CS DDP with OOP TS??

[mamatobbg]

Hi all. We've never done the dining plan, but are considering it this time. I'm a budget geek and would write down every meal amount in a notebook to keep track on what is left in our food budget.

If we got the dining plan, my OCD budgeting would be a non issue, which is good. Last time, I budgeted for a CS, snack and TS. We almost always chose CS. We did our ADRs (only three) and only one other time we chose a table meal. So, I over budgeted by quite a bit.

I'm considering getting CS DDP for our family of 5. 3 disney adults (oldest will have just turned 10) and 2 kids. Then pay OOP for ADRs. We're looking at just two-- Akershus and Chef Mickey's. Anyone do this and did it make sense to you?

Honestly, I like the idea of not having to think about it from a money standpoint. Technically, we'd probably save money by not doing the DDP at all, but then I'd be back to my notebook OCD budgeting. Thoughts?

 

[supersnoop]

If you're that OCD, aren't you going to use the notebook to compare costs and see if you made the right choice anyway?

Your best bet is to look up the menus for each place you will most likely eat and figure out how much you'll probably spend. I don't think the CS dining plan can ever make sense for adults, but the kids price might balance it out.

 

[figment_jii]

Honestly, I like the idea of not having to think about it from a money standpoint. Technically, we'd probably save money by not doing the DDP at all, but then I'd be back to my notebook OCD budgeting. Thoughts?

As long as you're willing to look at from this point, then getting the QS DDP might be okay. However, if you end up tracking everything and they saying, "I could have saved" some amount, that might end up more stressful. From what I've seen, it's pretty tough to be economically efficient on the QS DDP. Personally, I would take the money the QS DDP costs and then put into a bank account to be used for dining on vacation. Then tell yourself, this is your version of the QS DDP...it's all "paid" for, but you have more flexibility and won't have to worry about maximizing the credit values so you actually save money on the DDP.

 

[mamatobbg]

Thanks all! I'll need to think a bit more on it. I need to review my old notebooks to see how much we actually spent. I'm fairly certain we'd come out ahead paying it all OOP.

I just have to decide if the "convenience " of not having to think about the money in my head is worth the extra cost. Last time, I wrote everything down for the day in my budget notebook, then when we got back to our hotel, I transferred the money from our Disney fund onto our card to pay it off daily. I think I'd rather pay it all ahead even if it costs a bit more and just go and not think about it.

But maybe I can come up with something else that is more of a win win.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

Take the amount you would have paid on the dining plan, put it on a Disney gift card and use that card to purchase all your food. If you have anything left over, you can still spend it at WDW.

 

[babydoll65]

When I went with my son in 2011, I payed oop (no dining plan) I would budget 20$ for breakfast, 25$ for lunch and 30$ for dinner for the both of us. If we had a small appetite for breakfast, then any money left over went into our spending money for souvenirs. We always did one ts for breakfast and one for dinner that I would budget separately on a Disney gift card. I have always come back home with money which I put towards my deposit on my next vacation. I have had the free dining a couple of times ( one time just the qs and once the regular dining) I prefer the qs over the regular dining(too much food and time away from the parks) but I would probably not purchase it because I think it's over priced but understand the convenience.

 

[mamatobbg]

I'm starting to second guess my choice now . Bottom line, it's a deal for the kids, but not the adults, I'm thinking? There are current menus /prices online, right?

We will be buying the refillable mugs if that matters. Those would be about 75 for the 5 of us if they're still about 15/mug.

I'll do the math and maybe go with the prepaid gift card option. I was always paranoid that I'd lose them which is why I haven't in the past, but maybe I just need to relax and not overthink everything!

 

[purple figment]

Thanks all! I'll need to think a bit more on it. I need to review my old notebooks to see how much we actually spent. I'm fairly certain we'd come out ahead paying it all OOP.

I just have to decide if the "convenience " of not having to think about the money in my head is worth the extra cost. Last time, I wrote everything down for the day in my budget notebook, then when we got back to our hotel, I transferred the money from our Disney fund onto our card to pay it off daily. I think I'd rather pay it all ahead even if it costs a bit more and just go and not think about it.

But maybe I can come up with something else that is more of a win win.

If you bought the dining plan would you be able to use it and not go back to the room every night and still calculate how much you would have spent if paying OOP vs "did I cover the cost of the CS plan today?" You'll have to decide if convenience outweighs the feeling that you would spend less if paying OOP.

It seems like it might be better to look at the costs of the TS you're planning and the cost of the dining plan and put the total on a gift card.

If you're worried about losing the gift card, charge everything to your room and use the gift card to pay down the balance.

Take a look at the menus online:
http://allears.net/dining/menu
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningmain.cfm

Prices for buffets, family style and other set price meals:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3108466

 

[mamatobbg]

If you bought the dining plan would you be able to use it and not go back to the room every night and still calculate how much you would have spent if paying OOP vs "did I cover the cost of the CS plan today?" You'll have to decide if convenience outweighs the feeling that you would spend less if paying OOP.

It seems like it might be better to look at the costs of the TS you're planning and the cost of the dining plan and put the total on a gift card.

If you're worried about losing the gift card, charge everything to your room and use the gift card to pay down the balance.

Take a look at the menus online:
http://allears.net/dining/menu
http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningmain.cfm

Prices for buffets, family style and other set price meals:
http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=3108466

While I think that I could let the comparing/contrasting go, I have to decide whether it's wise. I mean, I may save enough to pay for the fireworks pirate cruise we're wanting to do. Plus, the meals that we're paying OOP will pretty much guarantee that we'll have extra meals unused AND we definitely didn't get daily snacks last time and never got dessert. So, starting to talk myself out of it! Thanks for posting that link--I will check it out!

 

[gericoronado]

There are current menus /prices online, right?

Yes! Yes! And they are lots of fun to look at. You can even look at separate breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus...with prices.
Go to the main Walt Disney World website and click on the tab for parks. Select a park (Epcot, for example), let it load on screen, then scroll down to dining, and the dining options will show for that park. You be able to see everything ahead of time.

 

[figment_jii]

Yes! Yes! And they are lots of fun to look at. You can even look at separate breakfast, lunch, and dinner menus...with prices.
Go to the main Walt Disney World website and click on the tab for parks. Select a park (Epcot, for example), let it load on screen, then scroll down to dining, and the dining options will show for that park. You be able to see everything ahead of time.

Just note that the prices for the buffets/all-you-care-to-eat venues are ranges (representing highest and lowest possible prices) rather than specific prices. To find out the price for a specific meal, I'd start with the link that purple figment provided.

 

[mamatobbg]

Thanks again all!! So helpful!!

 

[mamatobbg]

Dbl post! Sorry!