No "free dinning" rumor

[Lee]

To be honest I don't see the quality of the food changing if Disney stop the free dining plan, most things arnt the same quality it used to be and it's all down to money.
Free dining is an incentive to get people to come more often or to a resort they normally wouldn't consider due to price so in a way it's not really free as it's bringing in more customers for Disney and we are probably paying for it through other ways too. We all just like to think we are getting a bargain.
If the dining was to stop then the food quality would probably still be the same as companies are always looking for ways to save money and that's why the quality drops

Sadly there is much truth to that.
Now that guests have become accustomed to a lower level of quality (as a result if the dining plans), why would Disney ever feel the need to increase the quality back to the levels of, say, 10 years ago?
They would have no reason to, unless guests complained or stopped eating.

Disney dining is different than any "real world" example because of how the guests are somewhat of a captive audience. Even with poor quality, guests would still eat in the parks rather than go elsewhere.

 

[Ex-Floridian]

Free Dining = no room discount

Unless you eat, eat, eat...the dining plan actually makes you eat more to get your money's worth...I will take the historical room discount rates!!!!:

 

[Brian Noble]

then the restaurants would be back in competition with each other again.

But, you have to eat *somewhere*, and nearly all of the restaurants within the confines of RCID are owned by Disney. They aren't going to compete with themselves---the competition is the few outside operators (and escalating rents can put a thumb on those scales) or restaurants "outside the bubble". It will take a lot for the average guest to pack up his family from the middle of the Magic Kingdom and drive out to Dr. Phillips for dinner, even though the restaurants up there are generally a distinct improvement. Most everything closer to "the bubble" is chain restaurant hell---cheaper than WDW, but no better, and often worse.

Or, what Lee said:

Disney dining is different than any "real world" example because of how the guests are somewhat of a captive audience. Even with poor quality, guests would still eat in the parks rather than go elsewhere.

 

[audiotinker]

I think a lot of the dumbing down of the menus that people blame on the dining plan should just be blamed on the park guests in general. Too many park visitors with unadventurous tastes. It just makes financial sense to cater to the masses. If they have something a bit outside of the comfort zone on the menu they may please a few people, but if hardly anyone orders that item, or most of it goes into the garbage, then it makes financial sense to not have it on the menu.

Wow, I completely agree with you. Me and my husband are very adventurous eaters, but my family is not at all. We've eaten at probably half or more of the restaurants in the parks in the 14 years we've been going and there are some places that are still virtually untouched by this issue, thank goodness. But the McDonalds syndrome that is going on a the parks makes me insane. A lot of the counter services are the same same same. It's so boring and cafeteria like. Granted, feeding to the masses is costly, but I wish they would stop forcing me to eat mushy french fries and dried up veggie burgers when what I really want is GOOD french fries and a delicious juicy veggie burger. I can go to 5 guys, even Burger King, and get better. There's no excuse for crappy food like that. I think though people (including me, I admit) have an expectation if you're going to Disney you are going to be eating super high quality meals. Oh well. My family would be happy with soup and salad for every meal. For me, that just doesn't do it. I can't imagine it would cost that much more to up the quality a bit.

 

[bugsbunny]

Sadly there is much truth to that.
Now that guests have become accustomed to a lower level of quality (as a result if the dining plans), why would Disney ever feel the need to increase the quality back to the levels of, say, 10 years ago?
They would have no reason to, unless guests complained or stopped eating.

Disney dining is different than any "real world" example because of how the guests are somewhat of a captive audience. Even with poor quality, guests would still eat in the parks rather than go elsewhere.

Spot on. When you stay on property and rely on the buses, which 90% of guests do, you have no choice and take what you got. Stuck the "free" label on it and now its a "perk". I've done the math and have paid rack rate discounts vs. free ddp. In the end, there is such a diminished value since is been watered down in quality, as you pointed out. Disneys key to making money is keeping you on property with no choices.

I now star in an All Star Vacation home. Closer to most of the parks then hotels on the property, eat breakfast in saving big $$$ each day, and no prisoner to Nescafe! Its about break even, but thats comparing all my meals out of pocket and a 3500 sq ft house to a Moderate and free ddp.

 

[murphysmom]

Comparing a stay at the Beach Club to a stay at a Value Resort is like comparing a stay at the EconoLodge to a Grand Hyatt. Not really apples to apples.

