I don't remember how much it cost, this was in March 2006, but I think it might have actually been cheaper?

I think the dining plan has only gotten increasingly more expensive. It's sad too, because my 2006 trip was for Spring Break during my senior year in college. I fell in love with the dining plan because it was such a great deal, and vowed I would never go back without it. Sure enough in December 2007 my family and I went for our Christmas trip, and I forced them to get the dining plan. By then the tip was no longer included, but you still got app, entree and dessert for each table service meal. I'm pretty sure then it was cheaper than it is now... Even so we were planning on doing the DxDP this December, until I decided to get the AP as well as the TIW card, which would actually save us more than the dining plan. After we ran the numbers for our restaurants we realized that we would barely be justifying the cost of the plan, and the TIW card gets me and up to 10 other people 20% off all food and bev (including alcohol). Sure the card costs $75, but it's still worth it since I will use it for my other 2 trips!
*As a matter of fact, I just researched it, and in 2006, the dining plan was around $35, in 2007 it was $38.99 and in 2008 it was $37.99. I assume that the price drop between 2007 and 2008 is when they dropped the appetizer? Still, since 2006 the price has risen roughly $6 and the inclusions have decreased drastically...*