DDP - How may OOP Do you Pay

[Frozen2014]

We have purchased the middle DDP for our upcoming trip in October. We are staying 6 nights and have the following ADRs booked

• Ohana dinner
• BOG dinner
• Hollywood & Vine dinner
• Boma breakfast
• CRT dinner
• Akershus breakfast
• Chef Mickey's breakfast

We are staying for 6 nights, but with one TS/day and CRT being 2 credits, we are still paying for 2 OOP (which I think will be BOG dinner and Boma breakfast)

One sit down meal a day doesn't seem like a lot to me and it seems frustrating that we are in the DDP but yet will still have to pay OOP (but these are the meals we would like). And this doesn't count for our CS meals. Do you find that you still pay for sit down meals OOP? How many do you go over? I guess it doesn't help that all of our ADRs are on the pricier side.

 

[ibela]

This time I made ADRs without being certain if we were getting the DDP. We're there 8 nights and I have 9 TS booked so we're paying for 1 OOP, but we're also only there 7 full days (arriving late, leaving early).

If you wanted to minimize OOP, you could switch BOG dinner (TS) to BOG lunch (CS).

ETA: You didn't say who's in your party but am assuming kids since there are several character meals booked. I just wanted to point out that Hollywood & Vine dinner doesn't have characters, only breakfast and lunch are character meals. Unless you booked it for the F! package, in which case disregard my note.

 

[Frozen2014]

Thanks for the reply. Sorry, I missed mentioning our party. You are correct that we have kids...DS9 and DD5. Hollywood & Vine dinner is the Fantasmic package.

Also thanks for the BOG suggestion, but we really do want to try the sit down dinner. I think this one works out best though OOP since kids meals are cheap, and for myself I don't usually have a drink. For DH, it will be a wash between BOG and Chef Mickey breakfast.

Sounds like you are similar with 1 TS per day.

 

[bigbabyblues]

Every family is different. More than one TS meal per day doesn't work for us. When our boys were little, we did two TS meals on two different days the same trip and it was ok. We don't mind the counter service meals though; we know which ones we like and are fine with those. Last year, we stayed 10 days and only did three TS meals.

 

[Mommy2Corinne]

We are not doing the DDP this year, but I just calculated it out using our current ADRs. Three of our meals would be paid OOP if we were on the DDP (Narcoosees, Brown Derby Fantasmic Package, and 1900 Park Fare Breakfast). We would also pay OOP for appetizers for numerous TS meals. Our total OOP costs would be $484.57, which is crazy!

 

[Frozen2014]

We are not doing the DDP this year, but I just calculated it out using our current ADRs. Three of our meals would be paid OOP if we were on the DDP (Narcoosees, Brown Derby Fantasmic Package, and 1900 Park Fare Breakfast). We would also pay OOP for appetizers for numerous TS meals. Our total OOP costs would be $484.57, which is crazy!

I guess each family is different if the DDP is worth it or not (and which plan). When I did the distripplanner website, it said we'd save $122.92 with the middle DDP with 2 OOP. So close to a wash. And of course it's only an estimate. Most of our meals are set price, but not all. And if not on the DDP, we'd only ever order dessert at dinner (i.e. not with our QS) and for myself, aside for breakfast, I'd just order water for a drink. I'm just amazed that even with the DDP, we'll still need to pay for 2 OOP (and that's only with 1 TS/day)

 

[mommycal]

I'm confused. we are also staying 6 nights and this is what our schedule looks like and we aren't planning on paying for ANY out of pocket and still have one credit "open" to use our last day. here is what it looks like:

1st night arriving mid day so we are only using dinner at nacroossees
day 2: tusker house breakfast and dinner at yachmans
day 3: holllywood & vine breakfast and dinner at prime time
day 4: boma breakfast and citricos for dinner
day 5: 1900 for breakfast and luau for diner
day 6: cape may breakfast and le cellier for dinner
day 7: breakfast at crystal palace and our last "open" credit to eat wherever around the castle


as you can see we go through our credits quickly since we enjoy a fancy dinner. Hope this helps

 

[Frozen2014]

I'm confused. we are also staying 6 nights and this is what our schedule looks like and we aren't planning on paying for ANY out of pocket and still have one credit "open" to use our last day. here is what it looks like:

