Tell me about Disney Dinning Plan?

[Tigger031266]

Is it worth it? What is the cost per person (we have 6 people)? Where do I buy it?

 

[billyb1]

You buy it at checkin, but you have to tell MS a week before or more.
Must buy for the number of nights you are staying and for the entire party,

I believe its $37.99 for adults (soon to be $38,99) and $10.99 for kids.

You get one Tables Service meal (app, entree, non-alc beverage and dessert) this includes most character meals. One Counter Service Meal (food, drink, dessert) and one snack (ice cream, water, popcorn, etc..) per day/

But its all rolled up into one big lump. If you had 4 adults and two kids for 6 days. You would checkin, pay about $1050 ($173.94 per day), and have 36 TS, 36 CS and 36 Snacks on your key to be used by midnight of your checkout day. Gratuity is included. If you get anything not included, the rest. will write two checks.

Its a great deal, especially if you consider a character meal or Table Service meal for 4 adults and 2 kids alone can be around $150 before tip,

If you are a 20% tipper, its like getting a free counter service lunch ($60-$75 for the same 4ad/2kids) and free round of snacks ($15-$20) with every TS meal. (as long as you eat at a Disney rest.) It takes a little bit of planning.

Most places participate, although a few at DTD do not. All parks and hotels do. There are also a group of "Signature dining options" that they will count as 2 TS credits for one meal. (not worth it dollar for dollar, but 2 meals a day and snack is SO much food, you may have extra) CRT, Backyard BBQ and Hoop de Do are in this category.

Only Problem I found was, if you leave WDW for a day (Sea Worl/Universal) you will be hard pressed to eat all of your already payed for food.

Bill

 

[dianeschlicht]

We are just finishing up a 10 day trip where we used DDP for the first time. We had a split reservation with the first 5 days in a 2 bedroom with 5 people and the last 5 with just 2 of us in a 1 bedroom. We decided first of all that it is WAY too much food!! It definitely is a saving if you eat at a table service each day like we do, but it is tough to forget about the fact that you have those counter services to use, so most feel they have to use them to get their value out of it. We had to let 6 counter services expire without being used on our first 5 days. Looks like we'll only have 2 that will expire on the second 5 days though when it has just been two of us.

It really is handy to not have to carry money around for meals or tips though!!! It just is very difficult to track when there are more folks along. Our over all impression that it is fine for the 2 of us, since we like the table service and signature restaurants, but it is less of a value for families or groups that iinclude more than one family group. It really is just too much food.

 

[dumbo71]

DDP

 

[Cruelladeville]

I used every last one of my meals, nothing left over, and gained 15 pounds in a week! It was so good, though!

 

[billyb1]

I just got back Saturday Night and I have yet to step on the scale... I am on a diet as of yesterday.

It is really too much food. I normally would not get 4 brownies with a counter service lunch.. but I had already payed for them, so why not! Half a brownie for my wife, half for one daughter, the other doesn't eat brownies.... and 3 for me! ONly if I have to... I normally would not get an appetizer (not to mention 2) with an Epcot Dinner AND desserts.. but I did. casue I already payed for them. I was trying to figure out how they are working out the deal with the restaurants.. somebody is taking a hit. I guess they are counting on you to not finish off your allotment.... but I wasn't letting them off that easily.

We had 8 extra CS on checkout day. No problem. Take-out breakfast in the room from AP before packing, and Wolfgang Puck Express on the way to the airport. and my credits were spent. Snacks and TS were gone on Friday.

 

[CarolMN]

...(snip)....It is really too much food. I normally would not get 4 brownies with a counter service lunch.. but I had already payed for them, so why not! Half a brownie for my wife, half for one daughter, the other doesn't eat brownies.... and 3 for me! ONly if I have to... I normally would not get an appetizer (not to mention 2) with an Epcot Dinner AND desserts.. but I did. casue I already payed for them. .....(snip)....

I had a similar problem.

