DxDP help please Questions

[almburr]

Ok I am thinking of up-grading from DDP to DxDP. Who has used it and please tell me what you liked about it. Was there to much eating and not out doing the parks? Did you like this plan? With the table service do you get an appitizer, entree,drink and dessert? If it helps any it will be myself DH and DS5. We like to try diffrent foods (we live in a little town in the middle of nowhere=no reasturants)

please give the pros and cons of the plan.

 

[chocolateMinnie]

Trying to help.

We had three trips to WDW paying OOP as the ddp didn't really work for our family.

We like a huge breakfast, midday snack (or two for DD who doesn't eat as much at mealtimes as the rest of us) and a big dinner. Add in a trip to CRT each trip and onlymaybe one cs meal and you can see why.

Last year we were luckily enough to have a last minute October trip and got free ddp.

We really enjoyed it but we ended up paying for water and juice as usual to be delivered from gardengrocer plus paid oop for four table service meals. We did have a couple of counter service meals at lunchtimes that we wouldn't usually have but still had credits left for counter service at the end of the week. We went to Kouzzinas and ordered appetizers and obviously had to pay for them. DH is not a big pudding eater and wasted loads of puds. We did like using our snack credits at the food and wine festival.

You have to be happy to only eat twice a day and one of those counter service to make ddp truly work for you unless it's free.

This trip we are going dxdp and have to pay in full due to UK not being able to upgrade to DXDP if staying at moderate resort.

We wanted to return to CRT and HDDR and try Spirit of Aloha sot that uses 6 credits. We have only booked two meals per day one breakfast and one dinner, I know that the two leftover credits each for meals can be used at ts or cs so we will probably use one each on the day we are having a very early breakfast and later dinner as we will be hungry in the evening. Also because we are there for 8 days and you only get 7 nights credits they spread themselves thinner................

The only 'waste' of credits we have is that on our final day we are letting DD get her own way and have her first lunch trip to CRT. That's CRT twice in one trip which we wouldn't usually do.

Will use snack credits if they are leftover for bringing home items.

Still intend ordering water and soft drinks from gardengrocer.

With the current exchange rate we should work out in profit.

Next year we are back to free ddp and will pay oop for any extras.

 

[chocolateMinnie]

Also meant to add that yes with DXDP you currently get all three courses and with ddp just mains and desserts.

 

[earudick]

Here's my take and what my family experienced. We went to DW the first week of Jan 2010. For any that remember, it was the coldest winter the Southeast has experienced in the last 25 years. Knowing that we escaped the cold and were going to dine in a heated area was the biggest plus for us. It would have been awful had we eaten in some of the quick serve places that were not conditioned. I can remember the table service places being very busy with many walk ups trying to get inside. I suppose the same argument could be made if it is extremely hot, so you might consider that as well.

I will tell you, on the DxDP, we were never hungry. Perhaps it was because we had early dinners every evening, but it is a lot of food.


If I had it to do over again, I would definately do the DxDP. The primary reason is that we typically do at least 3 or 4 signature meals. We will either do a charcter breakfast or an early lunch and do a 2 credit dinner. So it made sense for us to upgrade. If your family is one to skip meals and you will likley do some counter service, you might not want to upgrade. But if you plan to try a variety of table service places, including the 2 credit signature dinning, you would probably want to upgrade. IMHO, the key to the DXDP is to plan early and make your reservations as early as possible. That way you are more likely to use all of your credits. Good luck and be prepared to loosen your belt should you opt for the DxDP.

 

[tinkerdee]

I would definitely do the Dxddp, and especially for a 5 yr old it is so inexpensive. It just gives you the options of eating where you want whenever you want. You will never run out of credits and can try everything!! There are some great restaurants we would never have been able to do if not for the Dxddp.

 

[almburr]

I think we will up-grade the plan. We were thinking of doing character breakfast then counter for lunch then a sit down dinner. Then do a counter breakfast early table lunch and a table lunch. We would like to do more sit down meals so I think it would work for us. I would love to try every country in EPCOT but that wont happen.

