Dining plan not worth it unless you get it for free (examining the costs)

[mikeyg1479]

I am just trying to reason this out logically here, as someone going in November and trying to sort out if its worth buying it.

To my understanding, the standard table service plan is now $63 and change per day for adults.

So lets reason this out- first off, the refillable cups don't mean anything to me, I don't drink soda, and I won't use them or care to carry them around, and you don't get alcohol anyway on the plan.

But on the plan, for each adult, each day you get one table service meal/drink/desert, one counter service meal/drink/desert, and a snack.

So, if I just opt to NOT get plan, and individually buy:
1. $30 dinner entrée at table service+$3 drink = $33
2. $15 for either breakfast or lunch/drink combo (reasonable number I think, and oftentimes possibly spend less
3. $5 snack item
This adds up to $53. Throw in some deserts for fun, say $10 more- and you reach the $63 cost of the daily dining plan.

BUT

I know I'm not spending $30 on an entrée most days, looking up menus, I'm generally eyeing up things in the 18-25 dollar range most days. So slash $5-10 from my daily total there. Deserts- I don't often order them if I have a choice, certainly not at a counter service lunch- just not hungry for them (and waistline doesn't need them). So, yeah, I think I come WELL below $63 most days. And even if I did want desert, i'd probably fall far under if my entrée is only $20 range.

From people with experience on this- does this logic seem sound? I think unless I ate the most expensive steak platter every day, or did $40+ buffet/character meals all the time, if you are paying for the dining plan, it would rarely be worth it. Obviously, if you are getting it for free, thats one thing, but paying for it generally won't add up.. Thoughts?

 

[smiths02]

I am just trying to reason this out logically here, as someone going in November and trying to sort out if its worth buying it.

From people with experience on this- does this logic seem sound? I think unless I ate the most expensive steak platter every day, or did $40+ buffet/character meals all the time, if you are paying for the dining plan, it would rarely be worth it. Obviously, if you are getting it for free, thats one thing, but paying for it generally won't add up.. Thoughts?

Yes, for the adult plan, generally you have to want all the entitlements for it to be a good deal AND make good use of most of the entitlements (choosing more expensive CS and TS and snacks).

The child plan is a better deal, however, if you have enough of the 3-9 year olds to balance the adults.

IMO, even by Disney's claim, the potential savings is rather small to risk having my money tied up and forcing me to choose the right balance of TS and CS to get a value. For others, the small savings to potential small extra cost is worth it for piece of mind/convenience. (I do get that, we traveled with my ILs in 2011 and paid for the plan for 4 adults because it was easier to split the DDP cost than debating who pays what at every meal or seeing people who didn't know what the prices would be shocked at every meal)

 

[smiths02]

I forgot to add that even when it is free, it might not be the best deal. When it is a free dining period, you are paying rack rate for rooms and paying for tickets you may or may not need (and now it requires parkhopper or water park add on which you may or may not have wanted) versus taking a room discount (or renting DVC points) and purchasing the tickets you want.

 

[wilkeliza]

You have to compare the same for same though so entree, drink, and dessert for all meals, a snack, and the cost of the refillable mug. We stopped doing the dinning plan simply because we realized many times we don't want a dessert with our quick service or the snack we want isn't covered so we end up ordering stuff we just pick at or leaving with a bunch of snack credits.

 

[wilkeliza]

I forgot to add that even when it is free, it might not be the best deal. When it is a free dining period, you are paying rack rate for rooms and paying for tickets you may or may not need (and now it requires parkhopper or water park add on which you may or may not have wanted).

Agreed. We already had our tickets for the free dinning period and didn't want park hoppers anyways so even just buy the 2 minimum it cost more for us to get the free dinning then it did to stay room only.

 

[smiths02]

Also, if you have another way to get discounts or get the food you want, the savings goes down.
For instance, we got a a lot of snacks and drinks from Amazon Prime Pantry, so the refillable mug, bags of pretzels or chips, bowl of cereal, etc. weren't worth what Disney was charging because it wasn't impossible or even inconvenient to get those items another way.

