Memories of Little Green Men and Sardines (6/8-17, 2010) **FINAL UPDATE 2-25-2011**

[photographymom517]

We started walking around the countries. It was actually very nice because we had been around crowds of people all day. Whenever we walked up the stairs at the Canada pavilion, no one was at the top! We were able to sit down for awhile & just enjoy the views! It was so peaceful & relaxing.

I used it as an opportunity to reapply our son’s sunblock & took lots of pictures of Canada! (I actually must have started a trend or something because once other people saw me applying our son’s sunblock, they all got into their bags & did the same! It was private up there so there weren’t a million people watching you put on sunblock! Lol

Love this picture!

It seemed that during both of our Epcot days, we were always at the right spot at the right time! After going through the Canada giftshop, we got to see Off Kilter. It was the first time I’ve ever seen them & I really enjoyed it. I stood & watched for awhile while my DH took our son in his stroller.

 

[photographymom517]

Look at the views & how blue the sky and water are!!! Beautiful!

Construction at Mexico pavilion.

We continued to the UK and saw Alice in Wonderland. Her line was super long & I wasn’t waiting in it, so we just continued walking.

Our son had actually fallen asleep in his stroller, so we walked over to France and sat on a bench.

The performers were starting a show, so I moved closer to take some pictures.

 

[photographymom517]

As I was watching, I saw Marie the Cat! I’ve never seen her before, so I ran like a little kid to get in line! I was one of the very first people in line.

I noticed a bunch of little girls who had just gotten their picture taken with Marie run past me. I looked & saw Sleeping Beauty!!! She is one of my favorite princesses, so of course I ran to get into her line. (btw, the princesses all made me feel like I needed to lose about 40 pounds when I got back home!)

There were two girls in their 20’s in front of me who were asking the CM how many older people have their picture taken with the characters. I told them how my son was afraid of all of them, so I was having my picture taken with them instead. I also told them all of the character locations I knew of at Epcot. (Of course it was mostly info I had previously gotten from DIS!!!)

After I had my picture taken, I went back to where my DH and DS were. I saw our son running around beside his stroller & he was asking for a drink. We talked about it & decided to visit a few other countries & then call it quits for the day. Morocco is my absolute favorite & Mexico is my husband’s favorite. So, we decided to stop by each of those countries & then visit the Child Care Center before deciding whether to go back to the resort or stay at Epcot. We got 3 slushies (nonalcoholic) at the Morocco kiosk. I paid $11.97 OOP for them. I got 2 raspberry (for DH & DS) and 1 pineapple coconut (for me). I really liked mine, but it would have tasted alot better with alcohol in it. I just didn’t feel like drinking alcohol when it felt like it was over 100 degrees outside! We found a bench by the water & sat to drink our slushies and then walked through Morocco. I got a lot of really good pictures in Morocco & my husband even took a few of me in Morocco since he knows its my favorite!

I’m glad I got this picture on our way into Morocco because on our way out, a million people were sitting around the fountain!

 

[photographymom517]

We then walked towards Japan and we saw this! I’ve never seen any characters at Epcot or any of the performers! It was a nice treat to see so many of both!

We walked through the gift shops there because we had never been inside them before. Again, I have no idea why! We just always seem to miss a lot of things! We briefly walked by America, Italy, and Germany. We saw Snow White & her line wasn’t very long. I regret it now, but I told my husband I didn’t need to stop. I just was exhausted & so sweaty that I didn’t feel like waiting in line.

 

[photographymom517]

When we started walking across the bridge, we got to see this!

It was really neat to see the globe moving across the water. I also couldn’t believe how quickly they moved it & was surprised at how early it was. I think it was around 4:30pm & they were already getting it into position for the 9pm fireworks show.

(I didn’t realize it at the time, but after getting back I realized those girls with the bright lime green backpacks are cheerleaders from competition week. I saw a few of them at MK a few days before. Not trying to offend anyone, but I am soooo glad we didn‘t go the week before when they had all the competitions...the crowds were bad enough while we were there without adding a gazillion high school kids! I know how crowded it is during the high school parades & different events because I was on Drillteam in high school & we were in the Epcot parade!)

