Has anyone actually done the math on DDP v. paying OOP?

[RadioFanatic]

We rented points from DVC this year so it's the first time EVER that we would be paying for the dining plan v. free dining. So my question is - has anyone actually done the math on which is the better deal? We have dinner reservations at Mama Melrose (that night we will be with relatives who have a TIW card so we could get a discount that night only), Garden Grill, Liberty Tavern and Boma. DS is under three so will be free. We intend to eat one CS each day (don't need desserts) - we can use snacks for breakfast but also intend to use garden grocer.

I would love to hear the math wiz's - which would be more cost effective paying for DDP or just paying OOP?

 

[budbeerlady]

We have done the math, depends on your family and eating styles. Paying for the DDP is still a savings for us with Dh.

 

[goofy4tink]

I do the math, repeatedly, for every single trip. I own DVC, so can buy DDP. But I also have an AP, so can buy the Tables in Wonderland card as well.
Every time I have a trip, I sit down, calculator at my side, with the ADRs that we will get. Since we have been so many times, I can pretty well know how much our costs will be...know ahead of time what we will order at particular restaurants.
I make a list of the restaurants, and the cost for each meal.
Then, I add that up and compare with the cost of DDP. But, you have to remember to include tipping costs when doing that..many people forget about that. Then, I compare it to my costs with the TiW card. That card gets me 20% off my table service meals, but it does have an automatic 18% tip....so I actually save 2% overall.

As long as it isn't free dining, I find that I don't use the DDP anymore. It just isn't cost efficient for my family.

 

[christinec68]

We probably spend a little more by going out of pocket but we are eating food we want to eat versus what is offered by the plan.

The best way to figure it out is to go through the menu and see what you will most likely want to eat and how that stacks up to the cost and offerings of the DP.

 

[irishtigger]

and every time it was cheaper to get the DDP for the places we eat and the food we get. I really think the DDP is the best option

 

[chartle]

You don't need to be a math wiz.

Just add up want you would pay OOP for a typical day or weeks meals and if its less than DDP don't get the DDP. If its more get the plan. Only you know what your family would normally eat.

Even when its free dining you have to compare free dining to what kind of other discount you could get without FD. Depending on the resort you book non FD may be cheaper particularly if you only have two people.

I've toyed around with it a little and I think, because the range of prices of TS meals is greater, you can get your money's worth with the DDP.

On the QSDP its a lot harder since most QS meals are around $10 - 12 with drink.

My family doesn't do TS except for maybe a Breakfast Buffet so we would never think about the DDP. Only maybe if it free.

 

[TinkerBelle_325]

It really depends on your family's style of eating at WDW.

We typically avoid counter service, with the only exceptions being Flame Tree BBQ, Columbia Harbor House and Wolfgang Puck Express.

As a result, we eat a lot more table service meals at both lunch and dinner. However, we will often order several appetizers and several desserts, skipping entrees entirely. Because we like to customize so much we have found that OOP is more economical.

We are also annual passholders and we find Tables in Wonderland to be of great value! We have gotten hooked on Victoria and Albert's and our TIW card is paid off after that one meal alone!

$125 (main dining room) + $60 (wine pairing) x 3 = $555

Without TIW

$555 x 0.2 = $111

$555 x 1.065 + $111 = $702.07

With TIW

$555 x 0.2 = $111

$555 x 0.8 = $444 x 1.065 = $472.86 + $111 = $583.86

Savings = $118.22!

$118.22 - $75 = $43.21

So the card saves us $43.21 right off the bat, plus more for each meal of our trip, and typically we go 2 or 3 times in a calendar year.

 

[ntsammy5]

Like everyone else says, it all depends. Sometimes it's about not having to worry about it. We don't do it all the time, but plan on it this December, but on an recent trip we didn't use it. Depends on various factors, but if you don't want to be planning everything around meals don't get it. That's one disadvantage to the DDP.

 

[Tricia1972]

You definitely need to do the math for yourself. There is no one answer for everyone, and the DDP or paying OOP isn't always the best answer for everyone.

We ran the numbers for 2011, and depending on the rumored changes our savings on the DDP can go anywhere from $312 to $167, depending on how the plan changes. $167 sounds like a lot of money until you figure that that total is less than the total of our desserts and our snacks for the week . It'd be nice to get them for 'free', but first I really need to figure out if we need and/or want those desserts.

