2009 - Will you do the Dining Plan?

[mickeynut1]

We will continue to do the dining plan as it works great for our family of 4, which includes 2 teen DSs . We may even try the deluxe DDP one of these trips, but for now the basic DDP is PLENTY for us . I just wish the 2009 basic DDP included the refillable mug.....but no biggie.....we'll just purchase those like we always do .

 

[DiszyDean]

am i reading this right......for the dining plan (not the delux or the counter service)...for the table service meals, only the kids get an appetizer?!?!?

Keep in mind that these are not your normal "adult" sized appetizers that the kids get and in many cases, they will consist of some grapes or a small garden salad or something similar.

I consider it more of a side item than an actual "appetizer".

 

[imthatgirl]

this is from the disney site...it no longer says you get a cs on the basic plan...WTH!!!???
Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining

Includes:
All the benefits included in the Magic Your Way Package
Disney's PhotoPass certificate for one 5 X 7 photo — When you book a Magic Your Way package online, you receive a certificate valid for one 5 X 7 print from Disney's PhotoPass. With Disney's PhotoPass service, your magical Walt Disney World Resort vacation memories are captured by a professional photographer. We then make them available to view and share online!

(Certificate for 5 X 7 print must be redeemed at Walt Disney World Resort. One certificate per room. Available upon check in.)

Planet Hollywood® certificate — Enjoy a $15 certificate valid for food and non-alcoholic beverages at the Downtown Disney® West Side location of Planet Hollywood®.

Disney's miniature golf certificate — Receive one certificate valid for one round of miniature golf (per room) at either Disney's Fantasia Gardens or Disney's Winter Summerland Miniature Golf Courses.

Sea Raycers offer — Receive a certificate valid for 30 extra minutes of watercraft fun when you buy 60 minutes (applicable for up to 5 Guests).

Disney arcade card — Receive a card valid for 30 minutes at select Walt Disney World Resort hotel arcades. (One card per room. Not available for reservations at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Hotel.).

Commemorative luggage tag — Receive one commemorative luggage tag for every person in your party.
Room accomodations of your choice
The room accomodations you select are included in the Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining.
Magic Your Way Base Ticket
All Magic Your Way packages include a Magic Your Way Base Ticket for entry into one of the Walt Disney World Theme Parks for each day of your ticket. Customize your ticket by adding days, the Park Hopper® Option, the Water Park Fun & More* Option or the No Expiration Option in any combination that meets your needs.
One table-service meal per person, per night (ages 3+)**
One adult table-service meal includes one entrée and one dessert (lunch or dinner only), one juice (breakfast only) and one single serving non-alcoholic beverage, or one full buffet.

One child table-service meal includes one appetizer, one entrée, one dessert (lunch or dinner only) and one single serving non-alcoholic beverage, or one full buffet.

Two table-service meals will be redeemed per person dining for Private Dining, Cinderella's Royal Table, Dinner Show or Signature Dining Experience. Two table-service meals will be redeemed per person dining for all Grand Gathering Experiences except for the Good Morning Character Breakfast, which requires only one table-service meal. Pizza delivery requires two table-service meals per serving.

Applicable taxes are included. Gratuities are not included., exept for pizza delivery, Private Dining, Dinner Shows and Cinderella's Royal Table.
One snack per person, per night (ages 3+)**
One snack includes one of the following: frozen ice cream novelty, popsicle, fruit bar, popcorn scoop (single serving box), single serving grab bag of chips, single piece of whole fruit, 20-oz. bottle of Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite or Dasani water, medium fountain soft drink or juice, 12-oz. coffee, hot chocolate or hot tea.
Admission to select Grand Gathering Experiences (for parties of 8 or more)
If you have eight or more in your party, a variety of magical experiences are waiting for you!

(Advance reservations required. Subject to availability. Two table-service meals will be redeemed per person, except for the Good Morning Character Breakfast, which requires only one table-service meal.)
Wine and

 

[loriandmatt]

Quote:
Originally Posted by loriandmatt
am i reading this right......for the dining plan (not the delux or the counter service)...for the table service meals, only the kids get an appetizer?!?!?

Keep in mind that these are not your normal "adult" sized appetizers that the kids get and in many cases, they will consist of some grapes or a small garden salad or something similar.

I consider it more of a side item than an actual "appetizer".

Yes you are reading that right. I think they put that in there because the kids meals at the TS locations include an appetizer, entree and dessert.

to me this is a waste of $. it is sort of like WDW is acting like they are giving you something that you really don't want or need. most kids (of kid meal age) can barely finish their entre much less an appetizer, no matter how small that appetizer is.

thanks for nothing.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

imthatgirl, um, I just looked and disney's website says the DDP is the same as last year.

