TS prices seem really high??

[2minny]

Our family does not really spend money on fancy meals, we just don't like food that much I guess, (our friends will sit for hours enjoying all the different courses), we would rather spend money on entertainment. I thought I would plan a few ts meals at disney, but after looking at the prices compared to what you get...just doesn't seem worth it! Are the prices getting higher in order to encourage the dining plan? We are not ones to do the dining plan, we do a lot of cs and snacking..and hit the rides hard Am I alone in thinking the ts food is a bit expensive for things like say....spaghetti? for a family of five? I know every family has different priorities....

 

[vicki_c]

You are a captive audience, in a theme park. I really don't look at the TS meal prices in terms of their relative "worth." I pick what sounds good to us, and fit a price for it into the budget and don't think about it much more than that. You could make yourself crazy or depressed if you spend too much time thinking about it.

So you either have to resign yourself to it or eat off-site.

 

[TDC Nala]

Prices are high at restaurants that don't accept the dining plan, so I can't think it's all down to some sort of conspiratorial effort by Disney to force guests onto the dining plan. It's a resort area. You'd likely find overpriced dining at any theme park. You're paying for the convenience of eating in the same place you're playing. If one wanted to, one could rent a car, drive off property, and pick up meals for much less.

 

[Elmo888]

Our family does not really spend money on fancy meals, we just don't like food that much I guess, (our friends will sit for hours enjoying all the different courses), we would rather spend money on entertainment. I thought I would plan a few ts meals at disney, but after looking at the prices compared to what you get...just doesn't seem worth it! Are the prices getting higher in order to encourage the dining plan? We are not ones to do the dining plan, we do a lot of cs and snacking..and hit the rides hard Am I alone in thinking the ts food is a bit expensive for things like say....spaghetti? for a family of five? I know every family has different priorities....

It is expensive. So are the CS meals (relative to say, McDonald's). They have you captive, and it is inconvenient to leave the park to eat. So, yes, the prices are high.

If you want to do a few TS meals, there are less expensive ones to be had. Breakfast and lunch are always less expensive, and some restaurants are less expensive than others (Kona Cafe, Biergarten and Tusker House are a few off the top of my head). If you are looking at character meals, there are different prices for the different restaurants there, too. For example, if you want to see Cinderella, it is much less expensive to see her at 1900 Park Fare in the GF than in the castle. And if you want a bunch of princesses, breakfast at Akershus in Norway is less money than any meal in the castle.

We also find that time of day is another way to save money - we could eat breakfast in the room, have a light snack around 11, eat a late TS lunch around 1:30 (lunches run later than that - depends on the restaurant), and then eat a light snack for dinner. Esp. with buffets, if we ate a late lunch, we were too full for dinner.

If you have breakfast items in the room, you can save time and money. If you have some snack items and refillable water bottles, you can bring them into the park and not spend money for every snack. (If you don't have a rental car, there are grocery delivery services.)

ETA: Another way to save money is to split meals at TS restaurants. You can't do this at buffets or "family style" TS places, but you can at places where you order from the menu. Servings are usually generous.

 

[2minny]

You are a captive audience, in a theme park. I really don't look at the TS meal prices in terms of their relative "worth." I pick what sounds good to us, and fit a price for it into the budget and don't think about it much more than that. You could make yourself crazy or depressed if you spend too much time thinking about it.

So you either have to resign yourself to it or eat off-site.

No, we just pick one or two ts and do our "usual" snack and cs meals, I can't justify the cost for FOOD, others can...that's what makes it fun, all unique!

 

[MrsLS]

It depends on what you are use to. Its on the higher end for regular type restaurants, but I'm from NY and Disney is a vacation spot. We also go to Vegas a lot, so the prices at Disney aren't really high to me.
I don't think it encourages you to do the dining plan, you are still paying the same amount and then can save $ depending on what you order, in my experience you do save a lot but not everyone does.

