I know this is a hot topic but I am looking for advice

[jlm196]

We currently are booked for 4/30-5/08 with DDP
We have 2 adults and 2 children
Restaurants I am considering are
Flying fish - 2 credit
Garden grill
Kona cafe
Raglan road
Via Napoli
Yep pan Edo
Le Cellier or yachtsman 2 credits
Captains grille
Cape may cafe - breakfast

We are over our TS credit allotment by 3 which is better to pay OOP for the cheapest or the most expensive?
My other issue is when I use the DDP spread sheets it seems like we would come out ahead if we pay OOP for all meals? But disney say we will save 30% with the DDP. I am just not seeing it. Can anyone help me better understand ?


Thanks !!

 

[worm761]

No one can answer this for you. You have to look at the menus, determine what your family will most likely order, and then do the math.

Just because Disney says you will save 30% doesn't mean you will. They are saying that if you eat at the most expensive restaurants and order the most expensive entrees and desserts then you have the potential to save that much. The average person does not.

 

[wdw4rfam]

I can personally attest to the fact that you don't always save 30%...or any at all. We priced our last trip based on one (sometimes 2)TS per day, snacks and a CS every day. It was coming out to $500 cheaper to pay OOP!!! When we got there we actually had more than we thought too, so I'd say our savings was more like $600-700 by not using DDP. We brought our own cases of water and drinks because we drove and picked them up before check-in. So we hardly ever bought drinks with our meals. When they figure that 30%savings, they figure that you would buy everything that is included with the DDP if paying OOP. I know we don't all buy a dessert with lunch either when paying OOP. Nor do we buy a drink with CS meals. I personally will never do DDP again because for us its not cheaper, and we like the freedom of eating wherever we want and whatever.

 

[Cafeen]

The "Save up to x%" is pure marketing (and it's dropped down below 30% now, it's around 15% or so). While the marketing amount is possible, it's not entirely realistic for the vast majority of users as there are many different variables in play.

The spreadsheets are a good measure of what you can expect, as they (usually) take your habits and desires into account whereas the marketing information does not.

As such, my basic guidelines to judging if you'll be better off with or without a plan are:

• Are you already desiring to eat as the plan is structured (this includes both the allotments of credits as well as the entitlements within each credit)?
• Are you already planning on limiting or eliminating sharing (with the exception to stretch credits for more meals)?
• Are you already planning on looking at the top half to third of the restaurants price-wise (per credit) and the top half or third of the menus at said restaurant? (Note, 2 credit meals futz with this a little bit, just because the filet at California Grill is $42, doesn't mean it's "worth" more than the NY Strip at Sanaa for $30). Of these meals, are most of them either character meals and/or dinners?
• Are you already planning on limiting your trip to restaurants that accept the dining plans?
• Are you eligible for the Tables in Wonderland card? If so, will it be applicable during your stay?
• How does prepayment affect you and your party? Are you more of a "I can order whatever I want since it's paid for" type of person, or a "I have to order more/more expensive stuff that I want since I've already paid for it" type of person?

There are some other variables to take into account, but that's a rough start on some of them.

The idea, overall, is to find what works best for your trip, whether that's a dining plan, TiW card (if eligible), or just flat out of pocket. (It really shouldn't be nearly as hot a topic as it gets sometimes when people deal in absolutes.)

In short... "Do the Math" is the only real way that you can get a real, objective answer to a very subjective and variable-laden question.

 

[prgal0715]

You *may* see significant savings if you take advantage of ALL the food offered on the DDP. It's an appetizer, entrée and dessert at each meal, plus a non-alcoholic beverage. In other words, it's a REALLY LOT of food! However, if you're planning to skip the appetizer or dessert (or both) you may not see the savings.

I did DDP this past summer and about halfway through the trip, I just couldn't eat anymore, LoL. I started skipping dessert often unless it was something incredibly special.

Overall, DDP is great if you're going to use it for signature dining, dinner shows or character dining which are just naturally more expensive. FWIW, I'd strongly consider Artist Point at WL for one of your signature dining experiences. It's kind of a hidden gem with arguably the best food on property.

 

[worm761]

You *may* see significant savings if you take advantage of ALL the food offered on the DDP. It's an appetizer, entrée and dessert at each meal, plus a non-alcoholic beverage. In other words, it's a REALLY LOT of food! However, if you're planning to skip the appetizer or dessert (or both) you may not see the savings.

I did DDP this past summer and about halfway through the trip, I just couldn't eat anymore, LoL. I started skipping dessert often unless it was something incredibly special.

Overall, DDP is great if you're going to use it for signature dining, dinner shows or character dining which are just naturally more expensive. FWIW, I'd strongly consider Artist Point at WL for one of your signature dining experiences. It's kind of a hidden gem with arguably the best food on property.

The bolded is only true for the deluxe dining plan. The basic dining plan has only the entree, dessert, and non alcoholic drink.

 

[PEC]

Forthe regular Dining Plan, unless you have children 9 or under there is no savings. Actually if anything it is a loss. The flip side of that is with at least one under 9 you save money and with multiple children under 9 you can save a lot of money. My guess is the 30% savings is based on a family of 4 with 2 children 9 or under.

 

[Dayton Flyer]

I was just there, and I didn't find Raglan Road, Teppan Edo, or Via Napoli to be RIDICULOUSLY priced beyond what I would pay for a nice restaurant at home.

Would place Raglan Road at the top of the affordable list, and Via Napoli #2.

 

[figment_jii]

We are over our TS credit allotment by 3 which is better to pay OOP for the cheapest or the most expensive?

As others have said, it's tough to say which venue is "cheapest" and which is the best to pay OOP because it depends on what you order. It's worth remembering that you can mix and match OOP and DDP credits. Meaning, if you go to a TS and want the most expensive items, but someone else wants the cheapest, then pay OOP for the cheap meal and use a credit for the expensive one.

My rough answer is that the Signatures are rarely an efficient use of credits from an economical stand point. I tend to say that a QS credit is about $17.50, a snack credit is about $4, which leaves about $37.50 for the TS credit (with tax). So to make a Signature meal cost efficient, you'll need to have a pre-tax sub-total of about $71 (drink+entree+dessert). Drinks are about $3 and desserts are about $12, so that leaves about $56 for the entree. There aren't a lot of entrees in that price range, so it's something to consider.

 

[sharonabe]

You don't all have to use your credits at the same meal.

For the kids, you definitely want to use their credits at all buffets The cost of their buffet is usually close to or more than their cost for the DDP for the entire day. So choose three of the a la carte places for their OOP. My gut says the non signatures will be the best places for this, but you need to check the menus to see what they might eat to be sure.

For the adults, split it up. If there are one or two a la cartes where you know you'll want a less expensive entrée or you want to try an app, I'd use one person's DDP credit (so you still get a dessert to share) and pay OOP for the cheaper one. As others have said, unless you're getting THE MOST expensive entrée at your signatures, you'll probably want to do OOP at those. An adult TS credit is roughly "worth" $37.50 if that helps you decide.

 

[TDC Nala]

Hardly anyone saves 30% with the dining plan anymore. Especially not with that many 2 credit restaurants on the regular plan. Possibly if you had mostly buffets/all you can eat restaurants - you only have 2 of those - and your kids are under 10.

If you read the literature on the plans, I think they brought the amount down to "up to" 15% and it's been a long time since they used "up to" 30%. Don't forget the "up to." They add those two words for a reason.