Deluxe Dining Plan - Thumbs up!

[doubleosix]

I have a family of four and we just recently returned from our trip to WDW. I have to say that for us, the DDP was most definitely worth it.

My first and only concern when I bought the dining plan was to have a care free vacation. I didn't want to be turned off by menu prices while in the theme park. I didn't want to think twice about my kids asking for the $4 Mickey mouse ice cream sandwich...or why I was paying crazy dollars for character buffets. Just knowing that it was paid for in advance made our trip more enjoyable.

But the actual value depends on you. I must say the dining plan calculator http://www.distripplanner.com/
REALLY helped me maximize the dollar value. I had several people say to me "that is a lot of food" but for us it was perfect. If you eat at CRT, Aloha, or Hoop Dee Doo, your meal credits are already starting to balance out anyhow. We had enough credits for a Character breakfast on the morning of check out ( a nice send off for the kids ) 1 meal & 2 snacks were left over. I picked up I bottled drink, sandwich and HUGE brownie (1 meal) and two jumbo cupcakes (snack credits) and put them the cooler.

I would highly recommend the calculator to find out how many Table Service meals you are willing to fit into your day to make the DDP a good value for your family. We ate TS for Lunch and Dinner each day, but I understand not everyone wants to hindered by a schedule while on vacation.

Maximized snack credits, finding snacks worth more than $4 help you break even

My family ended the trip with the DDP working in our favor saving us about $150

 

[whitney250]

We loved the DDP as well! I had read a lot about never coming out on top and it being a lot of food, but we actually came out even and that was with a meal and 3 snack credits left over. We did do CRT, Cryatal Palace, Chef Mickey's, Fantasmic package and a few others, we also used our snacks for F&W!

 

[doubleosix]

We loved the DDP as well! I had read a lot about never coming out on top and it being a lot of food, but we actually came out even and that was with a meal and 3 snack credits left over. We did do CRT, Cryatal Palace, Chef Mickey's, Fantasmic package and a few others, we also used our snacks for F&W!

Thats awesome! I just think is depends on the family, we always eat 3 meals a day so for us it was an easy choice.

 

[verleniahall]

Glad to hear this - we have DDP for our vacation in October/November time frame - excited for this trip!

 

[KEPE]

Question on the calculator.... when it starts off the DXDP lists the price I paid for it but as I put in my places that prices goes up. Why?

 

[mickeynut1]

I have a family of four and we just recently returned from our trip to WDW. I have to say that for us, the DDP was most definitely worth it.

My first and only concern when I bought the dining plan was to have a care free vacation. I didn't want to be turned off by menu prices while in the theme park. I didn't want to think twice about my kids asking for the $4 Mickey mouse ice cream sandwich...or why I was paying crazy dollars for character buffets. Just knowing that it was paid for in advance made our trip more enjoyable.

But the actual value depends on you. I must say the dining plan calculator http://www.distripplanner.com/
REALLY helped me maximize the dollar value. I had several people say to me "that is a lot of food" but for us it was perfect. If you eat at CRT, Aloha, or Hoop Dee Doo, your meal credits are already starting to balance out anyhow. We had enough credits for a Character breakfast on the morning of check out ( a nice send off for the kids ) 1 meal & 2 snacks were left over. I picked up I bottled drink, sandwich and HUGE brownie (1 meal) and two jumbo cupcakes (snack credits) and put them the cooler.

I would highly recommend the calculator to find out how many Table Service meals you are willing to fit into your day to make the DDP a good value for your family. We ate TS for Lunch and Dinner each day, but I understand not everyone wants to hindered by a schedule while on vacation.

Maximized snack credits, finding snacks worth more than $4 help you break even

My family ended the trip with the DDP working in our favor saving us about $150

Glad you had a good experience with the DDP . We've done both the regular and deluxe plans and have found them both to work in our favor.

I just think is depends on the family, we always eat 3 meals a day so for us it was an easy choice.

