Then...and now..

[Lassie Lynne]

So, while I was calculating prices with Free Dining, my DH couldn't believe how much the buffet meals at Crystal Palace, Boma, etc. were.

So, it got me thinking, and since I am such a planner, I went back to my spreadsheets from January 2005 which was the last trip we took before the dining plan came into effect (or right around the time it did....I do remember that September we went back and that was the first year we had Free Dining). I had budgeted $55.00 for two people (including tip) at Crystal Palace, and I just looked it up and I saw that the going rate is around $40 per person . So then, I figured out that we took my parents to Ankerhaus that same trip for $100 (my dad paid the tip).....which is about what two people at Crystal Palace would pay, counting a nice tip.

I knew prices had gone up, but can't believe so quickly...double in 7 years. Do you think that Free Dining has driven up prices?? Could it be something else??

 

[OhThePain]

IMO, the dining plan as a whole, free or not, is what caused these prices to go up so much. The powers that be are not dumb, although some would disagree. They probably noticed that the buffets and family style restaurants are some of the more popular restaurants on property and that no matter what every adult will cost the same and every child will cost the same. This allowed them to raise the prices to a point where paying OOP for them is almost not worth it, but makes the DDP seem like a great value. This forces the hands of many, especially with kids that are considered Disney adults, to either purchase a DDP or rely on getting FD. DDP keeps people in the parks and on property. Since people are in the parks longer, they are spending more money.

Does it cost that much more for these restaurants to run now than it did 7 years ago? No, especially if you noticed how the quality of the food has gone down at most of these locations greatly. Does the higher cost make the DDP look like a great value? Absolutely. Does Disney make a fortune off the sales of the dining plans or even off of FD? The dining plans would not be so popular if they weren't.

 

[TDC Nala]

The prices for buffets and all you can eat restaurants skyrocketed in the past few years. A la carte restaurants are up, but not so sharply. Some speculate it was to steer DDP users to buffets, but we really don't know why.

 

[sunsetbeachgal]

Lynne,

Very interesting...thanks. if you have the information handy I would also be interested to see what the price increases have been for the room rates over the same time period. Think they also might show a very large increase!

 

[Lassie Lynne]

Lynne,

Very interesting...thanks. if you have the information handy I would also be interested to see what the price increases have been for the room rates over the same time period. Think they also might show a very large increase!

For our trip in Jan 2005, 7 nights at Pop, 5 day parkhoppers cost $1155. The Pop rooms were $59 (this was room only discount, regular price $89)

My quote for 7 nights at Pop, 5 day PH for this September was $1665, with no room dicount and free dining. Regular price of room, $92 weekday, $107 weekend.

So, from just my prespective and this info, room rates at Pop had slowly increased, park tickets have really increased, and room only discounts are a little less than they were in 2005. Food, though, as you can see have probably had the biggest increase.


YMMV though!!

 

[NeverlandClub23]

The dining plan is not a new thing ("free" dining is). We were on a dining plan through Disney World during our trips in '93, '96, and '99, which included 3 TS meals a day, appetizer/entree/dessert, drink, and gratuity at each.

I think Disney's huge marketing team just constantly tries to figure out how to increase the bottom line and what marketing tricks work (which I would expect out of any business). "Free" dining has obviously worked, now I think they're just balancing a fine line between what the OOP guest will pay and increasing what "free" dining people feel is a great deal (i.e. if they charge almost $50 for a buffet and I can get the "free" dining plan, what a steal!). Also, they're hoping to increase the amount of people to switch to paying for the DDP because they'll view it as a great "savings" if they increase the cost of the meals exhorbitantly. It is a fine line though, if they increase it too much, some people will balk that used to eat all their meals at WDW and now search outside the Disney compound for their meals.

We used to eat 2-3 TS meals a day during our trips. We definitely cut that down during our trip last December and I expect we will even more so this December. We have always loved eating at WDW as much as visiting the parks, but there comes a time when the cost just doesn't seem worth what you're getting (even if you can afford it). Some people may never feel that way, but we surely are slowly getting to that point.

 

[Colleen27]

It isn't just the food... Disney's prices have shot up in many areas, and I think it is mostly "because they can" rather than related to any one factor. I couldn't justify $250ish for the Poly on our first trip in '05 so we stayed at a moderate; I kick myself for that now because the Poly is up to $435 for the same time of year now.