Shades of Green and dining plans

[Bagheera23608]

I've got some issues, lol. We will be staying at Shades of Green which only offers it's own dining plan. If you've read anything about SoG and it's food lately, you know that's not a great option.


We are going in September during the free meal plan days. It seems to me, there has got to be a way to get on the dining plan even tho we are staying at SoG. I mean ITS FREE for everyone else. I'm not even interested in any of the fancy plans, I just want the CS plan, I think. (Altho I just heard of the CS plan, don't know all that much about it.)

I was thinking of calling a travel agent and seeing if they knew of any way around this silly loophole. What do ya'll think? Thanks in advance!

 

[TDC Nala]

Sorry, the Disney Dining Plans are available only to guests at Disney owned and operated resorts. Shades of Green is not owned and operated by Disney, so there's no way to get any of the plans when staying there.

 

[vettegirl]

Disney is offering 40% select rooms to military and you would be able to get the dining plan then. However SOG is a MWR hotel and is not affliated with Disney.

 

[TDC Nala]

Disney is offering 40% select rooms to military and you would be able to get the dining plan then. However SOG is a MWR hotel and is not affliated with Disney.

However, you couldn't combine that discount with free dining - if you went that route, you'd have to choose either the 40% off or the free dining.

 

[jbm02]

I've got some issues, lol. We will be staying at Shades of Green which only offers it's own dining plan. If you've read anything about SoG and it's food lately, you know that's not a great option.


We are going in September during the free meal plan days. It seems to me, there has got to be a way to get on the dining plan even tho we are staying at SoG. I mean ITS FREE for everyone else. I'm not even interested in any of the fancy plans, I just want the CS plan, I think. (Altho I just heard of the CS plan, don't know all that much about it.)

I was thinking of calling a travel agent and seeing if they knew of any way around this silly loophole. What do ya'll think? Thanks in advance!

Bagheera
Have you considered any hotels other than SOG so that you can take advantage of DDP? That's what we're doing this time. We're using the 40% military rate for the hotel (You'll need to check to see if it is still available) and the rate for us is LESS than what we would pay at SOG. Granted, I'm in the upper rungs for SOG rooms but the cost at a mod was less and the cost at a value was MUCH less. We're never in the room anyway so we booked the value. WE can't go during free dining but it would have been great.... (can't use the salute tickets with FD unless you buy 1 day of tickets...)
Good luck!
Just an idea...

 

[Bagheera23608]

JBM02 - Thanks for the thought, but it's not really my decision. The inlaws are the retired military and that was pretty much the only option for staying as far as they were concerned. It does have a hot tub tho! And it does seem to be a nice place to stay when you compare the price to other hotels.

Well, this isn't really what I wanted to hear. This hotel being on Disney property but not really part doesnt make a whole lot of sense to me.

I'm "in charge" of just about everything else but the hotel tho. I've only got 2 table service places picked out for our 6 nite stay b/c I don't want to spend a lot of time just sitting eating, which is why the CS plan sounded perfect. Our single biggest expense on this trip will be the food. Guess I am just going to have to bite the bullet....

Thanks for the responses tho!

 

[TDC Nala]

This hotel being on Disney property but not really part doesnt make a whole lot of sense to me.

Shades of Green is on Disney property but is neither owned nor operated by Disney. It's owned by the Department of Defense and operated as an Armed Forces Recreation Center. SOG has no affiliation with Disney other than being located on Disney's property.

There are two other hotels on Disney property - the Swan and Dolphin - that are not operated by Disney, they are Starwood properties. You can't get the dining plan there, either. With package offerings like the dining plans, Disney wants to encourage people to stay at their own resorts rather than spend elsewhere.

