I was just wondering how many DVC members use the DDP. I know some members thought it was great that Disney let us have it too, but is it really that great, now? We used it once on a cash vacation and that was the first year they had it before breaking it in to the different plans it is now. It was good but a lot of food (so much we often shared meals), it was also a better value back then as well. Now it seems like every time I do a comparison the DDE/TiW is a better value for us since booking with our points we are not eligible for FREE dining deals (I know not really FREE considering the rack rate for the rooms). We always eat pretty much the same on every trip mostly table services, signatures, and character dining, with one or two ADRs per day. When we travel food is the one thing we don't skimp on so we just eat what we want. Most likely we would use the Deluxe dining plan at $72pp but at it seems to come out a bit more expensive for compared to the DDE/TiW. The Regular dining plan could be a deal at $40pp but I found that we would have counter service credits left over, and pay out of pocket for a good deal of our meals. Plus the table service credit on this plan does not include an appetizer, skewing the value slightly depending on if you eat dessert or appetizers. We generally use our snack credits at Goofy's Galley, Baked goods, and water. Obviously you need an annual pass or must be a florida resident to overcome the cost of the TiW card which is $75 and $100 respectively. Just wondering if anyone uses the DDP? Which plan do you use? And how do you get the most value out if it?
The DDP is too much food and Disney knows it. Sure some people will stuff themselves because they bought the plan, but most will start out eating at the more expensive restaurants and saving money. By the end of their vacation they are buying hamburgers with TS credits just to used them up. We have found the DDP to be of value only during split stays. We buy it for 3 or 4 days at the beginning of our vacation and use it for only the most expensive meals that we can find. I figure that we can eat at home and there are very few restaurants that are so unique only at WDW. In fact, I can get a better steak at half the price at home so why would we spend our precious Disney vacation time rushing from one ADR to the next?
We love the TIW card. But then we go to V&A every time we are there and that meal alone covers the cost of the TIW card. We have tried the DDP a few times, staying DVC and staying at a Disney hotel. We just don't like it. It's too much food. Every plan is too much food or too restrictive in how we would be forced to eat. We enjoy room service breakfast, certainly not worth the 2 credits we would be charged on the dining plan. If we do any TS, it's a signature, which is not a good value on the DDP, or we do restaurants which are not on the plan at all. Maybe because we have been so many times, but flexibility is the most important thing we want in our vacations. Flexibility and Disney dining do not go together.
I'm one of those people who feel that the restaurants at WDW are as much of an attraction as the rides and shows. Normally, we do the DDE/TiW since we tnd to eat at a lot of the signature restaurants and have a fair amount of wine with our meals. It works out very well for us; we figure the discount just about covers the tip, so that is easy for us to keep track. That said, I am going on a solo trip this December, and doing the QSDP. I don't really feel like having a lot of table service sit-down meals by myself, so the QSDP will work out fine for me. (I will splurge and pay OOP for a dinner at Jiko to celebrate my birthday though!)
We use the TIW card. We don't even do that many sit down meals, but it pays for itself in one trip and we use it over 2 trips. Since my baby turned 10 today, we are now a family of 4 adults by Disney standards, so any character meal is at least $120. If we do 4-6 character meals or other table service meals over the course of 2 trips, it saves us quite a bit. Before we had DVC we stayed at Pop and ate at the food court a lot, so it saved us there too. The kids still make us go back to the Pop food court for 1 meal each trip! We've never done DDP. We want to be able to order what we want where we want with no restrictions. We share most of our counter service meals and certainly don't need dessert all the time.
We haven't used the DP in 2 years. The value has declined and it's too much trouble ( what's covered and what's not). We purchased a TIW card and it paid for itself in less than 3 meals. It covers alcohol too!!
add us to the list of TIW users....we usually go twice a year....and are a either 4 or 6 adults(depends if our "kids" bring along boyfriends and girlfriends)...so the cost of the TIW card pays for itself quickly.......we like to share appetizers and desserts....and do have an adult beverage or two so the TIW card works best for us
Another vote for the TIW card. Just returned today and the card already has paid for itself in just this one visit! When our DD, SIL & 3DGC join us we usually do the DP but are rethinking this for our next visit in May. The selection for the children alone is not good and the only way to compensate for this is to do buffets.
we enjoyed the DDP (even the watered down version) when there was just 2 of us on shorter trips (5 nights or less). btw, we are definately not huge eaters, but do enjoy some of the more pricey restaurants included on the plan. we've found TIW to be a value if you have a large group, do multiple trips in a year, and/or eat/drink quite a bit. btw, we just "winged it" last october, using DVC/AP/CM discount at some WDW places, & coupons for area restauants. i'll prob buy the TIW next week banana b/c i'll be back in may with DD, then again in august (7-8 ppl). basically, the decision really depends uppon your circumstances.
We used the DDP once and thought it was a great value. This was when it covered an app, entree, dessert, and tip. When they changed the program we went to the TIW card and haven't looked back. 20% and it covers alcohol. That's a no brainer. Granted the cost has gone up, but still a value IMO.
I've done both the DDP & now I have the TiW card. DDP makes me have to eat every day & with TiW I get to have TS when I feel like it. I make my ressies ahead of time & have already gotten my ($75) money back from my last trip in June. Plan on using the TiW card again next month & it includes alcohol unlike the DDP. I knew I'd be going to Disney over 10 days this year so it made sense to get the AP which in return qualified me for the TiW card. It's whatever meets your needs really.
We have used the DDP and found that for our week long trip, it was too much food. This past summer, we did a split stay and were able to do the QSDP for 5 nights and the DDP for 2. We are not big at doing a lot of TS meals on our trips so this allowed us to do the 2 TS we wanted. TIW, while a good deal for those that do TS, won't ever work for us since we like CS better (I know, I know...).
We now use DxDDP - its the closest thing to the premium/platinum plan that is available for DVC. With over 15 trips using premium, I've become accustomed to that eating/touring style and that hasn't changed with DVC. We also have a TIW card for shorter trips during the year and alcohol. It isn't hard to spend enough to make it worth while. We will likely do DxDDP for our fall trip and our Spring '12 trip but go with TIW exclusively when we bring the whole family down in a grand villa in fall '12 since not everyone would make use of DxDDP.
DH and I are doing the DP again this year, like last year. it was a great option last year since we were with my penny pinching Daddy. I just couldn't bare the thought of him gripping about the cost of food when my mother wanted to eat some place special. So I made the ADRs and they had really spectacular food. Not one gripe (my father is terrific he is just thrifty). They loved it. This year my MIL wanted to try it to see if it turned out to be a value for her. My problem with it is that we use the TS and CS credits but snacks are not used up. DH doesn't like a lot of food early in the day. We are new to DVC and are thinking about annual passes and possibly a TIW card. But we anticipate eating well at WDW and in the past have just paid cash for the food....usually $1,000 for a 9-10 day trip. This year the DP will cost us a little over $700 combined (DH and me).
