Help me make a decision please. ..

[MommyRobin]

I have two scenarios that I'm trying to decide between. Me, my 2 kids (9 and 13), my sister and nephew (18 months ), and my parents are heading to Disney the last week in August (with the exception of my nephew, we have all gone in Aug before ).
This is what I booked: asmu preferred room, FD, 5 day PH.
I am know considering switching to a RO discount at Pop. The only reason that I am considering this is because after all is said and done, after looking at the cost on the menus, I think that I'll be saving about $120 on the kids and I just eating oop (I think that the others will come close to breaking even ).

This is a budget trip, and I am trying to save wherever I can. But even though I'd be saving a bit of money, we can eat better on the DDP, and being able to have a preferred room will be such a bonus for my parents. (No one cares if we have PH or not.) My gut is leaning towards keeping our FD booking, but my frugal conscious needs some help. Any other points either for or against my scenarios? (I should add that my sister is slightly leaning towards changing to RO at Pop, my kids want to keep FD (although they aren't paying ) and my parents don't care.)

 

[Hopefully]

If you believe that you will eat better with FD I would keep that. $120 is not a lot of money in the Grand Scheme of a Disney vacation

 

[Shellyb84]

If you're on a tight budget and looking to save, I would switch to the RO and pay OOP to save the money. The DDP is so much food, way too much for us and we always end up wasting food, which I hate.

 

[jolene63]

I would stick with the FD. Food has gotten so expensive at Disney and I feel that FD is a better deal at the value resorts than RO.

 

[Nancyg56]

For $120, I would stick with FD and know what I have spent rather than taking a chance your family wants more than you budgeted for. 1$20 is not a lot when it comes to Disney food. I remember that at that age, my kids were bottomless pits.

 

[Babsy]

Which resort do you prefer, ASMu or POP? It looks like you prefer to stay at ASMU preferred. If that is the case then stay there - at least that would be my opinion/choice.

FWIW:
Why would you eat better on the FD? Have you paid extra for the regular dining or are you on the QS only dining? Because I want to save money, I usually stay with RO but I eat whatever I want and still come out ahead paying OOP. However, we are not big eaters and we usually stay in a moderate or deluxe and there is only one or two people in the room. All these things make a difference to which is more cost effective.
Have you looked at the menus for the restaurants that you will eat in and actually added up the cost for each meal? I am surprised that FD at a value with as many people as you have in your group is more expensive? Be sure that you ARE looking at the most economical option by looking at the menus, deciding what you would eat either way and adding it all up. yes, it is a bit of a pain, but if budget is tight it is worth it for the peace of mind.

The bottom line is that I would do whatever will give you the most worry free vacation. If having the FD will alleviate the stress of worrying about how much you are spending on food, then maybe the $120 is money well spent. If I went with the RO discount, I would decide that the amount of money spent on food could be anywhere up to as much as choosing the dining plan would have cost me (in other words, use some (or all) of that $120 to eat as well OOP as you would have on the FD).


If you decide to do OOP: this is what I have done when doing a super budget trip

We have done budget trips where a loaf of bread, peanut butter, cold cereal, some fruit and milk in the room was breakfast every morning (we brought this food with us from home except for the milk/fruit). Then we would get a large lunch in the theme parks. For dinner we found the best deals with large amounts of food to share in the evenings (usually quick service). For snacks i brought granola bars, nuts, homemade cookies and muffins as well as some juice boxes. Sometimes we would bring canned salmon or tuna to have in the room. Then we would buy a salad for dinner and put the canned salmon on top for a light dinner. Or make a tuna sandwich to have on the side and buy a bowl of soup.

The other way to do this is to pack lunches to bring to the parks (leave in a locker with ice packs until lunch time), then buy a dinner. This is a bit more expensive as the same food is often more expensive at dinner than at lunch.

We never buy beverages. We get free water to drink with meals or buy a case of water for the room (~$6) and buy a carton of milk for the room and bring/buy some juice. No sodas. Request a glass of water with ice at a take out window. Bring your own tea bag and ask for hot water. That sort of thing works to keep food costs down.
OR
buy refillable mugs and always use those for tea/coffee/sodas.

