Mistakes you made the 1st time you did DDP.

[lynn71092]

I have a 1st timer here at work, going to WDW and getting the Free Dining. What mistake did you make the 1st time you used the DDP that you won't make again. I'm trying to make sure I get him addicted like the rest of us.:lmao:

[Trinity524]

I ate everything at the ADR's, the CS and the snack each day. I gained 8 lbs. in 8 days. Enjoy yourself, but don't make yourself uncomfy!

[Later_Mater2009]

I am a frist timer on the DDP and I think this is a very GOOD question and Im interested in everyone's input.
One thing I can say I "heard" was an issue was make sure if you have a child onthe DDP you look at all the kids menus, seems to be either chicken nuggets or mac n cheese, and thats ok for one meal but Im worried my nine year old will get sick of that so I tried to include some buffets and a variety of snack options to break up the macnchicnuggetfest..this may work for some kids but my child likes to try new things too like his mama lol
anyways, im anxious to see others input on this one. thanks :wizard:

[Poohbug]

Trying to get the most $$$ out of the plan by getting the most expensive meals and only having TS for supper.

Use your credits the way that you want. I know that a TS breakfast is not as expensive as a dinner but our family loves to go out for breakfast a couple of times on our vacation. We do not always like running around trying to get to that next ADR every night. Sometimes we schedule two ADRs in one day(breakfast/dinner) and have none the next day.

Get the food you like and don't worry about maximizing the most money out of it. It is not a value if you don't like what you are eating or you are not having a great time.

[riley2008]

My boys don't care for a lot of what was offered on the kids' menu for counter service credits. They usually ended up using one of "my" credits and I would eat off of the kids' menu. (bleh!) (And we had counter services credits left over - CM's were not helpful in "helping" us understand anything.:confused3 )

(I wish Disney would break up kids and adults CS meals and let us use 2 kids CS for 1 adult, so that I don't feel guilty this next visit, because I will not be eating off the kids' menu again.)

[natalielongstaff]

we wasted snack credits :sad2: we had loads left

[wezee]

We hoarded our snack credits all week, paid OOP for sodas and poolside snacks, then ended up with tons left. We ended up buying bags of chips in the food court and sharing with a family of 4 kids, on our way to catching our flight home. I know sharing is not allowed, but I figured, I bought them, carried them out of the resort to the airport...from then on I felt I could share all I wanted.

[KandD]

This September will be our first time on the dining plan so I am so happy that you asked this question!! And thank you everyone for your responses so far!!

[summersalt]

The biggest mistakes we made during are first DDP visit was:

1. We never used are snacks. The last morning, I went down to Roarin Forks and got 20 misc items to bring back on the plane.

2. We paid OOP for some of our meals when we didn't need to. My daughter was 10 at the time and considered an adult. She eats very little. We wasted so many meals by getting her one. She could have shared with me as long as it wasn't buffet and we could have saved paying OOP.

3. Buying snack and breakfast items for the room. Total waste!! We were never hungry and didn't need any of it.

[Matt'nMeg'sMom]

the first time we used DDP, we didn't budget well. Now we are much smarter.

We learned:



2. Supplement your CS meals with snack credits. Look carefully at what constitutes a snack. A Large French Fry in Epcot costs one snack credit. A Cereal+Milk also costs one snack credit. So does a tiny portion of peanut butter. Don't waste snack credits on tiny, inexpensive or less-filling items.

3. If you have snack credits left over, Use them to buy airplane food. Giant Rice Krispy Mickey Heads cost 1 snack and travel really well. :thumbsup2

4. Watch out for "Signature Restaurants" that eat up your Table Service credits. They cost 2 TS credits per person. That caught us off guard the first time. Be aware so you can budget your TS meals effectively. Also -- character breakfasts only cost 1 TS (as opposed to character dinners, which cost 2. Just FYI.)

[ReneeA]

Trying to get the most $$$ out of the plan by getting the most expensive meals and only having TS for supper.

Use your credits the way that you want. I know that a TS breakfast is not as expensive as a dinner but our family loves to go out for breakfast a couple of times on our vacation. We do not always like running around trying to get to that next ADR every night. Sometimes we schedule two ADRs in one day(breakfast/dinner) and have none the next day.

Get the food you like and don't worry about maximizing the most money out of it. It is not a value if you don't like what you are eating or you are not having a great time.


Exactly what I was going to say, too. We've gone every Aug since free dining came out, and the first 2 years were spent trying to "maximize" rather than just eat what we want and enjoying it.

Now we just eat where we watn, what we want, when we want to.:thumbsup2

[Matt'nMeg'sMom]

3. Buying snack and breakfast items for the room. Total waste!! We were never hungry and didn't need any of it.

Excellent point. There is a lot of food on the plan. We brought extra snacks, and didn't need any of them.

[smiths02]

Character breakfasts and dinners don't cost different credits...different restaurants cost different credits...

Almost all character meals (B,L,D) with the exception of Cinderella are 1 TS

Directly from the Disney brochure...
The Disney Dining Plan can be used for Character Dining experiences. One (1) Table Service meal for each person participating in the
Character Dining experience will be redeemed from your meal plan balance, unless otherwise noted. Gratuities are not included.
Please Note: Two Table Service meals for each person dining at Cinderella’s Royal Table will be redeemed from your meal plan
balance. Gratuities are included.

[smiths02]

I haven't used the plan yet, but my advice would be to actually read the dining brochure:

http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/media/wdw_nextgen/CoreCatalog/WaltDisneyWorld/en_us/PDF/2009%20Disney%20Dining%20Plan%20-%20Walt%20Disney%20World.pdf

It seems like there are several questions on here every single day that can be directly answered pretty simply from just reading the little brochure...

like meal entitlements are per NIGHT of your stay not day, which restaurants are included, how many credits is each restaurant, etc., etc.

[ExtinctDino]

As others have said above, we conserved our snack credits too carefully our first time and had a lot left to use up on the last day.

To families who are not only new to the DDP but to the parks, I would suggest buffets, because they don't take quite as long, leaving you more time to explore all of the attractions. Waiting for a server to take your order, and for the kitchen to cook your food, can add a 1/2 hour to every TS meal.

[Matt'nMeg'sMom]

Character breakfasts and dinners don't cost different credits...different restaurants cost different credits...

Almost all character meals (B,L,D) with the exception of Cinderella are 1 TS

Directly from the Disney brochure...
The Disney Dining Plan can be used for Character Dining experiences. One (1) Table Service meal for each person participating in the
Character Dining experience will be redeemed from your meal plan balance, unless otherwise noted. Gratuities are not included.
Please Note: Two Table Service meals for each person dining at Cinderella’s Royal Table will be redeemed from your meal plan
balance. Gratuities are included.

Thanks for that update. When I tried to book character dinners - they all seemed to cost 2 TS. That's why we ended up at Crystal Palace for breakfast. It was the only one for 1 TS. Thanks again!:goodvibes

[Matt'nMeg'sMom]

BTW - don't forget Goofy's Candy Shop at Disney Marketplace. You can get ENORMOUS made-to-order treats for 1 snack credit. A single dipped, rolled, and drizzled Rice Krispy treat can serve 2-3 people!

[bentleygirl22]

if you have the DDP
don't put charging on your room key or they may charge your Credit Card and not take the DDP credit ...
if you have to charge on your room key Use your kids room key when paying for food on the ddp ..

[milmore104]

We conserved our snack credits too much. We paid oop for a lot of water and things we didn't need to. Before we left though I used our 32 remaining credits to buy rice crispies for DD class.

[whogirl'smom]

Use some of your snack credits for water in the parks and don't worry about trying to get the most "value" out of them. The first time, we bought waters and had about 6 snack credits left the last day. Trust me, you will have enough food, especially if you split some counter service with your child.

Don't bother to bring breakfast stuff for the room. We took it all back home. Never were hungry for a snack in the room, just thirsty. Sometimes we'd get water for one of our breakfast drinks at the food court, then come back to the room put them in the fridge for later.

Like another poster said, use your TS credit on meals you will actually enjoy. I always felt like I had to maximize that credit. Not that I didn't enjoy the food, sometimes you just want a burger and don't want to waste a TS credit on it. Go ahead and enjoy it. Unless everybody in your party does this all the time, you will still come out ahead moneywise.

Don't try to eat all those counter service desserts!!! :goodvibes

[DoctorK]

We saved snack credits, and then ended up with a bunch we rushed to use on the last day.

Also, we didn't realize at Coronado Springs that the big cinnamon and pecan rolls could be had for a snack credit. We would have used the snack credit on those to have for breakfast the next day.

[brymolmom]

We, too, tried saving our snack credits for 'big' things...and then regretted it. We have since used snack credits as soon as we get something, anything that qualifies as a snack credit. We usually still have extra at the end.

I would say to have a good idea of CS meals that you want. Especially if you want the most variety of kids meals. If you end up just eating near where you are - your kids might get sick of mac n cheese. You CAN find SOME variety - but need to know where to find it before everyone is hungry. Don't forget the kids CAN GET things like muffins/bagels at the bakeries - that breaks up the monotony by using it for a meal.

Also - JUST ASK. Most restaurants and most CM's have different ideas of what you get with your meal - so if you're not sure if you get a side or dessert at a CS place - ask someone.

[Nohal]

I was also guilty of saving snack credits. If I wanted a soda or coffee I paid out of pocket felt like it was a waste of a snack credit. At the end of our stay I had many snack credits left and got Mickey rice krispie treats to bring home. I plan to use my snack credits this time instead of saving them.

[duffy]

We didn't save our snack credits, but we did hoard the counter service ones, for some dumb reason, LOL. :confused3

Our stay was 5 nights at the Wilderness Lodge and then 3 at the Dolphin. Since we couldn't get the dining plan at the Dolphin, we figured we'd get food and take it back to the fridge at the Dolphin. Great idea, right?

On our last day, we still had 11 counter service credits--for 4 people!! (3 adults and 1 child. My daughter was 13 and my neice was the "child".) We ate and ate and ate some more!! We ended up going to the various countries in Epcot and getting meals to go. My husband and I walked back to our room with our arms weighed down with bags of food!! I think we got 6 meals to go. (But they were fine the next day--we tried to order things that would last a day or so.) And we ended up with a lot of desserts because we got them to go from our table service meals. One night, the 2 girls ate dinner in the room--and had nothing but desserts!! LOL!! :woohoo:

[mermaid&cinderella]

the first time we used DDP, we didn't budget well. Now we are much smarter.

We learned:

1. You DON'T HAVE to buy kids meals at the counter service. If you have two adults in your party, then limit your CS purchases to two at a time. Check out in two different cashier lines if necessary. For my family, we had 4 CS per day. We would buy 2 CS adult meals at breakfast, and 2 CS adult meals at lunch.

2. Supplement your CS meals with snack credits. Look carefully at what constitutes a snack. A Large French Fry in Epcot costs one snack credit. A Cereal+Milk also costs one snack credit. So does a tiny portion of peanut butter. Don't waste snack credits on tiny, inexpensive or less-filling items.

3. If you have snack credits left over, Use them to buy airplane food. Giant Rice Krispy Mickey Heads cost 1 snack and travel really well. :thumbsup2

4. Watch out for "Signature Restaurants" that eat up your Table Service credits. They cost 2 TS credits per person. That caught us off guard the first time. Be aware so you can budget your TS meals effectively. Also -- character breakfasts only cost 1 TS (as opposed to character dinners, which cost 2. Just FYI.)


What character breakfasts cost 1TS and then at dinner cost 2TS:confused3 I thinkk you are confused. Its only certain restaurants that cost 2 TS!

[rentayenta]

Honestly, I went too much on the advice of others and not enough on my instinct as far as where to eat. The ones with the rave reviews, Chef Mickey's and CRT, were by far the worst of the trip. Those that looked good to me but got mixed reviews as far as food and DDP value were the best, Cal Grill and Tony's.

[mermaid&cinderella]

if you have the DDP
don't put charging on your room key or they may charge your Credit Card and not take the DDP credit ...
if you have to charge on your room key Use your kids room key when paying for food on the ddp ..

That is a good one. That happened to us at Hollywood & Vine but we had a really terrible waitress.

[marcyinPA]

We actually concentrated too much on sharing meals in order to spread out the credits, and we ended up with extras (CS) at the end.

[tndisneyfan]

Here are just a few of the things we did the first time around that didn't work out just so.

1. We planned our dinner ADR's around 5:00 or 5:30, after eating a full CS lunch we just weren't really hungry at our ADR time. We found we did better eating an hour or so later.

2. Bought a bunch of snacks and stuff to have in the room. We did use our breakfast items but with the CS meal and TS meal with dessert and appetizer (it was included at that time), we were just too full to snack in the room. We had to throw some stuff away but was able to take some home with us.

3. Saved up snack credits. I don't know why we did this, we were worried I guess about having them later in the trip. We ended up with a bunch left over, but we were able to get stuff to take home. It would've been better just to use them as we needed them.

4. Trying too hard to maximize CS and snack credits. It's really just better to get what you want.

That's all I can think of right now.

[JLC5266]

We actually concentrated too much on sharing meals in order to spread out the credits, and we ended up with extras (CS) at the end.

I was thinking of sharing meals to conserve CS credits...but may not..I don't want to end up with those left over...Snack credits are one thing...but CS credits!

BTW - I see you are from the Lehigh Valley....I am from Nazareth, PA...so we're practically neighbors...not too mention...from your countdown ticker..I see that we will be down in WDW the same time...we are staying at ASMO..

[PrincessPeyton]

Our biggest mistake was ordering pizza delivery to our hotel room at ASMo. It took 2 adult TS for a pizza and a 2 Liter bottle of soda. I think pizza delivery is only available at the value resorts. we could have used those credits so much better!

[Mackwell]

Double check your dining reservations.

A few years ago, we used 2 TS credits to go to Hoop Dee Doo. At some point before the trip, our travel dates changed, and my DW was supposed to change the dinner reservation date.

Cut to check-in at Port Orleans. We've been traveling all day, and we're dead tired, but we're looking forward to going to Hoop Dee Doo the next day. When the front-desk CM prints out our dining reservations list, she wonders how we are going to get to Hoop Dee Doo from Port Orleans in 15 minutes. The reservations never got changed.

The CM was very helpful, but the best she could do was to get us booked into the last show that same night. Unfortunately, it didn't work out. We made it to Fort Wilderness in time for the late show, but no one at our table could stay awake for the show. One of our kids had a single piece of corn bread and then put his head down on the table and fell asleep.

So I highly recommend that you double check your dining reservations in advance.

[marcyinPA]

I was thinking of sharing meals to conserve CS credits...but may not..I don't want to end up with those left over...Snack credits are one thing...but CS credits!

BTW - I see you are from the Lehigh Valley....I am from Nazareth, PA...so we're practically neighbors...not too mention...from your countdown ticker..I see that we will be down in WDW the same time...we are staying at ASMO..

Hi neighbor! We're in Bethlehem! I get to Nazareth pretty often...to Nazareth Music....always needing instrument repairs! :rolleyes:

Can't wait till June 20!! We'll be staying at the Wilderness Lodge. Couldn't pass up the deal with the buy4/get 3 free!

Are you flying? I can't find decent airfare for nothing. I've been checking and checking. All the good-priced flights are late night arrival, early am departure. Not going to work for us! We're actually going to drive, unless the perfect airfare comes up!

[JLC5266]

Hi neighbor! We're in Bethlehem! I get to Nazareth pretty often...to Nazareth Music....always needing instrument repairs! :rolleyes:

Can't wait till June 20!! We'll be staying at the Wilderness Lodge. Couldn't pass up the deal with the buy4/get 3 free!

Are you flying? I can't find decent airfare for nothing. I've been checking and checking. All the good-priced flights are late night arrival, early am departure. Not going to work for us! We're actually going to drive, unless the perfect airfare comes up!

Us too! A great deal for sure. Yes, we are flying...went through AAA...was hoping to fly out of ABE but no go...boo hoo...we are out of Phila...so we have decided to drive down the night before, stay at the Hampton Inn at the Phila Airport with free shuttle over to the airport and we can leave our car there the entire trip...I believe it will be just about $100 for the night, and leaving our car there...so that's not too bad....and we can sleep in a little the morning of our flight with knowing that we are "already there" and don't have to stress over the drive, traffic or any unexpected problems with Tuesday morning rush hour traffic, etc. We were booked with AirTran on a 11:40 AM flight arriving into MCO at 2:15 PM but I believe the flight is totally booked...you are welcomed to PM me...!

[Colleen27]

I was woefully uninformed as to all the things that qualify as snacks, so we ended up using ours for bottled drinks and popsicles and then taking a bunch of Mickey rice crispy treats home. Lesson learned - Read the snack sticky on the top of this board, and use it well!

Also, get to know the transportation system, and don't be afraid to book resort restaurants! On our first DDP trip, we planned every meal for the park we were in with only one exception for 1900 Park Fare, and we missed out on a couple of places that looked interesting and have since become favorites because I was unaware of how easy transportation from a park to the nearby resorts can be.

[squirrel]

I just wanted to clarify what a previous poster said you can do that is not allowed.