Thanks for the info.

 

[guitarob]

Here's what we love to do with the DxDP:

We have a 1 credit breakfast on most mornings, then a snack for lunch. For dinner, we have mostly 2 credit dinners at signature restaurants or shows, and it gives us the opportunity to be lavish and have great meals. We feel that the price of the plan is much less than it would be if paying out of pocket.

Of course, you can't do a signature meal every night or you will run out of credits due to the fact that your meal credits are based on number of nights, and not number of days. We arrive early and leave late, so it takes a little bit of creativity to budget the credits for maximum enjoyment. There are many 1 credit meals to be had for that are more than substantial and wonderful experiences.

 

[hacknsuit]

My wife and I did the deluxe a few months ago. You're never hungry. You get a bunch of food. An app., entree, and desert for every lunch and dinner. We found ourselves eating only two meals a day. But, that was fine, like what was mentioned, it allows you to hit those 2 point meals in the evenings.

Planning in advance is a good idea. Kinda takes away from the fun of wondering around the parks, but, depending on when you are there, it can be a pain standing in line waiting for even a QS meal.

It's really convenient just to bust out the card and be done with it...even with snacks.

 

[DISNEY1975]

I did the deluxe almost 2 years ago and decided to never do it again. Way to much food and not enough time in the parks as we were always going to our next meal. On day 2 of 8, we went to tusker House at 8:30am. By the time the characters came around, we got pictures, autographs, ate and paid it was almost 10:30am. Full from breakfast, at a snails pace, we walked around the park a bit, went on the safari tour, Kilomajaro ride and spent a few inutes in Dinoland. Before we knew it, it was 1:00 and time to head over to Yak and Yeti for our 1:30 ressie.

On the deluxe we got apps, entree and dessert. I was still completely full from breakfast. I dont know what possessed me to order anything, but I got the potstickers, fully intending to take a bite and push the plate aside. they were so delicious, I ate them all. Then came my entree, which i barely ate and I ordered the sorbet trio for dessert. Bllllaaahhhhh...STUFFED!

We left there around 3:00, bought a gift and headed back to our resort. We had just enough time for the 3 of us to shower and get changed and it was time to head over to Epcot for DINNER!!!!!! Our ressie was at Le Cellier and I was dying to eat there. I didnt get an app, but did get the filet mignon, mashed pots and dessert. We also had tickets to the candlelight procession that night. The ONLY thing stopping me from ordering a wheelchair at that point was that my 72 year old mother was with us and was still walking! How bad would it be to have my mother pushing ME in a wheelchair??!!!!! We had to jog to make the show and to this day, I dont know how I managed without losing my meals.

We were about 5 minutes late to the show and got the last row (still grat seats, by the way). I excused myself for a couple of minutes, walked out of the seating area dn called Disney Dining from my cell phone. I then cancelled all of our lunches for the rest of the week. We also left ALL of our snack credits on our card at checkout.

With that said...Im going now in Oct and am doing the deluxe again!!!! Why you may ask?? Because we are going to do buffet character breakfasts every morning and signature or dinner show dinners. NO LUNCHES

Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[Kelli Pooh]

We love the DxDP!! We did this for the first time on our last trip and will be upgrading our free dining to this for our December trip. We like to use our snack credits for breakfast then an early 1 credit lunch and finally a 2 credit signature dinner. Yes we spend a long time at dinner but we really enjoy the dining experience. This Dec we are at POFQ so we will have a fridge and plan to keep leftovers for breakfast and get some snacks at the bakeries in World Showcase to put in fridge for the next morning. We go for 10 day trips so we have enough park time. Enjoy

 

[almburr]

I really think we will up-grade. We plan on doing the parks but a a slower pace this time. ride the rides we really want, and just really enjoy being there.

Now I need to figure out what place to pick for DS 6th birthday. we will be there Dec 12-17th his birthday is the 13th.

