Here’s the news from Walt Disney World over the last week:

• Merida officially became a Disney Princess in a coronation ceremony at the Magic Kingdom on May 11. This brings the official court to eleven Disney Princesses. (Have I mentioned that 11 is my favorite number? My husband and I were married on 11/11/00, after exactly 11 months of dating. We celebrated our 11th anniversary on 11/11/11!)
• Free dining and room discounts for fall dates were released to the general public, following a brief exclusive release for Disney Rewards Visa cardholders. You can check out the discounts on the “Offers” page on the WDW website.
• PIN codes for free dining–with a wider range of dates–also went out to a ton of previous Disney guests. I got mine! Did you get one?
• Constructions walls went up at the former Pleasure Island section of Downtown Disney, so that work can begin on the new Disney Springs area.
• The new castle projection show, “Celebrate the Magic,” was announced and will coincide with the May 24 “Monstrous Summer Event.”
• Wendy and Peter Pan are together again! The duo can be found near the queue to Peter Pan’s Flight for daily meet-n-greets. Peter Pan was formerly greeting guests alone in Adventureland.
• La Nouba (Cirque du Soleil) is closed until the end of the month for refurbishment.
• After just a few months in operation, Be Our Guest Restaurant menus are already being tweaked–and some prices are going up. Ouch.

That about covers what you might have missed while I was away!

If you’re a Disney Rewards Visa cardholder (and why wouldn’t you be?), you can book at WDW package and get the dining plan free! Of course, if you don’t have the DRV, you’ll need to wait a few days to get this same discount. (Check Disney’s online “offers” page May 9.) The details are similar to past years, although the travel dates seems to be getting more limited each year:

• Valid for travel dates September 2-25; that just means that you must check in during those date–your stay can extend beyond September 25.
• Must be booked by July 31.
• Suites, villas, and campsites are excluded.
• There is a 3-night minimum stay and a 14-night maximum.
• You must purchase at least a 2-day Magic Your Way ticket for every guest staying in your room.
• Guests staying at a Value Resort will receive the Quick Service Dining Plan free. Those staying at Moderate or Deluxe Resorts will receive the Disney Dining Plan free.
• You can upgrade to any of the other available plans for a charge.

That about sums it up. If you’re a DRV cardholder, I recommend booking BEFORE this is released to the general public to ensure that you get the resort of your choice.

I shared many tips over the years on how to save money on food at Walt Disney World. But even the cheapest among us (yes, I’m speaking of myself) likes to splurge every now and then. While we’re not big fans of spending too much time (or money!) in table service restaurants while on vacation, our family usually tries to splurge on at least one new dining experience each trip. So my tip is two-fold: First, make your ADRs (Advanced Dining Reservations) as early as possible–in most cases, you can do this 180 days in advance of your arrival. This step has become increasingly important in recent years, as “Free Fall Dining” promotions have become the norm. And second, be sure to know about any dining closures for your travel dates. Obviously, when you call to make ADRs, you will be alerted to closures for table service restaurants, but it’s also good to know if your favorite counter service eatery is going to be closed too. Here’s a list of current and upcoming closures:

• ESPN Club (BoardWalk Resort): closed now and will re-open late spring
• BoardWalk Bakery, BoardWalk Resort: currently closed and expected to open late spring or early summer
• Main Street Bakery (Magic Kingdom): currently closed and will re-open May 18 as a Starbucks location
• California Grill (Contemporary Resort): closed now through late summer
• Fountain View Cafe (Epcot): closing in March and will reopen sometime this summer as a Starbucks location
• Cinderella’s Royal Table (Magic Kingdom): closing briefly for refurbishment May 13-16

I’ve been terribly remiss in updating you on a few discounts around the World for fall/winter. Here’s the rundown of what’s currently being offerred:

• Annual Passholders can receive up to 30% off resort stays (discount varies from resort to resort) for travel dates now through December 24. Thanksgiving week is blacked out.
• Florida residents can save up to 35% off resort stays (again, varying greatly among resorts) for travel dates now through December 15. Thanksgiving week is again blacked out.
• The general public can also get in on room savings of up to 30% off for travel dates through December 22. And, you guessed it, Thanksgiving week is blacked out.
• Just released is a winter room-only discount for the general public of savings up to 35% off for travel dates Jan. 2 through March 7. (This was originally released to Disney Rewards Visa cardmembers, but it now available to everyone.) Must be booked by December 31, and there are no blackout dates listed…but that doesn’t necessarily mean they don’t exist.
• Also new is the “Stay, Play, and Dine” discount for dates Jan. 2 through March 7. This one is a little hard to put your finger on, as they don’t list the specific percentage off of regular prices, and there are tons of variables. There is a 3-night minimum stay (maximum 14 nights) and you must purchase at least a 1-day park pass for all guests in the room, as well as the dining plan (either Quick Service or Disney Dining Plan, depending on the resort category). Little Mermaid section of Art of Animation, campsites at Ft. Wilderness, and 3 bedroom villas do not qualify, but there appear to be no blackout dates. My advice is to price out this deal and the above room-only deal to see which is the best price, as it could vary depending on your needs.

That’s about it for now.

Here’s a tip that has saved us quite a bit of money on more than one occasion: even after you’ve booked your Walt Disney World vacation, keep checking sources for discounts and don’t be afraid to call and change your reservation if something new and better becomes available. This, of course, will not work if you’ve booked any sort of non-refundable deal. But in most cases, your WDW resort reservations are fully refundable up to 5 days before your arrival date, and you can make changes to your reservation–providing they have the room you need available–up to the day before you arrive.

So, if you’ve booked a package at full price, but then free dining gets extended to include your dates, you can call back and ask the Cast Member on the phone to apply that discount to your package. Now, keep in mind that Disney does not permit you to “double up” on discounts, so you won’t get a room discount AND free dining…but you can switch from one to the other, providing you meet all the stated requirements.

And speaking of Free Fall Dining (that I mention in this post), the dates have indeed been extended to include the week of December 14-20.

TouringPlans.com has a really enlightening blog post about the diminishing value of the Disney Dining Plan over the years since its debut in 2005. This story also gives a detailed explanation of why the DDP may not be the best deal for every family (yes, they even crunched the numbers), and bring up points that you might not have considered.

I contend that, even when it’s free–yes FREE–the DDP is not the best deal for my own family. We always get a room-only discount (either a PIN code or a discount for the general public) and we also get our tickets either from an approved vendor or through Disney’s YES programs. We would never eat enough as a family to justify having the DDP. (That said, if my husband and I ever get to go to WDW on a romantic getaway without the kids, we’d definitely consider it as a splurge!)