When ordering CS meals you are only allowed to order what is on your card (ie 2 Adults and 2 Children) you are not allowed to go up and get 2 adult meals and then go and get another 2 adult meals. You are only allowed to get the meals as they are written. You are cheating if you are only getting adult meals. Disney will seperate the CS meals if people continue to do this. There was a thread a while back saying that Disney is now keeping track of the CS, I don't know if this is true-but follow the rules!

[lacrosse_lady72]

We had the same problem as PPs with saving snack credits and ended up with half of them left on the last few days... we brought home a lot of fudge! But we make sure to use them up, since we're going during the F&WF, it's a good way to use credits there from sampling around the world. Plus, the $7 lobster roll at the Hops & Barley Market is a good value, one of the only things allowed as a snack on the DDP that is over $4 and it's good! So is the Sam Adams cream stout to go with it :thumbsup2

We actually ended up with the same problem our first time with CS. We had more than enough left to eat during our last few days. Now we know to make sure we at least head over to Earl of Sandwich and pick a sandwich or to WPE for a pizza.

Now, I like to make a rough draft schedule of what days we will be eating a CS so that we go to the ones we want and don't waste any, with 14 nights of credits it can get a little wacky.



I also think one should pick their restaurants wisely. Do the research if you're not the most familiar with the restaurants to avoid having to eat repeat cuisine... this is most important to me as I am a picky eater. I ate so much rotisserie chicken one year... and I don't particularly like chicken.



If you opt to go for breakfast as a CS meal, instead of entree, dessert and drink you will get entree, juice or milk and an additional drink. Good to know so you can use the juice or milk with breakfast and get water as the additional drink and bring it with you to the park so you don't have to spend $3 on water or use a snack credit.



Not necessarily a mistake but something good to know, when we were in MK CS locations last time in September 2008 there were hand held pre-menus that were handed out. The explained what was covered by the DDP and what was not. It also said some other information about the DDP.

[lacrosse_lady72]

I just wanted to clarify what a previous poster said you can do that is not allowed.

When ordering CS meals you are only allowed to order what is on your card (ie 2 Adults and 2 Children) you are not allowed to go up and get 2 adult meals and then go and get another 2 adult meals. You are only allowed to get the meals as they are written. You are cheating if you are only getting adult meals. Disney will seperate the CS meals if people continue to do this. There was a thread a while back saying that Disney is now keeping track of the CS, I don't know if this is true-but follow the rules!

There are some CS locations, I believe, that do not have a children's menu. That is hear-say though as I don't have children so it doesn't apply to me and I don't care, but I remember hearing a lot of people mentioning some places are children menu free.

[squirrel]

I think Casey's is the only one left.

They have been adding children's menus at the few CS that didn't have them.

[Nicole721]

This wasn't from our first time on the DDP, but our first time on the Deluxe Plan.

If you eat three meals a day, you will have no room for snacks. If you have no room for snacks, you will end up with 40something credits at the end of the week. At that point, you may end up at Goofy's for over an hour trying to spend them all. Which you won't. You'll end up getting random things like bags of nuts and gummy cheeseburgers in the hotel gift shop 10 minutes before you leave. And then you'll have so much stuff from Goofy's at home that you'll never finish it and toss half of it.

This is what I learned in August LOL.

Though, I blame half of the too-much-from-Goofy's fiasco on the lovely CM who worked there and kept throwing free stuff in our bags because we were so nice and it was taking so long to finish our 15 custom orders (we spent the rest on cookies/cupcakes/candy/etc).

[5boyz]

Ok well I am going to stuffed or sick or alot heavier when I get back from Disney.....we are there 14 nights...4 of us....we will have 102 snack credits, plus the 2 desserts from our meals:scared1: Guess we will be bringing back lots of Mickey Heads for our big boys at home!!!!

[maggiew]

I think Casey's is the only one left.

They have been adding children's menus at the few CS that didn't have them.

What about the fish & chips place at EPCOT? Did they add a kids meal?

Maggie

[91Coupe]

Forgetting to use the snack credits until the next to last day.

[KKB]

There are some CS locations, I believe, that do not have a children's menu. That is hear-say though as I don't have children so it doesn't apply to me and I don't care, but I remember hearing a lot of people mentioning some places are children menu free.

I know the pizza place at MK doesn't have kids meals...

We used snack credits for breakfast-type items. We were able to get a half gallon of milk and a box of donuts at POP food court for a snack CR each, but I hear that has been kaboshed...:confused3 but there are plenty of other options in the parks for breakfast using snack credits, especially bakeries.

DO NOT save snack credits...if you run out, pay OOP at end of trip, rather than at beginning in an attempt to maximize.

DO NOT pay/use CR for water...ask for a glass at most CS locations for free.

Study menus, read reviews & make your ADRs at 90 days. We had FANTASTIC meals due to research on my part. DH said he never imagined having great meals at WDW.

We are at parks at opening (so like to eat in the room; we did bring pop tarts & br. bars, but at few due to the donuts...not sure how that will work this time). We always eat lunch promptly at 11 to avoid crowds, and to compensate for early breakfast. We make ADRs around 5....we have hit the parks hard all day & are ready to sit & relax. One night we ate at 8 and were miserable the rest of the night...need time to digest before bed (9:30 for us...DS8 is human alarm clock w/ 7AM wake up call daily).

Our kids are not into character meals (too old), and the only buffet we eat is BOMA--cuz it is so unique. Otherwise we prefer really good food to variety. Just our preference.

Relax, have fun & go with the flow!

[2manypets]

I stressed too much over getting the most bang for the buck. I insisted everyone eat their desserts even if they were full.

Now we order what we want, eat what we want and don't worry about it. The best bang for the buck is having it prepaid and unstressed.

[hthrbells]

This is great, going in Sept and will be using the DDP for the first time:cool1:

[inkedupmomma]

The first time we used the DDP was in May 2005. First mistake was, a) we paid for it :lmao: and b) we had NO CLUE you could use the snack credits for something other than popcorn,water/soda, or mickey bars!!! Had we known we could use it on other stuff, we would have become even more addicted to disney then we are now!.. well I'm not sure that is possible, but if it is then we would have! I also did not do much research on dining. Although I did some, which is a lot more than most first timers do! We lucked out and got to eat at CRT 2x, both without ressies! I think we did pretty good all in all! I would tell a first timer to make sure they look at different menus, and at least know what they are getting themselves into, so they don't come back and say how awful the food was, and how pricey it was!! research is key..this is what the Dis has taught me:thumbsup2

[Jennia]

First mistake: I forgot once to order a dessert, after I'd been harassing DH about not forgetting to get his (we usually saved them for breakfast the next morning or a late night snack when back at the resort).
Second: I ordered off of the children's menu (felt so wasteful, but really wanted mac n cheese for whatever strange reason lol!)

[PrincessTrisha]

The first time we used the DDP was in May 2005. First mistake was, a) we paid for it :lmao: and b) we had NO CLUE you could use the snack credits for something other than popcorn,water/soda, or mickey bars!!! Had we known we could use it on other stuff, we would have become even more addicted to disney then we are now!.. well I'm not sure that is possible, but if it is then we would have! I also did not do much research on dining. Although I did some, which is a lot more than most first timers do! We lucked out and got to eat at CRT 2x, both without ressies! I think we did pretty good all in all! I would tell a first timer to make sure they look at different menus, and at least know what they are getting themselves into, so they don't come back and say how awful the food was, and how pricey it was!! research is key..this is what the Dis has taught me:thumbsup2

In all fairness to you - in May 2005 there was no free dining and in 2005 the only things that counted as snack credits were water/soda, popcorn, ice cream bars, fruit and mickey head rice crispies - it was long before the days of the $4 rule.

I biggest mistake was "extra food" - I always used to bring snacks with me and keep them in the room - the first couple of trips with the plan, I brought a bunch with me and transported those same snacks (plus a few extra that were bought with snack credits) home.

[lacrosse_lady72]

In all fairness to you - in May 2005 there was no free dining and in 2005 the only things that counted as snack credits were water/soda, popcorn, ice cream bars, fruit and mickey head rice crispies - it was long before the days of the $4 rule.

I biggest mistake was "extra food" - I always used to bring snacks with me and keep them in the room - the first couple of trips with the plan, I brought a bunch with me and transported those same snacks (plus a few extra that were bought with snack credits) home.

Yes, I had this problem and still will because I think I will do it again. We go for 2 weeks and I used to check a gallon of water in my suitcase so I have some water to drink, I can't stand Dasani. Now they have SmartWater so I am ok now :)

I also usually bring goldfish (it's the only time of year I eat goldfish so it reminds me of Disney when I buy it!) and something sweet but I have trouble eating it sometimes since I am always full.

[*disgal*]

I ate everything at the ADR's, the CS and the snack each day. I gained 8 lbs. in 8 days. Enjoy yourself, but don't make yourself uncomfy!

You must be in good shape. I'm not (getting better) so when we went, we ate up a storm, but with all that walking, I lost 4 pds. over the course of 11 days. :laughing:

Thanks for that update. When I tried to book character dinners - they all seemed to cost 2 TS. That's why we ended up at Crystal Palace for breakfast. It was the only one for 1 TS. Thanks again!:goodvibes

I could be mistaken, but I think all of the character meals were 1TS except CRT(maybe the other princess meal?). Ohana, CM, CP, 1900, Cape May,etc. were all one when we went. This was in 2006. The only place we used 2TS's was Hoop, of course, that's not a character meal.....well, sort of. ;)

at Pizzafari, they didn't offer Pizza (crazy, I know) on the kids menu.... and at Pecos Bill's they didn't offer hamburgers (crazier, I know) on the kids menues...... they have since changed BOTH of these (can we say, DUH!!) so no reason to worry about it any more. And can I say, Thank goodness! I mean, imagine,..... ALL of us wanting pizza at a pizza place! :rotfl: What were we thinking?! :laughing:

[tinka-belle]

When the two of us are ordering a CS meal, we get one soda (two straws) and one bottle of water as the second meal's beverage to have in the parks later, so we save on a snack credit for that.

Even those "medium" drinks (often they ran out of cups so we got a large) are big enough for two. Otherwise the ice melts and you've got two half cups of crappy diluted soda to carry around the parks before you realize you should just throw them out. We've gotten drinks without ice or ice on the side, just too much soda to drink with a meal. Much better having the water for later.

[Ktharee]

I can't emphasize enough about utilizing your snack credits. The last two times we had the dining plan we came home with about 10 rice crispy treats. LOL

What I have done this time around is to get a hold of that list of approved snacks around the World and make a list of what I think we may be able or want to eat during the days.

For example...one morning we plan to have a TS b'fast at Crystal Palace...our next meal will be a CS dinner at some point in Epcot later that evening, but maybe in between we'll need to nibble on something. So I've made a list of the available snacks in the MK that we could get when hunger strikes.

The dining plan is wonderful, I think you will love it!

[twooley2]

When we went to Disney years back. It started as A wishes celebration and allowed you to use 3 wishes as you please. It also had the option of using it for the Cirque de soleil. We never went to it and now I want to go and it isnt showing when we are going in September. The other mistake was planning meals to close together. We planned for good timing but the restaurants sometimes lagged behind in calling us for our reservation. We also ate so much we ended up eatting all the while we were there. We actually one time got done with one meal rode a ride and it was time for another reservation. When I said "I hope you all are hungary" after that ride the family thought it was a joke and said "no way" but I told them I was serious and we went to the darn reservation too. No one was hungary. We still laugh about this and they make fun of me till this day. Although those were the good old days and cinderellas castle was still only one wish. You also got good seats at Hoop De doo.

[inkedupmomma]

In all fairness to you - in May 2005 there was no free dining and in 2005 the only things that counted as snack credits were water/soda, popcorn, ice cream bars, fruit and mickey head rice crispies - it was long before the days of the $4 rule.

Awesome! I honestly feel a lot better now! I thought at the time I did a fair amount of research [not nearly what I do now, but much more than any normal person I knew!] and I never knew until I joined here about the snack options! i wonder how that changed over, and how people found out, as they do not advertise it on the ddp brochure thingy!!

I biggest mistake was "extra food" - I always used to bring snacks with me and keep them in the room - the first couple of trips with the plan, I brought a bunch with me and transported those same snacks (plus a few extra that were bought with snack credits) home.

Yeah I don't think we will ever be bringing snack down with! I will however bring a couple cases of water this next trip..as to not "waste" snack credits. I would do that if I was on the dxdp or any ddp for that matter! The idea of spending that much mula on water again makes me ill!

[bdiddy]

We only had one mistake happen and it really wasn't something planned and we did get it taken care of. Which is another great thing about Disney!!

We were there Monday to Monday and we had all of our ADR's planned but also were paying for one extra TS breakfast at our resort (it was the cheapest meal).

So, Saturday night comes around and it is my birthday and we have dinner reservations for Chefs de France at 6pm. We went on Test Track just before and my daughter throws up just after the ride...and continues to be sick that we had to cancel our dinner and leave! So, the next morning we had our last TS scheduled for Chef Mickeys but now we have 1 extra and I already paid for one on Friday!!

We get back to the resort and I start calling to try to find somewhere to get into for Sunday evening to use the last TS credit and I can't get anything!! So, Monday morning when we went to check out I went to the conceirge and explained what happened and they gave me the money back for the TS breakfast we paid for at Boatwrights and used our last TS credit for that!!

[NorweJenNY]

My 2 Cents: Don't worry about using snack credits for water... as long as you're not picky, you can get free cups of ice water at any counter service restaurant.

Thanks everyone for posting your tips! Good to learn from other's mistakes! (This was a great idea for a thread! :thumbsup2)

Now I have a question, as I've heard conflicting reports...

About the adult/child counter service meals... when we go, I'll be attending a conference part of the time, so part of the time I'll be on a slightly different schedule with meals than my dh & 2 ds's... can someone (preferably who has been fairly recently) tell me for sure if Disney has a way of keeping track of how many adult and how many child CS meals were used? I don't want to do the wrong thing... nor do I want a surprise at the end of the week like thinking I have 4 CS meals for our family of four, but then an attendant informs me "yes, you have 4 CS meals left, but they're all child's CS." (No offense to dh, but I know he has a hard time of keeping track of things on his own... ;) )

[KKB]

but currently, CS are not differentiated adult or child on a given key card....

Some worry that Disney will change this due to comments on the board...but considering they CAN differentiate TS, I'm betting if they were going to differentiate CS they would have already done it...

[Colleen27]

but currently, CS are not differentiated adult or child on a given key card....

Some worry that Disney will change this due to comments on the board...but considering they CAN differentiate TS, I'm betting if they were going to differentiate CS they would have already done it...

As long as there are any participating CS restaurants that don't have kids' menus, I don't see how they can differentiate without hassles. I have noticed they've added kids' menus to a lot of the places that didn't used to have them, so maybe they're moving in that direction, but I doubt it is a change we'll see any time soon.

[*disgal*]

Although those were the good old days and cinderellas castle was still only one wish. You also got good seats at Hoop De doo.

Oh, yes, we did Hoop also and got the very front next to the stage! It was awesome. We will be doing it again this August but won't be able to get that seat again. That's ok though.

Does anyone know...........if you are a family of 5, do you fit at a table on the balcony? My DH and I sat up there the first time we went but it was just the two of us and I can't remember if there were any parties larger than four up there with us. Just wondering.



So, Saturday night comes around and it is my birthday and we have dinner reservations for Chefs de France at 6pm. We went on Test Track just before and my daughter throws up just after the ride...and continues to be sick that we had to cancel our dinner and leave! So, the next morning we had our last TS scheduled for Chef Mickeys but now we have 1 extra and I already paid for one on Friday!!

We get back to the resort and I start calling to try to find somewhere to get into for Sunday evening to use the last TS credit and I can't get anything!! So, Monday morning when we went to check out I went to the conceirge and explained what happened and they gave me the money back for the TS breakfast we paid for at Boatwrights and used our last TS credit for that!!

That is SO nice of them to do that. Love when they pull out the pixie dust! :wizard:

[*disgal*]

I forgot to add ....

the first and only time we have done the dining plan, we took everyone's advice on here(this board) and used all our snack credits as we went along. We had no credits left on the last day.......great advice, so thank you.

Also, we thought with all the heat and humidity in August, we didn't get too many sodas that time with our meals. We asked mostly for bottled water. It was easier to carry that around compared to a soda cup and that way we weren't tempted to use our snack credits for water.

And I've gotten free ice water from a number of places and didn't think their water was bad at all. And we only drink purified water here. I don't know about the water fountains, but the cups of water were fine. :thumbsup2

[eandesmom]

There are some CS locations, I believe, that do not have a children's menu. That is hear-say though as I don't have children so it doesn't apply to me and I don't care, but I remember hearing a lot of people mentioning some places are children menu free.

There are many places actually that are kid free CS menu's. Even if they do have a kids menu, ASK. Sometimes they will let the kids pick and adult CS meal instead. Sometimes they will let you swap dessert for a side. ASK!

