Advice on Dining Plan- or any at all?

[ladulce]

Hi. I am going in February with my mother and my 4 children (10, 8, 4, 3). We are debating the dining plans. My mother and I enjoy food (though she is concerned about weight gain), but, are hesitant to take my "normal" behaving 4 year old son and 3 year old daughter to a sit down restaurant every night. I am wondering if, since it is Disney, they would be adequately entertained, or, if this would just be a frustrating experience for all involved. Also, I read that they would automatically add 18% to our bill- even if the 4 are children. Is this correct? That makes a huge difference in the "value" of this plan for us. Any suggestions, at all? Thanks.

 

[TDC Nala]

With that many children under 10, it may be a great deal for you to get basic dining if you plan on eating at table service restaurants.

Because there will be six of you, then yes, you will be charged an automatic 18% tip at all table service restaurants. But you would be charged that whether or not you are on the dining plan - because of the number of people in your party. The automatic gratuity is charged to ALL parties of six or more. The age of the children is not relevant. Even infants count toward party size.

This is to confirm your question about the automatic gratuity. Tipping questions and issues should be discussed in the Tipping Info thread, see the sticky at the top of this board. Tipping issues should not be discussed in regular threads. For the tipping discussion policy of the restaurant boards, see the first page of the Tipping Info Thread.

If your preference is to eat almost all counter service, then the plan may not be for you. If you want table service for a number of meals (including character meals) I'd consider it just because of the number of young children in your party.

 

[wdwluver]

As far as how your small children will handle eating a table service every night, I would just choose character meals and buffets. There is usually a lot of activity (distractions) that you shouldn't have to worry about them.

I'd recommend Chef Mickey's (of course), Whispering Canyon (it's not a buffet, but the staff have a tendency to go overboard - yelling, throwing straws at you. A lot of silliness.), 1900 Park Fare, Crystal Palace. HTH.

 

[karliebug]

The dining plan is an especially good value when you have kids in your party because where else can you feed them 2 meals and a snack for $11? I would do character meals, maybe a dinner show like HDDR (but this is 2 credits)and Ohanas in the Poly (hula lessons and coconut races during the meal) .

 

[SoonipiLady]

which is 2 CS and 2 snacks per day. Then you don't need to worry about the sit down meal issue. If you plan on using the regular plan, it's a great deal for kids and they should be fine at the character meals. Lots to occupy them!

 

[an_evans]

I actually felt like the sit down dinners were welcome. The children were glad to sit down and pretty excited. we did a mix of character and normal.

 

[PrincessTiffany]

Hi. I am going in February with my mother and my 4 children (10, 8, 4, 3). We are debating the dining plans. My mother and I enjoy food (though she is concerned about weight gain), but, are hesitant to take my "normal" behaving 4 year old son and 3 year old daughter to a sit down restaurant every night. I am wondering if, since it is Disney, they would be adequately entertained, or, if this would just be a frustrating experience for all involved. Also, I read that they would automatically add 18% to our bill- even if the 4 are children. Is this correct? That makes a huge difference in the "value" of this plan for us. Any suggestions, at all? Thanks.

We have 4 children - 6, 7, 8 and 11. We've been using the plan since they were 3, 4, 5 and 8 and we will not go to WDW without it! It saves us a lot of money, even with paying the tips it's totally worth it.

 

[Dani C]

They should be fine, for the most part, as this is Disney. You might wish to be selective however on the meals you choose. For instance, The Garden Grill or Character Buffets are very child friendly while Le Chefs de France and several others in Epcot are more "adult" atmosphere dining. This in no way means that children aren't welcome there, just that they don't specifically cater to them (no real entertainment for them).

Whatever you decide, Quick Service or regular plan or even going without a plan, I hope you and your family have a wonderful experience.

 

[septbaby]

I would do the Basic Dining plan and definitely not the QS. You don't have to use those TS credits for dinners only. The character breakfasts maybe perfect for your "rowdy" crowd as the kids are not so wired or tired at that time. Also consider TS lunches, we had one at Coral Reef and it was a welcome break on a busy park day. Still treat you and mom to a nice dinner or 2, maybe plan them after you've gone back to the hotel for swim break an naps.

 

[blanq]

If you decide on the dining plan, you might want to consider using some of your TS credits for lunch instead of dinner if you have concerns about your kids doing TS meals every night. Sometimes little ones aren't as burned out mid-day and therefore can handle a longer noon meal.

As far as your mom being concerned about weight gain on the DDP, it is very possible to eat more food than you usually do and not gain weight at WDW due to all of the walking you do. Our family did the dining plan 2x last year (a 9 day trip in Jan and a 10 day trip in Oct), and I did not gain any weight either time. This also was back when appetizers were part of the TS meals on the DDP. I am not a small woman, and tend to gain weight easily at home if I am not careful what I eat and slack off on my excercise.

 

[TDC Nala]

If you decide on the dining plan, you might want to consider using some of your TS credits for lunch instead of dinner if you have concerns about your kids doing TS meals every night. Sometimes little ones aren't as burned out mid-day and therefore can handle a longer noon meal.

Or breakfast. A lot of posters seem to be under the impression that you must use TS credits for dinner only, or they are really sticking to the fact that dinner is more expensive than breakfast or lunch and you get the most value from the plan if you use your TS credits for dinner exclusively. The fact is, you may use TS credits for any meal at any participating TS restaurant.