To Dining Plan or Not to dining plan.. that is the question..

[Arielfan98]

My family enjoys the convenience of pre-paying for food. Also, we like having 1 sit down a day to relax and discuss our day as a family. Additionally, if you go for the more expensive items on menus and use your snack credits for take-home souvenirs, it's kind of worth it.

 

[Beer Me]

OOP had proven cheaper for me by hundreds of dollars. Way too much for it to provide peace of mind. We are a family of four and stay 6 or 7 nights. We have one QS and one TS every day and lots of snacks. Everyone eats whatever they want and the dining plan is still more expensive.

Character meals can have a big impact on the math. In general I would say unless at least half of your TS are character meals you won't approach break even for the plan. More than half its maybe possible to save a little money.

 

[jsbowl16]

I really think the alcohol adds value to the plan as long as you drink even with kids. For two adults and a child on the regular plan we will pay $13 more in 2018 per day than we did in 2017. In 2017 we saved about $100 using the dining plan over 9 nights vs OOP even with AP discounts. If one of the adults gets a glass of wine instead of a soft drink it is paid for. If we each get a beer at lunch and a glass of wine at dinner, we will save $40 to $50 per day minimum. This is without kids doing any specialty drinks at all. We do not normally drink with meals at Disney because of the prices but now we will.

 

[mckennarose]

I don't mean any disrespect for those that use the dining plan, but I am genuinely trying to figure out what makes it so much easier than paying OOP. I get that some can make it work to break even or even get a bit cheaper. But those who like the convenience or feeling like they're in the Disney bubble, I'm trying to understand.

I understand the convenience of pre-paying for meals. I do that already for our "big meals" (Tusker House, BOG, Ohana, R&C, etc) by using gift cards that I buy with the Redcard discount. I include tip and alcohol when budgeting on how much to put on each card before we go. Any balances get moved to the next card or just used up. Looking up the gift card site for me to check a balance is as quick and easy as looking on MDE to check wait times while walking in the park. I just don't see how that's harder than trying to figure out how to make the dining plan "work" for those that use it and want to maximize their credits, or figuring how many credits they have left or how to use up extra credits.

Or reaching into my bag to grab my gift card rather than just holding up my magic band to check out. That still doesn't seem like a lot more effort on my part or make me feel less "in the bubble".

A previous poster mentioned that if they paid OOP, they would look for the cheaper option on the menu because they would worry about cost. I get that, however if I did the dining plan, I would feel pressure to maximize my credits to make sure I used every cent I paid for. We've been to Disney enough that we know how we eat and what we like. Dining is a huge part of our trips so we never feel like we have to go cheap just to save money. It's already budgeted for. The Redcard discount, while not a ton, does help. I factor that savings into F&G or F&W booths.

Either way, dining plan or OOP requires effort and planning. Heck....almost everything in Disney now requires planning and effort! Conversations like these are interesting for me to see different perspectives. We all have our own priorities so there's no wrong way to do it. I'm genuinely curious as to what I'm missing?

 

[Rich M]

I don't mean any disrespect for those that use the dining plan, but I am genuinely trying to figure out what makes it so much easier than paying OOP. I get that some can make it work to break even or even get a bit cheaper. But those who like the convenience or feeling like they're in the Disney bubble, I'm trying to understand.

I understand the convenience of pre-paying for meals. I do that already for our "big meals" (Tusker House, BOG, Ohana, R&C, etc) by using gift cards that I buy with the Redcard discount. I include tip and alcohol when budgeting on how much to put on each card before we go. Any balances get moved to the next card or just used up. Looking up the gift card site for me to check a balance is as quick and easy as looking on MDE to check wait times while walking in the park. I just don't see how that's harder than trying to figure out how to make the dining plan "work" for those that use it and want to maximize their credits, or figuring how many credits they have left or how to use up extra credits.

Or reaching into my bag to grab my gift card rather than just holding up my magic band to check out. That still doesn't seem like a lot more effort on my part or make me feel less "in the bubble".

A previous poster mentioned that if they paid OOP, they would look for the cheaper option on the menu because they would worry about cost. I get that, however if I did the dining plan, I would feel pressure to maximize my credits to make sure I used every cent I paid for. We've been to Disney enough that we know how we eat and what we like. Dining is a huge part of our trips so we never feel like we have to go cheap just to save money. It's already budgeted for. The Redcard discount, while not a ton, does help. I factor that savings into F&G or F&W booths.

Either way, dining plan or OOP requires effort and planning. Heck....almost everything in Disney now requires planning and effort! Conversations like these are interesting for me to see different perspectives. We all have our own priorities so there's no wrong way to do it. I'm genuinely curious as to what I'm missing?