I only saw/experienced one place really enforcing it and it was at a deluxe resort CS location. My guess is the parks are more flexible. Since we ate our CS mostly in the parks, and always asked once we saw it as an issue, I never felt like we tried to beat the system.

At the start of our trip I was under the impression that all CS was treated equally so we ordered whatever the kids wanted. The kids were with us, we were never trying to do anything "not" allowed and not one CM ever questioned it, even as the child placed their drink order for the adult CS meal.

That said, several of the places (in the parks) didn't have kids menus, it was just one total menu. All of the resort locations appeared to have kids menus.

So...ASK!

[eandesmom]

My 2 Cents: Don't worry about using snack credits for water... as long as you're not picky, you can get free cups of ice water at any counter service restaurant.

Thanks everyone for posting your tips! Good to learn from other's mistakes! (This was a great idea for a thread! :thumbsup2)

Now I have a question, as I've heard conflicting reports...

About the adult/child counter service meals... when we go, I'll be attending a conference part of the time, so part of the time I'll be on a slightly different schedule with meals than my dh & 2 ds's... can someone (preferably who has been fairly recently) tell me for sure if Disney has a way of keeping track of how many adult and how many child CS meals were used? I don't want to do the wrong thing... nor do I want a surprise at the end of the week like thinking I have 4 CS meals for our family of four, but then an attendant informs me "yes, you have 4 CS meals left, but they're all child's CS." (No offense to dh, but I know he has a hard time of keeping track of things on his own... ;) )

Ours, in Feb, were NOT broken out, with the exception of Table Service. All receipts showed remaining Adult TS, Child TS, ALL CS and ALL Snacks

[eandesmom]

Oh, yes, we did Hoop also and got the very front next to the stage! It was awesome. We will be doing it again this August but won't be able to get that seat again. That's ok though.

Does anyone know...........if you are a family of 5, do you fit at a table on the balcony? My DH and I sat up there the first time we went but it was just the two of us and I can't remember if there were any parties larger than four up there with us. Just wondering.



That is SO nice of them to do that. Love when they pull out the pixie dust! :wizard:


If you do the late seating (9:30) you can get Cat 1 at HDDR. I know it's late for a lot of folks but for us west coasters, it was perfect!

[BowlersDoDisney]

A couple of years ago we were at the Pop on the last day of our trip, went to get some breakfast and use up our 3 remaining CS. We had used all of our sons and had what we considered as 3 adult CS remaining. We get to the register and the lady checking us out flipped her lid and went off on us about cheating and such. We told her that we had used up all of our sons CS and she basically called us liars. FUN stuff...

So be aware...:thumbsup2

[lacrosse_lady72]

If you do the late seating (9:30) you can get Cat 1 at HDDR. I know it's late for a lot of folks but for us west coasters, it was perfect!

It's because we're the best!

[DisneyDreamer04]

I thought I would add to what NOT to do thread...

We went last year, it was our first year on the dining plan. Not only did we hoard our yummy snack credits, but I made 8 out 9 table service dinners for OUT of the parks. We liked all the food, but OMG, it seemed that all we did was travel. It took alot of our time away from the parks. Plus, it was kinda a pain with a 3 year old and an 8month. Next time I will just get a few out of the parks. It was wayyyy too hard. We loved Ohana's, and the atmosphere of Chef Mickey's.

Also, Remember if you dont get park hoppers you have to plan your dinners accordingly to what park you will be in that day.

[lacrosse_lady72]

I thought I would add to what NOT to do thread...

We went last year, it was our first year on the dining plan. Not only did we hoard our yummy snack credits, but I made 8 out 9 table service dinners for OUT of the parks. We liked all the food, but OMG, it seemed that all we did was travel. It took alot of our time away from the parks. Plus, it was kinda a pain with a 3 year old and an 8month. Next time I will just get a few out of the parks. It was wayyyy too hard. We loved Ohana's, and the atmosphere of Chef Mickey's.

Also, Remember if you dont get park hoppers you have to plan your dinners accordingly to what park you will be in that day.

On that note, I have been to WDW without park hoppers but never would I do without them if I was on the DDP. There are too many restaurants I like to eat at or around MK and Epcot... we go for 14 nights with at least 2+ days at HS, I can't even think of one HS TS I want to eat at again any time soon. But then again, $50 for 10 days of park going... that's only $5 a day, I am sure I can afford that ;) .

[*disgal*]

If you do the late seating (9:30) you can get Cat 1 at HDDR. I know it's late for a lot of folks but for us west coasters, it was perfect!

Ha! very funny. My 9 year old would never make it. He's 100th percentile for height, so you can imagine what it takes to feed him. :laughing: I guess it's all the running he does that keeps him thin.

A couple of years ago we were at the Pop on the last day of our trip, went to get some breakfast and use up our 3 remaining CS. We had used all of our sons and had what we considered as 3 adult CS remaining. We get to the register and the lady checking us out flipped her lid and went off on us about cheating and such. We told her that we had used up all of our sons CS and she basically called us liars. FUN stuff...

So be aware...:thumbsup2

Now that is horrible and would really bother me. I can't help it. This is a case for Disney to keep it separated for the opposite reason that is usually stated.

[twooley2]

I thought your credits are yours to use as you see fit.

[WildGrits]

You can add us to the "Snack Credit Hoarders".

I was trying to save them because the last two days of our trip was the Food and Wine Festival. But there was no way we could go through the 32 credits we had in one or two days.

We ended up using them at the store where you leave Space Mountain. Yep. Over 30 credits in candy. And you know what happened to over 50% of that candy? Thrown out a year later.

Don't hoard your snacks.

[catne]

I thought your credits are yours to use as you see fit.

Not really - you are supposed to use the credits according to what you paid for, yet some people do "game" the system. In the case of kids under 10, you are only paying for child's credits so they are supposed to go for child's meals - which is fair, because the cost of a child's plan is just a fraction of the cost of adult plan. The only exception to getting child's meals is supposed to be if the restaurant does not offer children's meals - but there are very few places that do not have child's meals.

The previous poster stated they had already used all of their child's credits so thought there was nothing but adult credits left on their plan. But when they went to pay, the CM would see on their key card "2 A 1 C" meaning the reservation has 2 adults & 1 child. Which is why the clerk thought the people should be purchasing 2 adult meals and 1 child meal.

[inkedupmomma]

Not really - you are supposed to use the credits according to what you paid for, yet some people do "game" the system. In the case of kids under 10, you are only paying for child's credits so they are supposed to go for child's meals - which is fair, because the cost of a child's plan is just a fraction of the cost of adult plan. The only exception to getting child's meals is supposed to be if the restaurant does not offer children's meals - but there are very few places that do not have child's meals.

The previous poster stated they had already used all of their child's credits so thought there was nothing but adult credits left on their plan. But when they went to pay, the CM would see on their key card "2 A 1 C" meaning the reservation has 2 adults & 1 child. Which is why the clerk thought the people should be purchasing 2 adult meals and 1 child meal.

I'm glad you explained that cause I was confused! I get the system and all, but if they had 3 credits left, what does it matter how they used it?? Ahh, the good ol in's and out's of the ddp!

[MrsPooh]

In all fairness to you - in May 2005 there was no free dining and in 2005 the only things that counted as snack credits were water/soda, popcorn, ice cream bars, fruit and mickey head rice crispies - it was long before the days of the $4 rule.

I think this is incorrect. We went in Sept 2005 and had free dining.

The snack credits were much more restricted than they are now but we were able to get a few more things. We also had one time that we had to pay out of pocket because we were getting drinks at a cart and the "system" was down so they couldn't run our card for the dining plan. We didn't want to wait in another line somewhere else to get our drinks.

We did bring stuff for snacks in the room but that worked great for us.

We had purchased meals out of pocket because we wanted one dinner at Rain Forest and we had a Grand Gathering meal that didn't accept the dining plan credits. When we were checking out we still had one CS left per person plus about 15 snack credits. We went to the CS at Poly and each got a meal to take to the airport for lunch. We used the rest for Mickey Treats that my dd took for school lunches for the next couple of weeks which worked out great for us.

[MKCP5]

I can't emphasize enough about utilizing your snack credits. The last two times we had the dining plan we came home with about 10 rice crispy treats. LOL

What I have done this time around is to get a hold of that list of approved snacks around the World and make a list of what I think we may be able or want to eat during the days.

For example...one morning we plan to have a TS b'fast at Crystal Palace...our next meal will be a CS dinner at some point in Epcot later that evening, but maybe in between we'll need to nibble on something. So I've made a list of the available snacks in the MK that we could get when hunger strikes.

The dining plan is wonderful, I think you will love it!

can you share that snack list?

[Sandy321]

can you share that snack list?

its a sticky on the top of this board:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2067447

when people return they share pics of menu boards, etc some items come into question at the beginning of the year (for instance the food court used to allow a whole box of donuts! so that got changed - to single serving items usually under $4 - that's been my reference point We'll miss the French Toast loaf at MK bakery! :( )

[MKCP5]

its a sticky on the top of this board:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2067447

when people return they share pics of menu boards, etc some items come into question at the beginning of the year (for instance the food court used to allow a whole box of donuts! so that got changed - to single serving items usually under $4 - that's been my reference point We'll miss the French Toast loaf at MK bakery! :( )


thanks!

[caracap]

2007 we left behind 11 CS meals:confused3 In 2008, we used every single one!!

[katiebsmom]

1. We planned our dinner ADR's around 5:00 or 5:30, after eating a full CS lunch we just weren't really hungry at our ADR time. We found we did better eating an hour or so later.

AMEN!!! This was a mistake that we mak\de 90 days before our trip LOL!!! I was going to be smart and beat the hungry crowd and eat early...EVERY STINKING DAY! After the first day we realized this was a mistake, because we would snack around at breakfast (very early in the am) and then when we took our break at lunch to nap and rest usually waiting until going back to the parks to eat lunch. We just weren't as hungry as we had anticipated. There was no way any of us could eat a big ole sit down TS meal again at 4:30 or 5:00. Poor planning on our part, but we had to endure a whole week of this. :laughing:

[dayzemair]

Not really - you are supposed to use the credits according to what you paid for, yet some people do "game" the system. In the case of kids under 10, you are only paying for child's credits so they are supposed to go for child's meals - which is fair, because the cost of a child's plan is just a fraction of the cost of adult plan. The only exception to getting child's meals is supposed to be if the restaurant does not offer children's meals - but there are very few places that do not have child's meals.

The previous poster stated they had already used all of their child's credits so thought there was nothing but adult credits left on their plan. But when they went to pay, the CM would see on their key card "2 A 1 C" meaning the reservation has 2 adults & 1 child. Which is why the clerk thought the people should be purchasing 2 adult meals and 1 child meal.
(catne, just quoting you to make it clear what I am talking about - not disputing what you are saying :goodvibes)

Ugh, I have seen several comments from posters lately about having the experience of CM's accuse them of "gaming" the system for various reasons. I think that this is horrible - there's no better way to leave your guests with an icky feeling about their vacation than to accuse them of "stealing" or "cheating" their system. If there is a loophole in the system, and they can't handle the amount of people recognizing the loophole and taking advantage of it (regardless of whether or not it is morally right to take advantage of it) then they need to fix the loophole, not start accusing their guests of gaming the system. This poster's example is perfectly legitimate because if the two adults decided they weren't particularly hungry one lunch and split a lunch then they would end up with extra counter service credits which they DID pay for so if the disney system can't distinguish between the two then that is their fault... as I see it.
Not trying to argue that people should or shouldn't take advantage of this loophole, but the thought that good people are being treated as liars or thiefs by CM's makes me upset. :sad2:

[5boyz]

dayzemair....I totally agree with everything you said. It sucks that we have to go on vacation having everything paid for and still have to be careful to make sure we got the right credits taken off everytime we eat. That is part (sometimes a big part) of why people do the dining plan.....NO WORRIES!!!!

[ryansall]

I have to agree with everyone about using up your snack credits. Our first time on the DDP was January 2008, and at the end of the week, we had 7 snack credits and 3 TS credits, because we tried to conserve things all week long.

But my biggest tip would be in line with what some others have said, which is to just eat where/when you want, and don't try to worry about maximizing the value. You will save money if you use all your credits, so just try to use everything.

Some people told me not to do buffets, but I have a 7 and 2 year old, so buffets are a godsend for us. We can sit down, eat quickly and get back in the parks. And the money is still less paying DDP than OOP.

[soulmates]

Okay...maybe I somehow OVERLOOKED on the DP breakdown...but the one I read, says ONE snack per day, per person. How in the world is everyone having leftover snack credits?? :confused3 Again, my 1st time using the DP, so I'm REAL green! ;)

[Colleen27]

Okay...maybe I somehow OVERLOOKED on the DP breakdown...but the one I read, says ONE snack per day, per person. How in the world is everyone having leftover snack credits?? :confused3 Again, my 1st time using the DP, so I'm REAL green! ;)

We had snack credits left because we didn't use them well, plain and simple. We paid OOP for water thinking we'd want our snacks for snacks, and then didn't. That's a mistake we haven't made since that first DDP trip. :rotfl: Plus a lot of snacks are easily shareable, particularly for kids. My older two would split a soft pretzel or we'd all share a Dole Whip, so we weren't each using a snack credit every time we wanted a little treat.

[DisneyDreamer04]

Yep, very easy to do. We did the same exact thing. Last year was our first year.... We didnt use any snack credits on bottles of water or that kind of stuff. By the end of our trip we had like 13 snack credits left! We went to goofy's candy shop and got a ton of stuff, and still had some left over for the next morning, we packed and took back on the plane.:lmao:

Next time my daughter wants popcorn, I am for sure using the credits. ;)

[drpeterson8]

Okay...maybe I somehow OVERLOOKED on the DP breakdown...but the one I read, says ONE snack per day, per person. How in the world is everyone having leftover snack credits?? :confused3 Again, my 1st time using the DP, so I'm REAL green! ;)

With the QSDP, you get 2 snack credits per day/per person. So my family of 4 would get 8 per day and a total of 56 for 7 nights.

After doing the math, I may want to pack all elastic waistbands for my DH and I... we will be putting on the pounds!

[Faldred]

Just used it for the first time a couple of weeks ago -- Deluxe for 7 nights.

To be completely honest, I don't think I made any mistakes. Oh, sure, I tried a few restaurants I won't go back to, but trying them wasn't a "mistake" in any sense.

We budgeted out our credits properly, and even managed to use over 75% of the snack credits before spending the rest at Goofy's Candy Store on the way out of town.

[ExtinctDino]

My mistake the first time was NOT GOING: we had already booked a trip for May 2005 so couldn't go when free dining was first offered for that fall. I haven't made that mistake again. We've gone for free dining every year since then, and will be back at POFQ Aug 23-31.

[LittleStinkerbelle]

Not a mistake per se (well to my dad it was :lmao:) but the first time we went it was during free dining and my dad, being a numbers guy, was really bent on getting the best value out of his "free dining." My mom, not a numbers gal, really didn't give it two thoughts so when she went to use a snack credit for a $2 soda and then offered to get my DH one too (he refused but she was all, "why not, I have these free snack credits) my dad looked like he was about to blow a gasket. My mom asked what was the matter and he said, through clenched teeth, "that was *not* a good use of a snack credit.":rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Ever since then, DH and I immitate that line any time we get a snack that's on the cheap side.:lmao:

[soulmates]

With the QSDP, you get 2 snack credits per day/per person. So my family of 4 would get 8 per day and a total of 56 for 7 nights.

After doing the math, I may want to pack all elastic waistbands for my DH and I... we will be putting on the pounds!


Thank you..I read it was 1 snack per so that would be 2 credits...didn't know it was 2 per!! :banana:

[KKB]

Okay...maybe I somehow OVERLOOKED on the DP breakdown...but the one I read, says ONE snack per day, per person. How in the world is everyone having leftover snack credits?? :confused3 Again, my 1st time using the DP, so I'm REAL green! ;)

When you check in, they will put 1 snack credit per person per day on your key card. So say 2 of you are going for 7 nights. Immediately there will be 14 snack credits on your card...you can use them ALL right then and there, if you wanted to. Or 1/day and buy a bunch of snacks to take home the last day. Or 2/day and make it just right.

Same goes w/ meal credits. Same scenario, on the basic plan, there will be 14 TS (table service) credits and 14 CS (counter service) credits on your keys day 1. SO if you wanted to hit several 2TS restaurants early in the week, you might run out. Then you either have to eat CS for dinner or pay OOP.(out of pocket) Most of us eat 1TS/day, and maybe 1-2TS meal.

Another reason many have credits left over is that though many of us are staying, say 7 nights, we get in late day 1/leave early day 8...we really are only eating 6 days, but get credits for 7. OR portions are so large, you are splitting CS for lunch (you could do the same for breakfast, too). OR you are trying to "maximize" your snack credits by paying OOP for cheaper snacks earlier in the week (as OP mentioned Dad blowing a gasket by "wasting" snack credits on $2 Cokes when you can buy snacks up to $4 w/ each credit, for the most part) We did that...and had a bunch to use up the last day. Next time we will use snack credits along the way, and pay OOP late in the week if we need to. Makes a lot more sense.