Go through the menus and figure out what you want. Not what you can get, but what you want if you went into a restaurant and could get whatever you wanted to eat. Add it up. Add up how much the DDP costs. Whichever is less is the best bet for your group.

(The more kids you have ages 3-9 the more likely the DDP is a good idea for your group)

 

[kwitcherkicken99]

Whe deciding if we would do DDP or not (I will eat pretty much anything, DH not so much) I printed out menus from allears and had him highlight what he would eat at each place. I figured if we could "spend" the "money" to make it worth it, we would just pay OOP. Turns out DH has expensive taste from the places that we picked out :rotfl ! Last year when we went it was DH, myself, DS2.5, and DD 6mo. We averaged $30 per CS meal. If the DDP was $42/day we had to be able to consume the food to pay for it.

This time around we are doing DDP (are going for FD, but was going to get DDP anyway). We are eating at Akershus, Boma, Le Cellier, CM, and Coral Reef we've done pretty good as far as spending the credits.

 

[madalex]

Depends on various factors, but if you don't want to be planning everything around meals don't get it. That's one disadvantage to the DDP.

This is a great point. It's not just the dollars of what the plan costs versus what it would cost to pay for the same food out of pocket. The "cost" of the DDP includes the time and effort to plan and keep track of your use of the plan credits. The "cost" also includes the limitations it puts on the various places that you may want to eat at (e.g., if you are on the plan, there are several restaurants that you can't eat at because they don't accept the plan).

Given the way we eat our meals (signature dinners practically every night, with several of our favorite places being at restaurants that do not accept the DDP), the DDP makes no sense to me. And, on top of that, whenever I am hungry or at a meal, I can just eat or order whatever I want without having to worry about use of credits, whether the place takes the plan, etc.

 

[DonaldTDuck]

There is exactly 1 TS in the parks that does not take ddp. There are several resort/ DtD that don't, but most do. Regardless of ddp, if you eat at TS you need to plan and make ADRs unless you eat at the few places on the plan that don't take them or hope against hope to walk in. The math is simple enough. $40 for ddp minus 4 for snack, average 15 for cs meal plus drink plus dessert leaves you at $21 for entree, drink and dessert at TS. Dessert and drink will be around 8. Almost all entrees are more than $13. If you eat dessert, and use all your credits, you can't lose. If you don't eat dessert or don't use credits, it may not be a good idea.
Someone brought up figuring the tip, but tipping should be the same either way. Your receipt will keep track of credits you have remaining, so no accounting needed there either. On most trips of 6-7 days I save at least $100. ymmv

 

[ElizabethB]

I've calculated it both ways -- DDP vs. OOP with TIW. Cost-wise, it seems to me to be about a draw. This was not the case when DDP first was introduced. But, as they've whittled the DDP benefits away, it's become pretty useless to us and we don't bother with it.

We've also been disappointed with the overall decline in quality at the Disney restaurants since the DDP and focus most of our dining on those restaurants that don't take DDP. We are very happy that favorites like Il Mulino and Shula's now take TIW.

 

[MarilIncredible]

Like others have said, it depends on your eating habit. DH and I tend to prefer appetizers over desserts and I almost never finish a full CS lunch and couldn't fathom having a dessert with every CS. We also enjoy adult beverages, which are not included. For us, the DDP has never made financial sense.

However, if you do a lot of buffets or always order the steak/more expensive option, do a TS meal every day, eschew appetizers for desserts and don't drink, then DDP may end up saving you money.

 

[Melodious]

Yep we did the math, like twenty different times to make sure It depends on how you eat and it depends on how many TS meals you'd like compared to how many days you're going. If you plan on a TS dinner every night of your trip, the plan may work if you eat the way the plan is set up, ie entrees, no appetizers, etc. If a lot of your TS meals are breakfasts, you don't get as much value. It also depends on you as a person. I'm the type of person who will choose the sundae on the plan rather than the sundae I really want, and that's another reason for me not to do the plan. Also because we tend to purchase things outside of the plan, ie appetizers and alcoholic beverages, it gives me more peace of mind to buy gift cards and put them on my room keycard. That way I include the price of tips and drinks and everything else on the giftcard and truly don't worry about the price once I get there.

