More TS with DDP???

[kmbound]

I was on another board and someone suggested that disney restaurants are booked up more than ever due to the DDP. Ultimately the insinuation was that more people are eating table service than ever because of the DDP. Do you and your families eat more TS now that the DDP is offered and without the DDP would you continue to eat TS meals or go back to CS?

 

[Tricia1972]

I think the answer will vary for everyone. Generally we did one sit down per day without the DDP. However with the DDP we DID do one TS meal per day.

 

[ElizabethB]

No, we always did two sometimes three table service meals per day because we don't like counter service. However, since DDP, we are doing more 2TS restaurants and fewer 1TS restaurants, due to the overall decline in quality at the 1TS restaurants. On our most recent trip a couple of weeks ago, we ate solely at 2TS restaurants or off-site, except for breakfast, which we ate in our villa.

 

[maraki527]

We always ate a TS a day without the DDP this is the first time we are using the plan though.

 

[kimsuenew]

I was on another board and someone suggested that disney restaurants are booked up more than ever due to the DDP. Ultimately the insinuation was that more people are eating table service than ever because of the DDP. Do you and your families eat more TS now that the DDP is offered and without the DDP would you continue to eat TS meals or go back to CS?

If we did not have the DDP we would eat far fewer TS meals as they are so pricey compared with a CS, however we simply would NOT do WDW without the DDP! I wonder, if in 2008 there will be less DDP sold, with the changes made (no appetizer/no gratuity included)? I know that it would not stop us but we are not pleased with the prospect of carrying cash for tips either. This will be an interesting year!

 

[kmbound]

I know that it would not stop us but we are not pleased with the prospect of carrying cash for tips either.

Brings up an interesting question - i wonder if you could charge tips to your room card? anyone know?

 

[n2mm]

We are NOT on the DDP for our January 2008 and April/May 2008 trips, but do plan to do 1-2 TS meals per day (some days we like a TS breakfast). We have ADRs set for either a TS lunch or TS dinner for every day. Whether we are using the DDP or not, our dining pattern stays the same.

 

[Kim1964]

We ate more TS meals on the DDP in August than we ever ate in a single trip when we weren't on the DDP. We are not planning to buy the DDP next year because of the gratuity being removed, and I will book far fewer TS meals, too. On the DDP we booked mostly TS dinners because they were more expensive and we wanted to get the most bang for our buck.

 

[plutospup]

Prior to DDP we often ate off property. We enjoyed better meals at a much better price. If it wouldn't be for DDP we would go off property again.

 

[Mickiethepooh]

Every trip we have eaten predominantly table service meals including breakfasts, but this is the first time we have been on the dining plan.
So I don't personally think that argument holds water.
Besides everyone who wants to eat needs to make ADRs not just those on the dining plan.

 

[Colleen27]

For the way I travel when it is me, DH & the kids, we actually ate fewer TS meals on the DDP than we would without, and the DxDDP suits our eating style much better.

For the trip my mom booked for DD's birthday, we probably ate more TS than we would have without the plan. On the one trip we took to Disney when I was a kid, we ate 2 TS meals during a 5 night trip.

In the future, I'll be doing the deluxe plan for our family trips, so we'll have more Disney TS than we would otherwise. When my mom is the one calling the shots, we'll probably continue to have a TS meal each night, but it might not always be at Disney because the next trip she's planning will include my brother and his fiancee as well as me, DH and the kids, and with 7 of us, we'll probably stay offsite. If we stay onsite, we'll pay OOP (not interested in the '08 standard plan) but still have a TS each night.

 

[TDC Nala]

I generally eat TS in the evenings, occasionally for lunch. This was also true when using the DDP but I was limited in the choices because I prefer 2 credit restaurants.

I will not be using the DDP again. And I do not eat three meals a day.

 

[Nancyg56]

I can only tell you how it would be for my family if I did not have the DDP. My DH would say that we could "eat cheap" at CS location, and then I would only make ADR's for dinner. Then my DH would have one dinner at a CS and that would be the end of that. We would still have a TS meal every night but we would probably share some of the appetizers and desserts the same as we do at home. He would not have anyone share meals. Honestly the DDP encourages me to plan ahead but is not the reason my family enjoys TS meals. My DH will say that he wants to save money on meals but he and I like to have all of us meet back in the evening and just relax around the table with a nice meal and a glass or two of wine. When I have had nights open for CS we ended up making last minuter ADR's for a sit down meal.

 

[Brian Noble]

We skip the DDP precisely because we don't quite eat one TS per day on average. For us, DDP is an up-sell compared to our "natural" eating habits.

I don't know for sure, but I'm guessing that this is true for more people than not. Disney doesn't offer DDP to be nice, they do it to make more money. If it wasn't generating profits in some way, it would not continue to be offered. I suppose it *might* be making money indirectly by raising resort occupancy rates, but I'm guessing that, by itself, it's a positive revenue move.

 

[thunderbird1]

A while ago I checked the receipts from our last trip before learning about and experiencing the DDP, and we had 9 TS meals over 10 nights so no, the DDP didn't really change our eating habits. Interestingly, we averaged nearly the same daily cost for food as it would have cost us to purchase the DDP. Of course, with the DDP we would have had a LOT more food.

 

[NMW]

We always did 2 and sometimes 3 TS meals per day. With the DDP, we still did TS breakfast (which we paid cash for) and TS dinner, but we did CS lunches since we had all those CS credits to use up. Normally, we would have done more TS lunches. We still did a couple, and paid cash for them, but we felt we HAD to use up the CS credits, so we actually did LESS TS with the DDP.

With the Deluxe DDP in May, we are not doing any CS, period-yeah!

 

[frannn]

Before the DP, we ate offsite and more CS. We still a good bunch of TS, but did not do so every day. Too much $, and tied us down. Now DH loves the DP, but we wouldn't do it if it wasn't discounted/free. We would use DDE instead. We don't mind CS, and actually prefer some of the CS places (Cosmic Rays, Yakitori).

 

[Stinky_Pete]

Next month will actually be my first trip since the advent of the DDP. Without the DDP we would do at least one TS meal each day - typically dinner. Sometimes also breakfast.

Last time I was on a dining plan was the "Food & Fun" card. Anyone remember that? TS Breakfast and Dinner - on your own for lunch.

 

[Tiger926]

Nope - we always ate 2-3 TS meals per day, and so when we got the DP for the first time last summer, we didn't care for it as we don't care for CS, so we are greatly looking forward to the Deluxe DP as this is how we normally eat anyway.

Happy eating to all, Tiger

 

[whogirl'smom]

We liked the DDP this year, but won't be using it again next year. We will probably have a TS 3 out of 5 days next time, but one of them will be Beaches and Cream and another will be a TS breakfast, which we didn't do this time b/c it wasn't as good a "value". The last will be CP package at Epcot. The other days may be offsite or CS. So for us, the answer is we will be eating less TS overall without the DDP.