We had planned to go to Mexico and then leave for the day but when walking past China, we saw the acrobats & decided to stop & watch. Unfortunately I didn’t have a good enough view to take many pictures but they are so much fun to watch!

We walked quickly through the other countries.

Mexico construction photos

At this point, we were so tired & it was so hot outside, we just wanted to sit & get a drink. We walked back towards Future Showcase and stopped by the Electric Umbrella.

I waited in line for about 10 minutes (it was packed in there!) but the wait wasn’t bad since it was A/C in there! The CM who waited on me was Crystal B and she was super nice! I noticed that she spoke to every guest in her line. She asked how they were enjoying their day, how their vacation was going, and told everyone “have a nice day.” I thought it was nice to see someone going above & beyond their job…especially on a day when the temps were over 100 and mostly all the guests were cranky!

I ordered 2 sweet teas & paid OOP for them (total was $5.49). We sat & talked and decided to leave to go back to the resort. We left the park at 5:49pm. (I just noticed my bill & the time we left the park were exactly the same!)

 

[photographymom517]

After we arrived back to CBR, we just stayed in the room & watched tv. I gave our son a bath & let him run around the room & eat some taffy (I bought it at Mousegears earlier, I forgot to mention that!) We had to put it in the refrigerator so it wouldn’t melt anymore than it already had! (I'm weird & only eat the banana flavored taffy!)

While my husband watched tv & our son ran around the room, I decided to look through my pictures on my digital camera. I already knew the settings were messed up since I couldn‘t “review“ my pictures on my camera like I normally do.

So I got out the camera’s handbook (which I luckily remembered to pack in my carry-on bag) and I after a few seconds, I realized how to review the pictures again. It was just one button that had been pushed accidentally.

So, I was happy that I could finally look through the pictures I had taken so far. I was sitting there reviewing them & looking at the picture properties.

Well, just then, something went wrong…very wrong!!!

I looked at the bottom of the camera when I was reviewing them

…and I saw “S”

….grrrrr

…the size settings had been wrong as well

…ON OUR ENTIRE TRIP SO FAR!!!

(Of course this includes our travel day, photo session at the Beach Club, Magic Kingdom, our first time at Hollywood Studios, and our favorite park Epcot!!!)

That means they were in VERY small format. They were only 640x480 which is basically large enough to email or post on websites, but NOT large enough to even print a 4x6 photograph!

When I had taken pictures the few days prior (especially at Epcot) I had thought to take different shots that I was planning to blow up VERY large…at least 10x20 or I was going to print them out on regular paper to use as 12x12 scrapbook backgrounds!

Whenever the camera was set to Automatic, it was taking pictures in the larger format. But whenever I was taking them on night, sports, manual, or any other setting, they were in VERY small format…I was so upset!

The only thing that kept me from breaking down & having a complete meltdown was the fact that I knew we had changed our plans (oops, I forgot to mention that also!) We had talked the night before & decided to add 2 days of tickets and to spend 2 days at each park (except for Animal Kingdom). BUT we already had soooo many memories (to remember thru pictures!) and I wanted those as well! It was sooo frustrating, but there was nothing I could do about it. Instead of completely freaking out, I just sat & changed the settings for ALL modes on the camera!

We decided to go swimming around 6:30pm. My husband didn’t want to go so I took our son. We went to the main pool & had a lot of fun.

We probably would’ve stayed there for a few hours. I was thinking we could stay at OPR swimming until around 9pm, then sit at the table & watch Illuminations (what you can see of it anyway) from the bridge.

Well, we had a little accident so we weren’t able to stay longer (he needed a diaper change and started to throw up all over himself & on me). I’m thinking it was probably from running around the room & eating the taffy right before swimming.

We were only there for about an hour & then went back to the room. I had to carry him the whole way back to the room and let me tell you, he is a heavy little 2 year old! I gave him another bath, got him changed, and we decided to go down to OPR to eat dinner.

We ate at 8:41pm and used 2 meals from our dining plan (our total would’ve been $32.31). I got the baked ziti (with 1 breadstick) from the Pizza & Pasta Shop and grapefruit juice. My husband got the Roasted Turkey w/2 sides (rice and mashed potatoes w/a roll) from the Bridgetown Broiler. We got our son the chicken nugget pail with French fries from the Hamburger Shop (its really cute & comes in a bucket with a shovel, our son loved that!) We also got a sugar cookie & chocolate pudding since we got 2 desserts with our meals. I think my husband ate the pudding and our son ate the cookie later that evening.

