DVC discount or Disney Dining Plan

[amandamcallister]

Ive worked the numbers and Im coming up that we would break about even if we did the dining plan considering ..
1. 5 kids who are small and could share meals with others (one very picky and mom may pack other options for her anyway)
2. 2 adults who are picky eaters and would most likely pick cheaper selections from the menu
3. 2 adults who are on diets and do not need to be tempted by the dessert with each meal (I have heard that you can ask for a water from some places)

Why I cannot talk myself out of the dining plan
1. Conveinence ( will will have a total of 13 and just being able to use a card instead of breaking the bill down between 4 parties)
2.If we do not have the dining plan i would be more likely to pick cheaper meals, and I like not looking at the prices while im at disney and trying new things.

Any suggestions or opinions, love planning my trip but i just keep going back and forth.. just need to make a final decision so I can pick restaurants for sure.

We will do a few buffet character meals which are more expensive.

Ohhh and I am a DVC member so I can use my discount if we do not get the meal plan. Do I use it on the whole bill??

Thanks guys!!

 

[TDC Nala]

DVC discounts are not available at very many restaurants, may not be available at weekends or holidays, and don't include alcoholic beverages. However, they're available at some restaurants that don't accept the dining plan, like House of Blues and the restaurants at the Swan/Dolphin.

If you have a party of 13, and are on separate room reservations, you can't pay with just one card on DDP, you'll need a card from each room.

 

[amandamcallister]

We will have 2 rooms , so pay with two cards. Didnt think of the weekend policy, but I would have to change a few restaurants because they do not accept dvc discount. thanks

 

[disneymayz]

IMHO I think that even if you break even it is well worth the dining plan. Like you said you don't have to worry about price and you may try something new. We usually get the cookie as a dessert for the CSs so we can take it with us and have a snack while we are walking. THe snack credit is great too because I can tell you that if my kids wanted ice cream and I actually had to pay OOP for it I might say no after I look at the price. Having the dining plan allows me to have the price blinders on (I know I still pay the $3-4 for the ice cream) and have no worries.

 

[OandA]

It's up to you but I think you should really try to work yourself through the not looking at the price thing.

Is it really worth spending a couple extra hundred dollars so that you "dont worry about the price"? I would rather spend it on souvenirs or something at home.

I to this day will never understand why people get the dining plan so that they don't have to worry about prices or wont have to worry about paying at the parks. It is no different paying with your KTTW card using dining credits than it is paying with your KTTW card which is linked to a credit card. And a lotttt of people lose money by getting the dining plan but for some odd reason gain peace of mind.

 

[mmjm]

I agree, I have never found it to be worth the money especially when you have young kids. Out next trip is just the wife and I (w/out the kids) and it doesn't seem to be worth the money unless you always get deserts and appetizers with your dinners, which we don't. With all that being said, I'm sure that under certain circumstances it may work out to be a good deal.

 

[irishdreamer999]

We too have gone through a great debate about the dining plan or not. We're AAA, DVC and D23, and even though, with all of those we get this discount or that, none give you anything for character dining. We have 2 little ones, and we figured, based on how much food we got from the 2 character meals we did last time (didn't need to eat another meal the rest of the day, just snacks), and that they're only going to be little once, that we would do several character dinings this time. Choosing buffets whenever possible, due to stretching money further, that the dining plan became worth it. I worked the numbers thoroughly, and if you're going to do several table service meals, then it's definitely worth it. We probably won't ever do the dining plan again, but with 4 character dinings alone, we are so close to the total cost of the dining plan for our trip, that this time it's worth it! Now we're also looking at restaurants that we wouldn't have gone to otherwise, simply because we can, and now I don't have to cook, and the kids can actually get ice cream, or popsicles, etc. without us feeling like it is outrageous.

 

[supersuperwendy]

I was debating the same question today myself. Some of the places we get a 10 or 20% dvc discount are places we want to eat like whispering canyon cafe and chefs de france, etc. My husband wants to get the dining plan just to make things simple since we are bringing extended family. Also, since our trip is in December he wants to pay for the dining plan now and not worry about the cost of food while on the trip. I think just like us with a big group get the dining plan for convenience sake.

 

[Tiger926]

I agree, I have never found it to be worth the money especially when you have young kids. Out next trip is just the wife and I (w/out the kids) and it doesn't seem to be worth the money unless you always get deserts and appetizers with your dinners, which we don't. With all that being said, I'm sure that under certain circumstances it may work out to be a good deal.

In fact, with young kids between ages 3-9, the DP is usually worth it, especially when dining at character meals.

We have been using DDE/TIW for years now, but have thrown in a few DP and DxDP trips in there. We are also DVC members, who have an AP, so we can purchase TIW, but the DVC discounts really aren't that great.

Just as we do each trip, we do a spreadsheet to figure out what would suit our needs. So, for this summer's trip, it would cost us close to $300.00 more to use TIW over the DP, as we are eating at character meals for the kids, and so a dinner character buffet is worth almost twice the cost of a kids' DP cost, and then there is still a CS and a snack to use.

Also remember that for us DVC members, we don't pay the peak season DP price, as we pay $45.99/adult.

Good luck to OP, Tiger