I really need help with the Dinign Plan...

[DisneyBliss7]

The Dining Plan confuses me. That might sound silly but it really does
I can't figure out if it will benefit us or not and I don't know which one I should even purchase. We have 5 kids well one will be two so he won't count--right?? We are planning on going to 4 or 5 parks. We always eat breakfast in our resort unless we have a character meal planned. Lunch and dinner at the parks. Last time we went we had the 4 older kids and spent about $65 each meal at a park, the kids share meals b/c they aren't big eaters and are very picky. We will probably do a similar thing this time too. We are eating at least one character meal possibly two. I want to eat at Ohana, Rain forest Cafe and TRex restaurant,and the The Terrace Fireworks at MK. Can the DDP be used at any of these places as well. I've read the different plans on the website but I still don't know what to do...I'd rather make my decision hearing others experience with DDP and maybe you all can explain it better to me! Thanks for the help

 

[tzeitel]

Unless you order the 2 year old his own meal he will not be charged. You can use the DDP at Ohana, TRex and RFC but not for the Wishes dessert party. If the kids share meals I would not bother with the meal plan - unless you want to do several buffets or fixed price meals (like Ohana) where everyone will be charged no matter how much/little they eat. The DDP is great for kids (9 and under) when you do character meals

We have done the regular DDP and the DxDP. For us the DDP works best, one counter service, one table service and one snack. The DxDP was a bit of a mess (but it could just have been our large party and trying to please everyone) and it might be too much time spent at restaurants. We got the free QSDP for this Sept but will probably upgrade to the DDP since it will be too many CS meals for us and we like to do one TS a day.

 

[ccgirl]

The Dining Plan confuses me. That might sound silly but it really does
I can't figure out if it will benefit us or not and I don't know which one I should even purchase. We have 5 kids well one will be two so he won't count--right?? We are planning on going to 4 or 5 parks. We always eat breakfast in our resort unless we have a character meal planned. Lunch and dinner at the parks. Last time we went we had the 4 older kids and spent about $65 each meal at a park, the kids share meals b/c they aren't big eaters and are very picky. We will probably do a similar thing this time too. We are eating at least one character meal possibly two. I want to eat at Ohana, Rain forest Cafe and TRex restaurant,and the The Terrace Fireworks at MK. Can the DDP be used at any of these places as well. I've read the different plans on the website but I still don't know what to do...I'd rather make my decision hearing others experience with DDP and maybe you all can explain it better to me! Thanks for the help

Bolded mine. Going by this...I would say it (the dining plan)would not benefit you. If you like the idea of the "prepay" I would just put the $$$ on a Disney g.c and use that to pay for the meals.

Hope that helps.

 

[danceintherain]

Man...I typed out a whole thing and it got lost.

Basically, the only way to know with good certainty that you are getting the best value for your money is to look at the menus posted online and figure out exactly what you will eat for every meal.

I agree with the others who have concluded that the Dining Plan is probably not a good deal for your family, but the only way to find out is to compare what the dining plan would give you to what you would actually eat.

It takes time to plan everything out that precisely, but it's worth it if it saves you money.

 

[Sheaboys]

We have 5 kids too, although our little one just turned 3 so he does count. When we go in August, we will have 2 adults, 3 disney adults and 2 kids. We have the Regular Dining Plan, so that would be 1 counter service, 1 table service and 1 snack per day.

I know that we will have shareable counter service meals. This will allow us to get shareable counter service breakfast meals too. I am figuring we will have at least 1 maybe 2 shareable counter service lunch meals a day. That way dh can get a breakfast everyday.

As for supper, we will all sit down and we will all eat a meal, no sharing.

So for us, it will work out great.

 

[dwight16]

ok here is the deal if your paying for the plan that costs around 52 a day. its not worth it at all. you will lose money each day. even if i ordered the most expensive thing on the menu and forced dessert and got the most expensive counter service meal and again forced dessert. i was still losing 5 dollars a day on the plan. Disney is High if they say you save 20% unless you eat a 39.99 buffet every single night and then maybe you will make out but that is not realistic. if its free its great if your responsible with money and need peace of mind it great. other wise unless someone can show me how you save on paper its not worth it.

 

[ccgirl]

Man...I typed out a whole thing and it got lost.

Basically, the only way to know with good certainty that you are getting the best value for your money is to look at the menus posted online and figure out exactly what you will eat for every meal.I agree with the others who have concluded that the Dining Plan is probably not a good deal for your family, but the only way to find out is to compare what the dining plan would give you to what you would actually eat.

It takes time to plan everything out that precisely, but it's worth it if it saves you money.

Bolded mine. That is a great suggestion. I do that with every trip to see if the dining plan will benefit me. As we like to share and sometimes would rather have an appetizer and dessert than a meal, the DDP very rarely suits us.

Take a day at MK for example:

Breakfast in hotel before we leave.