Why must I order more than I normally would because it is aready paid for and included? That is not logical and I know it and my DH has no problem ordering reasonably, but I have a problem. Guess it's kind of like byuying a dress I don't need because it is on sale and I would be saving lots of $$!

I'm solving my problem by not getting the DDP ever again. If I feel an irresistable need for a discount, I will just buy the DDE. Much healthier option for me! And the savings will be real because I won't be ordering just because I can, LOL.

 

[mikron]

It felt like I was on a train schedual. Like watching the time for fast pass, you don't want to miss your time. To much food and takes time I realized I didn't need to waste to eat so much. Plenty of food places, at good prices when I want to eat. I go to enjoy disney and not worry if I am getting my value for the money I put out up front. If you rent or drive a car to disney, visit highway 192 east and west. Short drive and every restraunt you want at cheaper then disney prices.

 

[dumbo71]

Gotta say everytime I hear someone say they won't do the DDP again a big grin comes over my face. Is this wrong?

Right or wrong that is how I feel.

Is there a list of WDW restaurants that DO NOT take the DDP? Those are the places that I will patronize. Now, if every place takes it I'll eat off site and save my receipts. I will then enclose those receipts with a nice letter to WDW letting them know how much of my money they lost.

 

[graygables]

We recently used the DDP for the 1st time (I was a 'hater' before). DD is a CM, and they were offering a nice discount to families for the holidays, so we took advantage of it. We usually eat at a TS restaurant once a day anyway and DH is a big eater (very high metabolism, never gains weight). If you plan it carefully, it can be a good thing.

For CS meals, we tried to eat where they had a "portable" dessert (cookies, Zebra Domes ) that we could save for a snack later. We used the TS mostly for buffets/family style so everyone's eating patterns pretty much stayed the same and DH always gets us our money's worth. When we go out, it's a very special thing, so we do usually get appetizers and dessert, but we share, so DH eats more of it, and, I'm on vacation! Our last day, we had 11 snack credits left and used those on Mickey rice krispie treat to bring home for souvenirs as well as bottled water and bags of pretzels for the road. I understand that if you have CS credits left, some resorts are allowing you to "trade" for snacks so you don't lose them on your last day. For us, it was just a matter of careful planning/budgeting. 10yo DD and I are both insulin resistant and have weight issues, but we were able to easily manage, not gain weight (even lost a little), and still feel like we had some special treats.

That doesn't mean I haven't written Disney about the "dumbing down" of the restaurants, but for us, we saved a HUGE amount of money eating pretty much how we'd eat anyway.

 

[NMW]

Gotta say everytime I hear someone say they won't do the DDP again a big grin comes over my face. Is this wrong?

Right or wrong that is how I feel.

Is there a list of WDW restaurants that DO NOT take the DDP? Those are the places that I will patronize. Now, if every place takes it I'll eat off site and save my receipts. I will then enclose those receipts with a nice letter to WDW letting them know how much of my money they lost.

Just curious, but WHY do you hate the dining plan? Did you have a bad experience using it?

As for a list of WDW restaurants that DO not take the plan, I don't think you'd have much luck. ALL WDW OWNED restaurants take the plan. The majority of non-owned ones take the plan also-like the ones in Epcot. DTD is the only location where you don't see most of the restaurants on the plan. I believe only WGP, Raglan Road and Captain Jacks take it. Although, I believe some of the others there take the premium dining plan.

I'm really curious as to why you'd rather eat offsite than a restaurant that takes the plan. You don't have to buy the plan to eat at the restuarant. In Oct our family used the dining plan for 9 days but, we also paid cash to eat 6 extra TS breakfasts and 3 TS lunches. We also paid cash for 1 TS dinner so we could do a signature meal with the plan. We were not treated any differently when we used the plan VS paying cash. The plan was very easy to use and it seemed like everyone around us was on the plan. It's a very good value for the money. I would prefer a plan that allowed 2 TS meals per day (like the old Dreammaker silver plan). I really miss that plan and yes, I would pay more $$ for it.

