Is DDP Quick Service a Good Value?

[disneypoor]

We are traveling with a large group in July. I am letting both of my teenage children take friends. My daughter is taking two friends, and my son is taking one. So in my own immediate family, we will have 7 people. We're also taking some of my siblings and their children as well as my mother. We provided the accommodations for everyone using our DVC.

I have looked in to the cost of purchasing the quick service DDP. I figured we would eat breakfast in our villa and could then use the DP for everything else. Of course, since we're going in late July, I'm sure we'll get more than one snack. My question is, have you found this to be an okay value? Originally, we thought we'd cook in our villas. Now we've all decided we don't want to cook while we are on vacation. However, I will have three extra children to feed while on this trip. My thoughts were that the kids could do their own thing if they choose to, and they'd have their allotted quick service meals and snacks to use without my husband or me having to be there to pay the bill. They are all older (17 and 14), and they've been to WDW many times, so we're pretty comfortable with letting them stay at the parks when dad and I tucker out. I understand everyone's tickets will be fully loaded with the DP tickets for everyone in the group, so I'd have to make it clear to all of the kids before I just turn them loose, but they're all responsible kids.

I'd love to hear from others who have done the quick service plan. I don't want to do more than that because of the cost and because I highly doubt the teens will want to have scheduled sit down meals while at Disney World. Will I be saving money with this dining plan, or would I be better off to just take loads of cash for the kids?

TIA!

Susan

 

[disneynutz]

We have used all of the different DD plans in the past. Looking at the 2012 version, Disney has reduced the offerings and increased the price to a point where it isn't for us any more. Not to say that it may not be for you. You need to look at the 2012 prices and if there is a savings. The best restaurant that was on the QSDP was Wolfgang Pucks, Marketplace. It will be interesting to see if they are on the 2012 plan.

Bill

 

[disneydreamingdebby]

If each of the teens would eat a meal, drink and dessert every time, it probably would save you. We find it is too much food and we end up sharing counter service meals. We don't need dessert for every meal either.

I think you would be better off to load a Disney gift card with money for them to use for food. Then, they can just grab snacks or meals, and you won't be stuck with 5 snacks and 6 qs at the end. Any money not spent on food, can be used for souvenirs.

 

[Dean]

We are traveling with a large group in July. I am letting both of my teenage children take friends. My daughter is taking two friends, and my son is taking one. So in my own immediate family, we will have 7 people. We're also taking some of my siblings and their children as well as my mother. We provided the accommodations for everyone using our DVC.

I have looked in to the cost of purchasing the quick service DDP. I figured we would eat breakfast in our villa and could then use the DP for everything else. Of course, since we're going in late July, I'm sure we'll get more than one snack. My question is, have you found this to be an okay value? Originally, we thought we'd cook in our villas. Now we've all decided we don't want to cook while we are on vacation. However, I will have three extra children to feed while on this trip. My thoughts were that the kids could do their own thing if they choose to, and they'd have their allotted quick service meals and snacks to use without my husband or me having to be there to pay the bill. They are all older (17 and 14), and they've been to WDW many times, so we're pretty comfortable with letting them stay at the parks when dad and I tucker out. I understand everyone's tickets will be fully loaded with the DP tickets for everyone in the group, so I'd have to make it clear to all of the kids before I just turn them loose, but they're all responsible kids.

I'd love to hear from others who have done the quick service plan. I don't want to do more than that because of the cost and because I highly doubt the teens will want to have scheduled sit down meals while at Disney World. Will I be saving money with this dining plan, or would I be better off to just take loads of cash for the kids?

TIA!

Susan

It's possible to get to the 20% discount level, which I feel is necessary to take the chance, using all DP options but it is more difficult with the QS than the other 2 for usual situations where each would be considered. About the only options that will return a reasonable value are where you're heavy on the Pepper Market and WP Exp options and get $4 snack credit options most of the time. There are a few other locations where some meals may give you a reasonable value but not a lot. Even then you might need to figure the drinks mugs into the equation to show a reasonable value. Obviously there are other variables including LOS, kids vs adults, etc.