That got a bit long winded, but I think I covered all the possiblities!:wizard:

[ExtinctDino]

ignore - accidental double post

[soulmates]

When you check in, they will put 1 snack credit per person per day on your key card. So say 2 of you are going for 7 nights. Immediately there will be 14 snack credits on your card...you can use them ALL right then and there, if you wanted to. Or 1/day and buy a bunch of snacks to take home the last day. Or 2/day and make it just right.

Same goes w/ meal credits. Same scenario, on the basic plan, there will be 14 TS (table service) credits and 14 CS (counter service) credits on your keys day 1. SO if you wanted to hit several 2TS restaurants early in the week, you might run out. Then you either have to eat CS for dinner or pay OOP.(out of pocket) Most of us eat 1TS/day, and maybe 1-2TS meal.

Another reason many have credits left over is that though many of us are staying, say 7 nights, we get in late day 1/leave early day 8...we really are only eating 6 days, but get credits for 7. OR portions are so large, you are splitting CS for lunch (you could do the same for breakfast, too). OR you are trying to "maximize" your snack credits by paying OOP for cheaper snacks earlier in the week (as OP mentioned Dad blowing a gasket by "wasting" snack credits on $2 Cokes when you can buy snacks up to $4 w/ each credit, for the most part) We did that...and had a bunch to use up the last day. Next time we will use snack credits along the way, and pay OOP late in the week if we need to. Makes a lot more sense.

That got a bit long winded, but I think I covered all the possiblities!:wizard:


Thanks for that...I do have another question. My PLAN was to check in late Sunday and ONLY have the DP for 6 days, Sun - Friday and we check out Sat. morning. Sooo, Sat. morning, we'll use whatever is left over, for breakfast. I didn't plan on PAYING for Sat since we're leaving early. Can I purchase it for the days I want?

[Colleen27]

Thanks for that...I do have another question. My PLAN was to check in late Sunday and ONLY have the DP for 6 days, Sun - Friday and we check out Sat. morning. Sooo, Sat. morning, we'll use whatever is left over, for breakfast. I didn't plan on PAYING for Sat since we're leaving early. Can I purchase it for the days I want?

It is a length-of-stay plan and you cannot book it for only part of your trip, but it is based on the number of NIGHTS you stay, not DAYS. So if you check in Sunday and check out Saturday, you'll have 6 nights on the plan.

[soulmates]

It is a length-of-stay plan and you cannot book it for only part of your trip, but it is based on the number of NIGHTS you stay, not DAYS. So if you check in Sunday and check out Saturday, you'll have 6 nights on the plan.
PERFECTO!!! Thank you SO very much!!:hug:

[jpaxton1118]

Ok. I feel somewhat lost. This is our first time doing DDP. I thought it was pretty simple but after reading everything I am not sure. I know all about the days but now I am confussed about how they are going to charge them. Do we need to keep track of what is used or when we give them our card to swipe it automatically takes off 2 kids 2 adults if that is what we got. How can you get 4 adults when there is a kids menu? That would mean that you use up some of your adult credits then by the end of the trip you only have kids left. Why would you not just use both so that you have the same amount at the end of the trip? Am I missing something?

[Disney Bound Mommy]

We also didn't get around the eating our snacks. Not sure if it was a mistake, or we were just too full. Anyway, we brought home 27 chocolate dipped mickey rice krispee treats.

[Rylee]

I know the pizza place at MK doesn't have kids meals...


If you are referring to Pinocchio Village Haus, this is NOT true.

They do offer a kids menu, but the kids menu doesn't include pizza. There would be nothing to stop adults from ordering from the kids menu and paying for a kids meal pizza.

Pinocchio Village Haus
Child's Menu

Lunch (Updated: 01/08)
Entree/Main Course

Kids's Picks: Peanut Butter & Jelly Sandwich, Turkey & Cheese Roll-up, or Macaroni & Cheese - All meals include choice of two side items: grapes, carrot sticks, or applesauce and choice of: 1% milk, small bottled water, or apple juice. French fries, chocolate chip cookie, and soda available upon request. - $4.49

Dessert

Chocolate Pudding - Chocolate Pudding - $1.19
Strawberry Yogurt - Strawberry Yogurt - $1.99

[1hero2princesses]

Not checking our receipts was my mistake! We got charged double credits on our first CS meal and I didn't notice. At the end of the week we went to get CS and they said we didn't have any more. I was absolutely positive we had more. Finally went to talk the manager who put me on the phone with the right people. He was so nice (pecos bills) he ended up going ahead and getting my family food for free as I tried to sort it out. I was on the phone about 40 minutes. At first they had us charging at a place we hadn't been in a park we hadn't been in. Then they were afraid the card had been compromised and they really started researching. Finally they realized that was wrong and that we had been charged 8 credits for one of our meals instead of 4. Anyway we did get a free lunch (although mine was cold!) but it was very stressful and took a long time. Also, I agree with not using the credits for water bottles (we ordered water from Garden Grocer) and brought bottles with us (although we had a stroller to carry things, I know that won't work for everyone). Anyway we are going back again for free dining. I definitely love using snack credits at the bakerys they have some great stuff. MK bakery and the one in france!

[DisneyNic]

My 2 Cents: Don't worry about using snack credits for water... as long as you're not picky, you can get free cups of ice water at any counter service restaurant.



Could we get our mugs from our resort filled with ice water also or would we have to ask for a free cup of ice water and then put it in our mug??

[brymolmom]

Okay...maybe I somehow OVERLOOKED on the DP breakdown...but the one I read, says ONE snack per day, per person. How in the world is everyone having leftover snack credits?? :confused3 Again, my 1st time using the DP, so I'm REAL green! ;)


Good question because you would think it wouldn't be hard to use them. But it is - IF you're trying to only use them on 'bigger' items. So if you want a bottle of water on day 1 and don't use a credit because it isn't one of the better items, you still have that credit left. And, at least in my case, I always think I'm going to want one of the milkshakes or sundaes for my credit - but we usually do one sit-down a day and after the dessert from that - I often end up NOT wanting an ice cream most days. Also, with my family, there are 4 of us with two young kids. So if we do want a little snack - we might get a box of popcorn and split it - so one or two credits used (two if we get a drink with it) - that still only uses half our credits for that day.

I guess for us since we bring cereal and have it in our room before we leave for the day's activities, it comes down to just not being hungry at all most days to use 4 credits outside of our cs and ts meals.

But if you use a credit every time you want a bottle of water, I'm sure you could use them up.

[JerseyJanice]

My mistake--scheduling the same number of ADR's that we had TS credits for.

Twice on our trip, we were unable to make scheduled ADR's due to circumstances beyond our control.

We had an ADR for dinner at the Crystal Palace. On the bus ride to the MK, we ran into a torrential downpour that lasted for hours. We waited for the longest time under the MK bus shelter then gave up and took a bus to the Wilderness Lodge where we ate at Roaring Forks since Whispering Canyon wouldn't take us without an ADR.

Another morning, we had an ADR for breakfast at the Cape May Cafe. I wound up with all the kids (4 pre-teen boys) staying in my room, and I couldn't get them out of bed to make it there in time. We went to ESPN and had lunch instead. It was fun for the boys, but not a great use of TS credits.

Next trip, I am scheduling 3 more TS ADR's than we have credits for. If we make all of our ADRs, we'll pay cash for the cheapest meal SciFi (which I am scheduling late in the trip) and/or cancelling a lunch and/or breakfast.

[TDC Nala]

Lots of "per day" stuff here. You do not get your credits per day, but per night you stay at your resort. Most guests at WDW stay more days than nights, so this is an important distinction.

[smiths02]

Thank you..I read it was 1 snack per so that would be 2 credits...didn't know it was 2 per!! :banana:

There are different dining plans...

the most common one...the basic Disney Dining Plan (DDP) is the one offered during the free dining promotion...it includes 1 snack per night per guest age 3 and over (it also includes 1 table service, TS, and 1 Counter Service, CS, per person per night)

there is also Quick Service Dining Plan (QSDP) which is slightly cheaper it includes 2 snacks per person per night and 2 CS per person per night plus a refillable mug per person

There is also Deluxe Dining Plan (DxDP) which includes 3 meal credits that can be used for counter service or table service plus 2 snacks credits per person per night PLUS a refillable mug..it costs significantly more than basic DDP

[txloopnlil]

Check your receipts! We had two rooms (one for me and my 2 kids, one for my cousin) and Boma charged both adult meals to a single room, and the kids meals to the other. We didn't catch it until the next night when we paid for dinner at the Wave - too many TS credits on one room and short TS credits on the other. Luckily we were eating together, but it could have been a predicament if we had been dining seperately.

Fastpass running was also a problem with the dining plan. Twice I ended up paying OOP for CS meals and snacks because our fastpass runner had all the key cards on the other side of the park.

[faindrops27]

the first time we used DDP, we didn't budget well. Now we are much smarter.

We learned:



2. Supplement your CS meals with snack credits. Look carefully at what constitutes a snack. A Large French Fry in Epcot costs one snack credit. A Cereal+Milk also costs one snack credit. So does a tiny portion of peanut butter. Don't waste snack credits on tiny, inexpensive or less-filling items.

3. If you have snack credits left over, Use them to buy airplane food. Giant Rice Krispy Mickey Heads cost 1 snack and travel really well. :thumbsup2

4. Watch out for "Signature Restaurants" that eat up your Table Service credits. They cost 2 TS credits per person. That caught us off guard the first time. Be aware so you can budget your TS meals effectively. Also -- character breakfasts only cost 1 TS (as opposed to character dinners, which cost 2. Just FYI.)

Some character dinners cost 2. Like Cinderellas castle. Most, of the other character dinners count as 1TS.

[cinderella73]

Well I havent made a mistake yet.. But to save myself one.. Can u use up any remaining credits like say a table service credit at a quick service place ?

I just cant see being at a table service everyday and I dont want the credit to go to waste.

Sorry if its a little OT but reading this had me thinking about it.

[Mom of 2, Wife of 1]

Well I havent made a mistake yet.. But to save myself one.. Can u use up any remaining credits like say a table service credit at a quick service place ?

I just cant see being at a table service everyday and I dont want the credit to go to waste.

Sorry if its a little OT but reading this had me thinking about it.

Yes, you can. We did this on our last trip. You can absolutely use a TS credit on a CS location. The only downside is that the same credit could have bought you a $50 meal and instead you're using it on a $15 meal. It lessens the value of the plan, but I'm with you -- eating TS 3x a day is a tough thing to do. :rolleyes:

[maddiesmom0116]

I ate everything at the ADR's, the CS and the snack each day. I gained 8 lbs. in 8 days. Enjoy yourself, but don't make yourself uncomfy!

Me too- I do the deluxe plan and I eat and eat and eat- 7 pounds in 8 days, 5 pounds in 7 days and last time 4 pounds in 7 days! It is hard to start eating right when you get home too, so it takes a while (like a month)to take the weight back off.

[dannewi]

This was a great thread... a bunch of info that I would not have thought of asking.

So now I have to decide if we need the 2 TS or 1 TS. I was afraid that eating 1 CS everyday would be the same food over and over. I think I need to review the restaurant choices to make my decision.

We will be visiting in November, our first trip back in 13 years. I don't remember a food plan back then, but I do remember it was expensive. I think we are going to like not having to worry about reading the prices on a menu or worrying about whether or not we want to share a snack.

Thanks for all the great feedback !

[julezdisney]

I'm learning a lot from this thread- keep 'em coming, folks! I really need this info w/my first dining trip coming up this Sept!

[RahRah573]

Last year we had the deluxe plan and this year we have it again....mistakes we won't repeat this year include:

1. Not using snack credits up until last day - last year we had 42 remaining on the day we checked out...that's way too many mickey-mouse rice crispie treats to lug home!

1. Trying to actually eat 3 table service meals a day - it's so much food, it's impossible to eat that much + snacks. With the deluxe plan including appetizer, entree and dessert at both lunch and dinner - it's so much food to try to eat in one day as one person and then snacks too?

So this year, rather than attempt breakfast, lunch and dinner, we're doing different days in three combos that also helps use up the snack credits along the way, but also not feel compelled to eat so much food each day since it's really hard to eat that much in the meals and then eat snacks too!

A) 1-TS Breakfast early, 1-TS lunch around 1:30, 1-TS dinner no earlier than 8:00 [1 or 2 days of 10 planned this way]

B) 1-TS late seating breakfast buffet (brunch), 2-TS dinner

C) Snack option light breakfast or breakfast in room (we have a full-kitchen), 1-TS lunch, 2-TS dinner

3. Not being savvy to all the snacks on the plan - basically we wasted a lot of snack credits on inexpensive things or beverages since we didn't realize things like ice cream sundaes, Dole whips, or even side salads are available as snack options! This also meant we didn't realize we had enough snacks to really enjoy a nice light breakfast if we wanted to use snack credits that way (ie. croissants or muffin & latte breakfast) or do a mini-lunch type snack option (ie. side salad + quiche in france = 2 snacks) if we do a breakfast buffet and are hungry before dinner but don't want to eat junky stuff.

4. Making crazy (in hindsight) ADR's - last year we had reservations all over the place --- sometimes breakfast at a resort, then lunch in Epcot, then dinner over at Studios....too crazy to try to get to different locations when meals were so closely timed last year. With this year's changes we've made for how we're planning our days, we should be able to have a much more relaxing vacation by not rushing between parks or resorts for meals!

To give you an example of a crazy-day of ADR's we had....Crystal Palace was at 7:30, 50's Primetime Diner was at 12:30 and dinner was for 6:00 at the Brown Derby. We arrived at CP at 7:20, seated at 7:40, done and leaving at 8:55 (it was crowded and DS4 wanted to meet all the characters - so that alone took well over an hour for them all to come by our table)...so basically breakfast was done at 9:00 - we did a few things at MK and had to then head over to Studios for lunch and we weren't even hungry yet.....arrived at 12:15, seated at 12:25.....by the time we finished lunch it was 1:45 - got to spend 1.5 hours waiting for Toy Story, did the backlot tour thing and then had to head to dinner and we were still stuffed from lunch, and by the time we finished dinner the park was closing, so the day was pretty much wasted running between meals with little time for rides and attractions!

NO WAY are we doing that crazy-making type schedule again!

[tinkerlisa]

[QUOTE=KKB;31119616]
Study menus, read reviews & make your ADRs at 90 days. We had FANTASTIC meals due to research on my part. DH said he never imagined having great meals at WDW.
QUOTE]

I agree! When we first did the Dining Plan, we ate at places we would never have dreamed of eating at if we didn't do the Plan. DF isn't a Disney fanatic like me but when we were on our way home, he said he couldn't wait to eat there again!

I am glad I read this thread though. I forgot that it is per night not per day and that is how I have been planning my days. Now I gotta change my plans(again)! At least I haven't made ADR's yet!

[AngVT]

Our mistake last year was the Deluxe Dining Plan... by the 3rd day, we were eating salads and sandwiches instead of full TS meals... We did several buffets, and grazed. We did go to Goofy's and Main St. Bakery to get 12 credits worth of goodies to bring home, and they were well received (ie: gone in 2 days!)

We tried to space our meals out so that we did have a breakfast ADR at 7-8am, a lunch ADR at 12:30-1:30pm, and a dinner ADR at 7-8:30pm. This left about 6 hours between meals, to digest and work off some of the food. I think the pros of having the DxDP would be the freedom to try different appetizers, and desserts... and entree's, and the availability to use the dining credits as TS OR CS... The cons would be that it was WAY too much food, the cost of the tips on top of the cost of the plan, and feeling like you had to make good use of the ADR's made, in order to feel like the plan was worth it.

This year, we're going to do the DDP this time, we were thinking of the QSDP, but since I was spoiled on a few TS meals, I have to make ADRs for this coming trip, we decided on the DDP. I will be purchasing the refillable mugs, since I feel we'll get good use of them (as we did last year.), and will be packing a 6pack of water to bring with us in our luggage... (I know, quirky, but it saves us $12, and gives the TSA something to do...LOL! ~they checked our waters last year also)

[twinmoms]

Thanks for the responses. I'm looking for every tip I can find on the dining plan.

[lissiesmum]

I think Casey's is the only one left.

They have been adding children's menus at the few CS that didn't have them.

so if Casey's does not have a children's menu, does your child just order like an adult would order? This was our favorite CS spot when we went back in Sept, but I wasn't paying attention to children's menus back then...

[shocker]

I am a frist timer on the DDP and I think this is a very GOOD question and Im interested in everyone's input.
One thing I can say I "heard" was an issue was make sure if you have a child onthe DDP you look at all the kids menus, seems to be either chicken nuggets or mac n cheese, and thats ok for one meal but Im worried my nine year old will get sick of that so I tried to include some buffets and a variety of snack options to break up the macnchicnuggetfest..this may work for some kids but my child likes to try new things too like his mama lol
anyways, im anxious to see others input on this one. thanks :wizard:

Also a first timer for DDP so reading anxiously, also have a 9yo who likes more than "kid food" so we too will be doing some buffets and I've even offered to swap meals with her if she just can't stomach another pizza!popcorn::

[Tricia1972]

All tipping discussion should be posted in The Disney Tipping Info Thread on the main board. http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2056032

You can read the first post of the thread for the explanation of why all tipping discussion needs to be kept there. Thanks! :goodvibes

[MKCP5]

Sorry didnt know I was violating!!! :)

[Kevboo]

We did not use all our snack credits and we also ate way to much food...We were so full every night we had no energy left to do anything...Moderation is key.

