Tips and Advice for a DP Newbie

[suzsaz]

Hi. We are using DP for the very first time in January. We are 5 adults...2 in one room, 3 in another. Two separate reservations.

What advice can you give a newbie (not to DW, but to the DP). In other words, what things would you have changed to make the most of your plan.

What mistakes did you make? One person will probably not be going to the Parks (will stay at the resort studying for exams).

And, is it better to use a QS for breakfast (Coronado Springs) and just try to have a snack for lunch?

All thoughts would be appreciated.

Thank you.

 

[jlk806]

We prefer to use the snack credits for breakfast - (yogurt, cinnamon bun, pastry) and we did TS lunch between 11:30-12:00 so we really didnt need a big breakfast beforehand, then CS dinner whenever hungry again in the evening. We did alter that somehow somedays, did a couple character breakfasts, and a couple days where we did TS dinner instead of lunch. Then on those days we either did CS breakfast or early lunch.

I know most people like to use their TS credits for dinner, but we prefer lunch for a few reasons - 1.) I can usually predict where we will be at lunch time- we go to the park in the morning, do our early lunch stay till tired and go back to hotel for nap(we have a 2 year old), We usually do plan on returning to park in evening but it didnt always work out that way - either tired, or found something else to do instead so we could just eat CS wherever we ended up.
2.) We like to use snack credits for breakfast and then are hungry for a big lunch between 11:30-12
3.) We welcome the break of a nice TS lunch and break from the heat at lunchtime!!

 

[sndral]

I use snack for breakfast (fruit bowl for me) cs for lunch and ts for dinner. But I'm not a big breakfast eater. Can the exam studier take a break to join you for a ts dinner ADR?

 

[AmandaJayne]

Find the link that has all the snack credits..sorry i dont have it off hand...and memorize it. There are MANY things you can get for a small meal for bkft and lunch if your not a huge eater. Other posts mention a few things but there many to choose from.
Don't waste a snack credit on things such as an apple or banana..in my opinion..those things are cheap enough...like $.99..
get the largest size that is possible for drinks instead of soda all the time..at the resorts they offer other things like monster drinks..or something like..or gatorade..it's a nice change to soda and oj.
Count your credits after EACH meal..make sure they didn't take away too many. the first time we used it somehow we lost snack credits and cs credits by being overcharged..partly our fault we didnt know what we were doing. So each time i mark it down, so i know and can easier dispute it. Last time we had no problems though.
Hope this helps a little

 

[Krmrr]

Since you have two reservations, you'll have two separate accounts. One for 2 and one for 3. Not a big deal, but if you all eat together, be sure to tell your server to split the bill. You can not pay for 4 or 5 meals, if your card lists only 2 people. This applies to both TS & CS. Does not apply to snacks, you can get ALL of your snacks at one time, if you wish.

Have fun and enjoy your trip.

 

[tony67]

My advice and not to worry about getting the maximum value of the plan.

Go and order what you like.

I feel too many people try to maximize the value of the plan and end up ordering the most expensive items everywhere.
If you do not feel like dessert skip it. Over the days you are there you will most likely break even with the plan at a minimum.

Although an omelet for breakfast at the CSR may not be the best use for a QS credit, if you want one get it. I like to get it once or twice during a trip just for the change.
Also if you are at the CSR – the “better” options are after 4PM. The lunch options are limited in Pepper Market.

Another good place for breakfast is the Main Street Bakery. The strawberry and cream smoothie is really good.

Also one place that has really good food for a QS credit is Wolfgang Puck Express in the DTD marketplace (not the one on the Westside).
Pizza, Pasta and decent desserts. You will get a good meal and you will get about $25 in good food for your QS credit.

Another good place to use your QS credits is sunshine seasons in Epcot. They have a really nice selection of food and drinks. Something for everyone.

 

[basketlacey]

This has been good advice so far. I hope people keep adding to it.

We are also going soon for our first trip on the DDP. I think we will need to pay OOP for a couple meals so I am trying to figure out when to do that. I would hate to pay OOP and then end up with credits left over at the end!

