I hate Free Dining!!!!

[maddmike]

I too absolutle hate free dining. Its not because we are not included because we are dvc members either. Restuarants are crowded and reservations are hard to get. There is hardly any chance at all for a last minute res. You have to go with what you got at the 90 day mark if you were even able to get what you wanted then. I think in the long run disney will lose many customers with free dining. We are looking to eat off site more and more and I don't see us coming back to disney restuarants in the future. I doubt we are the only ones.

 

[MyTwoPrincesses]

I too absolutle hate free dining. Its not because we are not included because we are dvc members either. Restuarants are crowded and reservations are hard to get. There is hardly any chance at all for a last minute res. You have to go with what you got at the 90 day mark if you were even able to get what you wanted then. I think in the long run disney will lose many customers with free dining. We are looking to eat off site more and more and I don't see us coming back to disney restuarants in the future. I doubt we are the only ones.

I wonder if I'm an exception. I booked my Free Dining vacation less than 100 days out. Called in the AM of my 90 day mark (at about 8:30) and I got everything I wanted at the time I wanted. Only issue I had was that I wanted Ohana at 6:30 and I ended up with 5:30. Then, I started reading DIS and changed my reservations about a million times and I've been able to get most of what I want on the day I want and everything I want if I am flexible with time. I really think people need to lighten up. It's *just* food.

 

[chrisgeraci]

It is "just" food, but if you have annual celebrations it takes on a new meaning. We only made three ADRs but they all mattered to us in some way. Most of the time we eat what we get at the store. Different strokes for different folks.

I do think persistency is the key with ADRs.

 

[keishashadow]

I too absolutle hate free dining. Its not because we are not included because we are dvc members either. Restuarants are crowded and reservations are hard to get. There is hardly any chance at all for a last minute res. You have to go with what you got at the 90 day mark if you were even able to get what you wanted then. I think in the long run disney will lose many customers with free dining. We are looking to eat off site more and more and I don't see us coming back to disney restuarants in the future. I doubt we are the only ones.

probably not, know many DVC members do lots of cooking in the villas or eat offsite to save a few $s, not me...im on vacation

i cancelled a cruise to book free dining offermany DVC members do both types of trips (DVC & resort stays - especially when such a great deal is rolled out).

imo once the ADR window is rolled back, many DVCers (along with those who book their resort ressies far in advance) will be the ones with the advantage over those who wait for promos to book.

 

[copperbrick]

I wonder if I'm an exception. I booked my Free Dining vacation less than 100 days out. Called in the AM of my 90 day mark (at about 8:30) and I got everything I wanted at the time I wanted. Only issue I had was that I wanted Ohana at 6:30 and I ended up with 5:30. Then, I started reading DIS and changed my reservations about a million times and I've been able to get most of what I want on the day I want and everything I want if I am flexible with time. I really think people need to lighten up. It's *just* food.

I have changed ressies a number of times as well, and I was able to get what I wanted when I called 90+10. My experience with Disney Dining has always been excellent.

However, for me it isn't "just food." I admire anyone who can feel that way! Very cool.

I saw somewhere the quotation " Food IS a theme park" or something along those lines, and it sums up my feelings perfectly. For me, it's all about the food. I spend at at least three times more doing food planning than lodging, attractions.

Granted, some of that could be because I'm familiar with the attractions at Disney, but it really wouldn't matter . . . it's all about the food!

I have such a heartfelt hope that the original poster here finds the reservations wanted. I can totally relate! I'm saying a prayer that at the end of this post willl be a note that all ended well.

In the meantime, I will say again (see post 18 on this thread for details): CALL AND SPEAK WITH DISNEY PERSONALLY. How can they know there are issues if there aren't voices to give feedback?

If enough people call or write Disney will listen. It is in their best interest to care.

Hoping for a happy ending here.

 

[chrisgeraci]

I do hope that they balance it out a little more fairly. We are DVC and do breakfast and sometimes lunch in our room, but for dinner we like to try different restaurants and some dining just an annual thing. If you can call first thing in the AM I think it's less busy. I've had good luck midday. I think it is luck of the draw.

Maybe Disney should let DVC and non-dining plan folks do ADRs 90 days out and dining plan/free dining 60 days out. Or for the fine dining, charge more dining credits to balance it out more. Who knows why they do what they do; obviously they're on to something since we go back every year!

 

[cwcooper810]

I only tried for a couple since were on the quickservice dining plan, but i wanted to do the safari breakfast since Donald is my favorite character and "CRT" because I would love to take my gf to eat inside the castle on her 1st trip. I wanted both before park opening and got both in the 1st week of december at 8:20 am the online adr system helps so much

 

[njb1148]

For the OP and others having problems, I had problems as well for our upcoming Thanksgiving trip. Up early at my 90 day mark and got many of the ADRs I wanted, but could not get some others, especially 1900 Park Fair. I called twice a day and was on line twice a day and nothing in that restaurant was open all week for any meal.
Finally, I thought well if 1900 is booked maybe CRT would be open. So I went on line and put in the information to see what was open at CRT and one of the options that came up was 1900 for the date and time I wanted.
Bottom line, be sure to look at the alternatives they list on line, I ended up finding many 1900 dates and times open and have what we wanted in the first place and was told it was completely booked.
By all means, keep calling and going on line to try. Also to the OP, as another post said, make some ADRs. You may not get your first choices, but it would be even worse to not have anything but CS meals when you are there. Hang in there.