[RedArt]

Same as everyone...too many snack credits left. But we used them to get large lollipops for treats for my son's birthday party.

One other thing is we discovered the "continental combo" at the Pop Century. You can get two pastry/danish type items and two drinks for one counter service meal. (At least you could the last two years). Effectively gave us two light breakfasts for one CS credit.

[Disney*Dreamer]

Our mimstake was trying not to use our snack credits on just drinks, but then we ended up with 8 snack creidts left over on our last day.

[lacrosse_lady72]

Well I havent made a mistake yet.. But to save myself one.. Can u use up any remaining credits like say a table service credit at a quick service place ?

I just cant see being at a table service everyday and I dont want the credit to go to waste.

Sorry if its a little OT but reading this had me thinking about it.

Yes you can use a TS credit at a CS restaurant however, you can throw some 2TS restaurants in there so you don't end up losing th value of the DDP. All the dinner shows, signature restaurants and CRT are worth 2TS.

[ltl engine]

-Only try to save CS or TS if you are going to be there the whole day on arrival or departure day, otherwise no need.

-Epcot at the Refreshment Outpost (McDonald's)--they can put chicken nuggets, fries and a McFlurry together for 1 CS (the menu will show all as separate snacks but the CM nicely offered this to use last year)

-Toy Story Pizza or MK Pinocchio (?) Haus--the pizza combos with salad are big enough to share.

-For TS, if you are too full for dessert ask if you can have a shake to go (suggested by waiter at Sci Fi)

-For CS, I took some of the desserts (i.e. fruit, packaged cake, cookies) back to the room for breakfast

-CS-Ask if you can substitute for desserts or sides (generally they are more than willing) For example, instead of cake I asked for grapes which was on the kids dessert list--no problem

-CS-most importantly if you do no know ask..most CM's are willing to help if you are polite and seem to have a clue of what you are doing....but if you just walk up and say I'm on the dining plan what can I get...

[danielle782001]

Sorry I have not read every reply....So this may be a repeat...

1) Do not waste snack credits on a drink...Food only...Tons of food items count as a snack and you can make a quick breakfast out of a couple of snacks...I know lots of people say they have snack credits left over but we never do...We use them up quick....On food items to replace the meal we are missing on the basic plan...

2) If you have more table service meals planned than credits, use the credits for the dinners not the breakfasts.

3) Do not "waste" credits on 2 credit meals (if you are on the basic plan).

[lojikal1]

The most important thing to remember is that by using FD you are getting the DxDP for only $30 a day... who cares if you nibble? Who cares if you don't eat the whole plate??? who cares if you eat CS meals instead of TS? It's DisneyWorld!!! Enjoy a lil here and a lil there and by the time you sit down at the signature meal that would have cost you $75 a person... you will have more than made up for the cost... the biggest mistake we made was thinking the the dining plan was like a plate and the mouse was waiting for us to clean it... just enjoy the flexibility and enjoy the food...:woohoo:

[jenharring]

Thanks for that update. When I tried to book character dinners - they all seemed to cost 2 TS. That's why we ended up at Crystal Palace for breakfast. It was the only one for 1 TS. Thanks again!:goodvibes

I have 2 charater dinners booked for june and they didnt cost but 1 ts credit each.

[billfatora]

The first time I used the "Dining Plan" was way back when it was called the "Food & Fun Plan"; and, as I recall, it even included "Victoria & Albert's". I remember that I "planned" breakfast, lunch and dinner for every day of our stay, and even had some "in-between" meals. We were staying at "The Grand Floridian Resort" on the "Concierge Level" (now the "Club Level"), and so we had the "additional food and beverage selections" there also. Bottom line, not only was there way too much food, but we ended up wasting a lot of time moving to, from, and at, resturants. The "Dining Plan" is a nice addition to any vacation, and you do need to make ADRs, but plan them around where you are going to be... don't plan what you want to be doing, around your restaurant selections....

[shocker]

Fastpass running was also a problem with the dining plan. Twice I ended up paying OOP for CS meals and snacks because our fastpass runner had all the key cards on the other side of the park.

Another reason to get your themepark tickets on separate media, which I think you can do even when purchasing a package but you have to ask and may even have to go to guest services to get them separated. This year all of us have AP so our KTTW card will NOT be our FP card and we booked the AP-DDP package, but one in our party needs tickets so those will be purchased separately.

[MKCP5]

Another reason to get your themepark tickets on separate media, which I think you can do even when purchasing a package but you have to ask and may even have to go to guest services to get them separated. This year all of us have AP so our KTTW card will NOT be our FP card and we booked the AP-DDP package, but one in our party needs tickets so those will be purchased separately.


SO if I am understanding this correctly you are saying that there is ONE card that has the DDP credits on it, and it also has your park tix on it, and if someone is runnig FP when you need it you're jammed up--correct?

[mmcguire]

We ate too much at lunch, and had lunch too late several times, esp. when we had earlier dinner ADRs -- like 4:30 or 5:00.

This time we'll make sure our lunches are WAY before dinner time, and we won't eat so much so we're actually ready to eat again at dinner time.

On days we have really early dinner ADRs, we may just use our CS for breakfast, have a snack for lunch (or skip it altogether) and then enjoy our sit-down dinner with hungry tummies!

[TDC Nala]

SO if I am understanding this correctly you are saying that there is ONE card that has the DDP credits on it, and it also has your park tix on it, and if someone is runnig FP when you need it you're jammed up--correct?

All key cards associated with your reservation, even children's, will have access to all dining credits for everyone on the entire reservation. On a package reservation, your park tickets are also coded onto your room keys - and each person's ticket is coded only onto their own key card. Because you only get one fastpass per ticket, the fastpass runner will have to carry everybody's key cards. Whoever keeps a key card behind to pay for DDP meals won't get a fastpass.

[julezdisney]

All great tips, guys!

[a*lil*bit*goofy]

When we went, we had a list of where we were dining and where we should use our DP credits.

I figure we paid for them, and I wanted to make sure that everyone got their $40 worth every day.

We like character meals, and everyone wanted them for breakfast (the kids would have had a decent character fix, and we had less character stops to make in the theme parks. :cool1: ) so we didn't get the most value there, so one of our oop were there. we did make sure to use it for our pricier meals.

[Cinderelly5507]

We went during free dining, and I had spent months planning the meals. I had a few extra meals that I was paying OOP for (the "cheaper ones" like Crystal Palace breakfast, lunch at 50s PTC, and lunch at Tony's). Well, those meals came and passed... we paid OOP... Then, I got sick and we ended up having to cancel some ADRs. We were left with TS credits that we could have used when we paid OOP. I would have planned the "cheaper" meals later in my stay, rather than the first two days... You live and learn. :goodvibes

[TJA]

Like everyone else, we ended up with too many snack credits. My advice is to get your snacks daily as you want them....don't wait. We used some of our snack credits for pretzels at HS as a mid-day snack and that was a good move. We'd also get some slushies/smoothies at different parts of the day when we got thirsty, and that was a fun move. One day we took an afternoon break and had some ice cream at Epcot. One other good thing we learned was during our counter-service meal, we'd sometimes just order 2-3 meals (we're a familiy of 4) and then supplement with a few snack credits and then share everything. That way, we were able to have enough CS meals left on our check-out day for another full meal before we left.

Otherwise, our last day on the plan we had 6 snacks to use and so we went to Sunshine Seasons bakery and loaded up, which ended up just giving all of us stomach aches.....:sad2: but it sure tasted good going down.

[Disneyfamof5]

I'm only half way through, but I love all these tips. We're doing the dining plan for the first time in Sept.

[aliceinwdr]

We had Free Dining last year and learned a few things. We had eight people on Free Dining.

Mistakes:
1. I hoarded snack credits refusing to spend them on anything $3.50 or less. Paid oop for drinks and ice cream. We did eat amazing snacks and had an entire snack food day (bad for toddlers) at the end of the trip we traded in 27 snack credits for candy at Goofys - will spend them better this year

2. TS meals did take too long and as much as I love the fine dining at Disney, my 3 year old was impatient and we missed 3-4 fireworks shows. I would maximize all meals with dinners - we did one breakfast buffet at Animal Kingdom since that was their only character meal. Chefs de France took 2 1/2 hours! This year will be more character meal focused earlier in the day.

3. We shared and hoarded CS meals using them for breakfast and sharing and had three left when we left unused.

Winners:

1. Akerhause princess meal - food was good princesses great (this year I will trade two TS for CRT though for my 4 year old)
2. Coral Reel was really a good meal (Steaks and desserts)
3. 1900 Park Fair with Cinderella - a must for anyone with princesses
4. dole whips, snacks all over Epcot world showcase (this year we will be there for Food and Wine and I don't think I will book any meals at Epcot just snack)
5. Wolfgang Pucks at DTD - a last minute ressie meal with credits left before we got on the plane - the BEST meal we had the entire trip. Sis and one of the teens both got HUGE sushi platters and I had an AMZING steak!

FYI - there were no last minute ressies in the parks, but we did get a few in resort restaurants as much as I had planned meticulously, many in my party opted out on meals at night and used them at other times.

[cricketgirl]

Wow,
Great tips.

[NorweJenNY]

BUMP!

Just want to see if anyone else has any more cool tips to add... :thumbsup2

[a*lil*bit*goofy]

We used our snack credits to get packaged food to bring home. The kids had rice krispies and mickey shaped cookies to bring to school at lunch time, and it made coming home from disney a little easier. :O) also, don't live by the dining plan.

Planning for my next trip, i find that i still AM living by the dining plan. sheesh. I am worried to add more on to pay out of pocket, not sure why...I am still paying for the DP afterall, i am just paying in advance.

[DsnyQueen]

We made the mistake of eating late lunches & then had ADRs scheduled too early. Not only did we end up tired of constantly eating, but we either skipped ADRs and tried to get in somewhere else at a later time, or we missed many of the evening activities at the Park by going to the scheduled ADRs.

We also grossly underestimated the amount of time you lose in the parks if you have to travel elsewhere for your ADR (especially using Disney transportation). I think using the DDP requires a little extra planning, but it is worth it once you get the hang of it!

[Nikisha421]

I dont think that we planned accordingly we just went to restaurants based on name :sick:and character dining...:confused3why didnt i know that i needed to plan???well since that trip i have found the DIS and now i have been DISNEY SAVED:grouphug:

[CanadianPaco]

Bumping!;)

[Dismom55]

Ok, loved reading all the tips, now I have a question. Background is we did CRT the last time we were there and used the 2 TS credits per person. This next trip since my mother and one other person has never eaten at CRT I am hoping to get CRT again. I have tentativly decided to pay OOP instead of using DDP for this meal.

My question is do you think that is a wise choice. I am using the saved TS for that day to pay 2 TS for Spirit of Aloha Dinner show, which if paying OOP would be much more per person.

(OH yes CRT hopefully will be lunch) We will be at WDW in Sept and have gotten the free dining, yea! Big savings with a party of 5 adults.


Thanks for any input!

[danielle782001]

Ok, loved reading all the tips, now I have a question. Background is we did CRT the last time we were there and used the 2 TS credits per person. This next trip since my mother and one other person has never eaten at CRT I am hoping to get CRT again. I have tentativly decided to pay OOP instead of using DDP for this meal.

My question is do you think that is a wise choice. I am using the saved TS for that day to pay 2 TS for Spirit of Aloha Dinner show, which if paying OOP would be much more per person.

(OH yes CRT hopefully will be lunch) We will be at WDW in Sept and have gotten the free dining, yea! Big savings with a party of 5 adults.


Thanks for any input!

We always pay for the HDD OOP because it requires 2 credits...We end up paying for a couple of meals OOP anyway...This way we have two other meals paid for..This has made the most sense for us after doing the math.

[CSS1996]

This was a great thread! We also made the mistake of hoarding snack credits and then trying to spend them all the day we left. This year we will use the snack credits for breakfast items as well as fun snacks throughout the day. I also made our ADR's too close together last time and we were full going to our next meal. I've learned a few ideas off this thread. Keep it coming. :thumbsup2

[MelanieC]

This was a great thread to read. I actually think with us being on the free dining we are going to come out right on track with our credits.

We always bring breakfast bars and the such to the rooms and eat breakfast in the room as we get ready.

We will eat our CS around 11am-11:30am each day and then have our TS dinner between 6pm-6:30pm most days (Fantasmic dinner is at 5pm and one night Boma is at 7:30pm since AK closes that night at 7:00pm).

Our snacks will be used for each person to get something during the day whether it's a dole whip, a smoothie (we love these smoothies - so even if we ate these daily if we aren't hungry we would be happy as clams).

We are so happy to be trying the free dining and it really is saving us a ton of money. We took our ADR's that were spread out over a two week period and used the ones that would save us the most money and allow us to spend the least OOP money the first week we are there.

Most of our meals we are eating on the plan are buffets or family style, since we don't normally eat desserts, we would save the most on those places.

[veraletta]

My daughter and I will be doing the dining plan this coming July, so there will be
2 A and 2 C. We are getting the 2 QCS each a meal a day with 2 snack each a day.
We decide that we will be paying for 1 character meal out of pocket and 2 TS meals out of pocket, as the boys love rainforest cafe and the new T-rex place at downtown Disney.

That will leave us 3 QCS meal each left over. We thought we would use that for Breakfast for the boys. Since we don't eat breakfast, I'm now finding that we can't do that because you not suppose to share.
Listed below is from Disney world Dinning Brochure.
(Sorry, meal entitlements can not be shared between Guests ages 10+ and Guests ages 3-9.)
Do you think it would be better if I send my daughter out to the food court to bring the food back to the room?

We also were going to share all the meals, we would share one adult meal for us and the boys would share a child meal, that way we all could eat 4 small meal a day, since it would be so hot in July, It would be too hot to eat a big meal. We have been in July the last three years.

When we paid for it out of pocket, no one told us we couldn't do this, as this is something we have always done. I didn't think there would be any problem doing this on the dinning plan. first time we ate in July, you wouldn't believe the food we threw away, so we just started to share meals but eat more times a day. If we were hungry we would go back and get more.

I'm kind of wishing now, that I didn't get the dinner plan. I don't want anyone thinking we are cheating Disney, but we are eating the way we always did. We look at the snacks as a plus, we could get the boys ice cream or pop corn.

The only reason we didn't do the 1TS and 1CS a day is because I don't think we could eat that many TS. To me three is way too many TS in 7 days.
At rainforest cafe and T-rex we brought 2 adult meals, BQ ribs and shared with the boys, We still threw away food. We have never had anyone say that we couldn't share meals, when we are paying for it.

Do you really have trouble if you are sharing using the dinning plan? Has anyone ever had anyone say anything to you for doing this?

[Avonlady1001]

if you have the DDP
don't put charging on your room key or they may charge your Credit Card and not take the DDP credit ...
if you have to charge on your room key Use your kids room key when paying for food on the ddp ..

Haven't read thru all the responses yet, so if it's been said, I apologize...BUT make sure to check your receipt after every meal. On the bottom there's a running total (unless they've changed since last year?) of all CS/TS/SC left. Make sure they take the correct amount...keep ALL receipts.

My DSis had a problem with this...at one restaurant, they took 2 credits per person by accident (it was a 1 credit restaurant)...luckily she had all her receipts, so they put them back on.

[lampshadehead]

My daughter and I will be doing the dining plan this coming July, so there will be
2 A and 2 C. We are getting the 2 QCS each a meal a day with 2 snack each a day.
We decide that we will be paying for 1 character meal out of pocket and 2 TS meals out of pocket, as the boys love rainforest cafe and the new T-rex place at downtown Disney.

That will leave us 3 QCS meal each left over. We thought we would use that for Breakfast for the boys. Since we don't eat breakfast, I'm now finding that we can't do that because you not suppose to share.
Listed below is from Disney world Dinning Brochure.
(Sorry, meal entitlements can not be shared between Guests ages 10+ and Guests ages 3-9.)
Do you think it would be better if I send my daughter out to the food court to bring the food back to the room?

We also were going to share all the meals, we would share one adult meal for us and the boys would share a child meal, that way we all could eat 4 small meal a day, since it would be so hot in July, It would be too hot to eat a big meal. We have been in July the last three years.

When we paid for it out of pocket, no one told us we couldn't do this, as this is something we have always done. I didn't think there would be any problem doing this on the dinning plan. first time we ate in July, you wouldn't believe the food we threw away, so we just started to share meals but eat more times a day. If we were hungry we would go back and get more.

I'm kind of wishing now, that I didn't get the dinner plan. I don't want anyone thinking we are cheating Disney, but we are eating the way we always did. We look at the snacks as a plus, we could get the boys ice cream or pop corn.