In addition to your Magic Your Way Base Ticket and Disney Resort
accommodations, the Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining includes the
following, per person for each night of your package stay:

1 Table Service Meal
1 Quick Service Meal
1 Snack
And it goes on to list more details.



I haven't decided yet about next year. I might just skip the DDP. We might want to stay at Coronado next year or maybe check out the new CBR. If we pick Coronado, then the DDP wouldn't be worthwhile.

I have mixed feelings about the reduced list of places taking DDP next year. On the one hand, those that don't might ACTUALLY have some ADR's available! On the other hand, much of WS won't beon the plan, and that's kind of a downer, sonce that's one of the area we liket o dine. Even Japan, Mexico, and Morocco's QS places are off the list, as is pretty much everything at DTD. Planet Hollywood is no great loss for our family, but some of the others will be a loss.

Losses: All od CSR's dining, Boulangerie patisserie, Cantina de San Angel, Lotus Blossom, Tangierine Cafe, Yakitori House, Chefs de France, Marrakesh, SAn Angel Inn, TeppanEdo, Tokyo dining, Tutto Italia, Yak and Yeti, Cookes of Dublin, Earl of Sandwich, Wolfgang Puck express and Cafe, planet Hollywood, andRaglan Road.

The convenience of DDP is having your meals prepaid, that's partially lost if I have to deal with the hassle of having to figure out if the place I want to dine is on the list of places that accept DDP.

 

[Rock'n Robin]

We've done very well with the DP the last few trips. No DDE for us because I don't have an annual pass and our next 2 trips won't let one work out for us time-wise.
Two wrinkles this year: I"m in the same boat with my youngest now being 10 years old. I know he'd still rather have a grilled cheese or a hot dog than a fancy adult meal (although he devoured the "kid's' steak at Yachtsman). I see a lot of wasted food coming on this trip! I plan to eat our CS lunch early and dinner a little later so he has time to get hungry.
Also, we are staying DVC. I loved the convenience of paying ahead of time, but now I am paying at check-in, which means I have to be careful to have that much $$$ by then.
I think it's a good deal esp. since we are in one of those "high-demand" times which means at least one of our meals (Chef Mickey's) has the price jacked up. We more than made our money out of it last year. We do the parks in a more relaxed manner now and sitting down for a TS is a nice change--plus we will do at least one "signature" restaurant.
Robin M.

 

[joeybugs]

We have never done the dining plan in the past and don't plan on doing it in the future. My husband and I like appetizers and we usually share an entree and a dessert so the dining plan doesn't really work out so great for that type of eating.

 

[jeannejj]

Just curious where you got the prices from. Just talked to Member Services and was told that the DDP prices for 2009 were not out yet, and couldn't be put on my reservation. (June 2009) Was told to call back and add it later.

Thanks

 

[WishesQueen]

Hey, just back from WDW and we used the regular DP. My DH and I were disappointed over the change, but we love WDW and went with the flow. We decided after going back and forth to choose the regular DP after reading many of the posts on Disboards.

At all of our TS dinners my DH and I ordered an alcohol beverage, we were traveling with our 2 children and nephew (Ages 15, 14, 11). We order 2 or 3 appetizers at every meal and left no less the 20% tip (the servers were awesome and difference between 18 and 20 was a dollar or two). We ate some of the great TS restaurants (le Cellier, Teppan Edo, Tutto Italia, WWC, Mama Melrose, GF Cafe, the Plaza) and never paid more then $100 oop (actually only 2 restaurants came close to $100 (Le Cellier - Cheddar Soup and Teppan Edo - Sushi appies), most were approx 50 -60$$ OOP!!

If we would have done the Deluxe Dining Plan it would have cost over $1,000. We kept all our receipts and calculated under $800 OOP for dinners. We also calculated that we save approx $125 to $175 in meals with the plan. So we would definitely do it again, I even think I would stick to the regular plan and pay OOP!! I just think that the Deluxe is alot of food, I would love it, but my body and stomach might not and the last thing you want in WDW is to not feel well!!!

I was going to reserve a signature restaurant, but with the regular dining plan it was as always 2TS but this did not include appies. I just thought that for 2TS they should have thrown in appies. There are sooooo many great 1TS restaurants that I decided against it. So if doing the Deluxe plan I would suggest many signature or Character meals!!

I hope this helps someone!!!

PS - Signature Restaurant take ALOT of time too!! Keep that in mind!!! Our 1TS meals all took over an hour, it was perfect!!

 

[tlhbdm]

If we go(and I hope we do) we will be doing the deluxe dining plan

 

[JessLCH]

No, won't do the DP. I did the math and none of the plans are cost effective for us. Makes more sense for us to just pay OOP.