We went to the arcade briefly to use the voucher we received from Disney Destinations (trust me, it goes quick!) and then walked back to our room!

***COMING UP NEXT -- MY VERY FIRST TRIP TO DOWNTOWN DISNEY!!!***

 

[claryche]

That bucket meal looks really cute. We will be staying at CBR for our first time in November, so I will have to remember that for my DS.

I was wondering though from reading your trip report. How did you go about doing the dining plan with your DS since he is only 2. I thought they had to be 3 to be on the dining plan? Just wondering.

That totally sucks about your pictures. I totally feel for you, because I relive my memories through our pictures. I'm a huge picture person, so totally understand.

 

[ChildAtHeart82]

I'm so sorry about your pictures! I know that there were a lot of memories that couldn't be replaced, but I hope you got some great photos for the rest of your trip!

 

[SoonerGirl]

The pictures you took of Epcot are gorgeous! I hope those are some that were okay for printing, I would have been so upset, I totally understand how you felt.

My kids blew through that free arcade voucher in no time too! It did what Disney intends for it to do - got our boys hooked on playing games. We reloaded those cards more times than I care to remember last trip

 

[photographymom517]

That bucket meal looks really cute. We will be staying at CBR for our first time in November, so I will have to remember that for my DS.

I was wondering though from reading your trip report. How did you go about doing the dining plan with your DS since he is only 2. I thought they had to be 3 to be on the dining plan? Just wondering.

That totally sucks about your pictures. I totally feel for you, because I relive my memories through our pictures. I'm a huge picture person, so totally understand.

Our son really liked the bucket meal! It comes with a little shovel, too, I'm not sure if you could see it in the picture. He's only 2 and really liked getting a little present with his meal!

Something totally obvious that I didn't explain! Where's my mind!?! VERY good question...what did we do since we got the dining plan & our son was only 2 years old. I should have explained that & I'm not sure why I forgot.

You are correct. Children must be 3 years old or older to buy the dining plan (or to get it free if you're going during the "free dining" promotion).

We just basically shared our meals with our son or paid OOP for his meals. 8 times out of 10, the children's meal costs less than the adults meal. After looking over all of our receipts, we actually only paid out-of-pocket for 2 of his meals and a couple drinks or snacks. This was mainly because I don't always eat a meal.

For instance, I do not eat breakfast. I know, I'm setting a terrible example for my son, but I just can't eat a big meal first thing in the morning. So, I would either get one breakfast for me & my son to share and another for my husband...or I would buy 2 breakfasts (one for DH and one for DS) and I would use a snack credit for a croissant or piece of fruit.

I also forgot to mention this but I had ordered cereal when I ordered diapers/wipes/snacks/bottled water from Garden Grocer. So, we had small boxes of cereal in our room. We went down to the OPR gift shop & purchased a gallon of milk & put it in the fridge in our room (all CBR rooms have a small fridge!) Many mornings, while I was getting ready for the day, my husband & son would eat a bowl of cereal. I also ordered granola bars for myself to eat some mornings.

So, basically since we were on the QSDP, my husband and I each got 2 QS meals and 2 snacks per night (they go by nights you are there, not days, make sure you remember that when totalling the number of meals/snacks you will get!) We had a total of 36 meals and 36 snacks. The first night, we arrived at CBR towards evening so we only used 1 meal. Our final day, we only ate breakfast at the resort. We also paid OOP for our meals at Hollywood & Vine and Coral Reef. It actually worked out perfectly in the end. I was all paranoid that we would have to spend like $200 out of pocket for meals PLUS our 2 table service meals...but it worked out that we only used about $25 on extra drinks & 2 meals for our son.

I apologize, that was alot of rambling, I hope it all makes sense. Basically I guess I'm just saying that between the 3 of us, we shared 2 dining plans. We usually ate breakfast in our room and paid OOP for a few so we ended up having just enough meals & snacks for the 3 of us!

I'll actually look through my Disney journal & receipts and make up a spreadsheet & post it on here so you can see what we did each day. Sorry about that, it totally slipped my mind to explain that!

