Dining or no dining?

[dreamerbaby98]

I am planning for our January 14 day trip and am trying to decide whether to get the dining or not. It is just me and hubby and we are not big eaters so would just be getting the CS plan if we did. If we don't do you get charged tax when you order meals? We live in Oregon so we are not used to paying a tax on things. I like the convenience of not having to worry about how much each meal is costing and making it last till we leave but at the same time I don't want to pay $85 a day for us to eat and be way more than we would have paid out of pocket. I just don't know what to do!! I checked into the menus and and we really would not be ordering a dessert all the time probably just a entrée and a drink. How much to the mugs cost?

 

[Robo]

I am planning for our January 14 day trip and am trying to decide whether to get the dining or not. It is just me and hubby and we are not big eaters so would just be getting the CS plan if we did. If we don't do you get charged tax when you order meals? We live in Oregon so we are not used to paying a tax on things. I like the convenience of not having to worry about how much each meal is costing and making it last till we leave but at the same time I don't want to pay $85 a day for us to eat and be way more than we would have paid out of pocket. I just don't know what to do!! I checked into the menus and and we really would not be ordering a dessert all the time probably just a entrée and a drink. How much to the mugs cost?

We never do the dining plan.
There are usually just two of us and we don't eat three full meals a day, plus snacks.
We pay out-of-pocket for Hoop Dee Doo, 'Ohana, Le Cellier, BoG, and many more… and, averaged for the trip, still come out ahead.

 

[CAS239]

We've also never done the dining plan. Have never found a need to

 

[smiths02]

I think it is very unlikely that 2 adults on the CS plan will save money.

If you use credits, you don't pay tax each meal (it's just rolled into the cost of the plan). If you pay out of pocket, they do charge tax.
Even with the tax thing, it will still most likely be cheaper to just pay as you go.

 

[Hootch]

I look at the dining plan evry trip. I have yet to find it saves money. That is based on our dining pattern. Some people like the certainty of the costs and buy it.

 

[mchelle77]

I stopped reading when you said you aren't big eaters. The dining plan is good for some people, but doesn't sound as though it will be for you. There was another site that did a breakdown of the QS plan that showed you'd have to order the most expensive items at every place to even save barely $10 total. Just pay out of pocket. If you want something "prepaid", but a bunch of gift cards and use those as your "meal plan"!

 

[minnie mum]

I would also think it unlikely that you would save much, if anything with any dining plan if it is just 2 adults. t
The refillable mug, only good for use at resort food courts or resort refil stations cost about $18 per person. So if you used them at least once a day, they would more than pay for themselves.

 

[Robo]

The refillable mug, only good for use at resort food courts or resort refil stations cost about $18 per person. So if you used them at least once a day, they would more than pay for themselves.

I read this all the time. We don't necessarily stay in a room that is close to the dining room in our resort.
The idea of walking all that way to fill a flagon, each, with soda pop, then have to trudge back to the room is not appealing.
And, (if I want to stop by for a filling on our way back from the parks, later in the day) I am not going to carry two of those mugs with me all day long at the parks, or pay for a locker to store them.

We just buy packs of soda pop and stash them in the room refrigerator and we'll be all set any time.

 

[minnie mum]

I agree that this can depend on which resort you are at and how far your room is from the nearest refil station. On some trips, like our last at CBR, it was just too much walking. At others, when our room was close, like POFQ or when we are in a preferred room, we found ourselves using them 4 or 5 times a day.

 

[cisco911]

We just got back last month and did the dining plan. We ended up breaking even but we did a lot of character meals which are expensive. For the quick service meals we found that there was a lot of waste as it always come with desert which we did not want. So if you include the desert the price was more than the dining plan but we wouldn't have ordered the desert if we were paying out of pocket. Looking at it again we would have saved $100 to $150 if you paid out of pocket because we would not have ordered deserts every meal and we wouldn't have used all the snack credits. However, it is nice to not have to worry about it as it is all paid for up front.

If you do the plan and are a fan of starbucks, use the snack credits on big frappachinos. Probably the best use in my opinion Once I found out that it works on that I refused to use my snack credits on anything else!!!!

