I must be missing something--what's so great about the dining plan?

[grimley1968]

I don't see where you have to pay rack rates to get the dining plan. I've seen lots of posts of people who got discounts on their rooms and still got the dining plan, AAA or not.

Now, if you're talking about the FREE dining plan they offered last fall, then you had to pay rack rates to get that. But I did it during value season and got the free dining plan. Bottom line, I saved a ton of money and ate like a pig for a week.

But if you're paying for the dining plan, I can't imagine it matters to Disney if you're able to find some kind of room discount.

 

[patsal]

Just like any of the other amenities at WDW vlaue is in the eye of the prurchaser and his/her habits. For us, all considered adults by Disney standards, the DP works perfectly as we tend to only eat one CS and one TS per day. Obviously just one sit down makes the plan worth it to us. We used the plan with a discounted package in December. You may not combine it with an AP discounted room--but then you wouldn't want it as it is tied to a package that includeds tickets. Just like some people don't see the point of a deluxe and others dont' see the point of a vlaue resort, it is just another option that may or may not work well for you. Figure out your habits and then decide.

 

[maggs]

For us it is ideal. My youngest kids are 13 and 16, are absolute foodies and love eating a wide range of foods.I worked out that we were easily spending the full amount and more that the dining plan costs. Even though we dont eat desserts we have worked out that we can go for a light starter and main course and then a dessert or balance it in some other way.With the counter service meal, the dessert can be fruit for example at Earl of Sandwich. I see no problem with it as our snacks will be fruit as well. We dont have to eat excessively.

Maggs

 

[Fargoman2]

for all the interesting opinions. I really appreciate it!

As for where I got my information on RACK RATES, the following is a direct quote from the FAQ on the Dining Plan posted on the Restaurants Board:

"Can I still get my AP or other discounts?
As of today, you must pay rack rate for the room, unless you book your entire package with AAA. "

So, I guess the rather modest AAA rate break is the only exception to the rule. Otherwise I guess someone should clarify/update the FAQ response to this question.

 

[rgf207]

There must be something appealing about it--otherwise so many people wouldn't purchase that option.

Paying RACK RATES for your room instantly totally negates the value for me. It surely appears to me that paying RACK RATES at ANY hotel EATS UP all of the Dining savings and then some.

So, the moral of the story is: if you have access to any discounts at WDW hotels, go that route and forget the rack rate/dining combo. Correct?

We are a family of 4 adults going for a week in June. By paing rack rates for our room and purchasing the dining plan we are saving approx. 800.00 dollars rather than going with my AAA Discount and purchasing food.

When I calculated the cost and used my AAA discount I did not factor in Appetizers or Desserts into our meals. So we are saving over 800.00 and getting a better choice of food to eat

That's what makes the dining plan so great for us.

 

[erikthewise]

That was similar to our situation last March, and we still saved money. I don't think blanket statements are appropriate. For us, we do an average of more than one TS a day and not that many CS. However, the cost of the DP equalled the cost of our five most expensive TS meals (we were there for five nights), so basically the few CS meals we had and the few snacks we used were "free." The TS meals we paid out of pocket are irrelevant. What is relevant is that if we weren't on the plan we would have eaten at practically the same places and ate the same things, but we would have spent a couple of hundred extra bucks.

That's the biggest misconception about the plan.. that if you like to do more TS's than one a day, that it wouldn't be worth it because you have to pay for some meals out of pocket. However, if the cost of the plan saves you money on what you would have eaten anyway, then it is worth it.

Absolutely. I wasn't trying to make a blanket statement. Wasted credits don't really matter if you save money. (But try telling that to some people who have reported their adventures burning 27 snack credits on departure day. At least they had fun!)

But for us, we got all 16 meals (13 TS, 3 CS) for the price of the Dining Package, eating where and what we wanted to, including 2 signature restaurants. I don't think we're unique and wanted people to be aware that there are plenty of circumstances where the DP doesn't make sense UNLESS you modify your plans and eating habits to fit the plan.

But a party of all adults having appetizer, entree and dessert at each TS meal would be crazy not to use the dining package! Then it would pay off in spades.

