Dining Plan Returning

[shaycamp21]

It is not clear if a dessert is included with a table service meal like before or am I missing something? I see it's down to one snack per day. Before dessert was included with the counter service meal then that was taken away and it was replaced with two 2 snacks.

 

[wide awake]

We always saved money on the plan...of course I never went unless it was free. But, had I paid we'd have still been better off w/ the plan than w/o. Generally the daily cost covered dinner and the other meals and snacks were freebies. Now that they've brought it back and gotten rid of the reservation thing I can plan a trip.

 

[Moliphino]

It is not clear if a dessert is included with a table service meal like before or am I missing something? I see it's down to one snack per day. Before dessert was included with the counter service meal then that was taken away and it was replaced with two 2 snacks.

Originally with you got desserts with QS meals AND 2 snacks.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

We always saved money on the plan...of course I never went unless it was free. But, had I paid we'd have still been better off w/ the plan than w/o. Generally the daily cost covered dinner and the other meals and snacks were freebies. Now that they've brought it back and gotten rid of the reservation thing I can plan a trip.

I'm happy for those guests who used it a lot and want it back. We might just eat differently during our trips, but we could never come close to breaking even - so it was never for us. But that's OK! It'll be available for those who want it, and we'll just continue to pass. The only concerns we have is in the past, when offering free DDP, it seemed to be much more difficult to get into the restaurants we wanted - people grabbing tables because it's 'free'/'included' with the reservation, when otherwise they might have eaten in a park or food court.

The cost is going to be very interesting - and probably a bit surprising to many.......

Hope you plan a really nice trip in 24!!

 

[Jrb1979]

I hate that it's coming back. Right now it's easy to get reservations at most restaurants, when the dining plan comes back that will disappear. My biggest issue is how much they dumb down the menu for the dining plan.

 

[samsteele]

Question i don’t remember if you had the dining plan and were in Epcot for a festival were you able to use it at the festival booths as a snack?

Yes. The 2 snack credits were a huge advantage at the F&W festival booths. As PPs have noted, the snack credit has been cut down to 1 credit only. The 'extra' snack credit was the sub for no longer receiving the quick service dessert in the previous dining plan.

 

[sethschroeder]

Yeah, if it's not the Deluxe, I am not sure I am interested. I just can't see how it would be worth it otherwise based on how I dine. I do 3 meals and always get an app, a dessert and an entre plus a cocktail.

You are the unicorn.

Honestly wish they seperate everything.

Per day:
Main course - 3x
Sides/Apps/Desserts/Snack - 8x
Drinks - 3x

Use them anywhere at any time.

Want 7 apps at dinner? Do it.

 

[sethschroeder]

I hate that it's coming back. Right now it's easy to get reservations at most restaurants, when the dining plan comes back that will disappear. My biggest issue is how much they dumb down the menu for the dining plan.

My hope is that they hold back inventory like now for walk ups and waitlist at most places.

Also hope this is super expensive for reservation based option.

 

[Once.Upon.A.Time]

The one snack part kind of bugs me. I used to use one snack for breakfast and one snack in between lunch and dinner.

 

[Ariel620]

Does anyone know what this line means? Is it new language added to the DDP page or has it always been there? We used to share, does this mean we can't share? It still says unused meals from one day will roll over to the next day, but now this is added, which I don't understand "Meals and snacks are nontransferable between party members."

 

[shaycamp21]

Does anyone know what this line means? Is it new language added to the DDP page or has it always been there? We used to share, does this mean we can't share? It still says unused meals from one day will roll over to the next day, but now this is added, which I don't understand "Meals and snacks are nontransferable between party members."

I was wondering the same thing. When our older girls were teens DH and I would get them a pizza OOP for the night to hang out at the resort while we used their dining credits with ours for a signature meal (this was during free dining--we actually only paid for the DP once). I hope it's not that the credits are now attached to someone's name.

 

[Jrb1979]

Does anyone know what this line means? Is it new language added to the DDP page or has it always been there? We used to share, does this mean we can't share? It still says unused meals from one day will roll over to the next day, but now this is added, which I don't understand "Meals and snacks are nontransferable between party members."

I think it means that if you're with another group you can't share credits to pay for it.

