Anyone ever counter the value of thier DDP?

[Shasta]

It's a hard question to search for. I wonder if anyone has added thier meals (cost if payed for) together to see what the total value of the DDp was for them? I know this would vary for each family.

 

[pooch]

family of four, all adults, 10 days free dining. We ate $1850ish worth of food and had 1 TS, 5 CS and 11 SC left.

 

[disneyagain]

We added up the cost of our meals, snacks and groceries we bought over Easter and we spent less than if we paid for the DDP (4 adults). We were there for 7 days and we had 3 TS meals (Fantasmic HV, Liberty Tree-Lunch, Chef Mickey-Dinner). We share some of the CS meals also, it's just too much food.

We did the free DDP last summer and it was nice to get all those free meals and not have to watch what you're spending for meals....But I don't think we would ever pay $160/day for the 4 of us, we just don't spend that in a day, because we don't do that many TS meals.

My Dsis and I are taking the 2 daughters this summer during free dining for 4 days, we'll probably feel like we're rolling out of there after that

 

[disneymom06]

Our family of six, 2 of the children are disney adults and our free dining bills were over $3000 for 12 days. We had no credits left over as the last day we maxed out our credits, about 7CS and 12 snacks and we were set for the drive home. We had to stay overnight because of the tropical storm and we didn't have to purchase a thing. Our next trip I paid for the DDP and still the bills were more than we paid. For our family, it is nice to not have to count pennies everytime we stop to eat. The freedom was great, while saving money.

 

[thunderbird1]

Last year, 10 days, free DDP, 2A/2C, our OOP food costs would have been $1764.02, and the DDP would have cost us $979.60. So, even if we had paid for the DDP, we would have saved $784.42. The average cost per day would have been $97.96 for the DDP, but we would have ended up with $176.40 worth of food each day.

What I found most interesting was when I looked back at our previous trip's dining expenses (non-DDP), our total for 10 days was $1065.84. We had 8 TS meals instead of 10, and had 13 CS meals instead of 10. The average cost per day for that trip was $106.58, but we ended up with only $106.58 worth of food. Clearly, for our family, the DDP was a terrific deal, even when it wasn't free.

This year, though, we'll be 3A/1C. We're getting the free DDP again, so I'm not at all concerned about the value, since you can't beat free. But I am curious to see how the numbers come out in the end, since I'm not sure whether my dd will end up eating off the adult menu all the time. Obviously, it doesn't matter at buffets, but I could easily see her doing adult appetizers and desserts with children's entrees at some of the other TS restaurants. If that happens too often, it will obviously suck some of the value out of the paid DDP for us. This, on top of my being a vegetarian (aka she who always orders the cheapest item on the menu), may make it not worth it for us to pay for the DDP. We'll see.

 

[mnasf]

It's a hard question to search for. I wonder if anyone has added thier meals (cost if payed for) together to see what the total value of the DDp was for them? I know this would vary for each family.

I posted mine very detailed about 18 months ago. We really maxed out the plan by where we went, etc. It was a great value for us. We've done it at least twice. I'm not sure about our next trip though. It seems like the plan is getting more picky.

 

[Sammy]

7 people....8 days. Tried to max out the DDP as best we could, but we ended up leaving 1 CS meal on the table at the end of the vacation. Even with that, we added up everything and still saved over $600 compared to paying OOP. That being said, we never would have eaten at the restaurants we did if we didn't have the DDP, and certainly wouldn't have ordered the pricey entrees either. However, it was a great experience, and it was my parents' first trip to Disney, so we enjoyed "showing off" all the restaurants we wouldn't normally usually be able to.

 

[aubriee]

I was traveling solo this past May when I bought the DDP. I didn't necessarily try to max out the plan. I just ate whatever I was in the mood for at the time. I did order appetizers, entrees, and desserts at each TS not worrying about eating everything. Sometimes I took just a bite or two of a dessert. I did keep up with how much my meals and snacks would have been. Anyway, I would have spent $31.70 for my snacks, $121.25 for my CS meals, and $405.11 for my TS meals. I spent $311.92 for the DDP and had $558.15 worth of food, so saved $246.23. Again this was for a solo traveler for an eight night stay. When I'm on vacation I tend to eat whatever I want to, so my spending habits and food choices would not be much different if I'm on or not on the DDP.

For CS I ate at: La Kringla Bakeri, Wolfgang Puck Express x2, Pepper Market at CSR, Starring Rolls Cafe, Tusker House, All Star Sports Food Court, and Earl of Sandwich

For TS I ate at: Le Cellier, Cape May Buffet, Konas, Spoodles, Wolfgang Pucks, Turf Club, Chef's de France, and Rose & Crown

For snacks I either ate or took home: Figaro Fries, Doh Bar (fried Snickers), Milk Chocolate Mint Smoothie candy slabs x2, hot caramel sundae, Jumbo haystack, and two pieces of fudge from Goofy's.

Using my DDE card I paid $68.99 OOP for Bomas, LTT (lunch), and a refillable resort mug. I could have easily not paid anything OOP, by simply rearranging my credits. Oh yeah, by paying for the two meals OOP I had two CS credits left on my last day and ate breakfast at WGP Express and grabbed a sandwich from Earl of Sandwich to take to the airport.

 

[Mom2Evie]

I don't remember our exact figures since I'm here at the office, but I remember our total food bill was more than double what we paid for the DDP. Granted, if we hadn't been on the plan, we probably wouldn't have ordered appetizers & desserts or even had as many table service meals.
That being said, I love the freedom the DDP offered me. There was now mentally running a tally on how much we were spending, was this within our budget, etc. I'd mapped out all our TS & CS on our itinerary to make sure we took full advantage of the plan. At the end of our last trip, we used our leftover snacks to purchase Mickey Mouse rice krispie treats at our hotel. We took them home to my daughter's friends. The year before, we used all our snacks on bottle sof water because it was a really hot week.

