Tables in Wonderland any info

[SIMJUN]

Can anyone tell me about Tables in Wonderland?

thanks

 

[redzinner]

Here is the info from this forum:
Tables in Wonderland

 

[OKW Lover]

Just to add to the info you'll find on the link; if you qualify to buy one (FL resident or AP) don't be scared off by the price. Its really not hard to make this pay for itself after only a few meals if you frequent any of the sit-down restaurants.

 

[BriarRosie]

BTW, there is no reason to mention the TIW card until the check is presented.

Yeah, what Jeff said. Also, the criteria is Florida resident OR annual passholder. I don't live in Florida, but I do have an annual pass, so I was eligible. And it costs $75 to AP holders vs. $100 to Florida residents who are NOT also AP holders.

If you're spending more than $375 on table service (and eat at the few counter service places that accept it), the discount is significant after the break even point. Yes, you're paying back gratuities, but that's the nature of typical dining out anyway. So that is roughly the net savings overall.

 

[melser13]

I think it depends on your eating habits. My husband and I purchased APs and TIW on our last trip. It worked well for us and for our needs. That trip was just the 2 of us, but our next one is our entire family going and since we don't hardly eat at CS, the TIW makes better sense for us. Just evaluate your ADRs and how your family eats when out at restaurants. The other thing that helped us is that my DH and I do like to enjoy a beer or a glass of wine with dinner (sometimes a bottle as we did for our 10th anniversary dinner at the California Grill ) so the TIW includes that for us, whereas the DP does not. Plus, we don't do desserts, so this doesn't leave us feeling like we NEED to eat.

Just our opinion and how it has worked for us so far.

 

[dzneelvr]

We've used this discount plan for several trips and it really works for our family of 4We're not huge eaters, so the free dining plans with all the course requirements would be too much food for us, plus we've witnessed many (and will again on our Christmas trip) meltdowns by guests who don't understand all the parameters of the "free" plansWe usually save around $300 for a week's worth of TS meals, which is fine in our book

 

[Cheshire Figment]

Here is a working example, using $100.00 as the original bill to make the math show up easily. Note this is for Table Service. At Counter Service there is no gratuity added.

100.00 - Original Amount
*20.00 - Discount
*80.00 - Subtotal
*18.00 - Gratuity Added based on $100
**5.20 - Sales Tax on $80
103.20 - Final amount charged, takes into consideration discount, gratuity and tax.

Without TiW Discount (and still figuring 18% Gratuity)

100.00 - Amount of Bill
*18.00 - Gratuity
**6.50 - Sales Tax on $100
124.50 - Total

$21.30 - Savings using TiW Card.

(Note - At Victoria and Albert's the added gratuity is 20% instead of 18%.)
* Ignore the asterisks; they are there only so the columns/numbers line up properly.

 

[SIMJUN]

Thanks, it does sound as though it will be worth it for us.

 

[Jerseyguy's Wife]

We love TIW. We don't need a dessert at every meal (which we feel obligated to eat on the DDP because it's "included"). Half the time, we split our meals. We are free to order whatever we want off the menu. On the DDP, we had to order the boys stuff off the kids' menus. Well, there's only so many chicken nuggets you can choke down; this way, we can order the kids whatever they want and still get 20% off.
As far as planning the cost of food (I have heard this argument FOR the DDP), I just figure the actual cost of the meal. For example: The Cape May breakfast is priced at $26.99 for adults and $13.99 for kids. I add up 2 adult meals and 2 kids' meals. I don't bother to add the tip because I know that if I plan for the full price of breakfast, I'll have plenty once the 18% tip is added.
I haven't read to see if this is still a perk or not, but the last time we had TIW, it covered valet parking if you were eating at a resort. At that point, TIW paid for itself in the first couple of days (I think at the time valet parking was $12).

 

[snykymom]

We love TIW. We don't need a dessert at every meal (which we feel obligated to eat on the DDP because it's "included"). Half the time, we split our meals. We are free to order whatever we want off the menu. On the DDP, we had to order the boys stuff off the kids' menus. Well, there's only so many chicken nuggets you can choke down; this way, we can order the kids whatever they want and still get 20% off.
As far as planning the cost of food (I have heard this argument FOR the DDP), I just figure the actual cost of the meal. For example: The Cape May breakfast is priced at $26.99 for adults and $13.99 for kids. I add up 2 adult meals and 2 kids' meals. I don't bother to add the tip because I know that if I plan for the full price of breakfast, I'll have plenty once the 18% tip is added.
I haven't read to see if this is still a perk or not, but the last time we had TIW, it covered valet parking if you were eating at a resort. At that point, TIW paid for itself in the first couple of days (I think at the time valet parking was $12).

Valet parking is still a perk. At least for 2011.

I agree with you about the TiW. We don't like the DDP for all the reasons you mentioned, and a few others. We often like appetizers instead of or in addition to entrees, but we can't eat both appetizers and desserts at most meals (so the DxDP is too much food). And on the DDP, if you miss a TS ADR, you have to figure out how to use those credits or lose them. With TiW, if we don't feel like going to one, we simply cancel it and haven't lost anything. (Or if, like on the last trip, someone gets sick and doesn't want to eat, we haven't paid for something we didn't use.) Sometimes I like to have dessert a couple of hours after lunch or dinner. That's harder on the DDP. With TiW, no credit counting, no "is this worth the credit", no "what's included." We get what we want, when we want it.

We're also not FL residents, and I got my AP specifically because of the TiW! We do signature meals, and enjoy our adult beverages. Even though we're only 2 (maybe 3), we make up the cost quickly. And if we do V&A, we make up the cost on that one meal!

 

[wcpamotm]

We were in town this past April. It was not really a Disney trip, but wanted to try Hacienda so we renewed TIW for it. Then the next day, we took my sister's family out to dinner at Flying Fish for her birthday.

Just those two meals nearly paid for the card, and we hadn't even made a "real" visit yet!

 

[vellamint]

Valet parking is still a perk. At least for 2011.

!

Oh TRULY?!! I didnt know that free valet parking is still a perk of TIW!! YAY! That will be great for when drive over from BLIT to eat at Cape May!

 

[JZCubed]

Here is a working example, using $100.00 as the original bill to make the math show up easily. Note this is for Table Service. At Counter Service there is no gratuity added.

100.00 - Original Amount
*20.00 - Discount
*80.00 - Subtotal
*18.00 - Gratuity Added based on $100
**5.20 - Sales Tax on $80
103.20 - Final amount charged, takes into consideration discount, gratuity and tax.

Your math is misleading. If a check arrives with a Total of $100 (tax will have already been added) and you then apply a TiW Discount Card, then your newly adjusted amount (which will now include gratuity) will be lower than the original Total of $100.

The Bottom Line with TiW - your bottom line is lower and the gratuity has been included.

TiW works out very well for me and my family (usually four adults). The TiW card pays for itself around our first meal; we budget $75/day per person for Signature dining. The remaining TiW savings justifies my Annual Pass purchase.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

You raise a good point. I will make a minor modification in my text file to clarify "original amount" to be "original menu amount". Although, since I showed tax as a separate item, that the $100 is the menu prices should have been strongly implied.