Is the dining plan worth it if...

[CheapMom]

you have no interest in table service meals? We generally prefer counter service. We don't want to spend 90minutes + on dinner, plus our 2 year old gets antsy after about 40 minutes in a restaurant so it is not really enjoyable for me. Maybe one character meal during the week would be nice but generally we eat cereal for breakfast and then have 2 counter service meals each day. The kids usually share a meal and I share with the baby- DH gets a meal to himself. We don't spend all that much on food.
I know it depends on a lot of factors but any thoughts on this?

 

[Leigha]

I think it's great to be prepaid for meals IF you were already going to do a LOT of character meals anyway. I wouldn't do it at all if I weren't though. You'd regret both the time and money spent trying to get your money's worth!

 

[HayGan]

In general, we are not much for table service meals ourselves but we are getting the dining plan. We are getting the dining plan and using the table service meals for some buffets (CP, CM) and Whispering Canyon. We will also use a few for Kona and Ohana since we will be staying at the Poly. I really don't see us eating at California Grill or any place like that. I still see it as a really great deal since we can stretch our food budget by paying for the kids meals out of pocket and using the credits for additional meals.

 

[Local_Girl]

cheapmom,

I admit, I'm no expert on the dining plan...but what I've gleaned from it is that it's an awesome deal IF you do table service, and especially if you get pricey menu choices at the higher end restaurants. If you were only to do counter service (except maybe one character meal) all week, and share meals at that, I doubt you would even get your money's worth. Of course, there is the pre-pay factor which many like, but if you'd be losing money on the plan...definitely not worth it in my book. Now, if you revised your eating habits and included more than one character meal, or other family favorites like 'Ohana and Whispering Canyon...maybe. The plan seems to be such a good deal for those who would do table service, but not a good deal otherwise.

 

[ceecee]

It will work if you normally like to do a lot of TS. If you do mostly counter serves you can do it cheaper than the dining plan. We normally don't order appetizers and desserts every day and I'm thinking that will be way too much food.

 

[CheapMom]

Thanks for all of the input - I knew I could get an intelligent answer here with out whipping out my calculator and spending 2 hours on the allearsnet.com menu page!

 

[HaleyB]

We like TS, but not every day. So our plan is to do a split stay with just three days booked as a package w/ dining plan (and 10 day tickets). We will hit our favorite buffet, our favorite TS, and try one of the places in Epcot we have never been to. Alternatly we may use 2 of our TS credits for one of the dinner shows. That should be enough big eating for one trip.

 

[CheapMom]

Haley- that is a good idea- thanks.