Dining plan or paying out of pocket?

[5kidsmommy]

I know there are a gazillion threads on this issue but I am still so torn, luckily I've got plenty of time to decided.

We are camping next March at Fort Wilderness. I have only done the dining plan once and it was a for trip staying at CBR with just my daughter, we went during free dining so it was a no brainer.

Next trip though it will be myself, my husband, and our three kids. The kids will be 17 (DS), 16 (DD) and 14(DS). The kids aren't huge eaters but they are basically adults so it's like feeding 5 adults. We usually save costs when going by only drinking water and never getting desserts. We typically eat breakfast in our trailer before leaving for the day and then typically get two quick service meals and one snack daily, which is basically the QS plan but we don't do dessert and we don't get beverages. We also typically do only one table service per trip, next trip we will go to Teppan Edo.

I've ran all the numbers, it will be a little cheaper (like maybe $100 max) to eat out of pocket if we stick to our typical eating plan. But if we do the QS plan the kids will have the freedom to get a dessert each meal and order soda and honestly I won't have to worry about which meal is the cheapest. I tend to be very budget minded even while on vacation and this would allow me to relax a little more. I am not really worried about the extra food such as desserts because I am confident my sons will take care of those.

The reason I even thought about doing the plan was because my husband said he figured we'd spend about $1500 on food four our 7 day/6 night trip and with the dining plan and our one TS meal that is what it would amount to.

So dis-boarders, what would you do? Oh and I have input all this into the dining plan calculator so I know it's almost even.

 

[Smbmoyers]

The reason I booked the dinning plan was because of the freedom it gave me and my family to not worry about the numbers and just enjoy our vacation. We came out around $75 in the hole using the dinning plan but, if I didn't have the plan I'd be price watching, allot.

 

[mzsarah10]

We've done both. Our first two trips we did the dining plan. We felt it was too much food. Just to prove to myself that it was cheaper without the dining plan, I put the cost of the plan on a gift card. we ended our trip and had a $100 balance left on it. I prefer the flexibility of not having the plan. Sometimes I like to order a kids meal and sometimes my picky child won't eat much.

 

[5kidsmommy]

We've done both. Our first two trips we did the dining plan. We felt it was too much food. Just to prove to myself that it was cheaper without the dining plan, I put the cost of the plan on a gift card. we ended our trip and had a $100 balance left on it. I prefer the flexibility of not having the plan. Sometimes I like to order a kids meal and sometimes my picky child won't eat much.

For my daughter and I it is too much food but my husband and the boys can eat and eat and eat.

 

[minnie mum]

For $100 for 5 Disney adults over a week? Do it. Especially if it means the kids can actually have a soda and a dessert, or can order what they want instead of trying to scrimp on food costs.

 

[HollyP]

Being that close in price I'd go with the dining plan. I am a very budget minded person as well and paying for those meals makes me wince every time. Just knowing everything is already paid for will let me relax and enjoy my vacation more.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

We have always gotten the deluxe dining plan for our past 2 trips, and we have always gotten this because we don't really like the CS meals and are more sit down people...Although even though we don't like CS meals it doesn't mean I am opposed to them. Basically MK, HS, & AK are seriously lacking in TS meals...I am always scrimping to find 3 TS meals a day. This year I ran numbers but also put in the some CS meals for a few days where we really don't like the options of sit down meals...after I did that we would be saving well over $600 by just paying OOP...with that extra cash on hand we can pay for an extra day added to our stay. I am still undecided though because I have switched around ADRs on my excel page sooo many times, lol...I will probably book the dining plan, but depending on where I get ADRs for and if I do decide to do a couple of CS days will be the deciding factor of whether or not I keep the DP or just cancel the DP

 

[cluvsdisney]

I was going to say the same thing...you're right there with breaking even and now you'll all be able to enjoy a soft drink or extra dessert.

 

[Cynister]

We've done both & like others found it too be too much food , & left with unused credits. Since then we do out of pocket & find it cheaper with a little more flexibility of eating what & how much we want when we want. We do do the math for every trip though to be sure if we happen to have a lot of reservations for a particular trip. It is a personal decision based on how your family typically eats.

 

[Serenebean]

I think in your case going with the dining plan makes sense. I don't get it myself, but that's because I know I will end up wanting things that are not on the plan which just adds to my cost. It sounds like you can work well within the meals provided. Not having TS will also make a big difference. Part of what I dislike about the plan is how much more I spend in the restaurants which increases the tip cost.