So yes, if we're comparing buying a snack box on the plane in coach to getting free drinks and meals in first class as cheaper/better deal I suppose it is.

The question is, is a 35-40% off room code at the Beach Club a better/worse deal than rack rate plus free dining at the Beach Club (or any deluxe resort)?

In this scenario, would a room discount at value plus paying for dining have been cheaper than no discount at a value and upgrading to full dining (since values only come with free counter dining)?

When it comes to what is a better deal, it is all perception. I had stayed at both the Beach Club and Music resorts before, and had no problems at all switching my reservation from the Beach Club to the Music. For me getting free dining at the Music was a much better deal than the discounted room at the Beach Club and still having to pay for all of my food.

But then, I think the Beach Club is waaaaay over-rated as a resort. Sucky food options (unless you walk out onto the boardwalk) horrible bus transportation, and a gorgeous waterpark pool that they shut down completely at night. Imho, the only thing the Beach Club has going for it is location.

The Disney deluxe resorts would not be considered deluxe anywhere else in the world. The biggest thing they have going for them is location. Anyone who holds them up as The Standard for resorts is a little delusional. They are not all that and a bag of chips.

 

[flavious27]

This GIF applies to many threads on the board right now.

I'll stick to my water bottle and kid meal strategy! :lol:

I drop this sometimes,

I understand that because my family really depends on the FreeDDP promo as well but when it is all said and done if we do not get it then it is not a deal breaker. We LOVE having it but if we don't get it then we still, usually, end up with another discount that saves nearly $500 or $600 off the trip. That makes the difference between the FreeDDP and the other discount about $600 for us. And $600 is not something that we would put off a Disney trip for. I'm pretty sure most families would agree. If the loss a $600 in a discount is a deal breaker for the family then they probably are too strapped financially to even be going to Disney.

Or it could be if you are comparing going somewhere else or another time of the year. And a $600 discount could mean staying at say riverside vs wilderness lodge.

I think a lot of the dumbing down of the menus that people blame on the dining plan should just be blamed on the park guests in general. Too many park visitors with unadventurous tastes. It just makes financial sense to cater to the masses. If they have something a bit outside of the comfort zone on the menu they may please a few people, but if hardly anyone orders that item, or most of it goes into the garbage, then it makes financial sense to not have it on the menu.

This is apparent with many different menus. I went to akershus before they switched it to a princess character and the menu did not appeal to me, it was too foreign. Now only the cold buffet bar is the only thing that is close to being Norwegian.

If Free Dining stopped then the restaurants would be back in competition with each other again. They would have to earn our respect again. It would go back to supply and demand and as such quality would have to increase.

Restaurants that serve ty food do not stay in business while those that balance quality with profits succeed.

Why would they compete, they are owned by the same company. Also they get so busy, there is no incentive to try. Along with that, disney is not going to be increasing the size of more popular restaurants. Really if managers were competing, free dinning evens the field because every meal costs the same and customers are going to where they can get the best meal. This is why Le Cellier is so popular.

 

[satchamo]

The money saved on free dining is better only if you stay in a value or mod. If you stay in a a deluxe, the room discount is a better deal-I crunched the numbers the last two times we went and had Disney do the same-everybody came to the same conclusion

This is not true, actually. We've crunched the numbers, and for my wife and I free dining saves us substantially more than any discount we've seen on room rates. *I should add, though, that we typically stay in value resorts. Perhaps a 25-35% discount on a deluxe changes things a lot. But for our situation, and Im guessing the person you replied to, it's not close.

 

[Master Yoda]

The money saved on free dining is better only if you stay in a value or mod. If you stay in a a deluxe, the room discount is a better deal-I crunched the numbers the last two times we went and had Disney do the same-everybody came to the same conclusion

While that is true most of the time it is not true all of the time. I had a party of 8, all over the age of 9, staying in one of the treehouses and free dining was a better deal than the room discount. The same was true for a family of 5 with everyone over the age of 9 at AKL.

 

[G00fyDad]

The back and forth about this whole situation is actually kind of moot. You should always, every time you visit, crunch the numbers to see exactly what discount is best for you. The only person being an idiot here is the one that blindly takes a discount because someone else says it is always the best without comparing it to all other discounts available. :hammer: