Never again will we use dining plan

[rubato]

We said this last time, but, with free dining, it seemed to make sense. But, I ate too much, felt stuck with all these silly reservations, and couldn't eat what I wanted. I don't want a soda with my dinner and lunch yet again, or a dessert. I want an appetizer, and maybe, that's all I want. I don't want to have to leave the line I'm in so I can go eat when I'm not hungry. I don't want to gain 5 pounds in 7 days because I don't want to waste food. Plus, I was disappointed with quite a few of our restaurant choices.

I will use the room only discount next time. Buy my tickets through Undercover Tourist much cheaper, and eat what I want, when I want. I may not even make a reservation at all. I can't say that it was financially worth it either. I had 35% off of a room only. I can't use my restaurant totals to judge anything, because I wouldn't have ordered the way I did if I was paying OOP.

Lesson learned, I guess.

 

[canopynut66]

We said this last time, but, with free dining, it seemed to make sense. But, I ate too much, felt stuck with all these silly reservations, and couldn't eat what I wanted. I don't want a soda with my dinner and lunch yet again, or a dessert. I want an appetizer, and maybe, that's all I want. I don't want to have to leave the line I'm in so I can go eat when I'm not hungry. I don't want to gain 5 pounds in 7 days because I don't want to waste food. Plus, I was disappointed with quite a few of our restaurant choices.

I will use the room only discount next time. Buy my tickets through Undercover Tourist much cheaper, and eat what I want, when I want. I may not even make a reservation at all. I can't say that it was financially worth it either. I had 35% off of a room only. I can't use my restaurant totals to judge anything, because I wouldn't have ordered the way I did if I was paying OOP.

Lesson learned, I guess.

So sorry you had bad experience with the free dining. There are several places where you can still get appetizer with a meal (limited meals) but we always plan our days then make our ADR'S so we have not had to get out of a line to go eat. My sister and I have both had weight reduction surgery and we can only eat small amounts for last 6 years so if it is free dining or OOP so it works for us. If we want an appetizer we just order it if not in a place that is offering few choices with it. We never eat dessert or we just order the fruit option that all have or take it with us for later. We are AP holders but the free dining is the cheapest way to go for us. Have seen many show it is not for them and that is one's choice but it works for us

 

[Reddy]

I love the quick dinning - the only ARDs were onees that I made & paid extra for
yes it was quick service meals but that was really all we wanted (usually only got 3 at a time for 4 people so no leftover food )

 

[2Tiggies]

I love the quick dinning - the only ARDs were onees that I made & paid extra for
yes it was quick service meals but that was really all we wanted (usually only got 3 at a time for 4 people so no leftover food )

Ditto

I also had to learn with the DDP that it didn't suit us. When the QSDP came in we decided to go with that and it's perfect - okay, still too much - but perfect.

We (myself and DD) split a CS for breakfast as we have a habit of sharing at least one meal a day, leaving us more than enough credits to use but not paying OOP for anything aside from our TS meals.

It doesn't work for everyone and if you have figured this out, you are better off than many others.

 

[ajleone]

This is why I switched to the QS plan. I enjoy the 'freedom" of QS meals and not feeling like the dining plan is running my vaca! We do a couple/few OOP signature restaurants but I limit them so as not to be tied to ADR's all week. And with them being OOP I can get just what I want not what the plan wants.

 

[GailT]

We said this last time, but, with free dining, it seemed to make sense. But, I ate too much, felt stuck with all these silly reservations, and couldn't eat what I wanted. I don't want a soda with my dinner and lunch yet again, or a dessert. I want an appetizer, and maybe, that's all I want. I don't want to have to leave the line I'm in so I can go eat when I'm not hungry. I don't want to gain 5 pounds in 7 days because I don't want to waste food. Plus, I was disappointed with quite a few of our restaurant choices.

I will use the room only discount next time. Buy my tickets through Undercover Tourist much cheaper, and eat what I want, when I want. I may not even make a reservation at all. I can't say that it was financially worth it either. I had 35% off of a room only. I can't use my restaurant totals to judge anything, because I wouldn't have ordered the way I did if I was paying OOP.

Lesson learned, I guess.

I agree with you 100% Last dicemeber I didnt get free dining but had the DDP, never again, I had to stop what i was doing to go eat, just doesn't work for me, I rather eat when I want and where I want, I will get a rental car again and go off property if I cant get a place to eat in the park, after all it is just park food

 

[2Tiggies]

I am just going to add, seeing as all of us who posted on here prefer QSDP or none at all, that the regular DDP is still incredibly popular and many people pay for it. If it fits your style of eating and you like a routine and/or dining is a big part of your Disney experience, it can be wonderful and save you a lot of money. I simply mention this as none of the DDP fans have posted on here yet and while it doesn't suit me right now, it certainly has its merits.

