Maximizing Dining Plan Credits

[mrsltg]

Call me crazy, but the way to "maximize" the DDP is by enjoying your vacation and not trying to beat Disney. If you obsess over how to get to the $40 breaking point you're going to spend your vacation worried about what you need to eat next as opposed to what you want to do then. I spend my snack credits on bottles of water sometimes. Sometimes I spend my table service on a character breakfast. Other times I forego the dessert because I am full. The point is, enjoy yourself. While I agree you don't want to pay for nothing, you also don't want to spend your entire vacation focused on the dining plan. It's supposed to make things easier, not harder.

Have a great trip!

 

[mom2aredhead]

Call me crazy, but the way to "maximize" the DDP is by enjoying your vacation and not trying to beat Disney. If you obsess over how to get to the $40 breaking point you're going to spend your vacation worried about what you need to eat next as opposed to what you want to do then. I spend my snack credits on bottles of water sometimes. Sometimes I spend my table service on a character breakfast. Other times I forego the dessert because I am full. The point is, enjoy yourself. While I agree you don't want to pay for nothing, you also don't want to spend your entire vacation focused on the dining plan. It's supposed to make things easier, not harder.

Have a great trip!

We are a family of 3 which includes a picky 3 year old. The purpose of our trip to Disney is not to eat as much as we can for the price of DDP, it's to enjoy a theme park vacation as a family. We have a few character things scheduled, and we may end up spending a few dollars more than DDP would have cost by the time we are done, BUT it's worth it to me to have the freedom to cancel a reservation if I need without stressing over replacing it because it's paid for, or worrying about what's included, what's extra, what my son is allowed, etc etc.
Seriously, planning my day around going to a specific restaurant for the sole purpose of sharing the biggest thing they offer just so that we have more credits for the next day is ENTIRELY too much work for me...
We go, we eat, we enjoy our trip.

 

[Mousermom]

Just wanted to add my two cents:

We went to WDW on March 2-9th of this year. We chose not to participate in the DDP.

We stayed at the POFQ and purchased the mugs. (These mugs are a HUGE money-saver--I recommend buying them. I know that they are $11.99, but after 3 refills, they pay for themselves.)

We ate mostly CS on this trip. We had 2 TS meals. (O'Hana dinner and Chef Mickey's Breakfast Buffet).

I did not know about the DIS boards until after we came back. After all the great things I've seen on these boards about the DDP, we will definitely be signing up for it on our trip next year.

My DH and DS have very good appetites and are adventerous eaters as well.

We were sorry that we didn't do more TS meals, but we were on a very tight budget in March and I was more focused on shopping than eating!!!

When I saw how much people were eating and I found out how much it costs, we were SHOCKED!!!

Also, there will NOT be sharing with my guys!! I know that for sure!!!

 

[Tink10]

Call me crazy, but the way to "maximize" the DDP is by enjoying your vacation and not trying to beat Disney. If you obsess over how to get to the $40 breaking point you're going to spend your vacation worried about what you need to eat next as opposed to what you want to do then. I spend my snack credits on bottles of water sometimes. Sometimes I spend my table service on a character breakfast. Other times I forego the dessert because I am full. The point is, enjoy yourself. While I agree you don't want to pay for nothing, you also don't want to spend your entire vacation focused on the dining plan. It's supposed to make things easier, not harder.

Have a great trip!

Mrsltg, your post is so incredibly refreshing to read!! Thanks so much for posting!

 

[Tink10]

We are a family of 3 which includes a picky 3 year old. The purpose of our trip to Disney is not to eat as much as we can for the price of DDP, it's to enjoy a theme park vacation as a family. We have a few character things scheduled, and we may end up spending a few dollars more than DDP would have cost by the time we are done, BUT it's worth it to me to have the freedom to cancel a reservation if I need without stressing over replacing it because it's paid for, or worrying about what's included, what's extra, what my son is allowed, etc etc.
Seriously, planning my day around going to a specific restaurant for the sole purpose of sharing the biggest thing they offer just so that we have more credits for the next day is ENTIRELY too much work for me...
We go, we eat, we enjoy our trip.

Another Great Post!!!

 

[Sammy]

Mrsltg, your post is so incredibly refreshing to read!! Thanks so much for posting!

Oh thank goodness!! I was beginning to think I was the only one in this frame of mind. This trip is the very first one using DDP and we did it mainly because we have two teens to feed, and are traveling with my older parents who will enjoy the extra rest time a TS restaurant will afford us. I chose my ADRs based on the restaurants we've always wanted to try. Some will maximize the DDP value (Kona and Cali Grill for dinner), and some won't (ESPN for lunch on last day). But it will be so much easier to "pay" for meals with credits than to worry about who-owes-what at the end of every meal. And.....my teens are so excited to be able to order ANYTHING off the menu (especially DS-15 who could eat a side of beef at one meal ), THAT alone is worth it!!

