DXDDP - Just back and NOT worth it.

[mefordis]

I just got back from a May 4 - 10 trip. For us, DXDDP was NOT worth it. We came home with 6 TS and 1 snack unused. And feeling very full.

The food is sooo heavy that you just cannot eat that much. And having already paid the $$ for the plan, you are reluctant to just go to the food court and get a snack and keep missing meals because once you miss one or two you just cannot catch up.

If we go to WDW again, we would pay oop. It's really the best. That way you can share meals, order what you want, etc. and not have a big huge table of food in front of you that you are not going to eat.

Here is an example:

Yesterday we were not hungry for breakfast because we went to dinner late. So we didn't eat until lunch. Had lunch at WCC around noon. HEAVY meal. We were not hungry again until later that night. Split a hot dog early evening from Casey's. They told us we had to get fries and a cookie in order to use the plan. Okay. Then we ate at Kona cafe later for dinner. After wings appetizer and bread, was full and ended up tossing almost my entire Filet dinner with mashed potatoes and asparagus.

Don't know how much $$ we lost, but I'm sure we lost probably about $200 compared to if we ordered and paid oop.

The FL heat just doesn't allow those heavy meals, and so much food, in my opinion.

Hope this helps someone in making their decision.

Now, if someone wants to have a breakfast for 1 credit, and a 2 credit sig dinner, that would probably work for some people. For us we'd be too full from dinner for a big breakfast, and would rather have the lunch instead of a sig dinner, esp since we have a 4 year old.

[momof3poohlovers]

Thanks for the insight. We are really going back and forth on whether to use the basic or deluxe dining plan for our July trip. We have planned either a late breakfast or early lunch(11am)and then dinner at a signature restaurant for dinner between 6 and 8pm(depending on whether we are doing breakfast or lunch that day). I am really starting to 2nd guess myself and wondering if even eating only 2 big meals a day is too much.

[patsal]

Thanks for your input. This is precisely teh reason we are just paying OOP as we go along. At this point neither DDP or DXDDP is right for us.

[DreaminDisney]

Thanks for your input. I'm kind of on the fence about doing deluxe or not. It does seem like so much. I agree it would work it we did sig every night but I'm not sure we want to be tied down feeling like we have to do something every single night of vac to get our moneys worth.

[srdipert]

We are doing the deluxe but we are arriving very early on arrival day and leaving very late on departure day. I think that is allowing us to spread out our meals more. We are also doing some 2TS places. I am eager to see if we think it is too much food. We are also sharing with DS who will be 2 months shy of his 3rd b-day and eat as much as my 7 year old. :)


Sorry you guys had too much food...hope you still had a great time!

[mefordis]

Thanks for your input. I'm kind of on the fence about doing deluxe or not. It does seem like so much. I agree it would work it we did sig every night but I'm not sure we want to be tied down feeling like we have to do something every single night of vac to get our moneys worth.

Here's what I WISH we would have done. I wish we would have taken that $1200 we paid for the dxddp and put it in an envelope and paid for our food with it. I'll bet I'd have several hundred dollars in that envelope left.

[triplefigs]

We had 15 meals and 24 snacks left the final day... Went to the Marketplace at the BC and got a dessert and bottled drink for each meal credit and snacks to bring home in the car. We used more of the credits at the beginning of our 9 day trip, but by the end we just weren't hungry and didn't want all that food. I'm sure we lost a lot of $$ not using them. And we ate 3 Signarure places (Narcoossee's, Brown Derby, CRT), and still couldn't use them all. Next time it's OOP for us too.

[VMK_Mouse]

That is very good information. Works with the poll I posted in another thread. Thanks for this. :)

[mefordis]

We had 15 meals and 24 snacks left the final day... Went to the Marketplace at the BC and got a dessert and bottled drink for each meal credit and snacks to bring home in the car. We used more of the credits at the beginning of our 9 day trip, but by the end we just weren't hungry and didn't want all that food. I'm sure we lost a lot of $$ not using them. And we ate 3 Signarure places (Narcoossee's, Brown Derby, CRT), and still couldn't use them all. Next time it's OOP for us too.

Oh yeah. Just to blow an extra credit we got a salad from Earl of the Sandwich to eat with our sandwiches. Totally unnecessary but that is what you resort to if you think you are losing $$$!!~!!!!

[Tiger926]

We are here now - have been here for 10 days, with 5 more to go, and we are on the Deluxe Dining Plan. We eat 3 meals a day as we have low blood sugar, and only order what we are able to consume at that time. We frequently share and don't order dessert or appetizers - it's horrible to us that people feel the need to order a steak in order to maximize the plan, and then throw that steak out.

It always baffles my mind when people make broad sweeping statements that the Deluxe Plan is too much food when no one is forcing you to order an appetizer, entree, dessert or beverage. You know how much potential food you are able to order before purchasing the plan, so if it sounds like too much, then not sure why you would spend the money on the Deluxe Plan?

Deluxe is perfect for us as we eat 2-3 TS meals per day - did it before the DP as we used our DDE card. We are all underweight, very fit and only eat well - no counter service, fast food, pop or candy for us, so the Deluxe is great as it allows us to get Evian water for our drink, salads/soups for appetizers, and fruits for entree. There are a lot of snack credits, so we have been using these for bottled water, fruit, a few ice cream treats, for instance.

I guess I'm confused how eating a big dinner fills you up for breakfast? After not eating for 8-10 hours, we need to eat due to very low blood sugar levels, but even if we didn't have low blood sugar problems, eating the night before at 6:30 would have no bearing for us on breakfast. Maybe you should have better planned or spaced out your meals in order to maximize the plan better? Orlando is experiencing record heat this week, but again, this has nothing to do with us needing to eat, so we are doing just great - lots of bottled water for us at our meals and for snack credits.

Based on the way you ate, you didn't maximize your plan, and you have no one to blame but yourself. I must imagine that you did research here on the DIS and knew exactly what kind of meals were available to you, so what happened? For you the plan was not worth it, but for so many of us, it is worth it, and we are saving lots of money too!

Happy eating to all, Tiger :)

[mefordis]

We are here now - have been here for 10 days, with 5 more to go, and we are on the Deluxe Dining Plan. We eat 3 meals a day as we have low blood sugar, and only order what we are able to consume at that time. We frequently share and don't order dessert or appetizers - it's horrible to us that people feel the need to order a steak in order to maximize the plan, and then throw that steak out.

It always baffles my mind when people make broad sweeping statements that the Deluxe Plan is too much food when no one is forcing you to order an appetizer, entree, dessert or beverage. You know how much potential food you are able to order before purchasing the plan, so if it sounds like too much, then not sure why you would spend the money on the Deluxe Plan?

Deluxe is perfect for us as we eat 2-3 TS meals per day - did it before the DP as we used our DDE card. We are all underweight, very fit and only eat well - no counter service, fast food, pop or candy for us, so the Deluxe is great as it allows us to get Evian water for our drink, salads/soups for appetizers, and fruits for entree. There are a lot of snack credits, so we have been using these for bottled water, fruit, a few ice cream treats, for instance.

I guess I'm confused how eating a big dinner fills you up for breakfast? After not eating for 8-10 hours, we need to eat due to very low blood sugar levels, but even if we didn't have low blood sugar problems, eating the night before at 6:30 would have no bearing for us on breakfast. Maybe you should have better planned or spaced out your meals in order to maximize the plan better? Orlando is experiencing record heat this week, but again, this has nothing to do with us needing to eat, so we are doing just great - lots of bottled water for us at our meals and for snack credits.

Based on the way you ate, you didn't maximize your plan, and you have no one to blame but yourself. I must imagine that you did research here on the DIS and knew exactly what kind of meals were available to you, so what happened? For you the plan was not worth it, but for so many of us, it is worth it, and we are saving lots of money too!

Happy eating to all, Tiger :)

If you are eating 3 light meals a day, you should do some calculations to make sure that you are at least coming up even with your dxddp. I don't see how it would be worth it if you are sharing meals and not taking the appetizer. I'm just saying it isn't for us. If you are happy with it -- great. No reason to get defensive. :)

By the way, even the waiter at Kona agreed that is was way too much food -- and if you aren't eating the food why get it? I don't get that one.

[triplefigs]

For us, we just couldn't keep up the pace of 3 TS or even 2 TS and 1 CS. We just weren't that hungry. We skipped dessert and appetizers many places. We ended up cancelling some ADRs for breakfast as my DS who has been very ill just couldn't do a commando schedule. So, for us, it wasnt' the right fit. For our family a Dining Plan with 2 TS and 1 snack per day would be PERFECT!

[james'mommy]

I always make sure that I have every single table service credit scheduled for an ADR before we even leave for vaca. We like to do 2 credit restaurants and we tend to avoid buffets. (Narccossee's is pretty much a must do for my DH) He whined a little when I told him we were going to Jiko instead this time. We usually share CS meals so that we can stretch them over lunches and breaksfasts. We also make sure to hit DTD and Goofy's Candy Co for lots of snacks for the road. DH loves the rice krispie treat that are like the size of your head. I also buy bagged candy and cheese crackers to use up the rest of our snack credits. I have never ever left Disney with any credits for anything remaining.