 

[reelmom]

We are new to the DP also. We are doing the Quick Service Plan and I am starting to freak out. I have 9 months until my trip so I will have time to study but still freaking out.

 

[debbiebee]

I *loved* the Dining Plan - fantastic!!! My 1 tip would be to make sure you are on track to use all your CS credits and don't end up with loads left at the end. I would do this by stopping by at Main Street Bakery more and picking up a drink (fab smoothie or espresso were our faves) and a couple of pastries - which make a fab breakfast for the next day!

 

[tony67]

Another piece of advice.

Don't pay for things out of pocket because you think it is not worth a snack or CS credit.

If you end up paying for a bunch of things that are not "worth" a credit and then you do not use all your credits by the time you leave it is a waste.

I think a lot of people fall into this trap.

For example people do not want to use a CS credit for the hot dog meal at Casey’s because it is only 6.59 and they can get a $17 pasta at WPE so they pay for the hot dog at Casey’s,
but never make it to DTD for the pasta and go home with unused credits.

I feel too much time is being wasted during your vacation worrying about getting the most for your meal credits.

 

[tinka-belle]

Realize that some CS meals are big enough for 2 adults to split (1/2 chicken meals and the like), so some days you might save a couple of CS credits not used for lunch for a late night snack (NOT using as snack credits, just ordering a CS meal, like chicken nuggets, that a few people can share for a quick bite). For example, when at CSR we like to order a chicken quesadilla or a pizza for 1 CS credit at the Pepper Market for a late night snack on the way back to our rooms, especially if dinner was early. For the beverage & dessert we get bottled juice and a pastry to cover one person's breakfast the next day. Other times we use those extra CS credits for a CS breakfast at the resort sometime during the trip.

When ordering CS beverages, get the large drink and two straws. If a second person also orders a CS meal at the same time, make that beverage a bottle of water for later in the parks. Frequently a CS dessert can be a piece of fresh fruit or some other item that we can save for later in the day.

 

[MyTwoPrincesses]

We have only used the DDP once and couldn't imagine NOT using it. For us, the big tips are:

- don't get a CS dessert if you don't want it. Get a bottle of water for "dessert" instead.
- Snacks are often huge and can be shared. Same goes for CS meals.
- Don't worry about maximizing value. Order what you want to order. That's one of the benefits of the DDP. If you're paying OOP, you have a tendency to get cheaper things and not getting what you really want. Don't do the opposite and get a more expensive option because you feel like you "should" to increase DDP savings.
- Same goes for restaurant selection. Pick restaurants that appeal to you and your family, not the restaurants that are good values on DDP. Don't feel like you should be eating Fillet Mignon at Le Cellier at noon rather than macaroni and cheese in France just because Le Cellier is a better "value."
- Eat at the times that work for your family. We tend to like TS dinners, not for DDP value, but because we tend to eat big dinners and we usually go out to dinner. We aren't huge breakfast people (well, DH likes breakfast, but my DDs and I typically don't get hungry until noon). Moreover, I'm very particular about breakfast food. Thus, we used snack credits for breakfast. A muffin or cinnamon roll as big as your head is 1 snack credit and can be eaten by 2 people.

 

[tink0283]

i have done the reg. dining plan a few times and loved having it. we are also using it on our next trip this coming dec.

last time i went on a trip w/hubby and below is kinda how we used the DDP:

breakfast: me and hubby would split 1 CS meal at resort (we knew it was important to eat but didn't want to fill up before heading to park) *maybe 1 or 2 days we ate our own CS meal breakfast. 1 morning we usually head over to the Poly Resort and go to Captain Cooks where you can get Tonga Toast as a CS credit!!!

lunch: me and hubby would usually split 1 CS meal at park (i mean you get large drink, entree, and dessert..if the two of us ate all of that alone we would feel too full to enjoy any rides...the fact that we saved meals by splitting on some days meant that after an early dinner, we could enjoy a late night pizza or small meal

dinner: me and hubby would use 2 TS credits for our dinner (i usually pick a family style or buffet that way you get as much or little as you want). i just prefer to eat a large dinner rather than breakfast or lunch...so thats why we normally use TS credits for dinner.

snacks: we would use these throughout day between meals and still ended up with a few left over at end of trip..so we used them at Goofy's Candy Co. in DTD! our favs are Dole Whip, anything from the bakery in France or Norway and my husband loves the pretzel from germany!

each day varied a little, but this is what we did majority of time...worked well for us.

