How accurate is the dining calculator?

[lynnfitz]

Hi, I didn't even know this existed, lol! One of the posts was questioning if the dining plan would be worth it for them-and the calculator was mentioned. We've done the dining plan (3 adults) for the past few years. We go for a week in the summer. I have to say, I do like having food paid for prior to vacation, just feel it helps with planning. The dining plan is about $1600 for the 3 of us for a week-I was thinking about getting a $1000 disney gift card instead of the plan this year, but my husband likes the dining plan, and he knows me-I will have sticker shock if i really look at the prices if we're using a gift card, and with the plan, we don't look at prices. I did the calculator doing 2 signature dinners, 3 sit down dinners, and chose average QS for lunch every day. It's coming up to about $1078 not using the plan. It doesn't seem to take into account snacks-anyway, any thoughts on this calculator? Do you feel it's fairly accurate? I know it's not an exact science, but just wondering other peoples opinions! thanks!!

 

[siren0119]

I don't think any of the calculators have been updated to include the alcoholic drinks you can get, and I think some still use old dining prices. Really, if you're trying to to calculate to see if it's FINANCIALLY sensible, your best bet is to choose your dining, and look at the pricing on the Disney website or Touring Plans and calculate out what your actual spending would be based on what you'd most likely order. it's the only way to get an accurate picture but it's a lot of work.

Now, if you're evaluating based on CONVENIENCE, the calculator is irrelevant. DDP does make the vacation feel more "all inclusive" and many choose it because they don't have to think about what they're ordering.

 

[alwayssmile]

All the calculators pretty much said it was worth it for my family because we'd use all the credits. However, I found once I looked at current menus and created my own spreadsheet with prices (I even included every single snack on my personal "want to try list" and had us eating more expensive items mostly), we come up cheaper paying out of pocket than using the dining plan. That was with alcohol included for every single adult meal when available. In reality my husband and I won't want an alcoholic drink every single meal. Seeing all the high Disney prices adding up to be less than I thought we would pay in total is helping me relax about paying out of pocket. It's annoying to add up everything, but if money/budget matters it could be worthwhile to figure it out yourself rather than trust a calculator. Other families have found with their own calculations they're definitely saving money with the DDP. Everyone is different for what they eat, where they eat, etc.

 

[lynnfitz]

ok thanks so much-When we do the dining plan, we do 1 maybe 2 signature meals-just because I know if I was paying out of pocket for these, I'd probably pass out when the bill came, lol! That is one reason why I do like the plan, we go to restaurants we normally wouldn't try because of the price. Interesting about the alcohol-if it's not included in the calculator, if my DH and I have a drink at dinner, that would also add up after a week. We'll have to give it some more thought, but really appreciate your input!

 

[SharonZ]

My experience has been that free dining isn't the "deal" that it once was, especially if you can get a "room only" discount.

 

[rwdavis2]

Just keep in mind, the dining plans are NOT designed to save you money although it's possible. We've did not pay full price for one time we had DDP. We just pay out of pocket and don't worry about it. Considering the overall cost of a trip to WDW saving a few dollars on dining is a rounding error and not worth the effort of tracking credits and worrying about getting our money's worth.

 

[MomOTwins]

I think the only way to really calculate value is to look at menus and see what it costs for what you want to eat. The prices can be quite a bit different depending on what you order. For example, at Coral reef, you can order a lobster boil for $40 or a vegetarian dish for $24. And remember, dessert and one alcoholic drink is included in dining plan for table service, so if you normally order the the plan will be a better value than if you tend to drink water and skip or share dessert. Just don’t forget when calculating dining plan value that it includes taxes, but not tip.

 

[lynnfitz]

ok thanks-we usually have a drink with dinner, dessert maybe. I know it wouldn't save us money, but just wondering how wide of a gap we're at between paying out of pocket and the plan. I'm fortunate to rent points from a friend at a very good cost, so maybe we'll just go ahead-then I don't have to think about the pricing when we go out. We do tend to order expensive items-steak etc, just figuring we have the plan lets use it to its fullest. thanks all!

 

[sharonabe]

ok thanks-we usually have a drink with dinner, dessert maybe. I know it wouldn't save us money, but just wondering how wide of a gap we're at between paying out of pocket and the plan. I'm fortunate to rent points from a friend at a very good cost, so maybe we'll just go ahead-then I don't have to think about the pricing when we go out. We do tend to order expensive items-steak etc, just figuring we have the plan lets use it to its fullest. thanks all!

There is one way to cheat just a little in doing your own math. Pretend you are on a solo trip and just do the math for you. You have to not look at any of the prices and choose what you truly think you will WANT to eat. Include all apps, entrees, desserts, and drinks (alcohol and non). Add the 6.5% tax to the total, $6 per snack and see how you compare to the DDP cost for one person. That should give you a ball park figure for YOUR family.

 

[TammyLynn33]

TP dining calculator Inputs drinks alcoholic or not snacks and refillable mugs and taxes. It’s pretty solid .

 

[Nancyg56]

ok thanks-we usually have a drink with dinner, dessert maybe. I know it wouldn't save us money, but just wondering how wide of a gap we're at between paying out of pocket and the plan. I'm fortunate to rent points from a friend at a very good cost, so maybe we'll just go ahead-then I don't have to think about the pricing when we go out. We do tend to order expensive items-steak etc, just figuring we have the plan lets use it to its fullest. thanks all!

