Disney Dining Plan 2010

[boggsm4]

We are planning a trip to go to disney this summer from june 15-23. I have always got the dining plan ever since I have started going to disney but after the big price increases to the plan this year I am seriously considering not getting it this year and just paying out of my pocket. We have 5 people going and the total for the whole length of the trip for the dining plan with tax would be right around $2200. I have priced out every resturaunte and thing that we have planned to eat plus breakfasts and it seems to be about $400 cheaper. I want to know if anyone has any thoughts on if this is the right thing to do or should we get the dining plan again. I feel that we can still eat very well and save money this way because always by the time we are done with our trips we are stuffed and dont even want to eat that much because of all the food with the dining plan. I have also included the price increases in the buffets for the peak season and I think that we can still eat well and have a good trip without the plan. I am just wondering if anyone has any suggestions on if I should go ahead and do it that way or not?

 

[squirrel]

Did you add tax to the DDP or to the menu prices? The DDP includes the tax, the online menus you need to add the tax to them.

Are you going during the extra surcharge? If that's the case and you aren't planning on eating at many of the character buffets that have the extra charge added, then paying out of pocket will save you money.

 

[dd50]

If not having the plan will save you $400 then don't get it. The plan doesn't work for every one. I didn't care for all the food and sometimes I don't want a big meal so for our family we wasted a lot of food and money on the plan.

 

[2Tiggies]

Will everyone in your party have dessert with every meal? Do you plan on doing TS at least once a day? If yes, the Dining Plan could offer a saving. But to come out ahead, it is really the desserts and snacks that make the difference. If you don't ordinarily use them all, you would have to do some careful math to be sure it is worth it.

I have found that sometimes a Dining Plan doesn't work and sometimes it does. It depends what you want from it and that is not necessarily the same for each trip for us. I have found if the weather is really hot, we are more likely to plough through snacks for drinks and cold stuff and struggle more to use the meal credits. But that is because I don't want to eat when I am hot. Some people need regular meals to keep their energy up. You need to look at your party's habits as well as just the budget when working this out. It's no simple task - good luck!

 

[beansmom]

we wouldn't pay for the DP as we just don't eat that much food. We always share our meals and even that is too much food. We couldn't possibly eat $400 over the price of the dining plan.

 

[ebird08]

If you think you can save money by not purchasing the DP then it sounds like that's the way to go. I too, know i can save but when it comes down to it, I know I'll regret not having the DP. If it weren't for the DP, all of our meals would be offsite. Good luck!

 

[teacher2525]

I am wondering the same thing. It was a value for my family of 5 when all 3 were considered children but the next time we go 2 out of three will be considered adults but certainly won't eat like ones. I think we will not get it

 

[Bete]

First, let me say I just received a pin code for QS free dining (all resort levels, no difference) and it can be upgraded for around $10 or $12 per adult for the regular DP. You do need a package, but you can get by with 1 day of park tickets per per person if you don't want length of stay tickets. Hopefully, this code may go public; so, I would watch very carefully in the next month or so. It's good from Feb. 28 to July 3.

From my experience, I would not order a single dessert if I wasn't getting free dining including a dessert. I could get by with tap water, too. I do like the choices and splurging when I get free dining; so, it's a hard choice for me every time it's offered. There are times we've gotten by with breakfast bars from home and one buffet meal per day and maybe a snack here and there.

I know we get our monies worth everytime with the dining plan; we even paid OOP once for it and upgraded once with it. We have done 6X with free dining (3X when gratuity was included). I plan it out so we order expensive items and go to the more expensive places that I would not normally do otherwise. I like the no sales tax benefit with the DP.

It comes down to how you want to spend your vacation. Do you want to do it on the cheaper side, or a compromise of nicer places and cheaper places, or go all out on eating and splurge?

 

[boggsm4]

Thanks for all the replies and help. I did add the tax to every meal that I figured out without the dining plan and it seems to save me money. I just dont want to spend all of that money when I can still eat good and save money but thanks for the replies I am going to look into it some more but I think that I can still eat good and save money without the plan because we dont always get desert or eat the most expensive things so we actaully probably arent getting our moneys worth out of the plan.

 

[Sandisw]

Thanks for all the replies and help. I did add the tax to every meal that I figured out without the dining plan and it seems to save me money. I just dont want to spend all of that money when I can still eat good and save money but thanks for the replies I am going to look into it some more but I think that I can still eat good and save money without the plan because we dont always get desert or eat the most expensive things so we actaully probably arent getting our moneys worth out of the plan.

I say go without the DDP, eat what you want, and see where you land. If you have calculated this and figure you will save $400, then at the very least, OOP should not be more the DDP, even if what you order when you get there changes from what you calculated now. And, you will eat the way that you want.

We do the dining plans (both DDP and QSDP), not so much because we save money, but because I like being able to go, pick something out and not worry about the price. And, before the DDP's, we always looked at the price and didn't buy what we wanted, but rather what we thought we should spend based on the budget.

I never ordered dessert, but not because I didn't also want to try something, but because I didn't want to spend that extra money simply to try something (as I never finish my desserts).

Now, since things are paid for in advance, it just doesn't seem that big of a deal if I leave 1/2 of the $7.00 piece of cake sitting there.

For some reason, spending $1000 ahead of time and only have to pay tips when I am there just SEEMS cheaper than coming home to a big CC bill!!!

Have a great trip!!!