I'll NEVER travel to Disney without the Dining Plan now. There's just no other way for me!

Last trip we had 2 character breakfasts & a character dinner, Nine Dragons in Epcot, Maya Grill as CS resort, Tony's in WDW, Wolfgang Puck Express and lots of really good counter service meals that didn't involve a hamburger!

This year we're doing 2 character breakfasts, Concourse Steakhouse, Teppanyaki, Wolfgang Pucks on the dining plan. We're paying out of pocket for the Cinderella Castle lunch & Hoop Dee Doo Review. The cost just isn't worth blowing 2 TS meals.

 

[Sammy]

....That being said, I love the freedom the DDP offered me. There was no mentally running a tally on how much we were spending, was this within our budget, etc.....

I forgot to mention that this was the biggest "plus" for me regarding DDP. I am the one who, at every meal, mentally adds up what everyone is ordering and worries about the cost fitting into our food budget. DS-15 and DD-17 were in heaven that they could order whatever they wanted off the menus - no matter the cost. DS was also happy because it was a lot of food on DDP....and he can eat A LOT of food!!

 

[stitch and co]

Last year w/ free dining 4 adults 1 child for 6 nights, meals cost $1288.86 and used all credits. If I paid for DDP would have cost $977.70, would have saved $311.16.

 

[michellelovesthemous]

We went last year on it 2 adults 1 child = 825 ish OOP and I added up all our slips had we actually paid for all the yum-yum we had 1900+

I love DDP would never go w/o it!!

 

[FlashScout]

Last month we went for 7 days - 2 adults, 2 children

Cost: ~ $700
Value: ~$1050
Saved: $350 or 33% off the value of the food

We weren't trying to maximize the plan; we just ate where we wanted on the plan. Even used some CS for breakfast - a no-no for the max-crowd. Only bought 1 lunch and 1 breakfast out of pocket. Took a few snacks home with us.

TS at Whispering Canyon, Artists Point, Akershus, Biergarten, Crystal Palace, Chef Mickeys (b-fast)

 

[budbeerlady]

The first year we didnt really know the plan and saved $629, last year it was $400+. We were there 2 days less and I ate vegetrian which is less costly.

We figure you pay for your dinner, the cs and snack are free (and usually the cost of dessert at dinner also if you use $38)

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

We did DDP twice with 2 adults, one child. Nine nights each time. Both trips we saved $250-$300. DS eats NOTHING, so when he turned 10 we stopped buying the DDP because the $25 per day increase in cost for DDP for DS would have completely wiped out what we saved having the plan.

The thing to remember when you add up what you saved is that you probably wouldn't have ordered all that food if it wasn't included. The desserts with CS are overkill for us, so if we had been paying OOP we wouldn't have spent that $3 per person anyway. So yes, we "saved" $9 by getting dessert with lunch, but it was $9 we wouldn't have spent to begin with. After 9 nights of DDP, $81 of our $250 savings was CS desserts that we really didn't want. Not such a great deal when we looked at it like that.

 

[Laura]

We didn't use the DDP on our trip last year, but when we came back I added our food up. We came out ahead NOT using the plan. A lot of that is we share appetizers and desserts, went to some buffets and weren't trying to "maximize" the DDP. Also, I'm a vegetarian and that makes my meals cheaper. Besides, I don't find most WDW restaurants all that much better than anything we can get here at home and for less money.

Paying for the DDP is not for us. If we wind up having a son when as a teenager has a hollow leg and eats everything, we may change the way we do things.

 

[madduck]

Last summer we spent about $1250 on the DDP and when we were done we had receipts totaling over $2200.

 

[soccerchick]

I forgot to mention that this was the biggest "plus" for me regarding DDP. I am the one who, at every meal, mentally adds up what everyone is ordering and worries about the cost fitting into our food budget. DS-15 and DD-17 were in heaven that they could order whatever they wanted off the menus - no matter the cost. DS was also happy because it was a lot of food on DDP....and he can eat A LOT of food!!

I totally agree1 I am the budget person and there is NO WAY we'd have eaten at all the places we did. We'd have done granola and pop tarts for breakfast and mostly counter service (with some sharing!) otherwise. I can't remember the exact total, but it was so much $ saved and the payoff of being able to take my kids to a variety of character meals was awesome. I also liked that the TS meals helped us relax and enjoy more too!

 

[KristenHoneymooner]

I'd love to determine whether we save money using DDP this August (we're going before free dining starts).

Do your receipts tell you how much the food would have cost without DDP, or did you have to write it down based on the menu price?

Thanks

 

[diningindisney]

I guess the bottom line is what kind of Disney vacation you'll be making this one. My wife and I have gone on trips 'on-the-cheap' where we eat mostly counter meals the whole time. But other times we want to make it a true Disney vacation where we experience the parks and any dining we want (w/o having to think of money) so we go with the Dining Plan.

You can really have fun and still come out better than the Dining Plan if you're ok eating more often at your room (i.e. breakfast with Pop Tarts, Cereal, etc) and at the counters with the occasional Sit Down. Guess it's a matter of preference.

I did a quick comparison myself and did a "mock" 7-day vacation with dining and bottom line was that I would have saved $114 or so that week if I had gone with the Disney Dining Plan with the restaurants I picked out at random. However I'm sure I could have done a "mock" 7-day vacation with limited funds in my pockets and found a way to make it work. Just depends on preference.

Brian