I agree! The DDP isn't for everyone as it's just like anything else, it will work for some, but not others .

 

[Anesthesia Fine]

Oh, this is good news! We splurged on the deluxe plan for just the two of us and are looking forward to trying several of new-to-us places.

 

[sullyfam]

We've done the deluxe dining plan for our family of 4 the last 2 trips ... LOVE IT!

Yes it's a sticker shock when you first pay for your package. But it's so worth it when you get there! We had so many options of delicious meals, character buffets, signature dining, dinner shows, endless snacks ... it's been awesome for our family. Great memories made and it's always nice to get a break from the craziness of the parks and have a nice meal.

We always keep all our receipts and if we were to pay OOP for everything it comes out in our favor. We also always use up all our meal credits and typically just have snack credits left over and we will get stuff to take home.

I think it's a matter of how you like to "do" Disney. For our family it's definitely been a great treat and I would recommend it to others and we would do it again

 

[doubleosix]

Glad to hear this - we have DDP for our vacation in October/November time frame - excited for this trip!

Oh, this is good news! We splurged on the deluxe plan for just the two of us and are looking forward to trying several of new-to-us places.

Veriena & Anesthesia I think you will enjoy it, especially it you have your eye on some new restaurants to try. Enjoy your trip planning.

We've done the deluxe dining plan for our family of 4 the last 2 trips ... LOVE IT!

Yes it's a sticker shock when you first pay for your package. But it's so worth it when you get there! We had so many options of delicious meals, character buffets, signature dining, dinner shows, endless snacks ... it's been awesome for our family. Great memories made and it's always nice to get a break from the craziness of the parks and have a nice meal.

We always keep all our receipts and if we were to pay OOP for everything it comes out in our favor. We also always use up all our meal credits and typically just have snack credits left over and we will get stuff to take home.

I think it's a matter of how you like to "do" Disney. For our family it's definitely been a great treat and I would recommend it to others and we would do it again

Totally agree with you

 

[doubleosix]

Question on the calculator.... when it starts off the DXDP lists the price I paid for it but as I put in my places that prices goes up. Why?

The calculator adds the price of your meals as you select them

 

[dbramer]

Used the calculator this evening. I had been agonizing over the cost, but after plugging in our meals, we are saving 737.00 on this trip. It would cost over 3,000 for our meals.

 

[Silvana]

When my DH and I went in 2008 I did the Deluxe Dining plan for the same reason. I just wanted to be on vacation and not worry about handling money, coming home to debt for charging our food on a card, losing money/travelers checks or being pick pocketed. If I would have paid OOP I would have spent so much more. Now we are planing on going back and taking my sister for her first trip and I plan to do the same. The planner says I'll be spending about an extra 100ish dollars in full for the DDP over OOP. However my own personal math, based on showing the menu's of each restaurant to the people in my group and having them pick what they would actually be likely to order says I'll come out on top again.

But even IF I do end up out that 100 or so dollars I'll be happy. Not having to watch the purse strings and sweating if I have enough to cover all the meals is worth it to me.

 

[doubleosix]

Used the calculator this evening. I had been agonizing over the cost, but after plugging in our meals, we are saving 737.00 on this trip. It would cost over 3,000 for our meals.

Oh Wow! That is a HUGE savings!

 

[doubleosix]

When my DH and I went in 2008 I did the Deluxe Dining plan for the same reason. I just wanted to be on vacation and not worry about handling money, coming home to debt for charging our food on a card, losing money/travelers checks or being pick pocketed. If I would have paid OOP I would have spent so much more. Now we are planing on going back and taking my sister for her first trip and I plan to do the same. The planner says I'll be spending about an extra 100ish dollars in full for the DDP over OOP. However my own personal math, based on showing the menu's of each restaurant to the people in my group and having them pick what they would actually be likely to order says I'll come out on top again.