[DreaminDisney]

Here's what I WISH we would have done. I wish we would have taken that $1200 we paid for the dxddp and put it in an envelope and paid for our food with it. I'll bet I'd have several hundred dollars in that envelope left.

Our last trip was 10 nights and reg ddp worked out great for us. We did a couple sig places and had cs on days we didn't do a TS meal.

I think we're not going with deluxe. I did like reg dining plan but not even sure we're doing that upcoming trip.

The reason I considered deluxe was kids loved HDDR. I want to go back to CG. There are a few other sigs I'd like to try but like I said before I'm not sure I want to have to have an adr every single night of vac to make it pan out for us.

Thanks again for your input. Triplefigs thanks for posting your experience with deluxe also.

[VMK_Mouse]

We are here now - have been here for 10 days, with 5 more to go, and we are on the Deluxe Dining Plan. We eat 3 meals a day as we have low blood sugar, and only order what we are able to consume at that time. We frequently share and don't order dessert or appetizers - it's horrible to us that people feel the need to order a steak in order to maximize the plan, and then throw that steak out.

It always baffles my mind when people make broad sweeping statements that the Deluxe Plan is too much food when no one is forcing you to order an appetizer, entree, dessert or beverage. You know how much potential food you are able to order before purchasing the plan, so if it sounds like too much, then not sure why you would spend the money on the Deluxe Plan?

Deluxe is perfect for us as we eat 2-3 TS meals per day - did it before the DP as we used our DDE card. We are all underweight, very fit and only eat well - no counter service, fast food, pop or candy for us, so the Deluxe is great as it allows us to get Evian water for our drink, salads/soups for appetizers, and fruits for entree. There are a lot of snack credits, so we have been using these for bottled water, fruit, a few ice cream treats, for instance.

I guess I'm confused how eating a big dinner fills you up for breakfast? After not eating for 8-10 hours, we need to eat due to very low blood sugar levels, but even if we didn't have low blood sugar problems, eating the night before at 6:30 would have no bearing for us on breakfast. Maybe you should have better planned or spaced out your meals in order to maximize the plan better? Orlando is experiencing record heat this week, but again, this has nothing to do with us needing to eat, so we are doing just great - lots of bottled water for us at our meals and for snack credits.

Based on the way you ate, you didn't maximize your plan, and you have no one to blame but yourself. I must imagine that you did research here on the DIS and knew exactly what kind of meals were available to you, so what happened? For you the plan was not worth it, but for so many of us, it is worth it, and we are saving lots of money too!

Happy eating to all, Tiger :)


I think the real point the OP was making was simply that it was not for their family. It was merely an opinion to be shared with others who might have some of the same concerns. :) Perhaps you eat a lot more than the OP so it works better for you and your family.

Since it seemed to be the center of your comments and defensiveness, it is fair to remember that not everybody has your medical problems/history. It is also fair to remember that we are all different. Just because somebody has a different opinion or experience does not open the door to attack them. :)

I for one am thankful for the feeback. I have seen more feedback like this and it is helping us to plan for our next trip.

[srdipert]

Here's what I WISH we would have done. I wish we would have taken that $1200 we paid for the dxddp and put it in an envelope and paid for our food with it. I'll bet I'd have several hundred dollars in that envelope left.

I have been with out any dining plan before and it cost about 150 dollars a day for food and that when there was 3 of us. Also that was justing eating what we needed and with me not ordering what I really wanted because of the sticker shock! We have done the ddp the last two trips and it was so much more enjoyable because I didn't look at the price just what I wanted to order. The reason I got he deluxe plan this time is because we are doing the free dining so we are not paying full price if we were not sure if I would do it but last time we did the regular dining plan we still spent about 400 oop on extra meals. I don't anticipate paying for any food oop this time and for our trip to upgrade to the deluxe was only 400 and we get away more food than the few things I paid 400 for the last time.


Also not sure if you have kids...I think maybe that makes it a better deals since the cost of their plan is a lot less but character buffets can start to add up for them.

[Disney Debbie]

We're doing it in September and I think it will be well worth it. We're only paying the difference between the regular and deluxe since we'll be there during free dining. We always go and say we're going to eat a big lunch and a lighter supper - but then we end up eating a big supper too! We will definitely get our money's worth out of it - just eating CS costs enough to make the regular plan worth it.

This will be just my DH and I though - I don't think it would have been worth it back when DS was little - she hardly ate a thing!

[mefordis]

I think the real point the OP was making was simply that it was not for their family. It was merely an opinion to be shared with others who might have some of the same concerns. :) Perhaps you eat a lot more than the OP so it works better for you and your family.

Since it seemed to be the center of your comments and defensiveness, it is fair to remember that not everybody has your medical problems/history. It is also fair to remember that we are all different. Just because somebody has a different opinion or experience does not open the door to attack them. :)

I for one am thankful for the feeback. I have seen more feedback like this and it is helping us to plan for our next trip.

Thank you! That's exactly right. I was just trying to warn other families who are trying to figure out whether or not to get the dxddp. I really think the only way it would save anyone $$ would be to

1. Use every credit
2. Take the app and dessert

Otherwise, I'd pay oop. Also, I think it's easy to forget that you can go to any restaurant, 3 ts a day, without any plan at all. You can also order apps. and Dessert. But if you don't order them, at least you haven't already paid for them. :)

[mickey2000]

I would love to do deluxe ;)

I would like the Convenience of it, and wouldn't mind paying for extra meals that I probably won't eat or need:confused: Its only money and I have lots to get rid of. I really don't need to save with this plan popcorn::

Its only money :laughing:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v372/diz/338378124_b8429fb3df_m.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v372/diz/86259178_1201279559_036ccb7e456f610.jpghttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v372/diz/thICONATOR_dab6bd0859d445b3fb245f9c.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v372/diz/word011.gifhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v372/diz/word011.gifhttp://img.photobucket.com/albums/v372/diz/word011.gif

[danielle.st]

I'm just curious as to whether most of the people who agree it's "too much food" tend to eat 2 or 3 meals a day when they are home?
I'm just getting why 3 meals a day is too much because I always thought that was actually normal.

[mickey2000]

I'm just curious as to whether most of the people who agree it's "too much food" tend to eat 2 or 3 meals a day when they are home?
I'm just getting why 3 meals a day is too much because I always thought that was actually normal.

IMO
I think it depends on the size of the meals and when you eat them!

The following picure is JUST FOR FUN ;) ;)

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v372/diz/fastpass115.jpg

[Girly_Qs]

I'm just curious as to whether most of the people who agree it's "too much food" tend to eat 2 or 3 meals a day when they are home?
I'm just getting why 3 meals a day is too much because I always thought that was actually normal.

Yes, but even if/when I eat 3 meals in a day I do NOT eat 3 appetizers, 3 entrees, AND 3 desserts each day. I don't think I eat a total of 3 appetizers/dessserts (combined) in a week, let alone each day (and successive days, no less).

I agree with the dissenter that it's a shame that people feel the need to order food that they don't really want/need and end up throwing it out in order to feel they're getting their money's worth. But, I think that's part of the OP's opinion - if you're only ordering it to maximize your 'savings' (not because you want/need it) then most likely you're not really saving anything at all.

We've used the basic DDP in the past and it's worked out great for us. We also have an 'under 3' so she's 'sharing' our meals too. The basic has always been more food than we can use (snack credit b'fast, QS lunch, TS dinner) - we've not only felt it was sufficient (for us), but decadent. I feel like I ate myself silly last year!

[minniemee]

Thanks mefordis for sharing your experience with all of us!:thumbsup2
We ended up going with the regular DP, I'm glad I made that decision after hearing your experience!

[Muushka]

My question to those who have done the DxDDP on this thread and not liked it, have you ever done the regular DDP?

The reason I ask is because I think the DDP is borderline too much food. The only way I would do DxDDP would be for 1 or 2 nights, that would be it, about all I could take! Then no DP at all after that (yes, I know the rules about having it the entire stay).

[srdipert]

Yes, but even if/when I eat 3 meals in a day I do NOT eat 3 appetizers, 3 entrees, AND 3 desserts each day. I don't think I eat a total of 3 appetizers/dessserts (combined) in a week, let alone each day (and successive days, no less).

I agree with the dissenter that it's a shame that people feel the need to order food that they don't really want/need and end up throwing it out in order to feel they're getting their money's worth. But, I think that's part of the OP's opinion - if you're only ordering it to maximize your 'savings' (not because you want/need it) then most likely you're not really saving anything at all.

We've used the basic DDP in the past and it's worked out great for us. We also have an 'under 3' so she's 'sharing' our meals too. The basic has always been more food than we can use (snack credit b'fast, QS lunch, TS dinner) - we've not only felt it was sufficient (for us), but decadent. I feel like I ate myself silly last year!

My kids to actually eat three meals a day. They eat breakfast and lunch at the school where I am a director and they get a meat two veggies and an fruit for lunch, breakfast is like waffles and fruit and milk and two snacks everyday plus I make them dinner at home. So they are used to eating like this....do they alway clean their plates of course not but they do tend to eat more in Disney I guess from the walking all the time. They don't eat a lot of "typical" kids foods like hot dogs, chicken nuggets etc... that is why I don't like the basic plan because the kids CS aren't typically all that great.

