Is MYW with dining cheaper than room only?

[Mainebound]

Hi all,

What I mean is ... is it cheaper to buy all the parts separately (tix, room only, and pay for food as you go) than to get a MYW package with dining?

I know I can save a few $$ getting the park tix from wholesalers, but I am mostly curious about the dining add on. Is it going to cost us more than if we didn't gt it?

Hope this question isn't hopelessly out of date. We haven't been onsite since 2005 and things change so fast around here!

Should I be asking on the restaurants board?

thank you!

 

[jupers]

From what I can tell the dining saves a ton of $$. Each adult eats for $40 a day. You can spend twice that on a TS meal. I had an awesome rate at the dolphin but after I priced how much we would spend on food it was no savings and I switched to WL. I guess you could do it w/out dining if you at counter meals all the time and didn't get to go to the nicer restaurants, but if I'm on vacation I don't want to pinch pennies.

 

[MariaEllerºoº]

I would suggest going to www.allearsnet.com to check out the different menu's and prices for meals. Think about how you normally eat while on vacation and get a rough estimate on how much money you would spend OOP. Personally, I truly don't think you can beat the dining plan unless you eat breakfast in your room and only eat counter service meals for lunch and dinner. We normally only eat two meals a day while on vacation, but we do like to have a nice relaxing sit down meal on occassion. The dining plan is definitely worth it for us!

 

[kaytieeldr]

I would suggest going to … to check out the different menu's and prices for meals.

While I would suggest staying right here http://www.wdwinfo.com/wdwinfo/dining/diningmain.cfm#disneydining on the DIS and doing the same thing

 

[fla4fun]

It really depends on a couple of factors.

One - what is your eating style? Do you like the quick convenience of counter service? Do you like table service for every meal? Do you order appetizer, entree, and dessert, or do you prefer to eat light?

Second - do you qualify for any room only discounts? AAA? AP? Florida Resident? Disney Visa? Did you get a PIN code email/postcard?

IF you qualify for a good discount, and IF you tend to eat lighter, then you will probably come out ahead booking separately. I always book separately, because I tend to go during value season most of the time, and can qualify for AAA, AP, and resident discounts. I also usually spend between $25-30 per day on food, which is less than paying for the plan. So for me it doesn't work.

But if you don't qualify for room discounts, and you tend to eat at more expensive restaurants (or larger meals) then it can be cheaper to book the package than the buy separately. You have to do the figures both ways and see which works best for you.

 

[silverarrowknits]

I only book a room, because I can get AP and FL resident discounts, plus I have a Disney Dining Experience Card, which gives me 20% off most TS restaurants.

The DDP is great if you don't come to Disney that often (and therefore AP and DDE aren't a good deal for you) AND you eat a lot or want to try out a lot of food.

 

[MissionMouse]

To really determine what is the best trip composition to put together requires you to do research and analysis. Yep, yuck...but the time is well spent if you really want the answer for your family. It is not precise but provides a "ball park" estimate. There is no way anyone can just say yes or no. You should simulate a trip and the meals you might want to plan on doing (using menu information). Add up the cost and then compare to the MYW. Don't forget you have a 5 and 7 yo which will impact the worth factor. We have a 4 and 6yo and we do not find MYW to meet our needs, dining preferences, style [wasted meal tickets (CS & Snack)], and impacts spilt stays.

 

[GoingtoWDWagain]

I currently have a reservation for WL woods view AAA rate, can I add MYW w/ dining plan? Our AP's will expire before we arrive so I was thinking of MYW w/ dining as an option for us. We eat one counter service and one table meal, and one snack per person per day. We don't order anything but the meals and sometimes desert while at table meals except when it's a buffet style. Just trying to do the math and see if it's worth it for us.

Thanks in advance

 

[SharBear4]

Don't forget that the DDP includes gratuity too!!

 

[fla4fun]

I currently have a reservation for WL woods view AAA rate, can I add MYW w/ dining plan? Our AP's will expire before we arrive so I was thinking of MYW w/ dining as an option for us. We eat one counter service and one table meal, and one snack per person per day. We don't order anything but the meals and sometimes desert while at table meals except when it's a buffet style. Just trying to do the math and see if it's worth it for us.

Thanks in advance

You can purchase MYW packages through AAA, which allows you to get an AAA discount on the room portion of the package. Usually, if you have a room only reservation, it has to be cancelled and the package booked instead, so I would definitely have them check into the availability for the package first so you don't lose the room type you have booked. It sounds like you eat in a style that would fit well with the dining plan, so I would definitely check into it.

 

[GoingtoWDWagain]

You can purchase MYW packages through AAA, which allows you to get an AAA discount on the room portion of the package. Usually, if you have a room only reservation, it has to be cancelled and the package booked instead, so I would definitely have them check into the availability for the package first so you don't lose the room type you have booked. It sounds like you eat in a style that would fit well with the dining plan, so I would definitely check into it.

Thanks a bunch, I'll be calling to inquire and maybe switch.

 

[Mainebound]

We have a 4 and 6yo and we do not find MYW to meet our needs, dining preferences, style [wasted meal tickets (CS & Snack)], and impacts spilt stays.

I am kind of worried about that. My friend and hr family met us in Orlando in March. They were staying at CBR with MYW + dining and we chatted by cell a few times before she came out to our pool home.

She would always be asking me how they could use this or that meal./snack etc. up before they left! they never did end up using it all.

In 2005 I bought an AP just for the room discount and DDP. Maybe that's what I'll do again. We need two rooms, so the AP discount is huge for us.

Thanks for all the replies!