But even IF I do end up out that 100 or so dollars I'll be happy. Not having to watch the purse strings and sweating if I have enough to cover all the meals is worth it to me.

The Calculator is a great estimate. If you are within $100 you could easily break even. But like you mentioned, I would gladly pay for the plan and lose $50 just for the convenience alone

 

[dbramer]

Oh Wow! That is a HUGE savings!

We are doing a lot of character meals and CRT/Mickey's BBQ. This is my DD's first trip and we want it to be special for her. We only get down once every four to five years.

 

[jenjersnap]

My family absolutely LOVED the DxDDP...while we had three kids who were not disney adults. My youngest and I did it for 12 days last November and we saved $280 according to that calculator.

I can't make the numbers work anymore now that our two older kids are Disney adults, one of whom doesn't eat much due to medical issues (he would be happy to stick with kid's meal sized portions for the foreseeable future) but it was a wonderful run.

I love when someone posts that they had a good DxDDP experience!

 

[doubleosix]

My family absolutely LOVED the DxDDP...while we had three kids who were not disney adults. My youngest and I did it for 12 days last November and we saved $280 according to that calculator.

I can't make the numbers work anymore now that our two older kids are Disney adults, one of whom doesn't eat much due to medical issues (he would be happy to stick with kid's meal sized portions for the foreseeable future) but it was a wonderful run.

I love when someone posts that they had a good DxDDP experience!

I think the kids age is another important thing to factor in. I guess I better plan another trip while they are young

 

[SouthJersey]

I have a family of four and we just recently returned from our trip to WDW. I have to say that for us, the DDP was most definitely worth it.

My first and only concern when I bought the dining plan was to have a care free vacation. I didn't want to be turned off by menu prices while in the theme park. I didn't want to think twice about my kids asking for the $4 Mickey mouse ice cream sandwich...or why I was paying crazy dollars for character buffets. Just knowing that it was paid for in advance made our trip more enjoyable.

But the actual value depends on you. I must say the dining plan calculator http://www.distripplanner.com/
REALLY helped me maximize the dollar value. I had several people say to me "that is a lot of food" but for us it was perfect. If you eat at CRT, Aloha, or Hoop Dee Doo, your meal credits are already starting to balance out anyhow. We had enough credits for a Character breakfast on the morning of check out ( a nice send off for the kids ) 1 meal & 2 snacks were left over. I picked up I bottled drink, sandwich and HUGE brownie (1 meal) and two jumbo cupcakes (snack credits) and put them the cooler.

I would highly recommend the calculator to find out how many Table Service meals you are willing to fit into your day to make the DDP a good value for your family. We ate TS for Lunch and Dinner each day, but I understand not everyone wants to hindered by a schedule while on vacation.

Maximized snack credits, finding snacks worth more than $4 help you break even

My family ended the trip with the DDP working in our favor saving us about $150

I never understood all the, "It's so much food!" posts.

Breakfast- 8:30AM
Lunch- 1:00PM 1TS
Dinner- 8:00PM 2TS signature

There's 4.5 to 5 hours between a small breakfast and a sit-down lunch and then 7+ hours between lunch and dinner. Even without running around all day burning calories, that's plenty of time before meals.
I eat 6-8 meals a day even during cutting season to keep my resting metabolic rate/metabolism going.

 

[doubleosix]

I never understood all the, "It's so much food!" posts.

Breakfast- 8:30AM
Lunch- 1:00PM 1TS
Dinner- 8:00PM 2TS signature

There's 4.5 to 5 hours between a small breakfast and a sit-down lunch and then 7+ hours between lunch and dinner. Even without running around all day burning calories, that's plenty of time before meals.
I eat 6-8 meals a day even during cutting season to keep my resting metabolic rate/metabolism going.

Totally Agree

 

[Pinkgirl]

I just tried out the planner, and then decided to do a bit switching around. Hit F5 and oops, lost everything!