Do you think the dining package is worth it?

[marriedmarylander]

When booking your vacation did anyone get the dining plan? Is it more affordable to do that then pay out each day? I figured food is expensive.

 

[scrump]

The dining package is totally worth it if it suits your dining styles. Go to www.allearsnet.com and check out what might be available for the restaurants that you'd be interested in.

It's not worth it for us because we never do snacks and counter service, and some days we may even spend less than $35 a day (which is what the plan charges for adults) on table service meals. Still, I think the dining package is good, just make sure that it enhances your dining experiences and not dictate them.

 

[Mady/Sophiemom]

For us the Dining package is a no-brainer. We spend an average of $125.00 for food, for our family of four. Some days less, some a little more. We eat at least one sit down meal/day, and sometimes 2, if one is an early breakfast. We don't always get dessert or appetizers either, both of which are included, so it appears we will get more food, less $$

Many of our favorite restaurants, are on the plan, and many of the new ones we want to try were to. We looked over the menus, on Deb's site, and found the dining plan to be a savings for our meal choices.

You need to decide what types of meals you will be eating, and go from there. Also the ages of your kids will factor in. My oldest will be 9, so is still considered a kid for the plan. I might rethink, if she cost me $35/day.


Good luck planning, and welcome to the DIS. This site is awsome. You will learn more than you thought possible.





*****

 

[areno79]

We decided not to do it because one of kids is 11, and will be charged adult prices, although she eats less than her 9 yo sister Also, we like to eat at some of the DTD restaurants and Rainforest Cafe, and neither of those were on the plan
If it was just me and DH, I think it would be a great deal though

 

[keishashadow]

We went with the Dining Plan for 2 Adults & 1 child. As we're all hardy eaters, and most of the places we like are included, it seemed a "no brainer".

Particularly, for dinner @ Cinderella's Castle, the child's menu features a steak dinner.

I'm told, by other postings on this site, that our vouchers for counter serve meals will be indicated by number per day (3), not specified by adult or child selections.

However, at sit down restaurants, children must order from the child's menu. But, if you pick wisely, there are many excellent children's menus.

Will report on how this worked out when we return from our trip.

 

[Dana49]

I believe that the dining package may be okay for some, and may not be okay for others. My wife and I very rarely eat a big dinner, so most of our meals are either large breakfasts or lunches. We budget x-amount for meals on a daily basis. Granted we don't skimp, but we don't go out and just spend. The dining package doesn't fit for us. That doesn't make it wrong, it's just not for us. Figure out a budget, then spend accordingly.

 

[Kaycee]

I just responded to this question in another thread, so I'm cutting and pasting my answer from there:

It depends on the family whether the dining plan is worth it. We only have a few sit-down meals each trip, probably 3 to 4 in a one-week span. The rest of our meals we eat counter service. We prefer not to spend a lot of time on meals. And even at the sit-down meals we do have, we usually don't spend a lot of money because we're all pretty light eaters. We rarely order appetizers, and only occasionally have dessert. So for us, the MYW plan wouldn't be worth it.

 

[BeckWhy]

Generally on trips to Disney we always just eat Quick Service restaurants. Our day would include breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack.

It did come out to be cheaper (for us) to get the Dining Package this time (well it won't be for a long time). Even though it doesn't include breakfast, once I added in the prices for breakfast the Dining Package still came out to be cheaper than before. And it included a table service meal a day, which we all know costs more than a Quick Service.

 

[YesI'mObsessed]

Same with us, definitely worth it. My kids actually eat, so the plan will save us lots of money.

 

[Mady/Sophiemom]

Generally on trips to Disney we always just eat Quick Service restaurants. Our day would include breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack.

It did come out to be cheaper (for us) to get the Dining Package this time (well it won't be for a long time). Even though it doesn't include breakfast, once I added in the prices for breakfast the Dining Package still came out to be cheaper than before. And it included a table service meal a day, which we all know costs more than a Quick Service.

It does include breakfast. We have several breakfast PS, for our upcoming trip. CRT, Chef Mickey's, Donald's, Kona. Food courts are also included. I'm pretty sure you can use your meal plan for breakfast.

Did you mean that it doesn't include 3 meals/day? While that is true, we have never wanted a third meal, with a sit down, or buffet. They are quite filling. On the days when, we don't eat a big breakfast at a restaurant, we catch breakfast in the room. Cereal bars, bagels, bowl of cereal. That saves a bunch of $$.

 

[SuBeat]

After a lot of number crunching we decided it just wasn't worth it to us. Our 11 year old would still much rather eat chicken strips than anything offered on the adult menu. I know we could pay cash for his meals and roll them over, but that just seems like too much to keep up with and isn't cost effective either. We also have at least a couple of days where we do a character meal, snack at midday, and have a nice dinner in the evening. If he were considered a child with the plan we probably would have done it, but at $35/day, it just isn't worth it.

 

[G00fyDad]

We decided that the dining plan was right for us but it may not be for others. What you need to do is figure out whether you want to eat where the dining plan is in effect or if you dont. It is that simple. If you do choose the places listed in the dining plan and you eat all three meals a day (some people dont) then you will only be paying for one meal a day.

 

[LBAK]

We had the old Silver Package last year and while it was way too much food we did save and we did try restaurants we never would have . We're going again in July and we got the new plan which I am excited about because it's less food and we still get a good sit down meal. It was definitely worth it for my family of 2 adults and 1 child.