DDPX how many nights do I have to commit to?

[Goldilocks07]

We are going to WDW via DVC (we area members) for 5 nights. I would like to buy the DDPX for 3 nights. Is this possible? Is the plan attached to how many nights you stay in a room?

We arrive on a Friday, so I would credits for Friday night- Saturday we will be elsewhere, and then Sunday, Mon, Tues, and Wednesday morning (day of departure). With the DDPX we will have exactly enough credits to eat wherever we want for the week. However, we sure as heck don't need a dining plan for all 5 nights, and financially it doesn't make sense for us to get the regular DDP x 5 nights- which comes to about the same amount of money BUT won't let us eat at all the restaurants we'd like- we would still be short 4 TS credits. We like to sit and eat, and with characters.

I am seriously considering going with the Deluxe Plan, simply because we are doing a whole lot of character meals. I did the math on how much we would be spending, and it almost broke even, and I didn't factor in snacks, fountain drinks or bottled water, or appetizers we would normally order from a non-character restaurant. So we may just go for it!

 

[BuzzyBelle]

Unfortunately you have to purchase the plan for however many nights are on your reservation. The only way around this is if you book a split stay then you can purchase it for one of the reservations.

 

[Goldilocks07]

Ah!
That may work. We are actually doing a split stay- 3 nights at Wilderness Lodge and 2 at Bay Lake Tower. Unless my waitlist comes through, in which case we will be 5 nights at BLT. But the odds of that happening are slim.

 

[sharonabe]

Ah!
That may work. We are actually doing a split stay- 3 nights at Wilderness Lodge and 2 at Bay Lake Tower. Unless my waitlist comes through, in which case we will be 5 nights at BLT. But the odds of that happening are slim.

Then you could do the plan at either. Just remember, the credits are active from the moment you check in and you have to use them before midnight of the day you check out.

 

[Goldilocks07]

Oh darn well that just STINKS...

Why can't you buy whatever plan you want? For how ever many days you want?

So I can buy a 3 day/night DDP but must use them in actually 3 days? That stinks. If I could buy the 3 day and use it over 5, THAT would be amazing.

Wow. Disney really figured out how to make a TON of money off this plan.

Looks like once again we will pay out of pocket - and- thank you Disney, we will reconsider our dining choices based on how crazy the prices are, and how restrictive the dining plan is.
Dang it.

 

[pangyal]

Really, you are buying a three-night plan and using it over four days. Since they are valid until midnight of your checkout day, you do get that extra day in there.

 

[Lisa F]

the deluxe plan is for people who want to eat 2-3 ts a day, not for people who want to stretch their ts credits over a whole trip. I honestly never understood why people actually get upset that disney won't let them beat the system.

I am doing a split stay - was planning to fly in on saturday early but just decided to take the extra day and be in by dinnertime on Friday night instead - will spend one night at AKL before switching to boardwalk (early december so I was lucky to get AKL, everything else is booked solid but SSR - but more importantly do not want the boardwalk because I do not want another 6 dining credits I am not planned for!) and then doing 4 nights of DxDDP which I can use over the course of 5 full days. for those days we are doing character breakfasts and mostly 2TS dinners (a couple of 1TS). It will work great for us, we'll get to do all of the TS we want to do and save about 30%

 

[GillianP1301]

the deluxe plan is for people who want to eat 2-3 ts a day, not for people who want to stretch their ts credits over a whole trip. I honestly never understood why people actually get upset that disney won't let them beat the system.

I am doing a split stay - was planning to fly in on saturday early but just decided to take the extra day and be in by dinnertime on Friday night instead - will spend one night at AKL before switching to boardwalk (early december so I was lucky to get AKL, everything else is booked solid but SSR - but more importantly do not want the boardwalk because I do not want another 6 dining credits I am not planned for!) and then doing 4 nights of DxDDP which I can use over the course of 5 full days. for those days we are doing character breakfasts and mostly 2TS dinners (a couple of 1TS). It will work great for us, we'll get to do all of the TS we want to do and save about 30%

This.

