Should I add Dining Plan?

[DeskinsFamily]

Considering adding dining plan to our reservation - have only ever used it before when it was offered free. Two adults & two children for 6 nights, so $873 for Dining Plan. ADR's are:

1900 Park Fare Breakfast
1900 Park Fare Dinner
'Ohana Dinner
Tusker House Breakfast
Sci-Fi Lunch
Akershus Breakfast

We normally eat QS at (We also thoroughly enjoy the desserts and would order them OOP):

Pizzafari
Sunshine Seasons or Boulangerie Pâtisserie
Columbia Harbor House
ABC Commisary
Two Resort Breakfasts (Port Orleans Riverside this year)

Snacks usually include

Dole Whip Floats and a visit to the Candy Cauldron in Downtown Disney for take home treats.

We always buy the adults resort mugs, but usually not the children.

So taking all this into account should we buy the DDP or pay OOP?

 

[sharonabe]

It looks like you have a little under $600 in your TS meals.

So, will you "spend" another $270-280 on QS and snacks? Kids' QS are $6 x2 x 6 = $72

Now you have $200. With just the adult 6 QS, that would be $16.60 a meal. With drinks and desserts, that's doable (except for you QS breakfast, which will be a few dollars less, so you'll need to really maximize the others).

Then your snacks and mugs are free.

You will at least break even, but most of your snacks and the mugs will be free if you utilize all your credits and all your entitlements at each meal.

 

[DeskinsFamily]

Thank you - I was thinking my math was correct and we would be at least breaking even by adding the DDP.

The only cost I would really like to recoup are the resort mugs for our little two because I can't imagine that a 4 and 6 year old would get much use from them.

I also wouldn't care if I lost a dollar or two simply for the sheer convenience of being able to use the dining plan as I've become spoiled to the ease of it.

We may do Peco's Bills and both QS at Epcot and just pay out of pocket for any resort QS - that way I know we will be breaking even.

 

[ktrask]

We are getting it, and based on calculations are just about breaking even. We will come out ahead by paying for it with gift cards bought at Target. I use the red debit card and save 5% per card. It ends up close to $45 savings using them to pay for the dining plan. ( we will also use them to pay for the rest of our package)