currently booked with FD, but if they offer a better discount for FLRs I may change. Although as it stands right now (doing the math from last years prices) FD is a much better deal - at least for us.

 

[ZeroToHero]

Do you happen to remember when the Sept discounts came out for FLRs? We're currently booked with FD, but if they offer a better discount for FLRs I may change. Although as it stands right now (doing the math from last years prices) FD is a much better deal - at least for us.

I think they may have just come out - check the news bar on the top of the front page. Is that what you're talking about?

 

[wildernesslodgelover]

Do you happen to remember when the Sept discounts came out for FLRs? We're currently booked with FD, but if they offer a better discount for FLRs I may change. Although as it stands right now (doing the math from last years prices) FD is a much better deal - at least for us.

You only quoted a portion of my sentence. After the elipses (or whatever those 3 dots are called, LOL) I said that this year it made more sense for us to rent points. We are paying $600 to stay at a studio at the Beach Club Villas (with a kitchenette) for 4 nights. This includes a Saturday night...it would be even cheaper if it was 4 nights during the week! $150 a night for Stormalong Bay plus easy and quick access to Epcot, the Boardwalk, the Swaphin area, free valet parking, pool hopping capabilities....it was all worth it for us.

One night we are dining at Blue Zoo (not on DDP) also.

I have noticed thet the FL res rates are NOT as good as they used to be!

 

[enchantingodin]

I think they may have just come out - check the news bar on the top of the front page. Is that what you're talking about?

You're right - they must've JUST come out. As in today. Because I looked last night before posting my comment and they weren't there. THANKS!

You only quoted a portion of my sentence....

I have noticed thet the FL res rates are NOT as good as they used to be!

That's true. But I was just asking about that one particular portion. I was wondering if you remembered when they came out with discounts for Sept. The rest of the sentence wasn't relevant to the question I was asking - so I didn't quote it.

Basically I'm frustrated that these boards don't have a FLR sub-forum. There are more than a few things that are specific/potentially complicated for us. Like room only discounts and the oh so many different kinds of tickets. I think it'd be nice to have them all in one place so they don't get lost in whatever board they get posted to. I've even PMed a few mods and asked why there wasn't one/offered to mod it myself if no one wanted to - never received any response. So basically I asked you because it was a "OMG another FLR - ask them" moment.


And yes in previous months it has seemed like the FLR rate hasn't been as good as in the past. But it seems that may have been a "season" thing. Whenever I've checked in previous years the FLR rate was the same no matter what day of the week. Then this year they weren't doing discounts on the weekends for FLRs. Which is when most of us go right? But NOW that the new discounts are out for "low" season it looks like they are again offering the same discount price no matter what the day.

Even still - for us FD is the best deal. As I can't feed my family of 4 on 18 bucks (difference between rack and FLR rate at a value) a day at Disney.

 

[wildernesslodgelover]

You're right - they must've JUST come out. As in today. Because I looked last night before posting my comment and they weren't there. THANKS!



That's true. But I was just asking about that one particular portion. I was wondering if you remembered when they came out with discounts for Sept. The rest of the sentence wasn't relevant to the question I was asking - so I didn't quote it.

Basically I'm frustrated that these boards don't have a FLR sub-forum. There are more than a few things that are specific/potentially complicated for us. Like room only discounts and the oh so many different kinds of tickets. I think it'd be nice to have them all in one place so they don't get lost in whatever board they get posted to. I've even PMed a few mods and asked why there wasn't one/offered to mod it myself if no one wanted to - never received any response. So basically I asked you because it was a "OMG another FLR - ask them" moment.


And yes in previous months it has seemed like the FLR rate hasn't been as good as in the past. But it seems that may have been a "season" thing. Whenever I've checked in previous years the FLR rate was the same no matter what day of the week. Then this year they weren't doing discounts on the weekends for FLRs. Which is when most of us go right? But NOW that the new discounts are out for "low" season it looks like they are again offering the same discount price no matter what the day.

Even still - for us FD is the best deal. As I can't feed my family of 4 on 18 bucks (difference between rack and FLR rate at a value) a day at Disney.

Wow, a fellow FLR *and* a fellow insomniac!! Nice to meet you!

Honestly, I did not even look into FLR rates this year. I knew I was going to rent points a long time ago. We got REALLY spoiled staying at deluxes for such a small amount of money. And we always have a FLR seasonal pass so I never pay attention to ticketing prices! Our SPs will expire at the end of this month. What we do is we do not renew until the next fall. Our fall trip is our annual "big trip". In the meantime, we will go to WDW perhaps once or twice throught the winter..maybe go to a MVMCP in early December, then maybe TL or BB in the early spring. We spend time at DTD, resort hopping etc. We ALWAYS stay on site.

I will renew my SP in Oct 2010 at that year's annual fall trip, then use that same SP in Sept 2011 before SP expires.

ETA: Do you have the DDE card? It is soooo worth it. Especially if you like cocktails! You get 20% off those, too!

We have stayed at the Dolphin several times using their FL res rate and we LOVE that place. Check it out!

 

[Yarna]

WooHoo!! Just booked our next trip for Oct 31 - Nov 8 using a free dining pin that I received. Definitely looking forward to eating my way through Disney while Mickey picks up the tab.