 

[wizzzzzard]

My DW has a degree in Economics. When the DDP first came out, she sat down and figured out the cost of the plan vs. paying OOP. IIRC, if we bought what we would buy paying OOP, the cost breaks even, or just a little better.

But on the DDP, we can 'order up' as I like to call it. Let me explain. Let's say we go Cosmic Rays for lunch, and Tony's Town Square in MK for dinner.

If I were paying OOP, I would probably order the Chicken Parm, or the Shrimp Scampi at $16.99. I might get a gelato ($4.99) for dessert, should I desire one.

Now on the DDP, I can get the Seafood Diavoli ($22.99) or the NY Strip ($27.99), and 'pay' the same price. And my dessert is included. I can now get the $6.50 Tiramisu, instead of the $5 gelato.

Bottom line is, you should do the math. And do it both ways. See if what you would buy with your own money is the same or better. Then buy what you would, if money were no object. An example:

Prices taken from Allears.net. Assuming a 7% florida sales tax.

OOP
Lunch @ Cosmic Rays
Bacon Double cheeseburge meal: 8.59
Drink: 2.49
Dessert: 2.39 (no-sugar brownie)
$13.88 + 7% tax = $14.85

Dinner @ TTS
Shrimp Scampi: 16.99
Drink: $2.29
Dessert: $4.99
$24.27 + 7% tax = 25.97

Snack: $3.25 (Water) (Tax is usually figured in for this already.)

$14.85
$25.97
$3.25
$44.07

At $42 a day (IIRC) for the dining plan, this is slightly better. Knock off any one the desserts at both meals, or the snack, and the plan becomes more expensive, by a couple of dollars.

Now, if I do what I want to order:

Lunch @ Cosmic Rays
Chick & Rib combo meal: 13.99
Drink: 2.49
Dessert: 3.59 (carrot cake)
$20.07 + 7% tax = $21.47

Dinner @ TTS
NY Strip: 27.99
Drink: $2.29
Dessert: $5.99
$36.27 + 7% tax = 38.81

Snack. $3.25 (Water) (Tax is usually figured in for this already.)

$21.47
$38.81
$3.25
$63.53

$42 vs. $63 and change. That, to me, is added value of the plan.

Additionally, I don't use credit much, perferring cash for most of my transactions. In the past, I tended to use travelers checks when at Disney. Now with the Dining Plan, I no longer need to carry that extra money. That to me, is another intangible benefit of the plan. Well, maybe it is tangible, since I don't have a wallet stuffed with cash and/or traveler's checks.

Do I need to plan my visit around food? Yes, I do. But I do that anyway! Even if I weren't at.....Disney. Do I need to make reservations for my table service. Yes. You pretty much need to that anyway. Getting a walkup slot at most TS in any park, is like trying to draw the inside straight. It might happen, but the odds are long against it.

If you are going to bare bones it food-wise, then the plan is not for you. Could you have groceries delivered to your room? Sure. That's probably less. But then think of the work involved for getting that done. If you don't bring your food with you into the park, then there is time spent trekking back to your room, or car, to eat it.

There's always a cost involved, whether it be in time or money. The questions are, what are you willing to pay for, and what are you willing to sacrifice? I hope I helped.

 

[Cafeen]

Yes, I've done the math. Several times for both myself and others. (Evidence is on these boards )

My recent catch-phrase is "Use a plan if it fits your dining, don't fit your dining to use a plan". It pretty much emcompasses the idea that if you dine the way the plans are designed, there's a very good chance of saving money. If you force your dining wants to fit the plan, then either you're going to spend more than you would, or just not have quite the experience you had intended.

The savings on the plans come when you use them as designed. Minimal sharing, minimal extras (e.g. apps on the DDP), and maximum credit usage. For the DDP as well, minimal 2TS experiences (DxDDP math is a bit different, because you get 3 times as many credits to potentially use at TS locations, thus making 2TS locations a bit more worthwhile, as well as including the appetizer).

Each plan has it's own "break-even point" and unless you utilized them as intended, you aren't going to reach that point.

For the OP's situation, it's tough to tell without knowing the number of nights the stay is for. Since most of the locations (except MM, which is being paid off the plan) are AYCEs, the little one will be free anyway (if you had a lot of menu service, the TiW may look better as you would probably buy at least a couple meals for the youngster.) Let's just assume 4 nights anyway though for sanity sake . Also assuming that your dining habits will be the typical plan usage.

