Thinking of going from DDP to DDPx...I'd love some feedback

[Little E]

@Nancyg56 thank you! This is really helpful. I'm thinking the DDPx isn't for us. I'm sure we'd love all the food offerings of this plan but it sounds like from your post and previous posts in my thread, to really get the full value of this upgraded plan, you need a lot more TS experiences than we usually have. While my family likes to eat, they like the attractions more. I didn't realize how TS heavy this plan has to be to get the full bang for the buck. I think we *might* do a max of two TS meals in a couple of days during our week long vacation. Beyond that, my family wants primarly QS meals, so we aren't sitting in restaurants. They want to ride the rides! They also like 3-4 snacks during the day. So, I think we'll stick with the DDP and put more $ on a Disney gift card to cover snacks.

Again, this is why I appreciate the Dis so much! I get good info to help me make good decisions for upcoming trips. Yay!

 

[tzeitel]

Are you booking one room or 2? It could always change but so far if you have the DxDP you can share dining credits. So if you have 2 rooms you can add the plan to one room and share. You can have the plan on the room with 2 or 3 people (depending on how many credits you think you need) and it could cover you all for the whole stay. There is a sticky thread that shows people successfully sharing credits.

 

[WIll C]

@WIll C thanks for the reminder! I always purchase Disney gift cards at either Sam's Club or at Target for a discount. We charge snacks and tips on our magic bands back to the room, and then I pay down the balance each night at the front desk with our Disney gift cards. However, I've never attempted to pay for an entire trip using gift cards. Have you done this? My worry is if we have to cancel our trip for some reason, it goes back on the gift cards, and my $$ is tied up in Disney gift cards. Am I way off base here?

We only used them for incidentals at the park (merchandise, incidental food, etc) but not anything larger. I have the Chase Disney Visa and used that for our reservations/tickets/dining and never tried to go with a huge amount of gift cards. Not sure it would be a safe way to go. I'd rather have the benefits from the card.

 

[sydneysmom]

For our family, we chose the deluxe plan. We have done this in the past, and we love it. Now, it’s not always the most economical, but for us, it give us an “all inclusive” vacation. We don’t have to worry about what to order, or the price, or whatever. The only thing “extra” is tips. I’ve been saving my TopCashBack funds, so one we’re ready for our trip, I’ll cash that out, put it on a Disney gift card for tips....tips are done and a freebie. We like doing 3 sit down meals a day....it’s good relaxing time. And it doesn’t have to consume a ton of time either.
When we went to Universal, we had no dining plan,and by the end of the week, we were like “no, you’re not ordering that , it’s pushing me over the edge”. And we nickeled and dimed everthing....I hated that. But by the end of the week of handing the credit card over, what seemed like every 5 minutes, enough was enough. ( so hey, Disney, take it all up front and I’ll Jedi mind trick myself!).

We usually come out ahead though, but for us it’s pure convenience, and that my husband doesn’t have to care what everybody orders.

 

[Dakota731]

WE have big eaters in our group and we do the regular dining plan. Some of the counter service meals are huge, and I’ve done the math and it saves money for us because we choose expensive entrees at higher priced restaurants. I do have to pack breakfast stuff though for hubby and I use my snacks for a yogurt parfait and fruit for breakfast.