only going to be there three days...

[jenniel73]

go on plan or not? i've been reading in one of the books that it really isn't that much a value???

 

[squirrel]

Depends on what plan and where you eat.

How many people are going? Any children?

Are you interested in the DDP (snack, CS and TS per night) or the QSDP (2 snacks, 2 CS per night and a refillable mug). With only 3 days I wouldn't do the DxDP.

When are you going? ADR's start booking at 180 days from your check in day.

 

[AirGoofy]

go on plan or not? i've been reading in one of the books that it really isn't that much a value???

It depends upon your eating habits. If you like a sit-down restaurant each night and plan to eat lunch each day, then the DP is $$ worth it (unless you plan on splitting meals, only drinking water, no appetizers, or deserts).

 

[squirrel]

People do save on them if it works for their way of eating.

If you are a light eater and can share meals then the DDP probably won't be any savings.

 

[Cafeen]

Take a look at how you want to eat while there. For 3 nights, if you're looking to dine at least at 3 TS restaurants and 3 CS restaurants, then it most likely will be a savings.

Since it's not front-loaded like ticket prices, the savings would be roughly the same (percentage-wise) across any length of stay.

If, however, you plan to share most meals, or only want a single TS meal, then chances are it won't be a value. It's all a matter of how you plan to eat and only by utilizing what is offered will you be able to gain any savings.

Along the same vein, DxDDP can be a savings for a short trip as well, again, so long as you plan to utilize the offerings.

 

[jenniel73]

we have now been checking into the offers and found a 5 night/6 day deal that might even be MORE cost effective BUT that makes this meal plan issue more confusing!

we are going SOON so i'm assuming most resturants will be booked...that being said would i rather go with the two full service meals a day so we could possibly have character dining or just one full service/one quick or just the two quick and pay out of pocket for the character dining, if we can get reservations?

SOOOO confused with soooo little time!!!!!!

 

[jenniel73]

oh and do DTD resturants take the dining plan???

 

[Cafeen]

we have now been checking into the offers and found a 5 night/6 day deal that might even be MORE cost effective BUT that makes this meal plan issue more confusing!

we are going SOON so i'm assuming most resturants will be booked...that being said would i rather go with the two full service meals a day so we could possibly have character dining or just one full service/one quick or just the two quick and pay out of pocket for the character dining, if we can get reservations?

SOOOO confused with soooo little time!!!!!!

oh and do DTD resturants take the dining plan???

If you're going very soon, you can look up on the ADR system now and book (or try to book) what you think you'd like. If you get enough, go for it.

As far as the 5night deal, if you are talking about the "Free Dining" offer, the 5 nights is just an example, the actual minimum stay for that is 3 nights (I believe).

Some of the DTD restaurants do take the plan. You can check the brochure (available at the WDW site, or I'll link them here in a little bit, I have to get ready for work right now though ), for the exact details.

For tips on making ADRs closer to vacation time than 180days, the biggest one is to be flexible. If you can dine at off times, you're going to have a better shot than if you must dine at 8am, 12pm, 6pm type of deal.

Keep the information coming and we'll work this out for you in no time .

 

[bluejasmine]

Back in 2008 our honey moon trip was only 3 days but we used the plan b/c we had atleast 1 TS meal a day. We ate at Ohana, San Angel and Coral Reef and some of these dinners were almost $100 for just the two of us so it was worth it! Not to mention the snacks and CS meals too!

Now I would look to see what it would cost you for the DDP and then go look at the menus at allears.net and add up the costs of the menu items you think your family will order based on their eatting habits now and make your decision.

Also dont forget right now they are offering the free dining code for trips in late Aug up to Oct 2nd

We've used the DDP for the last 5 trips and we wouldnt do it any other way!

 

[Faldred]

that being said would i rather go with the two full service meals a day so we could possibly have character dining or just one full service/one quick or just the two quick and pay out of pocket for the character dining, if we can get reservations?

There is no "two full service meals a day" plan. The basic DDP is 1 TS, 1 CS, and 1 snack per person per night. The deluxe DDP (DxDP) is 3 "meal credits" and 2 snacks per person per night. The DxDP meal credits can be used as TS credits (with an appetizer, where applicable) or CS credits.

A major thing to note is that dining plan credits are awarded per night of your stay. If you're going 3 days but only staying 2 nights, you'll have 2 nights' worth of credits to spread out over the 3 days.

 

[2Tiggies]

If you are only going for 3 days, I would avoid the DxDDP. Even with signatures, it is a lot of time eating and waiting in restaurants.

The summarized conclusion is that if you have to adapt your eating habits significantly to suit the plan, you should probably be doing a very careful assessment first.

 

[Faldred]

If you are only going for 3 days, I would avoid the DxDDP. Even with signatures, it is a lot of time eating and waiting in restaurants.

On the other hand, if it's 2 nights/3 days, spreading 6 credits out over 3 days might make sense, especially if they want two sit-down meals a day.

 

[2Tiggies]

On the other hand, if it's 2 nights/3 days, spreading 6 credits out over 3 days might make sense, especially if they want two sit-down meals a day.

You make a good point.