Talk DxDDP to me!

[jawa7400]

DH and I are wanting to go on an adults only anniversary trip where we hit several signature restaurants and TS meals (things we can't do with 2 kids in tow on a normal trip). We love the DDP for the all-inclusive feel and we typically eat/try things we normally wouldn't because it's already paid for. Has anyone routinely done the DxDDP? Anyone used it for this type of scenario? Thoughts?

 

[senadler]

We have done the deluxe plan in the past, but it is getting more difficult for it to make financial sense. We only did the plan our last trip because we had family traveling with us and were able to share the credits. It also seems to make more sense if you have children in the party and can use their credits for adult meals.

If you are doing a number of signature restaurants, it may work for you, but the real question is whether you would order an appetizer and desert for most meals. For us, if I plan out the meals and it is close to breaking even, I would get the plan. I also like the all-inclusive feel, but I don't want to waste money.

 

[mustlovecats]

We used the dx dining plan on our last trip and we definitely came out ahead but we pooled credits with our family traveling at the same time. We will be using it for just the two of us for our trip next year, but we always order a salad and a dessert and drink a lot of starbucks. While we may not come out so ahead, we should break even.

 

[sharonabe]

Just remember that if you do the DxDDP, you will have TWO apps, TWO entrees, and TWO desserts at EVERY meal. While it can be fun, and you can try different things, that's still a lot of food. Even though the cost of the same entitlements would probably be more OOP, DH and I just could not eat that much food without wasting a good deal of it.

Add in the FOUR snacks each day that you need to find room for, and the plan just doesn't work for us. YMMV.

 

[jawa7400]

We used the dx dining plan on our last trip and we definitely came out ahead but we pooled credits with our family traveling at the same time. We will be using it for just the two of us for our trip next year, but we always order a salad and a dessert and drink a lot of starbucks. While we may not come out so ahead, we should break even.

What do you mean by pooling credits with others traveling with you? It's my understanding that everyone on your reservation either has the plan or not. Is there another way to do this? It makes much more financial sense to do the DxDDP if you're splitting it with others.

 

[mustlovecats]

Sorry if that wasn't clear, by that I meant that my parents and sister traveled at the same time as us, just in a different room. Everyone in the same room has to be on the same plan.

 

[Baklava]

Just remember that if you do the DxDDP, you will have TWO apps, TWO entrees, and TWO desserts at EVERY meal. While it can be fun, and you can try different things, that's still a lot of food. Even though the cost of the same entitlements would probably be more OOP, DH and I just could not eat that much food without wasting a good deal of it.

Add in the FOUR snacks each day that you need to find room for, and the plan just doesn't work for us. YMMV.

Our plan is to use a number of snack credits for take-home treats. (That is, if DS 18 does not drink them all at Starbucks.)

 

[brinkley07]

We just returned and used the deluxe plan for my friend, myself, and my 2 yo. In the past DH and I have used it for adults only and it felt like a ton of food, and now with having my DS I feel like I'm not wasting as much since he eats off of both of our plates. This trip they actually screwed up or we got some pixie dust and we ended up paying for the plan for 2 adults and got credits for 3. It was like food coming out of our ears!!!! It has loosened up with the ability to share items and give credits to other people, so it worked out well in some cases because I have a friend who lives locally and was able to eat with us for multiple meals. I prefer using it for one early 1 credit meal and then 1 signature each day because it's soooo much food! We did take a TON of gifts back home from our snack credits too. If you are a foodie it's great because you can try so many things, but be prepared to feel like you are rolling out of eat meal. We literally returned yesterday and had the new brunch at Narcoosee's which I would definitely recommend. We also loved our dinners at Yachtsman and Narcoosee's. Have a great time!

