I looked on mousesavers and it said that the DDE card costs $60 for an AP holder, but saves you 20% in certain restaurants. I looked at another site (wdwinfo) that listed the restaurants and noticed that certain ones are not included in the DDE (Chef Mickey's, for example, which we love and would definitely go to again because the kids enjoyed it so much). So, how does this save you money? Also, if we were going to get a 5-day or even a 6-day BASE ticket, how would the AP even be worth it for even one of us? It would cost so much more.
I did not crunch any numbers, but it seems to me that it is possible that the dining plan and the regular base tickets may be more the way to go for us, and may save us more money (we do a lot of character meals for the kids so the DDP saved us a lot this recent trip). As I had said anyway, one of the things I learned through this thread is not to join DVC simply for the perks, because they keep changing and someday between now and 2042 they just may be gone altogether, none of us know if that will or will not happen. The opportunity to stay at BWV every time we go to WDW, to go every other year until the kids are in college (and then every year or 2 with just DH and myself), to still have 10 years left on the contract when we retire from teaching and be able to go twice a year for long stays during off-season...those are all worth it to us and those are the things we are considering when we think about buying.
On the other side I do not want to make one of those impulse decisions and buy something this huge. That is why we are researching this now and making our decision over some time, looking to purchase some time next year if we so decide. Many factors are going into this, not just a rash decision.
Unless something is changing in 2009, DDE does work at Chef Mickey's.
Participating Restaurants and Lounges in the DDE as of February 2008:
All-Star Music Resort
Intermission Food Court
All-Star Sports Resort
End Zone Food Court
All-Star Movies Resort
World Premiere Food Court
Animal Kingdom Lodge
Boma-Flavors of Africa
Jiko-The Cooking Place
Victoria Falls
Beach Club Resort
Beaches & Cream Soda Shop
(eat in only)
Cape May Cafe
Martha's Vineyard Lounge
BoardWalk
Belle Vue Lounge
ESPN Club
Flying Fish Cafe
Spoodles
Eagle Pines and Osprey Ridge Golf Club
Sand Trap Bar & Grill
Caribbean Beach Resort
Shutters at Old Port Royale
Contemporary Resort
California Grill
Chef Mickey's
Concourse Steakhouse
Outer Rim Lounge
Coronado Springs Resort
Maya Grill
Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground
Crockett's Tavern
Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue (9:30 p.m. show only, offered seasonally)
Trail's End Restaurant
Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
1900 Park Fare
Cítricos
Garden View Lounge
Grand Floridian Cafe
Mizner's Lounge
Narcoossee's
Victoria & Albert's (excluding Chef's Table)
Old Key West Resort
Olivia's Cafe
Polynesian Resort
'Ohana
Kona Cafe
Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show (late show only)
Tambu Lounge
Pop Century Resort
Everything Pop Dining
Classic Concoctions
Port Orleans Resort
Riverside:
Boatwright's Dining Hall
River Roost
French Quarter:
Scat Cat's Club
Sassagoula Floatworks and Food Factory
Saratoga Springs Resort & Spa
The Turf Club Bar and Grill
Artist's Palette
Wilderness Lodge
Artist Point
Territory Lounge
Whispering Canyon Cafe
Yacht Club Resort
Ale and Compass Lounge
Crew's Cup Lounge
Captain's Grille
Yachtsman Steakhouse
DOWNTOWN DISNEY Marketplace
Cap'n Jack's Restaurant
DOWNTOWN DISNEY Pleasure Island
Raglan Road
DOWNTOWN DISNEY West Side
Planet Hollywood
Epcot
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
Biergarten Restaurant
Bistro de Paris Restaurant
Chefs de France Restaurant
Coral Reef Restaurant
Tutto Italia Ristorante
Le Cellier Steakhouse
Nine Dragons Restaurant
Restaurant Marrakesh
Rose & Crown Pub & Dining Room
San Angel Inn Restaurante
The Garden Grill Restaurant
Disney's Hollywood Studios
50's Prime Time Cafe
Hollywood & Vine
Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano
Sci-Fi Dine-In Theater Restaurant
The Hollywood Brown Derby
Tune-In Lounge
Magic Kingdom
Cinderella's Royal Table
Liberty Tree Tavern
The Crystal Palace
The Plaza Restaurant
Tony's Town Square Restaurant
Animal Kingdom
Tusker House Restaurant
Pizzafari
Flame Tree Barbecue
Restaurantosaurus
Disney's Vero Beach Resort
The Green Cabin Room
Shutters Restaurant
Sonya's Fine Steaks & Chops (Sunday Brunch not included)
Entertainment & Dancing:
DOWNTOWN DISNEY Pleasure Island:
Half price admission to Pleasure Island Clubs for members and guest;
except for specially priced events
Atlantic Dance Hall - Disneys BoardWalk:
Admission is free for members and guest