 

[jbm02]

Bagheera
SOG is a great hotel. The rooms are really really big, with very comfortable queen size beds. Plus a couch that opens up. Each room has a small fridge and a table. It is very quiet - or, at least, it was each time we were there. The lobby has several huge, comfy couches. There are at least 3 pools - a kiddie pool, one in the shape of a Mickey head and the other is a large pool near the hot tub. We weren't impressed with the food when we were there but I've heard that they are working to improve that. Hopefully that will be the case by the time that you get there.
The buses were great - there is a decent covered place to wait (and they sell coffee there in the morning!). bus drivers are very very friendly. It's about an 8 minute walk to the Poly but you have to cross a main road.
As for ADRs, I'd try to make a few before you leave - just a suggestion. You don't need to plan a sit down dinner every night but there's nothing worse than being tired and hungry, bordering on cranky - and being told there is no availability for dinner. These boards are full of great suggestions for dinners. Maybe consider one in one of the monorail hotels so that you're not too far from your hotel (there are buses to SOG from TTC if you or your in laws don't feel up to the walk) - or one that you can drive to so that you're not planning your park days around which park you'll be in for dinner.
I know what it's like to be the "planner"!!
Have a great trip

 

[smiths02]

JBM02 - Thanks for the thought, but it's not really my decision. The inlaws are the retired military and that was pretty much the only option for staying as far as they were concerned. It does have a hot tub tho! And it does seem to be a nice place to stay when you compare the price to other hotels.

Well, this isn't really what I wanted to hear. This hotel being on Disney property but not really part doesnt make a whole lot of sense to me.

I'm "in charge" of just about everything else but the hotel tho. I've only got 2 table service places picked out for our 6 nite stay b/c I don't want to spend a lot of time just sitting eating, which is why the CS plan sounded perfect. Our single biggest expense on this trip will be the food. Guess I am just going to have to bite the bullet....

Thanks for the responses tho!

Bagheera, Look on the budget board for ways to save money on food.

 

[Bagheera23608]

I understand that those hotels aren't owned by Disney, but you have to admit, the distinctions aren't very clear and allowing some amenities of other Disney hotels and not other amenities provides a good dose of "huuuuh????" from time to time.

I am the most experienced Disney goer of the group and the only one interested in making ANY plans so it kinda fell in my lap. I'm ready for my 90 day mark and am REALLY looking forward to the day when the schedules are released.

As I said earlier, the rooms do look great and after some other discussion, the Poly has some good breakfast food, lol! Again, thanks for the advice, especially the money saving board!

 

[TDC Nala]

In my opinion the distinctions are very clear - Disney only sells the dining plan at its own hotels. Disney allows non-Disney hotels to participate in some "Disney" amenities like transportation (the Swan and Dolphin have their own Disney buses) or Extra Magic Hours.

However, Disney has chosen not to allow non-Disney properties to sell the dining plan, probably because it's a huge draw and is causing many guests who might elect to stay offsite to book a Disney resort, effectively making sure that most if not all those guests' vacation dollars go straight to Disney.

Disney would love it if you would change your reservation to a Disney resort so you could get the dining plan. As it is now, they won't get your lodging dollars - but they'll still get your food dollars. With the dining plan as encouragement, they might get the lodging dollars of someone else who was considering a stay at SOG.

thought about letting the inlaws stay there, while you book a Disney resort with free dining?

 

[Lynne G]

We are a military family and we are grateful to be able to stay at SOG. When we were there last Aug., we loved the place. It looks like a lodge. Big rooms, coffee in room, and location, location, location. I love military inns too, as everyone is usually very polite and quiet, and SOG was no exception. In fact, it was mostly empty that last week of Aug. The only noisy place we could see was the pool near the bar.

As a SOG guest, you can purchase Disney tickets without the 6.5% tax and your room is not taxed, which all other Disney properties have a 12-13% tax. That's money saving right there. We figured even though we were there during FD, the money we saved on a beautiful, excellently located hotel, plus the discounted tickets, made up for some of the loss we had without being able to have FD. We also are not a sit down once a day family, so with a huge breakfast, we'd have a late lunch in the parks, large enough to split meals, and then dinner outside the park if we were hungry. Most nights, we snacked in the park.

We were very thankful to Disney. Not only are you only minutes away from a deluxe resort, and quick access to the monorail, but Disney gives us the same right to free parking and Extra hours. They didn't have to do either.

As for the food, we only ate breakfast at SOG (it was ok, not great, but not bad) and ate both in the parks and outside the parks for the other meals. Having a car at SOG was a good benefit. We didn't like the buses.

For food, I'd go to wdwinfo.com and allears.net to get a general idea of the prices of the restaurants. Then, you can get a better guesstimate as to your food costs. If you do have a car, there are lots of less expensive decent food places not far from Disney.