Cons to the Dining Plan?

[ejmlam]

I just posted this somewhere else and realized I was probably in the wrong place, so here I go again:

Are there any real reasons NOT to do the dining plan? DH doesn't think we should be "tied down" but I don't see anyone not using it.

Thoughts? Advice?

Thanks!

 

[fostrmom2mny]

You are in fact tied to dinning at WDW Resort. You must pay rack rate for your room, and buy your tickets in a package.

ADR's may fill up quick and you may be forced to eat at off times for your Table meals. Other than that, I don't see any cons. Perhaps others may chime in.

 

[goofydebi]

If that is the time of year that you are going and you have to pay rack rate and buy tickets anyway, then i really don't see how it could be a bad deal. i get fl resident discounts and already have tickets that i bought earlier this year, so it's not worth it to me to pay rack rate and have to buy a one day ticket for us (3 adults).

 

[patsal]

You need to determine if that is really how your family eats. If you eat three full sit down meals perday (juice, coffee, full breakfast/ appetizer, entree dessert lunch) and enjoy snacking a few times a day then a the DXDDP might be good for your family. If you only eat one really big meal per day than the DDP may work out best, but if you do not typically all eat an entree, and dessert for all of your meals than the DDP may even be too much food and money.

 

[faindrops27]

The only con I see is the exclusion of the tip. Nothing else is a con to me.

 

[McKelly]

We have been on the DDP and these are the reasons we are choosing NOT to use it for our upcoming June vacation.

1) We did really feel tied down to eating, we felt like we always had to stop what we were doing and go and eat if I had made ADR's. Sometimes we were just too tired to go and eat another long meal.

2) I have a 9DD who doesn't like the things offered on the kid's menu, for the most part. She prefers more adult entrees, but does not eat enough for me to consider purchasing her the adult plan.

3) My kids got sick during vacation one year and we left with a lot of credits not used up.

4) We are going in summer and we think it is just going to be too darn hot to eat all that food!! I think we will be eating ice-cream and shaved ice!!

Good Luck deciding, I know we really weighed the pros and cons for awhile before making the decision.

 

[mickeynut1]

Every family is different, but with that said, the DDP works great for our family The first time we tried it was in September 2006 when we went during free dining. It took that one time to get us hooked We went again during free dining in September 2007. You can't beat eating all week for free, but since our schedule doesn't allow us to take advantage of free dining this fall, we will be paying for the DDP when we go in December. We think it's worth it even if we have to pay for it Being on the plan definitely does take some planning as far as deciding where you want to eat since the TS restaurants fill up very fast. But as far as being tied down, we just go with the flow and plan our day according to where our ADR is at. We don't really see any cons to the plan, but everybody is different. Good luck with your planning

 

[pooch]

Every family is different, but with that said, the DDP works great for our family The first time we tried it was in September 2006 when we went during free dining. It took that one time to get us hooked We went again during free dining in September 2007. You can't beat eating all week for free, but since our schedule doesn't allow us to take advantage of free dining this fall, we will be paying for the DDP when we go in December. We think it's worth it even if we have to pay for it Being on the plan definitely does take some planning as far as deciding where you want to eat since the TS restaurants fill up very fast. But as far as being tied down, we just go with the flow and plan our day according to where our ADR is at. We don't really see any cons to the plan, but everybody is different. Good luck with your planning

and we, too, were at WL for FD in Sept 2006!! Small world here on the DIS! This'll be trip #3 on Free Dining and we love it. We often split CS meals so that we aren't too full and enjoy TS meals each day. As Mickeynut1 said, I plan our TS meal around where I want to be that day. Sept isn't so busy that you run into the problem of the park you've chosen for that day being too crowded for comfort. I understand not everyone likes DDP, but WE LOVE IT!!!

 

[Pumbaa_]

ANother con is what if someone gets sick during your trip and does not eat for a day or 2?

I do not use the DDP. I am a DVC member and an AP holder.

We did the DDP once, and felt like the trip revolved around credits hated it, i want a vacation where I do not have to deal with know ing how many credits are left and what do we do if we want to change our plans.

 

[I loveStitchnippyjon]

We felt really tied down to a TS dinner every night. If you go during free dining, the restaurants are jammed with people and your wait for a table (even with ADR's) can be long.