When we went back in 2007 and gratuity was included the DDP was definitely more cost effective for us. Not so much any more as we are likely to share a CS sandwich for lunch than get a full fast food meal with dessert. We'd' have to pay for some TS meals out of pocket as we do more than 1/day, yet nowhere near enough for the DDxP to be worthwhile.

 

[forgop]

We did the DDP plan in December 2007 and it was a great deal because it included gratuity. Is the DDP as good of a deal in 2008 or 2009? Certainly not.

That said, I've looked at the menu for the 7 restaurants I'm planning on using for my TS meals in 2009(Coral Reef, Le Cellier, Teppan Edo, Whispering Canyon, Crystal Palace, Boma, and Ohana). Knowing the prices I'm paying for food only, my wife and I will get 14 snacks and 14 CS meals and only be short around $45 based upon my total DDP bill. Assuming the snacks offset the $45 to break even, we get 14 CS meals for "free".

Can we do much better for food out of pocket by not splurging on the $30 TS meals? Certainly. The variety of food and environment at these TS meals will be well worth it in my opinion.

 

[DiszyDean]

The first year we stayed at a mod and paid for the Basic Dining Plan and thought it was a great deal (this was when apps and tips were included).

The second year we stayed at a mod and got free dining (still with apps and tips included), obviously a fantastic deal.

Last year we stayed at a value and got the free dining (with apps and tips included) and that was an almost unbelievable deal.

This year we are going on a "childless" cruise as a second honeymoon so we decided to skip WDW.

We are planning on going back next year but will probably only do it during free dining and will pay to upgrade to the Basic Plan if all that is being offered for free dining is the new QS plan. We will also be staying at a value when we go back next year.

I think that everyone has to do what best fits them or their family. IMO, there really is no "right" or "wrong" when choosing whether or not to do the plan.

 

[bicker]

Please do not flame me but I think it's kind of funny how people are griping about $38.99 per adult for the basic DDP. I do wish we had a choice of appetizer or dessert rather than just dessert. However, I think that $38.99 is a good deal for 2 meals and a snack.

The only important comparison is to how much the included meals and snacks would cost if you bought them using cash. Using that metric, the Dining Plans can be quite decent values. Now, you can choose to under-utilize the plan you purchase, thereby getting less value from it than it offers, so folks need to evaluate the offerings from the context of how they, themselves, are likely to use it.

 

[smartestnumber5]

Nope.

I just did a comparison of a bunch of different trip plans. We for sure would never do the QS DDP because we would still choose to do TS restaurants. We'd have to force ourselves to eat CS meals when we didn't necessarily want them, and in the end I calculated that we'd maybe save $20 over the entire 7 day trip. (Plus we'd probably scale back our TS meals so we wouldn't actually be eating the places we'd want to.)

Also for sure no to the DXDDP (unless it's free/discounted--we are getting it for $30 a person per day in a few weeks! ). I calculated we'd pay 1179 for the DXDDP and tips for 7 days. But if we had a "splurge" trip where we paid out OOP we could eat at almost all of the same restaurants and be just as happy and full for $950 with tips OOP.

No regular DDP for us either. I did the calculating and for what we would get it would be $716 for DDP + tips + a few OOP meals. But if we went to exactly the same restaurants and ordered what we actually want/would be happy with (rather than getting a dessert at every single CS restaurant and choosing the most expensive thing on the menu just to maximize value) the total would be $707. We'd probably throw in a few extra snacks (things we'd want to eat if we were on the DDP, but would chose not to get because we'd be eating all the CS desserts that we didn't really want in the first place) so it would be more like $728 with the snacks.

So nope, none of the scenarios seem to make the any of the dining plans work out very well for us and I don't see any value in the "convenience" of the plan. (Charging to the room is just as easy to me as using a DDP credit, but at least if I haven't pre-paid I can always cancel an ADR without thinking "this is costing me $60!") And then if you add in the need to buy 1 day the (upfront at least) cost is even higher. We still have a 1 day ticket lying around from last year which we won't use til next year at the earliest--essentially a free two year loan to WDW.

 

[lisaviolet]

I have mixed feelings about the reduced list of places taking DDP next year. On the one hand, those that don't might ACTUALLY have some ADR's available! On the other hand, much of WS won't beon the plan, and that's kind of a downer, sonce that's one of the area we liket o dine. Even Japan, Mexico, and Morocco's QS places are off the list, as is pretty much everything at DTD. Planet Hollywood is no great loss for our family, but some of the others will be a loss.

Losses: All od CSR's dining, Boulangerie patisserie, Cantina de San Angel, Lotus Blossom, Tangierine Cafe, Yakitori House, Chefs de France, Marrakesh, SAn Angel Inn, TeppanEdo, Tokyo dining, Tutto Italia, Yak and Yeti, Cookes of Dublin, Earl of Sandwich, Wolfgang Puck express and Cafe, planet Hollywood, andRaglan Road.