 

[Robo]

Looking at it again we would have saved $100 to $150 if you paid out of pocket because we would not have ordered deserts every meal and we wouldn't have used all the snack credits. However, it is nice to not have to worry about it as it is all paid for up front.

My wife and I eat at restaurants every week of our lives (often daily) and we "don't worry about" having to pay when we dine.
In a similar situation, I would not pre-pay $100 extra for a gift card that offered no refunds if we didn't order dessert (etc.) and call it a
no worry thing. I'd worry about it a LOT if I had to over-pay by $100 a week just so I didn't have to pay at the end of a meal.

 

[Masonmj84]

And, (if I want to stop by for a filling on our way back from the parks, later in the day) I am not going to carry two of those mugs with me all day long at the parks, or pay for a locker to store them.

I'll add that those mugs are notoriously leaky. We once brought them full into a park and ended up with a huge mess. Never again.

I generally think the QSDP is a rip-off, regardless of your situation. So is the regular DDP, unless you have a lot of kids under age 10 and are doing a lot of character meals. If you love TS dining and have a big enough appetite, the DxDP can potentially provide minor savings versus paying OOP. But, as with all dining plans, you run a high risk of paying in advance for more food than you can eat (especially if you get sick, etc.).

 

[ErinInCT]

I don't like being tied to the meal plan. I'd rather just order and eat what I want and not have to worry about snacks or dessert, etc. I don't think you'd find it to be cost effective.

 

[Aurora0427]

I am planning for our January 14 day trip and am trying to decide whether to get the dining or not. It is just me and hubby and we are not big eaters so would just be getting the CS plan if we did. If we don't do you get charged tax when you order meals? We live in Oregon so we are not used to paying a tax on things. I like the convenience of not having to worry about how much each meal is costing and making it last till we leave but at the same time I don't want to pay $85 a day for us to eat and be way more than we would have paid out of pocket. I just don't know what to do!! I checked into the menus and and we really would not be ordering a dessert all the time probably just a entrée and a drink. How much to the mugs cost?

Google Disney dining plan calculator. You can plug in all of your meals to find out if you come out ahead or if Disney does. There are instances where it makes sense to do the DDP- tons of character dining and buffets are two examples. Www.easywdw.com has a great write up on the DDP and how to maximize it if you decide it's for you.

 

[Trinity88]

My guess would be it isn't worth it for you. We have purchased the DDP (regular one) and I used this site to help me decide: http://www.distripplanner.com/. We actually save about $300 using the dining plan, but we have a lot of character meals booked (mostly late breakfasts/brunch and dinners).

 

[dashofsunshine]

It's just myself and my husband. I eat next to nothing now but even before surgery when I still had a normal adult appetite, we never did the dining plan. We always save money. It just isn't worth it for two people unless you plan on doing tons of expensive character meals or you eat a LOT. It's nice to be able to snack and eat what you want, when you want throughout the parks as well.

 

[nooneshome]

You answered your own question when you said y'all aren't big eaters. We are not big eaters and we would never have the DP if it wasn't a FD offer.

 

[Crystal824]

We have done the dining plan and not gotten the dining plan. I would run the numbers, but for the mot part, I don't think it saves money. If you want all the items you get, you would probably break even or even come out bit ahead. For us, it typically isn't worth it. We generally only get it when it is "free." During our last trip, we decided to do a character meal per day. I think the regular dining plan may save a bit when you do a lot of character meals. With that being said, we found that a character meal per day was a bit much for us even for our very young kids. We won't be doing DP in the future.

 

[Robo]

Also, if you're like many folks, there is another consideration that does't fit the Dining Plan very well...
Split meals.

 

[JimmyBean42]

We do dining plan, but are big eaters and have kids who love character meals. I find I save some money when we are doing a lot of the character meals (and never do a 2 credit meal). I also tend to be the person that finds the most bang for the buck (i.e. most $$$$) QS meal and get that (same for snacks). But ifyou aren't big eaters and aren't doing the more pricey character or TS meals, I'd skip the DDP.