"Free" DDP ???

[ExtinctJenn]

I'm completely and totally confused on the comments I always see that when you use a free dining pin you're paying more for your room. We just booked our trip for December with a free dining pin and it was actually cheaper then when I built the exact same package without dining and without the pin. I don't have the numbers in front of me but I built out a package online with room and tickets only to get an idea of what my trip would cost (figuring I'd be adding in dining when I booked but it'd be free so the price should be the sameish). Once we decided on what we wanted I called to book it using my pin and the same package actually came out to be slightly under $200 cheaper in total somehow. I'd love someone to tell me how that equates to the room price per night being more with the free dining put into the package because I'm totally lost.

 

[ExtinctJenn]

Duplicate post sorry

 

[mickeysbrother]

All in all disney is making the money back from having more people spending money in the world on drinks snacks and meals that are out of pocket. Not to mention all the clothes toys park passes glow sticks etc etc being spent. Hey if september wasnt free would i still go? Of coarse. But it comes down to repeat customers and the should i go yes or no customers. They just want you in the park to spend money during the low season. If there was no free dining there still would be people in the parks but not as much as they get when free dining is in affect. That's my 2 sense from a company point of view. Would you rather have 50% busy or 90% busy but give them free meals? You know they are going to spend more money now because they saved on food.

 

[Dad 2 M & M]

I'm completely and totally confused on the comments I always see that when you use a free dining pin you're paying more for your room. We just booked our trip for December with a free dining pin and it was actually cheaper then when I built the exact same package without dining and without the pin. I don't have the numbers in front of me but I built out a package online with room and tickets only to get an idea of what my trip would cost (figuring I'd be adding in dining when I booked but it'd be free so the price should be the sameish). Once we decided on what we wanted I called to book it using my pin and the same package actually came out to be slightly under $200 cheaper in total somehow. I'd love someone to tell me how that equates to the room price per night being more with the free dining put into the package because I'm totally lost.

Those peeps are saying if you get "free dining", you will have to pay full price (no discount) for the room. Most peeps book their package and receive some sort of discount on the room rate(s). I think (and am sure I will be corrected) they are saying you can get a room discount, PAY for dining, and come out the same as free dining and paying full price for the room.

I can tell you this:

Last December it WAS just under $400 Cheaper to use the Free Dining Promo than the Room discount Promo; all else in the package equal.
6 days/ 7 nights, Pop Century, DDP, Park Hopper, etc.....identical benes, but cheaper when booked with FRee Dining vs. Room Discount.

Now that was comparing two different discount offers.....and couldn't tell you what happens when considering pins....

 

[Dad 2 M & M]

To each there own. Plenty of world class dining in Orlando.

The dining is part of the experience for me (though, in the past few trips, I've noticed it's not what it used to be at WDW...and that is further pushing me off property...)

In fact, the past 4 years I've noticed a decline at WDW...I'm not the first to notice it, and I surely won't be the last...
I will add, I've NEVER had a meal at WDW at a TS that I couldn't eat because it was so bad...or that I thought wasn't worth the money...until the past trip.

Agreed.We used to regularly go to 2 of the restaraunts at WS for T/S meals and now don't go back as quality seems to have declined.All in though we are not big T/S eaters so DDP probably wouldn't work for us (plus we eat outside the world at least 4-5 days per trip minimum )

I will add the QS is really suffering too....while the expectation is lower for these joints, it is hard to miss their decline as well....I say this because we recently dropped from Deluxe back to the DDP, hoping to enjoy those QS places we have ignored for a few years....oops

 

[RandomPrincess]

While FD can save you money Disney is still making plenty of money off of you. So it just goes to show how over priced the rooms, tickets and food really are. We are saving quite a bit with our Free Dining compared to no discount but I'm under no illusion that Disney isn't still making lots of money off of us before we set foot into the parks

 

[flynnibus]

I don't have the numbers in front of me but I built out a package online with room and tickets only to get an idea of what my trip would cost (figuring I'd be adding in dining when I booked but it'd be free so the price should be the sameish). Once we decided on what we wanted I called to book it using my pin and the same package actually came out to be slightly under $200 cheaper in total somehow. I'd love someone to tell me how that equates to the room price per night being more with the free dining put into the package because I'm totally lost.

Are you sure it was a true apples to apples?

Generally speaking the trade-off is a room discount... vs free dining w/o a room discount. Which is better for you then will depend on the rate for your room (30% off more is.. well.. more dollars) and the size of your party. The more people in your group, the more discount in dollars there is in free dining.

So the bigger the party, or cheaper the room... free dining tends to be the bigger discount. For a couple... staying in a deluxe... a high value discount tends to be a cheaper alternative.