Well the way I have my ADRs set up we actually don't have many days that we have three meals a day. Breakfast you don't actually get the dessert or app and we have some 2TS so some days we have Breakfast and Dinner so that would only one dessert and one app.

We have several buffets planned and I plan on just eating small amount of a few things. My kids love fruit so buffets work well for us because they can eat all of the watermelon and strawberries they want! :) I am sure they don't eat their 12$ worth of fruit but it is the same oop as the ddp and we are really paying for the experience and the characters (if applicable).

[JudyS]

I think Disney counts on people not being able to eat all the food on the Deluxe Plan. If everyone was really able to take full advantage of the plan, Disney would wind up losing money on it.

I've never done any of the dining plans because I try to be very careful about what I eat, even on vacation, and don't want to be tempted by desserts constantly. However, the Deluxe plan sounds nice if you want to do several shows or signature meals that take two credits. One thing I've wondered if whether I could, say, book a two-night reservation and get the Deluxe plan for those nights, followed by a separate reservation for a few more nights with no dining plan. This would give me a chance to try out a few nice shows or restaurants without having a ton of food for the whole trip. Does anyone see a reason why this wouldn't work?


....

Deluxe is perfect for us as we eat 2-3 TS meals per day - did it before the DP as we used our DDE card. We are all underweight, very fit and only eat well - no counter service, fast food, pop or candy for us, so the Deluxe is great as it allows us to get Evian water for our drink, salads/soups for appetizers, and fruits for entree. There are a lot of snack credits, so we have been using these for bottled water, fruit, a few ice cream treats, for instance....Can you really break even on the Deluxe plan while eating like this? I'd think it would be cheaper to pay out-of-pocket.

[mefordis]

I'm just curious as to whether most of the people who agree it's "too much food" tend to eat 2 or 3 meals a day when they are home?
I'm just getting why 3 meals a day is too much because I always thought that was actually normal.

Good question. It's not that 3 meals a day is too much. It's the quantity at each meal and the type of food. At home I don't eat a buffet for breakfast. And most people wouldn't stick with fruit and oatmeal at a buffet. Not for the price of one and not because of the tempting treats there. So straight away for breakfast you are eating 3x the amount you would at home. My breakfast at home is a boiled egg and strawberries or some oatmeal. I would not eat just that at a buffet.

Now take lunch. For example, Sci Fi. Appetizer: spinach dip and chips. Main: Turkey sandwich and salad. Dessert: Hot fudge sundae. I didn't even finish it all and I was full until that night. Dinner: app: sticky wings. Main: Filet with mashed potatoes and asparagus. Dessert: Cheesecake. See what I mean? If you are going to stop at the sticky wings (comes with a big salad too, by the way, even though it's an appetizer) just pay out of pocket. You would definitely save $$$. It seems strange to me to buy the dxddp and only have an app for dinner. Why even get the plan, then? Seems like a big waste of money.

[Tiger926]

Sorry, but I don't believe I was defensive at all.

For us, the Deluxe works out well because we eat 3 meals a day at home, plus snacks. We don't eat appetizers and desserts at all meals, so we don't order them on the plan if we aren't going to eat them, yet in most cases, we are still coming out ahead.

Today was a lighter financial day as an example:

Breakfast - Playhouse Disney character buffet at $22.99/adult plus tax. Ate fruit, a pastry, juice, bacon and corned beef hash. Did I eat $22.99 in food? Absolutely not as breakfast food is grossly overpriced. I eat the same whether on DP or DDE or OOP, so this is all I eat for breakfast.

Lunch - Mama Melrose: Small salad, spaghetti, water & no dessert.

Dinner - Le Cellier: Small salad, chicken/rice, water & sorbet for dessert.

Did I eat $69.99 worth of food? Not sure as I haven't figured it out, as I ordered what I could eat (don't forget my 2 snacks in there - refillable mug is a waste for us as we don't drink pop, so we get no usage out of those). Some days we save a good deal of money, other days not so much, but with a 5 year old, it is working out to savings for us in amost every case.

My point to the OP was that he/she has enough posts here on the DIS so I assumed that he/she did research as to what the Deluxe Plan entailed; therefore, should have known that you can get up to 3 meals per day, plus 2 snacks and refillable mugs. If that didn't seem like "too much food" before, I'm not sure why it would be too much know? Perhaps like I said, meals could have been spread out more?

For us, we don't eat a lot (I'm 100 lbs), but we do have to eat regularly, and we eat on vacation just like we eat at home. I do notice though, that people fill up on lots of junk at the parks (popcorn, pop, ice cream) and we don't, so I really think this has a lot to do with it. We found the regular DP was not adequate (don't like CS) enough, and so we were excited for the Deluxe - have done 4 Signature meals too.

The Dining Plan isn't for everyone, but if researched properly and menus consulted before, one should be prepared for what the plan entails before going in. Coming home with unused credits definitely means that proper planning wasn't in place as all Disney menus are available on the Internet. If someone gets sick (this is a downfall of the DP), than that is a different thing altogether. I'm not sure where most of you are eating on property, but we've eaten at every restaurant multiple times, and so we know the prices pretty well, and so the prices of the buffets alone are more than $69.99/day, plus you have snacks and mug in there, so the Deluxe Plan is saving us money for sure, which is a big bonus.

Happy eating to all, Tiger :)

[mefordis]

I think Disney counts on people not being able to eat all the food on the Deluxe Plan. If everyone was really able to take full advantage of the plan, Disney would wind up losing money on it.

I've never done any of the dining plans because I try to be very careful about what I eat, even on vacation, and don't want to be tempted by desserts constantly. However, the Deluxe plan sounds nice if you want to do several shows or signature meals that take two credits. One thing I've wondered if whether I could, say, book a two-night reservation and get the Deluxe plan for those nights, followed by a separate reservation for a few more nights with no dining plan. This would give me a chance to try out a few nice shows or restaurants without having a ton of food for the whole trip. Does anyone see a reason why this wouldn't work?


Can you really break even on the Deluxe plan while eating like this? I'd think it would be cheaper to pay out-of-pocket.

I know. Also, where do you get fruits for an entree? Just curious because I didn't see any on a single menu, and we went to a lot of places.

[srdipert]

Good question. It's not that 3 meals a day is too much. It's the quantity at each meal and the type of food. At home I don't eat a buffet for breakfast. And most people wouldn't stick with fruit and oatmeal at a buffet. Not for the price of one and not because of the tempting treats there. So straight away for breakfast you are eating 3x the amount you would at home. My breakfast at home is a boiled egg and strawberries or some oatmeal. I would not eat just that at a buffet.

Now take lunch. For example, Sci Fi. Appetizer: spinach dip and chips. Main: Turkey sandwich and salad. Dessert: Hot fudge sundae. I didn't even finish it all and I was full until that night. Dinner: app: sticky wings. Main: Filet with mashed potatoes and asparagus. Dessert: Cheesecake. See what I mean? If you are going to stop at the sticky wings (comes with a big salad too, by the way, even though it's an appetizer) just pay out of pocket. You would definitely save $$$. It seems strange to me to buy the dxddp and only have an app for dinner. Why even get the plan, then? Seems like a big waste of money.

See I don't have many days scheduled that looks like what you described above but if I did it still wouldn't be too much food for us. I really wouldn't eat that much breakfast at the buffet because we are there to see the characters and after I went back and forth getting the kids food...really no time to eat and that is okay we are there to see the characters and get into the park an hour early! So I would probably have some waffles, fruit and diet coke! I know I didn't eat my moneys worth of food but it would cost the same oop and we would do it anyway.

Lunch using your example we will have to share the app with the kids b/c they love the dip and chips so we really will not get that much and they can only order a small salad or soup and than we will be sharing the dessert with the kids because the adult desserts are much better than the kids. Same at the dinner...the sticky wings would be gone in a second because the kids love them and last time we went to Kona the kids apps were chicken noodle soup or salad (which is just lettuce and dressing). Also our kids love steak so I am only going to get half of mine because I am going to share with them same with dessert.

[mefordis]

Thanks mefordis for sharing your experience with all of us!:thumbsup2
We ended up going with the regular DP, I'm glad I made that decision after hearing your experience!

I'm so glad I could help. Understand, everyone, please. I'm an eater. I love food. I'm not an light eater. It was just too much. Maybe I did order the heavy things but the places I went had mostly, if not all, heavy things on the menus. High in fat which keeps you full longer. I guess that's why I wasn't hungry every 4 hours while I was there like I usually am at home.

For Tiger926 (I think the name is): I did my research but I thought I would have eaten more. Once there, it ended up that I ate much less than I thought I would. The food is so filling and there are so many activities to occupy us with, we weren't as preoccupied with food as I am while I'm home and browsing the dis restaurant boards, I guess! :)

[mefordis]

See I don't have many days scheduled that looks like what you described above but if I did it still wouldn't be too much food for us. I really wouldn't eat that much breakfast at the buffet because we are there to see the characters and after I went back and forth getting the kids food...really no time to eat and that is okay we are there to see the characters and get into the park an hour early! So I would probably have some waffles, fruit and diet coke! I know I didn't eat my moneys worth of food but it would cost the same oop and we would do it anyway.