Bring ziplock baggies with you and save leftover food in the room fridge for later.

Look at the menus before you go and choose your lunches/dinners at places that will give you the most bang for your buck. Plan a splurge or two, if possible. This is a vacation and it would be nice to indulge at least once in something special.



Plan and budget well at the outset and then simply enjoy your trip! The good news is that with planning you will be able to keep to your budget and still have a wonderful time!!

Enjoy!

 

[mm1971]

Sounds like the preferred room is more desirable and that comes with FD where you said you would eat better. Even being a budget trip, the savings is not significant if it means you have to downgrade your experience. I would say keep the FD and preferred room if you can afford the extra $120.

 

[Jaime4004]

I was pretty much in the same boat. Had 4 nights at ASMU standard room with PH and FD, but ended up switching to Pop in a preferred with RO discount. It's just DD (13) and I and she doesn't eat much. I think I might have broke even with FD but it would be a stretch. I love FD with my whole family of 5 but probably not worth it for the two of us. Also always wanted to try Pop.

 

[Juliet25]

I would stick with the FD. While you might save money paying OOP, the difference isn't that great. My kids eat non-stop, and the nice thing about the DP is that there's no reason to say no to a treat. It makes it more pleasant for everyone to keep their bellies full. Food at Disney is expensive and potentially saving $120 isn't enough to tip the scales in favor of the RO discount.

 

[MommyRobin]

Which resort do you prefer, ASMu or POP? It looks like you prefer to stay at ASMU preferred. If that is the case then stay there - at least that would be my opinion/choice.

FWIW:
Why would you eat better on the FD?

I actually prefer pop overall, but am looking forward to having a preferred room (the one time we stayed at asmu we were located as far back as you can go which is a really long walk in FL heat! ).

I'm saying that we would eat better because we a) won't be sharing meals and everyone could order whatever they wanted (sharing is done to save money when paying OOP ); b) we can go to the really fun (aka expensive! ) table services that we otherwise couldn't afford; and c) I can more easily guarantee that we will all be eating fruits and veggies each day.

 

[Babsy]

I actually prefer pop overall, but am looking forward to having a preferred room (the one time we stayed at asmu we were located as far back as you can go which is a really long walk in FL heat! ).

I'm saying that we would eat better because we a) won't be sharing meals and everyone could order whatever they wanted (sharing is done to save money when paying OOP ); b) we can go to the really fun (aka expensive! ) table services that we otherwise couldn't afford; and c) I can more easily guarantee that we will all be eating fruits and veggies each day.

(1) have you stayed at Pop before? It is less important to have a preferred room at Pop because the rooms are laid out differently and some standard rooms are relatively convenient, with a lake view and fairly near the bridge to walk across to AoA. Personally, I almost always get a preferred room except at Pop. ASMu is a much different story with its long narrow layout some rooms are really far from dining and buses. I have only stayed here once in a standard room.

(2) So, I assume that you have paid to upgrade the dining plan at ASMU? The quick service plan that comes with FD at value doesn't include the more expensive restaurants, as I understand it. It is 2 quick service meals and one snack per person per day. With the food included in that, we do not want the desserts nor the included beverages. We would get bottled water for the drink on the plan, but we are just as happy with the free glass of water when paying OOP. (BTW: If you are paying to upgrade the dining then you might find staying at a moderate to be just as good a price. I haven't done this, but I would check it out just in case. I have read here that people have often stayed in moderate because they have the regular dining plan included with the moderates FD and that the price is similar to staying value and upgrading to the regular dining plan. Unless, of course, you prefer ASMu or POP to the moderate resorts.)

I would stick with the FD. While you might save money paying OOP, the difference isn't that great. My kids eat non-stop, and the nice thing about the DP is that there's no reason to say no to a treat.s it more pleasant for everyone to keep their bellies full. Food at Disney is expensive and potentially saving $120 isn't enough to tip the scales in favor of the RO discount.

I agree!! Plus if you HAVE to meal share and also give up eating more expensive meals that you would like then you aren't really saving money, but buying less to make the experience cheaper ( but also less enjoyable). We share meals because that is as much food as we want and do things like eat breakfast in the room to save extra money but also because we are happy to do so. If I felt that the experience was less as a result, then I wouldn't do it.