And lastly the third category... if DDP doesn't favor the way you vacation, having a 'better deal' on something you wouldn't have bought otherwise... isn't always a better deal.

Adding to the complexity... the varying forms of DDP, and tied to the tiers of resorts in the promos further muddies the generalized comparisons.

 

[lilclerk]

I'd love someone to tell me how that equates to the room price per night being more with the free dining put into the package because I'm totally lost.

The free dining package should be the same price as the room/tickets alone. It could be the two quotes had different ticket options, or different room categories that caused the difference.

Last December it WAS just under $400 Cheaper to use the Free Dining Promo than the Room discount Promo; all else in the package equal.
6 days/ 7 nights, Pop Century, DDP, Park Hopper, etc.....identical benes, but cheaper when booked with FRee Dining vs. Room Discount.

As far as I can tell, free dining tends to work better at the values, while room discounts work better at the moderates and especially the deluxes. Of course, this depends on how many people are in your room, and the percentage offered off the hotel. This is why you always have to do the math when there's more than one discount offered.

 

[IWantMyMagicBand]

1 - It gets people to pay Disney's full rack rate...

We're staying OKW with 35% discount, free DDP, and a $200 gift card.
My dad owns a 3 bedroom property at Bahama Bay, near AK. Have we stayed there, even with it's bigger room and it being free to us? No we haven't. Because I costed the trip out to the penny/cent, even included petrol, and seeing as my kids love meeting characters, and I hate queuing for them, we do most of the character meals. Can I afford to if I don't do Dining Plan? NO.
Even with getting a couple of cabs to Uni/shopping and paying out of pocket for food those days. We bank the credits to use at CRT and Spirit of Aloha.

 

[IWantMyMagicBand]

Also (sorry if it's been said already) I think a lot of people don't manage to fit in all the meals.

We actually have the problem with the snack credits. We had about 15 left on our last day. Luckily I spotted the Goofy Unicorn candy lollipops that come in 6s. Managed to do the whole of my daughters class and take home a few Krispie cakes. Next time I know exactly how to work it properly.
But being British we know how to penny pinch and the first time when I had all the credits left, there was no way I was leaving with anything more than 0 on my receipt!

 

[JIMINYCR]

1 - It gets people to pay Disney's full rack rate...
2 - The food is industrialized as the locations narrow their menus and choices...
3 - The lure of the program is to attract guests into booking. The trade off of the rates paid help subsidize the loss leader of offering free DDP.

And once you get the guest onto the property locked in for a specific amount of time they will spend more money on other things... multiple souvenirs, tours, mini golf, liquor,extras which $$$ cost etc. And once on property how many will decide to book a DVC, or bounce back trip. AND not everyone eats every snack, every meal offered so they also make out when guests have the freebie but dont use it all. So it pays to give a little to get a lot more that they otherwise would be missing out on.

 

[flynnibus]

We're staying OKW with 35% discount, free DDP, and a $200 gift card.

Your scenario is atypical. I don't know all the details of your booking, but in general... DDP is offered in lieu of room discounts.

But OKW is a DVC property to start off with.. so how one computes a 35% discount/etc is convoluted to say the least.

 

[lilclerk]

Your scenario is atypical. I don't know all the details of your booking, but in general... DDP is offered in lieu of room discounts.

But OKW is a DVC property to start off with.. so how one computes a 35% discount/etc is convoluted to say the least.

I think it's common for UK guests to get a % off the room along with free dining at SSR or OKW. They get the % off the rack room rate, you can pay cash for DVC rooms too.

 

[IWantMyMagicBand]

I think it's common for UK guests to get a % off the room along with free dining at SSR or OKW. They get the % off the rack room rate, you can pay cash for DVC rooms too.

Yes, exactly that. We are offered 35% off SSR or OKW as a resort property. We are not DVC owners. We get the DDP, 35% discount, $200 gift card, 14 day park hopper for the price of 7 days, as well as a coupon book that gives us preferential viewing for Wishes and Illuminations, discounts at Downtown Disney and free gifts.
But bear in mind that for us to visit Disney, for a two week holiday, is costing us £12,000. And Brits spend a lot on souvenirs, especially ear hats and clothing!

 

[Nero the dog]

Yes, exactly that. We are offered 35% off SSR or OKW as a resort property. We are not DVC owners. We get the DDP, 35% discount, $200 gift card, 14 day park hopper for the price of 7 days, as well as a coupon book that gives us preferential viewing for Wishes and Illuminations, discounts at Downtown Disney and free gifts.
But bear in mind that for us to visit Disney, for a two week holiday, is costing us £12,000. And Brits spend a lot on souvenirs, especially ear hats and clothing!