 

[Brenda Kim]

My brother always wants the dining plan because he likes not having to pay for food while on vacation. However because him and his wife often share meals and the two kiddos NEVER eat a full meal each, I have done the math and the dining plan of any variety is more money than just pay as you go, even with some character meals thrown in for us. So in order to appease my brother I took the cash he would have prepaid for the Disney Dining plan, loaded it on a Disney gift card and we used that the whole trip. At the end we had about $100 left on the card, which we used from some great souvenirs.

 

[megster1123]

So in order to appease my brother I took the cash he would have prepaid for the Disney Dining plan, loaded it on a Disney gift card and we used that the whole trip. At the end we had about $100 left on the card, which we used from some great souvenirs.

I love this idea!!

 

[mikeyg1479]

Thank you for the input everyone. It sounds like I probably won't buy the plan- while I like a good steak, I don't want to feel railroaded into buying the most expensive thing every day to make the plan "worth it". The only buffet I anticipate doing is Tusker House breakfast, whose cost is far less than dinner, and I'd just do a cheap counter service dinner after a big morning buffet, so that day wouldn't even add up. Like I said, so often I see an $18 entrée and think, that's what I really want, and not the $35 steak or seafood. That that would put me well under dining plan cost.

I also hear you on the free dining plan not always working out in terms of cost. I have French Quarter booked (by most accounts, a nice moderate resort, queen beds, not far from bus stop), and when the free dining plan offers came out, the closest thing in price was the pirate rooms at Caribean Beach, which I understand are a downgrade, only full size beds, poor resort location, AND the room rate would have been $1100 more than the rooms I had now, which were booked under a discounted group rate from my travel agent. This would cost more than if I stuck with my original room AND bought the dining plan.

 

[kniquy]

The savings is generally small. I think savings is more realized when you do character meals or buffets. The dining plan caters to those who just want to pay ahead so as to not worry about what you are spending when you are there. At home, yes I look at menu prices to help make some decisions on what to get, but when on vacation I don't want to worry about it. I am purchasing discount disney gift cards in order to buy the dining plan for our next trip. It is definitely way too much food so if you still want to watch what you are eating you are better off not getting the plan you will likely be more mindful of your choices and not having yummy desserts forced down your throat will help too. I would probably go without the plan, but traveling w/ family who love food and dining out I just need to go with the flow. If you are traveling w/ others you might want to discuss what their wants are.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

This is the first year we have really done the number crunching for the dining plan. We usually do the deluxe plan bc we hate CS places and we like to eat 3 meals a day. We don't really care about losing time in the park. Anyways after going through menus and calculating prices for our next trip...the dining plan is actually costing us about $100 more than if we were to pay OOP. Now usually my hubby is the first 1 to say well then we should pay OOP, but on our next trip I am planning 2 dinner shows (which need to be payed for in advance). We always pay for Disney out of a bonus my hubby gets from his job, so paying OOP in September (this is when I would need to book ADRs), just doesn't fly for us. I also don't want to wait til its practically out vacation to try and get an ADR to the dinner shows. I don't like leaving anything to chance. That being said for us to pay the $100 extra just so we don't have to pay upfront for the dinner shows makes it worth it for us to get the dining plan again this year. Although the dining plan is not right for everyone. We are a family that doesn't care whether or not we finish our plates just to make sure we are getting a good deal on the dining plan. We just like to have variety and I feel the dining plan helps us do that. I also feel like its less stressful when we have the dining plan and I feel like since its already paid I can order the most expensive thing on the menu and not even blink and eye at it. If we were paying OOP I know I would more than likely eat the cheapest thing on the menu and in my own opinion you aren't really experiencing all that Disney has to offer if you are eating burgers and chicken fingers everyday, lol

 

[smiths02]