 

[Tricia1972]

ANother con is what if someone gets sick during your trip and does not eat for a day or 2?

I do not use the DDP. I am a DVC member and an AP holder.

We did the DDP once, and felt like the trip revolved around credits hated it, i want a vacation where I do not have to deal with know ing how many credits are left and what do we do if we want to change our plans.

I agree and could post the same post, except we did the DDP twice.

Last trip we paid OOP and felt great freedom. One night nobody was in the mood for Italian, we called and canceled our Tony's and ate offsite at a different restaurant.

Another night we weren't in the mood for where our ADR was, so we canceled it and ate snacks around the "world" (World Showcase that is)

Another freedom was having NO concerns about whether what we wanted for a snack was considered a snack by Disney. We went and ordered what we wanted for snacks, not concerned that our snack credit may or may not cover the item.

The plan is GREAT for many people and not so great for others. Like Pastal said...."You need to determine if that is really how your family eats" (bold put in by me)

 

[brandylouwho]

We did the dining plan once and decided it was not for us, but I know others who LOVE it. Some save money on it, some like having it prepaid (and not having to deal with a hubby or wife that complains about prices when looking at the menu).

We felt very tied down to ADRs we had to make months in advance. And it felt difficult to change our mind. When we are not on the plan we do not do a TS every day. On the dine plan we feel like we have to use up all the TS credits to get full value out of it.

The new plan doesn't include appetizers. We are total appetizer people and rarely eat dessert.

It was too much food, and I felt terrible wasting food. But could not eat it all. I guess this would be less of an issue now without the app. We are not small people nor small eaters, but at Disney we are active and often hot, and our appetites seem to shrink.

We often share meals, even a CS (half a chicken & ribs anyone? Yum.).

All of this was before we owned DVC. So now we have at least one meal per day in the room.

When someone I know asks about my thoughts on the dining plan, I suggest they go to allearsnet.com and think about where they want to eat and what they'd likely order...then do the math and see if the plan saves them money or not.

For our family it is not convenient and does not save us money.

 

[Herewecomeagain]

Just a thought…we used the DDP last year for the first time. Stayed 5 nights and paid $922 for the 4 of us. I saved all of my receipts and they totaled almost $1,400. We ate at restaurants that we never would have if we did not have last years plan. I don’t see how anyone can be tied down since you should be making ADR’s anyway for the nicer restaurants. We will be using it again this summer. The only con this year will be having to pay for the gratuities. Good luck and have a great time.

______________________

2008 POFQ, 2008 ASMo, 2007 Off Site, 2007 Off Site, 2006 PC, 2005 CBR, 2005 Off Site, 2004 Off Site, 2003 WL, 2002 ASMo, 2002 Off Site, 2001 AKL, 2000 Off Site, 1999 AS Sport, 1998 POR, 1997 Off Site, 1995 ASM, 1991 Off Site, 1990 Off Site, 1988 Off Site, 1985 Off Site, 1983 Off Site, 1982 Off Site, 1981 Off Site, 1980 Off Site, 1974 FW, 1972 Off Site.

 

[gina2000]

Couple of things....

If you aren't hungry, you've wasted a credit. If you waste TS credits, the plan loses its value.

If you park hop when a park gets overcrowded, you could be tied to a restaurant in a different park. If ressies are difficult to come by, you're stuck...and again, if you waste the credit, the plan loses its value. If you just opt out of eating at a TS restaurant that day and are not on the plan, no biggie.

 

[Lampman]

It seems they have taken a very nice package and removed the value completely. Without including the tax and tip it is no longer a compelling option for us.

 

[brandylouwho]

Just a thought…we used the DDP last year for the first time. Stayed 5 nights and paid $922 for the 4 of us. I saved all of my receipts and they totaled almost $1,400. We ate at restaurants that we never would have if we did not have last years plan. I don’t see how anyone can be tied down since you should be making ADR’s anyway for the nicer restaurants. We will be using it again this summer. The only con this year will be having to pay for the gratuities. Good luck and have a great time.

______________________
.

Yes, but when on the plan I feel like we don't save money if we don't use every single TS. When not on the plan I can just cancel/skip an ADR and feel it was money saved, not money wasted. We cancel because we decide to go to a different park, becasue someone doesn't feel well, becasue the kids are getting cranky...we try to go with the flow. When we had all these ADRs on the dining plan we felt like we had to keep them (or try to replace them) as wasting a TS credit greatly devalued the dining plan cost.

