anyone do the math?

[leahjade]

I've been looking at the menus and trying to justify the dining plan but even ordering the most expensive items on the menu, I can only come up with a $40 value or so each day. I guess the plan would pay the tax but it's surely not the deal it used to be. Figures, since this year would be my first - I'm a jinx!

 

[PrincessTrisha]

I think it really depends on where you are planning to eat.

For instance:

Table Service - Coral Reef:

entree - Shrimp Pasta with penne pasta $23.99
dessert - Baileys and Jack Daniel's Mousse $7.99
drink - soda $2.00
Plus 6.5% tax = $36.19

Counter Service - Cantina de San Angel

Cantina Nachos - $7.25
Churros - $2.15
Nestea Iced Tea - $1.99
Plus 6.5% tax = $12.13

Snack

Bottled water - $2

Total for the day: $50.32

And the day could be more expensive if you wanted the steak at coral reef or the combo plate at the cantina or a more expensive snack.

 

[Mom of 3]

CS - combo meal, dessert and large drink approx. $10

Snack - $4

TS - appetizer $5, main course $15, dessert $6, drink $2

The above is $42, add in about $5 tip and $3 or so for tax and you're now up to $50 for the day.

Some people do order the $10 app and the $25 steak and $8 dessert and the cost of the plan starts looking really good.

Of cause if you're a smaller eater then maybe it doesn't make sense.

I consider myself a small eater but I have 2 kids that are on the kids DDP and I know they will be eating their kids meals and half of my meal.

 

[wen8jr]

Here is what I come up with for the 2007 DDP - if we were to do counter service 2 times a day it would probably run around $28 each - $14 per CS meal as we like ribs, etc. burgers every day don't cut it.

So to get to eat one TS and one CS instead of a two CS meals only seems to costs me $10.00 more per person per day.

The addtl value is that you get an appetizer and a dessert with every TS, a dessert with every CS and 1 snack up to $4 each day. This includes drinks, tax and tip.

I feel the plan is a value, even if I wouldn't have ordered appetizers or desserts every time without the plan. Plus I won't have to worry about every single penny I spend or feel guilty if I do break down and get a dessert for $6 or $7 bucks. And we get to sit down, relax and enjoy some of the cool resturants in Disney.

 

[leahjade]

All the information I read on the 2008 plan says it does NOT include tip or appetizers.

 

[cymbaldiva]

All the information I read on the 2008 plan says it does NOT include tip or appetizers.

That is correct ... based on current information for 2008 I can't personally justify purchasing the DDP.

That's just me though

 

[wen8jr]

All the information I read on the 2008 plan says it does NOT include tip or appetizers.

I believe that is correct for the 2008 plan. May not be as good of a deal as it is now.

 

[PrincessTrisha]

I assumed you were talking about 2008 dining plan with my example.

While it might not be as much of a deal, it can still offer a cost savings.

Another example:

Breakfast using snack credit - (Pop food court)
Chocolate Filled Croissant $2.79

Lunch using counter service credit - (Toy Story Pizza Planet)
Woody's Meal Deal - Individual Pepperoni Pizza with Garden Salad - $7.89
Mickey's Crisped Rice Treat $2.69 (which if you didn't feel like dessert you could save for a snack later)
Coke - $2.09

Dinner using table service credit - (Chef Mickey's)
Buffet price $27.99

total for the day (including tax) = $46.27

I consider this an average use of the plan - not maximizing nor underutilizing.

I don't think most people (myself included) are going to save the scads of money we have been but it's still a decent savings (spending $38 to get $46 = 15-17% savings)

Now for those who WANT to maximize the value of the plan, it's easy:

Snack credit - $3.69 big bag of pretzels

counter service credit - cosmic ray's

chicken and rib combo $13.99
Triple Chocolate Cake $2.49
Iced Cappuccino - $2.79

Table service credit - Coral Reef

Grilled NY Strip Steak - served with potatoes au gratin, and broccolini $31.99
Citrus Creme Brulee - with Berries and citrus zest $7.99
Sour Apple Freeze - blended with Granny Smith Apple Syrup $3.99

Total for the day (with 6.5% tax) = $71.28

savings over cash = 46% savings

Of course, you could lose money:

Snack - bottle of water $2

counter service credit - Pizzafari
Pepperoni Pizza - $5.89
water $2.00
Minute Maid Frozen Strawberry Lemonade Cup - $2.99

table service credit -
Character breakfast $18.99

total for the day (with 6.5% tax) = $34.00

net loss $3.99 for the day.

Of course, if you add the "maximized" day and "minimized" day together and divide by 2, you still come out ahead.

Hmmm, there's a lot to think about (but alas, I now need to return to work, my breaks over).

 

[Booknut]

We added up what we thought we'd eat at the restaurants we wanted to try (a few are not on DDP anyway) and we don't see the benefit at all of having the DDP without the tips and the appetizer. Plus we're not huge CS fans and would normally have a kids meal at lunch rather than a big CS meal.