1st night arriving mid day so we are only using dinner at nacroossees
day 2: tusker house breakfast and dinner at yachmans
day 3: holllywood & vine breakfast and dinner at prime time
day 4: boma breakfast and citricos for dinner
day 5: 1900 for breakfast and luau for diner
day 6: cape may breakfast and le cellier for dinner
day 7: breakfast at crystal palace and our last "open" credit to eat wherever around the castle


as you can see we go through our credits quickly since we enjoy a fancy dinner. Hope this helps

I'm guessing you are on the Deluxe DDP? With that one, you get 3 TS/day. In the middle DDP (the one that we are on), you only get 1 TS/night....so if staying 6 nights, then 6 credits. We have 7 TS booked (one per day including arrival and departure day) and CRT is 2 credits.

 

[mommycal]

duh, yes, my bad, we are on the Deluxe . I'm sorry. haven't had coffee yet

 

[Frozen2014]

duh, yes, my bad, we are on the Deluxe . I'm sorry. haven't had coffee yet

 

[Mommy2Corinne]

I guess each family is different if the DDP is worth it or not (and which plan). When I did the distripplanner website, it said we'd save $122.92 with the middle DDP with 2 OOP. So close to a wash. And of course it's only an estimate. Most of our meals are set price, but not all. And if not on the DDP, we'd only ever order dessert at dinner (i.e. not with our QS) and for myself, aside for breakfast, I'd just order water for a drink. I'm just amazed that even with the DDP, we'll still need to pay for 2 OOP (and that's only with 1 TS/day)

Yep. I just did very specific math for our upcoming trip. DDP is definitely NOT a good option for us. Based on our current ADRs, we would lose $268.05 if we would have chosen the DDP.

We are two adults, one 4 year old, and one 2.5 year old. Our trip is 9 days/8 nights. We like drinking water (and don't drink soda or juice at home), so my calculations include water for our meals that didn't already include a drink (we would pay for booze either way OOP, so I didn't include that at all ). I included desserts at a few TS dinner restaurants, but not at lunch except for BOG (we have found in the past that it is just too much for us). I didn't include snacks (honestly we always felt like we were eating then just to use up our credits), so if you want to be a stickler, I guess you could add $50 or so for snacks, which would bring our number down to around $220). At many of the TS restaurants we plan on ordering appetizers (and splitting a dessert), but the appetizers would all be OOP anyway. My 2.5 year old son will be plate sharing at the character meals/buffets, but I did order him lunches/dinners otherwise, which again would be OOP either way. We are planning on eating at the following restaurants:

Garden Grill Dinner
CS - BOG Lunch
Ohana Dinner
CS - Flame Tree Lunch
Narcoosees Dinner
Biergarten Lunch
1900 Park Fare Dinner
CS - CHH Lunch
CS - Pecos Bills Dinner
CS - Gasparillas Lunch
Brown Derby FP Dinner (Fantasmic)
Ohana Breakfast
BOG Dinner
TTDP (Special/Dessert)
Tusker House Lunch
CS - Gasparillas Dinner
1900 Park Fare Breakfast
Akershus Lunch

Narcoosees, Brown Derby (Fantasmic), TTDP, and 1900 Park Fare Breakfast would be OOP either way (based on credit use).

DDP = Fail (for us).

 

[sharonabe]

I guess each family is different if the DDP is worth it or not (and which plan). When I did the distripplanner website, it said we'd save $122.92 with the middle DDP with 2 OOP. So close to a wash. And of course it's only an estimate. Most of our meals are set price, but not all. And if not on the DDP, we'd only ever order dessert at dinner (i.e. not with our QS) and for myself, aside for breakfast, I'd just order water for a drink. I'm just amazed that even with the DDP, we'll still need to pay for 2 OOP (and that's only with 1 TS/day)

You don't HAVE to pay for 2 OOP. You can change your ADRs to fit the plan that you've chosen or you can drop the plan and eat where and what you want. Based on what you say above, you'd probably spend less than the DDP.

 

[Frozen2014]

You don't HAVE to pay for 2 OOP. You can change your ADRs to fit the plan that you've chosen or you can drop the plan and eat where and what you want. Based on what you say above, you'd probably spend less than the DDP.

Yes, of course we "could" drop 2 ADRs if we wanted to avoid OOP (so 5 TS meals with CRT), but I am calculating based on the restaurants we would like to try. This is vacation and would like to enjoy rather than settling for QS as a substitute (and even then, only 1 QS per day as well). My point is that even the middle DDP doesn't cover it. The deluxe would be way too much and we wouldn't get our money's worth. So just posted to see if others too end up on the plan and still paying some OOP.