 

[photographymom517]

I'm so sorry about your pictures! I know that there were a lot of memories that couldn't be replaced, but I hope you got some great photos for the rest of your trip!

Thanks, I was soooo upset when I found out! There was just nothing I could do about it, so there was no point in getting all worked up over it!

I had a total of 4,722 pictures when I got back...PLUS the 556 that I had on my Photopass CD! No worries!!!

 

[photographymom517]

The pictures you took of Epcot are gorgeous! I hope those are some that were okay for printing, I would have been so upset, I totally understand how you felt.

My kids blew through that free arcade voucher in no time too! It did what Disney intends for it to do - got our boys hooked on playing games. We reloaded those cards more times than I care to remember last trip

Thanks Michelle! I think out of all the parks, I love taking photos at Epcot the best!!! Its just so beautiful there & I love seeing the different countries! I actually had some pictures developed yesterday at Walgreens but I haven't had the chance to look them over yet. I'm really hoping they turned out!

You are right about the arcade card...Disney wants the kids to get hooked on those games & ask (or beg!) their parents to load more $$ onto them! And they know the parents will because its vacation!

It was hilarious because my husband told me that since our son was so young & "doesn't know about arcades yet" that we would NOT be reloading the card...well, guess what? I came home with 3 cards! Yepperz, daddy gave in to his little guy & reloaded each of the cards multiple times just so he could try to play the crane machine games! (Its actually my fault, I got him addicted to crane machines at Walmart on grocery shopping day!)

 

[stephielela]

I love your update! And I am so thankful that you got the shutterfly thing figured out! I just posted a few looooong overdue pics thanks to your handy instructions!

 

[photographymom517]

I love your update! And I am so thankful that you got the shutterfly thing figured out! I just posted a few looooong overdue pics thanks to your handy instructions!

All caught up on both of your PTR's now!!!

I'm sooo thankful that I was able to find out about Shutterfly! Its making my life & so many other people's so much easier! LOL So glad my instructions worked! (thanks to Nikki!)

 

[photographymom517]

Quick-Service Dining Plan Information

I'm posting this for anyone interested in seeing whether or not the QSDP makes sense for their family. Right now with the Free Dining promotion going on, I can't understand why anyone wouldn't want to try it (but thats of course only my opinion!) I think its an amazing deal, but you have to weigh the room discount vs. the free dining and see what makes more sense for you!

We had a total of 36 QS meals and 36 snacks to share between the 3 of us since our son was under 3 years old. In order to buy a dining plan (or to get one free with the promotion) the child/children must be at least 3 yrs old. In my own opinion, I think the QSDP worked out well for us. I was worried at first that I would be stressed & wondering if we had enough meals. The first few days I did worry because it seemed like we'd end up paying alot OOP for additional meals towards the end of our trip, but actually, we used our very last meal on our last day! So it worked out very well in the end!

As I've said previously, I was very happy with the dining plan and if I didn't understand something, I simply asked a CM. I was lucky to have very nice & informative CM's help me!

I'm going to write a break-down of all the meals we purchased by day. Then at the end, I will write a total of what the DP cost us vs. what we actually spent. I'm also going to write what we paid OOP but I won't included that in my price total at the end (since its not a part of the DP).

Day 1
We ate 1 meal at the airport for a total of $19.46 (paid OOP)
We used 2 meals at OPR $30.08
We got 2 refillable mugs (free w/our package) $26.98
We used 2 snacks $3.98

Day 2
We used 3 meals for breakfast $36.22
We used 2 meals for lunch $28.94
We used 3 snacks $9.73
I purchased a Dole whip & paid OOP $3.08

Day 3
Paid OOP for Hollywood & Vine $53.23 + $10 tip
Paid OOP for lollipops $6.34
Paid OOP for nuggets/apple juice $5.32
Used 2 meals for lunch $29.12
Paid OOP 3 sweet teas $7.00
Used 3 snacks $6.00

Day 4
Used 2 snacks $7.18
Used 3 meals $29.14
Paid OOP (Coral Reef) $65.00 + $12 tip
Paid OOP (slushies in Morocco) $11.97
Used 2 snacks $5.49
Used 3 meals $32.31

