Disney dining plan manager

[nebo]

The dining plan is worth the money but it's still expensive.
It's also way too much to eat. What we do now when we want it for a few nights is to split the trip. We were going to stay 7 nights at WL but didn't want to spend 38 bucks per person, per night times 7. You can't eat that much anyway, so we booked the package for 3 nights at Coranado Springs with dining, 7 day base ticket, and then we booked a AAA room only at WL.
That way we got to try 2 different resorts, and the dining plan can then be stretched out for 4 days since it doesn't expire till midnight of the checkout day. Plus, you don't even have to move your luggage, Disney will do it for you. One more thing, when you get to your next resort, the concierge will transfer your park tickets to the new resort.

 

[bicker]

Please keep in mind that the Dining Plan doesn't require that you order every course of every meal you have. If you have at least one TS meal each night anyway, it's a great deal just ordering what you'd normally order. I did the math and figured we're going to save $142 with the Dining Plan, as compared to what we would have spent if we just paid for what we'd normally eat, all in cash.

 

[Anewman]

That may work for some.

But I can assure you we would still easily eat $38(per person/day) worth of food on the last 3 days of the trip anyways, may as well just use the plan for our entire stay.

 

[twinklebug]

Good point OP
By breaking your stay up into two smaller ones you can have the best of multiple worlds (AAA discount, DDP, reduced food cost)

Also remember, if one is creative with coffee makers it opens up a whole new world of dining opportunities no, seriously - ask any college student.

I have taken to renting villas because I love having a microwave, toaster, coffee maker & fridge. My kids and I are not big eaters & so I can now say we wouldn't eat the cost of the DDP per day (after much thought & calculations). Next time I'll look into your method