I won't get into the ins and outs of the effects the plans have or haven't had. That's not my cup of tea. (I still don't believe that places wouldn't have streamlined without them, plus the fact that restaurants were sitting half empty before is actually a bad thing...but I digress).
The determination of whether or not a dining plan works for you in general is an important step in planning. This step can be simple "Nope, I don't like to dine that way" or complex "It looks like it'll work, so let's do a bunch of math", but it's still an important step. For me, the deluxe plan still works up through 2012. I have evaluated it each year that I decided to go for it, as it still makes sense. I'll do the same again though for 2013 (and I'm not holding out hope that it will
). Now, I am pretty complex when I do this, as I do the math out and compare to potential other plans, TiW, and OOP, accounting for how my habits may differ based on each plan I choose (e.g. If I were OOP, I'd do more CS and less TS, and order none of the CS desserts, that's taken into account). It works for me, but I also understand that it certainly doesn't work for everyone (either the plan structure, financials, or even just the effort it takes to make this level of comparison).
Now, free dining is a bit different. The concept is the same, but you have to account for potential room discounts in the mix. For me, I do it the same way that I do above, only I use the room discount as my cost (or DDP cost in the case of upgrading to DxDDP) for the plans. The math here changes based on several factors and it will either allow for much more leeway with the plan(s). For example, 2 adults in a moderate at $200/night may have a 20% discount. This would mean that they could get a combined discount of $40 per night. Therefore, their dining plan "cost" on FD is $20 per night each. With the plan normally being $51.54 (for 2012), this means they can get away with a lot more than someone else could paying full price for the plan. The same party, at a $500 per night room with 40% discount, would then be saving $200 per night, so the same plans would then cost $100 per night each, far greater than the actual costs of the plans and thus making FD for them (whether they're considering a plan or not) a much worse option.
Now, 2013 is a different beast. The QSDP has fallen off the cliff where normal families will likely lose money by taking it (outside of FD). DDP is getting close, if not there for your average family, and even the stubborn DxDDP took a leap toward said cliff with the huge price increases this year (~17.5% normal season adult).
