DDP Causing Some Issues?

[Unregistered]

Gee it must be tough being New York royalty and flying all the way to Florida only to see that common people are allowed to eat and have fun in Disney World. These are the people Disney wants in the parks, not you. It's the same as a pro sports team not wanting their season ticket holders at every game. The guy who takes his kids once in a great while historically spends more money than those that go regularly. Disney counts on this and offers incentives for people to take vacations there. Your're just another drop in the bucket to them, not the guest who is most important. Sit back and think about it. Who would you want, somebody who saves and takes their family there and has a great time or someone who goes 4-6 times a year and whines about everything? Climb down off the pedestal you put yourself on and sit and think about this. If you owned Disney whose business would you want? The two people who are paying cash and can't get in the restaurant because it's full or the 200 already eating inside who paid for their meals up front? Those 200 people stayed in the park for dinner instead of leaving and there's a very good chance they'll be spending more money there than you will because you'll be whining, "Poor me poor me". Get a life.

 

[Va-bear]

I would be curious to know how many people have altered their usual touring habits due to the addition of DDP & Magical Express. I'm sure the change is dramatic, during free dining. IMHO, that's not a true indication of the program's success. We all like free food. I'd be curious to know how many of those who used to venture off property to eat or shop purchase the dining plan, & no longer leave property for that reason.

We only live an hour away, so obviously we drive. It doesn't matter, if we're staying at WDW or UO, we park our vehicle & don't return to it until it's time to go home. We've always stayed on property & never veered from there. On the other hand, I have a sister & niece who stay on property, but leave often for shopping, etc. in Orlando. One flies, & the other drives to WDW. In our case, none of the 3 families have changed our touring routine in the least due to DDP or ME.

We probably would have NEVER stayed on-prop had it not been for the DDP. Now, like many others, I'm not sure if we'll ever stay anywhere else (unless, as someone above pointed out, the deals stop.). We've loved the convenience of ME, the DDP, and the internal bus/boat system. So we are total, 100% converts, due only to Disney's wise promotional programs.

 

[digman6]

I read some of these posts and for someone to say that they would rather spend there money then save if you can is off there rocker!


I can see it now you would get a dream granted and it would be Mickey ears but they are not "your style" so snub it off . get your head out of the clouds.


MAybe its the exact opposite ! maybe your so dirt poor you cannot afford teh DDP and so your jealousof allof us ! that sounds more suitable.

Usually those who cut others down are jealous , your not as lucky as us so the need to cut us all down comes in.

If you have kids god help them .

I think you need a reality check maybe better yet do "Wife Swap!" let your family see what a "normal " life is like instead a b*!ch enviormet is all about. Sounds like all that you do is complain complain instead of being grateful for what you do have , very sad really.

Lets all pray for the staff that come into contact with this one

 

[dwaddict]

I read some of these posts and for someone to say that they would rather spend there money then save if you can is off there rocker!


I can see it now you would get a dream granted and it would be Mickey ears but they are not "your style" so snub it off . get your head out of the clouds.


MAybe its the exact opposite ! maybe your so dirt poor you cannot afford teh DDP and so your jealousof allof us ! that sounds more suitable.

Usually those who cut others down are jealous , your not as lucky as us so the need to cut us all down comes in.

If you have kids god help them .

I think you need a reality check maybe better yet do "Wife Swap!" let your family see what a "normal " life is like instead a b*!ch enviormet is all about. Sounds like all that you do is complain complain instead of being grateful for what you do have , very sad really.

Lets all pray for the staff that come into contact with this one

BRAVO!BRAVO!BRAVO!!

 

[mdhkitten]

I personally think that if they keep the DDP, that they should hold open a small percentage of tables open up until a certain time in restaurants for locals and those not using the DDP. Just my opinion.

 

[jenseib]

That is a good idea. But remember it is not only being booked by DDP people. Just people in general are booking earlier, because they can. But I could see maybe keeping a few tables for walk ins. or last minute reservations.

 

[angelmav]

Were staying at shades of green in july and I wish we could get the DDP. Not for any savings, but for the peace of mind of knowing that meals are taken care of in advance! Unfortunately, I wont have that for this trip so I have to make sure our meals are well funded in advance and I know that even if I am successful in ignoring the price, my other half will probably have eyes bulging out while deciding what to order. IMO, they could raise the price of the DDP and it would still be good because most people want there trip paid for up-front so the sticker shock while there is minimized. OTOH, nobody wants to wait upwards of an hour after there ADR time for a table, get less than memorable food or have limited similar choices, all changes that could be attributed to th popularity of the DDP in its current iteration.