Lunch using your example we will have to share the app with the kids b/c they love the dip and chips so we really will not get that much and they can only order a small salad or soup and than we will be sharing the dessert with the kids because the adult desserts are much better than the kids. Same at the dinner...the sticky wings would be gone in a second because the kids love them and last time we went to Kona the kids apps were chicken noodle soup or salad (which is just lettuce and dressing). Also our kids love steak so I am only going to get half of mine because I am going to share with them same with dessert.


This may work for you, then. I only have one 4 year old and I did share my chips with her but she ate, like, 2. And my mom shared her onion rings and she ate 2 of those as well. Maybe the more kids the better it works out. :)

[bluslag]

We did the regular DDP this past March/April for 12 days. We did 2 signature dinners and the first and second night we paid for our dinners. I don't want to complain about to much food but I do think it was to many nights in a row to be eating that much. I don't think if we went that many days we would do the DDP because we need a break from it. I could have gone a few nights with a CS meal for our dinner. I don't think we could ever done the Deluxe DDP and justified it. We never go out to a big breakfast because we like to hit the parks early and go back to the resort early. Lunch doesn't need to be much and we probably would share if we paid OOP. I am kinda of looking forward to going back to making reservations for dinner and if it works great or we cancel. I think it would actually be nice to be hungry when we go out for dinner.

[VMK_Mouse]

I'm just curious as to whether most of the people who agree it's "too much food" tend to eat 2 or 3 meals a day when they are home?
I'm just getting why 3 meals a day is too much because I always thought that was actually normal.

Well, since you asked.....

I have not done it yet and I do think it is a lot of food or could potentially be a waste of money. I do not have money to piss to the wind (sorry for the expression, but true) so I have to make sure that whatever I plan makes sense for our trip and financially.

I do eat 3 meals a day at home. I have a bowl of cereal or oatmeal for breakfast, a sandwich or soup for lunch and a sensible light dinner. I do not have an appetizer and dessert with each meal. I also cannot eat a 3 course meal each day.

[DCDisney]

We do eat 3 meals a day at home but even with the regular plan most days we ate 3ish meals anyway. We did pay for 1 meal OOP and used extra credits from my 10 year old adult son for 1 extra TS meal. So for a 6 night trip we had 8 TS meals. I think for at least 2 of those dinners we weren't really hungry at all. We shared a few CS breakfasts (huge platter was enough for 2 plus some leftovers) and a few CS lunches. Some of the CS desserts we held onto for snacks later so between those and sharing some snack credits here and there for funnel cakes, big pretzels, popcorn that were sharable it felt like we were pretty constantly eating. We also brought home at least 6 snacks. I missed the idea of the appetizers but in actuality we still had plenty of food. Besides the too much food issue for the DxDDP it just takes too darn much time to get to the TS, wait, eat, etc. I can totally see the DxDDP as being ideal for folks who want 2 credit meals every day though typically those meals don't cost twice as much as 1TS meals so it might not work out well financially. If I went without my kids I could totally see that but for kid oriented places and spending lots of time in the parks not so much. My other issue is that my kids are used to eating pretty low fat and after a certain amount of eating too much rich stuff we start having issues and I felt like by sharing CS we came out much better than we would having everyone ordering TS and then having to be the food police about how many desserts are we eating.

[dreamer17555]

I am sorry it didn't work out for you. We went for 8 days on the DxDDP and LOVED it. It was me, my DH, and our 6 year old Daughter.

We did the earliest (and I mean earliest) Character Meals for Breakfast almost every morning. On Mornings that we didn't we would have an early lunch (11am) and this was on days we were doing Morning EMH as to not miss anything.

We did 4 2TS places (HDDR, SoA, Cali Grill, CRT) And only two days did we have 3 sit down meals and on those we had a late lunch and then DD went to Neverland Club, Me and DH headed to the parks and had a late (Late!) dinner.

I tried a lot of new food because I knew I had plenty of food coming. (aka. Trying a new Entree because I knew of an Appitizer and a Dessert I would like) Sometimes it was good- sometimes not but it was fun.

We saw so many characters this way (and while sitting- beats waiting in line) and had a blast. The getting up Early was rough but we took a mid day break and then came back to whatever park for our Dinner ADR and closed it. It was a fantastic trip.

The thing with the DxDDP is we felt like we had tons of freedom as far as grabbing snack here and there. DD wants another Mickey Bar? Sure! We had 12 left over but spent those wisely at the Candy Shop on Main Street on goodies to take home.

My Advice for people is that if you are going to do the DxDDP you HAVE to plan out where and when you will be eating. I know that souns like it can\will ruin a trip but it won't. Do some number crunching. In our case it saved us $420. Could we have eaten cheaper than what we paid for the DxDDP? Yes but it wouldn't have been half as much fun!

-Becca-

[triplefigs]

Well, I just finished a spread sheet to see how much we saved. We had the DXDDP for 8 nights (24 credits). Even missing the 3 meals (at 5 people is 15 credits), we still saved $450 which is great! If you add in the OOP tip (we tipped at 18-20%), we still saved over $200. So, maybe I would do it again. I think for our family, sitting down twice per day is MAX. We did much better using the credits on the days I had a late b'fast or early lunch and then a Signature dinner or show. We had used the regular DDP in the past and liked it, but ended up paying OOP for many meals. We always eat at tons of character meals.

Here's where we ate this trip:

Chef Mickey B'fast
Plaza lunch
1900 PF dinner

Hollywood and Vine Playhouse Disney lunch
Brown Derby Dinner

Tusker House Donald's b'fast
Narcoossee's Dinner

'Ohana b'fast
CRT dinner

just grabbed heavy snacks for late b'fast/lunch as we were changing resorts
50's Prime Time dinner

Garden Grill lunch
PSB dinner

Earl of Sandwich lunch
Crystal Palace dinner
Casey's for late snack at P&PP

Beaches and Cream lunch
Spoodles dinner

Cape May Cafe b'fast
used the remaining credits at Marketplace to get drink and item from bakery for meal credits (didn't get sandwiches as we had nowhere to store them).

Hope this helps someone else. Next time I'd add in a few more 2 TS places (maybe HDDR, Jiko, California Grill). I also would order room service for breakfast to use up credits if I have them left.

[sjaakie]

I think the greatest problem with all the diner plans is that people tend to “eat the last dollar out of it “.

If you see it just as a comfy way to pay in advance and not more as that the plan works perfect. But if you keep counting all day if its worth what you pay for then you create a major problem for yourselves .

Also I can’t understand how a dinner can be “to much food” .
Is there a waiter holding a gun on you head and makes you eat every thing? :lmao:

You can say no ore order not everything.

[danielle.st]

My kids to actually eat three meals a day. They eat breakfast and lunch at the school where I am a director and they get a meat two veggies and an fruit for lunch, breakfast is like waffles and fruit and milk and two snacks everyday plus I make them dinner at home. So they are used to eating like this....do they alway clean their plates of course not but they do tend to eat more in Disney I guess from the walking all the time. They don't eat a lot of "typical" kids foods like hot dogs, chicken nuggets etc... that is why I don't like the basic plan because the kids CS aren't typically all that great.

Well the way I have my ADRs set up we actually don't have many days that we have three meals a day. Breakfast you don't actually get the dessert or app and we have some 2TS so some days we have Breakfast and Dinner so that would only one dessert and one app.

We have several buffets planned and I plan on just eating small amount of a few things. My kids love fruit so buffets work well for us because they can eat all of the watermelon and strawberries they want! :) I am sure they don't eat their 12$ worth of fruit but it is the same oop as the ddp and we are really paying for the experience and the characters (if applicable).


I have the exact same kind of kids and it's a huge reason we are choosing the deluxe plan. They would be bored silly with the "typical" kids foods. They love buffets especially because they actually like to try new things. They love all kinds of salads and vegetables. We are really excited about that. I'm sure if we had the basic DDP they would stop eating much after a day or two just out of sheer boredom and monotony.

[danielle.st]

Good question. It's not that 3 meals a day is too much. It's the quantity at each meal and the type of food. At home I don't eat a buffet for breakfast. And most people wouldn't stick with fruit and oatmeal at a buffet. Not for the price of one and not because of the tempting treats there. So straight away for breakfast you are eating 3x the amount you would at home. My breakfast at home is a boiled egg and strawberries or some oatmeal. I would not eat just that at a buffet.

Now take lunch. For example, Sci Fi. Appetizer: spinach dip and chips. Main: Turkey sandwich and salad. Dessert: Hot fudge sundae. I didn't even finish it all and I was full until that night. Dinner: app: sticky wings. Main: Filet with mashed potatoes and asparagus. Dessert: Cheesecake. See what I mean? If you are going to stop at the sticky wings (comes with a big salad too, by the way, even though it's an appetizer) just pay out of pocket. You would definitely save $$$. It seems strange to me to buy the dxddp and only have an app for dinner. Why even get the plan, then? Seems like a big waste of money.