I might consider it if they had allowed a choice between appetizer and dessert as I would normally not have dessert.

I'm looking forward to just enjoying Disney the next time around and eating where we want without worrying about how many credits we have left or whether its worth using 2TS for California Grill etc - and of course having the freedom to go to places like Red Lobster (which we don't have in the UK) and not feel like we're wasting credits we've already paid for.

 

[mickey2000]

I did the math for the Deluxe plan!
Even if I eat like a :

Its NOT a savings

 

[patsal]

I just posted this on another thread but I found with what we order the new DDP is even less cost effective and I will not be using it. We do order apps and not so much desserts so the plan is not what I would be eating so much anymore. I found that for us for 14 days with 14CS and 12 regular TS and 2 Signature TS our totals including tax and tips at 18% would be $1885.IT would cost me $2240 for the DDP and I'd still have to pay OOP for 1 or two TS, a tip at all TS as well as for all apps. The DDP may save up to 34%, but not using the DDP saves me an even greater amount.

 

[lilyv]

DDP doesn't work for us-we like to have more freedom. We love a couple of signature meals, but then we also do other things, as well. We enjoy an Indian restaurant in Kissimmee, and find it's easy to stop at the grocery on our way back....we don't like to pay $25.00 on site for an $6.00 bottle of wine we can get at Publix.

We share an appetizer if we decide to order one, and if we get dessert, we share one, also. Sometimes we eat a light lunch at the parks, or we hop the boat to Gasparillas and have a nice dish of Frozen Yogurt for lunch. Yum!

Between our style of eating, and our preferences, we'd rather shop for a great rental car rate and increase our options. It fits the budget, and us, much better.

 

[leahjade]

I'm still debating the plan, but it would have been perfect if tips were still included! I can live without the appetizers, but with 6 people and a 20% tip each night - the plan will cost me at least $40 extra per day. We often do sit down meals for dinner so for convenience sake, I'm weighing the option but am bummed about the change!

 

[Juliegirl1]

I definitely believe that the current DDP is much better than the 2008 one. I figured out that I saved over $300 last year by using the DDP. I'm sure it will be a lot less in 2008.

That being said, I would probably still utilize the plan in 2008. I like having my meals (or, for 2008, a majority of the bill) paid in advance, especially since I can make payments way ahead of time.

As a single mom on a budget you can't imagine how much it helps to make payments on a big budget trip like Disney and to have the trip paid off before you go. Also, I don't have a credit card and since I can't really rent a car without one I utilize Disney transportation and don't eat offsite. I think if I had that option I probably wouldn't use the DDP.

I'm also one of those people that would probably end up ordering the most expensive thing on the menu even if I had no idea of the prices - just my tastes I guess. I also almost never order dessert at a restaurant unless it is a special occasion and to me, every day at Disney is a special occasion!

 

[stitchlover]

We sat down the week the new plan came out and looked at it very closely. We based it on what we would order if we weren't on DDP in '08. We decided we might be spending about $20 more by going with DDP...but if we were on DDP we would definitely use the extra desserts, snacks, etc. So we decided it was worth it to us. Even if we only save about $50 it is worth to us to have all those things prepaid for and not stress about it when we are there.

 

[bookgirl2632]

We will still be using the DDP regardless of the changes. I did the math, adding up what I thought we'd order. We still came out ahead, if only by a few dollars.

The fact is that we like at least one TS meal every day. So regardless of whether or not we get the DDP, we will be eating a TS and paying for tips each day. But if I'm not on the DDP, I will inevitably look at the prices on the menu and think twice about what I order. On the DDP, I don't care how much my entree is and I don't feel bad for ordering dessert.

For us, the DDP is still a good deal.

 

[leahjade]

I'm just afraid I'll gain weight!! One year we went to Disney and had lots of meal vouchers where we ate appetizers and desserts and I came home with 3 extra pounds. Usually I lose weight at Disney since we do so much walking.

 

[Family5LovesDisney]

Of course, we are all looking at the menu prices from 2007. I have a feeling that the prices may go up in 2008, so the savings on the new DDP will be a little more then what we see now.

 

[BeckWhy]

That is correct ... based on current information for 2008 I can't personally justify purchasing the DDP.

That's just me though

I ran the figures for our trip.. and I can't either.. you are not alone!

 

[BeckWhy]

I'm just afraid I'll gain weight!! One year we went to Disney and had lots of meal vouchers where we ate appetizers and desserts and I came home with 3 extra pounds. Usually I lose weight at Disney since we do so much walking.

You don't have to eat all the food that's put in front of you. Most of my meals I just tried everything.. if I was hungry I continued to eat... if not.. I stopped (for example at WCC, we were so full from dinner, they gave us our desserts to go... we ate them later).