It was fun watching DVC Mike, DDE question

[mopee3]

A question came up as I watched DVC Mike tour and eat his way through the resorts and parks.

For those of you that use the DDE/Tables In Wonderland card, tell me about your normal eating habits.

Do you eat breakfast in room and then eat lunch a counter service meal, followed by a signature meal?

Do you not eat breakfast but eat a counter service meal followed by a signature meal?

Do you not eat breakfast but eat a sit-down restaurant lunch, followed by a signature dinner meal?

I noticed Mike and his bride ate dinner at signature restaurants using the DDE card but I don't think I noticed where they ate or didn’t eat breakfast/lunch.

In the last four visits we have always used the Deluxe Disney Dining Plan, eating at sit-down restaurants for breakfast and then a 2-credit meal for dinner at a signature restaurant.

What are you general or normal plans?

Moe

 

[Chuck S]

We normally have breakfast in-room, a Table Service lunch, and if we're in a park, a light TS dinner. If we aren't in a park, we sometimes drive over to POP for a dinner in their food court (they take the DDE/TIW.)

 

[gkrykewy]

We LOVE having the DDE card this year, although probably for most years we won't be able to buy it since we won't typically have APs.

Anyway, we usually have either a big buffet breakfast (Boma) or counter service breakfast (Mara), no lunch/snack lunch/counter service lunch, and a high quality sit-down dinner.

DDE works for the dinners and the Boma breakfasts.

 

[ead79]

My husband and I love the DDE/TIW discount. We typically eat breakfast in the room (or in the car on the way to the park, LOL). Then we usually eat a table service lunch and a table service dinner. Sometimes if we know we're going to have a heavy dinner or eat at a signature restaurant, we will eat a counter service lunch. But overall, we usually eat 2 table service meals per day. The TIW card has saved us a bundle.

 

[DopeyDave]

DDE/TIW usually works wonders for us as I tend to load us up on the sit-down restaurants. A dining plan would probably only cover about 60% of our sit-downs. (Although if we were forced to go on a dining plan, we'd change our eating habits.) We generally just do light breakfast in the villa while getting ready (load up on crumb cakes from the Boardwalk Bakery. Yum!!) Where the DDE really pays off for us is that we will generaly make 3 10-day visits in a 12 month period, so we can maximize the benefit of both the AP and the DDE. Then we vacation elsewhere for the next year / year-and-a-half.

 

[bobbiwoz]

...
. If we aren't in a park, we sometimes drive over to POP for a dinner in their food court (they take the DDE/TIW.)

I find this interesting because I've been tempted to do this since I stayed at Pop in December and I found that they have a few entrees that I enjoy. I see you drive over to Pop...for me it would be an excursion, but since I don't mind busses when they aren't crowded, and I would like to go to FW sometimes for the campfire, I think I'm going to do this sometimes. Taking the bus to FW would be easy enough. I would do this strictly when I'm solo, I think my DH would think I'm nuts!

To the OP, we have TIW card, usually stay in studios. We eat breakfast in the room usually, I do prefer to have my main meal at lunch, and then CS for dinner. For TS lunch we particularly enjoy France and Le Cellier. However, both DH and I enjoy going over to WL and eating at Artist Point, and we also like the Cape May buffet which is also for dinner, so sometimes we do have our main meal at dinner. We very rarely drink alcohol out, so our main savings with the TIW card is that we have DGC and extended family whom we like to go to WDW with, so that card helps us make their meals with us more affordable (for us.)

Bobbi

 

[VacationKicks]

We must be the exception here, we generally eat 1TS a day, but we travel with large groups. There are 5 in my family and theis year we traveled with either 7 more people for one 7 day trip and 6 for another 7 day trip. Since the card is good for up to 10 people saving 20% at 2 TS meals and the card is already paid for. We also use it as SSR walk up and CS at AK. We've definately saved money with it this year and haven't changed how we eat at all.

 

[rotary2808]

We normally grab a quick breakfast in room, except for when we do Chef Mickey's or something like that. Then our TS meals are split up between lunch and dinner. Somedays have both. We do a lot of TS meals, so TiW has been a really good deal for us too.

 

[starbox]

TIW:

Light breakfast - coffee, bagel w/cream cheese or granola bar. Typically, coffee goes in our refillable mug

Lunch - around noon - 1/2 the time CS, 1/2 the time TS - some TS (Prime Time, Beaches and Cream, Mama Melrose, Plaza) are just as cheap with TIW as CS would be. We usually drink water to stay healthy and hydrated going into the afternoon and don't get dessert at lunch (gotta save room for ice cream later!)

Afternoon - back at the resort - all the soda we want via. refillable mugs.

Dinner - Signature dining. Wine for me, entrees, shared dessert.

