Dining Plan Question

[dbkelly]

I have 3 children (ages 8, 12 & 14). The 12 year old will not eat anything on the adult menu, she will order from the kids menu. Do you know if they will charge me for the adult plan even if she will only order from the kids plan? How does it work? Do we get vouchers?

Also, the plan sounds like a good plan so I am wondering if anyone out there has used it and what their thoughts are?

db

 

[2Princes2Princesses]

The plan is adults ages 10 and up and kids ages 3-9. They will charge you adult price for your 12 yr old. On your room key, it will say 4A1C, which stands for 4 adults 1 child or whatever your situation may be. You then use your room key to pay for meals. Make sure you let your server know you are on the DDP, we had 1 charge the meal to the room instead of the plan.

We used the plan in May, and at that time, it was cumbersome. We tend to fly by the seat of our pants and having all those meals scheduled was a pain in the rump.

We used it again in September and I scheduled the TS for breakfast. This worked well. We just went to the park or closest park to the restaurant for a couple hours, then we were free the rest of the day.

We will be using it in February, since we crunched the #'s and the TS we have scheduled (again, mostly breakfasts) will save us a little money.

If you want to maximize your $$ savings and don't mind being a slave to your ressies, it is great.

If you want to maximize your $$ savings with the plan and DO mind the slave thing, it is a pain in the posterior.

But, if you are like us, plan on doing TS meals anyway, don't mind saving just a little $$, but having the peace of mind of all the meals being paid for (VERY nice aspect of the DDP)....it is really great. Even doing buffets and breakfasts, we will save $$ over paying out of pocket. Just not as much as if we did more dinners at the higher end restaurants.

My DD3 eats like a bird, and getting the plan for her was a dilemma. But her 2 yr old brother will help her eat her CS meals, and we do a lot of buffets, where he eats free.

Even though your 12-yr-old is not a BIG eater, the kids menus are a lot of chicken nuggets now. If she likes variety at all, she may prefer the adult menu. We took my 11-yr-old DS, who is a hot dog kid, to Raglan Road. He ended up ordering the Sheperd's Pie after much prodding and LOVED IT. From then on, he made a vow to try 1 new thing at every meal.

 

[DanenRox]

As far as I know, the cost of the Dining Plan is a function of age, not meal choices. I am certain they would charge your 12 year old the price for an adult meal plan. They add the meal plan to your park key (like a credit card) and as you use the meal plan and pay for your meals with your park key, the meal plan is adjusted. You will get a receipt each time you use your meal plan indicating the number of counter service, table service and snacks you have left. Keep in mind, each park key can affect your entire party's meal plan. For instance, if you wanted to buy 7 snacks, you would be able as it would simply deduct it from your entire party's snack allotment. Am I confusing you?

 

[dianeschlicht]

The 12 year old must pay the 12 year old price no matter WHICH menu they order from. It is a factor of age, not what they eat, just like park admission is determined by age, not how much they ride.

 

[Dean]

I have 3 children (ages 8, 12 & 14). The 12 year old will not eat anything on the adult menu, she will order from the kids menu. Do you know if they will charge me for the adult plan even if she will only order from the kids plan? How does it work? Do we get vouchers?

Also, the plan sounds like a good plan so I am wondering if anyone out there has used it and what their thoughts are?

db

In this situation, the DDP may not be the best option for you. But if you're set on it, there are some things you can do in this situation to make it a workable value to you. You could get the DDP for the two older ones at the adult price then the 8 y/o for the kids price. Here's what I'd do. I'd spend some time with the online menu's then plan the places that worked best for me. Especially consider doing some other options that require two per person. Possibly dinner shows like Hoop or signature restaurants like Narcoossee's, Yachtsman, CA Grill, etc. Then simply pay out of pocket for the 12 y/o. And you may even want to consider paying out of pocket for the 8 y/o part of the time depending on the other choices you make. The 14 y/o may be the biggest variable because it depends on how and how much they eat. Some of the nicer places will have kids menu's that have more adult choices like grilled chicken, steak, fish and the like. Disney will almost always allow older kids, even adults in most cases, to order the kids meals.

