To Dine or Not To Dine - that is the question!

[fairestoneofall]

DH and I used it on our anniversary weekend and it was great. But, we don't use it when we go with the kids. We make so few ADRs--and those alone make us feel like things are so set in stone. So, we won't do it. Frankly, we love a lot of the counter service places enough to want to eat more CS. For our trip next year, we'll hit 1900 Park Fare and Crystal Palace. I'm hoping to take DD to breakfast at Cindy's, but just the two of us.

 

[Twitterpated Dad]

I think that we should all boycott the DDP until we get the tip and appetizer back!

Just kidding.

I think the plan still makes sense. It's just not the fantastic deal that it used to be. It's really nice to have the meals prepaid. Yes, it's your own money. But, it still feels nice. Kind of like dining on a cruise.

Flame alert! Please don't bother. I know where to get a lovely flame proof suit from the thread killers. And, this idea came from a CRO CM.

The last time we stayed with the free dining plan, we had APs. So, we just got 1 day MYW tickets. There were 7 of us staying in a 2br at OKW. When I gave the CM everyone's names and ages, she told me: "Surely, your two youngest boys will be having a couple of birthdays before you arrive." We had 3 adults, 2 boys who counted as adults, and two boys who counted as children.

What she wanted to do was to put us all down as adults for the dining plan. It was a small extra charge on the 1 day tickets. But, then everyone could order off the full menu. If they wanted to order off the children's menu, we could just pay cash. The boys did a couple of time. We just used the extra credits toward HDDR. It was really nice for the younger boys to have the same choices as the older boys. The DDP really added to this trip. The boys really got into trying different things as we ate our way around WS.

OP, you might want to consider making your 9 year old an adult too. You'll have to do the math on the plan and the tickets to see if it's worth it.

Have a great trip.

 

[ADisneyQueen]

We used the DDP last time and ate all our table services at buffets. I did not want my kids to wait for food and we wanted to be out of there faster. We are not getting it this time b/c
1. Older DD would be paying as an adult, but does not eat that much
2. The children's counter service meals have changed since we went. They don't look like food my younger DD would want
3. Some meals we had were fun, others were too time consuming. Another time we went to dinner and ate little. No one was hungry and it was too crowded to change our reservation.
I'm glad we tried, but probably won't do it again for a while.

 

[Grendalynn]

I think that I am stil on the fence regarding all of this. I'll read one post and think, I am SO doing the DDP".... Then I read another and Think, "Maybe its not for us, and would be more feasible to not do it". But then I think as an end result that if we are going to try it, now is the time becuase DS8 and DS3 are under the Kid rate, DS1 will just be a picker. Then when we go the next time, in another 2-3 years, when everyone is being "paid" for at meal time, will have a better idea of if it worked or not. The worst that will happen will be that we break even or spend a little more. And as I mentioned before, its like going on the DCL again and being "all-inclusive" to a point. I am just glad that i wont have to keep a running expense chart in my head of how much we spent on each meal, snakc and so forth... its already budgeted for! Hey, Columbus took a chance right??

The only thing that has not been answered or debated in this thread is about the tips and extra charges... Does that amount that is not included in the DDP expected atthe end of the meal, or is it/can it be charged to our room... How does that work and what is the best way to do it? Oh wait - thats new in '08 right? so no one has done it - anyone have any ideas or info on this procedure?? Thanks so much - and thanks to everyone who has chimed in - its all verry valuable info.

 

[irene_dsc]

I think that I am stil on the fence regarding all of this. I'll read one post and think, I am SO doing the DDP".... Then I read another and Think, "Maybe its not for us, and would be more feasible to not do it". But then I think as an end result that if we are going to try it, now is the time becuase DS8 and DS3 are under the Kid rate, DS1 will just be a picker. Then when we go the next time, in another 2-3 years, when everyone is being "paid" for at meal time, will have a better idea of if it worked or not. The worst that will happen will be that we break even or spend a little more. And as I mentioned before, its like going on the DCL again and being "all-inclusive" to a point. I am just glad that i wont have to keep a running expense chart in my head of how much we spent on each meal, snakc and so forth... its already budgeted for! Hey, Columbus took a chance right??

The only thing that has not been answered or debated in this thread is about the tips and extra charges... Does that amount that is not included in the DDP expected atthe end of the meal, or is it/can it be charged to our room... How does that work and what is the best way to do it? Oh wait - thats new in '08 right? so no one has done it - anyone have any ideas or info on this procedure?? Thanks so much - and thanks to everyone who has chimed in - its all verry valuable info.

