The Psychology of Pre-Payment

[Praying Colonel]

When I saw this Lifehacker article I thought of DDP and the discussions of whether it's worth it. The article explains why people generally enjoy something more if they pay for it ahead of time. From the article:

The flip side of coupling is that we’re also less likely to enjoy our purchase when we’re closely linked to it. It’s more painful. The awareness of dropping $150 cash for a hotel can take away from the fun of traveling, for example. So Hershfield offers a solution:

If you want to derive more enjoyment out of what you consume (think about going on vacation but being stressed about how much various things cost) then pay for the experience in advance. Doing so decouples the pain of paying from the consumption of the experience. Prelec and Loewenstein, in fact, mention a concept known as prospective accounting, in which consuming something that has already been paid for can be enjoyed as if it was free. This is akin to prepaying for a hotel room, and then having the pleasant feeling that the room was free upon receipt of the zero-balance bill.​

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[lwc]

This is definitely a part of why we do the dining plan.

My husband would NOT be able to enjoy the vacation if he had to look at $200 and $300 meal tabs every night.

The other part of it is that my husband never really knows exactly how much we spend on our vacations.

I budget for them, make sure the $$ is saved, and put nothing on credit. He plays a part in the decisions about whether to put extra cash toward the vacation fund or towards other needs/wants, but he remains oblivious to the totals.

When I mention something like the Frozen Fun Premium Package and he asked what it costs, I say "it's in our budget" or "if we want to do that we'll have to give up Hoop-de-do" but we rarely actually talk numbers.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

disney knows this - that is why there is a dining plan.

The deal with the dining plan is that it's entirely possible to get less in strict monetary value from the plan than you would have if you just purchased everything as you went. But guests don't care, because it FEELS like you are getting something for nothing.

There is also the chance that you will "make some money" on the plan but over the years that's less likely for most guests.

 

[alrushton]

That is one of the main reasons I am getting it. I just think of the trip as costing me X amount of money and then feel like we are eating for free. I would much rather look at it like this instead of this

 

[angierae]

I have crunched the numbers over and over. We will save hundreds by not getting the DDP. And yet I'm still tempted because it means that I won't have to think about how much things cost.

 

[flightBOS]

I have crunched the numbers over and over. We will save hundreds by not getting the DDP. And yet I'm still tempted because it means that I won't have to think about how much things cost.

Just a thought... I too like pre-paying for everything. Typically I go when we can get free dining. But, if not, I buy Disney gift cards for a bit over the expected amount at Target/Sam's Club. Then, everything (food, snacks, etc.) gets charged to the room, and I know its all paid for with gift cards...I just go down and apply the gift cards to the room charges the night before we leave. Any gift cards left over go towards the next vacation

 

[Pkltm]

We have paid for the DDP, gotten it free and done out of pocket. By far I enjoyed the free DDP most lol, but i still enjoyed myself more having the DDP plan than not, it changes the way I order, and how much I enjoy eat meal, no more internal cringing when DH orders the steak insead of the burger.

 

[DisneyHardin]

We get the dining plan for this exact reason. We are big eaters and usually break even on the plan, but it is just so nice to not worry about the cost of things. If I were paying OOP and went to a place that had steak on the menu for $32 or chicken for $22, even though I might really want steak, I would most likely order the chicken just to save the $10. On the DDP, I can not worry about ordering the steak.

 

[ILoveDzny]

We get the dining plan for this exact reason. We are big eaters and usually break even on the plan, but it is just so nice to not worry about the cost of things. If I were paying OOP and went to a place that had steak on the menu for $32 or chicken for $22, even though I might really want steak, I would most likely order the chicken just to save the $10. On the DDP, I can not worry about ordering the steak.

Completely agree!!! I love knowing it's all paid for before we go on vacation! We too are big eaters and I feel we get our monies worth. I also like knowing I can order anything I want off of the menu!

 

[PoohsHunnyBee]

We get the dining plan for this exact reason. We are big eaters and usually break even on the plan, but it is just so nice to not worry about the cost of things. If I were paying OOP and went to a place that had steak on the menu for $32 or chicken for $22, even though I might really want steak, I would most likely order the chicken just to save the $10. On the DDP, I can not worry about ordering the steak.

I think that's great for many people; however, I do want to point out the flipside. Some people really want the chicken, but feel a pressure/need/desire/whatever to get their money's worth and order the steak because it's more expensive OOP. Then maybe they don't particularly enjoy the steak and keep wishing they had just had the chicken. Then the bill comes and they realize they will be paying more OOP to leave the same percentage tip because they ordered the steak they didn't really want in the first place.