 

[mrsg00fy]

I think that the QSP is a break even proposition at best. We found it to be a cheap option only the time we used it for a single night in a studio. (because the mug was included for the one day plan. the longer the plan, the less the "value"). Also, you'd have to have an awful lot of $4 snacks to make it a decent value.

I also think that it will be very difficult to keep track of that many people and credits. The above idea of just having disney gift cards might be a better option.

 

[JAG107]

I guess you need to ask yourself if you can see everyone eating $40 worth of QS food daily. When we got the plan for free last year, it was kinda nice, but way too much food. We wouldn't normally each get ourselves a soda and dessert at each meal. I think to reach the "20% discount", you will need to order the most expensive offerings at each location. I like the gift card idea better, then everybody can just get what they want without worrying about it being "on the plan". Have a great trip!

 

[disneypoor]

Thank you for all of the replies. I guess I wasn't even thinking that at each meal, a dessert would be included. If the dessert isn't purchased at that time, can it turn in to another snack for later in the day, or is that not acceptable? It looks like I have some more research to do before I decide. My thought was that my husband and I would provide the QS dining plan for the friends that the kids are bringing along and that anything above and beyond that would be their own financial responsibility. Of course, we'd feed them all breakfast in the morning before we ever left for the parks. Something else I had thought of was that they would likely drink a lot of soda while back at the resort, so I figured the refillable mug would save us some money. I've never purchased any dining plan from Disney though, so that's why I've come to the experts for help.

I saw where one of the previous posters posted something about $40 per day worth of food. Is that what the QS dining plan figures out to be? If so, the cost of the plan for our 4 night stay per person is somewhere around $135, so wouldn't it save us money if the kids did actually eat $40 worth of food if that is possible? Just trying to understand everything. Thanks again for all of the replies and help!

Susan

 

[disneypoor]

We have used all of the different DD plans in the past. Looking at the 2012 version, Disney has reduced the offerings and increased the price to a point where it isn't for us any more. Not to say that it may not be for you. You need to look at the 2012 prices and if there is a savings. The best restaurant that was on the QSDP was Wolfgang Pucks, Marketplace. It will be interesting to see if they are on the 2012 plan.

Bill

Can you lead me in the right direction for finding the pricing for 2012? Thanks so much!

Susan

 

[Chuck S]

No the dessert has to be obtained with the meal. There is no "dessert" credit, there are only meal credits and snack credits.

Quick Service:
$34.99 per adult (age 10 and 0ver) per night of your stay. All guests in the room must be on the same dining plan for the entire length of the stay.

$11.99 per night per child up to age 9

For $40 worth of food, you'd likely need to consistently order the most expensive Counter service entree on the menus at every stop, rather than what you may "want" to eat. And it is likely much more food, even with teens, than you'd normally eat during a trip.

Plus remember if someone gets an upset tummy, or simply doesn't want that much food, the plan would wind up being more than if you'd paid out of pocket.

Remember that the Mouse is not offering a "discount" to be kind, they make up for it with wasted, unused credits. The dining plans are more of a convenience package for pre-payment than any sort of money saver.

 

[erionm]

Can you lead me in the right direction for finding the pricing for 2012? Thanks so much!

Susan

You now need to open each of the dining plan guides on the member website to find pricing.

 

[disneypoor]

Thanks for all of the input! I'm going to check out some of the food pricing, but it sounds like it could possibly break even or even cost me more money in the long run. Does someone know what the cost of a refillable mug at BLT is? Thanks!

Susan

 

[erionm]

Thanks for all of the input! I'm going to check out some of the food pricing, but it sounds like it could possibly break even or even cost me more money in the long run. Does someone know what the cost of a refillable mug at BLT is? Thanks!

Susan

Currently, refillable mugs are about $14 each (plus sales tax).

http://allears.net/din/mugs.htm

 

[supersuperwendy]

I think the mugs are around $13 now..maybe more it's been a while since we bought one.