 

[jennylyn_b]

We find Disney prices quite reasonable especially for the quality and size of the food we get. However, we live at the Jersey Shore where prices are pretty high compared to other areas in the country.
The bottom line...if FOOD is a priority you pay for the good stuff, if not you eat snacks and cs and enjoy the entertainment of the parks! Either way, Disney is sure to please everyone! Have a great trip

 

[disnut8]

Our family does not really spend money on fancy meals, we just don't like food that much I guess, (our friends will sit for hours enjoying all the different courses), we would rather spend money on entertainment. I thought I would plan a few ts meals at disney, but after looking at the prices compared to what you get...just doesn't seem worth it! Are the prices getting higher in order to encourage the dining plan? We are not ones to do the dining plan, we do a lot of cs and snacking..and hit the rides hard Am I alone in thinking the ts food is a bit expensive for things like say....spaghetti? for a family of five? I know every family has different priorities....

My husband and I feel the same way you do. We ate to live not live to eat. We do lunches and not dinners at Disney World. And we don't always have a table service reservation for every day. In fact, we usually make one on a short trip and maybe two on a longer trip. We find counter service places have enough variety for us that we're not always eating burgers and fries (I think Disney World fries aren't all that great anyway). We also find counter service places to have enough food to keep us satisfied.

There are decently priced table service places for lunches. Most places will have a burger for the picky people and lunches usually will have sandwiches offerings that dinners don't. If the restaurant has entertainment, it will usually be going on at lunch as well as dinner.

 

[2minny]

My husband and I feel the same way you do. We ate to live not live to eat. We do lunches and not dinners at Disney World. And we don't always have a table service reservation for every day. In fact, we usually make one on a short trip and maybe two on a longer trip. We find counter service places have enough variety for us that we're not always eating burgers and fries (I think Disney World fries aren't all that great anyway). We also find counter service places to have enough food to keep us satisfied.

There are decently priced table service places for lunches. Most places will have a burger for the picky people and lunches usually will have sandwiches offerings that dinners don't. If the restaurant has entertainment, it will usually be going on at lunch as well as dinner.

It's nice to know I'm not alone, actually, I had a feeling I wasn't...I was trying to explain it's not actually that the cost is too much for our budget, it's that food isn't important enough to spend large amounts on it. We too find a nice variety at cs, salads, sandwiches, soups, etc. But we do like to have a few ts meals (usually lunch) each trip, especially thiings like hoop de doo, with entertainment.

 

[4HOLIDAYS]

The menus have changed and the prices have increase over the last several years. I am sure it has something to do with the DDP. We go a few times every year and have seen the changes.

 

[honeydiane1953]

Our family does not really spend money on fancy meals, we just don't like food that much I guess, (our friends will sit for hours enjoying all the different courses), we would rather spend money on entertainment. I thought I would plan a few ts meals at disney, but after looking at the prices compared to what you get...just doesn't seem worth it! Are the prices getting higher in order to encourage the dining plan? We are not ones to do the dining plan, we do a lot of cs and snacking..and hit the rides hard Am I alone in thinking the ts food is a bit expensive for things like say....spaghetti? for a family of five? I know every family has different priorities....

MOST everything is high there. No way around it. You are a captive audience. When we go (once a yr) I just say here is my money and then go home and start saving again.

 

[fla4fun]

It's nice to know I'm not alone, actually, I had a feeling I wasn't...I was trying to explain it's not actually that the cost is too much for our budget, it's that food isn't important enough to spend large amounts on it. We too find a nice variety at cs, salads, sandwiches, soups, etc. But we do like to have a few ts meals (usually lunch) each trip, especially thiings like hoop de doo, with entertainment.

Add me to your list. For one thing, at WDW I hate to be tied down to a specific dining schedule 6 months ahead when I don't even know if I'll be hungry at that time. I would rather work my meals in around the rest of my Disney day - just grab a CS or snack when I'm hungry. While people have complained that the TS restaurants have been "dumbed down" due to the dining plans, I feel they have improved the CS offerings a lot over the same time period. If I do plan an ADR, it's almost always for lunch. I would rather save the money and put it towards the next WDW trip!