 

[MrsLS]

It is a lot of food but you dont have to order or eat all of it (yes I know you know that) but it is nice also to be able to order a different app or dessert than my DH since half the time we want different things (at home we would share, especially the dessert). We like going to signature restaurants and a TS for breakfast or lunch, this plan works for us. I don't think the 1 credit TS takes up that much more time than the QS, the signatures are longer meals 1 1/2-2 hrs usually but by the end of the day, we are done with the parks and want to relax.
After this past Aprils trip we weren't going to do the deluxe again and just not do a plan (since we don't like QS) because we were so full, but after looking at the menus/prices again we decided to do it again this November and just order less desserts and minimize the apps at TS and we'd still save money (for the places we are going to), so we decided to keep it.
For snacks, we mostly use it to get bottled water for during the day and to have in our room (We don't like FL water), so again this is a savings for us.

 

[topmonkeygirl]

I love, love, love the DxDP. We get to the park before it opens and have breakfast (8:05). Usually out of breakfast around 9:00. Tour the park, then have lunch around 2:00. Out of lunch by 3:00-3:30. That's 5 hours in between breakfast and lunch. Tour the park some more then get dinner around 7:00-7:30. That about a 4 1/2 -5 hour gap. When we go to the park we're commandos. So we like to sit have our meals and relax, that's our break time instead of heading back to the resort for a rest. If you're a pig like me who's always hungry you will think you've died and gone to that great pig sty in the sky having all that food to eat, it's heaven. I'm drooling just thinking about it.

The snack credits are great, you can get many uses out of them.
1. The obvious, snacks while in the park.
2. Drinks while in the park.
3. Snacks you can either give to the kids on the ride home, or just to have at home.
4. Snacks you can use as breakfast the next morning instead of going to a meal.

I will never again go without having the dinning plan. It's also so easy, and worry free. No worries about spending too much money, just eat until your hearts content.

 

[JohnsonsRUs]

We are also considering upgrading the DxDP for the first time. We will be there Nov 11-16th and are mainly considering it because we want to try some new restaurants this time around, but also do the old standbys. On Nov 11th we will not be on a package because our FD doesn't start until the 12th, so we are planning to do the F&W Festival that day after we arrive (around 2ish).

Here is our plan to date:
Nov 11-arrival and F&W festival
Nov 12-Lunch SciFi diner
Nov 12-Dinner CRT (DD really wants to do this, I would prefer to pass on it)
Nov 13-Breakfast Boma
Nov 13-Dinner Kouzzina
Nov 14-probably counter service all meals
Nov 15-Breakfast Chef Mickey
Nov 15-Dinner Garden Grill
Nov 16-Breakfast Crystal Palace

For those of you experienced DxDPers, let me know your thoughts too.

 

[Debbie Jean]

Love the DxDP and will be doing it again next week

I have almost never done 3 TS in a single day... as others have already said, this is the perfect plan if you would like to do the signature restaurants... I usually have an earlier lunch for 1 TS and a later signature for 2TS... breakfast is typically snack credits, fruit, yogurt, etc. I also love the mug since it's nice to have during the visit and a great souvenir to bring home

 

[jlhill4444]

We also are doing Dxddp in Dec. I think many have hit the key point to this plan is to only eat 2 TS meals a day. We opt for either a character breakfast or early lunch and then a 2 credit dinner at a signature or dinner show. This way we dont spend 6 hours eating each day. If you only do 1 credit breakfast and 1 credit dinner at TS then it is a good ideat to just choose a counter service for you other credit that day.

The pros are that you can enjoy some of the signature places and dinner shows without using all of your credits. Also it allows for some relaxation time. Since we are going in Dec and know the parks will be crowded, this plan allows us to relax and get out of the crowds and provides other forms of entertainment rather than just the parks.

The cons are the price, the amount of time spent dinning and if you book late it may be hard to get reservations where you want to eat for that many meals.

Since you have a child, this plan will never be more affordable than now. So I say try it and decide for yourself if is works for you!