We did QSDP in 2009 when it first came out and I think then it was a good value for us. Now that the price is higher and one snack has been removed I think the value is long gone. Plus...we got pretty tired of eating the same QS stuff over and over. We tried to mix it up a little with WS places and WPE..but still...after the 5th burger I was burgered out lol

 

[disneypoor]

I went online to look at some of the pricing for food for 2011. If I'm figuring it correctly, it looks like I should save a little bit of money if I do the QS dining plan. For example, at Pecos Bills in MK, I chose one of the cheapest entrees, added a dessert I knew the kids would eat, took that times 2, and divided the cost of the refillable mug per day. I also budgeted 4.00 per day for a snack, which I know might be a little high. If I figured correctly, that would make the cost of the same food if I were paying cash $141.76 plus tax for our four night stay. The dining plan will cost $139.96, so wouldn't that be at least a break even scenario and possibly save me a couple of dollars per person?

When I went back through some of the restaurants and chose one of the more expensive food items that I thought the kids would eat, it came to $154.56 plus tax for our four night stay vs. the $139.96 for the QSDP, so that would save me $14.60 per person. My other thought was that if the kids end up drinking a lot of soda while we are at BLT, that could really add up fast.

I'm not trying to justify the QSDP and go against the advice that's been given to me (okay--maybe I am), but I'm just trying to make sure I do my research and know what I am or am not getting in to. Traveling with other kids has added a huge expense for our trip, so I don't want to go to WDW without a plan, or we'll be walking back home to Kansas!

Thanks once again and keep the input coming! It definitely helps me to look at it from everyone's perspective!

Susan

 

[madthemouse]

Here is a current update on the QSDP from the Allears web site. http://allears.net/din/restnews.htm

Pricing has gone up also, now in 2012 it will cost $39.99. I have used this plan is the past, at the lower cost. And did not find it to be a savings for us. I find that paying out of pocket to be more of a savings for our family. I agree with a PP, that using gift cards is a good way to go. That is, if you're looking at having the food paid for prior to arriving.

Bony Appetite!

 

[Chuck S]

Here is a current update on the QSDP from the Allears web site. http://allears.net/din/restnews.htm

Pricing has gone up also, now in 2012 it will cost $39.99. I have used this plan is the past, at the lower cost. And did not find it to be a savings for us. I find that paying out of pocket to be more of a savings for our family. I agree with a PP, that using gift cards is a good way to go. That is, if you're looking at having the food paid for prior to arriving.

Bony Appetite!

Interesting, as the 2012 brochure on the DVC site says:

Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan Pricing
The price of the Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan is $34.99 per night,
per Guest ages 10+ and $11.99 per night, per Guest ages 3-9.

 

[disneypoor]

Thanks for the update on the pricing! I didn't see that it was going up. That definitely does make a difference. I guess I should look in to the gift cards. My fear is that I'll give each kid a gift card, they will totally blow it in the first two days, and then I'm left buying their food for the last two on top of what I already spent on the gift card. I guess I'll just have to be VERY specific when I hand them out.

Susan

 

[disneypoor]

Inteersting, as the 2012 brochure on the DVC site says:

When I called MS to inquire about adding it for our July trip, they did tell me it was $34.99. Of course, that could have meant that it was that price if I added it that day. The rep didn't say anything about the price going up, but then again, my guide called me last night, and she said that we all know things way before they do!

Susan

 

[DenLo]

I think the real advantage of the QSDP for your villa is that you have so many teenagers that will be on their own and by having the QSDP you know they will be able to feed themselves without worrying about having a credit card or money or charge privileges on their KTTW.

Personally we don't use the DDP anymore as it's cheaper for to pay cash or use the Tables in Wonderland card.

 

[erionm]

When I called MS to inquire about adding it for our July trip, they did tell me it was $34.99. Of course, that could have meant that it was that price if I added it that day. The rep didn't say anything about the price going up, but then again, my guide called me last night, and she said that we all know things way before they do!

Susan

The dining plan price will not change during the year for DVC reservations. There is a seasonal adjustment in pricing for the dining plans for non-point reservations.