The only reason we didn't do the 1TS and 1CS a day is because I don't think we could eat that many TS. To me three is way too many TS in 7 days.
At rainforest cafe and T-rex we brought 2 adult meals, BQ ribs and shared with the boys, We still threw away food. We have never had anyone say that we couldn't share meals, when we are paying for it.

Do you really have trouble if you are sharing using the dinning plan? Has anyone ever had anyone say anything to you for doing this?

Doesnt the Quick Service Dining only come with 1 snack per person per day?
Also, who is going to stop you from sharing a meal? I cant see them forcing you to order a meal for everybody that may be standing with you...or do they really do that? I was thinking there may be a time when my 8yr old may just share with me what i order from the food court, is that possible or will I be forced to order a kids meal and use a credit just because she is with me????

[lampshadehead]

After reading the post again, i see that somehow 2 boys come into the picture that are not on the plan..are the boys just coming in afterward since everybody on the reservation has to have the same options?
Little bit confused about the math and how the 3 QS meals left over came to be...

[veraletta]

lampshadehead: We are getting the 2 Quick service meals each a day with each getting 2 snack each a day, Plus we each get a Resort refillable mug. 1 Arcade play card, 1 golf voucher, 1 Planet hollywood merchh. VCHR, 1 Planet Hollywood $15 meal VCHR. 1 Sea Raycer offer voucher.
I was shock we were get the refillable mug.

[Poohbug]

After just returning from WDW with the QS plan, I have to say, it is still too much food.

On our last day at Disney we had 7 snacks and 9 CS meals left. I knew I could use the snack credits for things to take home but I did not know what to do with the CS credits. I asked guest services about them and they advised me to just get whatever I could to go. I ordered 4 sandwiches and 1 salad at Earl of Sandwich and ordered 2 kids pizzas and two mac & cheese meals at WPE. I had no problem ordering this despite the fact that only four people were on the dining plan. We were staying in Orlando for two more days and did not need to buy any food for those days because we had all those to-go meals to eat. Still threw food away.:sad2:

The plan is still worth the money, I just need to plan better. I thought we would be OK because we only paid for one TS meal at T-Rex. I just don't know how we got so far behind in using our CS meals???

[duffy]

I think the DIS boards themselves are partly to blame for my family having so many leftover snack and counter service meals. :scared1:

How many threads are here asking "what meals are the best value?" I got the impression that we should try to stretch them out. I thought we would end up hungry and run out of credits. Instead, we ended up on our last day with 11 CS credits for the 4 of us. :confused3

[ExtinctDino]

Well, you see all sorts of different experiences described here accompanied by all sorts of different advice. The hard part is figuring out whether you're like this poster's family or that poster's family. You have to try the DDP and learn for yourself how it works best for you.

[George69]

Hi...Our mistake was....since we had refill. mugs, when we ate at resort a few times, I didnt pick up a drink since I filled up my mug.....in hind sight, I should have grabbed a twist open drink and kept it for the park as my meal drink and stll use the refill. mug.

[Tiki Girl]

I have a 1st timer here at work, going to WDW and getting the Free Dining. What mistake did you make the 1st time you used the DDP that you won't make again. I'm trying to make sure I get him addicted like the rest of us.:lmao:

Our family also had the experience that we ate too much food using DDP. At home we would never have an appetizer, main course AND dessert for each meal. We almost felt like we were wasting money (well, you kind of are) to not eat everything you are allowed. You just have to be a little more vigilant.
We have two teenagers and mostly use CS, but I am a real foodie and if DH and I were going alone, I would use the DDP.

[Smiling Cheshire Cat]

I didn't read everyone's mistakes but here's mine.

1. I didn't make our ADR's timely and didn't get everything I wanted.

2. I didn't get CS desserts that could easily be carried later for a snack, like a cookie.

3. I paid for too many waters and drinks early on and we ended up with too many snack credits at the end.

4. I ate too much!

[taymacsmom]

This September will be our first time on the dining plan so I am so happy that you asked this question!! And thank you everyone for your responses so far!!

Hey, I noticed in your siggie that you are from CT. Me too. If you don't mind me asking, where in CT? We are in Wethersfield.

[tricia]

This was a great thread! We also made the mistake of hoarding snack credits and then trying to spend them all the day we left. This year we will use the snack credits for breakfast items as well as fun snacks throughout the day. I also made our ADR's too close together last time and we were full going to our next meal. I've learned a few ideas off this thread. Keep it coming. :thumbsup2

We use our snack credits for breakfast. Can get a bagel or a croissant, or a danish, or muffin. Works for us, then an early lunch. We have never ended up with left over credits.

My daughter and I will be doing the dining plan this coming July, so there will be
2 A and 2 C. We are getting the 2 QCS each a meal a day with 2 snack each a day.
We decide that we will be paying for 1 character meal out of pocket and 2 TS meals out of pocket, as the boys love rainforest cafe and the new T-rex place at downtown Disney.

That will leave us 3 QCS meal each left over. We thought we would use that for Breakfast for the boys. Since we don't eat breakfast, I'm now finding that we can't do that because you not suppose to share.
Listed below is from Disney world Dinning Brochure.
(Sorry, meal entitlements can not be shared between Guests ages 10+ and Guests ages 3-9.)
Do you think it would be better if I send my daughter out to the food court to bring the food back to the room?

We also were going to share all the meals, we would share one adult meal for us and the boys would share a child meal, that way we all could eat 4 small meal a day, since it would be so hot in July, It would be too hot to eat a big meal. We have been in July the last three years.

When we paid for it out of pocket, no one told us we couldn't do this, as this is something we have always done. I didn't think there would be any problem doing this on the dinning plan. first time we ate in July, you wouldn't believe the food we threw away, so we just started to share meals but eat more times a day. If we were hungry we would go back and get more.

I'm kind of wishing now, that I didn't get the dinner plan. I don't want anyone thinking we are cheating Disney, but we are eating the way we always did. We look at the snacks as a plus, we could get the boys ice cream or pop corn.

The only reason we didn't do the 1TS and 1CS a day is because I don't think we could eat that many TS. To me three is way too many TS in 7 days.
At rainforest cafe and T-rex we brought 2 adult meals, BQ ribs and shared with the boys, We still threw away food. We have never had anyone say that we couldn't share meals, when we are paying for it.

Do you really have trouble if you are sharing using the dinning plan? Has anyone ever had anyone say anything to you for doing this?

I am not quite understanding either. Are there only 2 people out of 4 getting the dining plan?
If 4 people are staying in the room, then all 4 must be on the same dining plan.

[veraletta]

There are 2 adults and 2 Children.
We are all getting the 2cs each and 2 snacks each.
Are we aloud to share?

[katieam1]

There are 2 adults and 2 Children.
We are all getting the 2cs each and 2 snacks each.
Are we aloud to share?

Do you mean share between you or share with someone not on the plan?

Yes, between the people on the plan you can share your counter service meals. You would just go up and buy your food, then take it to the table and eat. You would just have another credit to use at another location. Some meals are big enough for two people to share! That would make it so you can use your credits at a lot of different places (like Epcot:thumbsup2) with out feeling so stuffed. But you are not suppose to share with people not on the plan. We went in January and got a couple of CS and shared with our kids. It was nice! Just be sure not to have a lot of credits left at the end!

[MelanieC]

After reading the post again, i see that somehow 2 boys come into the picture that are not on the plan..are the boys just coming in afterward since everybody on the reservation has to have the same options?
Little bit confused about the math and how the 3 QS meals left over came to be...

She means that she is getting 2 qs per person per day(so 4 total - 2 adult & 2 chd per day. She is eating 3 TS OOP, so there are 3 QS left per person.


Veraletta - Since you will have 12 QS left - I don't see any reason you can't use them for the kids for breakfast. Of those 12 - 6 of them entitle you to adult QS meals and 6 entitle you to child QS meals. Just have the adults order them for them and if your using one of the 6 adults - you can order an adult meal (just tell them they are for you - your entitled to those 6 adult meals) and for the 6 that are for the kids just order the kids breakfasts. No one says you have to order 4 QS meals at a time, so ordering 2 breakfasts - or even 1 breakfast and sharing is allowed. Heck you can even use the QS for 1 breakfast and 1 snack after you are back at your hotel. They are there to use whenever and any combination you see fit.

You are not supposed to share, but in this situation and with the QS dining plan - many people share a meal here and there to save up credits. Heck - some people even share at TS and only spend one credit. Where it really becomes a problem is on buffets or family style meals.

Heck - if one person eats all the snacks and the other 3 in the party don't want any - it really doesn't matter in the end.

[ctbusymom]

DH, DDs (12 and 13) and I are going for free dining Aug 30- Sept 5. All these tips will help us a lot. As God is my witness, we won't have snack credits left over!!

Sheryl

[snykymom]

As God is my witness, we won't have snack credits left over!!

And you'll never be hungry again! :rotfl2:

[katieam1]

DH, DDs (12 and 13) and I are going for free dining Aug 30- Sept 5. All these tips will help us a lot. As God is my witness, we won't have snack credits left over!!

Sheryl

We had snacks left over and we went to Magic Kingdom and got a whole bunch of fudge and we also went to DTD and got a whole bunch of stuff to take home with us from Goofys! We really liked that. We drove so it was nice to have in the car and to give some to our family when we got home. They really liked that! That was a great tip I got from here on the Dis!! We will be doing that again this trip!! We will be going in August (it will be hotter than it was in January for Sure!! So we will probably use more snack credits on ice cream too!!:thumbsup2)

[woodnymph]

We'll be doing DDP for the first time in September. We've always eaten CS and brought a lot of our own snacks. Just wanted to thank everybody for all the great tips!!!:worship:

[Princess Disney Mom]

Mistakes: Ate too much desserts. (Will get more fruit next time. But that temptaion....)

As far as I know you can get a CS and share. I've shared a piece of chocolate cake with my whole family as the piece was huge, it was expensive and it is too many calories for 1 person.

It would be the TS and buffets you cannot share.

[Snork]

We made two mistakes the first time we had free dining on the DDP.

1) We ate at all the "have to" eateries like Le Cellier, CRT, Chef Mickeys... All of those places are good, but there is other food in the parks that I felt were better. For example, I like the steaks at Kona better compared to Le Cellier :rolleyes1. I felt that the CS at POR was better then CRT, you pay for the princesses and you dont get to take one home... I would suggest that you try the must do's, but also throw a couple of other resteraunts in the mix and you might be surprised.

2) We were wrong to assume that the most expensive menu item was the best. We ate steaks all around our first trip and later we learn that we should go with what we are hungry for instead of the expensive items. At the Brown Derby my wife likes the ahi tuna and I like the pork tenderloin over the strip steak.

I am going to add one more; We ate everything on our plates and that was alot of food. Practice portion control to avoid uncomfortable situations. :headache:

[veraletta]

MelanieC Thanks
We are all going to be on the QC plan, just can't see us all eating a meal each at the same time.
It was so hot last year, that the two boys would share one meal and my daughter and I, would share a meal. that way we all could eat smaller meals but we would eat more times in a day. LOL.

With us paying for TS, we would each have 3 QC left over, so I thought we could use them for the boys. we were thinking the boys would eat breakfast before we leave the resort.

I hope I can clear it up, that we are all going to be on the plan.
Just hope we will be able to share.

[GrumpyDad1974]

Well, it was the first time going as an adult and we thought it was a good deal all around for the money because we wouldn't have to worry about the cost of everything it was already paid for. This is the kicker, we were disney visa card holders and i was not on the dis so i had no idea we could have eaten for free, it was during free dinning and we would have had 4 adults and 1 child, so needless to say i was less than happy 6 months later when i was planning my next vacation and found out we all could have eaten free :mad: The next thing was i thought it would be a good idea to make dinning res because everytime i would call disney the would ask me about them, when i brought the idea to the group i was told "to go with the flow we won't worry about that" never again!!!!!!! I was saying i told you so all week. We just ended up eating at really wierd hours and not where we wanted everytime. But even with all that we had fun and thought it was worth it....

[Coparm]

Again I agree on the snack's, we had loads left and had paid OOP for things we could have used the credits for.

The interesting thing I did find out was that if we had paid OOP for a meal and had the receipt and credits left that they could switch the meal to the credits and refund us thet cash, likewise if we wanted to pay OOP for a meal after the fact they could let us do that and credit us back the TS credits. We paid OOP for crystal palace but at the end still had a TS credit left each, so they refunded us the cost of the meal and used the credits instead. Make sure you keep your receipts!!:thumbsup2

[Camping Cat]

lampshadehead: We are getting the 2 Quick service meals each a day with each getting 2 snack each a day, Plus we each get a Resort refillable mug. 1 Arcade play card, 1 golf voucher, 1 Planet hollywood merchh. VCHR, 1 Planet Hollywood $15 meal VCHR. 1 Sea Raycer offer voucher.
I was shock we were get the refillable mug.

Is this a special deal or does everyone getting the QSDP get all this? I knew about the refillable mug but not all the other things....1 Arcade play card, 1 golf voucher, 1 Planet hollywood merchh. VCHR, 1 Planet Hollywood $15 meal VCHR. 1 Sea Raycer offer voucher. I hope to get an answer soon because we leave in 8 days. Woo Hoo! :banana:

[lampshadehead]

Is this a special deal or does everyone getting the QSDP get all this? I knew about the refillable mug but not all the other things....1 Arcade play card, 1 golf voucher, 1 Planet hollywood merchh. VCHR, 1 Planet Hollywood $15 meal VCHR. 1 Sea Raycer offer voucher. I hope to get an answer soon because we leave in 8 days. Woo Hoo! :banana:

When you get a plan, you get the vouchers and all that crap ;)........
I just still wanted to say that it seems like the poster is under the impression that with the QSDP, the she will get 2QS and 2snacks per person per day, when actually the QSDP is 2 quick meals and 1 snack per person per day

[veraletta]

Camping Cat It's what I was told and also what was on my reservation confirmation that they e-mail me. We are doing the Ap deal.
So I would say anyone that booked for the AP deal will get it.
it also says in the email, Two Quick service meals each and Two feature snacks each, Plus refillable mug.
We also changed our dates and they had to redo our reservation again, it was also in the e-mail.

[teach22180]

When you get a plan, you get the vouchers and all that crap ;)........
I just still wanted to say that it seems like the poster is under the impression that with the QSDP, the she will get 2QS and 2snacks per person per day, when actually the QSDP is 2 quick meals and 1 snack per person per day

The QSDP is 2 meals and 2 snacks. It's the regular plan that has only one snack.

[veraletta]

lampshadehead
When you get a plan, you get the vouchers and all that crap ........
I just still wanted to say that it seems like the poster is under the impression that with the QSDP, the she will get 2QS and 2snacks per person per day, when actually the QSDP is 2 quick meals and 1 snack per person per day

I'm not under the impression that I get the 2qs and 2 snacks per person per day, I don't want to sound mean but that is what
my reservation confirmation says that I will get.
Note that:
The QSDP is 2 meals and 2 snacks. It's the regular plan that has only one snack.

[lisalonglash]

Camping Cat It's what I was told and also what was on my reservation confirmation that they e-mail me. We are doing the Ap deal.
So I would say anyone that booked for the AP deal will get it.
it also says in the email, Two Quick service meals each and Two feature snacks each, Plus refillable mug.
We also changed our dates and they had to redo our reservation again, it was also in the e-mail.

Absolutely true. Here is the description from http://www.dreamsunlimitedtravel.com/packages/2009-packages.htm#mypqsd:

NEW FOR 2009 - The Magic Your Way Package Plus Quick Service Dining
This package includes:

Stay 1 -10 nights at a Disney Resort
Magic Your Way Base Ticket
This package includes everything listed in the starter Disney package
Includes the Disney Quick Service Dining Package:

Choose from participating Quick Service Restaurants

Two Quick Service Meals per person, per night
Two snacks per person, per night
One Resort Refillable Mug per person, per package

[inkedupmomma]

I realized after that you were talking about another poster Veraletta lol..so yes YOU ARE right, it is 2 snack pp per day!

lampshadehead
When you get a plan, you get the vouchers and all that crap ........
I just still wanted to say that it seems like the poster is under the impression that with the QSDP, the she will get 2QS and 2snacks per person per day, when actually the QSDP is 2 quick meals and 1 snack per person per day

I'm not under the impression that I get the 2qs and 2 snacks per person per day, I don't want to sound mean but that is what
my reservation confirmation says that I will get.
Note that:
The QSDP is 2 meals and 2 snacks. It's the regular plan that has only one snack.

I'm sorry, but you had the wrong info mailed to you. You DO get 2 snacks pp on the QSDP

Straight from Disney's site:

2009 Magic Your Way Package Plus Quick Service Dining

The Walt Disney World Vacation Package with Quick-Service Dining.

