Dining Plan for DVC members?? Worth it?

[edk35]

We have been staying at Shades of Green.....for the past few trips so we weren't not elgible for the dining plan. So.....is it worth it to you? We are going in Aug. for our first DVC trip.....we plan on doing a lot of off the beaten path stuff, more pool time, more DTD time...some park time. SO a slower pace.....also what about that DDE card? Do you use that? We are probably going to buy AP's too? Thanks for your advice.

 

[dianeschlicht]

We did have a DDE card, and also did the DDP our last trip. I think it is a decent value if you are a couple and like to eat at table service places. For us, it worked out as a slight savings over our usual habits, but we had tons of counter service credits left at the end of the trip. Snacks weren't a problem, because we often have a daily Mickey bar, but counter service is something we don't do all that much except for Starring Rolls and Flame Tree BBQ.

Our problem is that most of the TS places we like best are also Signature, so take two TS credits.

 

[beachblanket]

We have been staying at Shades of Green.....for the past few trips so we weren't not elgible for the dining plan. So.....is it worth it to you? We are going in Aug. for our first DVC trip.....we plan on doing a lot of off the beaten path stuff, more pool time, more DTD time...some park time. SO a slower pace.....also what about that DDE card? Do you use that? We are probably going to buy AP's too? Thanks for your advice.

The answer to your question is extremely subjective.

For what it's worth, my take (based on 9 years of DVC membership) is having access to a full kitchen in a "home away from home" unit really diminishes the utility of an investment in the dining plan.

There are just time times (particularly early and mid day) when "eating in" is more convenient and relaxing; we invested in DVC to have a "quality respite" from the WDW craziness, not to be running from meal to meal every day.

All that has made me wish Disney would offer a "dining plan lite," ergo one with fewer credits, perhaps designed for one "nice" meal a day. We could leverage that, but my gut is it wouldn't be as profitable for Disney as the full dining plan, so it will probably never come to pass.

 

[DVC Grammy]

It all depends............if you're big eaters, and like a LOT of food, or you want to eat at the Signature restaurants every other day, it can pay. My DH and I tried it last Oct. during a split-stay, and we found out that it was too much food for the two of us (thank goodness we used it on the first segment, we were able to "ferry over" lots of leftovers to the second villa ).
For just the two of us, we're happier with the DDE. It pays for itself since we go to WDW a few times per year, and occasionally indulge in adult drinks , ). It allows us to tailor its use to our eating habits.

 

[edk35]

The answer to your question is extremely subjective.

For what it's worth, my take (based on 9 years of DVC membership) is having access to a full kitchen in a "home away from home" unit really diminishes the utility of an investment in the dining plan.

There are just time times (particularly early and mid day) when "eating in" is more convenient and relaxing; we invested in DVC to have a "quality respite" from the WDW craziness, not to be running from meal to meal every day.

All that has made me wish Disney would offer a "dining plan lite," ergo one with fewer credits, perhaps designed for one "nice" meal a day. We could leverage that, but my gut is it wouldn't be as profitable for Disney as the full dining plan, so it will probably never come to pass.

WOW I love the dining lite idea. MAYBE YOU SHOULD SUGGEST IT. I would buy it.

 

[edk35]

It all depends............if you're big eaters, and like a LOT of food, or you want to eat at the Signature restaurants every other day, it can pay. My DH and I tried it last Oct. during a split-stay, and we found out that it was too much food for the two of us (thank goodness we used it on the first segment, we were able to "ferry over" lots of leftovers to the second villa ).
For just the two of us, we're happier with the DDE. It pays for itself since we go to WDW a few times per year, and occasionally indulge in adult drinks , ). It allows us to tailor its use to our eating habits.

What does the DDE card cover? Thanks

 

[ericamanda01]

DH and I are not big on eating out at home because of the cost. We would rather save the money for vacation. However we got the DDP on our last trip and loved it and also hated it at the same time. We loved all the placed we could eat and the amount of food was sometimes overwelming. However, we always go to the parks in the offseason, mid-sept. On our last trip Disney offered the free dining and getting PS was a nightmare. Every place we went to eat was so full of people, it made me wish we had passed on the DDP. For our next trip I will plan better and make PS well in advance, I just hope they don't offer the free dining when we are there.

 

[DVC Grammy]

What does the DDE card cover? Thanks

The DDE gives your 20% off the entire bill at loads of restaurants (too many to put down here; there must be some site where they're listed......I just don't know it ). It also covers "adult" drinks, and it's good for up to 10 people in your party. I believe the cost is now $65, BUT, you need either an AP or you need to be a Florida resident.
As I said before, it works better for us than the DDP.

 

[edk35]

The DDE gives your 20% off the entire bill at loads of restaurants (too many to put down here; there must be some site where they're listed......I just don't know it ). It also covers "adult" drinks, and it's good for up to 10 people in your party. I believe the cost is now $65, BUT, you need either an AP or you need to be a Florida resident.
As I said before, it works better for us than the DDP.