 

[shortnsassy730]

We always go Deluxe. We arrive early on first day and leave late on our last day so we use some credits there. We are big Signature eaters and sometimes do two Signatures by going to the Brown Derby/Boathouse for lunch and then another Signature for dinner. The apps at Signatures are not very large and the meals as a whole tend not to be super heavy at Signatures except for maybe Yachtsman Steakhouse. We do an early lunch and a late dinner. We do tend to do buffets for lunch sometimes because of one the cost and two we can eat to satisfaction and not have to clear three meals. You can also sub desserts for a nice hot tea after your meal which I personally enjoy in the evening. I say write down everywhere you want to go and see how many credits it would take and then decide.

 

[jawa7400]

Sorry if that wasn't clear, by that I meant that my parents and sister traveled at the same time as us, just in a different room. Everyone in the same room has to be on the same plan.

So when you do this, do you split the cost ahead of time for the dining plan with those people? Also, do you have to eat all meals together for the others to use your credits? We are taking a 5-family trip this summer and this might be a viable option.

 

[jawa7400]

We always go Deluxe. We arrive early on first day and leave late on our last day so we use some credits there. We are big Signature eaters and sometimes do two Signatures by going to the Brown Derby/Boathouse for lunch and then another Signature for dinner. The apps at Signatures are not very large and the meals as a whole tend not to be super heavy at Signatures except for maybe Yachtsman Steakhouse. We do an early lunch and a late dinner. We do tend to do buffets for lunch sometimes because of one the cost and two we can eat to satisfaction and not have to clear three meals. You can also sub desserts for a nice hot tea after your meal which I personally enjoy in the evening. I say write down everywhere you want to go and see how many credits it would take and then decide.

Your plan sounds like what I had in mind for our adults-only anniversary trip. Do you ever feel tied down to all those ADRs or is that the point of your trip?

 

[mustlovecats]

So when you do this, do you split the cost ahead of time for the dining plan with those people? Also, do you have to eat all meals together for the others to use your credits? We are taking a 5-family trip this summer and this might be a viable option.

Well, we were partly treating my parents and sister so they gave us only a small amount of money for it, but they did pay us a small amount. We did eat all meals together, but you could in theory give them one of your magic bands temporarily for a meal, especially if you have an extra one from a previous trip. I don't know the relationship between you and the people you were traveling with, but I would have had no problem lending an old extra magic band to my parents for a meal.

You can see an in depth summary of how we used all of our credits and the amount of money we saved in my post here: http://www.disboards.com/threads/deluxe-dining-plan-recap-and-new-credit-pooling.3465174/

I'm happy to discuss via PM as well. It was definitely worth it financially for our family.

 

[jawa7400]

Thank you!!

 

[shortnsassy730]

Your plan sounds like what I had in mind for our adults-only anniversary trip. Do you ever feel tied down to all those ADRs or is that the point of your trip?

Sorry for the delay in responding. I don't really feel too tied down. We tend to go in slower times like the week after Thanksgiving, or February. So hitting the parks at rope drop we get a lot done and then our 3 fast passes after lunch. We enjoy the fine dining as much as the attractions too though and like to have a nice break. We don't do a lot of park hopping on deluxe dining trips as the hopping/travel time and the meals combined take a lot of time.

 

[jawa7400]

Good idea on the park hopping. We want to do/see attractions that we don't normally do with our preschool age kids. And spend some serious time in EPCOT!!

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

Just remember that if you do the DxDDP, you will have TWO apps, TWO entrees, and TWO desserts at EVERY meal. While it can be fun, and you can try different things, that's still a lot of food. Even though the cost of the same entitlements would probably be more OOP, DH and I just could not eat that much food without wasting a good deal of it.

Add in the FOUR snacks each day that you need to find room for, and the plan just doesn't work for us. YMMV.

When we did it, there were three of us, so it was THREE of each, plus SIX snacks.

We still enjoyed it.

I have celiac disease, so eating at Disney is quite the treat. There are only about 5 places around my hometown that serve meals that can be trusted as gluten free. Whereas at Disney, I can eat pretty much, anywhere.