This vacation package includes a Disney Resort stay and a customizable Magic Your Way Base Ticket, as well as a dining plan that helps you save up to 20% on your Disney dining needs. Eat at participating quick-service restaurants and receive 2 quick-service meals and 2 snacks per person per night of your package stay. You'll also receive a mug you can refill as often as you like at any quick-service restaurant at your Resort hotel.
http://disneyworld.disney.go.com/vacation-packages/2009/quick-serve-dining/

[Camping Cat]

Absolutely true. Here is the description from http://www.dreamsunlimitedtravel.com/packages/2009-packages.htm#mypqsd:

NEW FOR 2009 - The Magic Your Way Package Plus Quick Service Dining
This package includes:

Stay 1 -10 nights at a Disney Resort
Magic Your Way Base Ticket
This package includes everything listed in the starter Disney package
Includes the Disney Quick Service Dining Package:

Choose from participating Quick Service Restaurants

Two Quick Service Meals per person, per night
Two snacks per person, per night
One Resort Refillable Mug per person, per package

Ah. That's why I didn't know about all the extras. I'm purchasing the QSDP as a DVC member, not with a package. Thanks for the info.

[veraletta]

inkedupmomma and lisalonglash.
Thanks I knew I was reading it right and that I was in deed getting
The QSDP is 2 meals and 2 snacks. It's the regular plan that has only one snack, I didn't think that reservation confirmation would be wrong, as when we booked he also told us we would get 2 -qsdp and 2 snacks.
Thanks

[delmar411]

After just returning from WDW with the QS plan, I have to say, it is still too much food.

On our last day at Disney we had 7 snacks and 9 CS meals left. I knew I could use the snack credits for things to take home but I did not know what to do with the CS credits. I asked guest services about them and they advised me to just get whatever I could to go. I ordered 4 sandwiches and 1 salad at Earl of Sandwich and ordered 2 kids pizzas and two mac & cheese meals at WPE. I had no problem ordering this despite the fact that only four people were on the dining plan. We were staying in Orlando for two more days and did not need to buy any food for those days because we had all those to-go meals to eat. Still threw food away.:sad2:

The plan is still worth the money, I just need to plan better. I thought we would be OK because we only paid for one TS meal at T-Rex. I just don't know how we got so far behind in using our CS meals???


We also had many meals leftover at the end of our stay. I got 23 snacks at Goofy's Candy Shop the night before we left plus lots of snacks during our last day plus still had 6 snacks to get at the resort plus 14 counter services. For the record I got all 14 CS's meals on one single ticket and paid for them with the remains of our meal plan. They were really accommodating about packing it all down into as few boxes as possible as well as subbing out the adult sides for the kids bagged grapes and carrots (easier to transport).

And had no issues ordering whatever we wanted to in any combo w/ the plan. At Pepper Market we had 4 adult meals and 2 kids meals (our setup was 3A/3C) as we took home some pizza for later and one kid slept through the meal. No issue checking out at all.

It's setup that you can eat whatever you want whenever you want and there is no day by day separation on credits. We checked in and immediately had 108 counter services and 108 snacks. If I had for some strange reason felt the need to use them all in one day, I would be allowed.


Anyway even with the quick service dining plan I felt that all we did was eat. Esp when we were faced with so many meals and snacks in the final 24hrs. We didn't deny the kids any snacks at all either. Nor ourselves. The only snacks I paid OOP for was at Club Cool in Epcot. I paid for slushy refills (snack credit elsewhere though :headache: ) as well as a diet coke at Club Cool. So close to $20 'wasted' on things that should have been using snack credits.

[Tink3Bell]

We horded our snack credits and had lots left at the end. We got lots of rice crispy treats to take home as souvenirs but should have used some.

[threeboysmom]

I've done the dining plan a few times now, and I don't think I have any mistakes, LOL. But I have to say, I'm AMAZED at the number of people that have snack credits left over! WOW! We never have enough! But then, I do tend to use my snack credits for a bottle of water, and I easily go through 3-4 bottles a day in the FL heat.

I'll take all your leftover snack credits! ;)

[dd50]

August will be our first time staying at a Disney resort and buying the DDP. My daughter and two grandchildren are meeting us up there. We are going the week before the free plan. We usually only do one TS when we go and she thought the plan would be good because she wanted to go to some of the character places. We started stressing if we could eat all that food and then decided to not do the food and pay OOP for every thing, but we had already picked the restaurants that we wanted and didn't want to give any up so on the plan again. It will be a good deal for her but don't know about me and my 3 teens because we don't usually eat all that. We decided to stay with it and hopefully the clothes I buy the kids for school will fit the following week. We are not going to stress about getting our monies worth and just have a good time.

[Planning fanatic mom]

Thank you for all of the tips. First time on the DDP here. I'm subbing in case someone else comes up with a new tip.

[neatokimmo]

Our mistakes...

1. Eating at Hollywood and vine - yuck! Eating at ABC commissary - YUCK!
2. Not sharing lunches. A couple were really big, and nothing is worse than being stuffed and walking around a hot theme park all day. I think it would of been better to share a lunch and get a second one later on if needed.
3. We didn't horde snack credits, we just weren't hungry. Back in 2006 they allowed full boxes of doughnuts, big bags of chips and dips for snack credits. Since we were driving, we grabbed like a dozen of those and took them home.
4. Not using two TS credits at Epcot for lunch and dinner. They have great variety and the best TS meals IMO.

Things we did right...
1. We didn't hop around and waste a lot of time going to our meals. A MK day would include a meal at a monorail resort. It was quick and nice to sit in air conditioning for the ride.
2. Not eating snacks just because they were there to eat. If we had eaten snacks plus all the food, I would of hurled.
3. Getting juice with our meals instead of coke.

We are going for 14 days this time - yippeee!!

[EthansMom]

We didn't make too many mistakes... We didn't realize we could get a juice AND another beverage at breakfast (CS and TS). This year, we'll make sure to get a juice and a bottle of water to take with us every day. Also, I think we ate too many desserts that just weren't very tasty... This year, I'm really going to make an effort to not finish eating food just because "it's free".

Something we did that work well for us... many days, we used our snack credits to purchase a "light breakfast" (cinnamon roll or piece of fruit). That worked well on many days. Basically, we used snack credits for our breakfast, counter service for lunch, and table service for dinner.

For our upcoming trip, I've booked half our TS credits as late lunches. On those days, we'll likely have a large breakfast using our counter service credits, use our table service credits for a late lunch and use our snack credits when we feel peckish during the day.

[lizandjason]

Trying to get the most $$$ out of the plan by getting the most expensive meals and only having TS for supper.

Use your credits the way that you want. I know that a TS breakfast is not as expensive as a dinner but our family loves to go out for breakfast a couple of times on our vacation. We do not always like running around trying to get to that next ADR every night. Sometimes we schedule two ADRs in one day(breakfast/dinner) and have none the next day.

Get the food you like and don't worry about maximizing the most money out of it. It is not a value if you don't like what you are eating or you are not having a great time.

I think this is the best advice I've ever seen on these boards re: dining. Thank you, I'm going to keep this in mind when making my ADRs!

[lampshadehead]

inkedupmomma and lisalonglash.
Thanks I knew I was reading it right and that I was in deed getting
The QSDP is 2 meals and 2 snacks. It's the regular plan that has only one snack, I didn't think that reservation confirmation would be wrong, as when we booked he also told us we would get 2 -qsdp and 2 snacks.
Thanks

I stand corrected! :flower3:

[Karpkg]

Okay, here are my 1st impressions after reading tips about what I am generally going to do after reading up to this point...

Since it's going to be a free dining for us in September, I'm not going to worry about getting the most expensive stuff on the menu, etc. because that would stress me out trying to calculate to be ahead of the game. I'm already ahead because it's free! I will, however, remember to check my receipts after meals to make sure we will be charged correctly.

I will probably get park hoppers since I'm hearing how hard it is to get ADRs (trying to coordinate when & where); but I won't make that final decision until I run thru the ADR gauntlet come June.:crazy2:

I think we'll buy snacks early to keep on hand and for breakfasts, schedule meals far apart but not too late a dinner.

DH loves bottled water- contrary to what I'm reading I'll use snack credits for that; I'd rather use up snacks than be left with unused credits...at the same time my kids and I don't eat a lot of food so we'll probably be sharing CS credits; I read somewhere 1 CS is 4 snack credits? I like that point of breakfast drinking a juice and taking a water to go.

I'll probably re-evaluate what I have left 1-2 days before we leave to see where we are at that point...

Finally, I'll try not to let this overtake the priority of letting the kids enjoy the parks for their first time!!!

[squirrel]

1 CS is not the same as 4 snack credits.

Main Street Bakery and some other places will allow you to get a drink, a savoury item and a sweet during breakfast.

At the resort you can get a CS meal with two drinks during breakfast.

[Mommy2Jameson]

I was going to add to get the most out of our plan, this is what we did:

- We booked our TS meals for either the last breakfast or an early lunch(11-1:30). We mostly chose character buffets. This way we filled up with a nice brunch that kept us going most of the day/
-Then we used our CS meals for a dinner later in the evening, and it was easier to work this around the various firework shows that we wanted to see

(Note that we are NOT morning people. We usually headed to the parks about 9:30. And we stayed late until 11 or midnight every night.)

-We had some poptarts/granola bars in the room that we had packed for the kids to get a quick bite to eat before heading out.

-We then had our snack credits to use whenever! We usually got the lemonade ices to drink during the afternoon parades!

Also, the last day we had 5 CS meals left due to a flight delay coming in and sharing meals, and the girl working a ASMovies let us use them as 5 snack credits instead. Sure we weren't getting their full potential, but we were about to get on a plane home, so Mickey Rice Crispies were more convenient than say a pizza! :)

[mmmbop]

My mistake was apparently not checking with the other person with whom I was traveling with (grandmother). :lmao: (I swear, she OK'd everything before I made any reservations!)

I pretty much had it planned out: two days per park. We're getting ready to go one morning and she asks, "Where are we going?" I can't remember what I had planned for the day (maybe DHS?), but she said "ICK! NO WAY! We haven't been to Epcot yet, let's go to Epcot!" Luckily, I was able to cancel my ADR and get one for Le Chefs de France. It was so good, my grandmother didn't want to go to AK the next day - she wanted to go back to Le Chefs de France! :rotfl: Luckily, I somehow was able to get an ADR for both days, the day of. We went to Epcot again the next day, but she didn't make me switch ADRs that day :rotfl2:

[ExtinctDino]

Okay, here are my 1st impressions after reading tips about what I am generally going to do after reading up to this point...

Since it's going to be a free dining for us in September, I'm not going to worry about getting the most expensive stuff on the menu, etc. because that would stress me out trying to calculate to be ahead of the game. I'm already ahead because it's free! I will, however, remember to check my receipts after meals to make sure we will be charged correctly.

I will probably get park hoppers since I'm hearing how hard it is to get ADRs (trying to coordinate when & where); but I won't make that final decision until I run thru the ADR gauntlet come June.:crazy2:

I think we'll buy snacks early to keep on hand and for breakfasts, schedule meals far apart but not too late a dinner.

DH loves bottled water- contrary to what I'm reading I'll use snack credits for that; I'd rather use up snacks than be left with unused credits...at the same time my kids and I don't eat a lot of food so we'll probably be sharing CS credits; I read somewhere 1 CS is 4 snack credits? I like that point of breakfast drinking a juice and taking a water to go.

I'll probably re-evaluate what I have left 1-2 days before we leave to see where we are at that point...

Finally, I'll try not to let this overtake the priority of letting the kids enjoy the parks for their first time!!!
That all sounds very sensible, especially the last point. With kids 6 and 4, I'd try to get ADRs mostly for character buffets in or near the parks: Crystal Palace, Chef Mickey's, etc. That maximizes park time, because you don't have extra traveling, and with buffets you're not waiting around for your food so it doesn't take as long. Young kids tend to be picky eaters too, and they're more likely to find something they like at a buffet. Character buffets also save on time you'd otherwise have to spend in line elsewhere in the parks waiting to meet characters.

[poohmickey]

1 CS is not the same as 4 snack credits.

Main Street Bakery and some other places will allow you to get a drink, a savoury item and a sweet during breakfast.

At the resort you can get a CS meal with two drinks during breakfast.

When we were there in March 2009, our resort let us do something called a "continental breakfast" where we could pick out 4 snack items and use 1 CS credit for them. One day they let us get 4 rice crispy treats for 1 CS credit - she had to ask the manager about that one so it might depend on who's helping you. They even had a button on the cash register for the "continental breakfast".

[qohweddings]

We've done DDP since before it was called that....

We're both planners and two grown men w/o kids... so our experience might not work for everyone..

Here are some things we've done right:

1) Don't be afraid to have an ice cream cookie sandwich at Main Street Bakery in MK for breakfast - great way to use a snack credit!

2) We like to get to the parks early and rarely do a big breakfast - so we use a snack credit for muffins and fruit to take on the road for breakfast.

3) We pack a few large zipper bags in our camera case - we like getting cookies, fruit or brownies as dessert and saving them for late night snacks back in our room.

4) We often share a CS meal mid morning and then another mid afternoon - plenty to share and we get to try a variety of our favorite foods. (especially EPCOT)

5) We absolutely plan our week with EMH, looking at park hours as well as fireworks or parades and then make ADR's according to where we'll be.

6) As AK often closes earlier than the other parks-we like to get in a full morning and afternooon- taking a break back at the hotel to enjoy the quiet of the pool and do dinner in a resort restaurant (easier to get ADR's too)... and then head back to another park for EMH, and fireworks...

6 days till we head back for the third time since October....

My name is Mark and I'm a Disney-holic!

[NorweJenNY]

When we were there in March 2009, our resort let us do something called a "continental breakfast" where we could pick out 4 snack items and use 1 CS credit for them. One day they let us get 4 rice crispy treats for 1 CS credit - she had to ask the manager about that one so it might depend on who's helping you. They even had a button on the cash register for the "continental breakfast".

Hmmm... that's interesting. I wonder if anyone else has "continental breakfast" stories to tell...

I also wonder if that would work at POFQ to get a bunch of beignets with some fruit and/or drinks...

[ExtinctDino]

I haven't heard of this, but it's great if a manager will let you package 4 snack items as a CS.

Without having to consult any managers, I've been able to package something like a bagel and muffin as a CS instead of a breakfast entree with no problem. Since I got the 2 drinks also, I didn't try to get more than 2 food items. And as far as I know it wasn't rung up as a "continental breakfast." I had not heard that term used before at WDW.

[poohmickey]

We were at CBR when we did this. Like many others, we had tried to be thrifty with our CS credits, and had too many left. We overheard some other people talking about being able to get 4 snack items for a CS credit, so we asked a cashier and she said yes. We would normally get food and drinks, but on our last night we used it for 4 food items and the since the manager had come over to help fix a problem, the cashier asked her and she said sure - ring it up as a "continental breakfast". I don't know if they always call it this, but that's what they said. It was really convenient because alot of times we didn't enjoy the breakfast meals, and just wanted snack items instead.

[NorweJenNY]

Liked this old thread... thought we might get some new stories about lessons learned...

[dkbnyc]

the first time we used DDP, we didn't budget well. Now we are much smarter.

We learned:





4. Also -- character breakfasts only cost 1 TS (as opposed to character dinners, which cost 2. Just FYI.)

All character dinners are 2 credits? is this true?

[Tricia1972]

All character dinners are 2 credits? is this true?

No, that's not true. Restaurants don't require different # of credits depending on which meal you are eating there.

CRT is 2 credits, the rest of the character meals are 1 credit each.

[catne]

All character dinners are 2 credits? is this true?

NO, not true. Most of the character meals are 1 TS, no matter which meal you're going to: the one table service character dinners include Crystal Palace, Chef Mickey's, 1900 Park Fare, Garden Grill, and Akershus Princess Dining...these are all 1 table service. There may be some I'm forgetting, but off the top of my head I know for positive, certain these are all 1 table service and they all have characters.

Cinderella's Royal Table is 2 TS credits for any meal.

[Brygida]

I have a 1st timer here at work, going to WDW and getting the Free Dining. What mistake did you make the 1st time you used the DDP that you won't make again. I'm trying to make sure I get him addicted like the rest of us.:lmao:

I calculated the TS incorrectly (not surprising - we had two rooms, varying checkin/out dates, varying who sleeps where!). Biggest error was I calculated number of days instead of number of nights for TS credits.

Lesson learned - make a spreadsheet! Mine is done. We are 2 adults, 1 kid (again with varying checkin/out dates). But we are getting the following for FREE with good planning:

HDDR - 2 TS credits
Boma
Chefs De France
Akershus Norway
Ohana Breakfast
Raglan Road
Coral Reef
California Grill - 2 TS credits


I calculated that I need to pay OOP for my 5yo DS for California Grill and Raglan Road.

By the way.... I'm going tomorrow!!!

[milmore104]

I calculated the TS incorrectly (not surprising - we had two rooms, varying checkin/out dates, varying who sleeps where!). Biggest error was I calculated number of days instead of number of nights for TS credits.

Lesson learned - make a spreadsheet! Mine is done. We are 2 adults, 1 kid (again with varying checkin/out dates). But we are getting the following for FREE with good planning:

HDDR - 2 TS credits
Boma
Chefs De France
Akershus Norway
Ohana Breakfast
Raglan Road
Coral Reef
California Grill - 2 TS credits


I calculated that I need to pay OOP for my 5yo DS for California Grill and Raglan Road.