 

[chocolateMinnie]

love the dining plan, love the deluxe dining plan. I guess you judge what you and how you would generally eat on holiday and then pick the plan that's right for you (or pay oop). Personally we always 'waste' cs meals on the free ddp but then it's free right? No great shakes with a holiday that's cost is in the thousands.

 

[CathieArms]

That's really too bad. DDP aside, I like making the ADRs so that I know that we have hard stop times to rest. If not, we'll wear out my little guy and he'll get hungry and difficult to deal with, plus we all need a refreshing break.

There's nothing more stressful for me than to be hungry and look at a long line of people and realize that first I have to get to the front of the line, and THEN I have to find a place to sit. That drives me nuts!

But, as I've seen on these boards, everyone has a different preference with lunch.

 

[OceanAnnie]

We said this last time, but, with free dining, it seemed to make sense. But, I ate too much, felt stuck with all these silly reservations, and couldn't eat what I wanted. I don't want a soda with my dinner and lunch yet again, or a dessert. I want an appetizer, and maybe, that's all I want. I don't want to have to leave the line I'm in so I can go eat when I'm not hungry. I don't want to gain 5 pounds in 7 days because I don't want to waste food. Plus, I was disappointed with quite a few of our restaurant choices.

I will use the room only discount next time. Buy my tickets through Undercover Tourist much cheaper, and eat what I want, when I want. I may not even make a reservation at all. I can't say that it was financially worth it either. I had 35% off of a room only. I can't use my restaurant totals to judge anything, because I wouldn't have ordered the way I did if I was paying OOP.

Lesson learned, I guess.

We had a kind of similar experience.

I will say for younger kids the free dining is a good thing as it really off sets the character meals. Those meals add up quick! We also had some wonderful meals that weren't about characters (Calif. Grill, Narcossee's, Coral Reef). We did enjoy the dining plan.

But, we ate too much. We indulged in a whole lot more desserts and snacks that we normally would have. We aren't big eaters. We found we didn't want to be wasteful. Carried desserts and such back to our rooms. The fridge was overflowing with mostly desserts. And it felt like our vacation centered around food/ADRs instead of the parks that we love. Granted, we did plan according to parks we thought we'd be at but it didn't always pan out that way.

So it was a mixed bag for us. We enjoyed it and we didn't. I won't say we would never do it again, but we would have to think it over.
Maybe the quick service would be a better fit for us. The kids aren't into the character meals as much now. And we aren't really into the sit down meals so much. Several sit down meals would do us fine, I think. Not daily.

I love the quick dinning - the only ARDs were onees that I made & paid extra for
yes it was quick service meals but that was really all we wanted (usually only got 3 at a time for 4 people so no leftover food )

I'll have to read about the quick service dining. It sounds interesting!

 

[blessedby3]

We also prefer the QSDP. I dont like to figure out where we will be eating that far in advance, and I dont like being tied to a sit down meal everyday. We would rather have more ride time and less sit down in a restaraunt-especially with my non-eating 3 yr old. She doesnt do well at sit downs because she really doesnt care about eating. We have never been able to bribe her with food
The CS meals are much easier for our family....quick in, eat and back on the rides. That said, we do pay oop for 2 sit down meals in our weeks vacation. We still come out cheaper than getting the regular plan (even paying oop for the 2 ts), get more meals and it frees up our time

 

[La2kw]

I have never spent as much money on dining as the DDP would cost us. We don't eat dessert at every meal, let alone every day. I also don't like having to make dining reservations 6 months ahead of time. I think DDP is one of the biggest scams and it has changed the process of dining at WDW. The food and service at most of the restaurants is not as enjoyable as it once was. Clearly, it makes Disney money, so along with the oversaturation of those damn character meals, it's not leaving anytime soon. Thank goodness I spend more time at Disneyland and they have more sense than to start something like that up there.

 

[Deb123]

We have learned! Only QS meal plan for us! We just can't be on a schedule while vacationing at Disney. I know alot love the regular DP, but for us, it just doesn't work. I don't know ahead of time if I'm gonna sleep in, don't know what time I'll be hungry for breakfast, lunch, or dinner! We park hop all over the place and just go with the flow while we are there. Can't say that we'll all eat at the same time, either!! I just love the QS meal plan, and there is much more than just burgers and fries on it.