I see where you are coming from. At the same time, I know my kids would be all over sharing that spinach dip app with me and I'm definitely not going to be eating it myself anyway.
As for the buffets, I'm planning on trying a little bit of a few things that especially appeal to me and not worry about whether or not I am getting my money's worth foodwise. I fully expect Disney to be making a profit off of me, but I also expect to enjoy the whoe experience. And the buffets tend to be as much or more about the nonfood entertainment.
I do see that others view it differently though :)

[danielle.st]

I know. Also, where do you get fruits for an entree? Just curious because I didn't see any on a single menu, and we went to a lot of places.

Doesn't Flame tree have a fruit entree? I know it's a CS, but you can still get it on the Deluxe Dining Plan.

[creativeamanda]

I am sorry it didn't work out for you. We went for 8 days on the DxDDP and LOVED it. It was me, my DH, and our 6 year old Daughter.

We did the earliest (and I mean earliest) Character Meals for Breakfast almost every morning. On Mornings that we didn't we would have an early lunch (11am) and this was on days we were doing Morning EMH as to not miss anything.

We did 4 2TS places (HDDR, SoA, Cali Grill, CRT) And only two days did we have 3 sit down meals and on those we had a late lunch and then DD went to Neverland Club, Me and DH headed to the parks and had a late (Late!) dinner.

I tried a lot of new food because I knew I had plenty of food coming. (aka. Trying a new Entree because I knew of an Appitizer and a Dessert I would like) Sometimes it was good- sometimes not but it was fun.

We saw so many characters this way (and while sitting- beats waiting in line) and had a blast. The getting up Early was rough but we took a mid day break and then came back to whatever park for our Dinner ADR and closed it. It was a fantastic trip.

The thing with the DxDDP is we felt like we had tons of freedom as far as grabbing snack here and there. DD wants another Mickey Bar? Sure! We had 12 left over but spent those wisely at the Candy Shop on Main Street on goodies to take home.

My Advice for people is that if you are going to do the DxDDP you HAVE to plan out where and when you will be eating. I know that souns like it can\will ruin a trip but it won't. Do some number crunching. In our case it saved us $420. Could we have eaten cheaper than what we paid for the DxDDP? Yes but it wouldn't have been half as much fun!

-Becca-

I've been looking for your comments regarding the ddxp. Thanks! We upgraded today :)

[Wendy5055]

It is really a shame that you feel like you wasted so much money. I think many do appreciate you input and experience...Thank You for letting us know!!! However, we are doing the DlxDDP during Free Dining so I think for the price to upgrade, it is definately worth it for us. I don't really know if I would do it if I were paying for the entire amount of the DlxDDP...I have only ever done the DDP. I am anxiously awaiting the opportunity to compare the two.:cool2:

We are going to be doing CRT and Hoop De Doo Review (two things I wouldn't have done without the DlxDDP as it is 2TS)...I have spaced out three meals per day for us (early breakfast 7:30am, 1:00 lunch, 6:30/7:15 dinner) as I feel that 5 to 6 hours between eating is more than enough!!! If we are hungry in between or need refreshing drinks...there is the snack credits. BTW...you don't get an appetizer or dessert with breakfast (wouldn't mind it though :laughing: ).

I do NOT want to be grumpy from low blood sugar and my DD6 needs to eat regularly or the grumpies come on full force. :scared1: Not to mention DH when he is hungry...pirate: :scared1: pirate: :sad2:

The price I am paying for my sanity is worth it to me!!! :rolleyes1 I do like to read the reviews...it is the best prepartion for our trip!!!

[texasgirl73]

I'm going to be using the DxDDP in 56 days!!!! When I vacation (most of my vacations are in Vegas:) I like to get a buffet breakfast, a snack in the afternoon, and a nice 3 course meal at a fine restaurant so the Deluxe sounds just perfect. I eat healthy at buffets and order mostly fish at the nicer restaurants and fruit and sorbets for dessert. I can see why it wouldn't be for everyone but I like that I don't have to eat CS and that I can eat at the Signature restaurants and not worry about the check.

[TIGGERmetoo]

We're going in October and trying the deluxe plan. We have sig dining most evenings and will eat a late breakfast or early lunch. We debated between the reg and deluxe plan but DH loves the appetizers and there were several sig restaurents we wanted to go to. I like the idea of having the meals (except for tip) paid in advance. The idea of 2 snacks per day will be great for Food and Wine.

[dreamer17555]

I've been looking for your comments regarding the ddxp. Thanks! We upgraded today :)

I think you will love it! If you can handle (not like but handle) getting up early think about booking the earliest character breakfasts you can. We made it to every rope drop doing this and it was fantastic!

-Becca-

[Luv2Roam]

I would look at the Dlx DDP as a treat by going to signature restaurants I normally may not go to. (On one of our past vacations we went to Flying Fish twice we liked it so much.)
The Dlx DDP would be a lot of food, but as others stated I think it takes planning and some personal rules. And it sure would be nice to have more options other than typical fast food counter service. There are some good counter service places. Being able to have nice meals allows a lot more options.
In the summer months just being indoors to sit and cool down would be a blessing.
Nothing against the OP. I see their point, and none of the DDP were meant as a one size fits all. I appreciate their posting their opinions.

[mpls_mm]

We have gone OOP, regular dining and will have deluxe next time. I am a single mon and have two pretty picky, but hearty eaters DD8 and DS4. But they are rarely hearty eaters at every meal, one might pig out at breakfast and the other wants a big lunch and then neither wants dinner. We went OOP two years ago and it did get expensive. I am pretty thrifty and brought food, but it was hard to pay the really high prices and was literally agonizing over every item. We would leave one meal and then DS would be starving an hour later. I know it is silly and I can afford the trip, but mentally it was hard. My son got sick and needed medicine and a few other things ran more than we thought, I hadn't brought any credit cards, just a debit card and was kind of panicking. The thought of paying $150 to eat waffles with mickey was hard to swallow. Last year we did DDP and it was nice, we did run out of credits because of a few shows and such and having too many sit downs and not enough TS, something that will be remedied . It was a pain to pay for the souvenirs and treats and extras plus meals. Some of those meals were just too expensive if not on DDP. This time we are doing Deluxe and I won't have to worry about anything but tips...:mad: We have two TS every day, a big one at breakfast and a big one at dinner, most are character meals, we'll do counter service in between. If we are over-full, we'll have enough for our three signature meals. If it doesn't work that way, I might have to pay for a few counters OOP. The other bonus is that the trip will be paid off long before we go. It is harder for me to set aside a budget for food, that is just me, a $100 towards the vacation a month and giving it to the TA is easier than setting it aside. We are HUGE eaters, we are all thin and have super high metabolisms. Walking so much makes us ravenous. I love buffets and would have an appetizer and dessert with every meal vacation or not. I would have been sad to have no appy. Now if we sit down to a giant character meal that cost over $100 and DS wants a sandwich an hour later, I won't sweat it.

[racefanof88]

I had to add my .02. We just got back from our trip of May 2 - May 8th and we had the basic dining plan and I know there would be NO WAY we could ever use the delux plan.

It was way too much food on the regular plan for my family of 5 big eaters. Our last night we went to the food court and gift shop to use up or last 5 snacks and 4 counter service meals.

It was fun to try the ddp for the first time this trip but, it was too much to be tied to reservations all the time. We actually missed some of our favorite rides due to having to keep ADRs and then being too tired to go back later.

We will go oop from now on and enjoy the freedom to just eat when and where we want.

[frannn]

The bargain hunter (read- cheapo :rolleyes1 ) in me would never allow me to try the deluxe plan at full price, so we're gonna do it in Sept during free dining. That way, we get to do a bunch a signatures and shows for the first time. I know I'll be complaining about how full I am, and how much we are not getting to do, but it will be a forced time to take a break (which I have a hard time doing normally). I love the appetizers at WDW & never order them at home. I also love the variety buffets give, and the opportunity to allow DD5 to eat with the characters. The characters have been the highlight of her last few trips. We usually do 3 meals a day + snacks at home, so as long as we pace ourselves during our 11 day trip, we should do well. I don't choose my DDP entrees by price, but my favorite foods are usually the most expensive items on the menu. I just hope its not so crowded that we only get to do a few rides between meals.

[Lehuaann]

The bargain hunter (read- cheapo :rolleyes1 ) in me would never allow me to try the deluxe plan at full price, so we're gonna do it in Sept during free dining. That way, we get to do a bunch a signatures and shows for the first time. I know I'll be complaining about how full I am, and how much we are not getting to do, but it will be a forced time to take a break (which I have a hard time doing normally). I love the appetizers at WDW & never order them at home. I also love the variety buffets give, and the opportunity to allow DD5 to eat with the characters. The characters have been the highlight of her last few trips. We usually do 3 meals a day + snacks at home, so as long as we pace ourselves during our 11 day trip, we should do well. I don't choose my DDP entrees by price, but my favorite foods are usually the most expensive items on the menu. I just hope its not so crowded that we only get to do a few rides between meals.