By the way.... I'm going tomorrow!!!

You know that you can't use your DS TS credits for an adult meal right? Just warning you incase you calculated that into your plan. Haave a great trip!

[Brygida]

You know that you can't use your DS TS credits for an adult meal right? Just warning you incase you calculated that into your plan. Haave a great trip!

Yes. I do... it is in the spreadsheet! The reason we have extra adult TS (and can do the 2TS venues for free) is not all adults staying all days on reservation. So during FREE dining, this works to your advantage, you get free TS the adult will not be using!! :woohoo:

[mouseika]

We are going in a month for free dining for our second time. The mistakes we will not be repeating are...

As many PPs have said, we will not hoard snack credits this time! We'll start using them on day one for anything that qualifies and pay OOP on the last days in the unlikely event that we run out.

Last time we ate at way too many buffets. The meals were so similiiar that they all run together in my memory. This time, I'm glad my kids are older - 11 and 12 -so that I felt comfortable booking non-buffet TS meals for all but one dinner. We are also trying all new restaurants except for one - Le Cellier - so we hope to find some new favorites that are a bit more distinctive than the blur of buffets from our last trip!

27 days and counting.......:cool1:

[SleepingRebecca]

We did the same thing and this time we are going to use them all especially since we really didn't know all the places you could use them at as the brochure really limits you. My advice- know all the places you can redeem your snack credits and on your last day if you have some left over redeem them all for snacks on a plane or in a car. Do not let the brochure trick you into thinking you can only get popcorn, ice cream and bottled drinks!

[NorweJenNY]

Last time we ate at way too many buffets. The meals were so similiiar that they all run together in my memory. This time, I'm glad my kids are older - 11 and 12 -so that I felt comfortable booking non-buffet TS meals for all but one dinner. We are also trying all new restaurants except for one - Le Cellier - so we hope to find some new favorites that are a bit more distinctive than the blur of buffets from our last trip!


I know what you mean! I love buffets, but I could totally get tired of buffets for every table service.

On the one hand, they're nice for picky eaters because of all the variety all at once. And it's also nice when you've got an under 3-year-old who doesn't qualify for his own meal credits yet... you don't have to pay for his/her meals (of course you don't have to pay for tickets for them yet either... I miss those days...)

On the other hand, there is a lot of similarity between buffets... which can get old, and still having young kids can be a struggle to always have to get up and balance plates. Or you get stuck with someone waiting at the table while you get the kids' food, and then by the time you go up and get your own food and head back to the table, the kids are finishing up and begging for dessert...

It certainly is nice to mix things up with some sit-down-and-be-totally-served
meals too!

So I do recommend a nice combination!


Do not let the brochure trick you into thinking you can only get popcorn, ice cream and bottled drinks!


Great advice! I always laugh when I see the popcorn, ice cream, and bottled drinks! I don't even remember using snack credits for any of those things! :rotfl:

Here's some of the stuff our family got with snack credits: chocolate chip muffins, blueberry muffins, cheesecake with strawberries, Dole Whips, root beer float, funnel cakes (at MK only), cream cheese-stuffed pretzel, Make-Your-Own treats at Goofy's (though the list has gotten more limited since our last trip), strawberry shortcake (incredibly good at Sunshine Seasons in Epcot, IMHO), carrot cake cookie, etc. :cloud9:

Now that I see the list, I realize how off the diet I really was! :lmao:

Like I would really take a package of nuts, bowl of soup, or small salad, over a piece of cheesecake drowning in strawberry goodness! :laughing:

[Nicole721]

Just got back from our fourth trip on the dining plan (second time on the deluxe).

We made the same mistake we did the first time on the dining plan: we still ended up with 48 snack credits on the last day. Oy! We just weren't hungry for them...again. We did end up using all of them at Goofy's and at BVG in the Contemporary on snacks for the car ride and sweets to bring home for friends.

I swear, though, next time we do deluxe, we're only doing two meals a day. That's it LOL. I'm STILL full and we got home on Sunday!

[milmore104]

Just a quick tip for everyone who has kids and lots of left over snack credits. I use up ours buying Mickey rice crispy treats for my DD's class. It's a great way to give out treats to the class and it's cheaper than spending $3 per kid. Also if you ask the CM will give you small bags for them. I went to the front desk and got a bunch of Mickey stickers and put them in the bags w/ the treats. That way it really didn't "cost" me anything OOP while I was there!

[maddiesmom0116]

I didn't do the deluxe plan the first time and that is the only time. I like some signature meals and some other 2TS meals too much to just do the regular plan.

[btcrane]

popcorn::

Thanks for all the helpful advice!!! DD and I will be using the DP for the first time in November!!! Love the idea of eating whatever i want (within the rules, of course!) and not worrying about price.

[LisaInNc]

Trying to order the most expensive items and maximizing the plan. Evey time I see a post about how to get the most from the DP I want to tell them to eat where they want and stop worrying about making money on it.

I have also never paid for the plan we go durin free dining so I feel more comfortable with just eating what we want

[FlightlessDuck]

We ended up with extra snack credits both our first time and second time (even though I personally used one more than I was alloted). We will probably do the same this time too. We are always moving, so we don't stop for a snack every day.

[NorweJenNY]

Trying to order the most expensive items and maximizing the plan. Evey time I see a post about how to get the most from the DP I want to tell them to eat where they want and stop worrying about making money on it.

I have also never paid for the plan we go durin free dining so I feel more comfortable with just eating what we want

I think during free dining it is easier for people to order exactly what they want without worrying about whether or not they are maximizing the plan.

We (partially) paid for DDP in July. (Work covered my share since I was attending a conference at the time.) In Sci Fi, hubby looked at me and asked, "should I get the ribs since it's the most expensive?"

I replied, "No, get what you feel like and don't worry about it!" He got a burger. (I got the ribs... I love ribs! :love:)

I will, however, add that since we aren't always on the dining plan, I used this as an opportunity to experience some restaurants/meals that we'd never done before because of price. I like the idea of having new experiences. After seeing what we would've paid for those wonderful meals like Les Chefs dinner, Le Cellier dinner, and Chef Mickey's dinner, I could suddenly recall why we hadn't tried those before! It was like each of those single meals paid for that day's worth of DDP themselves!

I figure, I could try something like a Liberty Tree lunch some other time when we weren't on the DDP. For a more pricey treat in the MK area, Chef Mickey, 'Ohana, & Whispering Canyon were calling my name!

Sure, Sci Fi for lunch was one of our cheaper meals, but it was the only new experience we were interested in at DHS. Do I regret going there, knowing full well I could have gotten a better value elsewhere? Not at all! I figure one Cosmic Ray combo and a snack would have easily put us close to even with the cost of the dining plan for that particular day! I don't care if hubby ordered just a burger that one time... he was happy with it, and that was what I cared about!

Did I make mistakes this first time trying the DDP? Well... nothing major. Here's just a couple things in retrospect:
1) Since I was separated from hubby and our boys so much while I was attending my conference, I think we just could have used better communication regarding how many CS & snack credits he and the boys would be using while I wasn't around. (I'm the planner in the family, and he didn't want to mess up my plans! How sweet! :cutie:)
2) We also ended up with a slight overload of snack credits on our last day. By slight overload, I mean just 7 or 8 for our family of four... not an insane amount. We did learn that day, however, that splitting some funnel cakes and root beer floats made a totally delicious and filling lunch! :thumbsup2 I also took advantage of our last credit to try the cream cheese pretzel I'd read about and never tried before. I liked it! The rest of my family didn't care for it, but I did! :goodvibes

[dansyr2514]

Sorry if this has already been posted, I haven't read the entire thread but

tip #1 - boulangerie patisserie( forgive the spelling) has some great ham and cheese croissants for a snack credit. Used 2 snack credits for breakfast for the croissant and a cappuccinno

tip#2 - if you would like an app included, some restaurants offer a prixe fixe menu that includes an app and is still one table service credit.

[castmemberb4]

Haven't done this yet, but it's the first time I'll have DDP during F&W.
I'm planning to use up all of my snack credits at the food kiosk. We're doing that for dinner our first night then using 2 TS credits for Jiko's another night.
That way we'll know if we have any left to use the other days. We're not snackers so I think this will work best for us.

[lvdis]

When we were there in March 2009, our resort let us do something called a "continental breakfast" where we could pick out 4 snack items and use 1 CS credit for them. One day they let us get 4 rice crispy treats for 1 CS credit - she had to ask the manager about that one so it might depend on who's helping you. They even had a button on the cash register for the "continental breakfast".

Which resort were you staying at? I'm trying to find out if Coronado Springs will allow something like this. Thanks!

(I'm sorry I just noticed this was already answered by poohmickey in post #201. But, I am curious if anyone has tried it at CSR.)

[disneyvacalover]

For conter service meals some of my family gets large drinks and then we ask for extra cups and share those drinks. The other half of us orders bottles of water as a drink so we can save for later.
Also we share counter service meals and that way we can get breakfast and lunch.
Also when using counter service at your reosrt use your refillable mug and then get a bottled drink for later.
I guess these are tips, not mistakes.
Hope it helps someone!

[momeejenjen]

Great post! Thanks!

[jeffandpamsmith]

Are refillable mugs only good at your hotel, or can they be used in the parks?

[tricia]

Only at your resort.

[Richser]

Thanks for a helpful thread for us first timers!

[Stitch's mom]

The other half of us orders bottles of water as a drink so we can save for later.


Great idea!

[nmanning19]

Just list anything that you have done in the past while on the dining plan so this first timer doesn't do the same thing!

[danceintherain]

We didn't use our snack credits during our trip, so we ended up having a bunch at the end.

I should have been much more free with them, because my DH gets hungry a lot and every time he said he was hungry, I should have just let him get a snack.

That's all I can think of right now.

[wolf2961]

I'll use our CS credits at Earl of Sandwich or Puck's Express instead of food courts. I've also printed out a list of items eligible as snack credits and branch out a bit.

[Samandmom]

The two times that we have been on the DP we would buy let's say a soda OOP because it's only $2.50 and we did not want to waste a snack credit on it but we should of used the credits first since we ended up with extras at the end.

[Shagley]

Last time I studied the menus to make sure that I would get the most expensive items to get the most out of the dining plan. This time I am just going to order what I want, and I don't care if it is the cheapest item or not.

I second the idea that if you want a snack, use a snack credit for it. We also paid out of pocket for the cheaper snacks and ended up with snack credits left over at the end of our trip.

[JeffreyY]

We split CS at the beginning of our trip because we thought we might run out but we ended up with extras at the end. We traded them in for 3 snack credits but we also had a ton of snack credits left. We took home many extra snacks. Moral of this: just use your credits each day don't try to save them up.

[Mom23Disneybelievers]

We will avoid ressies at character meals and other buffets. (Except Boma!) We were eating too much food...every one felt gross after 11 days of these meals.

[NorweJenNY]

Get the large fountain drink with counter service! There's no additional cost on the dining plan to get a large instead of medium with your meal.

I kept forgetting to ask for large at the beginning of the week... I finally started getting it by the end of the week though.

It's also helpful when you're thinking about sharing a CS meal. Sharing a large drink is certainly better than a medium! And ask for little or no ice to make sure you're getting a decent amount of beverage too. You could always ask for a cup of ice water on the side for free... and as soon as you drink the water down, you can split up the ice and the soda in two cups.

[Chevyscool]

We will avoid ressies at character meals and other buffets. (Except Boma!) We were eating too much food...every one felt gross after 11 days of these meals.

Us too! :sick: This year were doing a lot of 2 credit meals or signature dining to help with that. We do have a couple of buffets (character meals for the kids...breakfasts), but no lunches those days, so we can use more of our snack credits!

Also, don't be afraid to ask Cast Members what can be used for a snack credit. Last year we were amazed the items you could get as a snack that didn't have the snack symbol beside it. And like other posters have said, USE YOUR SNACK CREDITS! For the last several years we've been on the dining plan, we've always had left-over snack credits. :headache: We've always drove, so we just use the extras for water, soda, and snacks for the trip home, but this year we're flying so I'm determined to use the credits...wish me luck! :thumbsup2

[minniebeth]

We split CS at the beginning of our trip because we thought we might run out but we ended up with extras at the end. We traded them in for 3 snack credits but we also had a ton of snack credits left. We took home many extra snacks. Moral of this: just use your credits each day don't try to save them up.

How do you trade a CS meal for snack credits?

[Native NYer]

I agree with everyone about using snack credits. We tried to save some, thinking we'd run out mid-trip. On the last day, we had quite a few snack credits left. We ended up buying snacks to take home.

If you're on the quick service plan or regular dining plan, since you get two meals/night, you could use snack credits for the third meal.

Whatever your plans are, definitely use the snack credits.

[rflorek]

I should have no trouble using my snack credits - we're there during the F&WF!!!:cool1:

[inkedupmomma]

FYI- there is already a thread like this:thumbsup2 lots of great info posted on there!

http://disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2135949

[CanadianPaco]

I managed to get a ressie at Le Cellier for lunch on a day when I booked Coral Reef for dinner. I will not do 2 TS meals in one day... talk about too much food!:guilty:

[Faldred]

Thanks to all of the advice at the DIS, going through the menus at AllEars.net, and meticulous planning, I think we wound up making very few true "mistakes" in March on the DxDP, even though it was our first time on any dining plan.

The closest to a real mistake was, as most people point out, being too parsimonious with the snack credits. We never went hungry, and always got a snack when the feeling struck us. Admittedly, on Deluxe, splitting a single snack amongst the five of us (myself, DW, DS3, DD2, and DS2) usually worked, though DW and I each had to have our own dole whip floats! But we did pay for water or juice a few times OOP instead of using snack credits, especially earlier in the week, and did wind up with a few leftover snack credits, though we didn;t mind using them at Goofy's on the way out of town.

[JeffreyY]

We were able to switch our CS for 3 Snack credits at places that had both CS meals and snacks. A CM told us about this and then we just asked at each place we wanted to do it at. The bakery on Main Street was most accommodating. We brought home several baked goods.

[Rainkiss]

:blush:

I didn't make reservations. Not a single one.

Fortunately, we were there the first week of February, crowds were light, we only had real trouble finding a place to eat one night. (Took three places at Epcot, we wound up at Coral Reef.)

I have 8/10 scheduled for our next trip.

[minniebeth]

We were able to switch our CS for 3 Snack credits at places that had both CS meals and snacks. A CM told us about this and then we just asked at each place we wanted to do it at. The bakery on Main Street was most accommodating. We brought home several baked goods.

Thank you! This is really good to know...

[somethingblue]

I have to throw my two cents in here as well...

I know a lot of people are saying that it was a bad idea to keep snacks/bottled water in the room. But let me say this: If you are doing a lot of evening Extra Magic Hours, or if you are a night owl who will likely not be going to bed until midnight or after, and especially if you are prone to midnight munchies, it really is a good investment to have a few things to eat in your room because you will not be able to get anything to eat this late at the resorts. Now, you could use like half of your snack credits to get some munchies for these occasions on the first day, or you could buy things from home, or you could save your desserts or sides or whatever and bring them back...

But if you're like me, you're going to want to have something to eat when you get back from a late night in the parks! We had things like string cheese, capri sun, and granola bars from the drive to Florida that doubled as late-night snacks and emergency munchies in situations where my sister was going to have a melt down if she didn't eat something NOW.

[OhioStateBuckeye]

I have to throw my two cents in here as well...

I know a lot of people are saying that it was a bad idea to keep snacks/bottled water in the room. But let me say this: If you are doing a lot of evening Extra Magic Hours, or if you are a night owl who will likely not be going to bed until midnight or after, and especially if you are prone to midnight munchies, it really is a good investment to have a few things to eat in your room because you will not be able to get anything to eat this late at the resorts. Now, you could use like half of your snack credits to get some munchies for these occasions on the first day, or you could buy things from home, or you could save your desserts or sides or whatever and bring them back...

But if you're like me, you're going to want to have something to eat when you get back from a late night in the parks! We had things like string cheese, capri sun, and granola bars from the drive to Florida that doubled as late-night snacks and emergency munchies in situations where my sister was going to have a melt down if she didn't eat something NOW.

You are completely right about this. We went to Epcot extra magic hours and when we came back to the resort all the pop fountains were shut down and we were very thirsty, it would have been nice to have had some drinks stocked up in the room.

[maddiesmom0116]

I have a 1st timer here at work, going to WDW and getting the Free Dining. What mistake did you make the 1st time you used the DDP that you won't make again. I'm trying to make sure I get him addicted like the rest of us.:lmao:

I did the regular plan not the deluxe. I have been deluxe ever since.

[nmanning19]

just bumping for new responses, thanks!

[WV4dmb]

What in everyone's opinion is the best day of the week for Le Cellier?
We will be going Thursday - Thursday to Disney and staying at CBR.


Been to Disney approximately 7 times but never experienced DDP, going to try it this time!

Thanks!
:simba: