Price Increase

[ChipNDale79]

So my wife and I are looking at a trip for fall 2013, yeah I know, that's a long time from now and we are crazy for checking pricing this far out. But with the new prices that came out earlier this week, it looks like a room at POFQ with 7 day park hoppers, and dining is now running about $2,900.

We love the POFQ, it's where we went on our Honeymoon and its a small resort, so its perfect for us, but are we the only ones that are shocked with out much Moderates now cost?

This same exact trip in 2008 cost us $2,300.

I'm having a hard time forking out nearly 3k to stay at a Moderate, I'm starting to think that the only way we would stay there is if we got the free dinning promotion, or I'll either pay less and stay at a value, or look at renting DVC points.

[ibelieveindisneymagic]

Nope, not the only one shocked at all.

We love POFQ, but the price is getting crazy, we might have to relook at the values for our next trip, especially if there aren't any deals.

[Ms. Mode]

Shocking yes...and yet....we pay it time and time again. :blush:

[CajunDisneyDad]

Shocking yes...and yet....we pay it time and time again. :blush:


Agreed. Until people put their foot down and say ENOUGH...they will keep ignoring the fact that the economy is in the pits... and we will keep paying more and more even though again, the economy is in the pits lol. I think some of us (myself included) need serious help

[ChipNDale79]

Shocking yes...and yet....we pay it time and time again. :blush:

I really have no problem paying $2,500 for a Moderate, but 3K? To me its just not worth it.


I know others will just keep doing it and prices will just keep going up, but if it keeps doing this, then it may drive us off property or to renting DVC points.

[eandrsmom]

Honestly, I think the reason for the price increases is because of "free" dining. Disney is not going to lose money. In order to make up for the free dining promotions, they have to get the money somewhere. This is especially true for the moderates, where they get the regular dining plan for free. IMO, if they'd do away with the free dining offers altogether, the rooms would be much more reasonably priced and affordable.

[joonyer]

I don't know that "shocked" is the right word. Discouraged, frustrated, maybe even angry, but with prices increasing everywhere, it's really no surprise that Disney trips cost a lot more than they used to. We save a lot of money by not buying the dining plan. Found out that for our family of four, we can spend about $500-$600 less on food for a week by paying OOP, and still have 2-3 nice TS meals during the week. It's either find a way to spend less or not go at all for us.

[ChipNDale79]

Honestly, I think the reason for the price increases is because of "free" dining. Disney is not going to lose money. In order to make up for the free dining promotions, they have to get the money somewhere. This is especially true for the moderates, where they get the regular dining plan for free. IMO, if they'd do away with the free dining offers altogether, the rooms would be much more reasonably priced and affordable.

The $2,900 offer includes the price of the dining, it's not free in that price. For 7 nights, dining is $780 for 2 people. You can chose not to get it, and it would cost about $2,200.

[MW1218]

Or wait until they release the 30-40% discounts for that part of the year, apply the discount to the room, and pay the full rate for the Dining Plan.

[ChipNDale79]

Or wait until they release the 30-40% discounts for that part of the year, apply the discount to the room, and pay the full rate for the Dining Plan.

I thought they were doing away with a lot of the room discounts?

[eandrsmom]

I didn't think you could add the dining plan to a reduced rate, room only reservation. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's what I always thought.

[Ms. Mode]

I haven't seen a 40% discount for a while, BUT I did get a 35% for our upcoming trip! Woo Hoo color me happy!

[Ms. Mode]

I didn't think you could add the dining plan to a reduced rate, room only reservation. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's what I always thought.

You are correct, free DDP only applies to non-discounted packages.

[buzznwoodysmom]

I didn't think you could add the dining plan to a reduced rate, room only reservation. Maybe I'm wrong, but that's what I always thought.

You can't add the FREE dining to a reduced rate room, but you can add and pay for dining with a reduced rate room.

To the OP, is that price for just 2 people? I agree, that's a bit high for only 2 guests.

I'm comparing my 2007 trip here. We had 2 adults, 2 children, 8 nights at a moderate, 5 day tickets (no hoppers), and the dining plan for $2400. But that was with a room discount (before the discount was released we were booked at a value resort for the same price), and keep in mind we are talking about a 6 year difference between my trip in 2007, and the trip your pricing for 2013. Everything goes up in a 6 year time frame.