Lunch at Columbia Harbour House:
(2) Anchors Aweigh sandwiches $9
(2) kids meals $5.50
(2) desserts $3.59
Tap water to drink
Meal total: $36

Dinner at Cosmic Rays
(2) 1/2 chicken meals $9.69
Order of fries $2.49
Turkey sandwich $9.39 - my kids would split
Tap water to drink
Meal total: $32

Total for the day for 2 adults and 2 children is $68

The meal plan for the day would have cost $94 so we are $26 under that.

We could get a couple of snacks and still be ahead of the game.

The Basic Dining plan is $52 per night per adult and $15 per child.

Take a day in Epcot for example for this one:

Again, breakfast in the room (we are not big breakfast eaters).

Lunch at Sunshine Seasons:
(2) children's chicken leg with mashed potatoes and drink $7
Turkey sandwich $9
Reuben panini $9
One tap water
One diet coke $2.79
Fruit cup $3.39
Meal total: $38

Dinner at Rose & Crown
Salmon $21
Cottage Pie $17
(2) kids meals $8.59

Total Meal total: $55, I did not factor in the tip as you would be paying for that anyway with the meal plan.

Day total = $93

The meal plan would have been $134 so we are $41 ahead of the meal plan on that day.

When we do use the meal plan we tend to eat at the more expensive places and order that most expensive things on the menu with dessert, even though that is not how we typical eat, so we can realize the most "value" from the dining plan.

Each family has a different eating style so you need to figure out how much yours would cost and compare that with the price of the meal plan. As you can see; my family does better paying out of pocket. Others may do better with the meal plan. Especially, if they tend to drink a lot of bottled beverages or soda and eat desserts with every meal.

Good luck with your decision.

 

[mickeyplanner]

If you are only planning on doing two character meals and Ohana for dinner, I would not do the dining plan. The dining plan is definately worth it for kids if you are doing more sit down meals/buffets than just three that are covered under the dining plan. TRex and Rainforest are not part of the dining plan.

 

[dwight16]

it is a scam its never worth it ever. if they added an APP for sit down then it would be worth it you would get the extra 8 to 10 dollars of food that you want. try this instead tables in wonder land. i am a DVC member so we can buy it not sure if any one can. but for 100 bucks you get 20% off at 99 places to eat down there. Booze and food for up to 10 people. its a pretty great deal.

 

[ccgirl]

it is a scam its never worth it ever. if they added an APP for sit down then it would be worth it you would get the extra 8 to 10 dollars of food that you want. try this instead tables in wonder land. i am a DVC member so we can buy it not sure if any one can. but for 100 bucks you get 20% off at 99 places to eat down there. Booze and food for up to 10 people. its a pretty great deal.

I believe you can only get TiW if you have an AP or are DVC. Florida residents get it also, I think.

It is not a scam and I have made it work. It is different for every family depending on their eating style.

For example, for 2A/2C the basic dining plan is $134

Breakfast:
Pastry with $4 value = 16

Lunch:
San Angel Inn
Ensalada Mexicana with Shrimp $18
Rib Eye Tacos $19
(2) children's meals at $8.50 each
dessert (2) churros at $6.25 each
Total = $66.50 without sodas

Dinner:
Garden Grill
$37.27 adult
$18.10 child
Total: $110.74

Days total: $193.24 for a savings of $60 with the plan. So, as you can see, if that is how a family would typically eat, the dining plan can be quite a savings. I did not figure in the refillable mugs which are now included.

 

[jthornton94]

I have to agree the plan is not a scam. It may not be the best deal for everyone but you can certainly save money using the plan if it matches the way your family eats on vacation. We have always at worse broke even and best saved 10% or so. But then on vacation we all enjoy our desserts and tend to eat at some of the more expensive restaurants. Each family should decide for themselves based on the meals they would prefer to eat.

 

[vicki_c]

Only DVC members, FL residents and AP holders can buy a Tables in Wonderland card, so that is not feasible for everyone.

($100 for DVC/FL resident, $75 for AP holders).

 

[tzeitel]

TRex and Rainforest are not part of the dining plan.

Actually TRex and RFC are now part of the plan

 

[Masonmj84]

The DxDP is relatively the best deal (note the word relatively) out of all the dining plans IMO.

But you have to know how to use it. In that regard, it only really works if either: (1) your party is the type that likes eating regularly at signature restaurants (which is not for everyone, given the amount of time these dinners take as well as the somewhat more adult atmospheres); or (2) your party happens to be the offensive line of the Pittsburgh Steelers (otherwise, 3 TS meals a day is just too much food; 2 TS a day is stretching it for most people, especially when you consider that the DxDP includes appetizers and also includes 2 snacks per day).

We're teetotallers who like having a signature dinner and a character breakfast most days, with an occasional TS lunch (instead of a character breakfast). We also like the snacks (I'm a Mickey Bar addict). So the DxDP works for us. Otherwise, we'd probably do TIW.

