Raisincain
Earning My Ears
- Joined
- May 4, 2011
- Messages
- 38
Hello everyone,
Just back from WDW a few days ago; a wonderful 11-day hiatus from the real world!
I haven't written much on this board, but I have read here quite a good amount and believe in giving back, so I hope you can use my experience to your benefit.
We have a family of 4, 2 adults and 2 kids and been to WDW for the last 3 Junes. Each prior trip we have purchased the DDP.
We decided to do things differently this year; I went to my bank (Chase) and opened a new checking account, declining checks and instead opting for two of the currently-available Mickey Visa debit cards. After figuring that the DDP would cost us $2035.00 this year, I put $2500.00 in this account and we resolved to use it only for food items; no souvenirs, etc.
We ate differently this year, meaning we ate whatever we wanted rather than being restricted to entree\drink\dessert. Sometimes we had desserts (which were included on the DDP) and sometimes we had appetizers (which would have cost extra on the DDP). We did not curb our appetites to save money; we ordered what we wanted. We also ate where we wanted, and most of the money was spent at upscale eateries (Le Cellier, Brown Derby, etc).
Since our food at Disney was the only thing on this card, it was easy for us to see a detailed total of how and when we had spent our money.
In the end, we ended up spending $2,030.00 on food, $5.00 cheaper than the DDP.
I was amazed at how close the two totals were.
There were great benefits to our family using this method, which we will use again in the future. One, we were able to include restaurants that weren't on the DDP. On the DDP if you want to eat elsewhere (ie Downtown Disney) there are a few places that don't take the plan. For example we had Brownie Sundays at Ghiardellis; this would not have been included on the DDP, but was in our budget. Another time we ate at Mythos in Universal Studios (as well as several snack purchases at US) which would not have been covered on DDP. Second, as mentioned above, it gave us the ability to branch out and eat exactly what we wanted instead of just entree\drink\dessert. Trying some of the appetizers was a real treat that I wouldn't have done on the DDP, since we already had dessert coming and appetizers would have cost extra and probably just would have been too much food.
Let me be clear, I am NOT anti-DDP; if DDP works for you and yours then please continue to use it. It has a great appeal and represents great value to those who love it. But if you are undecided as to whether or not to take this plan, I hope my experience can serve as one more piece of information that may be beneficial to you. Whether you choose the DDP or not, you are in for some great dining experiences!
Just back from WDW a few days ago; a wonderful 11-day hiatus from the real world!
I haven't written much on this board, but I have read here quite a good amount and believe in giving back, so I hope you can use my experience to your benefit.
We have a family of 4, 2 adults and 2 kids and been to WDW for the last 3 Junes. Each prior trip we have purchased the DDP.
We decided to do things differently this year; I went to my bank (Chase) and opened a new checking account, declining checks and instead opting for two of the currently-available Mickey Visa debit cards. After figuring that the DDP would cost us $2035.00 this year, I put $2500.00 in this account and we resolved to use it only for food items; no souvenirs, etc.
We ate differently this year, meaning we ate whatever we wanted rather than being restricted to entree\drink\dessert. Sometimes we had desserts (which were included on the DDP) and sometimes we had appetizers (which would have cost extra on the DDP). We did not curb our appetites to save money; we ordered what we wanted. We also ate where we wanted, and most of the money was spent at upscale eateries (Le Cellier, Brown Derby, etc).
Since our food at Disney was the only thing on this card, it was easy for us to see a detailed total of how and when we had spent our money.
In the end, we ended up spending $2,030.00 on food, $5.00 cheaper than the DDP.
I was amazed at how close the two totals were. There were great benefits to our family using this method, which we will use again in the future. One, we were able to include restaurants that weren't on the DDP. On the DDP if you want to eat elsewhere (ie Downtown Disney) there are a few places that don't take the plan. For example we had Brownie Sundays at Ghiardellis; this would not have been included on the DDP, but was in our budget. Another time we ate at Mythos in Universal Studios (as well as several snack purchases at US) which would not have been covered on DDP. Second, as mentioned above, it gave us the ability to branch out and eat exactly what we wanted instead of just entree\drink\dessert. Trying some of the appetizers was a real treat that I wouldn't have done on the DDP, since we already had dessert coming and appetizers would have cost extra and probably just would have been too much food.
Let me be clear, I am NOT anti-DDP; if DDP works for you and yours then please continue to use it. It has a great appeal and represents great value to those who love it. But if you are undecided as to whether or not to take this plan, I hope my experience can serve as one more piece of information that may be beneficial to you. Whether you choose the DDP or not, you are in for some great dining experiences!
I've used it 9 times now and only paid for it the first time back in Jan. 2005, when if first started. It was really a no brainer then (even paying for it) since it inc. appetizers and tip. It was easy to convince my DM to get it. 
. We did the DDP when our son was still not old enough to pay and our daughter was considered a "child". Once our daughter was considered "adult", but still ate like what she is, a "child" and our son also had to pay (even though he can't eat their food because he is a special needs child) it really was not worth the money. This sounds great and we will try it out. Thanks for your input.
