Our hotel rates seemed to have increased, as well as outside Disney hotels being offered. Check it out.
The free Disney dining plan offer has now ended for us Brits. Which means (for now) we're back to default pricing.
However, since the removal of the free dining offer, it appears that some dates in 2018 have increased in price. Many people (myself included) are guilty of pricing up Disney holidays, even if we have one booked already. We always like to keep an eye on prices in September, and the room only hotel price for 2 weeks at Pop Century was about £1500. Looking today, the price seems to have gone up to £1,778. Disney World ticket and dining plan prices seem to have remained the same.
What's also interesting is that Disney are now offering nearby hotels as an option when you search through Disney's own website. I've been going to Disney World many years, and although they do this with Disneyland, I've never seen them offer nearby hotels (apart from the Swan & Dolphin) on their official site. It would be sad if people assumed these were Disney hotels and thought they were getting all the benefits of one, like being able to purchase the dining plan or access to extra magic hours.