Many people on the restaurant board have posted about WDW sending them surveys about changing the plan-like making 2 and 3 TS a day meal plans available (for more money of course). I think the DDP is a money maker for Disney and it isn't going anywhere. If anything, I think they will come out will more inclusive, more expensive meal plans before they would ever get rid of it. Lots of families like ours would buy them. But that is just my opinion.

I know some people on the Dis posted that WDW would get rid of the plan and that it would not last. FWIW, I never thought that would happen. People LOVE all inclusive vacations. I can't tell you how many people I know go on cruises for that very reason. My neighbors just got back from some all inclusive place in Mexico. For 30 minutes they talked about how great it was not having to carry around cash, about how all these great restaurants were included, etc... They are going to WDW in April, WITH the dining plan. I swear I think they are more excited about that than anything else. She's already asked my opinion of 6 different restaurants-all on the plan naturally.

 

[rinkwide]

...My neighbors just got back from some all inclusive place in Mexico. For 30 minutes they talked about...how all these great restaurants were included, etc... They are going to WDW in April, WITH the dining plan. I swear I think they are more excited about that than anything else. She's already asked my opinion of 6 different restaurants-all on the plan naturally...

Do these people happen to ride around on ECVs?

 

[jprsrethi]

We have to children 7 and 2, the two year old will be 3 in January. The DDP is a great way to pay for your meals up front. We paid $10.99 per day for each child. I think it is a great way for my children to try different things. If you don't do the DDP you are going to spend more than $10.99 a day on meals for the kids even if you go to Mcdonalds. With the DDP they have great healty food for the kids. Both my kids love it. We will never go to Disney without getting the DDP added onto our trip. We usually end up buying others breakfast on our last day. Just our two cents, we love it

 

[disneyokw]

I work for a well known obesity doctor and I showed this to him. He thought what I had thought. Disney is promoting obesity. Especially in the past 3 years everyone has read, seen on the news about obesity and the outcome. Even the schools are making changes, in New York they are banning cooking with trans fat. You may say but it is only for one week or a few days, but those few days do change your metabolism and it is hard to go back. I've typed and naturally read several reports (the CDC, the Health Dept) and I told my family I don't care if Disney is giving the food away we are not doing the plan. Like someone above said don't you see all the people in the ECV? They have obesity related problems. Why risk your family's health? Its not worth it in the long run.

 

[sammax]

My husband and I recently returned from a trip with the dining plan, and we loved it. We don't think it was too much food, and neither of us is overweight. We shared a counter service breakfast, usually a platter with eggs, bacon etc, we shared a counter service lunch, wherever took our fancy as we wandered around the parks, and we had a TS for supper. We had appetizer for our TS, but ended up never ordering dessert. We didn't feel we HAD to have dessert just because it was paid for. We looked at it as getting a free breakfast and lunch. I would do the dining plan every time, because it suits our vacation style, but with a family or children it might be very different.

 

[tigger2esq]

we used the DDP last week on our trip and while I never felt like I truly overate, I most likely never would have ordered that many desserts in a week. We were on the DP for 5 days. I think we never felt overstuffed b/c we used 2 of our credits for the hoop de do, which left 1 day without a table service. we alos used the remaining credits on character meals etc. the only meal we did a true TS with appetizers etc. was at the coral reef and the portions there were very reasonable so we didnt feel overstuffed. we did end up sharing a lot of the CS meals so that we were able to cover 2 meals each day with the CS credits. I also let my DD have a few more "treats" like popcorn and a soft pretzles than I would have if I was using cash. we also used a few snack credits for snack mix and crackers etc. for the trip home. overall though we figured we saved over $200 over the cash price with tax and tip of the food we ate. we would definitely use it again.

 

[dumbo71]

Just curious, but WHY do you hate the dining plan? Did you have a bad experience using it?

I'm really curious as to why you'd rather eat offsite than a restaurant that takes the plan.