Thanks I found the list at All Ears...

 

[HockeyKat]

We really like the DDP, but we are the opposite of the above posters. We are heavy eaters on vacation, and would actually prefer a dining plan "plus" that included 2 TS a day (or one CS and one signature). Snacks, we generally don't care much about except DH and his Dole Whip. TS, we like to be sit-down and non-buffet.

I like that your meals are pre-paid and taken care of. We are uber-planners so make our ADRs well in advance, but even so haven't had too much trouble in the past year (Sept, Oct, Jan) rescheduling if we change our minds at the last minute.

We have also figured out that our receipts usually total out to close to double what we paid on the DDP vs what we would have paid OOP. Granted, we probably wouldn't do as many appetizers/desserts, but it is nice to have the option.

-Kat

 

[Dean]

The DDP works well for shorter trips, multiple rooms where you only get it for one, big eaters, and children that qualify as kids but eat as adults. It also allows you to try different things for a controlled amount. But many will actually save money with the DDE compared to the DDP.

 

[mb168]

We're on our second year with the DDE since they came out with the AP discount. It works well for us because we don't like to be "locked in" to where and what we eat. So at parks if it's just DW DD3 and I, we may go to LTT and order two lunches and DW and DD will split a meal and DW will pick off my plate, and it's as cheap as going to a counter service and getting 3 meals. Then, we do a week long trip with all 4 kids in June in an OKW 2BR and instead of buying 4 chicken finger meals every night that never seems to get eaten, we'll feed the kids (DD11, DS10, DD8, DD3) in the room at like 4:30. Sandwichs, hot dogs ramen, etc. Then DW, MIL and I will take the kid sto a table service restaraunt and the kids color and play Gameboy while the 3 adults eat meals on the DDE card. The other thing is that a minimum o fonce during that trip we'll head up to the Hard Rock or Margaritaville.

So I think for the way we eat, we come out better using the DDE than the plan because we'd have a lot left over, either food or tickets.

 

[jbthi]

We bought the dining plan for a 5 night stay last Nov. I enjoyed it because we are at the more expensive restaurants and had the more expensive entrees. Something we don't usually do.

At the same time, we will probably never do it again. We are not that big of eaters, never have appetizers and desserts both. Most of our counter service meals were not used or given away. For snacks we just got bottles of water.

We do have the DDE card, which works better for us. We usually spend at least a month at DW and usually have other people dining with us.

 

[noname70]

Does the DDE also cover a bar tab only? (I mean, with no meal invoved).

 

[mb168]

No, but it's the only way to get a discount that includes alcohol. I wish it could be used on a bar tab. You can "fudge it" though. For instance, Olivia's drinks are all made at the Gurgling Suitcase, but your check is through Olivia's. But since GS isn't on the plan, you can go to Olivia's and order drinks (I admit not as nice as going to the GS for a quick one if you're outside) but getting 20% off a $7 drink is definitely worth it, makes it normal priced.

Here's what Mousesavers says about DDE http://www.mousesavers.com/diningexperience.html

 

[Christopher5927]

Does the DDE also cover a bar tab only? (I mean, with no meal invoved).

Ours did. We received 20% discount on every bar tab (even with no food ) last August. And there were many bar tabs in that 2 weeks!

 

[mb168]

Where did you use it that was a bar only?

 

[disvaclub92]

Where did you use it that was a bar only?

Here are the various bars that you can use it at. I have used it at the Bellevue Lounge.

Animal Kingdom Lodge
Victoria Falls

Beach Club Resort
Martha's Vineyard Lounge

BoardWalk
Bellevue Lounge
ESPN Club

Eagle Pines and Osprey Ridge Golf Club
Sand Trap Bar & Grill

Contemporary Resort
Outer Rim Lounge

Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
Garden View Lounge
Mizner's Lounge

Old Key West Resort
Olivia's Cafe

Polynesian Resort
Tambu Lounge

Pop Century Resort
Classic Concoctions

Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
The Turf Club Bar and Grill

Wilderness Lodge
Territory Lounge

Yacht Club Resort
Ale and Compass Lounge
Crew's Cup Lounge

Epcot
Rose & Crown Pub & Dining Room

Disney-MGM Studios
Tune-In Lounge

 

[JimC]

We use the DDE card. It fits our needs better than the meal plan. And now that we have moved to Orlando it works out even better for us. We make day trips and enjoy getting the discount when we eat on property.

 

[Christopher5927]

Where did you use it that was a bar only?

Bellevue Lounge, Victoria Falls, Martha's Vineyard Lounge,Outer Rim Lounge,
Mizner's Lounge,Territory Lounge,Ale and Compass Lounge AND,Crew's Cup Lounge

I just thought of it like this: if I have four drinks, the fifth is free!!!