Art of Animation Resort not included in free dining promotion??

[IamBelle]

I am booking my trip through a travel agency and they said that the Art of Animation resort is not included in the Disney dining plan...I found this strange since all Disney resorts are included with the exception of those like the Swan and Dolphin which are not owned by Disney...can anyone confirm if this is true, or is it because the resort isn't open yet that it is not on the list??

[PopPhan]

It's true....AoA is NOT on the "Free DDP" offer for August/September...

This is probably due to the fact that only one wing will be open at that time and it is probably booked solid already.

[kittya]

but the suites aren't part of the free dining and the only rooms that will be available at AoA are suites. They aren't opening regular rooms for a while (I don't know the dates) That was my understanding.

[IamBelle]

I just did a live chat with a Castmember and they said that the Disney execs made a decision to not include suites for the free DDP also the cabins at Fort Wildnerness are not included....apparently if you want the free DDP you will have to book 2 standard rooms instead of one suite...

[disneynarula]

I think they figured out that when six or more people stay in a "moderately" priced room together then the free dining is a great deal for the guests even paying for the room at rack rates. Say the dining plan is $50/$15 just for math purposes. (actual cost is $51.54/$16.02)

We were planning on going with four adults, two kids and an infant this fall.

Staying at Art of Animation on free dining would save us $230 a night. The actual room is around $265 a night (fall season). That is a huge savings! Even if the Dining Plan isn't a "good deal" under almost all circumstances it really is in this case.

[DizneyRox]

Free dining is a ploy to get people to book rooms. If they don't need help filling particular rooms, they aren't offered with a particular discount.

It's all about occupancy rates. Once a resort is at a particular occupancy rate, Disney stops offering specials for people to stay there. For this same reason, if someone on a particular discount program cancels, that room may not be offered out again at that rate.

If you want discounts, you need to stop booking early, anticipating Disney will release something. By filling the rooms through early bookings, you are hurting your chances of Disney offering an incentive.

[KarenP]

I just did a live chat with a Castmember and they said that the Disney execs made a decision to not include suites for the free DDP also the cabins at Fort Wildnerness are not included....apparently if you want the free DDP you will have to book 2 standard rooms instead of one suite...

I just wanted to clarify that the Fort Wilderness Cabins are included in the Free Dining offer!

[mydisneygirls]

How many are in your party? For the price you'd pay for a suite at AoA, you could in a standard room at the WL for a few dollars more and get the DP.

[IamBelle]

There are 6 people in our party...and as for the cabins, the first cast member I talked to specifically said they were not included, but I checked again with another who said they are, thanks!

[disneynarula]

That is good to know about the cabins.