Can you shorten the days on the dining plan?

[kathy23]

Hi everyone! We are looking at adding the dining plan to our upcoming trip but it has to be 7 days b/c we are staying 7nights. The problem is we are checking in super late the first day (no meals will be eaten) and leaving early the last day. (once again, no meals will be eaten) Is there anyway to book 6 days for the meal plan instead of 7 b/c of this situation or are we out of luck. It might not save money if we need to do the 7 - cheaper to pay out of pocket. Anyone have success with modifying the days? Thanks.

 

[Paula Sedley-Burke]

No we are in the same boat as we fly internationally. All you can do is use up the credits on the other days. Maybe book a TS experience that is worth 2 credits. Either that or we have considered staying at the Hyatt on the night we fly in. Then only having 6 nights in Disney. Or having a value the first night and changing resorts for the rest of your stay. Only having the DDP for the second portion.

 

[kathy23]

Thanks for the response. We are actually thinking of not doing the meal plan. It might cost exactly the same but also might be cheaper. (we usually do not order desserts at every meal....) I will have to see - on average a character buffet would cost our family $145 but the daily meal plan would be $183. Those days we would loose. But, at a regular counter service day, we might save.

 

[Nohal]

Thanks for the response. We are actually thinking of not doing the meal plan. It might cost exactly the same but also might be cheaper. (we usually do not order desserts at every meal....) I will have to see - on average a character buffet would cost our family $145 but the daily meal plan would be $183. Those days we would loose. But, at a regular counter service day, we might save.

If the dining plan cost $183 and a character meal would cost $145 you still have another QS meal and 2 snacks left for the day which would cost more than the $38 difference.

Seems like many people will book a value for the one late night and then move to the hotel of choice for the rest of your stay. Also the Hyatt at the airport seems like a good idea

We go in September during free dining and stay at a value but upgrade the dining plan to the regular DDP. I really enjoy ordering what I want without looking at the price and knowing it is covered with the dining credit. However, we also went this year in December for 5 days with no dining plan. I felt it very freeing to eat where I wanted when I wanted as we had no ADR and ate QS the entire time. We are not big eaters and usually split our QS meals and end up with leftover snacks. So only you can decide if the dining plan is worth it for you or not. We also go every year so to spend the extra time getting to the restaurant and the amount of time at some table service restaurants is ok with us. Just something else to consider. Don't know when you are going but if you want table service restaurants make sure you book them at you 180days to get the places and times you want.

 

[Maggie'sMom]

One option would be to break your resort stay into 2 reservations, one for a 1 night stay without the dining plan and one for the remaining 6 nights with the plan. But really look into whether the dining plan works for your family. I've found that we save money by paying OOP. On some days, due to character meals, our dining cost might be more than the plan, but other days it's the exact opposite. Like you, without the dining plan, we don't order dessert with every table service meal. Sometimes at CS meals, we order one entree to share and then an additional side. When adding all our meals up, we come out ahead by skipping the dining plan.

 

[cassie58]

I would take advantage of the extra credits as PP mentioned by doing a 2 credit meal like Hoop De Doo, LeCellier, Yactsman, etc. or do a brft and dinner one day, like CP brft and Ohana dinner. You could use extra snack credits if you have some left (or QS converted to snacks) for snacks for plane or souvineers to bring home for friends. Otherwise you could make the first nt room only as others suggested to cut one day off of DDP. You probably can do it cheaper OOP, but it is nice not to look at prices and just order what you like on vacation.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

Don't forget that you can downgrade your meal points to snack credits and fill up a big bag at the Main Street Candy Shop on the way home!

We had a late check-in as well, and didn't use "one day" of points - it just carried onto into the other days. We didn't realize we could have used points to pay for others NOT on dining plan, so by the end of the trip, we had amassed 42 Snack Credits. Yeah.... there was a luggage bag FULL of candy at the airport!

 

[North of Mouse]

You probably can do it cheaper OOP, but it is nice not to look at prices and just order what you like on vacation.

How about being able to order anything you 'want' and still pay less oop??

We don't come close to paying DDP prices and never even think about the costs. Two things - we 'never' do desserts with our meals (would rather have a snack later plus we are too full) and also usually prefer water to drink.

Not only does that save, but on DDP you have to tip accordingly whether you want them or not. We also don't usually do character meals anymore. Can see if you are really planning to do character meals 'every' day you could come close to DDP prices.

Having one big meal a day is about all we can handle with throwing in a couple snacks.

 

[kathy23]

Does anyone have their favorite quick serve they would share? Thinking that might be what happens some of the days if we do not do the plan.

 

[elaine amj]

Quick serve OOP? Hands down it would be Earl of Sandwich in Disney Springs.

Otherwise, either choose a cheap TS (like Sci Fi) or I also like the places with extensive toppings bars.

 

[HopperFan]

You already know you must have per night, no reduction .... but the DDP is truly a convenience more than money saver. We no longer get it because we don't need refillable mugs, we often order just water at meals, certainly don't need dessert each meal .... and don't book lots of character etc meals that would bring it more value.

If you do character meals then you can make it work well for you. Even with the extra day of meals, you could use that to have say a character breakfast and a good table service dinner in one day OR one night book HDDR or California Grill or Tiffins Rivers of Light Dining Package ... something that takes 2 credits.

But if it were me, I wouldn't get it and just pay as you go, you'll likely save money.

