How does the Disneyland Dining Plan work?

[3goofyboys]

We're considering a road trip to DL in August. We're still up in the air about whether to book through Disney and use the dining plan. We used the dining plan on our last WDW trip and loved the ease of basically prepaying for our food. I'm wondering what the differences are between the DL and WDW plans and whether or not the DL plan is a good deal.

 

[sonnyjane]

How does the Disneyland dining plan work? In short, it doesn't

In all seriousness though, the DL plan is not like the WDW dining plan at all and most here don't recommend it. When you purchase the DL dining plan, all you are doing is prepaying for dollar amount vouchers, and there is no discount (in other words, $100 of vouchers will cost you $100). The real negative is that you do not get change back, so if you have, say, a $15 voucher but buy a $12 meal, you lose $3. To make the vouchers work, you have to spend more than the amount, say, $16 on a $15 voucher, but then you have to pay $1 out of pocket, thus making it kind of pointless to prepay in the first place.

If you really want to prepay for food, put it on a Disney gift card.

 

[Feathers]

I'm sure everyone else will tell you the same thing, and that is that the Disneyland Dining Plan is not worth it. Not only are there less restaurants, but the plan also works nothing like the one at WDW. At DLR, you are essentially putting money on a card and that is the money you use for food. If you are left with a few dollars, you don't get it back.

I see it as more of a way to ensure that food money is kept separate from park money. Nothing to gain from it.

 

[3goofyboys]

Perfect! Thanks for the info, sounds like one less thing to worry about!

 

[MenchieMan87]

I didn't think Disneyland HAD a dining plan! Thats so weird that it works that way, why would anyone use it?

 

[Sharron379]

If you are driving in the best dining plan for DL is to buy snacks, breakfast items, water, and even lunch stuff! The dining plan in DL is pointless. No savings! I wish they made it more beneficial!

 

[bumbershoot]

There are some people who like it, mainly because it's prepaid and a done deal. I personally would rather buy some giftcards and prepay in that way. The ones that like the DLR plan are generally happy to figure out how to max out the money so they are at least even with what they've paid.

 

[TeddiBarra]

I've done the Disney Dining plan. And it wasn't about "maxing" out a value or anything like that. I did it because I had a Disney Visa and wanted the 6 month of free financing. So, in that respect, adding it to the package, helped with paying for almost ALL expenses for the trip ahead of time. It was all about paying and planning the budget ahead of time.

That said, that is literally the only upside to it. The paper vouchers were STRESSFUL. Once, they got wet, and I am way to good at losing things and was constantly making sure they weren't misplaced, etc. They aren't tracked. I'd also agree a Disney gift card is another way to do it that offers more peace of mind, IMO. I'd do the "dining plan" again, if they did it in DOLLAR amounts that could be "pre loaded" onto your room key (something they did do on a test only basis a couple years ago), even if I didn't "save money". I don't like the complexity of the WDW options, but the ability to have your trip paid for does work for some.

 

[bonna girl]

I think the prepaid card is the way to go - am thinking about going on my first trip to DL next year - have been to WDW numerous times and love the dining plan there. Love the ease of not worrying about paying for meals.

Sounds like the prepaid card for DL is wonderful!

 

[Ivette1980]

What a great idea. So gift cards work for dining? Thats awesome. An easier way to budget. I will definetly get one just to prepay my shopping as well.

In your opinion, and all opinions are welcomed, how much may be spent on dining for a fam of six for approx 3 days???

 

[sonnyjane]

What a great idea. So gift cards work for dining? Thats awesome. An easier way to budget. I will definetly get one just to prepay my shopping as well.

In your opinion, and all opinions are welcomed, how much may be spent on dining for a fam of six for approx 3 days???

Have you looked at the menus from the park eateries? http://allears.net/dlr/din/menu/menus.htm

They have the prices on them, so you can make an accurate budget for your family. It really depends how much you guys eat and how many meals you plan to eat at the parks. You *can* do things on the cheap. You *can* also blow an entire paycheck. Check out those menus to get a general idea.

 

[Ivette1980]

What a great idea. So gift cards work for dining? Thats awesome. An easier way to budget. I will definetly get one just to prepay my shopping as well.

In your opinion, and all opinions are welcomed, how much may be spent on dining for a fam of six for approx 3 days???

 

[CandMmommy]

What a great idea. So gift cards work for dining? Thats awesome. An easier way to budget. I will definetly get one just to prepay my shopping as well.

In your opinion, and all opinions are welcomed, how much may be spent on dining for a fam of six for approx 3 days???

My friend as a family of 3 and does 100 per day.
We are going in March and I've budgeted 120 per day for my dh, myself and 2 daughters 2.5 and 5.5

 

[disneymom0104]

We received a pin code last July to get the dining plan for free (we went in Oct.). We had to pay full price for the room at Paradise Pier, but it was still a great deal for our family and we had a lot of fun with it. We tried hard to make sure we got the full value in most cases, and often paid $1-$2 out of pocket instead of "losing" $2. I thought the paper voucher system for each family member was kind of a pain- we had 4 people using them and that was a lot of stuff to keep track of! But- if it was ever offered free again we would likely take advantage. We are planning a trip this fall and will not be buying the plan. Since there is no savings at all, I think we can do it cheaper. I am happy we were able to try so many character meals and restaurants because we will not be able to do as many by paying out of pocket. We will do a couple, though.