Discount Dining ?

[DisneyLvr12]

I just booked a trip using a room discount code. The CM was telling me all about the dining plan (which we've never done). We're going to buy annual passes and she said that we should get the dining plan b/c it saves AP holders 40%. Is that true?! I thought we couldn't use a room discount and then do the dining discount, as well. So, now I'm confused. We were going to purchase the TIW card, but should we just get the dining plan for our stay instead?

 

[Cafeen]

The 40% dining "discount" is one of those "You can save up to x%" types of things. It is not a special discount on the dining itself.

Essentially, she was trying to sell you a normal dining plan to save money on food. Whether it's worth it or not vs a TiW card all depends on where you plan to go and how you plan to eat.

If you already plan to dine at at least 1 TS and 1 CS location per night of stay, and those are the pricier options, and you'd always order dessert, and you'll typically aim for the higher end of the price for the locations, and you aren't interested in appetizers, then purchasing the DDP may save you money. Otherwise, you're going to be better off with the TiW card. (Unless you want everything with DxDDP as well).

The way she described it had some spin, but it is not an additional discount. (And yes, typically you can add DDP to a "Room-Only" discount, so long as that discount can be transferred to a package which most can be).

 

[Princess_Jo]

Because Passholders do not need to purchase theme park tickets the rules are a bit different and you can add the dining plan to your room-only reservation.

There are three types of dining plans - quick service, regular dining and deluxe dining. All three are different price points ranging from $31.99/night for quick service to $71.99 for deluxe. If you purchase dining plans you get "points" basically which you can use at most restaurants throughout WDW.

We do the regular dining plan on every trip and I love it! It can really save you a bundle if you know how to use it. You get one table-service, one counter-service and one snack for each night of your stay for each guest in your room. The meals are flexible so you can use them all on your first day or spread them out over the course of your vacation. If you pick the right restaurants, you'll end up saving more than you spent! It works out wonderfully for us.

The difference between the TIW and the dining plan is TIW offers a discount on meals but it also includes appetizers and alcoholic drinks which the dining plan does not (so you pay full price for those items and OOP).

 

[TDC Nala]

First of all, you can book the dining plan if you want it. You would need to ask for a ticketless room/dining package for annual passholders. You can also apply an AP room discount to the package. However, it will be a package reservation, not a room only, which means you have to pay it off 45 days before arrival, not when you check in. The deposit, cancellation and change rules for packages will also apply - they are quite different from those for room-only reservations.

As for savings on the dining plan, it entirely depends on how you use it. Used to be Disney's advertising would say the dining plan could save you up to 40% (the key words there are "up to" because the true savings depend on where you eat and what you order). Now, Disney's advertising states the dining plan can save up to 20%. I understand the phone agents are hard-selling the dining plan, but it's kind of misleading for them to say the dining plan will save you 40% in all instances.

What you need to do is look at how the dining plan can be used, then compare it with the way you usually eat on vacation. Are you aware there are three different dining plans? There is a sticky thread on the Dining Plan sub-board with the information about what they are and how they work. If you want the most popular plan, for which you receive one TS credit and one CS credit per night plus a snack, and you don't always order entree and dessert or you're not really into snacks, you may be better off with the TIW. There are a number of restaurants at Downtown Disney and the Swan/Dolphin that accept TIW and don't accept DDP. TIW, however, doesn't apply to most counter service restaurants or to any snack/drink kiosks. All of this and more should be taken into consideration. None of the dining plans include alcoholic beverages (except at the dinner shows) so if you like wine or a cocktail with meals or at the lounges, consider that too, as TIW gives you a discount on those.