For me its about having it paid off prior to going with minimal effort. I go on to the Disney site and make my payments until it is paid off. I am going this time under "Free" Dining so the decision was made for us easy but honestly after talking with a bunch of folks on here about this subject I might try the other way and see but you are 100 percent correct that it is way to much planning and it gets tiring. I need a vacation before, during, and after my vacation is over from all of it.

 

[Stacy's a freak]

I don't know who the genius was that decided to add alcohol to the dining plans. Its almost impossible to make the dining plan worthwhile as some restaurants don't serve alcohol and then many people don't drink especially at a theme park with kids.

We're going in February and I thought about doing the dining because we are all basically adults when it comes to food. Our kids will be 14 and 12 and we all like to eat. If we do the QS plan, it would cost us $1500 for our week there. AND that only gets us 2 QS and snacks and a mug each. So I used the dining calculator and using my calculations I think we will spend less. The extra cost for 2018 because of the alcohol thing makes it even less worthwhile for us. Now I love a drink here and there but there's no way both me and DH will be drinking an alcoholic drink 2 times per day with our meals. So we removed dining and we'll fly by the seat of our pants and likely save money.

 

[danielocha30]

I don't know who the genius was that decided to add alcohol to the dining plans. Its almost impossible to make the dining plan worthwhile as some restaurants don't serve alcohol and then many people don't drink especially at a theme park with kids.

the new plan includes specialty drinks as well, for those who don't drink alcohol, you can order a shake or any frozen drink, some location will mixed the cocktail with no alcohol upon request, is very flexible

 

[Lilly0704]

A previous poster mentioned that if they paid OOP, they would look for the cheaper option on the menu because they would worry about cost. I get that, however if I did the dining plan, I would feel pressure to maximize my credits to make sure I used every cent I paid for.

For us, this is the difference. We would worry more about buying the cheaper food while were there, but don't worry about maximizing our credits. You would worry more about maximizing your credits but not about buying cheaper food. It's all in how you think about it. We also like that while on the dining plan, we can try new foods that we may not like and not have a moment of "oh, well that was gross and now we still have to pay $70 for it?". I understand how it may be restricting to some, but to us it gives us more freedom.

 

[robl45]

the new plan includes specialty drinks as well, for those who don't drink alcohol, you can order a shake or any frozen drink, some location will mixed the cocktail with no alcohol upon request, is very flexible

Shakes were already included, thats the thing, unless they have some specific specialty drinks which they aren't ding a very good job listing at present, then its just added expense for most people. At the very least they could break the drinks into drink credits like they did with lunch time dessert when they made it an extra snack. Use the drink at a meal or use it at another time. I don't really drink, but if I could walk around epcot and sample some beers, that would be worthwhile.

 

[mckennarose]

For us, this is the difference. We would worry more about buying the cheaper food while were there, but don't worry about maximizing our credits. You would worry more about maximizing your credits but not about buying cheaper food. It's all in how you think about it. We also like that while on the dining plan, we can try new foods that we may not like and not have a moment of "oh, well that was gross and now we still have to pay $70 for it?". I understand how it may be restricting to some, but to us it gives us more freedom.

I understand what you're saying about how we all choose to think about it. My question then is "does it bother you if you don't get everything you paid for?" That was my logic in why I would be focused on maximizing credits. I want what I paid for, so therefore I would take the time to do the math. Some people don't do the math and it doesn't bother them to go home with unused credits, or take home a stack of rice krispy treats to use the extras. That would make me crazy! To each their own, but for me and how much we take care to budget the best way we can, the dining plan doesn't fit for us. Plus we usually stay offsite, which makes it a moot point most of the time.

I've also seen people buy the dining plan and not understand how to use it, or that if they really want a certain TS restaurant they should've gotten it at 180 days out. We saw a woman in BLT in May having a fit on the phone to someone, who I think might have been her TA, about how she paid for meals and wound up eating mostly cheeseburgers! I got the impression she didn't understand that she needed ADR's.

 

[DisBuckMan]

Done it before...never will again.

I don't like the restrictions of having to wonder if I can have this off the menu, if I can substitute this for that, or if I can even eat at "X" restaurant.

Want to have an app instead of dessert? Can't do that on the DDP.
Hot, tired, and not hungry enough for a full meal and just want an appetizer for your meal? Sure, but it'll cost you a full meal credit on the DDP at restaurants that will allow it.
Want to eat at Shula's or Bluezoo...two of the absolute best restaurants on property? Can't do that on the DDP.
Want to share a large pizza at Via Napoli? Can't do that on the DDP.
Want a chocolate extinction at T-Rex? Can't do that on the DDP, if 4 people in your crowd don't.
Want a sparkling volcano at Rainforest Cafe? Can't do that on the DDp, if 3 people in your crowd don't.

...and so on...and so on...and so on.

