Uh-Oh...Buyer's Remorse?

[WDWBabe]

I know there are already discussios about getting or not getting the dining plan, but it seems like EVERYONE on here has opted for some for or another of the DDP with their trip. Am I the ONLY one who opted for a better room rate...and should I be second-guessing myself?

I love a good breakfast out, but can't see doing every meal of every day of our trip in a restaurant. I've packed some breakfast bars in the past and done some snacking before a big, late lunch out, etc. I also don't want to be thinking about the "accounting" of my meal credits while I'm away. I want to eat what I want to eat, when I want to eat it - not because it fits neat and tidy-like into my remaining balance.

Am I the only one? Did anyone else opt for the room rate discount instead of the meal plan?

 

[missquaintrelle]

I originally booked our rooms via travelocity for a great rate of $76/per night for PORFQ and then got lured into booking rack rate for the DDP. Its my first trip to WDW with out my family and prior trips my mom took care of everything. In hindsight I probably would have saved more money by sticking with the travelocity rate and shared our meals, but its just a relief to know our expenses are taken care of and my FI and I don't have to compromise on dinner as we both have different tastes!

I think for our next trip we'll definitely opt for a better roomrate.:

 

[Alesia]

The DDP doesn't work for everyone. We paid out of pocket and had the freedom to eat what we wanted, when we wanted and still spent $600 less than we would have on the DDP. It sounds like you probably made a good choice.

 

[homercrispy]

I think that the answer will be different for everyone. If you enjoy eating out every meal get the dining plan. if you are like us, and are finished at the parks by 2 or 3 each day, who wants to get dressed again and go out to eat? Order in a pizza, or something simple.

 

[MHSweb79]

Don't become part of the herd just because all the other sheep are doing it!

Disney is a genius at marketing and they've marketed the heck out of their dining plan. They've got all the rest of the sheep convinced that the hay is FREE when really, they are paying increased barn rates. Well, you get the idea.

I have the dining plan for my upcoming trip because I did the math and it worked out better than our room discount. Is our food free? Not at all. But it is half price and that's good enough for me this time.

 

[Uno Mas]

I always go for the room discount and never get the DDP. Like you, I want to eat according to my schedule and what I feel like eating on that particular day. I hate to have it all planned out like that - I never know where I"m going to be at a particular time and certainly don't want reservations dictating my schedule. Plus, it seems like a lot of food to consume each day. Do what makes you feel happy!

 

[sjs314]

I opted for the room discount since we are staying in a Villa the discount of 40% was much better than FD, now maybe if it was deluxe DP it would have been a better option but regualr DP does not fit our eating needs since we like to have TS a day and reg DP only has one TS which would necessitate our upgradeing the Dp

 

[ccgirl]

I've done both. This time we are doing the DDP. I did the math and it worked out better. I find if you are going Deluxe the room discount is usually better. You can look on allears.net at the menus and price out what you think you will eat. You can then compare it to the increased room rate (rack rate) for the "free" dining.

Good luck.

 

[WIDisneyFan]

We have not done the dining plan but I have tracked our dining expenses and for us it would not be a great deal. For others it may be but it depends on how you dine.

Look on the bright side of it - either way you are going to be at Disney

 

[Dismom55]

It sounds like you have answered your question, you enjoy spur of the moment, therefore I think ADR's would not be good for you, saving money on your room however sounds great. I personally enjoy looking forward to sitting, having someone take my order, deliver it to me to consume. I also enjoy planning what new place we will try knowing that because we have the DDP we can afford to try a different place. Whether free of paid for DDP we have found it suits our lifestyle. BUT, you stated you like to eat when and where on the spur of the moment, then I suggest you have the best plan for you and that is saving money on the room. I would also suggest that if you would want to try a dining plan that most likely the QS plan would be more to your style. Nothing says the group thinking is for everyone.

