The Dining Plan, why I'll never/always do it.

[aladams2]

We just returned from our trip Fri. with Free Dining. We were going to go in Jan. but with Free Dining we switched our dates and am very glad we did. I do not eat much and ended up getting an upset stomach one day so hardly ate anything. But my DH and I shared most of our TS meals so that we didn't have to pay OOP on any meals while we were there. My DD7 and DD5 did the same. Many times we kept our dessert for our snack later in the day. We would never have paid to eat at CRT but with the free dining we got ressies and thought it was excellent. I didn't care for the time that it always took to sit down for the meal, but the break was usually needed. Some of the counter service meals were huge where our whole family ate from one plate. We were very against the dining plan b/c we don't eat much but after this trip, DH said that is the only way to go. I would agree. We didn't have to bring extra money for food it was all taken care of. We already started a list of where we would like to eat on our next trip. Food at the World is awesome!!!

 

[livie1205]

we LOVE the ddp!! we stayed at AKL club level and with the food in lounge and meal credits we spread them out and used them for our check out day AND went to a 2 TS meal .All of our meals were at 7 pm so we never had to rush to get there because we are done with the parks by 5 pm at the latest!We also had our 2 yr old with us so we shared food with her except at ohana and 1900 park fare where they gave her a meal...

 

[CruznLexi]

I have done the OOP basic and in 2 weeks will do the Deluxe. I am a FL resident so I can get good deals on rooms. We generally do the CS at POP and then 1 sit down meal a day. I do get ADR. In Nov I paid $30 for the basic DP for the 2 of us. We were just staying 1 night and wanted to do the plan since we awere coming with the 2 nephews in Jan and it had been awhile sicne we had done that. Dinner was at Rose and Crown was $60 and that had an appy to it and a beer (10) out of pocket. plus 2 waters for snack $4 plus breakfast at the Mara at AKL $20. We saved over $40. We had a split stay at POP and AKL with 3 nights Deluxe at Pop and 5 with basic at AKL. AKL is beautiful but the Mara was small not manyDDP snacks as compared to Pop. So we swapped pack to totally Popl with Deluxe and saved $350.
Lexi

 

[Mr. Pig]

This is why I am really liking our split stay idea for this next trip. We'll have the DDP for the first 5 days of the trip and then the last 5 we won't. This way we can take advantage of the nicer TS and character meals the first 5 days and then try places like Sci Fi and Beaches where the DDP is not a deal.

We have done this three times now and it works well. We usually only do a CS or TS on the day we get there so we have the other one on the day we start the second half of our stay. It also means we can take a little break from Disney and go offsite on the second part of our stay. We're probably not going to do DDP next year though and concentrate a little less on meals.

 

[delmar411]

We don't buy the mugs. We are not coffee drinker and to us they just aren't Convenient DDs never liked walking all the way to the lobby to refill a mug. Buying (2) 12packs of coke cost $6. We bought a mug at HS that has mickey on it cost $5 and you got your choice of favorite soda. Much cheaper than the refillable mug if you are looking for just a mug. Just my opinion.

Ah see I use the refillable mug. I drink a ton of coffee and soda every day and make good use of the refill stations. They are good at any of the resorts too so I bring it along with me to the parks so I have it if we end up at a resort.

 

[dzneelvr]

We're firm believers in the DDE as the way to go for dining at WDW It allows us a straight discount on the total bill, a huge selection of choices to dine at, an average of $300 savings per trip, and we eat only what we want to eat. as a family, we usually share courses, so it would be such a waste to pay for several courses per person per meal as some of the plans offer. We do only TS or resort food court, so all purchases qualify. Every situation is different, thank heavens for choices

 

[pigletforever]

We like the dining plan. It isn't a matter of the money. For us it is stopping and taking a breath for a little while. DS has Asperger's and he needs the down time. He loves the character meals and to me those alone are worth the DxDP. I also like to eat at 2TS restaurants for dinner and it works for us. But that is what is so great about it. There are several levels and to each his own. Last time I had some CS meals and snacks left over. We were able to convert them all to Snack Credits and we brought back treats for friends.

 

[ireland_nicole]

Dining plan affecionado here, as well. I totally see why it's definitely not right for everyone, but I have two kids on the autistic spectrum and a "mature" DM. And I have RA as well and need frequent breaks. For us, the hassle of trying to get back and forth to the hotel is so not doable, but the break from the meal is very relaxing for all of us. And like the pp said, for my kids, the character meals are a must. This coming year we're trying DxDDP for the first time; it's free dining, so not too much for us to upgrade, and we're going to try more breakfasts and two TS credit meals while DD is still not quite 10. After that, I don't know that it would be worth it any more, because she doesn't eat that much. As far as the planning goes, yes, it's effort to plan meals ahead, but it's effort we really enjoy; we love the planning for where we're going to eat on the next trip as much as what attractions we're going to ride, etc.

 

[CanadianGuy]

There are some trips that DDP would be a huge money saver for me..

But for most trips, it would end up costing me money based on my eating habits and choices.

Different strokes.. etc.