Day 5
Used 2 meals $27.75
Used 2 snacks $6.59
Paid OOP (Ghirardelli) $21.25
Used 2 meals $21.34
Used 2 snacks $5.59
Used 1 meal $12.96

Day 6
Used 5 snacks for breakfast (drinks & danish) $19.80
Used 3 meals $44.53
Used 2 meals $30.08
Used 2 snacks $6.69

Day 7
Used 2 snacks $5.49
Used 1 meal $15.49
Used 3 snacks $6.00
Used 2 meals $42.75
Paid OOP (lollipops) $6.34

Day 8
Used 3 meals $51.75
Used 3 snacks $7.59
Used 2 meals $25.93
Paid OOP (Norway Bakery) $9.56

Day 9
Used 2 meals $31.83
Used 1 snack $4.00
Used 1 snack $2.66
Used 3 snacks $8.49

Final Day -- Day 10
Used 1 meal for breakfast $15.49
Purchased food OOP at airport $20.00

We spent a total on food & drinks of $888.52
We spent a total of $637.97 on the QSDP
We spent a total of $250.55 Out Of Pocket (meals & tips)

I personally feel that this was a great choice for us & I feel that we got our money's worth. Last trip, we spent 2 days travelling and 3 days at Disney and we spent $650 on food & drinks (I kept my receipts & totaled those up as well!)

The refillable mugs definitely helped this trip, especially because it was so hot & humid during June. We filled them at the resort in the morning & when we'd get back from the parks. This alone probably saved us $100 (thats just my estimate not an exact number). We got 2 free with our Vacation Package, but I would've be willing to spend the $26.98 (for 2) because I still think it was a deal for us.

We paid a total of $538.82 for our QSDP (for 2 adults). So technically if you look at my above numbers, we saved about $100 by using the Dining Plan but as I said, we actually saved much more because we always spend at least $100 each trip just on drinks. By filling up our mug at our resort & taking it with us to the park, it saved us from buying at least 1-2 drinks each morning and 2-3 in the evenings. (Please also remember you can fill it up with tea or coffee in the mornings!)

I actually recommend the regular Dining Plan (or even the DxDP) because I think its an even BETTER deal!!! From our experience at a few TS restaurants this trip, we learned that you really do get bigger portions & better food. For the little extra the DP costs vs. the QSDP, I would definitely recommend it! After coming back & seeing what we spent & saved, we want to upgrade to the regular DP next trip! (It just depends on if you want to spend time sitting at restaurants each day & making ressies ahead of time.)

I also forgot to mention that we saved more than the actual numbers show since we were 3 people eating from 2 dining plans! Next year when our son is 3 and has his own DP, we will most likely save even more $$$.

In my opinion, this will be different for every family. Basically you need to look at the menus & prices (available on Allears.net and WDWinfo.com) and estimate what you would spend. But as I said, right now with the Free Dining promotion going on, I think its an excellent choice! Of course, I am in no way affiliated with Disney or the dining plan, these are just my personal opinions. I thought if I posted the breakdown of meals, it would help to see if the dining plan is your best option! Hope it helps someone!

 

[reelmom]

Thanks for the dining plan update. I am still a little nervous about using it for the first time. But I have 9 months to continue researching it. We are not Table Service type of people and we tend to share a lot of meals, so I think the QSDP will work out well for us.

 

[claryche]

Our son really liked the bucket meal! It comes with a little shovel, too, I'm not sure if you could see it in the picture. He's only 2 and really liked getting a little present with his meal!

Something totally obvious that I didn't explain! Where's my mind!?! VERY good question...what did we do since we got the dining plan & our son was only 2 years old. I should have explained that & I'm not sure why I forgot.

You are correct. Children must be 3 years old or older to buy the dining plan (or to get it free if you're going during the "free dining" promotion).

We just basically shared our meals with our son or paid OOP for his meals. 8 times out of 10, the children's meal costs less than the adults meal. After looking over all of our receipts, we actually only paid out-of-pocket for 2 of his meals and a couple drinks or snacks. This was mainly because I don't always eat a meal.

For instance, I do not eat breakfast. I know, I'm setting a terrible example for my son, but I just can't eat a big meal first thing in the morning. So, I would either get one breakfast for me & my son to share and another for my husband...or I would buy 2 breakfasts (one for DH and one for DS) and I would use a snack credit for a croissant or piece of fruit.