 

[antree]

We are doing the dining plan this trip, paying for it. I never did it before, I just don't eat like that and all those ressies . I regret agreeing to do it this time. My DD and sister, and nieces really want to do it, so I gave in. But I am the one making the reservations, trying to figure out where we will be and now have to be on a certain day and time. It is driving me crazy, I am so mad with it all. They are big eaters and my DD wants to eat everything in Disney before we leave. So I am doing it and I'm hating it!

 

[LexisAuntieLala]

For us, it does not work out better with the DDP either. The amount we save using a room discount is about $200 a night at the Polynesian. With 2 adults and one child, we don't eat that much food so it works better for us to go with the room discount.

 

[nicki.momof3]

We have done both and for us the DDP works best. We really enjoy have a sit down dinner every night. It is a nice time for us to relax, take a breather, and get ready for our favorite time at WDW (at night under the lights). We always get a quick meals for breakfast and lunch.

I also like with kids being able to get snack anytime without shelling out $$$.

We save more a lot more $$$ with DDP - but its not for everyone.

 

[Melisande]

Get the better room rate. You can do food out of pocket as you need or want it later. If you get the DDP you feel required to order the most expensive thing which may not be what you want when you sit down to eat.

 

[modisney]

I've gone both ways. If I have my pack of nephews along with us we've gone with the DDP because their stomachs are bottomless pits and we've never had to worry about all those snacks going to waste. If it's a smaller crowd then we take the better room rate because we've found we end up with a lot of extra food or unused credits.

 

[ILoveMyGirls]

we opted for off-site to get a condo (2-bedroom), it is so inexpensive compared to the same on Disney property. we are like you, we don't want to eat three full meals a day, it is too much for us too. for those who like to try restaurants, etc. i can see how it would be fun though.

 

[rie'smom]

We've used the DDP a few times and it's a waste of time and money for us. I couldn't get the resort I wanted but snagged a great deal on a suite at the Dolphin so for our trip we couldn't get the DDP even if we did want it.

 

[free2div]

I know there are already discussios about getting or not getting the dining plan, but it seems like EVERYONE on here has opted for some for or another of the DDP with their trip. Am I the ONLY one who opted for a better room rate...and should I be second-guessing myself?

I love a good breakfast out, but can't see doing every meal of every day of our trip in a restaurant. I've packed some breakfast bars in the past and done some snacking before a big, late lunch out, etc. I also don't want to be thinking about the "accounting" of my meal credits while I'm away. I want to eat what I want to eat, when I want to eat it - not because it fits neat and tidy-like into my remaining balance.

Am I the only one? Did anyone else opt for the room rate discount instead of the meal plan?

we opted for room discount and just paid for dining plan and still saved 126.00. We love the DDP because everything is already paid for. And we also like eating that 1 TS a day..a nice break and a way to try new places to eat. I also enjoy planning out our ADR's cause I usually know what park we will be in on our trip and with AP passes we can always park hop if we want too. But again to each his own. It just makes our trip more enjoyable.

 

[tinkrebell]

we opted for room discount and just paid for dining plan and still saved 126.00. We love the DDP because everything is already paid for. And we also like eating that 1 TS a day..a nice break and a way to try new places to eat. I also enjoy planning out our ADR's cause I usually know what park we will be in on our trip and with AP passes we can always park hop if we want too. But again to each his own. It just makes our trip more enjoyable.

Oh good, because I was starting to think that everyone here was either one or the other! We opted for the room discount too, and paid OOP for the dining plan (which sounds so contrary. . . ) It just made sense for us to be able to pay everything off beforehand, because otherwise, DH tends to be the sort that tones down what he orders because of sticker shock! Did NOT want that to happen this trip, after it happened a couple of times on previous ones - we're both much happier thinking we're only "paying" for drinks and tips

 

[kristinmajor]

We have one TS a day, but that is all (most lunch). We have a villa so we don't need a counter service at all and will eat breakfast in villa and take snacks.

I did the math and it didn't make sense for us.