 

[mom2aredhead]

Another Great Post!!!

Thanks!

And.....my teens are so excited to be able to order ANYTHING off the menu (especially DS-15 who could eat a side of beef at one meal ), THAT alone is worth it!!

When my picky 3 year old is a 15 year old eating machine I may have a different opinion about DDP.

I just can't believe how many people make it a "sport" to eat as much as is humanly possible to get their money's worth. It's even worse when the want to maximize all of the credits they got on FREE DDP. Just seems like a silly way to spend a vacation to me...

 

[The Sweetness]

Maximize Your $40
3) Table Service:
. . . should be worth $27-$35
. . . do not use for breakfasts or (most) lunches
. . . do not use for character meals of dinner shows
. . . do not use for dinners under $27/adult

First off, isnt it $38 or $39 inc. tax etc? (since we are nickel and diming the DDP credits to death

Secondly, with tax and 18% tip inc, dont the dinner buffets fit the $27 + profile?


I also have a question of my own in the subject of maximizing credits, sort of. I can see myself getting a little greedy at Cosmic Rays. I can't actually have the ch/ rib platter, with cake for dessert AND an iced capuccino, can I? If I didnt share THAT, id make myself sick
But I imagine I can get a little help w that capuccino and cake, AT LEAST and maybe even a bit of help from the 2y old on that massive platter

 

[Princess Stitch]

First off, isnt it $38 or $39 inc. tax etc? (since we are nickel and diming the DDP credits to death

Secondly, with tax and 18% tip inc, dont the dinner buffets fit the $27 + profile?


I also have a question of my own in the subject of maximizing credits, sort of. I can see myself getting a little greedy at Cosmic Rays. I can't actually have the ch/ rib platter, with cake for dessert AND an iced capuccino, can I? If I didnt share THAT, id make myself sick
But I imagine I can get a little help w that capuccino and cake, AT LEAST and maybe even a bit of help from the 2y old on that massive platter

You can definately share your CS meals. No one is going to comment on you only getting one meal or sharing it. TS are a different story.

 

[Kdog]

My DH and I used the DDP for the first time this past December. We did not know much about how to maximize it, but we enjoyed ourselves immensely. We ate at four different TS restaurants at World Showcase, and tried different resort restaurants. We ended up running out of TS meals and paying out of pocket for a few character breakfasts. We saved our receipts for the fun of it, and when we came back, we were shocked to discover how much food money we saved on the plan (even with our lack of trying to maximize it and our OOP meals.) Our previous trip without the plan cost us more money and we ate at less places. For us, the DDP saves us money in any way that we choose to enjoy it.

 

[Dizneydaz]

As far as sharing TS on DDP goes, my family has used DDP 3 times now and we have shared several meals, each time. We don't do this to maximize our DDP but because we don't normally eat appie, entree, and dessert, with our dinners. And I just can't bring myself to let food go to waste. The times when we haven't shared our meals, we have always brought our desserts back to the room. I hate to feel too full!

Also, when we (mostly I) decide where to make our ADRs at, it is solely based on what kind of dining experience we want. As is it, one of (if not the) favorite restaurant for us, is Kona Cafe. It just so happens that Kona is one of the higher priced, single TS, restaurants we've eaten at. On most of our trips (since Jan. 05) we have eaten at Kona twice during our trip-we just like it so much! Also, we don't usually do character meals for breakfast-not because it's not a good value (and I think it actually is) but because we don't want to spend the time. (The 3 hr. difference between FL and CA makes getting up extra early really hard-especially for DD7) If we are going to a park that day, we don't want to spend the time a sit down breakfast requires. We would rather grab a quick meal (in our room, or food court) and get going. Last trip, the exception to this was our last day, we had PF for breakfast. I made sure we had enough TS left to do it and it was a wonderful end to our trip. It was my DD's 7th birthday, and we were flying out at 2 p.m. We had plenty of time to relax since we didn't do a park that day.

 

[bicker]

It's funny. When Disney offers them a lot, some folks say "we don't normally [eat all that]...", but then when Disney offers a reasonable amount, some folks complain that "this is vacation [so they should give us more]..." It seems that folks want to "have their cake and eat it too" (literally!!!!). I think that helps explains the real source of concerns about what Disney offers: societal schizophrenia!