 

[mernin]

We got ddp on our last visit (we had 2 adults, 2 kids). Before I decided I did like some other posters, created a spreadsheet with a best guess what we would order at each of the restaurants we would eat at (I also used the dining calculator but wanted a more accurate number). I didn't add dessert if we wouldn't have it, etc. The plan came out right about even to paying oop and gave us the mugs and dessert so it made sense to get it. We are planning g a trip for April 2018 right now and we are now 3 adults and 1 kid so chances are it won't make sense now. I'll still do the math to see before I decide.

 

[Dakota731]

We are doing a lot of character meals this trip so the math worked out for us this trip.

 

[hllb]

Like everyone said, do the math. I actually planned out exactly what my family would order at each meal if we *didn't* have the dining plan. For starters, only one of us would order a drink other than water if we had to pay for it. Even with the dining plan, you have to pay some money (tips, and possibly other meals depending on your schedule). For our trip, the food would cost us about $2200 out of pocket (4 adults, 1 child). That includes two snacks a day, but not the specialty drinks (or any drinks except for my husband's pop). It ends up being $200 to $300 cheaper to pay out of pocket rather than the dining plan. And that's if we stick with all of our table service reservations, which we probably wouldn't (we'd keep maybe half of them).

However, we are expecting the play, stay, and dine discount to be released sometime next month. That will change the calculation. So, I'm waiting to see what the discounts are before I make my final decision on whether we do the dining plan or not. The room only discount may be big enough to make the dining plan much less desirable in our package.

Can someone point me some of the calculators out there? I'm curious how it compares to what I calculated (I actually went through menu by menu and picked what we'd be likely to order - I'm a data junkie).

 

[sharonabe]

Can someone point me some of the calculators out there? I'm curious how it compares to what I calculated (I actually went through menu by menu and picked what we'd be likely to order - I'm a data junkie).

distriplanner.com is one. Someone posted a few days ago that Touring Plans now has one too, but you have to be a paid member. Please come back and tell us how they compare with your own "pencil and paper" calculations. It would be an interesting new thread.

 

[DisMommyTX]

If the OP is getting two rooms (vs 5 disney adults in one rooms yikes!) the best options is probably to add deluxe to 1 room with 2 or 3 guests, then share the meal credits.

 

[Rich M]

If the OP is getting two rooms (vs 5 disney adults in one rooms yikes!) the best options is probably to add deluxe to 1 room with 2 or 3 guests, then share the meal credits.

That's we did. Saving us money for sure

 

[Disneylovingmomof2]

I think it depends on where you want to eat and how much planning you're willing to do before the trip. I was there in April and we were on the standard dining plan and definitely found value in it. We did several character meals which were pricey, as well as Boma a few times, and ordered desserts every time. My five year old is a snacker and I liked being able to just stop anywhere during the day and grab her something quick, or even use a snack credit to get her breakfast if all she wanted was a small cup of cereal. I used snack credits to order one of those fancy iced teas in AK one day. I thought it was flexible and I would recommend it if you're willing to plan out meals and make reservations well in advance. I personally would also utilize the drink option and get a glass of wine with my lunches or dinners with the 2018 dining plan so that's also something to consider (if you know you'd never order a drink maybe it wouldn't be worth it?).

 

[hllb]

OK, this is kind of fun. I used the calculator as distripplanner.com and got quite close to my estimates:
Cost With dining plan: $2499.86 (My calculation was $2601.34 with another $300 for tips, not sure why that's off a bit)
Cost without dining plan: $2154.80 (My calculation $2132.11, including tips)

Now, we would get extra things with the dining plan that we wouldn't order normally. I wouldn't typically order alcohol on this trip except perhaps at Ohana, but I would if I had the dining plan. I also wouldn't let the kids order drinks other than water, and if we had the dining plan, they could get specialty drinks. All in all, I'll check it out once the January special is released to see if it makes more sense then, or less.

I did not find a dining comparison tool on touringplans.com (I am a subscriber, so if someone can point me to it, I'll do that comparison too).

 

[sharonabe]

OK, this is kind of fun. I used the calculator as distripplanner.com and got quite close to my estimates:
Cost With dining plan: $2499.86 (My calculation was $2601.34 with another $300 for tips, not sure why that's off a bit)
Cost without dining plan: $2154.80 (My calculation $2132.11, including tips)

Now, we would get extra things with the dining plan that we wouldn't order normally. I wouldn't typically order alcohol on this trip except perhaps at Ohana, but I would if I had the dining plan. I also wouldn't let the kids order drinks other than water, and if we had the dining plan, they could get specialty drinks. All in all, I'll check it out once the January special is released to see if it makes more sense then, or less.

I did not find a dining comparison tool on touringplans.com (I am a subscriber, so if someone can point me to it, I'll do that comparison too).

What are the prices you used to calculate the cost of the DDP for your family? That's $100 difference, so I'm curious as to what the calculator is using. Also, does the calculator include tips on their OOP cost?