Special Package Offer 8/26/07 – 9/22/07 [Merged Threads]

[flying carpet]

BOOOOO

We are going for a week in September and staying at the Grand Floridian and was hoping that they would not do this so the parks would be quiet!

Rats oh well hopefully the place is not real crowded.

Mike

[MidwestMulan]

Hi All!

Can you substitute a counter service meal in lieu of one of your sit down meals? We will be traveling with a 2 yr. old, so there may be days where even 1 sit down meal won't happen.
Also, we already booked and got a AAA room only discount rate. My husband thinks the meal plan will be too much hassle and confusion, so doesn't want to do it... any thoughts?

Thanks!

[Sean Riley Taylor's Mom]

BOOOOO

We are going for a week in September and staying at the Grand Floridian and was hoping that they would not do this so the parks would be quiet!

Rats oh well hopefully the place is not real crowded.

Mike

I feel the same way.
(Sorry guys, I know it is a wonderful deal for everyone, I used it the past two years, its just now that we joined DVC and are using points this year we can't use Free Dining).

To make you feel a little better. We have been going in September for years and the crowds in the parks are still low. The restaurants are busy but the lines are still very short.

We are hoping that it will be the same this year!! We will be there the 14th-22nd.

[Wells]

This is a great deal!...We went last year during this promotion and had a wonderful time. But be forewarned, the lines at the restruants will be longer than the lines for any of the rides..book those ADR's as early as you can!

[karenrarintogo]

I recently got off the phone after making my Sept. reservations with free dining. I was "on hold" at least 30 min. before I was able to talk to a reservations cast member, so they are BUSY. We'll be staying at Pop Century.
We're all set now, as I did our ADR's this past weekend and purchased our plane tickets yesterday.
Now the 5 month + wait!

[Wells]

Hi All!

Can you substitute a counter service meal in lieu of one of your sit down meals? We will be traveling with a 2 yr. old, so there may be days where even 1 sit down meal won't happen.
Also, we already booked and got a AAA room only discount rate. My husband thinks the meal plan will be too much hassle and confusion, so doesn't want to do it... any thoughts?

Thanks!

Yes you can use a TS credit for CS, but not the other way around...and just a suggestion from someone who had free dining last year, IMNOHO, you are better off using your TS credits for signature dining (two TS credits) and keeping a more open schedule. There were some attractions that we had to forego due to having to be somewhere for an ADR every day, usually at some odd time due to the avaiability of ADR's. Besides, TS,CS and a snack is a heck of a lot of food every day!

[KODABEAR]

Thanks MJ!! Planning another great week at WDW in Sept. Eatting and shopping while DH and DS golf!! No problem getting ADR'S right now. MJ + free dining= no hassle!!

[Jeff G]

I just found out about the free dining plan for packages from August 26 through September 22. I have already booked the package (almost a month ago) using my Disney Visa. My questions are— 1. our trip starts on the September 22, so would I be included? and 2. does anyone know if they will upgrade packages that have already been booked (if I would be included)? Any help is greatly appreciated.

To answer your questions:

1. Becasue you are checking in on the 22nd which is a valid day for this promotion it will carry over for the rest of your trip(up to 10 days).

2. You shuld be able to call and convert the current reservation you have to the promotion by calling and mentioning the discount code and since you used your Disney Visa you can do that today.

Good Luck!

[MMouse6937]

WOO HOO

Just got my email from Debbie at MJs...that was fantastic!! So nice to not have to worry about it, just know that they have taken care of it! I'm also glad I got all my ADRs done.

Also, to those of you that are worried about the parks being busier because of the free dining, we have been there before it was offered (free or otherwise) and when it was offered for free. I didn't feel that the parks were that busy, or that the ride waits were any longer than we had experienced before. Of course the sit down restaurants were busier, but that's why we planned ahead for our ADRs. Sure, you will have people that will just go in Sept because of the free dining offer, but I don't think those people will make a significant difference in crowds.