So, we have 4 nights of DDP for 2 Adults totalling: ($42 x 4) x 2 = $336.

4 CS meals @ roughly $14 ea = ($14 x 4) x 2 = $112
GG Dinner = $31 x 2 = $62
Boma Dinner = $31 x 2 = $62
LTT Dinner = $30 x 2 = $60

Adding the meals up and you get: $296
Add in snacks (avg $3): ($3 x 4) x 2 = $24
This totals $320. So you're $16 short of the "break-even" point. However, you still have 1 TS available (see the note above about using allotments ). If you're stuff right now without thinking about another TS restaurant, you will be better served paying OOP. If you want to add another TS, then DDP would pull ahead (and really, it could be any meal, even breakfast will pull it ahead).

Doh, the person who posted while I did reminded me about tax.

So, continuing from the above...
Add 6.5% tax (it's only 7% in Osceola County, where the All-Stars are located. Orange county is 6.5% where everything else is).
$320 * 1.065 = $340

So that changes it slightly, you'd save about $4 using the same plan with DDP. However, if you drop desserts from the CS locations (or heck, just drop it from one CS location ), this would more than make up for that $4.

 

[gillep]

Someone brought up figuring the tip, but tipping should be the same either way.

This is not necessarily true for instance if we do not get the dining plan then I usually would not eat an entree a dessert and a drink all the time. In fact most times I would rather have water and an appy and maybe split a Dessert with DH, therefore the cost of our meal would be totally different and the tip would be totally different as well. When figuring out which is better I now look really carefully at the menus and decide what I am most likely to order if I am paying oop, not the oop cost of the items I would get via the dining plan. DH and I actually do not really save money on the dining plan at all due to the places we like to eat and the types of foods we would order at each place. We actually have better dining experiences paying oop, but that is just us.

 

[iloveeeyore]

We did the math when we got back from our last trip and discovered that the DDP saved us about $70 over 7 nights. BUT, we had multiple checks with each TS meal (because we love our appies and adult beverages), which was very confusing, not so much for us, but for many of the CM's. Settling our bills at Les Chefs de France was a nightmare that continued for weeks after our vacation. Also, we ordered a lot of things when on the DDP that we probably wouldn't have if not on the DDP (eg, NO WAY would we order 8 desserts and 8 huge soft drinks for the 4 of us per day), so the cost "savings" was a little misleading. We decided that purchasing the DDP just isn't worth it anymore for our family. We're getting TIW this trip because it's a long one, and the TIW offers much more flexibility, which suits us better.

At any rate, if you're hoping to get your monetary "value" out of the DDP, that requires lots of planning. We found a stragey that worked for us was doing dinners instead of breakfasts for our TS, finding the CS places that offer the most extensive and expensive options (for example the platters at Tangierine Cafe, chicken/ribs combo at Cosmic Rays, anything at WPE), using snack credits for breakfast, etc.

As others have stated, you really have to do your own math! Sorry.

 

[catne]

I do keep receipts, and tote 'em up at the end to make sure we're really saving money on the Dining Plan. We tend to save at least 25%, sometimes more.

For the most part, we DO like to eat exactly the way the plan specifies...we don't normally eat desserts, but on vacation it's fun to splurge. We do tend to prefer the more expensive restaurants (not many buffets) and we tend to order the high-ticket entrees (by preference, not trying to maximize the plan.) We also eat at more expensive counter service places like WPE (no hot dogs for us) Even on snacks, we rarely buy the $2 items...prefer the expensive pastries

For example, on our most recent weekend trip (2 nights on the Deluxe plan):

May 2010, 3 adults on the DxDDP:
cash total on the receipts, including tax but no tips was $744.75 vs. $431.94 DxDDP cost - which covered all that cash cost & tax. Our Savings this trip was $312.81...and we ate like kings. Yum!

Now if you tend to prefer hot dogs & burgers...and you'd rather do a table service breakfast than steak dinner...and you really like the buffets better... or if you'd rather not eat table service everyday...or you hate desserts, then cash OOP would probably work much better for you.

We've looked at TIW, and when I've done the math, it just doesn't add up for us. Sure it'll pay for itself if you eat at V & A...but we don't eat there, lol. There's no TiW discount at counter service places, either, so it's not like you're getting a 2% discount on everything.