Knox

 

[ga9497]

We're firm believers in the DDE as the way to go for dining at WDW It allows us a straight discount on the total bill, a huge selection of choices to dine at, an average of $300 savings per trip, and we eat only what we want to eat. as a family, we usually share courses, so it would be such a waste to pay for several courses per person per meal as some of the plans offer. We do only TS or resort food court, so all purchases qualify. Every situation is different, thank heavens for choices

If you are an AP holder or a Florida resident then the DDE (TIW now) is the way to go but for those that an AP doesn't make sense or aren't florida residents and would like to eat one full service meal a day then the dining plan is a good option

 

[DisFlan]

We grabbed the bounce back offer for next fall with a 30% discount at SSR - and free dining. If the DDP wasn't free, we wouldn't have gotten it. We'd go with the TiW (DDE) as we have for the past few years and saved quite a bit with our eating pattern. But with the room discount AND the free DDP, it isn't a bad deal. (We're saving our DVC points for a family trip in 2010.) They were giving the DDP away and it's for when we wanted to go, so we grabbed it. We'll see how it works out.

We may renew our TiW card anyway (for the alcohol component alone) and carry it over for the following trip.

DisFlan

 

[VLee]

I have a DDE card that gives me 20% off on my meals and alcohol and gives me more flexibility on how I tour and tip so I use that instead.

I too use the DDE card, (now TIW) along with DDP at times, but I can't see how the DDE card gives you flexibility in how you tip. With the DDE, it is an automatic 18% gratituty, plus any more you care to leave. With the DDP, at least you have an option in the amount of the tip.

 

[ShannonMB]

Funny how differently everyone enjoys their vacation. I find the basic DP one of the best features of the trip to WDW! Even if I'm not saving tons of $, I love having it paid in advance, and I LOVE a sit down meal each day. A CS meal for breakfast or early lunch and then a sit down when we are about to drop and need a break. Oh, and a mickey ears ice cream in between. Perfect! I think Disney had me in mind when they designed the plan!

No matter how you eat/tour, enjoy your next trips everyone!!!

 

[KirstenB]

It's not for us. We tend to eat and run at WDW. We're too excited planning what we're going to do next. We do slow down for one buffet: the character breakfast at Park Faire.

 

[parmtoo]

We are trying the DDP for the first time in 3 weeks! Not sure if we'll like having all those ADRs, but honestly, right now I love that everything is paid before we go. We are taking the entire family, grown kids, spouses, and grandkids. We decided to give the DDP a try just for the simplicity of it all. Our meal times will be our meeting times as well. We can all do our own thing for most of the day, then meet for our evening meal. I'm pretty excited about trying it out.

 

[khertz]

My parents did the dining plan on their last vacation and liked it but thought it took too long at sit-downs when they could be enjoying the parks. DH and I opted not to do it on our honeymoon because we are both picky and not at all adventurous eaters, so a lot of the TS restaurants didn't appeal to us. After checking the menus on allears.net we thought we'd probably end up eating steak every single time, and even too much of a good thing can be bad! We have no problems eating burgers, pizza, chicken, etc. for our meals with a little something different every now and then. Plus, we liked to eat and run. The new QS dining plan might have worked for us, but we'll be staying off property next year, so that's out. I always still encourage it though to those who would find savings and enjoyment out of using the DDP. Now the deluxe plan, man, I just don't know how people can eat so much food!! To each their own, I guess...

 

[jackie101]

Funny how differently everyone enjoys their vacation. I find the basic DP one of the best features of the trip to WDW! Even if I'm not saving tons of $, I love having it paid in advance, and I LOVE a sit down meal each day. A CS meal for breakfast or early lunch and then a sit down when we are about to drop and need a break. Oh, and a mickey ears ice cream in between. Perfect! I think Disney had me in mind when they designed the plan!

No matter how you eat/tour, enjoy your next trips everyone!!!

I agree

 

[goofy4prez]

For us we love the DDP. When I'm on vacation for a week or more the last thing that I want to do is drink out of a paper cup and get quick serve food lug a food tray and hope to find a seat.

In August was our first trip to WDW. We stayed at the WL and were upgraded to the club level. This was great because we were able to grab our breakfast in the lounge(not a big breakfast eater) enjoy a very large CS lunch at one of the parks or resort, come back to the pool for a spell, go up to the lounge enjoy a few appetizers, and then in the evening have a nice TS dinner. And yes we took advantage of this and ordered something other than a burger and fries on the menu.

We are going to do the same thing again in January. This time we will be at the YC club level and will also have the DDP. It's a good deal for my family and myself.

 

[danielle.st]

Everyone is different. We went a little over a week ago and completely loved the deluxe dining plan. We only had one day that we felt we over ate (oddly enough, one in which we did snacks for breakfast and two sit down meals... we couldn't finish dinner). We loved that we could do all of the character meals in the only trip we may take for years. For people who go to WDW very often anyway (they don't have to try the restaurants allin one trip) or for those who don't care about characters, I can see it being a different story.
Oh, and we did a handful of counter service meals and the waits to get our food and pay were longer than I remember waiting for food at any sit down place. I walked into Pizzafari and 12:30pm one day and walked right back out, the lines were scary after being so used to ADRs all week. I wouldn't have liked having to reply on that many CS meals.
Oh, another thing is that my girls don't have the same taste in foods, so they wouldn't have enjoyed sharing at all most of the week.
And we used every meal and snack credit.

 

[CharacterFan]

I did a blog entry last week on the dining plan. It really is all about pricing it out, and what works best for your family. On my first trip to the world, I wouldn't have considered it because there is too much to see and spending all that time dining cuts into it, but now going back for my 25th time I love to eat at all the different places and review them.