I agree the prices are getting high enough to make my family question the frequency of our trips too, so I get it. It's a combination of ticket price increases, remember the tickets increase every year, the resort increases, as well as the cost of the dining plan increasing. All of these increases factor into the price of your package. It's so much more than "$3000 for a moderate". It's not just the room cost going up.

I know Disney keeps saying they aren't going to be doing the deep discounts much longer, and we are already seeing a decrease in the amounts of the discounts. Having said that, in my 15 or so trips, I've yet to go to WDW without some sort of discount. There are several discounts out this year as well. I still think there's a good chance you'll be able to find some sort of discount, maybe not as good as years past, but I think they'll be something.

[ChipNDale79]

You can't add the FREE dining to a reduced rate room, but you can add and pay for dining with a reduced rate room.

To the OP, is that price for just 2 people? I agree, that's a bit high for only 2 guests.

I'm comparing my 2007 trip here. We had 2 adults, 2 children, 8 nights at a moderate, 5 day tickets (no hoppers), and the dining plan for $2400. But that was with a room discount (before the discount was released we were booked at a value resort for the same price), and keep in mind we are talking about a 6 year difference between my trip in 2007, and the trip your pricing for 2013. Everything goes up in a 6 year time frame.

I agree the prices are getting high enough to make my family question the frequency of our trips too, so I get it. It's a combination of ticket price increases, remember the tickets increase every year, the resort increases, as well as the cost of the dining plan increasing. All of these increases factor into the price of your package. It's so much more than "$3000 for a moderate". It's not just the room cost going up.

I know Disney keeps saying they aren't going to be doing the deep discounts much longer, and we are already seeing a decrease in the amounts of the discounts. Having said that, in my 15 or so trips, I've yet to go to WDW without some sort of discount. There are several discounts out this year as well. I still think there's a good chance you'll be able to find some sort of discount, maybe not as good as years past, but I think they'll be something.

I just double checked to make sure I wasn't crazy. This is the details of the quote from Disney's Website

POFQ - 2 People
Dates 11/9/2013-11/16/2013
Standard Room
7 Day Park Hopper
Magic Your Way Plus Dining

Grand Total: $2,938.28

FWIW, one note I did see on the Magic Your Way Plus Dining, it says save up to 15%, I know at one time it used to say save up to 20%.

[buzznwoodysmom]

FWIW, one note I did see on the Magic Your Way Plus Dining, it says save up to 15%, I know at one time it used to say save up to 20%.

Yeah, the dining is getting crazy. At one time the dining plan was something like $39.99 for adults and $9.99 for children. That's back when the tip was included, as well as appitizers. I haven't checked the exact price of the dining plan since it went up, but I think I remember it's close to $55 per adult now! For two adults over the course of a 7 day trip, dining alone has increased over $200 for a weeklong vacation if your on the dining plan. Dining alone is 1/3 of your (OP's) price increase!

[goofygirl64]

If you have AAA, this same package prices out at $2722.30.
At least that's a little bit of a discount. :mickey:

[dnickels]

.....now running about $2,900/
This same exact trip in 2008 cost us $2,300.


Just had me wondering what the average annual inflation rate would be to get from $2,300 to $2,900 in 5 years. I came up with about 5% annual rate increases (5% exactly would take you from $2,300 to $2,935).

As others have mentioned, so long as attendance and occupancy rates don't take a hit they'll likely keep raising prices above and beyond the rate of inflation.

[BrerGnat]

Well, we can ALL help out on the discount front by NOT booking early! The more bookings they have early, the less likely they will offer a discount! If the Disney community collectively came together and vowed not to book vacations so far out, I bet we'd see significant discounts being offered.

OP, honestly, $2900 for your trip, including park tickets and dining is a good deal. For 7 nights, that breaks down to a bit under $200 per person, per day for lodging, park admissions, and meals. That's not bad at all, in my opinion.

I think somewhere in the vicinity of $150-250 per person for all that on a Disney vacation is about right.

However, I'd start by ditching the DDP. You will see some savings by paying OOP, most likely.

Of course it's more expensive than it was 5 years ago, but there are usually discounts to be had.

