Pros and Cons for Disney dining plan

[candmforever]

I don't really see a down-side to the dining plan. Plenty of free food at Disney's best restaurants!? the only down side I see is the amt of people it draws to the parks, but I'll take that for not having the headache of the tedious job of planning where we can afford to eat all those days, 3 times a day. I can't wait!

 

[frannn]

for us. We buy APs, so in order to get the dining, we'd also have to buy each person a one day park ticket (to make it into a "package"). Also, we usually eat a big breakfast at the food court each morning to give us energy to tour the parks all day. I don't think DH would give that up, and I would rather use the dining plan for lunch and dinner. So, we'd be adding about 25/day for us to have 3 meals per day. We'd also be paying for DD12 as an adult (not that she doesn't eat a lot when she wants to, it's just hit or miss). We'll probably just get the DDE and get 20% off the TS meals I have planned. I also bought some vouchers to have a more substantial lunch for a few of the days. All in all, for 11 days we'll have 7 or 8 TS meals, with CS planned for most other meals (not including Baskervilles once, probably one offsite buffet, and one free dinner at RFC thanks to Mypoints) for about the same as it would cost for the meal plan (without the one day tickets). So, I think we'll do better eating 3 meals a day and having the freedom to grab quick CS or offsite whenever the mood strikes us. If I could've added the meal plan without having to buy tickets, I might reconsider. The clincher is that we are getting no resort discount on our AS Movies room anyway, so we wouldn't be losing anything there!

 

[Lewisc]

The only con is if you have to pay adult prices for children that eat very little or if you're in a "park commando" mode and prefer to eat CS meals.

The other con is the cost of buying tickets you might not need or forgoing an otherwise available room discount.

Almost every adult will get value that exceed the $35/day the plan costs.

 

[goodferry]

We did the dining plan in August, when just DH and I went, and we plan on using it again in December when we take the kids, we saved a lot of money and we definitely didn't maximize the plan.
In December, we have a AAA package that has a reduced room rate and the meal plan. We do plan on sharing with the kids at a few meals, it is a TON of food! Another nice thing about it, besides being a cost savings, is that you can order whatever you want, and try desserts you probably wouldn't have, without worrying about the cost.

 

[donac]

I as an adult would have had a great deal of trouble using the food plan last month. My entire family would have had problems. My 15 year old is not a big eater so a couple of times even at counterserve he had a kids me and so did I since I am not that big of an eater. My older son was on antibiotics and his stomach was off all week.

My friends had the food plan and all they did was eat. She was always worried about where they were going to eat next and calling to make or change reservations. We ate with them a couple of times and it got a little crazy. They were always stuffed.

Example.
The day we ate breakfast in Chef Mickey's because of a party member's birthday, my family had a snack during the day because we also had reservations with these friends for the Rainforest Cafe for dinner. They had a counterserve lunch and then had to eat dinner. they were full before they even started dinner.


Time is another element. TS take a great deal of time and sometimes I don't want to take that time.

It really is up to you.

 

[zookeeper]

We leave in 10 days and I can't wait to try the dining plan. It will be so nice to be able to bring the kids out for meals and not have to worry about the prices on the menu. This was a huge plus for us. My DH really liked the idea of not having to say "No, that's too much $" everytime we go to eat. I'm sure we'll be doing enough of that with the souvenirs!!! We're doing character meals that we would never have done otherwise. It's going to make the trip that much more memorable for our kids who won't be back for a long time.

 

[princess mom of 4]

Before the "free dining" even was an option, we had decided to purchase the plan. We want to do some character meals, and that alone almost justifies the dining plan! Once you subtract out the amount you would have tipped the server, the plan really does make sense (to me anyway!). Now I'm just worrying about gaining 25 lbs while we're there!

 

[Atotty]

It will be so nice to be able to bring the kids out for meals and not have to worry about the prices on the menu. This was a huge plus for us. My DH really liked the idea of not having to say "No, that's too much $" everytime we go to eat.

That's us, too. I am going to be glad that I don't have to scrutinize the menu and figure out the best way to order, no sharing drinks at counter service, and actually ordering appetizers and dessert without worrying about the cost, etc.

Anna T.

 

[pooch]

I'm thinking this is the overriding factor for me, too. I always monitor what everyone orders because I hate paying for food they aren't going to eat. I realize we probably won't be able to eat all the food on the dining plan either but if DS wants to order a $25 dinner, I won't say no! Let him order what he wants for a change! We won't always order all the appetizers or desserts but I think we'll eat enough to make the plan worth it, if for no other reason than to shut me up!!!

 

[goodeats]

Well after my long diatribe, I emailed my travel agent about getting a package with dining. Since we have a standard room at the WL currently, and all we could get with a package is with courtyard view, it doesn't even make sense to get the dining plan if it were free! We have budgeted $1,000 for the week with two adults for food and alcohol, so I am not too worried about feeling restricted. I just don't want to pay more than I have to.

So, in short, even if dining plan were free, it's not for everyone.

 

[deltachi8]

its an amazing deal (especially when free) for the food you get. However, if we had to pay, I would probably pass, its just too much food and Im the stupid "value" type who cant say no, when its included in the price.

BTW - it was DS (9) and I on our trip for 5 nights and we consumed $450 worth of food. Probably double our normal budget.