AMEN :banana:

[mstew99]

I agree with a PP, I doubt I ever would pay the 69.99/day for the dlx plan. BUT, since you can upgrade for 32/day during free dining, I figured it would be a nice treat.

Everyone has differing opinions, but the dining plan really grew on me. A friend and I (who had never been to WDW) wanted to go, and I saw the free dining offer in 06 and we decided to go then and try that out. We both loved it, and found out Disney has some of the best restaurants we've ever eaten at. When we saw free dining was back in 07, we HAD to go again. Actually, for both of us, it was just the right amount of food. We never had any credits left, and always finished our food. We did use most of our snacks as treats to take home though!

So when we saw they changed the plan to eliminate the appetizer in 08, it was sad because some of my favorite dishes are appetizers! I saw the deluxe plan, and it immediately sounded like too much food, and had too big of a price. Once I found out you could pay to upgrade to deluxe during free dining, we decided we had to give it a shot. There are quite a few dinner shows and signature dining places we'd love to try, so we decided this was the perfect way to do it.

I think the biggest key to making the deluxe plan work, is PLANNING! On arrival day, our flight comes in at 9am, so we can have a 1pm lunch, and a dinner later. Our check out day, we don't fly out of Orlando until 7pm, so we planned a breakfast and early dinner for that day too. On normal days we don't eat 3 meals a day, so this helped spread out some of the credits. On vacation we don't like forcing ourselves up first thing in the morning either, so breakfast isn't really our thing. So most days, we can use a snack credit in the late morning, have a 2-3pm lunch, then a late dinner. I have ADRs for all but 2 meals, and figure we can save those credits as back ups for counter service if needed. I'm so excited to try new dishes at my favorite restaurants, and to finally get to experience the shows and signature dining i've heard so much about!

[RACHELSMOM1]

We did Deluxe DP last month, and loved it. Planning is the key!! We did 2 credits TS plus character meal most days. If you do HDDR, CG, Narcoossee's, CRT, YSH, Citrico's, Spirit of Aloha, and Mickeys BBQ, all in one trip, and add a character meal for the other meal for each day, it is not too much food, and you can have a wonderful trip!! Don't forget that the refillable mugs are also included. Plus, the 2 snacks a day can be used for bottled water, dole whips, etc, etc...What is not to love? Whenever we are in the parks, whenever one of the kiddos wants a snack, they get it right then!! If we need to use up snack credits that day, I remind the family that we need to take a snack break, and it is always welcomed!!! No sharing of snack credits is needed!! With proper planning all credits can be used up.
I don't understand the "It's too much food" statement at all. If you don't want it, don't buy it!!! If you don't want to eat it, don't order it. It is very puzzling how anyone who plans well could possibly have any credits left over.

[theresak]

Remembering how small our appetites were due to all the activity/heat - just looking over the plan we knew the deluxe plan would be way too much food for the money. We're using the basic plan, and likely will end up kind of stuffed and taking home snack items with us still. And we're all big eaters! It just seemed to me you'd have to spend the majority of your vacation eating to make good use of the deluxe plan, IMO. I'd rather be running around than sitting in a restaurant all day and night.

[ShellyLynn3630]

I imagine it is not worth it unless you do quite a few signature resturants. Disney knows that it is too much food and wants you to leave with unused credits. Think about it.

[auntfrannie]

I used the deluxe plan when I was there 2 weeks ago. I did a signature restaurant every night and either a late breakfast or an early lunch. The snack credits filled the void for those odd times when I needed something small to tide me over. I still ended up with 6 snack credits at the end of the trip that I used at the gift store for rice crispy treats to take home. According to my records I saved $150 using the DxDDP.

[mickey2000]

I imagine it is not worth it unless you do quite a few signature resturants. Disney knows that it is too much food and wants you to leave with unused credits. Think about it.

Wow , you said what I was thinking! :thumbsup2 :thumbsup2

[Duckfan-in-Chicago]

I imagine it is not worth it unless you do quite a few signature resturants. Disney knows that it is too much food and wants you to leave with unused credits. Think about it.
Every family that goes is different.

We're going with young kids next trip. If you did an early character breakfast every day for the experience, and just nibbled a little, but the kids had a good time, had an early lunch and later dinner(have grandparents to babysit), it would pay for itself and wouldn't be too much food. A good lunch and dinner will cover the $70 for adults at WDW.

There are almost as many options as there are posters on the DIS. If you know the plans and how they work you can figure out what's best for each family.

[Wendy5055]

I think you will love it! If you can handle (not like but handle) getting up early think about booking the earliest character breakfasts you can. We made it to every rope drop doing this and it was fantastic!

-Becca-

Dreamer17555...

You have the exact same family as I do...Me, DH and DD6!!! I would love it if you could check my ADR's to see if I missed anything or if I spaced things out well enough. :worship: :worship: :worship:

8/28 - Arrival Day
6:40pm Sci Fi Diner

8/29 - MK Day & EPCOT-EMHpm
7:30am OHana Breakfast
1:00pm Lunch (don't know where yet...CP Lunch???)
6:50pm CRT

8/30 - HS (EMHam) & EPCOT Day
7:30am Chef Mickey Breakfast
12:50pm Princess Storybook Lunch
6:00pm Coral Reef w/Diver (already scheduled diver so no change here!)

8/31 - AK Day & MK-EMHpm
8:35am Donald's Safari Breakfast
1:00pm Yak & Yeti (TS) Lunch
7:15pm Hoop De Doo Review

9/1 - Open Day & Departure Afternoon
8:05am Crystal Palace Breakfast

Any input is GREATLY appreciated!!! I did TS lunches because I really don't want to have to wait around in long lines during Free Dining!!! :sad2:

Thank You!!!:flower3:

[dreamer17555]

Dreamer17555...

You have the exact same family as I do...Me, DH and DD6!!! I would love it if you could check my ADR's to see if I missed anything or if I spaced things out well enough. :worship: :worship: :worship:

8/28 - Arrival Day
6:40pm Sci Fi Diner

8/29 - MK Day & EPCOT-EMHpm
7:30am OHana Breakfast
1:00pm Lunch (don't know where yet...CP Lunch???)
6:50pm CRT

8/30 - HS (EMHam) & EPCOT Day
7:30am Chef Mickey Breakfast
12:50pm Princess Storybook Lunch
6:00pm Coral Reef w/Diver (already scheduled diver so no change here!)

8/31 - AK Day & MK-EMHpm
8:35am Donald's Safari Breakfast
1:00pm Yak & Yeti (TS) Lunch
7:15pm Hoop De Doo Review

9/1 - Open Day & Departure Afternoon
8:05am Crystal Palace Breakfast

Any input is GREATLY appreciated!!! I did TS lunches because I really don't want to have to wait around in long lines during Free Dining!!! :sad2:

Thank You!!!:flower3:


CP was good for lunch but I wouldn't do it twice in one trip. Honestly I would KEEP calling to see if you can get CRT for Lunch (since the Princess show up only for breakfast and lunch) and if you can do that I would think about trying the Garden Grill for dinner. The food was just okay but the Character interaction was great.

Or you can do 1900 PF for Dinner since Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Termaine, and the Step Sisters are there. It was a lot of fun actually.

I wasn't impressed by the food at CRT. The setting is nice but the food and service was lacking. If the Princesses hadn't been there I would have been very upset having wasted the time and credits.

The early breakfasts should be great. Just a note when you go to AK for the Donald Breakfast plan to finish up about 10-15 minutes before park opening. Head outside to the rope and wait, in a few minutes there will be a massive wall of people coming behind you. Head straight ONTO the Safari ride. Do Not try to grab a fastpass. You will get mobbed. Just ride it. The animals are more active in the morning anyway.

[racefanof88]

Remembering how small our appetites were due to all the activity/heat - just looking over the plan we knew the deluxe plan would be way too much food for the money. We're using the basic plan, and likely will end up kind of stuffed and taking home snack items with us still. And we're all big eaters! It just seemed to me you'd have to spend the majority of your vacation eating to make good use of the deluxe plan, IMO. I'd rather be running around than sitting in a restaurant all day and night.

I agree. We did spend much too much time waiting to be seated, waiting on food, eating and, then taking food back to the room. We are big eaters in my family and the basic plan was alot of food. We did not try to "maximize" as some may do and it was still too much food. If we ever did the DDP again we would use it for breakfast buffets daily.

And yes the heat is a factor. I think it is a personal perferrence as to the type plan that will work best for their family. My family likes staying in the parks and maximizing ride times. My youngest is a picky eater so the nicer places to eat would be out of the question.

[mickeysgirl17]

The deluxe plan will not work for everyone. You must plan in advance for it to work and be your money's worth. If you have small children, and they don't stay up late, you will need to do a breakfast and signature dinner or just go with the regular DP.