It is your vacation! Do whatever makes YOU happiest! saving $120 doesn't sound like it would be worth it for you to give up the dining plan and the preferred room.

 

[MommyRobin]

Thanks so much for all of the replies. Yes, we've already paid to upgrade our FD. I priced out as many different options as I could think of (that were available ) and asmu came out the cheapest, even including pop and moderates.

We are strongly leaning towards spending the extra bit and keeping the FD.

 

[Shellyb84]

I actually prefer pop overall, but am looking forward to having a preferred room (the one time we stayed at asmu we were located as far back as you can go which is a really long walk in FL heat! ).

I'm saying that we would eat better because we a) won't be sharing meals and everyone could order whatever they wanted (sharing is done to save money when paying OOP ); b) we can go to the really fun (aka expensive! ) table services that we otherwise couldn't afford; and c) I can more easily guarantee that we will all be eating fruits and veggies each day.

Keep in mind, the really expensive TS will also equal HUGE tips. Last time we did the dining plan, we thought it was going to be a good value, but then had a huge bill at the end of our trip from the tips.

 

[MommyRobin]

Very good point, but I definitely took that into considerationand have included tips in my amount. Good news, though - I was able to switch all of us over to Pop this morning when more FD opened up. Savedeach of us about $40

 

[Nancyg56]

Keep in mind, the really expensive TS will also equal HUGE tips. Last time we did the dining plan, we thought it was going to be a good value, but then had a huge bill at the end of our trip from the tips.

Very good point, but I definitely took that into considerationand have included tips in my amount. Good news, though - I was able to switch all of us over to Pop this morning when more FD opened up. Savedeach of us about $40

I think that if. You normally dine at TS restaurants you are used to allocating a budget just for gratuities. WHen you are on a DDP, there is no tax added to the DDP items, so there is a tht to consider. Yes, you have tips but the tax on the meals is removed. Is it a wash? Not completely, but there is that difference that I never hear anyone discuss when they list the deficits that the DDP presents.

WE plan TS meals daily, and several times we plan SIgnature dining TS meals. We know DDP or nto, there will be tips that we must budget for. I never charge tips back to the room every day and then wait til checkout to pay. I stop by every few days and pay the bill so I am not blindsided at the end of my trip.

 

[Shellyb84]

I think that if. You normally dine at TS restaurants you are used to allocating a budget just for gratuities. WHen you are on a DDP, there is no tax added to the DDP items, so there is a tht to consider. Yes, you have tips but the tax on the meals is removed. Is it a wash? Not completely, but there is that difference that I never hear anyone discuss when they list the deficits that the DDP presents.

WE plan TS meals daily, and several times we plan SIgnature dining TS meals. We know DDP or nto, there will be tips that we must budget for. I never charge tips back to the room every day and then wait til checkout to pay. I stop by every few days and pay the bill so I am not blindsided at the end of my trip.

That is true, but it was our first big trip and we didn't budget, we just got the deluxe dining plan because DH is a big eater and wanted all those sit down meals, and he ordered the most expensive things on the menu without thinking about all the extras we would have to pay for on top of the cost of the plan.

 

[Nancyg56]

That is true, but it was our first big trip and we didn't budget, we just got the deluxe dining plan because DH is a big eater and wanted all those sit down meals, and he ordered the most expensive things on the menu without thinking about all the extras we would have to pay for on top of the cost of the plan.

I get it. One of our traveling companions did not budget well last year at all. WE booked a lot of signature meals, and we were on the DxDDP, so appetizers were included. The servers generally let her girls order off of the adult menu when they wanted to. When the bill came my DS used his band to charge all gratutites back to the room. So we knew what was tips. He paid cash for all his shopping. Well every few days my DD woudl tally up the OOP on meals, and tell her what her share was. 6 months later she is still complaining. How many times must I tell her that wine is not included, and her tips were for three meals. DH gifted all of us the trip, including meals etc, but I refused to pay her tips and alcohol.

My oldest and his wife ae joining us this year and he has asked for a budget so he can plan his OOP at meals. They do add up.