 

[Traveling on cc points]

Yes, I can see this being not allowed for DVC. The way that is written sure sounds like they plan to excluded DVC. It's possible and on brand for modern Disney. Guess we will see soon.

I thought it was clever to buy it for one night on a DVC split stay, because it's good for the two days. That was the only way it ever made sense to me.

That’s what we always did.
We are local and would do a 1 night stay and get the deluxe dining plan for 1 night and spread the 3 meals over 2 days.
If I am remembering correctly, we looked at it as $33 per person per meal with 4 free snacks. We would give our refillable mugs to a family in the gift shop.
It was still too much food but worked out really well. I hope it comes back at a reasonable price.

 

[Mle8308]

I hate that it's coming back. Right now it's easy to get reservations at most restaurants, when the dining plan comes back that will disappear. My biggest issue is how much they dumb down the menu for the dining plan.

I think it means that if you're with another group you can't share credits to pay for it.

Probably. Not sure why it really matters, once the credits are gone they are gone. I have friends in Orlando and we would use our credits to buy them meals, we never used all of them. I remember the good old days when the kids credits for QS were no different from the adults!

 

[bluezy]

Probably. Not sure why it really matters, once the credits are gone they are gone. I have friends in Orlando and we would use our credits to buy them meals, we never used all of them. I remember the good old days when the kids credits for QS were no different from the adults!

Ah yes, the good old days when the system didn't differentiate between adult and kids QS meals. We had free dining one time and I wasn't aware of that little trick. I had an 8 yo having a meltdown while we were ordering meals because she didn't want anything on the kids menu. The CM leaned around the cash register and whispered "The system doesn't know the difference between adult and child credits. It only knows you have XX meal credits. If she wants an adult meal, you can order one for her. But you didn't hear that from me."

I think the reason Disney doesn't want people sharing credits with people not on the dining plan is basically that they *want* people to have leftover credits that they can't use. That's all profit for them. A few years ago I read a statistic somewhere that something like 75% of people on the dining plan never use all of their meal and/or snack credits. I'm not sure how accurate that is but I know when I used our last meal and snack credits (and I wasn't buying a bunch of snacks to intentionally use them up -- just used them "naturally") the 2nd last day of our stay, the CM said "I'm putting a big star on your receipt for using all of your credits. You have no idea how rare that its. Good work!" If people have the ability to share the credits, that means that all/more credits are being used *and* the other party isn't paying for a meal. Double profit loss for Disney. I think it will still be possible to pay for someone else's QS meal as it's not as easy for CMs to control those.

 

[Lewisc]

Yes, I can see this being not allowed for DVC. The way that is written sure sounds like they plan to excluded DVC. It's possible and on brand for modern Disney. Guess we will see soon.

I thought it was clever to buy it for one night on a DVC split stay, because it's good for the two days. That was the only way it ever made sense to me.

Disney offered "ticketless" packages so AP holders could purchase dining. DVC guests were able to buy some kind of dining package.

Absolutely no mention of ANY savings.

 

[MillauFr]

To be useful they are going to have to allow Dining Plan guests to book reservations in advance of others. If they do that I expect them to be able to charge close to $200 per person per day.

 

[Lilsia]

To be useful they are going to have to allow Dining Plan guests to book reservations in advance of others. If they do that I expect them to be able to charge close to $200 per person per day.

I don't think that they would do that. I predict that there are going to be a lot of angry people that purchase the dining plan and can't get into the restaurants that they want.

 

[MillauFr]

I don't think that they would do that. I predict that there are going to be a lot of angry people that purchase the dining plan and can't get into the restaurants that they want.

The only way it is going to work is if they let them make reservations early and charge a very high price to make sure most people don't buy it. As you say if they charge a reasonable price like $150 a day and don't get a jump on reservations it is going to be a disaster.

 

[Lewisc]

The only way it is going to work is if they let them make reservations early and charge a very high price to make sure most people don't buy it. As you say if they charge a reasonable price like $150 a day and don't get a jump on reservations it is going to be a disaster.

Same issues with prior dining plans. Guests have to settle for alternate restaurants. I wouldn't be surprised if we see an increase in the number of 2 credit restaurants.