I also forgot to mention this but I had ordered cereal when I ordered diapers/wipes/snacks/bottled water from Garden Grocer. So, we had small boxes of cereal in our room. We went down to the OPR gift shop & purchased a gallon of milk & put it in the fridge in our room (all CBR rooms have a small fridge!) Many mornings, while I was getting ready for the day, my husband & son would eat a bowl of cereal. I also ordered granola bars for myself to eat some mornings.

So, basically since we were on the QSDP, my husband and I each got 2 QS meals and 2 snacks per night (they go by nights you are there, not days, make sure you remember that when totalling the number of meals/snacks you will get!) We had a total of 36 meals and 36 snacks. The first night, we arrived at CBR towards evening so we only used 1 meal. Our final day, we only ate breakfast at the resort. We also paid OOP for our meals at Hollywood & Vine and Coral Reef. It actually worked out perfectly in the end. I was all paranoid that we would have to spend like $200 out of pocket for meals PLUS our 2 table service meals...but it worked out that we only used about $25 on extra drinks & 2 meals for our son.

I apologize, that was alot of rambling, I hope it all makes sense. Basically I guess I'm just saying that between the 3 of us, we shared 2 dining plans. We usually ate breakfast in our room and paid OOP for a few so we ended up having just enough meals & snacks for the 3 of us!

I'll actually look through my Disney journal & receipts and make up a spreadsheet & post it on here so you can see what we did each day. Sorry about that, it totally slipped my mind to explain that!

Totally makes sense. I was just hoping that you didn't pay for a meal plan for him, when he could eat off your plates. Some of the CS meals are plenty large enough for two people. So I totally understand how you were able to do what you did.

 

[claryche]

Great break down of the meal plan. I have never done the QS meal plan. We have done the regular dining plan twice, when it was free. Once we did a room discount instead, and another time the gift card option. I really wish I had kept track of things like you did, so that I could really know what is best for us. Oh well. This next trip is free dining, so we are just going with that. Because I think typically this is a better deal.

Thanks for the QS break down, it's great to know all the things you posted about the QS meal plan.

 

[Charlefours]

Hey Hope--catching up before we leave tomorrow morning

I'm not sure if this has been answered, but you asked about booking and moving dates. Yes, you pay the $200 deposit and you can shift dates around as needed. However, from day 44 on, you cannot make any changes without penalty and no refunds any longer (this year they allowed partial refunds). If you move your dates, you do not keep the same rate or special necessarily. If you book under free dining but switch dates, if free dining is "sold" out than you do not get it any longer. Does that make sense? So we have a tentative trip booked for next fall to take advantage of the free dining offer out. This way we know we will have it but we know we can cancel it all the way up to day 45 before our trip without penalty. We could also elect to shift the dates but lose free dining (unless it is extended out).

I've been debating on D23 too. You will have to let me know what you think of it.

Did you have a light up toy for the dark rides? If not, it might be a good thing to consider having for your next trip for DS--even if he is not afraid of the dark, it would still give him a bit of comfort.

We did not do SSE the on our last trip, so I am looking forward to trying it out. Living with the Land is fantastic! It is one of my favorite Epcot rides, next to Soarin'. (You know you can do Baby Swap right? All three of you go in, they give the first person a rider swap ticket and the second adult and DS go play and wait. Second adult takes rider swap ticket through the FP line and gets to ride much faster).

Another question: Did you know you can send things back to your resort for free if you are staying on property? The exception would be the last 24 hours before you leave because it may not make it back to the resort in time. So if it is something you want, but do not need right away, it is a great option instead of having to carry it around/being worried it would be taken if you left it in the stroller.

Cute picture of your DS and you at CR.

I am really looking forward to exploring and taking lots of pictures at WS.

Thanks for the great breakdown of the QSDP--I want to do it for the DDP on my trip to see if we got our money's worth.

 

[photographymom517]

Thanks for the dining plan update. I am still a little nervous about using it for the first time. But I have 9 months to continue researching it. We are not Table Service type of people and we tend to share a lot of meals, so I think the QSDP will work out well for us.

I completely understand your apprehension (did I spell that right?) about the Dining Plan. I was very nervous about using it for the first time. I can pretty much promise you that once you use it once, you will never want to go to Disney without it again!