 

[sharonabe]

We are definitely that "flip-side" PoohsHunnyBee speaks of. We enjoy a good steak, but we don't want one every night. My oldest can live off of pizza and chicken nuggets. My youngest is adventurous and likes different things. DH and I try to eat light even on vacation. I've perused the menus countless times, and "ordered" meals I know my family will enjoy and we ALWAYS come out less than any dining plan Disney offers. The knowledge that we can eat and enjoy our vacation while beating Disney at their DDP game is a big WIN and psychological kick for me.

 

[Tonberry]

I'm with most of the others that the big reason we get the DDP is to not have to worry about dropping a credit card 2 to 3 times a day for food.
If I'm going to Disney and spending lots of money on a room, food, drinks, park tickets, airfare, and souvenirs, then I'm going to want as little stress and worry as possible. Especially when it comes to eating. Sitting down for a meal is our way of taking a break from the craziness and just relaxing and enjoying ourselves for an hour with no worries at all.

Knowing that I can order nearly anything off the menu and it's all paid for already keeps me relaxed and feeling good. I won't even stress about adding everything up to see if I get my money's worth as I already tell myself that probably won't happen.

For people traveling on a budget, I can understand trying to get your money's worth when dining. And I know everybody is different, but I kind of find it funny when people shell out lots of money for Disney, stay at a deluxe resort with park hopper passes for a week, and worry about what to eat to get the most out of their dining plan.

 

[Mom2Stitch]

We have always done the dining plan, whether paying for it or during FD and we usually do the Deluxe Dining plan. For us dining is as much a part of the vacation as the parks.

Having said that I just found out about ticketless packages, so I priced out the regular dining plan for our one night room only before our FD package starts. It was eye opening-we can pay for Ohana's and a QS OOP cheaper than the dining plan, not counting the snack or mug of course.

 

[FTM22]

We do the DDP (usually for free dining because of when we travel) and it makes the vacation part better without the cringing over meal prices for sure. That said, I use it for those expensive snacks at F&W and then eat what we want. If I know it will be cheap, I pay OOP too. It just takes away an argument about food, which is worth lots to me (who dropped $23 on frozen yogurt for four people last night and I got the least amount). It depends on how you enjoy things best.\

ETA what's a ticketless package?

 

[HubbDave]

Another option is to buy a pre-paid credit card (Visa, etc) for the equivalent of what you would pay for the Dining Plan.
Many (not all) people would come out ahead and would then have that money left to buy souvenirs, etc.

Prepaid, so no worries, and maybe money left over afterwards. Best of both worlds

 

[HubbDave]

We do the DDP (usually for free dining because of when we travel) and it makes the vacation part better without the cringing over meal prices for sure. That said, I use it for those expensive snacks at F&W and then eat what we want. If I know it will be cheap, I pay OOP too. It just takes away an argument about food, which is worth lots to me (who dropped $23 on frozen yogurt for four people last night and I got the least amount). It depends on how you enjoy things best.\

ETA what's a ticketless package?

A room and dining plan, but no park ticket?

 

[jon18uk]

I loved the dining plan when we paid for it in 2008 but it included three courses and tip so was great value. Now most UK packages include it and it is still convienent and I wouldn't eat as much table service without it. But without DDP I would never have dessert with Quick Service and for this reason it is not worth paying for the plan as you then feel you have get the value.

If I didn't get the free plan I would only eat maybe five table service meals over a 14 night trip, the rest would be quick service.

 

[angierae]

Just a thought... I too like pre-paying for everything. Typically I go when we can get free dining. But, if not, I buy Disney gift cards for a bit over the expected amount at Target/Sam's Club. Then, everything (food, snacks, etc.) gets charged to the room, and I know its all paid for with gift cards...I just go down and apply the gift cards to the room charges the night before we leave. Any gift cards left over go towards the next vacation

And then I'll get there and think "But there are so many other things I could spend this money on rather than food!"

 

[flightBOS]

And then I'll get there and think "But there are so many other things I could spend this money on rather than food!"

Fair enough. Or you could buy the same amount of gift cards as you would've spent on the DDP, and then you can get there and think "Imagine what I can buy all this excess money left over, in addition to food!"

 

[Jing]

We out-eat the dining plan, so it works out for us financially. The pre-pay has never been part of the equation because we have that money saved (pre-saved?), and we order based on what we want, not to maximize savings. we do not always get it because we love Swolphin and because we often do off-site dining.