 

[The Sweetness]

Why complain about large portions? Just eat what you feel comfortable with. Or, in the case of a family (maybe 2 adults, and 2 kiddos) it may suit you best to order 2 meals, and share. At CS, you can supliment your DDP credits w sides such as soup, onion rings, cole slaw, extra drinks etc...
Ofcourse, throwing away unfinished food never made me feel guilty. The same goes for politely declining something I am *entitled* to. Such as the dessert with a kids CS. If I dont think we'll like it, I will just tell them no thanks to the gel dessert No harm done, IMO

 

[Chrisypoo]

First off, isnt it $38 or $39 inc. tax etc? (since we are nickel and diming the DDP credits to death

Secondly, with tax and 18% tip inc, dont the dinner buffets fit the $27 + profile?

I think I paid $38.99/day not including tax, so it probably did round up to $40.

Yes, you can 'break even' or better with the dinner buffets, espcially if it's a character. $27.99 for Chef Mickey's, plus tax and tip is...around $35. Granted if you went somewhere like Le Cellier and got the $10.99 appetizer, $27.99 filet, $5.99 desert, $2.59 drink...that would end up costing approximately $60.

Not as much bang for your buck, but I just like the fact that I've already paid for everything BEFORE I get to WDW and I don't have to worry about what I can fit into my budget. As long as I haven't paid more for the plan than the food would have cost out of pocket at the end of my vacation, I'm a happy camper!

 

[Colleen27]

Call me crazy, but the way to "maximize" the DDP is by enjoying your vacation and not trying to beat Disney. If you obsess over how to get to the $40 breaking point you're going to spend your vacation worried about what you need to eat next as opposed to what you want to do then. I spend my snack credits on bottles of water sometimes. Sometimes I spend my table service on a character breakfast. Other times I forego the dessert because I am full. The point is, enjoy yourself. While I agree you don't want to pay for nothing, you also don't want to spend your entire vacation focused on the dining plan. It's supposed to make things easier, not harder.

I don't think you have to try to maximize the plan to get your money's worth anyway. At least we don't. Just the way we eat - lots of seafood & steaks and ethnic foods, and dinner as the largest, longest meal of the day - is enough to assure that the DDP is a great deal for us, and the rest is just bonus.

I am glad to see the expanded snack choices, however, because that does add value to the plan for us. Last trip, shakes and iced specialty coffees were our biggest OOP dining expense (excluding alcohol), and we had so manysnack credits left at the end of the trip that we went home with a backpack full of Mickey ear rice crispy treats. Obviously the changes work in our favor.

 

[KKB]

Thanks!



When my picky 3 year old is a 15 year old eating machine I may have a different opinion about DDP.

I just can't believe how many people make it a "sport" to eat as much as is humanly possible to get their money's worth. It's even worse when the want to maximize all of the credits they got on FREE DDP. Just seems like a silly way to spend a vacation to me...

Getting the "most for your money" doesn't have anything to do with eating as much as humanly possible! (well, not for most of us!)

Getting the most for your money means finding higher priced restaurants that you might not normally be willing to pay that much for....being able to order WHATEVER you want from the menu....sharing whenever possible, so that you can try as many DIFFERENT places as possible.

We were NOT going to do DDP. I am sure we could feed our family of 5 for less than $140 a day...BUT NOT MUCH LESS, after looking at Disney menus/prices, even breakfasting in room, eating kids meals/splitting CS meals...I realized the little bit saved was NOT worth CS all week & nit picking everyone to try to split or choose the cheapest item! We will be there a week...we need the variety of TS AND the time to sit and relax together, or I know we will get caught in the go--go--go factor. And to be able to tell my kids to order WHATEVER...including appetizers & dessert!! GET OUT! My mom is going, and she & I could split appetizer/entree/dessert at every meal, so I thought she might not think it financially smart...actually, she was the one that clinched the deal!

I am glad people have researched...I am eating WHERE I want, but the info here has helped me to GET the most from my credits! (NOT EAT the most from my credits!)

PS Have you ever fed a teen...eating as much as is humanely possible IS there goal! And funny, DS7 EATS like a teen, too...and SO skinny! UNFAIR!

 

[mom2aredhead]

Enjoy your trip - I'm glad it works out for you!
I wish my son was an eating machine! I have to buy him the pants with the adjustable waist (like little maternity pants) just so they won't be around his ankles!

I did not intend to make a blanket statement about EVERYONE on DDP, but when you read some peoples reviews and trip reports, a lot of them have to do with the enormous amount of food they ate (not that was available, that THEY ATE), or the "most expensive" thing they were able to eat on DDP. There's even a whole thread on where to find lobster.

We live in NYC, so maybe my opinion of what is a "high priced" restaurant will be different than someone from another part of the country?