 

[DebIreland]

We are a family of 4 adults going for a week in June. By paing rack rates for our room and purchasing the dining plan we are saving approx. 800.00 dollars rather than going with my AAA Discount and purchasing food.

When I calculated the cost and used my AAA discount I did not factor in Appetizers or Desserts into our meals. So we are saving over 800.00 and getting a better choice of food to eat

That's what makes the dining plan so great for us.

You can still avail of your AAA discount *and* get the Dining Plan - you just need to book an AAA package (as opposed to room only). From what I've read here on the boards, you can book the AAA package by calling an AAA office. Good luck - if there's money to be saved go for it!

 

[NMW]

DVC members can buy the plan when staying at a DVC resort on their points starting in April. I think that's a great deal and the perfect incentive to get more people to buy DVC!

 

[pedro2112]

But a party of all adults having appetizer, entree and dessert at each TS meal would be crazy not to use the dining package! Then it would pay off in spades.

Actually, we were a party of two adults and two children and didn't have an appetizer and dessert with each meal. We still saved money. Basically, if you are going to eat at least one TS meal a day (even if you eat more than one a day) then the dining plan will save you money, under most circumstances. The groups that usually don't need the plan are those that either don't eat at least one TS a day, or those that have AP's and can get great discounts. One would be hard pressed to crunch the math for a group that does at least one TS a day and determine it wouldn't save them money.

 

[kerry34]

We booked a package with AAA with the dining plan. My quote with AAA was 800 less than with disney (we rented two rooms). So I did get a discount on the room. The dining plan for myself, dh, and five kids came to about 1360 for the whole trip. I kept track of the costs of all the meals and snacks. The total was over 700 dollars in savings. The dining plan was priceless for me because with such a large family all of the TS bills are very large and I know I would have been more hesitant to let the family order exactly what they wanted if I had to pay for the bill at the time of the meal. It was really nice not worrying about it. It was also a real treat for all of us because we never get appetizers or desserts when we are out because it is normally just too much money. I would do it again in a minute especially by booking through AAA. It made a difference for us.

 

[wilderness01]

We always eat at a table service once a day (if we are doing a character breakfast then it is twice/day.) We always order appetizers and at least a few desserts so for us it is worth a try. I will do a trip report when I get back as far as the dining goes.

 

[clombardi]

Paying RACK RATES for your room instantly totally negates the value for me. It surely appears to me that paying RACK RATES at ANY hotel EATS UP all of the Dining savings and then some.

We booked the dining plan package through AAA and did not pay rack rate for our room in June 2005. I am going on a solo trip in April and have booked the dining plan through AAA again without paying rack rate.

 

[clombardi]

We booked a package with AAA with the dining plan. My quote with AAA was 800 less than with disney (we rented two rooms). So I did get a discount on the room. The dining plan for myself, dh, and five kids came to about 1360 for the whole trip. I kept track of the costs of all the meals and snacks. The total was over 700 dollars in savings. The dining plan was priceless for me because with such a large family all of the TS bills are very large and I know I would have been more hesitant to let the family order exactly what they wanted if I had to pay for the bill at the time of the meal. It was really nice not worrying about it. It was also a real treat for all of us because we never get appetizers or desserts when we are out because it is normally just too much money. I would do it again in a minute especially by booking through AAA. It made a difference for us.

We had the same experience in June. If think we saved about $600 and were able to treat the visiting gradparents to several counter service lunches using extra TS credits that we had accumulated from DD11 and me sharing some TSs.

 

[HLAuburn]

For what its worth...we booked a package with dining directly with Disney and we DID NOT pay rack rate on the room. Actually we got a decent discount on a standard room and we were upgraded to a courtyard, so I think we got a great deal.

As for the dining plan, I think you're paying for more than food, you're paying for the convenience and freedom to eat when and what you want. We would have never gone to so many nice (expensive) places to eat if we were paying for each individually. We would have picked a few and left a few out, but with the plan, I felt like we could eat where ever we wanted without cost being an issue. That's how I like my vacations to be.