As far as I'm concerned, you either want a dining plan or you don't. Both are very good choices and have their own benefits. If you are trying to stretch 3 days worth of credits over 5 days, then I think you are definitely in the no dining plan camp and OOP is the way for you to go. The split stay is a very good option for those who may want to indulge in deluxe dining for a portion of their trip, and pay OOP for the other portion.

 

[Goldilocks07]

I guess paying $112 per person per day PLUS tips- how in the WORLD is that a deal? Even if you have CRT, that's $70. What are you spending the other money on? The other character meals are like, $40. How is the dining plan a deal? How are you saving money? Snacks are considered items under $5. You get 2 per day. That's $10.
Free soda refils? Really??

I don't know.

We only do TS meals. And this barely broke even, when I added everything up. Over 5 nights.

And yes, who DOES'T want to "get over" on Disney, or anywhere? lol
Hello, that's why the Lord created coupons, hacks (that's actually a thread ON THIS website), discount codes, and people looking to "get the best bang for their buck".

It's not "getting over", it's getting the most out of the money you are spending, which- is a LOT. And again, I'm coming from Manhattan where on the regular I spend $17 for a cocktail. Yummmm
However, I'm always on the prowl for a happy hour or any way to save $$$.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

I guess paying $112 per person per day PLUS tips- how in the WORLD is that a deal? Even if you have CRT, that's $70. What are you spending the other money on? The other character meals are like, $40. How is the dining plan a deal? How are you saving money? Snacks are considered items under $5. You get 2 per day. That's $10.
Free soda refils? Really??

It's not supposed to be a deal. It's supposed to be a pre-payment plan. If you have kids, often kids on the dining plan can make it worthwhile and save a bit -- Akershus alone is more expensive than a day of the DDP for a child-under-10.

Disney have designed the dining plan to be profitable, and it's enormously so for them.

 

[pangyal]

It's not supposed to be a deal. It's supposed to be a pre-payment plan. If you have kids, often kids on the dining plan can make it worthwhile and save a bit -- Akershus alone is more expensive than a day of the DDP for a child-under-10.

Disney have designed the dining plan to be profitable, and it's enormously so for them.

Exactly this. If you have kids 9 and under, and do character meals, you will pretty much be set to break even using the dining plan, or better.

Adults or Disney Adults are a completely different story.

 

[Goldilocks07]

It's not supposed to be a deal. It's supposed to be a pre-payment plan. If you have kids, often kids on the dining plan can make it worthwhile and save a bit -- Akershus alone is more expensive than a day of the DDP for a child-under-10.

Disney have designed the dining plan to be profitable, and it's enormously so for them.

This, reads so very true. Thank you for that.

But, Disney does claim the plan offers savings- but of course that is biased. Sure, if you order the most expensive thing on the most expensive restaurant menu with sodas and desserts etc- it will add up. Plus the character meals---
There's no place on their site that they say the plan is for pre-payment. But I get what you are saying. For most people who get the plan, it's a way to order what you want and not have the think or look at prices. Totally understandable.

I still feel like I can beat it. LOL
I've got some math to do. (again, this will be the 7th year of me trying to win, but hey- I'm not one to give up!!)

 

[Lisa F]

I'm doing the deluxe dining plan with a 1:1 kid to adult ratio and all TS meals and it is saving me about 30% - $830 worth of food for $577. All meals I want to do. With my OOP expenses I will be spending about $1k total on food (including gratuities for all that). That's about what I spent last time I went also, only I'm getting a bunch more TS meals for the same money. I'm not even trying that hard to save... just doing what I want.

a character breakfast most days and a 2TS dinner most days (some days a 1TS). 4 nights but 5 full days, splitting my stay.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

Regular Dining, kid's edition, is $22.85/night.

One character meal pretty much makes your day-with-kid profitable, because they get a QS and a snack on top of that. Paying OOP, Akershus is a $34 dinner for a child; Chef Mickey $31. So at $23, you are saving cash if a member of your party is under 10 and you're hitting buffets and AYCTE stuff.

Regular Dining, adult edition, is $63/night. There, it depends more where you eat. $41 for Biergarten at dinner gets you moving towards a break-even, but it's harder to hit break-even as adults.

A ratio of one Disney child to one Disney adult usually is key to start making savings occur. If it's just Disney adults, it is more difficult.