It finally feels real!! We are going to WDW!! YEA!!!

[BMan62]

I'm glad someone has the information on this. I went out to my Chase Disney Visa account and there is no mention of any offers at this time. I double checked it at 11am and it still shows --

"We were unable to complete your request at this time. There are no offers available for your account at this time. For more information, please contact Customer Service. Customer Service support is available 7 days a week, 24 hours per day."

[Lily]

That Disney Visa offer page at Chase has been messed up for awhile. I doubt it will reflect the offer any time soon.

Good thing there's Intercot to keep us informed!

[DisneyCouple07]

Thanks Jeff, I'll be calling it in on my lunch break.

[mjaclyn]

I'd take a large villa with points over free dining any day.

I agree - DH and I booked our September WDW vacation about a month ago and rented points to stay at BCV. We're getting AP's and the DDP - I just looked at what it would have cost for us to do this with the free dining and by using points we're saving over $1000 even though we're paying for the DDP. I think the Free Dining Package makes more sense if you're going to be staying at a value or moderate resort. Paying rack rates for the Deluxe Resorts is SO expensive!!

[sleepingbooty]

I just wanted to say thanks to Jean at Magical Journeys! For the third year in a row, she was able to get us the free dining special, and we didn't have to do a thing. When I woke up this morning at 7:00, there was already an email from her saying the special came out this morning and she'd already converted my reservation. How's that for customer service!
Three cheers for Magical Journeys! Hip Hip Hooray!

[Lucille]

Although DH and I have taken advantage of this offer for the past few years, we won't be able to this year.

We had such a good time - I hope it works out for all of you!!!

[bigpapiortiz34]

1. Becasue you are checking in on the 22nd which is a valid day for this promotion it will carry over for the rest of your trip(up to 10 days).

What about doing the same thing on the other end. School starts on the 28th, and the promotion starts on the 26th. What if our reservation ends on the 26th (or 27th) but starts on say the 22nd? Do we still get to take advantage of the deal?

Its either going to be returning to Disney (for the 164th time) for the free dining, or a lavish trip to Europe. Undecided at this point, but being excluded from the free dining would make that decision a lot easier.

[Lucille]

Although DH and I have taken advantage of this offer for the past few years, we won't be able to this year.

We had such a good time - I hope it works out for all of you!!!

[disneyfan369]

What about doing the same thing on the other end. School starts on the 28th, and the promotion starts on the 26th. What if our reservation ends on the 26th (or 27th) but starts on say the 22nd? Do we still get to take advantage of the deal?

No, you don't. I wondered the same thing (we're leaving three days after the promotion starts), but I was told that it's only valid for people who arrive on or after August 26th. You can make two different reservations to take advantage of the free dining, if you wanted. But it seems a bit complicated for only a day or two.

[Carol]

You can make two different reservations to take advantage of the free dining, if you wanted. But it seems a bit complicated for only a day or two.

Plus the the promotion is only valid for vacations of 3-nights or longer.

[Here we go again...]

BOOOOO

We are going for a week in September and staying at the Grand Floridian and was hoping that they would not do this so the parks would be quiet!

Rats oh well hopefully the place is not real crowded.

Mike

We went last year during the free dining and we were quite surprised to see that the parks were not nearly as busy as I expected them to be. There was an increase in the crowd, but not anything that made us feel like it was a mistake to go at that time of the year.

I recently got off the phone after making my Sept. reservations with free dining. I was "on hold" at least 30 min. before I was able to talk to a reservations cast member, so they are BUSY. We'll be staying at Pop Century.
We're all set now, as I did our ADR's this past weekend and purchased our plane tickets yesterday.
Now the 5 month + wait!

You might want to consider Magical Journeys for your next trip. All you do is email them with the information and they do all the phone work. You get the same exact prices as you would if you call Disney yourself, thier commission is paid by Disney. All of the people that work for MJ are absolutely wonderful.