bishop1989
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2004
Does it really pay for itself to purchase the dining plan?
Does it really pay for itself to purchase the dining plan?
I guarantee you it will save you money if you utilize it to the fullest. That is, you like having desserts with both lunch and dinner and you want all of the snacks. In addition, you need to want to eat TS for every dinner.
IMHO, if you are happy to eat CS for a few dinners, want to eat offsite once or twice or want to skip a few desserts then it doesn't pay.
Does it really pay for itself to purchase the dining plan?
To purchase the plan, no. I'd say you're much better off paying OOP. If it's 'free' dining vs a room discount, it's generally better to take a room discount.
That's not necessarily true. It depends on the number of people in the room and where you stay. A 20% discount at a value is like $25-30/day....that's more than ONE person will spend OOP to eat in a day and most people have at least two in a room, so free dining is better than the room discount. You have to run the numbers EVERY time.
If you have two children (9 or under) and plan on doing buffets, then you have a good chance at a savings.
If not, it's probably cheaper to pay oop. We share many meals and drinks, especially counter service. We also don't eat desserts with every lunch and dinner. (When you total receipts, those desserts add up and make the dining plan look awesome!)
Each year the ddp prices go up, and the savings go down.