Is the dining plan worth it?

[poohbear luvs grumpy]

We found that because of the kids it really was worth it. On some days 1 snack and 1 meal was more than we paid for 1 day of the plan for the kids. I loved that we went wherever we wanted. Before the dining plan my husband would travel from counter service to counter service looking for the best price. By the time he stopped looking we were usually starving.

 

[MissBritt]

we have done all 3 plans and always come out way ahead but we do plan carefully and stick to our plans.

 

[scribega]

Every year when we plan our(2A,2C) trip I sit down and do the math. What would we eat and pay if we did it out of pocket - so a little less sit down meals and a less desserts. Would we save money by not doing the dining plan? Yes, but the difference is usually $100 or so. So we figure for that extra $100 we can eat like kings for a week, plus the pre-pay option is nice. Of course, when you get the dining plan for "free" it is a no-brainer!!

 

[allonte]

We found that because of the kids it really was worth it. On some days 1 snack and 1 meal was more than we paid for 1 day of the plan for the kids. I loved that we went wherever we wanted. Before the dining plan my husband would travel from counter service to counter service looking for the best price. By the time he stopped looking we were usually starving.

*sigh* I do the same thing. Hence, we get the dining plan, lmao!

 

[sweetdana]

For adults 35$ for 2 meals is a good deal, you get a brownie, a pop and everything at each meal. PLUS an ice cream, or key lime pie later.(snacks)

17$ per meal is a little high for some but it is about 9$ for any sandwich adding a pop and salad it is rarely less than 14-15$ then tax moves it towards 16$. The kids meals you get a steal on as it is 11$ a day and that is WAY less than the cost of 1 of their meals, let alone if they also get the snacks, and a mug. If you add in ribs from blizzard beach, or 1/2 chicken from sunshine, your meal would be 35$ for what you get. 1 meal has paid for your day.

I like it cause it is prepay. I think going without it we would share more meals, and really look at the menu for prices before ordering, but for 35$ incl tax per day to me it is worth it. I eat better, more, what every I want cause it is pre paid. I splurge, and my DD6 gets a giant popscicle when ever she wants. If you had 1 kid per adult it is 46$ for the 2 of you all day, 2 meals and 2 snacks. That is a deal. Add a 3rd kid in with 2 adults better deal. Plus you get the mugs (I would buy anyway).
I buy a dining plan every trip.

 

[lisam427]

For adults 35$ for 2 meals is a good deal, you get a brownie, a pop and everything at each meal. PLUS an ice cream, or key lime pie later.(snacks)

17$ per meal is a little high for some but it is about 9$ for any sandwich adding a pop and salad it is rarely less than 14-15$ then tax moves it towards 16$. The kids meals you get a steal on as it is 11$ a day and that is WAY less than the cost of 1 of their meals, let alone if they also get the snacks, and a mug. If you add in ribs from blizzard beach, or 1/2 chicken from sunshine, your meal would be 35$ for what you get. 1 meal has paid for your day.

I like it cause it is prepay. I think going without it we would share more meals, and really look at the menu for prices before ordering, but for 35$ incl tax per day to me it is worth it. I eat better, more, what every I want cause it is pre paid. I splurge, and my DD6 gets a giant popscicle when ever she wants. If you had 1 kid per adult it is 46$ for the 2 of you all day, 2 meals and 2 snacks. That is a deal. Add a 3rd kid in with 2 adults better deal. Plus you get the mugs (I would buy anyway).
I buy a dining plan every trip.

i agree! we always have gone with the dining plan. i usually have the regular dining plan. after looking at the bill at some sitdown meals at disney we have been to and seeing that it would have cost me about $50 bucks a person if i paid out of pocket, i can tell you that for my family the dining plan is well worth it!

 

[tlh0726]

It all depends on how you eat while on vacation.

for our family, we are more snackers than eaters.
And having to be at a certain place at a certain time doesn't work for us.

We eat in the room or bring along to eat while waiting for rope drop simple breakfast items.
We also pack a bunch of snacks in pencil boxes and also a small lunch size cooler with things that need to be kept cold. We will snack while moving from area to area or even while waiting for characters or rides.
We share meals and mickey ice cream bars.
On average it seems that we do one real meal a day and about every 3 days we kinda look at each other and say food and will hit a buffet place off site.

 

[rgarcia21]

Can you bring in outside snacks into the parks? Also has anyone had groceries delivered to their room?

 

[MissAndrea]

Can you bring in outside snacks into the parks? Also has anyone had groceries delivered to their room?

Yes, you can bring snacks in!

 

[growinupdisney]

I have been trying to make the quick service dining plan work for us but I can't its cheaper for us OOP. We bring water into the parks because we are not soda drinkers. My dd16 and I share meals (in the past when we didn't something was always thrown away) I have been to WDW alot so I know what I want at each park to eat already and look over the menus ahead of time and kind of plan what we would want and still come out cheaper OOP and we even do atleast 1 chararcter meal. Bringing in our own drinks alone saves us $240 for a week. If free dining was offered than I would jump on that in a heart beat but otherwise it just doesn't save us any $$ at all.

 

[BuzzPrincessMom]

Last year we did the QSDP with 2 adults and 2 children(8yo)

It was worth it for the refillable mug alone! We went in June so we filled up the mug at night when we got back to room, then I went down when the kiddos went to bed and filled them up for the AM. Then when we came back in the PM for our little "break" we filled them up again.

Yes the kiddos had some meal credits left - but at $12ish a day we came out ahead.

We had done the table service option once before - and I will not do that again - we learned a table service every day is too much for our family.

 

[jeankeri]

We did the DP a few years back when tips were included and the menu was not as strict. That being said, my boys did not enjoy it. Treats they wanted to eat were not included in the plan, and those that were they had little interest in. I ended up buying them the snacks they wanted and using the snack credits to bring candy home (which we really did not need). My boys are happier sticking to a food budget where they are able to choose themselves.