Our total bills looked like we saved money too, but we wasted plenty of food and ordered things we would not have ordered if not on the plan. To some people, that is a reaon to get the plan-the freedom to order things they would not normally order without considering the cost. But those receipts were not a realistic reflection on our savings. We would never have ordered desserts if we had not been on the plan. Without the plan we may have shared a dinnner (not to be cheap--but due to the sheer amt of food). This year, if we want an appetizer (which we often do) that would still cost us above & beyond the dining plan cost.

At first I was actually shocked that so many people LOVE the plan so passionately because I felt it was so NOT a savings to us. But then I realized it must just be our eating habits while on vacation. Maybe if eating a TS everyday was important to us I would see it differently. We have 2 little kids and planning a whole week or two of ADRs doesn't work well (what time will they be hungry? How tired and cranky will they be?), nor does waiting very long for food at a sit down place. And eating at buffets gets old real fast to me.

If you are unsure about it, I say try it. Then you can decide for future trips if it worked out for you or not. I never tell people don't do it...I just try to tell them it is not always exactly as wonderous as it is purported to be.

It all depends on individual style of touring and taste.

 

[Tricia1972]

Yes, but when on the plan I feel like we don't save money if we don't use every single TS. When not on the plan I can just cancel/skip an ADR and feel it was money saved, not money wasted. We cancel because we decide to go to a different park, becasue someone doesn't feel well, becasue the kids are getting cranky...we try to go with the flow. When we had all these ADRs on the dining plan we felt like we had to keep them (or try to replace them) as wasting a TS credit greatly devalued the dining plan cost.

Our total bills looked like we saved money too, but we wasted plenty of food and ordered things we would not have ordered if not on the plan. To some people, that is a reaon to get the plan-the freedom to order things they would not normally order without considering the cost. But those receipts were not a realistic reflection on our savings. We would never have ordered desserts if we had not been on the plan. Without the plan we may have shared a dinnner (not to be cheap--but due to the sheer amt of food). This year, if we want an appetizer (which we often do) that would still cost us above & beyond the dining plan cost.

At first I was actually shocked that so many people LOVE the plan so passionately because I felt it was so NOT a savings to us. But then I realized it must just be our eating habits while on vacation. Maybe if eating a TS everyday was important to us I would see it differently. We have 2 little kids and planning a whole week or two of ADRs doesn't work well (what time will they be hungry? How tired and cranky will they be?), nor does waiting very long for food at a sit down place. And eating at buffets gets old real fast to me.

If you are unsure about it, I say try it. Then you can decide for future trips if it worked out for you or not. I never tell people don't do it...I just try to tell them it is not always exactly as wonderous as it is purported to be.

It all depends on individual style of touring and taste.

EXCELLENT Post!!

 

[KayLuvsMickey]

I like the dinning plan for this reason; I don't have to deal with sticker shock looking at menu pricing. I like being able to eat and not having to worry about the "budget" for food cost. The tip not being included could work out to be a plus this year because now we can demand good service from the wait staff, something that was lacking in 2007,.

I like the dinning plan and it works for our family.

 

[TDC Nala]

I used the dining plan in the past on occasion, but won't be using it again. I take short trips, own DVC and have a DDE membership. Without DDP if I want to I can order two appetizers, or eat at a lounge, or have as many counter or table services as I want per day without having to account for them, nor do I need to worry about which meal is the best deal. And I get a discount on the booze.

 

[mom2aredhead]

I used it once, and will be doing it again for this trip. Someone, somewhere posted a spreadsheet where you could add up what you'd be spending OOP vs on DDP - it worked out to be a moneysaver for us even with the changes, but not a HUGE savings. I booked more TS ADR's than we have credits, so the chances of us leaving without using up the TS credits are slim...though we did have leftover CS credits last time - several.

As far as the cons - you are definitely tied down to your ADR's, so flexibility is out the window. But, I try to plan to eat in or near the park to minimize travel time and maximize convenience. It's also a little confusing navigating what's included, how it counts, etc, but after a day or 2 it gets better.