comparing dining plans

[TravelMama]

Hello, First time Disney mom here. We plan on staying at Pop Century and get the Free quick meal plan (2 quick meals 2 snacks per day). But now I'm wondering... If I would upgrade to the regular dining plan (1 quick 1 table 1 snack per day) it would cost about $132 more. With 2 adults and 1 child I figure about 2-3 table meal would make up for the for $132 I've have to pay to upgrade. So my question is with a 4 year old I doubt we'd eat 1 table meal a day...more like 2-3 in the whole week. Do I have to eat 1 table meal a day or can that table meal be use for quick service?? Thanks for any suggestion.

 

[PictureJumpr]

Table Service credits can only be used for Table Service meals, generally.
There are rare exceptions when, during high-volume periods, they allow you to 'trade' your TS credits for CS/Snack credits instead. This is the exception and not the rule, and like I said, is rare.

If you are concerned with spending park time eating in restaurants (a common concern with having too many TS meals to use), strategies for helping in that situation include booking early character breakfasts, booking late dinners, and choosing buffet locations (where your family can control the pace of the meal and you are not dependent on how fast the kitchen/server is moving).

With very young children, in my experience, it has actually been a blessing to have table-service lunches planned mid-day. It forces everyone to sit in air conditioned comfort, eat and drink something substantial, and unwind/reset for a while.

In your case, it should probably come down to whether you want those 2-3 table meals included in the plan (and are willing to work with the other credits as issued), or whether you want to pay oop for those couple of meals and just keep the QS plan. Keep in mind that you can use your credits at any point once you check in (arrival day) through midnight on the day you check out. They do not have to be used up in order, or used 2-a-day-apiece - so if you decided to spring for one TS meal mid-week and only use one set of QS credits that day, the 'extra' set that you didn't use that night would carry over and you could use them on departure day.

 

[MyTwoPrincesses]

I went to WDW in November 2009 with a 3 year old and 4 year old (almost 5) and the regular DDP was totally worth it. We had a TS meal every day AND paid for one OOP so we actually had 2 in one day. For our March 2011 trip, we plan to pay for two TS meals OOP.

If you are worried about behavior, practice a bit at home by going out to eat. We normally go out to eat at least once a week. At WDW they give out crayons, but if you think your kid might need a bit more, pick up some cheap $1 coloring books before you leave home and carry one in your backpack. I don't know how many days you'll be at WDW, but you'll probably want to do a character meal or two (or three) and you could pick places that are a bit rowdier. My kids LOVED Biergarten at Epcot - the entertainment was great. They also enjoyed Coral Reef (fish tank!). Another favorite was Akershus (princesses). They also liked seeing the animals outside Sanaa. TS meals are a great way to sit back and relax. For our upcoming trip, we're doing Cinderella's Royal Table, Biergarten, Sanaa, Cape May (dinner), Chef Mickey's, Ohana (dinner), La Hacienda de San Angel, and Les Chefs de France.

I don't think we could do QSDP - it just doesn't match our eating habits/lifestyle.

 

[squirrel]

I wouldn't upgrade if you won't use all the TS as TS meals.

I would price out 1-3 TS meals that you would like to go to and it will probably be about the same as paying for the upgrade, but you get the extra snack, refillable mugs and the extra (CS meals) that you are now doing TS. With keeping the QSDP you are only sitting down a few times during your trip and should have more than enough food as you are paying for a few TS out of pocket.