 

[IrishNYC]

We have a similar situation - late arrival, midday leaving with no plans to leave the resort. It works out for us though, because we have one day where we plan on having a PPO TS and then another TS for late dinner.

 

[ncc1701]

Does anyone have their favorite quick serve they would share? Thinking that might be what happens some of the days if we do not do the plan.

The meals at Puck Express in DS Marketplace are large enough to share .Better than many WDW TS restaurants. If you do go with the plan it is one of the best use of a CS credit.

 

[chs27]

A lot of the meals are huge, sharing could be a great savings.

 

[Deb & Bill]

One option would be to break your resort stay into 2 reservations, one for a 1 night stay without the dining plan and one for the remaining 6 nights with the plan. But really look into whether the dining plan works for your family. I've found that we save money by paying OOP. On some days, due to character meals, our dining cost might be more than the plan, but other days it's the exact opposite. Like you, without the dining plan, we don't order dessert with every table service meal. Sometimes at CS meals, we order one entree to share and then an additional side. When adding all our meals up, we come out ahead by skipping the dining plan.

You could do that but you would probably need to move to another room category or resort.

 

[North of Mouse]

Does anyone have their favorite quick serve they would share? Thinking that might be what happens some of the days if we do not do the plan.

We love Flame Tree in AK, Sunshine Seasons in Epcot, and Earl of Sandwich in DS. Have no favorites in DHS.

As for portions being 'huge' as some people find - dh & I don't see them that way - we can always easily eat a CS each and we aren't large people. We don't do desserts or drinks though (of any kind). We do pick up a snack later. We are usually very hungry when we do eat.

 

[MissouriPrincess]

We did the dining plan once, and ended up with snack credits left over. If you don't want to do two table services or a table service that takes two credits in one day, I would suggest doing what we do now.

I look at the menus online and guess what we would probably spend. Then I get disney gift cards in the months leading up to the trip, either discounted or through rewards sites. I often just buy a few here and there, too. By the time we go to disney, we have had more than enough for the food we think we will buy. We don't think about the cost when we order; this seems to be where people find the dining plan convenient. We order whatever we want. We usually do at least two character dinners per trip, and usually a table service every day. We charge the amount to the room, and pay every few days with the gift cards. I even factor in the possible tip amount into my gift card amount I save, so that is covered, too. In fact, that part was better than being on the dining plan because you still have to do your tips on the dining plan.

On my last two trips, I even had disney gift cards left over. I even used them for souvenirs, but I budgeted that into what I wanted to save on gift cards ahead of time, too. We haven't missed the dining plan at all.

 

[bumbershoot]

If the dining plan cost $183 and a character meal would cost $145 you still have another QS meal and 2 snacks left for the day which would cost more than the $38 difference.

Exactly.

Does anyone have their favorite quick serve they would share? Thinking that might be what happens some of the days if we do not do the plan.

OP, are you considering the*deluxe* dining plan? With the other dining plans you have counter/quick service included (and with Deluxe you could use you entitlements for quick/counter as well), so you'd want to do that anyway.

How about being able to order anything you 'want' and still pay less oop??

We don't come close to paying DDP prices and never even think about the costs. Two things - we 'never' do desserts with our meals (would rather have a snack later plus we are too full) and also usually prefer water to drink.

That's how we roll. Dessert comes later, we don't order drinks, often I just want an appetizer, and my kid eats his weight every day LOL. Dining plan doesn't work how we work.

 

[LaidBackDad]

We did the dining plan once, and ended up with snack credits left over. If you don't want to do two table services or a table service that takes two credits in one day, I would suggest doing what we do now.

I look at the menus online and guess what we would probably spend. Then I get disney gift cards in the months leading up to the trip, either discounted or through rewards sites. I often just buy a few here and there, too. By the time we go to disney, we have had more than enough for the food we think we will buy. We don't think about the cost when we order; this seems to be where people find the dining plan convenient. We order whatever we want. We usually do at least two character dinners per trip, and usually a table service every day. We charge the amount to the room, and pay every few days with the gift cards. I even factor in the possible tip amount into my gift card amount I save, so that is covered, too. In fact, that part was better than being on the dining plan because you still have to do your tips on the dining plan.

On my last two trips, I even had disney gift cards left over. I even used them for souvenirs, but I budgeted that into what I wanted to save on gift cards ahead of time, too. We haven't missed the dining plan at all.

This is what we do as well and would never consider the DDP again until they fix the the DDP, it's badly broken. Using the method that you describe is much more convenient than DDP and has none of the ridiculous restrictions or added stress. Plus, using this method will save everyone at least 30% - 50% of their food bill rather than wasting their money on the DDP. Thanks for the tip, hopefully other people will follow your advice and save themselves lots of money and aggravation on their next trip.

 

[maxiesmom]

This is what we do as well and would never consider the DDP again until they fix the the DDP, it's badly broken. Using the method that you describe is much more convenient than DDP and has none of the ridiculous restrictions or added stress. Plus, using this method will save everyone at least 30% - 50% of their food bill rather than wasting their money on the DDP. Thanks for the tip, hopefully other people will follow your advice and save themselves lots of money and aggravation on their next trip.

What restrictions? Most if not all of them have been lifted.

Btw, the dining plan can save money. I always run the numbers and on the trips I come out ahead, I use the plan. I don't find it stressful or aggravating.