 

[dbkelly]

And you may even want to consider paying out of pocket for the 8 y/o part of the time depending on the other choices you make. The 14 y/o may be the biggest variable because it depends on how and how much they eat. Some of the nicer places will have kids menu's that have more adult choices like grilled chicken, steak, fish and the like. Disney will almost always allow older kids, even adults in most cases, to order the kids meals.

I am a little confused. Are you saying that we can have the option to pay or use the dining card whenever we want? My 14 year old son will probably set a world record as to how much a teenaged boy can eat in one day so I will definitly get my monies worth with him.

If my 12 year old daughter orders from the kid's menu, can I choose to pay for her and then let my son order two TS meals in one day?

Thanks,

Doris

 

[MarylandMommy]

That's right! You can order all 45 TS meals at on sitting!

 

[dbkelly]

That's right! You can order all 45 TS meals at on sitting!

Everyone has been so nice and I am trying not to ask too many stupid questions, but it appears that there is some flexibility. However, I have a few more questions:

We have two points reservations. For the first two nights we will be staying in a Boardwalk studio because my son will be staying off Disney property with friends from Naples who will visit us for the weekend. The second points reservation is for a two bedroom at the boarwalk for when our son joins us.

Questions:

1. Since my son is not on the first reservation, I assume that I cannot buy him the meal plan (yes or no)?
2. Since we will be dining with my son's friends for the first two nights, I assume that we can pay cash for their meals as well as my son's meal and use the plan for the rest of the party (yes or no)?
3. Or, could I use the plan for my son (even though he is not on our hotel reservation) and purchase a kid's meal for my 12 year old?
4. Finally, can I purchase the dining plan for just the second reservation instead of trying to figure out what to do with the first reservation?

Thank You!

Doris

P.S. I found a copy of the 2007 Disney Dining broshure but it talks about "magic your way" package. Is this the same plan with DVC?

 

[Dean]

I am a little confused. Are you saying that we can have the option to pay or use the dining card whenever we want? My 14 year old son will probably set a world record as to how much a teenaged boy can eat in one day so I will definitly get my monies worth with him.

If my 12 year old daughter orders from the kid's menu, can I choose to pay for her and then let my son order two TS meals in one day?

Thanks,

Doris

If I understand you correctly, yes. You could use DDP vouchers for the 14 y/o and pay OOP for the 12 y/o. You could save those vouchers not used on the 12 y/o and use them for the others in any way you want. They will almost always allow an older child, usually even an adult, to order from the child's menu.

 

[Dean]

Everyone has been so nice and I am trying not to ask too many stupid questions, but it appears that there is some flexibility. However, I have a few more questions:

We have two points reservations. For the first two nights we will be staying in a Boardwalk studio because my son will be staying off Disney property with friends from Naples who will visit us for the weekend. The second points reservation is for a two bedroom at the boarwalk for when our son joins us.

Questions:

1. Since my son is not on the first reservation, I assume that I cannot buy him the meal plan (yes or no)?
2. Since we will be dining with my son's friends for the first two nights, I assume that we can pay cash for their meals as well as my son's meal and use the plan for the rest of the party (yes or no)?
3. Or, could I use the plan for my son (even though he is not on our hotel reservation) and purchase a kid's meal for my 12 year old?
4. Finally, can I purchase the dining plan for just the second reservation instead of trying to figure out what to do with the first reservation?

Thank You!

Doris

P.S. I found a copy of the 2007 Disney Dining broshure but it talks about "magic your way" package. Is this the same plan with DVC?

The plan is the same for DVC but you don't have to buy passes. In you above situation, you could buy the plan for the studio stay OR the 2 BR stay or both. They will be independent plans and you'll only have to get the plan for the number in THAT unit. Just remember that each plan in independent so you'll have to use all applicable vouches for THAT plan between check in and MN the day of check out. Since the day of checkout of the studio is the same as the day of check in for the 2 BR, you will have some overall. Just be careful and plan accordingly and you should be fine. Be sure to exhaust the first plan before using the second one. You could put your son on the first plan and get extra vouchers ready for his future arrival but I doubt that's a good choice since you'd have to pay the $37.99 or $38.99 fee depending on the timing of your trip.

 

[dbkelly]

Dean,

Nice explanation, thank you so much!

Doris

 

[Dean]

Dean,

Nice explanation, thank you so much!

Doris

You are very welcome, most people here are glad to help when they can.