Reason for 30% DVC restaurant Discount????

[DVC_Dad_Canada]

Here's the notice that Pete mentioned about the discount.

For a limited time, some of the most popular table-service restaurants at Walt Disney World Resort hotels are adding an extra 20 percent* to their Disney Vacation Club Member discount.

This special 30 percent discount is available through Sept. 30, 2017, at the following restaurants during the dinner meal period before 6:30 p.m. or after 8:30 p.m.:

• Artist Point at Disney’s Wilderness Lodge
• Jiko – The Cooking Place at Disney’s Animal Kingdom Lodge
• Cítricos at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
• The Grand Floridian Café at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
• Flying Fish at Disney’s BoardWalk
• The Wave…of American Flavors at Disney’s Contemporary Resort
• Olivia’s Cafe at Disney’s Old Key West Resort
• Boatwright’s Dining Hall at Disney’s Port Orleans Resort Riverside
• The Turf Club Bar & Grill at Disney’s Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
• Captain’s Grill at Disney’s Yacht Club Resort

Most of thee are signature restaurants. Are people not paying the $$$ for signature meals, or not using 2 credits on the dining plan? Do most people just eat in the parks? What percentage of guests are using the dining plan? Is the dining plan less popular, and once people decide to pay for food OOP are they forgoing signature restaurants for the price?

The Disney Dining plan is never an option for us, as we eat far cheaper with Tables in Wonderland and/or AP/DVC discounts.

I'm wondering what others think the reasoning is behind the offer.

 

[TheMaxRebo]

Isn't this just for AP and DVC people? Do many of them even get the dining plan? It is also for "off" times so I think they are just trying to get those groups of people to spend more time on property and to eat at some restaurants that probably don't get the same crowds as others

 

[DVC_Dad_Canada]

It's a DVC only discount. I'm guessing DVC members like myself tend not to get the dining plan as often, but that's just a guess.

 

[Lesverts]

No it is dvc and ap. It is listed as part of the ap discounts.

 

[pjweaver]

Other than Jiko, maybe Citricos, do people really go out of their way to eat at any of these places? All the others seem like a place you go because it's at your resort and you don't feel like traveling.

When talking signature dining, the ones on that list are near my bottom. Even Jiko (which I love) is such a pain to get to that I only consider it if I'm at AKL. Olivia's is good but packed at dinner time from the DVC members that stay home that day. Even with 30% and staying at the WLV I don't know that I'd visit Artist Point.

 

[mcd2745]

With them charging more and more for the resort rooms and tickets, it likely means (for many guests) that there is less in the vacation budget for meals. If the budget is $5000 and the room plus tix used to cost $3500, but now costs $4200...that means you're cutting back somewhere else - likely dining (especially since they have also increased prices at the restaurants significantly the last several years). Additionally, with the increased ticket prices, maybe people are looking to maximize their time in the parks more and more and not returning to their resorts for a pool break and lunch or dinner as much as they used to. Also, as discussed on the show, many people may be postponing their trips until more of the new stuff opens. I think as with most things, there is probably a variety of factors contributing to this and it's impossible to pinpoint just one as the main cause.

 

[dalt01]

there is only one reason to cut into profit to get people to go somewhere...........not enough people are going there.

 

[bladiator]

there is only one reason to cut into profit to get people to go somewhere...........not enough people are going there.

Here's hoping that the numbers still suck in a couple months when I plan to visit! Maybe they can resurrect this one for me.

 

[Ali]

I was listening to this today and wondering why no one mentioned the high prices for food that might look pretty but hasn't been reviewed so highly consistently. And they are 2 credit dining opportunities. I don't typically eat at those restaurants, and identified with Craig when he said "I spent $100 on this meal and uhh" But I think the reason for it is to spread out the times people are at the restaurant. Most people want the 7 pm slot at most places, it seems, so there are longer waits and less attentive service with more diners to serve. Spreading out the amount of people the servers work for each night makes a lot of sense. Perhaps Disney should reduce the number of ADRs they make available. Also, walk ups might get in more often at peak times if this idea works well.

I'll watch and see.

 

[cxcelica]

Any time they are offering a good discount, its a little surprising. But when you look at it, the discount is targeted to a specific audience (AP and DVC members) at restaurants which are only at Resorts, and during non peak dining times. It's not as broad as it may seem or perhaps as desperate.

Still it's a good savings if it fit in with your plans.

 

[Lesverts]

The discount is just strange. Only Narcoossee, California Grill and Yachtsman Steakhouse are excluded from this group of discounts for resort signature. I find it hard to believe that Citricos is suffering while Narcoossee is not given the disparatity in their reviews recently. And if the target was to get people to try under the radar restaurants why wasn't places like Tokyo Dining and Monsieur Paul included? Both of which get little traffic compared to other Epcot restaurants.

Or maybe for a certain segment of their clientele going offsite to eat is becoming more attractive because of price point and quality.