Eating like this with TIW - our family of four "Disney Adults" (DS12 and DD10) typically ate breakfast for around 10$, lunch around 40-50$ and signature dinner around 100-120$ - a little less than 200$ a day including tips.

The regular DDP would be 160$ a day plus tip - so it's about the same amount of $$ - but we get signature dining for dinner and two TS a day 1/2 the time.

 

[allshookup]

We typically eat a light breakfast in the villa, followed by a light lunch (i.e hotdog, share a pizza, or sometimes we'll share a CS meal depending on how big it is), followed by a TS meal for dinner. Or we'll switch the TS for lunch & have a light dinner. We usually pick one signature dining for the week & DH & I always have wine or an adult beverage with our meal so the savings is huge with the TIW card.

 

[mopee3]

Thanks to all who replied. I saved my receipts from our trip in February and compared them to the DDE and I am not seeing the saving you all talk about. We like to sit down for breakfast at TS, cause we don't go to WDW to cook and wash dishes. Buttttttttt and it's a big one, there are only so many 1 credit TS meals we are missing out on. Plus there are only so many 2 credit places and by the end of a 7 to 10 day visit we are getting tired, is this possible, of eating at Cal Grill, Artist Point, Flying Fish, Jiko, Narcossee, Citricos, Yachtsman, you get the idea. So I am torn and this Nov. We will do DDDP for 7 days and DDE for 7 and compare the results.

I really really wish Disney would come out with a 2 credit TS meal plan with snacks and mug. Then we could eat CS or Epcot/Paris and then 2 credit TS for dinner or skip breakfast and eat 1 credit TS for lunch, did someone say ribs at AK, and 1 credit TS for dinner, i.e. Coral Reef, LaCeller, Grand Floridian, etc.

Oh I forgot to add, we eat breakfast at 7:30-8am and dinner is usually at 5:30 pm to let all that lovely food settle by bedtime.


Thanks again for your input.

Moe

 

[allshookup]

Thanks to all who replied. I saved my receipts from our trip in February and compared them to the DDE and I am not seeing the saving you all talk about. We like to sit down for breakfast at TS, cause we don't go to WDW to cook and wash dishes. Buttttttttt and it's a big one, there are only so many 1 credit TS meals we are missing out on. Plus there are only so many 2 credit places and by the end of a 7 to 10 day visit we are getting tired, is this possible, of eating at Cal Grill, Artist Point, Flying Fish, Jiko, Narcossee, Citricos, Yachtsman, you get the idea. So I am torn and this Nov. We will do DDDP for 7 days and DDE for 7 and compare the results.

I really really wish Disney would come out with a 2 credit TS meal plan with snacks and mug. Then we could eat CS or Epcot/Paris and then 2 credit TS for dinner or skip breakfast and eat 1 credit TS for lunch, did someone say ribs at AK, and 1 credit TS for dinner, i.e. Coral Reef, LaCeller, Grand Floridian, etc.

Oh I forgot to add, we eat breakfast at 7:30-8am and dinner is usually at 5:30 pm to let all that lovely food settle by bedtime.


Thanks again for your input.

Moe

I think if you compare your receipts to what you would've paid, you WILL see a savings, but if you compare the DDP to what you would normally order in a week, you might not see the same savings. I've done all the math for myself, & I just about break even with the DDP compared to paying OOP, but I save a lot more with the TIW card.

I don't ever cook on vacation either, because that is just a chore for me at home, but we don't eat big breakfasts either. We typically just have a bagel or donut for breakfast, we bring our own water bottles to the parks, & we may share a dessert once in a while, but certainly don't order dessert for all of us every night & we NEVER have dessert with a CS meal, simply because they don't look all that appealing to me. When I was on the DDP, I would order dessert, make sure I bought a snack everyday, etc. because I was paying for it with the DDP, but I found myself trying to make the most of the DDP, instead of just eating because I was hungry.

If you like a big breakfast, a snack & a TS meal every night with dessert at every meal, then the DDP may very well be for you, but like I said, you really need to look at some menus & compare what you typically eat to the DDP & TIW card before you can decide whether it is a savings or not.

 

[WilsonFlyer]

I guess we're really weird. We don't plan anything really except sit down meals and only because you have to now. Otherwise, we'd still wing that too.

Having said that, I don't think we let the TIW card effect what or when we eat at all. If we happen to book or eat at a place that observes it, we use it. If we don't, we don't.

Probably not the most effective use of the card but since we go 2-3 times per year and eat 3-4 TS meals each time, I figure we wash out at worst and save a little at best.

Disney counts on folks like us. I'll spend <$100 on anything that tells me it will save me money on something for a year at Disney. Disney makes a LOT of money on TIW because of people like me. It's not like they're losing money at 20% off to begin with.