Strict Plan or Organized Chaos on DDP?

[Astingel2016]

My family is taking our first Disney World trip in November the week of Thanksgiving (I know, busy time but it was either Thanksgiving or Christmas!). We have already booked our trip and have the dining plan. There are four of us, the youngest will be 13 when we go. Previously I had set up a strict plan of where we would eat and when. But after reviewing some things I thought maybe that was a bit much. So now I've taken it down to just planning for our table service meals. For quick service we'll just decide where we want to eat when we get hungry and with the dining plan we could theoretically eat at different places if we wanted to. My question: Is this plausible to do? The strict plan felt like too much but I don't know if maybe I'm not planning enough when it comes to food. Thoughts and suggestions on this would be incredibly helpful! Thanks in advance!

 

[fla4fun]

My family is taking our first Disney World trip in November the week of Thanksgiving (I know, busy time but it was either Thanksgiving or Christmas!). We have already booked our trip and have the dining plan. There are four of us, the youngest will be 13 when we go. Previously I had set up a strict plan of where we would eat and when. But after reviewing some things I thought maybe that was a bit much. So now I've taken it down to just planning for our table service meals. For quick service we'll just decide where we want to eat when we get hungry and with the dining plan we could theoretically eat at different places if we wanted to. My question: Is this plausible to do? The strict plan felt like too much but I don't know if maybe I'm not planning enough when it comes to food. Thoughts and suggestions on this would be incredibly helpful! Thanks in advance!

That sounds fine, to wait until the day of to decide on QS. If you don’t want to plan your QS the morning of and use Mobile Order, then I would plan on finding a place to eat about 30 minutes or so before you get really hungry, to account for waiting in line to order. Earlier in the week should be a little less crowded than the holiday weekend itself, so if you find the QS lines are really bad at the beginning of the trip, then use Mobile Order over the busier days. The dining window will still give you some flexibility. It will be better if you set up your Mobile Order early in the morning than to try to use it spontaneously as the slots could all fill up. Also, since all the food comes out of the same kitchen, don’t wait until you arrive at the restaurant to click “I’m here” if you are dining at typical lunch or dinner times. Click it when you are 15-20 minutes away so you aren’t standing around waiting for your food. Another option is to use your QS for breakfast, then just snack during the day and have your TS for dinner. This can work well if you are planning to use early entry. Go to the park and get some of the popular rides out of the way. When the crowds start to build on rides, have a spontaneous breakfast around ten and then plan dinner for early evening.

You don’t have to do every day the same way. Try it one way and then try it another. You may find MK and DHS require more QS planning than Epcot and AK. You may decide to use your TS for breakfast or lunch and eat QS dinner back at your resort at the end of the day. The important thing will be locking down your TS reservations, especially for the holiday weekend.

 

[nephykupo]

I like the idea of options and then just decide when you're there for QS. So, like a top 3 places for lunch and then go to whichever your family is in the mood for.

 

[Disneylover99]

Definitely pre-book and plan your table service meals.

For quick service be flexible. Just look at the menus and decide on a couple of places you might like to eat at, at wherever you happen to be.

Consider doing some table services as an early lunch instead of dinner, because plans tend to unravel as the day unfolds and then you end up with dinner reservations that nobody is hungry for or you’re just too tired to go to.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Pretty sure you’ve already found the perfect balance! Pre-plan TS to prevent unpleasant surprises and let it flow with QS.