 

[disneyseniors]

OP, I had to laugh when I saw you had teenage sons! My daughter, siL and 2 teenage boys and one 11 y/o daughter went to WDW with us. We all got the free dining plan. Well, the boys ate full breakfasts, the works, with pancakes, eggs, toast, muffins, pastries, juice, etc each morning, AND they were still hungry. They ate all that was allowed on the dining plan and my daughter had to pay out of pocket ALOT just to try and fill them up. Believe, I feel your pain. But these boys are big eaters and never full. We ended up with 10 QS credits and let our daughter use them, which helped some. But with dining plan and OOP, they ended up paying a lot. She said, it's vacation, so the kids aren't going to go hungry. If they are hungry, I will pay for it". And she did, but boy oh boy!
I think if you have "normal" eaters it will really be great for your family, but just beware the "hungry teenage boy syndrome". just had to share........

 

[Smbmoyers]

For my daughter and I it is too much food but my husband and the boys can eat and eat and eat.

My husband can too! He can shovel it in! Between him and my brother the dinning plan was a safe bet just because of the volume of food that can tuck away!

 

[5kidsmommy]

I think we are just going to do it. I'll add it to our plan once we can convert our room only reservation into a full plan.

I asked my 16 year old what he though and he was excited at the option of being able to get a soda and a dessert every meal plus not feeling like he needs to get the cheapest option. I also think it will help my husband not have to stress about what we are spending since it will already be spent. I always bring small snacks in with me, being a mother of five (two of my boys grown) it's just habit. And yes boys can eat, my food costs went down a ton when my oldest son left home and it will go down again in the fall when the next oldest leaves. And yes the extra cost savings from teenagers growing up means more trips for the ones left at home.

Thank you all for your comments, you really helped cement the decision in my mind.

 

[Hopefully]

We've done both. Our first two trips we did the dining plan. We felt it was too much food. Just to prove to myself that it was cheaper without the dining plan, I put the cost of the plan on a gift card. we ended our trip and had a $100 balance left on it. I prefer the flexibility of not having the plan. Sometimes I like to order a kids meal and sometimes my picky child won't eat much.

Was this the regular sit down DDP? It sounds like it to me. With the QS plan, it is not as much food and there is no need to plan at all - other than BOG breakfast and lunch.
I would definitely go with the QSDP OP, just so I wasn't constantly watching the cost of things. Plus being able to allow your teenagers dessert is a nice option.
Enjoy

 

[Annadesu]

I got the dining plan on my trip (just the hubby and I). We got the 1 TB, 1 QS, and 1 Snack per day. When we added up all the receipts at the end of the trip, it ended up that we had saved a good chunk of change. If you get a dining plan, I suggest making sure to use your credits are not used on "cheaper things". Don't use a snack credit to get a soda, use it to get a funnel cake (for example).

 

[mocame]

We have had the DDP and this past trip we paid OOP. We are light eaters and also have 2 teenagers. We saved so much money paying OOP than the dining plan that we will probably not use the dining again unless it is free. That being said, if you calculated it out and it about breaks even, I would go with the dining plan. You will get a lot of food but will have freedom to choose what you want, get drinks, desserts, etc. and not worry about the prices.

 

[5kidsmommy]

I got the dining plan on my trip (just the hubby and I). We got the 1 TB, 1 QS, and 1 Snack per day. When we added up all the receipts at the end of the trip, it ended up that we had saved a good chunk of change. If you get a dining plan, I suggest making sure to use your credits are not used on "cheaper things". Don't use a snack credit to get a soda, use it to get a funnel cake (for example).

Yeah we wouldn't do the regular plan, we don't do a lot of TS, the teens just want to eat and go. And no worries on cheap snacks, they like getting the sundaes or something big. We usually bring drinks with us in too so no wasting snacks on cheap stuff.

 

[PeasandCarrots]

If you've run the numbers and it's only $100 more for the entire trip I'd get the dining plan. When we run the numbers we can usually save almost 1/3 of the total cost - but my husband is a vegetarian which are the cheapest entrees and neither of us are "dessert/soda" people.

 

[addiln]

I never do the dining plan anymore. I have done it in the past and thought it was worth it but after looking at it more closely I found that it was not. We felt like we had to use every credit we had and forced ourselves to eat when we were not in the mood for anything. Also I am not a soda and dessert fan so those were extra we never would have gotten.

 

[5kidsmommy]

If you've run the numbers and it's only $100 more for the entire trip I'd get the dining plan. When we run the numbers we can usually save almost 1/3 of the total cost - but my husband is a vegetarian which are the cheapest entrees and neither of us are "dessert/soda" people.

Yeah the $100 savings would come from us not drinking soda and not getting as many snacks. So I know we will be spending more but hopefully it will seem like more of a vacation for all involved. Not sure when we will do Disney after this upcoming trip anyhow. Even though I homeschool they still have lots of activities they just can't miss and it's hard to get away.