Tell me about the Disney Dining Plans

[an_evans]

We love the dining plan! With young children its great to take a break mid-day and recharge. We tried lots of places we probably wouldn't have with out.....not becuase of money....more like ignorance. We did save money and loved th eluxury of having it all paid for ahead of time and ordering whatever we felt like.

 

[MommeeOfAPrnzess]

We are going in December with our dd who will be 4 - we never used the dining plan and we are looking forward to it as we will be trying places we normally couldn't afford! We are using our TS for lunch and the CS for dinner so we can sit down during the day and take a break - esp since dd takes a nap about 1ish.
I really don't want to go back to the room mid day so this will work.
We are using the arrive and depart days ts for a 2 credit one so, that will work too!
We are looking forward to trying the dining plan out - I am one to make reservations so, no biggie to me.
We haven't even tried it yet and just seeing everything we can get and not have to worry about the price, tax and tip - it looks good.
And again being able to try different places we normally wouldn't go to is a big plus for us.

 

[kxmeeh]

this will be my first trip to florida. on my last trip to disneyland, we had paper vouchers for meals, which made it very easy. i am confused about the dining credits being on our room keys. there are 6 of us going, and while the younger ones would never be without either myself or my husband, i am sure my bil (will be 19) and sil (will be 17) will go off on their own. does each person get a key with their own vouchers on it? what would stop the teenager from being a normal teenager and using all the snack credits on himself while having a hungry day in the parks by himself. i know it's unlikely, but have you ever seen an 18 yo football player eat??? sometimes, it's scary

 

[renessa]

We will never go back without the dining plan. We are two adults, like to go out for one sit-down meal per day. After much investigating we decided to go for it before our last trip. We loved it and will do it again September. Don't believe all the negative. People like to "blame" things...menu changes...etc. all on the plan. We looked at allearsnet.com and chose some restaurants. Then we picked out our choice for appetizer, entree, and dessert. We easily spend more than $40/pp in each meal. We are big eaters, like to try new things. When pricing, don't forget to add tax and tip. And you still get a counter service and a snack. It's a no brainer for us now! Have a great trip!

 

[brad3640]

i really think so, for about $40 a day you can't really beat it because if you pay out of pocket your going to probably spend way more than that because the food is not cheap!

 

[Katiebell]

This will be our first trip to WDW -- just two adults, DH and me. We decided to try the DDP, and I think it will work out well for us.

We go to DL about once a year, and usually like to have one sit down meal each day.
~A typical lunch at Blue Bayou runs us about $60 (no appetizer, and maybe sharing a dessert). We've never eaten dinner there because we felt it was just too costly -- but my understanding is that the lunch menu is now about the same price as the dinner menu since the refurb.
~Our last meal at Ralph Brennan's Jazz Kitchen was over $100 (shared appetizer and dessert).
~Waits for Rainforest were ridiculous -- we couldn't get in walk up at dinner, and had to wait about 45 min for a walk up for breakfast.
~We tried to get into the sports bar (ESPN?) for dinner, and were told on a walk up at 7:00 (tired and hungry) that we might get seated by 10:00 -- we gave up and bought counter service.
~We managed to get a same day ADR for Hook's Pointe, but it doesn't seem as busy or popular as the DTD restaurants.

So...DL doesn't have the DDP, but guests still have trouble getting in to the restaurants, and the prices are still high -- even if you don't order appetizers and desserts for everyone in your party.

I looked at our list of ADR's, and with beverage, tax, and tip I can see our bill easily being over $40/person. After adding in CS meals and snacks, we will definitely get our money's worth. And we aren't eating in the most expensive places, either. Do the math and figure out if it works for your eating habits and vacation habits If you usually bring groceries for meals and snacks in your room, don't like to take the time for TS, or are really light eaters, it's probably not a good deal for you.

The 4-miles-walked-per-day estimate seems really low to me. Last time I wore a pedometer at DL, one day we walked 17 miles. No wonder my feet always hurt by the second day! But I don't usually worry about gaining weight on a Disney vacation, even with all the extra treats and restaurant meals.

 

[Katiebell]

what would stop the teenager from being a normal teenager and using all the snack credits on himself while having a hungry day in the parks by himself. i know it's unlikely, but have you ever seen an 18 yo football player eat??? sometimes, it's scary

I have an almost 16 yo, and two grown boys as well. I'd tell him he can use ONE snack credit per day for himself, and if he wants more he has to pay for other snacks OOP. If he uses more than one snack credit per day from the card, then he has to pay me $4 for each one he uses, so I can buy my own darn Dole Whips!

 

[MommeeOfAPrnzess]

I think it will be nice for us
2 adults and a 5 year old dd
we are all big eaters and I allotted $40 for myself and dh and whatever dd wants (her trip - within reason of course) so right there I am saving $4 each day!
Plus we wouldn't be able to get the apps or dessert every day without the plan - like the one poster said with all the walking it will be easy to take it off!

with the 5 year old I am sure she will like the mid day break - that is when we are using our ts credits so, if she falls asleep she can get a good rest. She can sleep pretty much anywhere! (we are taking a stroller for her - I can't see her walking at all the parks and besides mommy will need help standing up by the end of the day! hehe)
I can't wait to try it!!