 

[JenSop]

I don't know, I've found Disney to be reasonable compared to some other theme parks we've been to. I'd say it's the same as some of the Six FLags we've been to, as well as Dorney Park. I was also at a SMALL, not fancy, theme park in upstate NY last summer, and things were just the same or MORE than Disney. So considering what you get, I'd say disney has a pretty good value going on. But we're the opposite of you guys... we LOVE the meals - that's part of what makes the trip fun for us! I'm just so glad there's so many options for all different kind of food preferences!

 

[bangzoom6877]

I think Disney makes more money off of people who get the dining plan, because most people are not super-planners like many of the people (including myself) you will come across here on the DIS. In fact, I'm sure there are still plenty of people out there who buy the basic DDP and don't even make enough TS ADRs to cover all their credits...then in many cases they find out they can't get a walk-in spot at a TS restaurant (if they travel during peak time) and those credits go out the window. Or they have tons of snack credits left or a few CS leftover at the end of their trip. That's money that Disney made without the consumer receiving anything for it. I think this probably happens very often.

So I don't think it's necessarily the DDP that makes the prices higher. I think it is because they can, since as others said, they have a captive audience there. People eat at Disney restaurants for the convenience, and for many TS meals, for the experience (character meals, dinner shows, places like Ohana and Whispering Canyon Cafe).

Notice how Disney also has the complimentary Magical Express service for guests who fly into Orlando, and they advertise that because of Disney transportation you don't even need a car? That keeps people on property. It's another tactic they use to keep you there so you spend your money there and not elsewhere.

 

[bangzoom6877]

I don't know, I've found Disney to be reasonable compared to some other theme parks we've been to. I'd say it's the same as some of the Six FLags we've been to, as well as Dorney Park. I was also at a SMALL, not fancy, theme park in upstate NY last summer, and things were just the same or MORE than Disney. So considering what you get, I'd say disney has a pretty good value going on. But we're the opposite of you guys... we LOVE the meals - that's part of what makes the trip fun for us! I'm just so glad there's so many options for all different kind of food preferences!

I agree with you, I think the Disney prices are much more reasonable than other theme parks I have been to. Last summer we had season passes for Sesame Place, and the kids' meal there (at counter service) was $9!! And it was tiny! It was only $2 more for an adult meal, so I got one adult meal and my boys shared it. It cost less than getting 2 kids' meals. The food was edible, but nothing to write home about. The character dinner there was a pretty good buffet, not nearly as much variety as Disney though, but it was also expensive. At Six Flags Great Adventure, we paid a ridiculous amount of money for disgusting food.

 

[babyrich]

If your not a big foodie I can see you thinking the prices are high. I mean, they are; but it's Disney, we expect it. Part of the fun for us, is trying the different restaurants. So the food is a big part of our vacation.

I havent checked the prices; but have you thought about using the QSDP? Maybe using that can save you a few dollars for the TS Meals you are planning.

 

[bangzoom6877]

If your not a big foodie I can see you thinking the prices are high. I mean, they are; but it's Disney, we expect it. Part of the fun for us, is trying the different restaurants. So the food is a big part of our vacation.

I havent checked the prices; but have you thought about using the QSDP? Maybe using that can save you a few dollars for the TS Meals you are planning.

Food is also a huge part of the planning for me! DH isn't nearly as into it as I am, but he is always happy with the food on all our vacations since I get obsessive over it!

 

[Kat&Dom]

I find Disney prices very comparable to prices we pay in Canada to eat out. Disney is $2-$5 cheaper on most items that I would order compared to restaurants up here. I personally think that Disney gives very large portions and the value is reasonable. That being said, anytime you have to eat every meal out, it gets expensive - I see why people buy the DDP because it would be convenient not to have to pull your wallet out every time you are hungry but I still have a hard time to justify if it is a worthwhile buy for me.