 

[RainK]

I absolutely agree that when on the DDP we always eat waaaay too much. We too would opt not to eat dessert normally but always find ourselves stuffed to the gills yet still getting the dessert just because it's free.
We like the DDP (free only) because we like going to resorts and exploring and having dinner there.....and my kids are young and they enjoy a couple character meals during our trip that would otherwise cost a pretty penny.

My BIGGEST complaint about the DDP (besides eating way too much) is that the kids menu is terrible. Every restaurant seems to only offer chicken nuggets, mac n cheese. How about a few items from the adult menu just smaller portions? Kids do like to eat other things ya know.

I also seem to plan my days around the ADR for the day. Right or wrong when you have to book your meal 6 months out, you really have to.

 

[MamaDrama]

We purchased the deluxe dining plan for our upcoming trip. We have had it once before (free). This time we saved more money with the resort package pin code then we would on the free dining so we purchased it.

I like having my dining all paid for. Ideally, I wish there was a meal plan with 2 table service and 1 quick service meals because 3 table service meals a day is too much. We make it work by doing a few signature meals and using our snack credits for light meals on the days we have only 2 meals covered.

I am a planner so I always had meal reservations mapped out even before the days of the dining plan. I enjoy doing the character meals with the kids because then I am not running around the parks and waiting on long lines to see the characters. And the down time works for my kids.

I do see how the dining plan would not be for everyone, though.

 

[2Tiggies]

Ideally, I wish there was a meal plan with 2 table service and 1 quick service meals because 3 table service meals a day is too much. We make it work by doing a few signature meals and using our snack credits for light meals on the days we have only 2 meals covered.

You can use one of your meal credits for CS if you prefer though (you probably know this anyway, so this is for the benefit of anyone who is not aware). The beauty of the DxDDP is that they are meal credits, as opposed to the other 2 plans which offer very categorically specific credits.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[manning]

In the end overall you are spending more thanyou think. Why else does Disney do it. They aren't stupid.

 

[MamaDrama]

You can use one of your meal credits for CS if you prefer though (you probably know this anyway, so this is for the benefit of anyone who is not aware).

Yes, but you always want to make sure you are getting the most for your money!

 

[Altoqueenkelly]

Im sad & surprised that you have all had bad experiences . We love the DDP, and I love not scrutinizing prices or worrying about money and not ordering what i want at a resturaunt. I know that ultimately im still "paying" for the food when I include the DDP into my package, but since we always stay value these days it just feels like an "all-inclusive" package. lol. I love it . Regardless, I am a HUGE plan type of person, so I really thrive on knowing which park and which resturant we will visit every day and approx times we will come/go (other than that I tend to relax at Disney and go with the flow... lol.. or try to "avoid" the flow of people )

I see that it might not be the best choice for everyone, I thouroughly enjoy DDP... and I wish I could jump on board during a free DDP promo, but somehow I always seem to miss out

 

[fitzy819]

We said this last time, but, with free dining, it seemed to make sense. But, I ate too much, felt stuck with all these silly reservations, and couldn't eat what I wanted. I don't want a soda with my dinner and lunch yet again, or a dessert. I want an appetizer, and maybe, that's all I want. I don't want to have to leave the line I'm in so I can go eat when I'm not hungry. I don't want to gain 5 pounds in 7 days because I don't want to waste food. Plus, I was disappointed with quite a few of our restaurant choices.

I will use the room only discount next time. Buy my tickets through Undercover Tourist much cheaper, and eat what I want, when I want. I may not even make a reservation at all. I can't say that it was financially worth it either. I had 35% off of a room only. I can't use my restaurant totals to judge anything, because I wouldn't have ordered the way I did if I was paying OOP.

Lesson learned, I guess.

I have similar feelings towards the dining plan. Our last trip was free dining but we won't be paying for it for this trip. It just doesn't fit our eating patterns. DH and I would much rather get a burger (maybe two if we are hungry and don't want to share) and a single order of fries with a glass of water and then have room for snacks that we run across in the parks that we want. With the dining plan we end up with two burgers, two fries, two sodas, and two desserts and need to be rolled out of there.

Since we are grazers I think forgoing the dining plan will work well for us and come out to about the same price in the end. We have a few ADRs planned for places that we liked last time but again, we will probably eat quite differently than the dining plan would allow us to do (ex: 1 appetizer, 1 or 2 entrees, and maybe 1 dessert with a beer or wine to wash it down)

The more I examine things, the more I think we will be better off without it. I guess we will see how it works out for us.