Booking direct with Disney and adding dining plan later

[Flubber]

Originally Posted by Claudette

The TAs including WDTC will get an allocation of free dining rooms available. If the TA has free dining room availability in the OPs desired resort they will transfer the booking to their free dining allocation.

The OP having already made a booking will make no difference to that allocation and therefore there is no advantage in booking the room now. If there were then nobody would wait for free dining.

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I swapped my booking as would have lost my deposit and was defiantly told by Disney holidays I could add dining as have lost it from my June booking, why would I have waited, no one makes sense on here 🤷

[CosmicGirl]

It never ceases to amaze me how few people read the booking terms before committing to such an expensive holiday.

The terms clearly state that "No changes are allowed from a full price booking to a special or other promotional offer" (see article 11).

Also: "If a Booking is changed, the price payable at time of original booking will be the price applicable at the time the change is made. ".

The advantage of this is that you can add people to a free dining booking, or change resorts, and you will get all the benefits of the original promotion. The downside is that you cannot "add" free dining to a pre-existing booking. We can't have it both ways.

[Nemesis]

I booked in the knowledge that I may lose my deposit if I wish to add free dining at a later date. Getting the rooms and dates I wanted was more important to me at this stage and if free dining doesn't appear then I will have rethink.

The only tip, which was given albeit too late for me, was to only put one person on the booking so only paying £50 deposit which isn't much to lose if you wish to cancel.

[Flubber]

Originally Posted by CosmicGirl

It never ceases to amaze me how few people read the booking terms before committing to such an expensive holiday.

The terms clearly state that "No changes are allowed from a full price booking to a special or other promotional offer" (see article 11).

Also: "If a Booking is changed, the price payable at time of original booking will be the price applicable at the time the change is made. ".

The advantage of this is that you can add people to a free dining booking, or change resorts, and you will get all the benefits of the original promotion. The downside is that you cannot "add" free dining to a pre-existing booking. We can't have it both ways.

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It never ceases to amaze me how rude some people are 😡

[Flubber]

Originally Posted by Nemesis

I booked in the knowledge that I may lose my deposit if I wish to add free dining at a later date. Getting the rooms and dates I wanted was more important to me at this stage and if free dining doesn't appear then I will have rethink.

The only tip, which was given albeit too late for me, was to only put one person on the booking so only paying £50 deposit which isn't much to lose if you wish to cancel.

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exactly Nemisis 👍

[CosmicGirl]

Originally Posted by Flubber

It never ceases to amaze me how rude some people are 😡

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What's rude about quoting the booking terms which are available on WDTC's website for anyone to see? The answers are right there and always have been. Is it possible that WDTC may make an exception this year? Yes. But until those booking terms change anyone who is promised to get free dining added onto an existing booking free of charge doesn't have a leg to stand on. If it were that simple people would have been booking as soon as the next year is released for years, but that has not been the case.

[Flubber]

Originally Posted by CosmicGirl

What's rude about quoting the booking terms which are available on WDTC's website for anyone to see? The answers are right there and always have been. Is it possible that WDTC may make an exception this year? Yes. But until those booking terms change anyone who is promised to get free dining added onto an existing booking free of charge doesn't have a leg to stand on. If it were that simple people would have been booking as soon as the next year is released for years, but that has not been the case.

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It wasn’t the quote it’s how you started it with never ceases to amaze me, everybody’s situation is different, ours is we were meant to be flying on June 14th with free dining this year, I had choices pay my balance, cancel and lose deposit or swap to next year which I did, and when I did I was told by Disney I will be able to add free dining if it means paying a fee to change it so be it, if not at least we have where we want to go booked all be it a year later, like I said don’t have a problem with anybody quoting anything but might be nice if you think before you talk to be people the way you did, no hard feelings.

[sha9]

I think the problem with this particular issue is that a specific TA may agree to move your booking to free dining if it’s released and most likely as a TA they have the ability to do that with Disney. I have a colleague who has booked with a local TA and rescheduled her September trip to next year. That TA has agreed to rebook with free dining if it happens. She trusts that TA to do that.

The problem with Disney CMs is that they themselves don’t have the authority to make those promises so they tell you what they think will happen. There’s been too much inconsistency in what people have been told to believe there’s a blanket £50 amendment fee policy for switching to free dining. The reality is that you are not guaranteed free dining unless you book when the offer is out. Anyone booking now, with nothing in writing, is taking a chance that they lose their deposit and that they may need to change resort. If they’re happy with that then that’s fine. I’m going to wait.

[Firsttimer2017]

Yes you can. It all depends on whether they release rooms with dining at the resort and category you’ve booked. The price of your room will also change as it’s a different offer. So it’s not simply a case of adding the free dining. For example we booked a preferred room at CBR. When free dining was released there was no availability at all at CBR for our dates (even though it was available through third party agents). We had to switch resorts to get free dining. When CBR became available at a later date we switched to CBR. The base price was different to our original booking and we paid an amendment fee.

[sha9]

Originally Posted by Firsttimer2017

Yes you can. It all depends on whether they release rooms with dining at the resort and category you’ve booked. The price of your room will also change as it’s a different offer. So it’s not simply a case of adding the free dining. For example we booked a preferred room at CBR. When free dining was released there was no availability at all at CBR for our dates (even though it was available through third party agents). We had to switch resorts to get free dining. When CBR became available at a later date we switched to CBR. The base price was different to our original booking and we paid an amendment fee.

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Unfortunately that’s not necessarily consistent. There’s nothing in Disney’s T&Cs to say that they will do that. I fact it says “No changes are allowed from a full price Booking to a special or other promotional offer.” Anyone who has been give this by Disney has been given it as a goodwill gesture. Anyone who has been told by Disney that it’ll be a £50 amendment fee to switch should get that in writing. Also some TAs may agree to move bookings but again I would get it in writing.