I'm glad you asked.

I've never used the DDP or the free dining promotion. NEVER will.

I have seen changes with WDW dining and I can tell you it is not for the better. The food is generic and scaled down to accomodate the masses. We've seen to go orders eliminated at many places including Olivias, ESPN and Beaches and Cream.

I attribute all of these changes to DDP and the free dining promotions.

In the past WDW restaurants had competition. They had to provide a good product and varied menus or people would simply go elsewhere. Now with so many people using these plans the guests are trapped on property making sure they get their moneys worth. WDW doesn't have to maintain high standards anymore. They have a captive audience.

Another side effect of DDP and free dining is the restaurants are packed. In the past we never made ADR's. We would get to WDW and make a few ADR's for our stay then. If you do that now you'll be lucky to get in anywhere. I do not want to plan my whole trip 180 days in advance to get a seat at these crummy restaurants. Bad enough you have to book DVC so far in advance. I don't find all that planning relaxing in the least.

I will not support this plan out of principle and I hope others follow up with complaints. Just because you saved money does not mean it is good in the long run.

The part of your post about not carrying money????? We don't carry money at WDW, we charge to the room. DDP would be more work IMO. We've seen numerous reports of how god they are with tracking that.

If this slide continues I'll be out. A good meal with a bottle of wine is an important element of our DVC trips and will get even more important as our son ages. Force me to go off site to get that and I might as well stay there.

 

[jodifla]

I'm glad you asked.

I've never used the DDP or the free dining promotion. NEVER will.

I have seen changes with WDW dining and I can tell you it is not for the better. The food is generic and scaled down to accomodate the masses. We've seen to go orders eliminated at many places including Olivias, ESPN and Beaches and Cream.

I attribute all of these changes to DDP and the free dining promotions.

In the past WDW restaurants had competition. They had to provide a good product and varied menus or people would simply go elsewhere. Now with so many people using these plans the guests are trapped on property making sure they get their moneys worth. WDW doesn't have to maintain high standards anymore. They have a captive audience.

Another side effect of DDP and free dining is the restaurants are packed. In the past we never made ADR's. We would get to WDW and make a few ADR's for our stay then. If you do that now you'll be lucky to get in anywhere. I do not want to plan my whole trip 180 days in advance to get a seat at these crummy restaurants. Bad enough you have to book DVC so far in advance. I don't find all that planning relaxing in the least.

I will not support this plan out of principle and I hope others follow up with complaints. Just because you saved money does not mean it is good in the long run.

The part of your post about not carrying money????? We don't carry money at WDW, we charge to the room. DDP would be more work IMO. We've seen numerous reports of how god they are with tracking that.

If this slide continues I'll be out. A good meal with a bottle of wine is an important element of our DVC trips and will get even more important as our son ages. Force me to go off site to get that and I might as well stay there.

Exactly. All those who enjoy the DDP don't realize or don't care that they are partly responsible for killing the Disney dining experience.

The DDP is a horrible cross between a pyramid scheme and a shell game, with the resulting rapid downward spiral for service, ambience and quality.

 

[dumbo71]

Exactly. All those who enjoy the DDP don't realize or don't care that they are partly responsible for killing the Disney dining experience.

The DDP is a horrible cross between a pyramid scheme and a shell game, with the resulting rapid downward spiral for service, ambience and quality.

Thank you and you know what we are not the only two that feel this way. Others need to "get a set" and voice their feelings out free dining and DDP.

Voice here AND directly to WDW.

 

[NMW]

Do these people happen to ride around on ECVs?

No, actually they are quite slim. I've been to parties and other events with them and I gather they are similar to DH and I. We eat fairly healthy and exercise year round but, eat (and drink ) anything we want while on vacation. We also don't work-out on vacations, no matter how nice the health clubs are. I just don't believe that 9 days of calorie-rich food and drinks will ruin your health/cause you to be obese/require you to use ECVS. I think how you live the rest of your year matters more.