[Sungold]

I was thinking of going to WDW in December to see the Christmas festivities. It is something I always wanted to do, but working 27 years for the Post Office, we could never get vacation time in December. I retired 8 months ago, so this would be my first opportunity. I would be taking this trip alone, which does not bother me because I often travel alone.

I did some pricing on their website for the second week of December, which is "value season". The prices seemed very high, even for the Value Resorts. I haven't called Reservations yet, but does anyone know...am I being charged for 2 people if I try to get the Free Dining? Would it be better to forego the dining? Or, how about room-only pricing...would that make a difference? I can always buy my park tickets separately, or even from another source. I'd kind of like to know what my options are before calling Disney. If it's too high, I may have to consider staying off-site or at one of the Downtown Disney hotels...but that also means the added expense for car rental, parking, etc. Thanks to anyone who can give me some advice about this!

~Pam

[bethishooked]

Just so you know, you can't get the dining plan if you do a room only. It's only available with Magic Your Way packages, or if you are a DVC member. But, if you do get the dining package, they charge per person, so they wouldn't charge for a double.

Good luck in your plans. Do a little homework looking for a discount code. Not sure if one is out there for that time frame, but it doesn't hurt to look.

[bosoxx65]

WoW! Hey Pam!

Just saw you were from Troy NY.. Hello Neighbor

[Soundgod]

Did you make sure that you entered number of guests as "1"?
Also, check what kind of park tickets you're being matched up with. Make sure they are base tickets if that is what you want or park hoppers.

[TaraRae82]

The room rates are based on a minimum occupancy of 2 so the cost of 1 person going is the same for the room portion of the package. Where are you wanting to stay?

[TaraRae82]

I just priced Dec 7-13 (6 nights....not sure how many you were planning) with a 6 day park pass (assuming you don't visit a park on one of your travel days), no hopper or water park option, and the dining plan. It's coming to just over $1,000 at a value resort, standard view. The same options at a moderate resort is almost $1,500. HTH!

ETA: I didn't take into account FREE DDP. The prices I found include paying for the DDP.

[Sungold]

Hi all, yes, I was originally hoping to go to the Caribbean Beach Resort (moderate), but I don't think it's available, because they kept showing me Port Orleans French Quarter. I have stayed there before. They also showed me one of the Pops, I forget which one. I have not stayed alone on Disney property before, so perhaps they are charging me double for the room price. (I had thought their prices were per room, not per person?) I had also entered for 8 nights, because the flights I was considering were cheapest if I went on Tuesday & returned the following Wednesday. Of course I would not need an 8-day Park-hopper ticket, so it would save some money by getting a 6-day. I don't NEED to have the Disney dining, but I thought it would be nice...in the past we did a Fantasmic Dinner Package, and thought the food was excellent, and a very good value for what we paid. So I hope this may give you a little more information. Thanks to everybody that wrote...I'll keep checking back to see if anything changes. I also have the Disney Visa, so I'm going to check their site to see if they have anything to offer. Take care!

~Pam (P.S.: Hello, Keith from Troy!

[hanwill]

You will save money on the dining plan, but you cannot stay off site and get it. However, that does not mean that you will spend less overall if you stayed at Disney with the dining plan.
I was looking at booking a vacation, and it gives me random hotels, but I can edit the information on that screen and put in the hotel that I want. Then it will give me that one with 2 other alternatives... I will check to see if it comes up!

[Soundgod]

Originally Posted by Sungold

Hi all, yes, I was originally hoping to go to the Caribbean Beach Resort (moderate), but I don't think it's available, because they kept showing me Port Orleans French Quarter. I have stayed there before. They also showed me one of the Pops, I forget which one. I have not stayed alone on Disney property before, so perhaps they are charging me double for the room price. (I had thought their prices were per room, not per person?)

They do charge per room, not per person, up to 4 people. They charge an additional $15 for a fifth person at the mods and $10 at the values.

Try these links for hotel rates. Also keep in mind that rates increase greatly on Dec 18 and again on Dec 25 through Jan 1.

POFQ goes from $149 to $209 and Pop Century and the All Stars go from $82 to $135 for standard rooms.

Port Orleans - French Quarter Fact Sheet
Pop Century Resort Fact Sheet

[gatour]

In general hotel rooms are charged per room and not per person and this general industry pricing not limited to Disney hotes. So using some hypthetical numbers.