This is the first year we have really done the number crunching for the dining plan. We usually do the deluxe plan bc we hate CS places and we like to eat 3 meals a day. We don't really care about losing time in the park. Anyways after going through menus and calculating prices for our next trip...the dining plan is actually costing us about $100 more than if we were to pay OOP. Now usually my hubby is the first 1 to say well then we should pay OOP, but on our next trip I am planning 2 dinner shows (which need to be payed for in advance). We always pay for Disney out of a bonus my hubby gets from his job, so paying OOP in September (this is when I would need to book ADRs), just doesn't fly for us. I also don't want to wait til its practically out vacation to try and get an ADR to the dinner shows. I don't like leaving anything to chance. That being said for us to pay the $100 extra just so we don't have to pay upfront for the dinner shows makes it worth it for us to get the dining plan again this year. Although the dining plan is not right for everyone. We are a family that doesn't care whether or not we finish our plates just to make sure we are getting a good deal on the dining plan. We just like to have variety and I feel the dining plan helps us do that. I also feel like its less stressful when we have the dining plan and I feel like since its already paid I can order the most expensive thing on the menu and not even blink and eye at it. If we were paying OOP I know I would more than likely eat the cheapest thing on the menu and in my own opinion you aren't really experiencing all that Disney has to offer if you are eating burgers and chicken fingers everyday, lol

Couldn't you have the dining plan on your reservations, make your ADRs and then decide to drop it?

 

[sharonabe]

I feel like since its already paid I can order the most expensive thing on the menu and not even blink and eye at it. If we were paying OOP I know I would more than likely eat the cheapest thing on the menu and in my own opinion you aren't really experiencing all that Disney has to offer if you are eating burgers and chicken fingers everyday, lol

You had me on your side until this last thing. Come on, you know as well as I do that you can eat all week without ever eating a burger or chicken fingers and STILL pay less than the DDP will cost you. AND if I've looked at the menus and KNOW I can order the most expensive thing and STILL end up paying less than the DDP, why wouldn't I order the most expensive thing? There's no reason to order on the cheap unless that's what you WANT to eat.

 

[richmo]

I tend to agree; at least the standard DDP isn't worth it unless its in the free dining promo and you're ok with one of the plus options on the tickets (hopper or water parks).

On the other hand, math aside, it is nice to get the dining expense out of the way prior to the trip. I've always felt the sticker shock of Disney World hasn't been so much the accommodations or the tickets, but the dining costs. Especially as the size of a family increases, that expense adds up fast.

Personally,I/we probably won't use DDP unless its "free" in a package...

 

[StirlingSilver83]

Couldn't you have the dining plan on your reservations, make your ADRs and then decide to drop it?

I never thought about that...I wonder if thats an option? I could always get the dining plan and then drop it as it gets closer to our trip, but I will still have those dinner show ADRs. Will they make you pay for them after you drop the dining plan? Or do they just charge you when you get there?

 

[cosmicmommy]

I have never used the dining plan, but upon looking it over, comparing menus and putting together of the things we would likely order, I am registering a savings of $200 - BUT it is 1 adult and 3 kids for me, which may be why I am able to save so much? This includes them eating off the kids' menu, but I am also planning 4 character dinners(1900 Park Fare, Crystal Palace, Tusker House and Ohana), converting some QS credits to snacks for souvenirs to take home (Goofy's Candy Company) and spreading the credits out over 5 days, rather than trying to use them all in the parks on the 3 days we're in the parks.

 

[sharonabe]

I never thought about that...I wonder if thats an option? I could always get the dining plan and then drop it as it gets closer to our trip, but I will still have those dinner show ADRs. Will they make you pay for them after you drop the dining plan? Or do they just charge you when you get there?

Don't forget you'll probably be charged a cancellation fee when you drop the DDP, so your savings will go down.

 

[sharonabe]

I have never used the dining plan, but upon looking it over, comparing menus and putting together of the things we would likely order, I am registering a savings of $200 - BUT it is 1 adult and 3 kids for me, which may be why I am able to save so much? This includes them eating off the kids' menu, but I am also planning 4 character dinners(1900 Park Fare, Crystal Palace, Tusker House and Ohana), converting some QS credits to snacks for souvenirs to take home (Goofy's Candy Company) and spreading the credits out over 5 days, rather than trying to use them all in the parks on the 3 days we're in the parks.

Yes, those 3 kiddos are giving you great savings. Enjoy!

 

[smiths02]

Don't forget you'll probably be charged a cancellation fee when you drop the DDP, so your savings will go down.

You'd be charged a cancellation fee if you cancel several months out?

 

[StirlingSilver83]

Don't forget you'll probably be charged a cancellation fee when you drop the DDP, so your savings will go down.

I talked to Disney about this and they said as long as I cancel it before my final payment is due then I won't be charged a cancellation fee