Ok...I am going crazy

[choirfarm]

I am giving myself a headache. I have me, dh, son 13, son 11, girl 6. I am trying to figure out the following and have gotten this far:

7 nights at POR with 40 percent off: 630 plus 7 day MYW tickets for us would be 1074. So that would be 1,704

If they offer free dining then rack rater for 7 days is 1043 and same tickets so 2,117.

That is a difference of 413. We are normally pretty frugal as far as eating.
We would eat a cold breakfast in the room and probably eat one big meal out: CS combo meal for each 9 times 5 = 45 dollars times 7 days equals 315 dollars I would want to do a character breakfast at Cindy's with just me and my daughter 56 dollars. 5 refillable mugs times 12 equals 60 dollars. Just that equals 431 dollars and we would be drinking water and such....So.. it looks like, IF and that is a big IF free dining is offered, then it would be cheaper to do the dining plan, but trying to plan out all of the eating seems kind of hard. I don't think we would do a TS at all if we just went out of pocket.

Christinre

 

[wezee]

I kind of followed your calculations, but I'm not so sure you can buy a CS combo for $5, especially if you also get a beverage????

 

[choirfarm]

No, it was 9 dollars for a combo meal times 5 of us equals 45 dollars times 7 days equals 315 dollars.

 

[phabric]

The dining plan includes the taxes.

 

[beroh2253]

No, it was 9 dollars for a combo meal times 5 of us equals 45 dollars times 7 days equals 315 dollars.

Your going to do breakfast in your room then only do 1 meal a day besides?
All that walking in the park really makes you hungry, I would think you would have 10 CS a day or 630 dollars.

 

[ssaa]

Hi choirfarm!

If I followed your calculations correctly, you will spend $400+ on 'free DDP' or approx $450 OOP.

DDP pros:

• With the DDP you can eat far better meals for around the same amount of $$. Your OOP eating will be mainly CS + 1 TS, whereas with the DDP you can get more TS and tons of snacks etc. So, clearly the DDP would be a better value.
  
• You get a break from CS meals and enjoy some quality food in a unique environment.

DDP cons:

• Planning is an issue with the DDP, to gets your $'s worth, you will have to make ADR's. I don't mind the planning (enjoy it actually), but if it seems too much of a hassle, then it's not worth it for you.
  
• You are light eaters and may not care to eat a TS meal or spend the time at a TS restaurant.

Personally, I would go with the DDP, but you really need to see how your family likes to spend their time at WDW.

Hope this helps...and have a great trip!

 

[Tricia1972]

I am giving myself a headache. I have me, dh, son 13, son 11, girl 6. I am trying to figure out the following and have gotten this far:

7 nights at POR with 40 percent off: 630 plus 7 day MYW tickets for us would be 1074. So that would be 1,704

If they offer free dining then rack rater for 7 days is 1043 and same tickets so 2,117.

That is a difference of 413. We are normally pretty frugal as far as eating.
We would eat a cold breakfast in the room and probably eat one big meal out: CS combo meal for each 9 times 5 = 45 dollars times 7 days equals 315 dollars I would want to do a character breakfast at Cindy's with just me and my daughter 56 dollars. 5 refillable mugs times 12 equals 60 dollars. Just that equals 431 dollars and we would be drinking water and such....So.. it looks like, IF and that is a big IF free dining is offered, then it would be cheaper to do the dining plan, but trying to plan out all of the eating seems kind of hard. I don't think we would do a TS at all if we just went out of pocket.

Christinre

Just one note, you'd still pay the $60 for refillable mugs OOP with the free DDP. The mugs are only included in the DxDDP they are not included with the basic DDP. So of the $413 for "Free" Dining, $371 would be covered of your OOP Expenses.

However, that extra $42 gets you:

31 TS Credits (35 actually, but I subtracted the 4 you and dd will use at CRT)
35 Snacks for the Park - Generally about a $3 Value for snacks


I think that not even doing a bunch of TS, you'd be better off paying the additional for "Free" Dining, if even just for the snacks.

(I'd also like to thank you for pointing out that free isn't really free - it's just really really cheap! )

 

[wide awake]

I love the DDP. For one thing it is healthier. I am very careful about my weight, I want to eat well-balanced meals, lots of fish, fruit, and vegetables. That is difficult to do w/ just CS. I don't go out to eat much at all at home, because I'm cheap...I really enjoy ordering whatever I want while I'm at WDW. It is great w/ kids...you can encourage them to try new things...if they don't like it you aren't out any cash, and the meals are large enough that you could always share yours. Most of all it is fun ! I love planning where we'll go, and picking restaurants for my mom, or for DH or DS.