Do you make ADR's even if not on DDP?

[Crazy4Disney06]

I have not decided yet if we are going to book DDP, should I make ADR's anyhow?

 

[jobie61]

If you want to eat at a Disney restaurant, you will most certainly want to make an ADR.

 

[JimMIA]

If you want to eat at a Disney restaurant, you will most certainly want to make an ADR.

Yep. What he said!

 

[Crazy4Disney06]

Thanks!

I'm actually on hold right now with CRO adding the dinning plan. For our family of 5 I think it will save us to eat on the DDP.

 

[JJ&JSMOM]

Definitely make those ADRs! I added an ADR on Friday and the CM went down my whole list for me (I asked her to double check them for me). I laughed and said "wow thats alot of food!" and the CM said "you are doing the right thing in making these." So I think it would be very wise to do it and for some reason if you can't make one call as soon as you know and maybe someone else can have it. I only have 7 TS booked but for us thats alot - we don't go out very often. Good luck!

 

[LizinSTL]

Thanks!

I'm actually on hold right now with CRO adding the dinning plan. For our family of 5 I think it will save us to eat on the DDP.

Now that you've made your ADRs, you can really decide if the DDP will work for your family or not. Look at the menus on this site or on allearsnet.com and ballpark the numbers on the table service meals alone- add 24.5% for tax & tip to your total and see where you stand on the cost. If you've chosen a fixed price or buffet meal be sure to add a couple bucks per person for a soft drink if it is not included (there are a couple where it is extra, Biergarten is one, for sure).

If you are pretty close to your cost for the week for DDP with TS meals alone, then it's a no-brainer, book it. If you are several hundred off, then glance at CS menus and decide if you can justify the cost. Figure that a childs CS breakfast at the resort can run about $5-6 (with a beverage for later like a bottle of water or powerade), adult will be $6-8 (with a beverage for later). A childs CS lunch/dinner can run about $5-10 (high end w/ bottled beverage, sep dessert at resort), adult's can be $10-20 (bottled beverage, sep dessert, double bacon cheeseburger combo meal type entree for high end value).

Or you can go much much much cheaper too- drink water (ice water is free), skip fries/sides, share those double cheeseburgers, buy extra buns, etc.

You just have to look at the ages of your kids, the cost of the plan, the cost of your TS meals chosen, etc and see if it'll work for you guys. I can't fathom it not working for my family ever. The beauty of the DDP is that you don't have to say no to the snack that your child wants. You don't have to look at the menu from right to left rather from left to right. You can order what looks good vs what is priced right. You can get dessert if you want. How fun is it to get to say YES to dessert every time your child asks the whole trip??!! My girls LOVED it. (They asked for fruit cups as often as chocolate cake too) Plus it's paid for before you even go- it may be all psychological but it is way more enjoyable to eat an $8 hamburger when it cost a CS credit than when it costs $8!

We also shared w/ our kiddos for lunches and dinners. The double cheeseburgers were enough for the adults to share w/ our 9 and 5 yos and then we used their kids credits for CS breakfasts at the resorts and got bottles of powerade for our days at the parks for their drinks (cups of ice were free to make it cold again). We did buy refillable mugs for use at the resort though.

 

[angelmav]

I wish we could get the DDP but staying at shades of green we dont qualify. We actually have more ADR's made than we could have done on DDP credits, but we have looked closely at what we think well order and are buying an AP so we can use the DDE card and figure out that we will be OK. Still wish it was paid in advance though!