Here's my plans:

Day 1:
B:
L:Flame tree BBQ 11am
D: Flying Fish cafe 8pm

Day2:
B: Akershus 8am
L: San Angel 1:30pm
D: Wolfgang Puck Cafe 8pm

Day 3:
B: Crystal Palace 8am
L:
D: Narcoossee's 7:15

Day 4:
B: Chef Mickeys 8am
L:
D: Ohana's 5:30pm

Day 5:
B:
L: Sci Fi 11am
D: Cape May cafe 8pm

Day 6:
B:
L: Beaches n' cream 11am
D: HDDR 9pm

Day 7:
B: Tusker house 8am
L:
D: California Grill 7pm

Day 8:
B:
L: Tutto italia 11am
D: Le Cellier 7:30

Day 9:
B:
L: Marrakesh 11am
D: Yachstman steakhouse 8pm

Day 10:
B: Boma 9am
L: Prime time cafe 2pm
D: Jiko 9pm

Day 11:
B:
L: Tony's town square 11am
D: Whispering Canyon 7pm

As you can see, I am using up all of my credits and all my meals are spaced out pretty well. This way I can use snacks in between and if I don't use snacks we can take snacks home with us on the last day. This did take up a lot of time for planning, but I think I did pretty well. By the way, I do have a 5 year old, but her schedule at home allows her to stay up late. I don't think it would have worked out if she went to bed early.
The only days I won't be using snacks are days 2 and 10 because we're doing 3 meals per day. These days are concerning me a little because of the amount of food we will have, but for the most part, I think I will just order light items on these days.

[dalstitch45]

I opted for the DDE card. I did not go with the DDP because I just don't eat all those meals when I'm at Disney. A couple of those yummy Toll House ice cream sandwiches during the day, some fruit for breakfast, and dinner if I feel like it is good for me. Plus with the AP, the DDE card is only $60. I like the freedom of eating offsite if I want to. Of course, I go several times a year, so the card pays for itself.:goodvibes :goodvibes

[BigDopeyMom]

We're doing it in September and I think it will be well worth it. We're only paying the difference between the regular and deluxe since we'll be there during free dining. We always go and say we're going to eat a big lunch and a lighter supper - but then we end up eating a big supper too! We will definitely get our money's worth out of it - just eating CS costs enough to make the regular plan worth it.

This will be just my DH and I though - I don't think it would have been worth it back when DS was little - she hardly ate a thing!

What is the difference in price between the regular dining and deluxe dining plan for both adult and child? My DS8 and I are going during free dining and I'm curious how much it would cost per day to upgrade to the deluxe plan.

[gigi1313]

i'm not 100% sure on the child's price, but i think it's around $10... for an adult it's an additional $33 per night...

we're upgrading our free basic to DxDDP 'cause we want to go to some restaurants we have not tried before (like Cali Grill, Brown Derby and Narcoosees)... we also LOVE HDDR and want to see it again (and again and again! LOL!) and are going to give the SoA Luau a try...

since we have the new baby, we're likely going to spend our time at a much slower pace than previous years... everyone is picking one or two "must dos" at each park and we are planning to enjoy a lot of down time, swimming, relaxing and some good dining fits right in with that plan :)

[Wendy5055]

Dreamer17555!!!

I keep trying to get CRT for lunch and would slip Sci Fi in for dinner (we all want to try it again since it has been years and we aren't sure what time we ar arriving...little matter of having to book flights...LOL!!!!). Thanks for the input!

I read your TR and can't wait to hear more...more...more!!!!

[my3sons77]

I haven't read the whole thread, I got about page 3 and my eyes started to go cross. Too much reading ;)

OK so we are going to DW in August. We went last year and had to pay oop for everything. This being said we choose to get the Deluxe Dining plan this year. Do I feel we are wasting our money? NOPE! I have myself, my husband, and my 2 older boys who are 9 & 8. My 9 year old can eat a whole in a plate. It goes straight to his legs and feet I'm tellin' ya! Our 2 year old will be sharing food, well correction, stealing food off of his brothers plate. His favorite thing to do. :)

I don't feel this plan would be suitable for someone who may only have 1 child or have younger kids who really don't eat alot. It is expensive and should only be considered if you know from past experiences that all credits will be used and know your eating habits when at the parks. I for one know how we eat when we are there. We make sure we eat breakfast before we head out in the morning, we eat lunch at the park, and when we get back we eat dinner at the hotel. All the in between times we will pick up occasional drinks/snacks.

This plan is perfect for us. All of our food is paid for in advance so that is a huge burden lifted off of our shoulders! :yay:

To say that the deluxe plan is not worth the money really isn't fair. And may give the wrong impression to someone who really could take advantage of it.

Like I have said though this plan (in my opinion) would only really balance itself out if you have older kids who like to eat too.

Also note. My boys will have to eat off of the kids menus, that is the only thing that does suck because like I have said my 9 year old eats alot!

[racefanof88]

I haven't read the whole thread, I got about page 3 and my eyes started to go cross. Too much reading ;)

OK so we are going to DW in August. We went last year and had to pay oop for everything. This being said we choose to get the Deluxe Dining plan this year. Do I feel we are wasting our money? NOPE! I have myself, my husband, and my 2 older boys who are 9 & 8. My 9 year old can eat a whole in a plate. It goes straight to his legs and feet I'm tellin' ya! Our 2 year old will be sharing food, well correction, stealing food off of his brothers plate. His favorite thing to do. :)

I don't feel this plan would be suitable for someone who may only have 1 child or have younger kids who really don't eat alot. It is expensive and should only be considered if you know from past experiences that all credits will be used and know your eating habits when at the parks. I for one know how we eat when we are there. We make sure we eat breakfast before we head out in the morning, we eat lunch at the park, and when we get back we eat dinner at the hotel. All the in between times we will pick up occasional drinks/snacks.

This plan is perfect for us. All of our food is paid for in advance so that is a huge burden lifted off of our shoulders! :yay:

To say that the deluxe plan is not worth the money really isn't fair. And may give the wrong impression to someone who really could take advantage of it.

Like I have said though this plan (in my opinion) would only really balance itself out if you have older kids who like to eat too.

Also note. My boys will have to eat off of the kids menus, that is the only thing that does suck because like I have said my 9 year old eats alot!


You will have to share your food with your 9 year old..........lol. The kids meals are not what a big eater would find filling. And not alot of options.

My biggest problem with the DDP(we just got home 5 days ago) was the time away from the rides. As I stated earlier it was too much time waiting for our table (you are supposed to be there to check in 20 minutes early) and then waiting for the wait staff, getting our food, eating and then getting the check to pay, and believe me the waiter or waitress will remind you that the tip is not included. Not to mention travel time if you happen to be in another park.

I know next year we will just put the money aside that the dining plan cost(it was $810 for us) and eat where we want WHEN, and that's the big one, we want.

I know it didn't work for us but, hopefully it will work fine for you and your family. :thumbsup2

Have fun that's the main thing.:cheer2:

[SnowWitch]

I have wanted to try the Dx Plan since discovering how great some of the 2 TS restra. were but have struggled with the idea of what an enormous amount of food 3 TS per day would be and the cost. But I went ahead and booked it during free dining for $29 per day, I figured good time to try it. I have early lunches at 1 TS restra and then a signature dinner most nights, the only exception to this is one morning we have breakfast at the castle for breakfast and then a 1 TS dinner. I have tried to space meals 7-8 hrs apart. I look forward to trying it but I'm not sure I would want to spend this much effort every trip on dining.

[haveitall]

We are going Aug. 28-Sept 14. I have ADR'S for 42 TS.
Breakfast 8:00
Lunch 12:00
Dinner 6:00.

We got all the ADR's that we wanted. It is just DH and I and we will take our time to do what we want. We don't have to hurry around the parks becasue we will be there for 14 days.!!!

Sylvia in MN

[Wendy5055]

We're doing the DlxDDP and have Me, DH and DD6. I did it because we are there during Free Dining and I don't want to take away time standing in long lines and then eating...I would rather use that time to get waited on while I am sitting too!!!

We are not there for a huge amount of time 4 nights/5 days, but while I am there I want to be sure I don't have to worry or stress out.

I'm loving it and we're not even there yet!!!!!:dance3:

[AMcBrick]

Hi guys!

I love that everybody has such strong opinions on the dining plans! My husband and I traveling to "The World" in November and I've decide to go with the Deluxe Dining Plan. This is my husbands first trip there and my second trip (my first and only vist was when I was 3...does that count?!:lovestruc ). My only reason for this post was to express me reasoning behind the Deluxe plan. Due to this, most wonderful and very educational board, I have been introduced to some of the best looking food I have ever seen!:rotfl: That's right, I'm addicted to all of your 'food porn':happytv: SO, I had 5 weeks off from work due to knee surgery, and needless to say, had LOTS of time to think about the coming vacation. What I've deduced is this:

My husband and I, which I understand not everyone is, are appetizer people. Even if we don't eat more than a couple of bites, we like the sampling with some drinks before our main course. Appetizers are not offered on the regular plan. Now, if I'm shelling out all of this money for an AWESOME vacation AND paying for a dining plan, I don;t want to have to worry about paying for anymore then a tip and wine, beer or drinks with dinner. I also love the idea of eating at a handfull of signature dining restaurants without lacking at other meals.