I book a room at Disney for only my self. The room rate is $150/night and lets say I wanted the dining plan which cost $50/night/person. My total cost would be $200/night.

Now lets say my wife joins me. The room rate is still $150/night and the dining plan is still $50/night/person. My total cost would be $250/night

What is confusing is resorts often times advertised a package per night rate per person assuming double occupancy. So you will see advertisements that you can get the package for $125/night. But if you read the small print it informs you that this rate is based on double occupancy in other words you would be paying $250/night because there is two of you.

Actually staying at a hotel at Downtown Disney is not bad and you don't necessarily need a rental car. All of the hotels have bus shuttle service just like the Disney hotels you are considering. I find the Hilton offers rates comparable to the Disney moderates (if not cheaper) during non-peak times and the rooms are much nicer. But you do the lose the themeing.

[Soundgod]

Originally Posted by gatour

Actually staying at a hotel at Downtown Disney is not bad and you don't necessarily need a rental car. All of the hotels have bus shuttle service just like the Disney hotels you are considering. I find the Hilton offers rates comparable to the Disney moderates (if not cheaper) during non-peak times and the rooms are much nicer. But you do the lose the themeing.

Two things to definitely consider here would be that no DTD hotels participate in extra magic hours and that only Disney owned and operated hotels make available the dining plan and especially not free dining plan.
Also to consider is that the free dining now offered to value hotels (Pop and the three All Stars), is the quick serve dining plan ($30 a night per person) while the moderates and deluxe resorts offer the regular dining plan when they offer free dining ($40 per night per person).
One thing concerning DTD transport versus Disney Transport is that Disney Transport operates more frequently (3-4 buses per hour) and takes you closer to the park gate, especially Magic Kingdom where all non-Disney buses come no closer to the park than the Ticket and Transportation Center.

What Sungold hasn't told us is what the actual room rate that was quoted, if tickets are included, if the dining plan was charged or free. Without these numbers, we're taking stabs in the dark when trying to provide a definitive answer.

[TaraRae82]

If free dining is available for dates in Dec, Caribbean Beach would run you $1600 for 8 nights with a 6 day park pass (no water parks or hopper option). I checked dates Dec 8-16. If a room rate discount becomes available, that would definitely save you money over free DDP since you are only one person and the DDP is only $40 a day. Like Soundgod said, the free DDP you get when staying at the value resorts is the counter service plan, not the regular one so that's something to keep in mind when deciding where to stay.

Check Mousesavers.com for discounts for Visa cardholders too. They seem to know right away when a discount is available.

ETA: I did just check pricing for a discount offered over the holiday season and you could get the same details for $1400. It's a room rate discount so you'd pay for the DDP.

[Pam&Rich]

The Hilton in DTD still offers Extra Magic Hours. It is the only one.

Call Disney personally and see if they can work a pkg out for you. Just use the web site for a base figure. I always work out better deals when I have a person on the line. They want to sell.You never know what they will offer. Ask for manager specials, upgrades, etc.

Also look on Allears to get your prices for each individual part of the package (room, both DDP's, tickets) so you can see the savings. Also call the prefered vacation vendor on Allears and see what they can do for you.

Does the post office or your union offer any travel services for retirees? Also if you are AAA call them.

Good luck.

[Soundgod]

Originally Posted by Pam&Rich

The Hilton in DTD still offers Extra Magic Hours. It is the only one.

After double checking All Ears, I stand corrected.

[Sungold]

Thanks, everyone, for your replies. You have given me some valuable hints. I think that the poster was correct who said that I may have seen a suggested price advertised, and did not realize that it was priced as if for 2 people. The price I was quoted on the website for Magic Your Way was close to what TaraRae had mentioned; I asked for the exact dates she put in, Dec. 8-16. The price for POFQ was in the $1600 neighborhood, including the free dining and an 8-day pass. (I don't remember if it was for Park Hopper, but I usually get that, and not the Water Parks option.) The price for Pop Century was in the $1050 range. I really only need a 6-day ticket. Now, I know that the DTD hotels run around $79-99 a night during this time period, with some offering many extras. Off-site hotels are even cheaper than that, some ridiculously so. So, I have my work cut out for me! I will post again when I get more information. Thanks again, and I'll continue to check in for any other news!

~Pam