 

[Fly me with Balloons]

I read some of these posts and for someone to say that they would rather spend there money then save if you can is off there rocker!


I can see it now you would get a dream granted and it would be Mickey ears but they are not "your style" so snub it off . get your head out of the clouds.


MAybe its the exact opposite ! maybe your so dirt poor you cannot afford teh DDP and so your jealousof allof us ! that sounds more suitable.

Usually those who cut others down are jealous , your not as lucky as us so the need to cut us all down comes in.

If you have kids god help them .

I think you need a reality check maybe better yet do "Wife Swap!" let your family see what a "normal " life is like instead a b*!ch enviormet is all about. Sounds like all that you do is complain complain instead of being grateful for what you do have , very sad really.

Lets all pray for the staff that come into contact with this one

Sounds like someone's been sampling the Disney Drinking Plan....

 

[FancyBrat]

Isn't Disney all about making Dreams come true? For some of us going to Disneyworld is a trip of a lifetime and we have alot more expenses to get there. We live in WA State and our kids ages 13 and 15 have never been to Disneyworld. I for one want to make it a "Magical Dream" and pre-planning our ADR's and having it all payed for ahead of time as well is a plus. I can then relax and enjoy the magic of watching the kids enjoy the whole experience without myself being stressed about the expenses.

Those of you that can make those last minute trips or go ever year are very lucky. But I hope Disney never gets rid of the DDP. Just remember its about enjoying the experience and this helps make alot of parents enjoy it along with their kids.

 

[digman6]

Sounds like someone's been sampling the Disney Drinking Plan....

Not really sure what you ment by that but I actually don't even drink at all. I saw enough of that in a previous relation ship when I was young that no need for it but anyhow.... I guess I am one of those people who gets fed up with people who say they have all this stuff and still complain.
I guess it shows true money does not buy happiness. I was trying to defend those of us myself included in the fact that we should all be able to enjoy WDW with out taking away money saving things from those of use who want them.

just my 2 cents

 

[Unregistered]

Another issue cruise food has gone down the tubes 100% since cruising has become so affordable. The same thing is happenimg at WDW with this DDP, people love it because of the amount of food not the quality. All the food is becoming very "vanilla". People are eating not dining......

Yeah, that didn't sound snobbish at all. I was giving you the benefit of the doubt with the snobbish comments that people have made about you, but after this I can see that they are all correct. Why don't you just eat somewhere else that doesn't offer the DDP at WDW or offsite even. I'm sure there are upscale restaurants in the Orlando area that will gladly meet your needs. That way you can Dine instead of just eating because God forbid you just eat like the rest of us mere mortals.

 

[digman6]

Yeah, that didn't sound snobbish at all. I was giving you the benefit of the doubt with the snobbish comments that people have made about you, but after this I can see that they are all correct. Why don't you just eat somewhere else that doesn't offer the DDP at WDW or offsite even. I'm sure there are upscale restaurants in the Orlando area that will gladly meet your needs. That way you can Dine instead of just eating because God forbid you just eat like the rest of us mere mortals.

I could of not said it better myself.

She needs to go Dine someplace else really, us average joes don't fit in with her and lets face it there are alot more of us then her at WDW. She should go else were instead of us adjusting to her.

 

[Lauralee131]

Yeah, that didn't sound snobbish at all. I was giving you the benefit of the doubt with the snobbish comments that people have made about you, but after this I can see that they are all correct. Why don't you just eat somewhere else that doesn't offer the DDP at WDW or offsite even. I'm sure there are upscale restaurants in the Orlando area that will gladly meet your needs. That way you can Dine instead of just eating because God forbid you just eat like the rest of us mere mortals.

I could of not said it better myself.

She needs to go Dine someplace else really, us average joes don't fit in with her and lets face it there are alot more of us then her at WDW. She should go else were instead of us adjusting to her.

Hmmmm....wish I had a concierge! And on our trip in December, I had all ADR's, but no dining plan....However, I DID have the DDE card, which took 20% off everything...which I guess puts me in the same "class" as those with DDP. Although, I'm not sure if simply ATE or if I DINED... Maybe I should consider myself LUCKY that I was allowed in to some of them thar fancy restaurants we ate in, eh? This thread has cracked me up...

And Unregistered....NOW I know what you talking about in another thread...I didn't quite get it till I read around some more...