 

[Sunshineglow68]

We took advantage of the following deal:

Guests staying at a Walt Disney World Moderate, Deluxe or Disney Villa resort will receive the Disney Dining Plan included for free. Disney World guests at moderate, deluxe and villa resorts will also be able to book the “Free Disney Dining”, and upgrade to the Disney Deluxe Dining for the normal price difference, which is $34 for adults and $9 for children three to nine per night of your stay. Please note that in order to qualify for the free dining offer, your must check in between August 25 and September 29, 2012

Availability is extremely limited, and must be booked by May 18, 2012.

It will be myself, DH & DD (10) I think that's a good deal if you can go then.

 

[ccgirl]

We took advantage of the following deal:

Guests staying at a Walt Disney World Moderate, Deluxe or Disney Villa resort will receive the Disney Dining Plan included for free. Disney World guests at moderate, deluxe and villa resorts will also be able to book the “Free Disney Dining”, and upgrade to the Disney Deluxe Dining for the normal price difference, which is $34 for adults and $9 for children three to nine per night of your stay. Please note that in order to qualify for the free dining offer, your must check in between August 25 and September 29, 2012

Availability is extremely limited, and must be booked by May 18, 2012.

It will be myself, DH & DD (10) I think that's a good deal if you can go then.

Depends on if you can get a discounted room and discounted park tickets. As always, it also depends on how your family eats. For example, I would come out ahead with a 30% Pin (for mod/deluxe) and discounted park tickets such as YES tickets. At a value resort, the free dining is almost always the better deal.

 

[mco65]

we took advantage of the following deal:

Guests staying at a walt disney world moderate, deluxe or disney villa resort will receive the disney dining plan included for free. Disney world guests at moderate, deluxe and villa resorts will also be able to book the “free disney dining”, and upgrade to the disney deluxe dining for the normal price difference, which is $34 for adults and $9 for children three to nine per night of your stay. Please note that in order to qualify for the free dining offer, your must check in between august 25 and september 29, 2012

availability is extremely limited, and must be booked by may 18, 2012.

It will be myself, dh & dd (10) i think that's a good deal if you can go then.

ditto!

 

[dwight16]

People People People the dining plan is not worth if you pay for it yourself. you are going to be paying more then you actually would order off the menu. Just take a sample on what you might order. at 52 a day for adults take out 13 for counter service then 25 average meal and 6 for dessert minus 4 for snack. you are coming in at 48 bucks right there. 13 is aggressive also for counter service. you are not going to order the most expensive thing on the menu most of the time. it only works if you eat at 39.99 buffets every day. so unless you are complete irresponsible with money and cant handle it then i guess its worth the metal price. other then that there is no 20% savings....its a scam if you have to pay of for it. until some proves my wrong i stand by my analysis

 

[ccgirl]

People People People the dining plan is not worth if you pay for it yourself. you are going to be paying more then you actually would order off the menu. Just take a sample on what you might order. at 52 a day for adults take out 13 for counter service then 25 average meal and 6 for dessert minus 4 for snack. you are coming in at 48 bucks right there. 13 is aggressive also for counter service. you are not going to order the most expensive thing on the menu most of the time. it only works if you eat at 39.99 buffets every day. so unless you are complete irresponsible with money and cant handle it then i guess its worth the metal price. other then that there is no 20% savings....its a scam if you have to pay of for it. until some proves my wrong i stand by my analysis

Please read my post #10; which is actually a 30% discount. I understand the DDP does not work for your family but that does not mean it won't work for others. We usually go to WDW twice a year, sometimes 3 times so we are very educated with regard to the restaurants and dining plan. While it does not work for everyone, it certainly does work for some people.

 

[dwight16]

I believe you can only get TiW if you have an AP or are DVC. Florida residents get it also, I think.

It is not a scam and I have made it work. It is different for every family depending on their eating style.

For example, for 2A/2C the basic dining plan is $134

Breakfast:
Pastry with $4 value = 16

Lunch:
San Angel Inn
Ensalada Mexicana with Shrimp $18
Rib Eye Tacos $19
(2) children's meals at $8.50 each
dessert (2) churros at $6.25 each
Total = $66.50 without sodas

Dinner:
Garden Grill
$37.27 adult
$18.10 child
Total: $110.74

Days total: $193.24 for a savings of $60 with the plan. So, as you can see, if that is how a family would typically eat, the dining plan can be quite a savings. I did not figure in the refillable mugs which are now included.

well you are using 2 table service meals in 1 day so your not telling the truth. the 52 dollar adult plan is only 1 quick service plan and 1 sit down meal. you ate 2 sit down meals that is why you saved. so according to the website both would be 1 dining credit i just doubled checked. so unless i am wrong i still dont get it. i wish it was an amazing savings i would love to buy it but i need to see the savings before i buy it.