Lol! Ikwym!

I suspect that you'll be able to put the rest of the charges on your room card, but don't know. And since we will be there Jan 2-8, we'll be part of the transition guinea pig group! I guess I'll have to make a good report when we get back, tho since this is our 1st trip, I won't be able to compare it to how it was before. I probably will try to tip in cash, tho, so the waitstaff will get it quicker (I assume). I did realize that with the 2008 plan, the benefit you get from not trying to maximize your plan is that you also don't end up tipping on as large of a total - so with our particular itinerary, the tips shouldn't be too big of a deal.

 

[golden]

Has anyone else booked the DDP with an agent?
I was seeing prices for 39adult and 11 kids.
The thing I got back from small world travel is 37.99 and 9.99. Not that big a deal, but a dollar per person per day, adds up to 32.00 cheaper which is tipping the scale in thinking we should do it (my kids are also 8 and 3).

Also, I the more I was thinking about it, there is no way I can feed my kid for less than 10.00 a day even if he picky. The snacks and counter service alone is worth it. And he can pick from whatever the 4 of us order.

Now whether to deal with ADR (march 4-12) and how many is my next dilemma!!

 

[trivial]

The $39/$11 price was pre-2008, but as of January 1, several things change. The difference is not just $1, as 18% tip will no longer be included as part of the DDP (and neither will appetizers).

I think the DDP is definitely a great value for kids. And even with the disappointing changes to the 2008+ DDP, on average you will still manage to save a few dollars each day.

 

[golden]

So how DID the 2007 thing work? Was 18% added to everything, even snacks and counter service, or just TS? I dunno. I don't like to be forced to pay 18% tip despite the quality of service, even though for average to excellent service, i typically tip 20% anyways.

 

[irene_dsc]

So how DID the 2007 thing work? Was 18% added to everything, even snacks and counter service, or just TS? I dunno. I don't like to be forced to pay 18% tip despite the quality of service, even though for average to excellent service, i typically tip 20% anyways.

From what I hear, the servers got 18% - but you weren't charged extra for it, it was part of the DDP price. I'm not sure if they got it for snacks and CS tho. I think part of why they took it out for 2008 was to give incentive to the servers to give good service.

 

[trivial]

From what I hear, the servers got 18% - but you weren't charged extra for it, it was part of the DDP price. I'm not sure if they got it for snacks and CS tho. I think part of why they took it out for 2008 was to give incentive to the servers to give good service.

Which is a good idea; I just wish the prices were adjusted accordingly, as having to add 18% on average is a pretty hefty price increase.

Snacks and counter-service do not get tips; the tip and appetizer applied only the table service.

 

[JenAusty]

I think it comes down to how important it is to you? If you love eating at all the restaurants and trying new places- and thats part of the fun- then you should but if you don't care much about that then maybe you shouldn't.

Last time I went we didn't do it and we only stayed 5 days. We easily spent over the amount it costs for dining and didn't get half as much. I looked up pricing for dining for a 8 day stay and the price for the dining plan is what we spent on food for 5 days. I love all the restaurants-counter service-sitdowns etc, so that is half of the fun. I think it also depends on were you would like to eat. If you get the dining plan there are moderate priced restaurants and expensive- some of those (almost all the ones I want to go to) are in the dining plan and it doesn't cost you anymore.

I would say yes do it! but it really comes down to how important it is to you!
Hope this helps!!

 

[irene_dsc]

Well, we're back. I'm fairly certain that we saved money using DDP. Honestly, the thing that ended up unnecessarily stressing me out is that I hadn't realized that all counter service meals count the same - adult vs child, that is. So, I ended up eating spaghetti & meatballs at Pizzafari, so my kids could order pizza! Fortunately, the meatballs were very good.

We also ended up having one day where we snacked through MGM in order to catch show times, then got carry-out pizza at the CBR food court, which counted as 2 counter services. Then, dh and I went (date night) to Wolfgang Puck Cafe. So, we ended up with 2 extra kid TS credits. Weird, but it worked. I did end up with extra credits at the end, tho that was partly because of things like the time I was about to pay for a snack and realized I'd given all the cards to dh to get FP's! Fortunately, it was only one snack.