Is it unusual to spend $75/person per day? Having 2nd thoughts on DDP.

[TJA]

I was wondering about this. I did run the calculator just to get an idea and it had me just short of breaking even, without the alcohol/specialty drink. I think I’ve decided to stick with the DDP.

Thank-you everyone! I love reading the pros/cons.

Good choice! We tried a few different variations...most mornings we just used snack credits in our food court for breakfast. We were regulars with a side plate of scrambled eggs or a yogurt parfait. Another morning we did a character breakfast, snack credits for lunch, and then a QS dinner. It was fun and super easy-going.

 

[Dean Marino]

I'm 2nd guessing myself on the DDP that I have purchased. I've never done it before, but I believe it's about $75/day per person. We prefer TS meals once a day and are not people who go, go, go in the parks. Part of me is saying that it wouldn't be difficult to spend that much on each of us, but the frugal part of me is struggling.

OK - this one is tough. Right off, how many children are involved?

History: Father of FOUR. All grown up now . So Dear Wife and I go to WDW 2xper year... DVC, AP, and TIW.
When my children were very little? DDP would have been a GODSEND . Took me 20 years to figure out that children, and teens, are "FOOD Black holes" - they devour everything in the Universe within their zone of Gravity . Here? DDP can be a VERY good thing.

Now? Dear Wife and I are 66. Children grown. We would not TOUCH DDP. TIW, or OOP for us. But that's just US - We always have a sit down breakfast, skip lunch, then go to a SIG for Dinner. Two OLDER people, we budget about $220 per day, for two people . So - Price per Person per Day would be about $110.

Each Fall trip? We are graced with a V&A Dinner . Generally about $750-$850, party of two. Yes, it is possible to go full tilt .

Now why did I bring all this up? It's because every family is at a different stage of life, and has different needs. So what to do?

COMPARE prices for your situation. DDP MIGHT be a very good idea. TIW might be a very good idea. OOP might work better. No two families will have the same wants, and needs - and those wants and needs will CHANGE over time .

All personal opinion - I'm not necessarily right, no one else is necessarily wrong.

 

[lilfaeriebrat]

2 years ago husband and I got lucky and got in on the free dining plan. This year because we have since become DVC we would have to pay for the dining plan. I worked up an excel sheet to figure out how much we would pay OOP if we didn't do the dining plan and it didn't make sense for us because my husband is a light eater (usually a meal the size of an App). We'd probably spend $300 to $400 less OOP. Now next year when I go with my GFs for an all girls trip we'll probably do the DDP because 2 of the girls are all about the characters. So it really depends on your group and the way you eat.

 

[cadien]

When we're on vacation, anywhere, it's not unusual to hit $75/person for dinner alone, so I don't expect us to have any issue with the dining plan at Disney prices.

 

[brockash]

I'm 2nd guessing myself on the DDP that I have purchased. I've never done it before, but I believe it's about $75/day per person. We prefer TS meals once a day and are not people who go, go, go in the parks. Part of me is saying that it wouldn't be difficult to spend that much on each of us, but the frugal part of me is struggling.

It really depends on how and what you like to eat. I will say it is VERY easy to NOT spend that much on a person each day, even with doing 1 ts meal a day, but you could. For us the dining plan isnt a good deal as we can easily share most meals; we don't often choose the most expensive table service places, we're generally fine getting water to drink (even without that it'd be easy to stay under), and I'd consider us pretty decent size eaters, especially on vacation....we like our meals, deserts, etc., but even so we've always been able to stay under the 75/day. I'd look at the ts meals you'd want and see if you'd come close with adding a counter service and as many snacks as you think you'd use a day.