The convenience of DDP is having your meals prepaid, that's partially lost if I have to deal with the hassle of having to figure out if the place I want to dine is on the list of places that accept DDP.

Is this a final decision with all these restaurants for 2009? Or are they still in negotiations with Disney?

If is a final decision can someone link a thread with info for me?

Thank you,

Lisa

Oh as for the DDP I would go for the Quick Service version for sure. I like CS. They have some great healthy options. And I hate ADRs. But without Pepper Market and Yakitori House - maybe not.

 

[bicker]

This is the way it works every year. The initial list of participating restaurants includes the Disney-owned restaurants. The other restaurants get added to the list later.

Every restaurant on mickeyluv'r's list are non-Disney-owned: Pepper Market, Maya Grill, Boulangerie Patisserie, Cantina de San Angel, Lotus Blossom, Tangerine Cafe, Yakitori House, Chefs de France, Marrakesh, San Angel Inn, Teppan Edo, Tutto Italia, Yak and Yeti, Cookes of Dublin, Earl of Sandwich, Wolfgang Puck Express and Cafe, Planet Hollywood, and Raglan Road.

 

[lisaviolet]

This is the way it works every year. The initial list of participating restaurants includes the Disney-owned restaurants. The other restaurants get added to the list later.

That's what I thought Bicker. The post made it seem final. Just checking. Yeah.

 

[ssawka]

this is from the disney site...it no longer says you get a cs on the basic plan...WTH!!!???
Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining

Includes:
All the benefits included in the Magic Your Way Package
Disney's PhotoPass certificate for one 5 X 7 photo — When you book a Magic Your Way package online, you receive a certificate valid for one 5 X 7 print from Disney's PhotoPass. With Disney's PhotoPass service, your magical Walt Disney World Resort vacation memories are captured by a professional photographer. We then make them available to view and share online!

(Certificate for 5 X 7 print must be redeemed at Walt Disney World Resort. One certificate per room. Available upon check in.)

Planet Hollywood® certificate — Enjoy a $15 certificate valid for food and non-alcoholic beverages at the Downtown Disney® West Side location of Planet Hollywood®.

Disney's miniature golf certificate — Receive one certificate valid for one round of miniature golf (per room) at either Disney's Fantasia Gardens or Disney's Winter Summerland Miniature Golf Courses.

Sea Raycers offer — Receive a certificate valid for 30 extra minutes of watercraft fun when you buy 60 minutes (applicable for up to 5 Guests).

Disney arcade card — Receive a card valid for 30 minutes at select Walt Disney World Resort hotel arcades. (One card per room. Not available for reservations at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Hotel.).

Commemorative luggage tag — Receive one commemorative luggage tag for every person in your party.
Room accomodations of your choice
The room accomodations you select are included in the Magic Your Way Package Plus Dining.
Magic Your Way Base Ticket
All Magic Your Way packages include a Magic Your Way Base Ticket for entry into one of the Walt Disney World Theme Parks for each day of your ticket. Customize your ticket by adding days, the Park Hopper® Option, the Water Park Fun & More* Option or the No Expiration Option in any combination that meets your needs.
One table-service meal per person, per night (ages 3+)**
One adult table-service meal includes one entrée and one dessert (lunch or dinner only), one juice (breakfast only) and one single serving non-alcoholic beverage, or one full buffet.

One child table-service meal includes one appetizer, one entrée, one dessert (lunch or dinner only) and one single serving non-alcoholic beverage, or one full buffet.

Two table-service meals will be redeemed per person dining for Private Dining, Cinderella's Royal Table, Dinner Show or Signature Dining Experience. Two table-service meals will be redeemed per person dining for all Grand Gathering Experiences except for the Good Morning Character Breakfast, which requires only one table-service meal. Pizza delivery requires two table-service meals per serving.

Applicable taxes are included. Gratuities are not included., exept for pizza delivery, Private Dining, Dinner Shows and Cinderella's Royal Table.
One snack per person, per night (ages 3+)**
One snack includes one of the following: frozen ice cream novelty, popsicle, fruit bar, popcorn scoop (single serving box), single serving grab bag of chips, single piece of whole fruit, 20-oz. bottle of Coke, Diet Coke, Sprite or Dasani water, medium fountain soft drink or juice, 12-oz. coffee, hot chocolate or hot tea.
Admission to select Grand Gathering Experiences (for parties of 8 or more)
If you have eight or more in your party, a variety of magical experiences are waiting for you!

(Advance reservations required. Subject to availability. Two table-service meals will be redeemed per person, except for the Good Morning Character Breakfast, which requires only one table-service meal.)
Wine and

This sounds like the AAA package, are you sure you were looking at Disney's site?

 

[Kaler131]

I voted yes....if it's FREE dining! LOL