 

[ClarabelleCow]

We just returned from WDW last night. While I don't like the OP's tone at all. I have to agree on some aspects. During high season, something has to be done regarding eating, or being able to eat. Saturday night we walked over to DTD from SSR, we checked in at Rainforest at 7:00, the earliest seating was 10:21!!! (not even sure if RF is on the DDP), but the issue I find is there is just not enough places to eat! Each morning I telephoned Dining and was able to find a place to eat based on where we were going, and I was able to get somewhat decent times, but the people that were just walking in were so out of luck! Disney keeps adding hotel rooms, but I don't think they are keeping up with the sit down restaurants! They need to add more to the parks, I saw they are building another Sitdown at AK, I didnt realize other than the lodge, the only sitdown at AK is Rainforest. Disney really needs to add more restaurants to the popular areas to accomodate more guests. Do I think DDP has to do with the problem, maybe?? Has the quality of food changed? well I would never go to Disney expecting gourmet meals (maybe gourmet prices!!), but the quality of food has never been that good to begin with, I think its better than it was, we ate at Artists Pallete (SSR - twice), Turf Club- SSR, Fultons - DTD, Planet Pizza - MGM, Le Chefs de France - Epcot, Rainforest Cafe - AK, Tonys - MK, and probably my favorite was my over sauced pulled port sandwich with a cold bud at Daytona 500!! also over priced at $7.00 for the sandwich!! (just kidding!!), The best was Le Chefs de France, but still not what I would call gourmet! overpriced yes but good. We were not on the dining plan, we used at DVC discount where we could, I don't think I would ever do the dining plan, unless I was in just a hotel room, but owning DVC, for us it just doesnt make sense, we had breakfast in every morning, and a few days lunch, then some days lunch out and every night dinner.

 

[mumom95]

We just returned from WDW last night. While I don't like the OP's tone at all. I have to agree on some aspects. During high season, something has to be done regarding eating, or being able to eat. Saturday night we walked over to DTD from SSR, we checked in at Rainforest at 7:00, the earliest seating was 10:21!!! (not even sure if RF is on the DDP),

I'm pretty sure Rainforest is not on the DDP. So your experience kind of shows that the DDP is not the only reason restaurants are booked up so far in advance (although, maybe all the people that weren't on the DDP went to Rainforest, thinking they wouldn't have a wait )

We are using the dining plan when we go over Thanksgiving, and I will be making my ADR's 180 days in advance. I am glad they have the DDP. Will it be way to much food? Yes. Will we eat more than we should because of it? Yes. Will we probably waist food? Yes. But will it be nice to go on vacation and know it is already paid for and sit down to a restuarant and order whatever we want and not worry about the price? Absolutely, and that is why we are doing it.

I realize that DDP filling up more restaurants has probably caused a bit of a problem for people who do last minute trips. But, I have a feeling (although, no hard evidence to back it up) that the majority of Disney guests don't do last minute trips, and the dining plan has given many people opportunities to eat at places they wouldn't normally eat at. So, although it may have some drawbacks for some people, I think it is an asset to more people than it is a drawback to others.

 

[dbmarie]

Rainforest Cafe is not on the dining plan but you can join the safari club and get priority seating. Disney is obviously finding success with the dining plan or we would not be here discussing how hard it is to get a reservation which means it is more then likely here to stay. Furthermore Disney makes alot of money off of us poor middle class families who are looking for the best deal on family vacations and I'm sure they would not do anything to alienate us.

 

[momtoBrandon&Jacob]

Like I stated earlier we book all ressies in advance for the 10 day trip. Also our conceirge now handles last minute dining for us.....This entire DDP in my opinion is ridiculous.

Just wondering, what is so ridiculous about it?!? And how do you know that every restaurant you can't get into is because people are on the DDP? Just because people have the sense to book early, doesn't mean they are on the DDP. I for one will be on the DDP with my entire family and plan to enjoy every cent of savings it offers!

 

[mybgirl]

HI I always call the 180 days out for my ADR . Made my ARD late this trip . Got all my ADR ,I got CRT and many more . I am on the DP I love it .

Our trip is June 12 to 20 , just call yesterday for my ADR

So sorry , try and call again ,


take care and GOD BLESS your trip


MARY

 

[NEVERENOUGHWDW]

Just wondering, what is so ridiculous about it?!? And how do you know that every restaurant you can't get into is because people are on the DDP? Just because people have the sense to book early, doesn't mean they are on the DDP. I for one will be on the DDP with my entire family and plan to enjoy every cent of savings it offers!

I don't think this has anything to do with sense......I am in a position that we can now jump on a plane when we want and go. The reason in my opinion it is causing issues is that it fills restaurants that some people have never dined in before or never would before this plan. As stated before when we plan in advance I book very early.
Not sure why you reacted to my response.....Have a great day!

 

[momtoBrandon&Jacob]

To the OP:

You know, I haven't been on this site for very long and I have to say that you are the rudest, most uptight snob I've seen here.