DDP # of days?

[PrincessRhi]

I'm a little confused about the dining plan-- can you get it for specific days of your trip, or does it have to be for the day you check in through the day you check out?

For example, say I check in on a Friday at 8pm, plan on going to the parks Saturday through Tuesday, but will be leaving on Wednesday early in the morning. Can I get a dining plan for just those four days, or would I have to also add the days I won't be there? Or if I plan on visiting family for one of those days in the middle, can I get it for three days?

Sorry if this question has already been answered, but it didn't jump out at me on the first few pages.

 

[StitchandPooh'sMom]

The dining plan has to equal the number of nights of your reservation. The tickets you buy can vary (minimum one day tickets for paid DDP and minimum two days tickets for free DDP), but the dining plan is tied to your resort reservation.

There may be different rules for DVC members and AP holders - I'm not sure about that - but for packages booked through Disney or a travel agent, DDP nights equal room nights.

 

[havoc315]

You would have to get 5 nights. It's all or none. If they allowed people to break it up, then people would only use the plans for the most expensive meals -- They count on making money by people allowing some of the credits to go to waste, using some credits for cheap meals, etc.

 

[Diegosmom]

You could do a room only reservation on your first night (and even perhaps your last night) and then the nights in the middle you could do a package with tickets and dining.

 

[TDC Nala]

You must get a dining plan for the length of the reservation you want it for. You cannot split dining plans on one reservation. The only thing you can do is split the reservation by making one or more separate room reservations. When you do that, you have to pay attention to the ticket purchase requirements if you are booking a package to get dining. Although DVC and annual passholders don't have to buy tickets to get the dining, they still have to make separate room reservations to split the dining. That means they would probably have to change rooms or resorts.

 

[PrincessRhi]

Thanks for all the help!

I figured it would be the number of nights of reservation, but wasn't sure if there was flexibility. It seems like the best way to work around that is to schedule 2 TS meals when possible if we're worried about the points going to waste.

I'll have to figure out how this works with our AP (dad and his wife who will also be on the trip do not have an AP) and if it's a better deal for us to also go with one. I feel like it would be, but then again I also feel like all of my money spent at Disney now that I have the AP is on food!

 

[havoc315]

Thanks for all the help!

I figured it would be the number of nights of reservation, but wasn't sure if there was flexibility. It seems like the best way to work around that is to schedule 2 TS meals when possible if we're worried about the points going to waste.

I'll have to figure out how this works with our AP (dad and his wife who will also be on the trip do not have an AP) and if it's a better deal for us to also go with one. I feel like it would be, but then again I also feel like all of my money spent at Disney now that I have the AP is on food!

You can also schedule a signature meal, to kill 2 credits.

But... if you have an AP -- The TiW card is a good investment, and will save far more than the dining plan under most scenarios. Especially in the long term.

 

[PrincessRhi]

I forgot about TiW! Before our last trip we looked into it and decided to pass on it since we already had AP discounts, but it must go above and beyond what you get with an AP, otherwise there is no reason to do it, right?