I've also been to WDW many times since 1999. I've NEVER paid rack rate. And, I never will. :D

[ChipNDale79]

OP, honestly, $2900 for your trip, including park tickets and dining is a good deal. For 7 nights, that breaks down to a bit under $200 per person, per day for lodging, park admissions, and meals. That's not bad at all, in my opinion.

When you run the numbers on renting DVC points and paying for tickets and the DDP, its actually works out to be about the same.

I can justify spending my $2,900 for that, but I can't justify it for a Moderate resort.

[BIGDOG]

Be thankfull you only have 2adults and need 1 room. When we roll into WDW I need a package with 3 rooms for the 9 of us..plus all the bells and whistles ....

[BrerGnat]

I can justify spending my $2,900 for that, but I can't justify it for a Moderate resort.

Can't argue with you there.

I actually don't find the moderates to be a good value, really. If you are after savings, stay Value. If you want a more plush trip, go Deluxe.

The moderates used to be a much better value, but the last time I stayed in one was 2003 where I got POR for $69/night (military deal) and that was the last time I thought a moderate was a "good value."

At upwards of $200/night, the Moderates hold NO appeal to me at all.

[ChipNDale79]

Can't argue with you there.

I actually don't find the moderates to be a good value, really. If you are after savings, stay Value. If you want a more plush trip, go Deluxe.

The moderates used to be a much better value, but the last time I stayed in one was 2003 where I got POR for $69/night (military deal) and that was the last time I thought a moderate was a "good value."

At upwards of $200/night, the Moderates hold NO appeal to me at all.

We've done the Value Resorts, actually we prefer them when we are going for a quick trip, but if we are going for a week we do prefer to upgrade a little bit.

[LandFan]

This is why I am now splitting my trip and staying the first 4 nights with free dining at AofA (and 8 day tix) and then the last 4 nights at the Dolphin with the teacher discount ($229/night for a resort view)! My 8 days is costing about $2400 but the first 5 days we will have free dining.

I priced out a week with free dining at a moderate and I was shocked at how expensive the rooms are there now! For a few bucks more per night (when we are at Dolphin) I am staying on the Boardwalk - which I consider a MUCH better deal than any moderate!

This trip cost-wise will actually cost almost exactly $2900 once we factor in paying for food for the last 4 days. To get to experience AofA and then sleep in Heavenly beds on the Boardwalk is, imho, a much better deal!

If we like Dolphin half as much as I think we will, we may stay there from now on.

[LVT]

"You can't add the FREE dining to a reduced rate room, but you can add and pay for dining with a reduced rate room. " I saw this above and was confused. I thought the dining plan was for packages that included tickets or for AP holders. I thought the DP was basically excluded from room only. Did it change or did I totally misunderstand?

[buzznwoodysmom]

"You can't add the FREE dining to a reduced rate room, but you can add and pay for dining with a reduced rate room. " I saw this above and was confused. I thought the dining plan was for packages that included tickets or for AP holders. I thought the DP was basically excluded from room only. Did it change or did I totally misunderstand?


No, I don't think anything's changed. You have always had to have tickets (or AP, or military tickets) to be able to add dining, but you definitely can have a discount on the room. I didn't mean you could add dining to room only, just that you could get a room discount, and pay full price for tickets and dining.

I am pretty sure you have always been able to add dining plan to a reduced rate room, as long as it was part of a package (including tickets). I know as far back as 2007 we got a room discount and had tickets and the dining plan added to that. Since 2009 we've used the military discount, but I'm almost positive you can still get the room discount and add tickets and dining.

The only time I am aware of whe you can't add dining to a discounted room is when it's free dining. In that case you have to pay rack rates for the room.

[mom2morgan]

I just had to face the math. The first time we went was in 2006. We are going in October, and the price increase between that first time and this is 40%!!!! Meanwhile, the amount of money I make has gone up 8% in that same time frame. A Disney trip is a real financial stretch for us in the first place! I don't think I'll be back after this trip :-(

[mom2morgan]

I just had to face the math. The first time we went was in 2006. We are going in October, and the price increase between that first time and this is 40%!!!! Meanwhile, the amount of money I make has gone up 8% in that same time frame. A Disney trip is a real financial stretch for us in the first place! I don't think I'll be back after this trip :-(