 

[Jen_in_NH]

I called this morning at my 90 day mark (admittedly, not at 7am. I'm not quite that motivated on a holiday ) We did get Chef Mickey's for breakfast on the day we wanted, but it's at 7:25. Good thing we're morning people! Also got the Candlelight Processional package for the day we wanted, at teh restaurant we wanted (Biergarten, so probably not as packed as others), and a decent time. I could not get Le Cellier for my parents any time during the week before 9pm.I also could not get Ohana for many nights before 8:45.

Oh well - not the end of our trip, that's for sure!

Jen

 

[LoraJ]

Not only do I hate free dining, but I hate the dining plan period. I hate having to make reservations so far in advance. I get set on something on a menu and then as the date gets closer the menu changes. bah humbug. I feel bad for kids who want to eat a pulled pork sandwich at Flame Tree or ribs but are told since they are on the dining plan they have to eat a hot dog or drumstick. And then that just holds up the line for the rest of us.

bah humbug!

 

[MichaelColey]

One big key: Make sure the popular ones are 6-14 days into your trip and the really popular ones are 10-14 days into your trip. If you're at 90+10, there's tons of availability. If you're only at 90, all those who booked at 90+10, 90+9, ... 90+2, and 90+1 had an earlier shot at it.

That is well and good for guests staying that long but considering the average Disney world Vacation is less than a week, the system does not work them.

How were you able to book past 10 days, did you have to call back and book again for the days after 10?

Good point. It does give an advantage to those of us who stay longer. (And we actually already have a huge advantage - after the first 4 days, each additional day costs less than $100, so that second week costs less than half as much as the first!)

I was able to book the first 10 (or 11?) days on the first call (90 days prior) and had to call back the next few days to get the final few. FWIW, I never called at 7am, and never had a wait more than a few minutes.

It is "just" food

JUST food? Food makes the trip for us. (Well, that and seeing the look on the kids' faces.)

I'm the type of guy who plans our vacations around food. "Okay, we'll be in Chicago so we have to have Chicago style pizza, Chicago style hot dogs, etc."

 

[carole2233]

Sometimes it happens. You'd better check carefully about the details.

 

[CAJUNWDWFAN]

Yes... tried that while I was on hold for 30 minutes!


2nd week in December.... looking for multiple ressies including HDDR (NOTHING available all week?!?!) 50's PT, Ohana, CP, Chef Mickeys.... UGH!!!

Try different times and different restaruants. You are picking all the most popular places.

 

[copperbrick]

I'm the type of guy who plans our vacations around food. "Okay, we'll be in Chicago so we have to have Chicago style pizza, Chicago style hot dogs, etc."

I'm with you! Food is life.

 

[HeatherBelle614]

Didn't have time to read everything..

But I did have to say that we love FD; we were up and online when the system opened on our 90 day.

We had to be flexible with times and switch a couple mornings, but we got everything we wanted. You have to go in very open-minded and not dead-set on getting everything perfect. Your vacation isn't going to be perfect anyway; if you expect it to be, you're going to be disappointed when something (and sometime, at least minor, happens on every vacation) goes wrong.

As others have said, be flexible and enjoy your time. You're going to WDW; don't let the little things ruin your vacation.

 

[estherhead]

So, I just went on-line to Disney ressies and typed in Garden Grill at 5 pm for tomorrow (just wanted to see during free dining how bad it was.) That wasn't available but my options were: Rose & Crown, Biergarten, Akershus Princess meal, Nine Dragons, Marrakesh. That's not bad. I'd eat at any of those places at 5 pm.

Then I tried DHS for tomorrow, cause I know it's nearly impossible to get in there last minute during free dining. To my surprise, I could get 50's Primetime at two different times, Hollywood & Vine, Sci-Fi, Brown Derby, and Mama Melrose! For tomorrow! During free dining!

What is everyone talking about?

 

[Amboo]

I was really worried about making my ADR's during free dining, but I went online this morning at 6am and got everything I wanted. I even got Le Cellier on the day I wanted at the time I wanted (7:00), which was the one I was worried about the most. The first 2 days we are there, I didn't get the exact times I wanted, but they're both within an hour. All the rest are exactly what I wanted. So I don't think it's so bad.

 

[MyTwoPrincesses]

I understand that it isn't "just food" for many people. Heck I like a good meal myself. But there seems to be a sense of entitlement/lack of perspective about this whole free dining thing - like somehow certain people deserve to eat at the exact place they want at the exact date and time they want and those Free Dining people who don't go to Disney regularly don't deserve reservations too. If not for Free Dining we might not even be going to WDW for the first time! I've pored over reviews and I know that my reservations are for some pretty good, sought after places. People are acting like they are stuck eating at the worst places in WDW even though they called 90 days out at the crack of dawn. That's just not true. Again, I haven't been, but based on reviews places like The Wave and Kona serve great food and have a lot of availability. I booked Chef Mickey's and 1900 Park Fare breakfasts last week (not great food from what I gather but a popular character experience), changed my Ohana dinner time and Akershus time, booked Boma (might try and change to Sanaa. The online keeps giving me an error message so I don't know if it is available). I could have booked California Grill, or Jiko, or Narcoosee's and a whole bunch of other places. None of these places sound bad to me! I actually can't decide where to eat because just about everything I want is available at some time on the day I want it. I refuse to believe that my experience is unusual.

 

[Mayhem1976]

A lot can change in 90 days...we leave on the 20th and I just got Ohana for dinner on the 23! That's 1 good thing about the online ressies is you can just check every once and a while!

 

[copperbrick]

Called first thing in am on my 90 days out and didn't get a single reservation I wanted?!?! How is that even possible?????

Not a happy camper!

Disneyfan2kids: How's it going? Have you tried any of the suggestions here? Please forgive if you've already posted it -- this has become a VERY popular thread thanks to your post, and I may have missed it.