 

[ibela]

I'm constantly retweaking our ADRs and now also have 2 paying OOP. We do have some CS credits unaccounted for but I'll figure out a use for them. I did the math if we just paid OOP altogether but the dining plan is still worth it for us since we have several fixed price meals and 2 kids under 9. What I plan on doing, so thought I'd suggest it, is that several restaurants I selected for atmosphere not because there was something on the menu that I must have. We're mixing and matching credits vs OOP at those. Ex. T-Rex, kids would love but it's our 7th night and I think I'll probably be looking for something lighter by then. Especially with a character meal buffet lunch that day. So I'm thinking if I want a salad or sandwich for dinner, I'll pay OOP for that. If my bf wants a big meal, we'll use a credit for his. My point is, if it's not a fixed price meal then EVERYONE doesn't need to use credits to pay for the meal so that's how I'm trying to minimize OOP. Of course if I just want to use my credits I will, but there comes a point in every Disney vacation where I'm just kinda done with eating. If that makes sense.

 

[mgsquared]

We're going to be paying for maybe one OOP. Hopefully 2! (Someone will cancel dine with an imagineer on DH's birthday hopefully!)

We already have a TS reserved on the night we arrive and are there all day on the day we leave so that makes us a day over the DDP which means one TS and one QS (or two QS if we like) would be OOP. I do see us eventually sharing a meal here or there though and for the other TS I made a ressie at Beaches & Cream which isn't much more expensive than a QS and should be fun.

 

[Aliceacc]

This will be the first trip where we've paid OOP using hte DDP. We're doing a family reunion, and my sister in law really wants the Brown Derby, which counts as 2 credits.

Other than that, we've always chosen restaurants from the huge list that cost only one credit.

 

[JaimeK]

We have a 7-day, 6-night free dining package and I have 1 TS booked each day so that's one meal OOP for us.
The QS credits are so easy to stretch into extra meals. We'll be 5 adults/2 kids and I know my mom will want to share my meals instead of getting her own. I'll probably get granola bars & yogurts to do some quick breakfasts on the way to the parks.

I initially had HDDR booked but decided I'd rather cover two meals instead of one 2-credit meal.

Here's my plan:
WCC dinner
1900 dinner
Biergarten dinner
Boma dinner
Tusker House lunch
Sci Fi lunch (probably will do a mix of OOP/credit, depending of what we order!)
Kona lunch (remaining credits/OOP)

 

[GillianP1301]

We did DDP 2 trips ago, we stayed 8 nights, but with 2 of those days offsite and only needing dinner on arrival day and breakfast on departure day, I was able to spread my dining credits out so that we only paid for one OOP meal.

This year, we are doing only Disney days, so the DDP was not going to come near covering what I had planned so I've opted for the DxDP. Personally, I would not go for the regular DDP if it was going to leave me with multiple OOP meals. I either want it all included or not.

For the OP, I think only being left with 2 OOP meals is not too bad. I agree that it's a bit of an annoyance to still have meal costs over and above the plan though.

 

[kaybird]

We have never needed to pay any OOP while on the DDP. It is plenty of food, and more often than not, we are hustling to finish off credits by the end. Our rule of thumb now is to go ahead and use whatever we want at the beginning of the trip, then if we need to, we can add an OOP afterwards.

 

[GWhitten98]

We are paying OOP for at least three meals during our 9day/8 night vacation. One is an adult only signature meal for just DH/I and two character breakfast(cheapest of our ADRs). We do not have any 2CR ADRs, but have a dinner arrival day and breakfast departure day as well as 2 days with 2 ADRs.

We have a couple of factors that work against fitting into the DDP mold, but the DxDDP is still to much. Factor against us include:

• DH wants a "real" breakfast...A poptart or a granola bar is not going to cut it.
• We have 3 LO under 6 and love character dining (current planned trip has 6).
• We are arriving early on our first day and leaving late our last day, which is awsome park wise, but defiantely eats into credits as we like at least one TS a day

On the bright side for us, we have one under 3 so she eats free at buffets which helps cushion the OOP cost. Also when on vacation we eat the way the dining plan is designed, with deserts, snacks and softdrinks....