LisaBi
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 23, 2004
- Messages
- 1,624
I know a lot of us question if the dining plan is worth it. For me, it's always worth paying paying rack rate for "free" dining because we stay at the Values, so a room discount isn't worth too much. I also prefer QS.
I did a 6-night solo trip from Nov 29 - Dec 5, when there was no free dining offer. I debated, so used AllEars menus to price out what I would likely order with no regard to cost and what I would actually want (i.e. No desserts with most meals, but sometimes an extra side.) it was within a few dollars either way.
My total food costs, including one table service, a few drinks, and what I bought at the airport, was 328.76. Of that, 228.18 would have been covered by QSDDP. My cost to buy the dining plan would have been 251.94. So I saved 23.76 paying OOP. But I also got the benefit of buying bottled soda before going into the restaurant instead of drinking the fountain soda, which I don't like in WDW, when I wanted soda.
I could have spent less if I'd made some less expensive selections, and didn't go to some pricier QS places like Tangierne Cafe or Wolgang Puck Express. I would have spent more if I had wanted dessert or a second side most meals, making the QSDDP more a break even.
Also, I ate exclusively QS, except Biergarten one day, and didn't eat a single burger or pizza. I only had fries twice....once as part of Fish and Chips in Epcot, and once at CHH...where others options were available. So there are definitely plenty of good options.
I did a 6-night solo trip from Nov 29 - Dec 5, when there was no free dining offer. I debated, so used AllEars menus to price out what I would likely order with no regard to cost and what I would actually want (i.e. No desserts with most meals, but sometimes an extra side.) it was within a few dollars either way.
My total food costs, including one table service, a few drinks, and what I bought at the airport, was 328.76. Of that, 228.18 would have been covered by QSDDP. My cost to buy the dining plan would have been 251.94. So I saved 23.76 paying OOP. But I also got the benefit of buying bottled soda before going into the restaurant instead of drinking the fountain soda, which I don't like in WDW, when I wanted soda.
I could have spent less if I'd made some less expensive selections, and didn't go to some pricier QS places like Tangierne Cafe or Wolgang Puck Express. I would have spent more if I had wanted dessert or a second side most meals, making the QSDDP more a break even.
Also, I ate exclusively QS, except Biergarten one day, and didn't eat a single burger or pizza. I only had fries twice....once as part of Fish and Chips in Epcot, and once at CHH...where others options were available. So there are definitely plenty of good options.