Secondly, we're going during the Food and Wine Festival. Although I was unclear on this point with the Cast Member on the phone, I read somewhere on here that I can use snacck credits for sample foods at Epcot (depending on the price of course)

Thirdly, although we won't necessarily sit down to breakfast everyday I LOVE the idea of being able to use 2 meal credits for breakfast in our room at the WL. This is right up our alley and in a 'World' where you need to make ADR's to eat at the place you really want I love the idea of getting breakfast whenever I want to in our room.

I know that this is obviously not for everyone AND I might have a different opinon when I get back BUT if I'm paying for this trip before hand and signing up for a dining plan to begin with then I don't really want to have to worry about paying for food.....I'd rather worry about spending my money on overpriced hooded sweatshirts and kitchen magnets......You know what I'm talkin about!!!:rotfl2:

[Disney8704]

I have to agree with ya. After 5 hrs both DH and I are starving no matter how much we had from the previous meal. IMHO, the DxDDP would work for us, but we would actually be saving money paying OOP then be on the DxDDP because of where we are eating. IMHO to get full thing for DxDDP is to do a TS breakfast around 8am, do a CS lunch around 1pm and then do a TS dinner anytime after 5pm. That way your not doing 3 TS meals a day, or 2 TS meals back to back. Like breakfast and lunch. Everyone should know not to eat a heavy lunch anyways. Because if you do, thats what drags you down for the rest of the day. Its supposed to be a good size breakfast, light lunch, good size dinner. If everyone ate that way, everyone would probably be using all their credits instead of wasting them.

We are here now - have been here for 10 days, with 5 more to go, and we are on the Deluxe Dining Plan. We eat 3 meals a day as we have low blood sugar, and only order what we are able to consume at that time. We frequently share and don't order dessert or appetizers - it's horrible to us that people feel the need to order a steak in order to maximize the plan, and then throw that steak out.

It always baffles my mind when people make broad sweeping statements that the Deluxe Plan is too much food when no one is forcing you to order an appetizer, entree, dessert or beverage. You know how much potential food you are able to order before purchasing the plan, so if it sounds like too much, then not sure why you would spend the money on the Deluxe Plan?

Deluxe is perfect for us as we eat 2-3 TS meals per day - did it before the DP as we used our DDE card. We are all underweight, very fit and only eat well - no counter service, fast food, pop or candy for us, so the Deluxe is great as it allows us to get Evian water for our drink, salads/soups for appetizers, and fruits for entree. There are a lot of snack credits, so we have been using these for bottled water, fruit, a few ice cream treats, for instance.

I guess I'm confused how eating a big dinner fills you up for breakfast? After not eating for 8-10 hours, we need to eat due to very low blood sugar levels, but even if we didn't have low blood sugar problems, eating the night before at 6:30 would have no bearing for us on breakfast. Maybe you should have better planned or spaced out your meals in order to maximize the plan better? Orlando is experiencing record heat this week, but again, this has nothing to do with us needing to eat, so we are doing just great - lots of bottled water for us at our meals and for snack credits.

Based on the way you ate, you didn't maximize your plan, and you have no one to blame but yourself. I must imagine that you did research here on the DIS and knew exactly what kind of meals were available to you, so what happened? For you the plan was not worth it, but for so many of us, it is worth it, and we are saving lots of money too!

Happy eating to all, Tiger :)

[Tricia1972]

I'm just curious as to whether most of the people who agree it's "too much food" tend to eat 2 or 3 meals a day when they are home?
I'm just getting why 3 meals a day is too much because I always thought that was actually normal.

I agree, three meals a day is normal. At home we eat cereal for breakfast or may have a waffle, or have two pancakes, occasionally we'll scramble an egg or two.

For lunch we'll have a chicken salad sandwich or maybe some leftovers from the day before.

For supper we'll have chicken and a vegetable, maybe fish and a vegetable.

A few times a week we may have dessert as a special treat.

We also treat ourselves to dinner out with the family a few times a month. We'll order an appetizer, entrees for each of us and a dessert. The appetizer and dessert are split between the four of us.

For us, if we pay for food OOP that's similar to what we eat at home we spend less than any dining plan. Yes we're on vacation and yes we do treat ourselves more on vacation than what we eat at home, but we never want an appetizer for each adult (5 adults in our party), nor do we want 5 desserts for our party. We also, personally, can't stand a full week or two of treating ourselves to meals that are far off of the norm of what we eat at home.

At Disney we tend to eat cereal for breakfast. Generally eaten in our room. We will have a sandwich or a salad for lunch. At some places we'll share our sandwich or salad - because the portions are much larger than what we experience at home. We also don't need or want dessert for lunch. If we want something sweet we'll get a snack later on. For dinner we may order an appetizer to share entrees and occasionally a dessert. however, for dinner more often than not we'll skip dessert and get a sweet treat in the park later on that night.

So yes, three meals a day is normal for most families, including ours. Even then though, the DDP or DxDDP did not work for our family. I think it's fantastic that they have the plans, they work wonderfully for so many. Just not for us. As many have said the new 2008 Dining Plans are more of a pre-payment plan. When we don't use that much of the plan, it's a much better value for us to pay OOP.

For those that love the plan - I am glad for you and I mean no disrespect for the plans. They just don't work for us personally.:goodvibes

[acourtwdw]

To be honest, the reason we got the Deluxe plan was so that we can try places that we couldn't usually afford. The deluxe plan is $70 per day per adult and when we started to discuss it, we realized that is less than 3 meals a day for us. We are eating a buffet/family style breakfast everyday ($20-30 per person) counter service lunch ($10) and a table service for dinner ($30-40 per person). Now if you include the 2 snacks a day ($8) and the refillable mug, the cost of the plan is less than out of pocket.

Yes we know that is a lot of food, but just because you can order it, doesn't mean you have to.

I don't even mind paying the tips. Also if you think about it, you don't pay tax on you food because it is included in the plan. So if you pay oop, you are also paying 6 or 7% tax on you bill.

[racefanof88]

I agree, three meals a day is normal. At home we eat cereal for breakfast or may have a waffle, or have two pancakes, occasionally we'll scramble an egg or two.

For lunch we'll have a chicken salad sandwich or maybe some leftovers from the day before.

For supper we'll have chicken and a vegetable, maybe fish and a vegetable.

A few times a week we may have dessert as a special treat.

We also treat ourselves to dinner out with the family a few times a month. We'll order an appetizer, entrees for each of us and a dessert. The appetizer and dessert are split between the four of us.

For us, if we pay for food OOP that's similar to what we eat at home we spend less than any dining plan. Yes we're on vacation and yes we do treat ourselves more on vacation than what we eat at home, but we never want an appetizer for each adult (5 adults in our party), nor do we want 5 desserts for our party. We also, personally, can't stand a full week or two of treating ourselves to meals that are far off of the norm of what we eat at home.

At Disney we tend to eat cereal for breakfast. Generally eaten in our room. We will have a sandwich or a salad for lunch. At some places we'll share our sandwich or salad - because the portions are much larger than what we experience at home. We also don't need or want dessert for lunch. If we want something sweet we'll get a snack later on. For dinner we may order an appetizer to share entrees and occasionally a dessert. however, for dinner more often than not we'll skip dessert and get a sweet treat in the park later on that night.

So yes, three meals a day is normal for most families, including ours. Even then though, the DDP or DxDDP did not work for our family. I think it's fantastic that they have the plans, they work wonderfully for so many. Just not for us. As many have said the new 2008 Dining Plans are more of a pre-payment plan. When we don't use that much of the plan, it's a much better value for us to pay OOP.

For those that love the plan - I am glad for you and I mean no disrespect for the plans. They just don't work for us personally.:goodvibes

I agree :thumbsup2. The plan was not for us either. It just didn't work for me. Next year it is off property and eating anywhere we want. Like Margaritaville...........yum. They closed our favorite Race Rock :sad1:

[luckytobeme88]

It's no surprise to me that there are people who absolutely hate the Deluxe plan and there are plenty of us who love the idea of having more credits to utilize with this plan. I have to admit that there is a lot of food. To be able to maximize this DlxDDP (without stuffing ourselves), we booked the DlxDDP package for 6 nights but staying for 7. We have ADR's for 1-TS lunch and mostly 2-TS dinners.
Buyers beware! There's no need to vent..:)

[Jersey Girl]

We have the basic plan reserved for our trip in December and I have been going back and forth on whether to upgrade to Deluxe or just pay OOP for the other places we want to eat. I think I've just figured out that upgrading would be the best thing for us. If I know I am going to pay cash for certain meals then I know myself well enough to know I would skimp as much as possible to save some money and wind up ordering food that I really don't want to eat. We did the basic plan two years ago and it was so nice to be able to eat at places I couldn't otherwise afford. And there are more places that I want to try this time so I'd be paying for too many places to begin with!

My DH, DD9 and DD7 are very big into breakfast (me, I'm happy with a cinnamon roll from the bakery) so especially for the kids, I know that is an important meal for them. And all four of us don't want to eat for breakfast what we would normally eat at home so cereal is out of the question. This is just how we feel but vacations are few and far between for us so we want them to be different even where food is concerned and for me, part of being at Disney is enjoying the restaurants because of how different they all are. I have it figured out that we would have a buffet breakfast every other day and in between just eat at the food court at the resort.