I just crunched the numbers again. I am now convinced that the Disney people crunched the numbers and designed the plan to the point where it was literally a wash between the two, with the deciding factor being either the convenience of the DDP or the flexibility of the TIW.
Here is what I did:
SCENARIO 1: Counter Service Lunch (no TIW), Table Service Dinner (with TIW)
I first worked out a typical meal for our family for both a counter service lunch a table service dinner. I pretty much went "middle of the road" in terms of prices, working off a real Disney menu. My family would be paying $101.96 per day for the DDP. If we just ate the counter service lunch (with no TIW discount) and a table service dinner (with TIW discount), we'd only be paying $88.50 per day, which would be a nice discount over the DDP. However, that doesn't take into account that you get a dessert with the DDP as well as 4 snacks (one for each member of our family). Since we are not dessert eaters, I only added in the snacks. I went with a rather expensive number ($4) considering snacks can really range. If you add the 4 snacks at $4 apiece, now the TIW isn't such a great deal anymore since I am now paying $104.45. If you figure snacks at $3 apiece, the plans are just about even.
SCENARIO 2: Counter Service Lunch ( with TIW) and Table Service Dinner (with TIW)
Scenario 1 didn't take into account the fact that it is possible to eat your counter service meal at a place that accepts the TIW card. The options aren't THAT great, but there are places, especially at the hotels. Under that scenario, you save an additional $6. So, without snacks, the savings is about $19.50. Sounds good. Add in the snacks, though, and you are at a $3.50 savings. Not so good. At that point, the question comes back to whether we like the flexibility of TIW or the convenience of DDP. And to tell you the truth, considering TIW isn't offered in the counter service restaurants in the parks, the flexibility factor goes down in that regard.
SCENARIO 3: Table Service Lunch (with TIW) and Counter Service Dinner (no TIW)
At first glance, this one looked like a home run for the TIW card since our family of four would be saving $28.46 per day. Of course, that doesn't take into account the desserts and snacks included in the DDP. Once again, since we don't eat desserts, I didn't factor that in and instead decided to factor in four snacks at $4 apiece. The $16 of snacks obviously cut into the $28.46 of daily savings, bringing the savings to $12.46. That is a nice savings, but is it worth it? Once again, I guess it comes down to whether you like the convenience of the DDP or the flexibility of the TIW, and as I stated earlier, I don't find it flexible when the TIW card cannot be used at counter service in the parks.
SCENARIO 4: Table Service Lunch (with TIW) and Counter Service Dinner (with TIW)
If you take scenario #3 and change it just a bit so that you can jet back to a hotel for a counter service meal at dinner (where you can use the TIW card), then you'd save an additional $7. So, under that scenario, my family would be saving a total of about $20 per day over the DDP. Over a week-long vacation, that would be about $140. I am not one to sneeze at $140 in savings, but at the same time, to get that $20/day discount, a lot of things would have to work out in my favor (for example, getting back to a hotel for the counter service meal every night).
Conclusion: I really thought it would be more of a slam dunk in one direction. I absolutely hate the idea of spending in excess of $100 to eat per day, but it seems to be the reality whether you have DDP or TIW. The one thing that I have wrestled with in the past is how the gratuity figures into all of this. As you know, the gratuity is not included in the DDP price, so the actual daily cost of the DDP is higher. I didn't include gratuity in my TIW calculations, but the benefit there is that you pay gratuity on the discounted price, which should add some savings. I just don't know if the savings are worth it for me. I like the convenience of having more dining options (TIW is not available in the parks), and I like the convenience of pre-paying for my meals and snacks. It makes me truly feel like I am on vacation. If I were to save hundreds of dollars, the TIW would be a slam dunk. However, as it stands, I would only be saving around $150 under the best of conditions. To me, that might not be worth it.
Another reason is we do more CS meals than TS now too because if it's a buffet like at Boma or Hollywood & Vine they charge for the adult price or he's still eating chix nuggets from the kids section.