 

[honeyhall]

LOVE THIS THREAD, WE NEWBIES NEED ALL THE ADVICE, TIPS AND TRICKS WE CAN GET!

Deluxe Plan User in less than 60 days!

 

[OhioWDWDuo]

We use the DDP similar to Tink above.

DH and I split a CS meal for breakfast and split a CS meal for lunch. We use our TS credits for dinner. We usually do 1 or 2 signature restaurants each trip, so we pay OOP for at least one meal that isn't covered on DDP (T-Rex for example) so we can use that night's TS credit at a signature.

We drink lots of water and could probably use all our snack credits on water (but we don't!). We always use our second drink from CS breakfast as a bottle of water and take that with us to the parks, as well as some Crystal Light To-Go packets brought from home. We refill the water bottle at a water fountain and use the Crystal Light packs to flavor the water because we don't like the taste of the water there.

Also, most of the CS desserts we could do without, so we get a bottle of water instead.

Have a great trip!

 

[Nennie]

Another piece of advice.

Don't pay for things out of pocket because you think it is not worth a snack or CS credit.

If you end up paying for a bunch of things that are not "worth" a credit and then you do not use all your credits by the time you leave it is a waste.

This is the best tip!! I wish I had read it before my trip! LOL!!!

I ran into this with snack credits. I paid OOP for a yogurt b/c it was only $2, then paid OOP for a muffin the next day for the same reason....wanted to save those credits for some $4 items at the main street bakery. Problem was, I wasn't hungry by the time I was in the area of the main st bakery. Wouldn't you know it, the last day I had 5 snack credits to burn up!! LOL!! Should have just used them for the stuff I actually ate!!!

 

[Momto2PrncChrmgs]

My piece of advice is, ASK! If you're not sure about something that goes with the plan, or if you've gotten everything you're allowed, ASK. There were times I've sent my hubby up to get meals while I stayed with the kids, he'd forget desserts or not get drinks because we had refillable mugs (hello, get a bottle of water for the park or a milk to save for the next morning). I don't let hubby get the food anymore.

 

[mdsouth]

When we were at WDW in Summer 2009, we were able to get a steak dinner with baked potato, mashed potato or french fries, dessert and all for one CS credit. The steak was a ribeye, I think. It was very good. This was at Coronado Springs Resort - Pepper Market. It was only during the dinner hours. My husband and I liked it so much that we got the steak meal two different nights while we were staying there. They also had chicken or steak fajitas(spelling?) that you could get with vegetables for a counter service credit. Again, I think the fajitas might have just been at dinner.

You should go check out AllEarsnet.com for menus.

 

[dahall]

ENJOY AND EAT WHAT YOU LOVE AND WANT!!! This is your vacation, and the fact that you are looking at this board means you are probably a planner (most of us are here).
Try and remember you are on vacation and eat what you like when you like. If you want a Micky pop get one USE THE CREDIT, if you want a LARGE jaw breaker USE THE CREDIT.
The first time we did the DP I worried so much about maximizing the plan I ate the most expensive thing (when I wanted to try something new or different that was cheaper) OR wait that is only (insert small amount), we should save it that credit.
You are on vacation enjoy your time and don't stress, (I know it will be hard) so what if in the end you might run out and have to pay for something out of pocket, you won't really remember that (ok maybe you might go back and think about where you went wrong BUT DON'T) what you will remember is how great a time you had as you ENJOYED your eating thought Disney.