I'm glad you have 9 months to research it since you are a little nervous about it. If you have questions, please feel free to ask them right here on my trip report! I don't mind at all & I have alot of really knowledgeable, kind followers who I'm sure would be willing to answer your questions! I'll try to answer them as well, but since I've only used it once, I'm sure others will know more!

If you are used to sharing meals, the QSDP will definitely be a good choice. I think alot of people compare the QSDP vs. the regular DP and think they won't have enough food with the QSDP. I disagree with that. I think you have a good amount of food with either plan. (Obviously, if you start upgrading to the Deluxe DP or Platinum, you get an incredibly INSANE amount of food!)

I think you will like the QSDP and it will work out well for your family. As I said, please feel free to ask any questions along the way. Definitely print out all the information from the Disney site, just so you feel better about it on your trip. The first few days, I pulled out that reference sheet many times to see which restaurants we could choose from! Its kind of one of those things that you learn from doing, you know? The biggest thing I had trouble with (still don't know why...lol) is that you each get 2 drinks with breakfast. We didn't mind the extra, we just took it with us on the bus to the parks. It worked out because we didn't have to buy a drink for a few hours. And the most important thing (I know I've said it a million times) but the CM's are a great source of information! When you go to check-out, they automatically all ask if you're on the dining plan. Some of them don't ask, but thats because there's a code on your Key to the World card, so when you pay, they look at it & ask if you want to use your meal or snack credits. If you don't understand, just tell them its your first time using it & they will be more than happy to help!

Totally makes sense. I was just hoping that you didn't pay for a meal plan for him, when he could eat off your plates. Some of the CS meals are plenty large enough for two people. So I totally understand how you were able to do what you did.

I thought I'd post the break-down because alot of people were asking about the dining plan & what I thought about it. I also wanted to figure out the numbers for myself & my husband so we can decide what to do for next year (if we go to Disney...)

My husband is a big eater but I am not, so I usually shared with our son. We also have similar tastes so its easier for me to share with him. I was really worried at first that we'd use all of our meals & snacks by like the 5th day and then have to pay OOP for everything! It surprised me that we still had snacks & meals left by our last evening. Worked out well! Next trip, our son will be over 3 years old, so we'll have to purchase tickets & a meal plan for him (unless we go during free dining that is!)

I also didn't understand why so many people complain about the snack credits. I thought I was able to use them on many things, not just little tiny snacks and bottled water. I think the guests at the Deluxe resorts have even more choices since they have more options at their resorts (like how they have chocolate croissants at the BC!!! Of course I'd know that...haha!)

The only thing I wish we would've done this trip was to make ressies for more buffets! I know some people don't like buffet food, but we loved Hollywood & Vine. I would have loved to try more of them! Next trip is going to be such a challenge because I have a huge list of ressies I want to get! I also want to try to talk my husband into eating at CRT.

Great break down of the meal plan. I have never done the QS meal plan. We have done the regular dining plan twice, when it was free. Once we did a room discount instead, and another time the gift card option. I really wish I had kept track of things like you did, so that I could really know what is best for us. Oh well. This next trip is free dining, so we are just going with that. Because I think typically this is a better deal.

Thanks for the QS break down, it's great to know all the things you posted about the QS meal plan.

I know what you mean. Its hard to decide which discount to use. I agree with you. I figured out different scenarios for 4 different times of the year and every single time, the free dining promotion was the best deal! We did a room discount last year just because we were only staying on property for 3 days and weren't getting the dining plan...of course looking back, we wish we would have!

I'm glad I kept track of everything, but boy was it a pain sometimes! I had to watch the cash register because when you hand the cashier your card & they enter into the system to use your meals/snack credits, the total disappears! So if you don't catch it quickly while its on the screen, you won't know what you spent. Every receipt prints out $0 (I'm sure you already know that!) so I had to keep track myself. It was also an issue with having a pen...lol...it was so crowded that sometimes I just didn't feel like digging around in my purse to find a pen. Luckily I have a good memory & would usually remember if I didn't have a pen or I'd type it into the notepad on my cell phone. I know, it sounds ridiculous but I was determined to keep track of all expenses on our trip. Call it the OCD in me!