Anyone else completely priced out of the buffets at Disney now?

[KStash]

Here's the current cost (including tax)...
Trail’s End:
Dinner: Adult: $37.28, Child: $20.24

So, with 18-20% tip, it's $44/adult (all in) and $24/kid (all in)...

Thanks, that’s helpful! There are 8 of us so it’ll be pricey but could be worse (cough...Ohana).

For Trails End, at least I get 10% off with my Disney Visa.

 

[TammyLynn33]

I’m taking the two littles to a character breakfast and allowing the teens to skip it as they would rather ride .
Saves me a ton of money .. win win

 

[mi*vida*loca]

I’m taking the two littles to a character breakfast and allowing the teens to skip it as they would rather ride .
Saves me a ton of money .. win win

Last trip I took DD to CRT and the boys went to Cosmic Rays and rode Splash a few times. Win win for us.

 

[Summertinkerbell]

When the kids were little, character buffets were a priority, the favorite being Crystal Palace. Chef Mickeys was never really a good experience and definitely not worth the money. The food at Crystal Palace wasn't great the last time we ate there. Cape May Cafe is a decent buffet, but without character interaction.

At this point, I would rather just eat at nice restaurants like Cali Grill and Narcoossees.

 

[NYCgrrl]

It is expensive. We are doing Trails End on arrival night and the website doesn’t even list an exact price anymore, so I have no clue what it costs.

Use your room price as a barometer. Traveling low season? Your room and Trail's End meal will be less expensive. Traveling high season? Everything costs more.

 

[Simba's Mom]

For Trails End, at least I get 10% off with my Disney Visa.

We have gotten so that we won't eat anywhere that we don't get a DVC/AP/VISA discount. Fortunately lots of places do.

 

[snappy]

We avoid buffets. We like to share meals both to limit calaries and sample more items. We do better health wise avoiding flour and sugar that abound in buffet offerings.

 

[NYCgrrl]

We avoid buffets. We like to share meals both to limit calaries and sample more items. We do better health wise avoiding flour and sugar that abound in buffet offerings.

Hulloooooooooooo.

 

[snappy]

Yep, it’s something that helps DH manage his type2 diabetes. We do better at restaurants like Sanaa. They have a wonderful bread service but when we inquired last week, they offered the option to order 1 piece of their in house made Naan bread and we split it. A little of that good stuff goes a long way.

 

[Lisa F]

the price hikes are not large enough that they should be pricing people out of their Disney vacation, but as others have mentioned, it's a question of value.

For me it is easier to swallow because it is just myself and my son, even though my son is now a disney adult and I had bariatric surgery and can't eat much. I kind of just budget for the overall experience and close my eyes to the actual cost of any one thing. It helps also that our next trip is on DVC points and APs purchased last year so I'm not laying out another $4k at the moment in hotel and park tickets alone, but this is also going to be our last trip for a while (I share the dvc contract with my ex and I traded to have 2 years in a row to use the AP and he gets the next 2).

I love to do split stays and what it DID do was cause me to move my ADRs around so all of the AYCTE meals are at the first half of the trip and the a la carte where we can order off the kids menu or split an entree are second half and we'll get the DDP for first half. which is probably playing right into Disney's hands but, whatever. We'll have 5 full days to use 4 days worth of credits and it helped our schedule immensely in the end.

I'm not priced out but the cost is eroding the enjoyment a bit.

 

[cruiser21]

I feel like the strategy is to raise the prices to push the dining plans. People who want to do the buffets and character meals are not going to want to spend $60 a person and will purchase the plan instead.

I think you hit the nail on the head.

 

[katmittens]

Did the prices just go up? Does anyone know what the current price for Cape May for dinner is? We will be there Nov. 23rd. Thanks

 

[SaintsManiac]

I wouldn't say priced out, but I think we are done with most of them for now. My kid just doesn't eat enough to justify it. We still book GG PPO because we like the early advantage and it's our favorite breakfast. I think that one alone is worth the price tag.

 

[cmwade77]

Not really, we will be doing the dining plan, it will save us a lot of money over out of pocket with these price increases since the dining plan price didn't increase. We were going to do the dining plan anyway because while we could eat slightly cheaper, we wouldn't have been getting what we really wanted, so the dining plan made sense for us before the price increases, with them it is just a given.

 

[cmwade77]

Did the prices just go up? Does anyone know what the current price for Cape May for dinner is? We will be there Nov. 23rd. Thanks

Yes, prices for all food and snacks went up about a week ago and for many items by as much as a 40% increase. Seriously, look at the current prices and make sure it doesn't change your view on the dining plan or other ways to save money.

 

[cmwade77]

I think you hit the nail on the head.

Yep, you figure, $60+tax is almost the same cost as one day of the dining plan, not counting the counter service, snacks and refillable mug included.

 

[Jillpie]

Priced out? No
Unwilling to pay the insane prices? Yes

This is us too. I refuse to pay that kind of money for eggs. We are BCV owners, and it blows me away that Cape May is packed every single morning. I get it, the characters are adorable, but still wouldn't do it. Ironically, we do pay those prices for Cape May's dinner however! The variety is amazing, and feel like we get what we pay for. But, that is the only buffet on property I'll pay for.

 

[pepe of ohio]

Agree with about everyone...completely out priced themselves for us...we can't do buffets justice anymore, can't eat all that food to justify cost...Trail End was our favorite but in the last bunch of years, as we got older, seniors now, wife and i share most meals...resort food court breakfasts are huge enough to satisfy our stomach, dining plans are no help to how we eat so we never bother with them..OOP works for us...WDW was never about the food, more interested in the park, especially the MK, and resort..

 

[Simba's Mom]

After I was reading this, I happened to check the latest buffet prices. Yikes! For just DH and myself, 2 people, a breakfast buffet can easily run $80 and lunch (now the same price as dinner, which irks me, but that's another story) easily exceeds $100.

 

[mmps108]

Yes, prices for all food and snacks went up about a week ago and for many items by as much as a 40% increase. Seriously, look at the current prices and make sure it doesn't change your view on the dining plan or other ways to save money.

Interesting. I feel like I have a pretty good handle on Disney news and I remember the snack and bottle drink increase in early October but I can't find anything about food across the board increasing. We almost ALWAYS have the dining plan but we just upgraded to AP and I was hoping to use the AP discount to save money and skip the DDP this trip. We are cutting back on the number of table service meals this trip because we don't have the dining plan.

Edit: found an article and I see what you are talking about, yikes.