Don't forget free mini golf and free rounds of golf at the oak trail course. I have a morning set aside for a round this year.

 

[flynnibus]

I think it's common for UK guests to get a % off the room along with free dining at SSR or OKW. They get the % off the rack room rate, you can pay cash for DVC rooms too.

Yeah, I know you can cash rental the rooms.. but its all kind of smoke and mirrors anyways IMO. The cash rate for those rooms are obscene.. for most dates.. $350-400+ for a studio that only sleeps 4... doesn't have housekeeping, limited amenities, requires a BUS to get around the property itself, mediocre location, etc. OKW cash rates are basically on par with the contemporary's garden wing.. and the contemp trumps OKW every which way to sunday sans the kitchenette.

Points rate for a studio mid nov.. 78/week @ 13/pt = 1024 or $144 a night.

Rack rate is $350/night for the same period.. or $2450

Is someone really getting a discount when offered 35% ? No, they are just about getting the room rates back to reasonable.

That's why I say the DVC angle just mucks the whole thing up. Thinking a discount off their cash rate is a deal is just getting scammed. It's only when they start throwing in things you can't get normally with renting (like free dining or the UK ticketing deals) that things even start to approach worth considering.

 

[IWantMyMagicBand]

Yeah, I know you can cash rental the rooms.. but its all kind of smoke and mirrors anyways IMO. The cash rate for those rooms are obscene.. for most dates.. $350-400+ for a studio that only sleeps 4... doesn't have housekeeping, limited amenities, requires a BUS to get around the property itself, mediocre location, etc. OKW cash rates are basically on par with the contemporary's garden wing.. and the contemp trumps OKW every which way to sunday sans the kitchenette.

Points rate for a studio mid nov.. 78/week @ 13/pt = 1024 or $144 a night.

Rack rate is $350/night for the same period.. or $2450

Is someone really getting a discount when offered 35% ? No, they are just about getting the room rates back to reasonable.

That's why I say the DVC angle just mucks the whole thing up. Thinking a discount off their cash rate is a deal is just getting scammed. It's only when they start throwing in things you can't get normally with renting (like free dining or the UK ticketing deals) that things even start to approach worth considering.

Us Brits can book it as a hotel, it's in the hotel brochures. We never even knew about DVC before we saw the kiosk in Epcot.
It IS a good deal. We need a 2 bed apartment. There are 6 of us, and I like the home-from-home setting. I request buildings close to the Hospitality House and my request has always been granted. As I said before my dad owns a property 10 mins from Disney that fits our sleeping needs and we get it for free, yet it is still cheaper after adding in other costs like transport, parking, to stay onsite. Staying at OKW is cheaper than my dad's free property, renting a villa etc.

 

[IWantMyMagicBand]

Don't forget free mini golf and free rounds of golf at the oak trail course. I have a morning set aside for a round this year.

Yes, I forgot that. My hubby and dad go off to enjoy their free golf while I enjoy my free breakfast at Olivia's with the kids Then we can all go to Winter for the mini-golf

 

[IWantMyMagicBand]

doesn't have housekeeping,

We get Mousekeeping everyday

 

[flynnibus]

Us Brits can book it as a hotel, it's in the hotel brochures. We never even knew about DVC before we saw the kiosk in Epcot.
It IS a good deal. We need a 2 bed apartment. There are 6 of us, and I like the home-from-home setting. I request buildings close to the Hospitality House and my request has always been granted. As I said before my dad owns a property 10 mins from Disney that fits our sleeping needs and we get it for free, yet it is still cheaper after adding in other costs like transport, parking, to stay onsite. Staying at OKW is cheaper than my dad's free property, renting a villa etc.

In your case you are wrapping in other promos, like the UK ticket offers in your justification. I'm sure your PACKAGE as a whole when wound together works for you.. but not as individual pieces. As I said in my other post "when they start throwing in things you can't get normally with renting (like free dining or the UK ticketing deals) that things even start to approach worth considering"

 

[Dad 2 M & M]

The free dining package should be the same price as the room/tickets alone. It could be the two quotes had different ticket options, or different room categories that caused the difference.



As far as I can tell, free dining tends to work better at the values, while room discounts work better at the moderates and especially the deluxes. Of course, this depends on how many people are in your room, and the percentage offered off the hotel. This is why you always have to do the math when there's more than one discount offered.

Now that you mention it, we ran prices on the mods as well. The room discount was the better deal for the mods.
We always stay at the Values, and have yet to find a price low enough to pry us loose/get us to upgrade....bed, shower and toilet; room is nothing more to us.