Trying to be cost effective

[WDWendy]

We are going to WDW this summer and staying at POR for the AP rate (around $110 per night after taxes etc.). Now I am second guessing my decision not to do the dining plan in order to use the AP rate. We also have AAA. Right now I have budgeted $100 per day for two adults and one child.

Breakfast (in-room) - $10
Lunch -$25
Snacks - $15
Dinner - $50

Should I make some changes or stick with my current plan? I am second guessing myself because DDE sounds so flexible and I could pay for it in advance.

 

[JoiseyMom]

Figure out how much it would cost you now with paying for your meals. Then figure out how much it would cost you with the free dining package. I would go with the cheapest way. I did this for our trip and for the four of us, it came out cheaper doing the full package with free dining.

 

[Good Ol Gal]

I guess it depends.....

What would the rack rate be?
You budgeted $ 100 a day for food, the dining plan would cost you $ 80 a day. Add back the $10 for breakfast, so you're spending $10 more w/o dining plan a day.

Would you have to spend more than $10 extra on your room?

Can you use AAA with the dining plan? What would AAA rate be? (don't think you can if your trying to go for free dining)

I like not having to worry about paying for food, so we're doing it.

FYI.......DDE is the Diney Dining Experience(??) card. It is not paid in advance, it is a discount card. The dining plan is called MagicYourWay dining.

Let us know what you choose

 

[WDWendy]

Hi, thanks for responding. It looks like my AP rate will save more by about $10 per night than the Dining Plan would save with my current meal budget, so that question is answered.

LOL, now I just have to figure out what I want to do! Decisions, decision!

PS Thanks for the info that DDE is different! I checked around and not only would we be eligible even though we are using an AP, we could get a discount!

 

[WDWendy]

This is so funny. I did up a spreadsheet because I still could not decide which way to book our trip. Here is the breakdown:

6 nights/5 days as we are going to Universal first-

AAA
Room, tickets, dining package: $2092.22

Using our AP rate:
Room, tickets, food budget from above: $2044.62

Anyway, I just thought it was really funny how close the final numbers came out. I am going to be the spreadsheet queen by the time this vacation is over!