When planning our trip, I looked that the menus for places we would eat regardless of whether we were on DDP or not.
I added in the things I would have to pay OOP for either way - Rainforest Cafe, a few breakfast items, a few adult c/s items for my son (3.5 years old and VERY picky, so some of the kids choices didn't work for us)
I added in the additional $50 it would cost for tickets directly thru WDW as part of a package vs undercover tourist w/the mousesavers discount
I factored in the inability to cancel a reservation (because essentially we already paid for it as part of the DDP) and just grab c/s somewhere if we didn't want to leave the park or stop whatever we were doing
I factored in the fact that we generally don't have 2 appetizers, 2 entrees and 2 desserts plus a full kids spread at every meal. Regardless if we ate it or not, it was still "included" (read: paid for) as part of the DDP.
We'd save a little money, but not a substantial enough amount to make it worth it. (Trust me, I have a spreadsheet )

I feel like I need to start a "DDP won't work for me" Support Group. I don't get why so many people try to talk me into it. If it won't work for us, then it won't work for us...Yes, it's a good deal for some, and if my son was a 15 year old eating machine, probably yes. If my husband and i were going alone and wanted to linger over quiet dinners, probably yes. If we were a larger family so what we "lost" on 1 person we "made up for" on another, probably yes. At this point in our lives, on this trip, with our family the way it is, it's just not a good option for us.

 

[KKB]

Enjoy your trip - I'm glad it works out for you!
I wish my son was an eating machine! I have to buy him the pants with the adjustable waist (like little maternity pants) just so they won't be around his ankles!

I did not intend to make a blanket statement about EVERYONE on DDP, but when you read some peoples reviews and trip reports, a lot of them have to do with the enormous amount of food they ate (not that was available, that THEY ATE), or the "most expensive" thing they were able to eat on DDP. There's even a whole thread on where to find lobster.

We live in NYC, so maybe my opinion of what is a "high priced" restaurant will be different than someone from another part of the country?

When planning our trip, I looked that the menus for places we would eat regardless of whether we were on DDP or not.
I added in the things I would have to pay OOP for either way - Rainforest Cafe, a few breakfast items, a few adult c/s items for my son (3.5 years old and VERY picky, so some of the kids choices didn't work for us)
I added in the additional $50 it would cost for tickets directly thru WDW as part of a package vs undercover tourist w/the mousesavers discount
I factored in the inability to cancel a reservation (because essentially we already paid for it as part of the DDP) and just grab c/s somewhere if we didn't want to leave the park or stop whatever we were doing
I factored in the fact that we generally don't have 2 appetizers, 2 entrees and 2 desserts plus a full kids spread at every meal. Regardless if we ate it or not, it was still "included" (read: paid for) as part of the DDP.
We'd save a little money, but not a substantial enough amount to make it worth it. (Trust me, I have a spreadsheet )

I feel like I need to start a "DDP won't work for me" Support Group. I don't get why so many people try to talk me into it. If it won't work for us, then it won't work for us...Yes, it's a good deal for some, and if my son was a 15 year old eating machine, probably yes. If my husband and i were going alone and wanted to linger over quiet dinners, probably yes. If we were a larger family so what we "lost" on 1 person we "made up for" on another, probably yes. At this point in our lives, on this trip, with our family the way it is, it's just not a good option for us.

As stated above, I KNOW I can feed my family cheaper. I, like you, considered all the factors, and was quite surprised with my decision! The clincher for me was the close cost factor (watching our pennies wasn't THAT much cheaper than DDP and the open ended choice factor), and I am a person who loves a "deal". The most for my money (which, by the way, is RARELY a buffet!) Meaning, I get the best VALUE for my $. Really the way I run life...not to live as cheaply as possible, but to get exactly what I want (or darn close...) for as inexpensively as possible. The thrill of the chase...

Obviously the cost factor is VERY close...or frankly WDW would not want to do it! And neither would so many people.

Your reasonings make perfect sense to me...if it were DH & myself plus a toddler, I can say without a doubt we would NOT do DDP.

 

[beccalines]

We went to the zoo this week and chose to eat there. I spent 10 minutes trying to decide what we can share so that it didn't cost as much money. I told my husband I can't wait for Disney. A whole week of not having to share my food with the kids and they can even get a whole meal to themselves! I can't wait!

 

[2Monkeys]

We went to the zoo this week and chose to eat there. I spent 10 minutes trying to decide what we can share so that it didn't cost as much money. I told my husband I can't wait for Disney. A whole week of not having to share my food with the kids and they can even get a whole meal to themselves! I can't wait!

I'm with you on this one - that is exactly why I wanted the dining plan! I often choose my meal based on price and not on what I really want. The 'value' of it was not really my consideration (though we budgeted $100/day last time we went, and DDP is costing us the same); I love the fact that it is all paid for before we go and 'maximizing' for me is that I don't have to worry about cost once we get there. We plan to order what we want, enjoy our food, and when the credits are gone, they're gone! I am not planning to pay OOP until we have to.