DDE reviews - a suggestion

[rigs32]

Many peopel have been posting DDP and DDE reviews lately. The DDP ones always include a notation of what the plan cost, but DDE ones rarely include the cost of the card. I wonder if the differences, when the cost of the card are included, would make the differences a lot closer in terms of value between DDE and DDP.

 

[webray]

Probably not..the DDP is good for your stay..the DDE is good for one year, the savings is huge, especially for us. Whether Disney says your dining is free or not..those meals are built into that price somewhere.

 

[Uncleromulus]

Well the card is $60. How much you save depends on how many uses you get out of the DDE card in that year. We'll be using ours on three WDW trips, for about 16 dinners and about 21 breakfasts. And 3 lunches.The savings are in the MANY hundreds of dollars.
Comparing DDP and DDE on any relatively equal basis probably isn't possible--.
DDE is great because it includes alcohol, free valet parking, and is easy to use. No need to calculate how many snack credits for a bowl of jello, or if a particular restaurant is "worth" two TS credits, etc etc

 

[magicmouse2]

On the subject of suggestions, I was wondering if a subforum for the restaurants board would be a good idea just for dining reviews ? I personally enjoy mainly reading the reviews and would rather not have to sift through various restuarant questions to find them. Just a thought.

 

[ReallyFunMom]

I think figuring in the cost IS important when you buy the card. If you don't make multiple trips in a year and/or don't eat at a lot of fancy restaurants or often order cheap meals for the kids, and non qualifying counterservice, it may not be worth it. We saved about $30 on our recent 3 night stay... but of course ate and drank in bars at crazy prices because, hey, get 20% off. Normally I would skip a 10.25 glass of wine and get a bottle for the condo instead. I never used the valet service. The costs of overspending b/c of that 20% off is impossible to account for but you can add up the 20% savings and calculate when you've paid off your card and then really start getting 20% off. I'm guessing our next 3 night trip will also have "savings" of around $30 ($150 spent on qualifying onsite meals). Then we'll be even on the cost of the card and a future visit or two will have a real 20% savings on qualifying purchases. I've done these numbers before:

Spend - Savings
300 - 0 - paid for obtaining the card
500 - 40 - 8% discount - (saved 40 divided by 500 spent)
1000 - 140 - 14% discount
1500 - 240 - 16% discount

 

[goofy4tink]

I usually have a pretty good idea as to where/what I'll be eating on each trip. I tend to do one table service meal a day, and have ADRs for them. So, I sit downt, with calculator and meal menus in hand, and run the figures. I have had the DDE card for a year now...it just expired. I was in the parks for 23 days total this year...I think I saved about $300 after the cost of the card. I'll be buying it again in August for our Oct trip. And then for my Dec trip, and possible August '07 trip!!!

 

[java]

I think figuring in the cost IS important when you buy the card. If you don't make multiple trips in a year and/or don't eat at a lot of fancy restaurants or often order cheap meals for the kids, and non qualifying counterservice, it may not be worth it. We saved about $30 on our recent 3 night stay... but of course ate and drank in bars at crazy prices because, hey, get 20% off. Normally I would skip a 10.25 glass of wine and get a bottle for the condo instead. I never used the valet service. The costs of overspending b/c of that 20% off is impossible to account for but you can add up the 20% savings and calculate when you've paid off your card and then really start getting 20% off. I'm guessing our next 3 night trip will also have "savings" of around $30 ($150 spent on qualifying onsite meals). Then we'll be even on the cost of the card and a future visit or two will have a real 20% savings on qualifying purchases. I've done these numbers before:

Spend - Savings
300 - 0 - paid for obtaining the card
500 - 40 - 8% discount - (saved 40 divided by 500 spent)
1000 - 140 - 14% discount
1500 - 240 - 16% discount

Wow to spend only $150 on meals for 3 days is something we can't do. You said you ate and drank? and had kids? I am impressed. I would say on average we spent $100 a meal so saved $20 a meal- plus we ate at some breakfast places....so we saved more like $40 a day easily. So it paid for itself in less than 2 days. But I am with you on the "well it's 20% cheaper- desserts for everybody!" You kind of get dilusional on how much you are saving and have a tendancy to go overboard. But I do LOVE the card because you get %off DRINKS!!

 

[ReallyFunMom]

We just ended up spending money at different places. Onsite, it was food and margaritas at the waterparks and disney quest, no discount there and an offsite trip to bahama breeze. We spent way more than $150 on food, we just only got in $150 where DDE was accepted. Kids ordering kids meals at 5, 6 or 7 a pop, even where DDE taken, takes awhile to get you to the $300 need to spend toward cost of the card. One huge advantage of DDP over DDE is that you don't find yourself hungry at someplace DDP is not accepted, DDP food is everywhere.

 

[jarrdisney]

Short of calculating everything, it's hard to get a definative answer. The way I look at it, I eat a lot more TS meals than CS. I also eat at a lot more "signature" restaurants and purchase wine/alcohol. I'm in disney 25+ days a year so it's a no brainer for me. I could see if you only spent $150 in 3 days, how it would not help you.