It may or may not save you money. We killed it on the dining plan in December and I had two 13 YO girls with me. One said she was never hungry, however she ate like a fiend when she felt like it. They both spent their snack credits at Starbucks buying venti Refreshers, and knew every place that had huge cinnamon roll treats. I never tried to move them towards beef etc on the menus, so they went back and forth between steaks, chicken and pasta. One drank mostly water, but enjoyed a specialty beverage once in a while, and both ordered their desserts every meal but one. (I ate hers LOL)

WE used snack credits for breakfast at times, which made a huge difference. The refillable mugs I never factor into savings or cost, but we all used them. A lot. If I had to pay for the beverages we bought it would have been worth the cost of the mugs for my group, so I woudl probably have bought at least two. My sister could manage with coffee inthe room, and one of the girls likes water, so one of the kids and I would use the mug enough on a deliberate purchase to make it worth while.

My sister and I had wine or cocktails with most CS meals, and evey TS meal. We would have ordered hem anyway (Have you ever traveled with tow 13 YO girls??????)

The best way for you to see if a plan will work is to choose your meals in advance of your calculations. Look at what you want to order, and cost it out. Depending on your dinign choices and your dining preferences in general, the plan can be a value or a total waste of money, depending on your family dynamic.

 

[Krystal659]

I think we just eat differently when we use the dining plan. For example, we may share a cake off the dining plan, but will each order one on the plan (most likely not eat it all). I also tend to order a glass of wine with TS meals on the plan, but would not do that every night off the plan. I am also usually left with a few snack credits at the end of the trip and we "buy" a few things to take home. I would also normally not do that. However, there are times when the "free" dining makes sense for us and we end up using the dining plan. Also, consider do you get to try restaurants that you would normally not eat at while on vacation.

 

[Babsy]

I often check the dining plan against what we choose to eat. It feels like a dining plan SHOULD save us some money. But it never has turned out that way.
We eat at places like California Grille, Jiko's, character meals etc whenever we want and we choose to eat whatever we want off the menu without regard to price. I have looked at the cost of the dining plan many times against where we eat and what we spend. We have never been able to save any money by using the dining plan. Some days can be close, but we always end up saving at least some money by paying OOP. Sometimes we save a lot. I guess we are not big eaters, we rarely eat desserts, generally our 'drinks' are coffee in the am (free in the room) and water for the rest of the day. WE don't snack. WE drink very little, if any, alcohol, even when it is free or included.
Knowing all that, now I just relax and pay whatever it costs regardless of what the price is on the menu. I know that I am saving money by NOT buying the DP. (We do have an AP so we save 10% at many restaurants. Perhaps that is part of why the DP doesn't work for us.)

It would drive me crazy, knowing that I had already paid for the meals, trying to get full value for dollars already spent. I wouldn't be able to eat what I wanted, I would be ordering whatever gave me the closest to full value for what I had already spent! LOL! Funny how our minds work differently. I would waddle away from the table uncomfortably full but having managed to get my 'money's worth'. LOL!

Even in the past when the dining plan was a 'good deal', it just didn't work for us. It's why I suggest that everyone should consider how they eat, how much they want to eat and the menu prices against what the dining plan costs. The results can be surprising. (And liberating in our case.)

 

[Scubadaddy32]

I often check the dining plan against what we choose to eat. It feels like a dining plan SHOULD save us some money. But it never has turned out that way.
We eat at places like California Grille, Jiko's, character meals etc whenever we want and we choose to eat whatever we want off the menu without regard to price. I have looked at the cost of the dining plan many times against where we eat and what we spend. We have never been able to save any money by using the dining plan. Some days can be close, but we always end up saving at least some money by paying OOP. Sometimes we save a lot. I guess we are not big eaters, we rarely eat desserts, generally our 'drinks' are coffee in the am (free in the room) and water for the rest of the day. WE don't snack. WE drink very little, if any, alcohol, even when it is free or included.
Knowing all that, now I just relax and pay whatever it costs regardless of what the price is on the menu. I know that I am saving money by NOT buying the DP. (We do have an AP so we save 10% at many restaurants. Perhaps that is part of why the DP doesn't work for us.)

It would drive me crazy, knowing that I had already paid for the meals, trying to get full value for dollars already spent. I wouldn't be able to eat what I wanted, I would be ordering whatever gave me the closest to full value for what I had already spent! LOL! Funny how our minds work differently. I would waddle away from the table uncomfortably full but having managed to get my 'money's worth'. LOL!

Even in the past when the dining plan was a 'good deal', it just didn't work for us. It's why I suggest that everyone should consider how they eat, how much they want to eat and the menu prices against what the dining plan costs. The results can be surprising. (And liberating in our case.)

Exactly our experience... We don't drink alcohol, so it makes it really tough to hit our break even point. Once you do the math, you just realize you prepaid for stress! LOL
This year, it's 78.01 for adults and 30.51 for kids for the standard DDP.
Deluxe DDP is 119.00 and 47.50 for kids.
If you use your Disney Visa you get 10% off at some of the restaurants. https://disneyrewards.com/vacation-perks/walt-disney-world-perks/
We also use our Target Red Card to get 5% off our Disney Gift Cards and pay with those at the non-discounted restaurants.
Every little bit counts on these trips! Ha
Stop by Costco and buy a Landry's restaurant gift card. 20% off if you are planning on eating at Yak and Yeti and other Landry's restaurants. (Landry's accepts any of their restaurant groups gift cards.)
Just a few tips...