Upgrade to DxDP?

[ben10]

Currently have DDP, 2 adults and 1 child (DS1, 5 yo), DS2 1.5 yo so will eat off of our plates. Staying 5 days-4 nights. However, doing our ADRs it looks like by Day 3 we are all out of CS and TS! We will need to buy 4 meals OOP, tentatively including a character breakfast and a TS dinner and maybe a TS breakfast the day we leave.

I am wondering if it might be worthwhile to upgrade to DxDP for an additional $334? If we did this we would probably have TOO much food--but then I might add a dinner show (2TS). Also, with DxDP we would have mugs included (currently plan to buy them). DH would also love that it is all-inclusive (i.e. we wouldn't need to pay OOP for any meals while at WDW) and prepaid--he cringes at the WDW prices LOL. I also thought with DxDP we could do room service if needed with the kids (staying at WL). Plus DS2 is a huge eater--when we went last fall we ended up buying him CS/TS child meals in addition to our meals--so we could use extra meals for him?

Drawbacks include with the DS1 (5 yo) is a VERY picky eater so he will probably only eat pizza, fries, etc. and not sure how the kids will do at a lot of sitdowns. Therefore, many of the extra TS meals may end up being CS meals.

Gosh, thanks for staying with this LONG note. TIA for any advice!

 

[Wendy5055]

Personally, I am a fan of the DlxDP and we use it all the time. I know I enjoy not having to worry over every penny spent. I did use the DP when my dd9 was 5 years old and found it worked well...we then used DlxDP every year since.

It would allow you to perhaps do a dinner show...like Mickeys Backyard BBQ which your young boys might enjoy!

Many of the character buffets would be good too as you see the characters which occupy/entertain the children and they have many of the child friendly foods. We always scheduled these for before the park opens as my DD9 was always an early riser. It also does not take away from park time and your boys will not have to stand in long lines to greet characters in the parks.

Another thing is snacks! My DD9 needs a snack mid-morning and mid-afternoon to keep her energy level up. She chooses items like popsicles, mickey shaped ice cream, water, lemonade slushies, and popcorn when watching parades is a must! I like knowing that I don't have to worry about the cost of every little snack or drink she would like while on vacation.

I enjoy the flexibility it gives us.

Another mention is that we, in particular, enjoy the break a table service meal provides us...in air conditioning. While I am aware that the quick service restaurants have air conditioning, I prefer not to wait in long lines while keeping an eye on my DD9 (especially when she was younger), waiting for the food and finally searching for a table. It is just not my idea of a vacation...yes, I have done it.

I think it would really depend on how you planned on using the DlxDP.

 

[Skylarr29]

If you can afford to upgrade without a problem I would go ahead and do it. While it isn't as cost effective to eat counter service, you are right that if the kids get tired that is always a back up, plus you can order room service as well since you will have the credits to spare. You will Not be able to use extra credits for your youngest son that is not on the plan. You are only allowed to order as many meals as your room key lists.

 

[shawnh199]

I am with Wendy5055.

We love the deluxe plan. We do 3 TS meals a day starting with an early morning character breakfast ADR before the parks open. We eat lunch around 1ish and dinner around 7ish. By the time we have walked that much, ridden that much, etc we are ready for a nice rest in an AC TS restaurant. At lunch our girls (4 & 8) generally will nap until the food comes out. No one says you have to eat everything on your plate unless you just want to. If I am too full for dessert, I eat a couple of bites for the taste and for dinner maybe wrap it up to go. The only meal we have really felt full at was dinner because there isn't as much walking to do if the parks are closing soon after you eat. Otherwise, we burn off much of what we ate the meal before with all that walking and fun stuff!

People say it takes too much time away from the parks, but a CS meal would not save us a bunch of time anyway. To me the time we would save, if any, is not worth the hassle of waiting in lines, the noise and trying to find a table. I much prefer to be seated and relax in the AC. We don't spend hours in a restaurant unless they are just that slow (has happened twice - Ohana & Grand Floridian Cafe). We are generally finished in about an hour. My in-laws did some 2TS places on our last trip and their times in those restaurant were much longer than ours at our 1TS restaurants. We also eat in the park we are at for the day (or nearby resort) so we don't spend a lot of time on riding buses from one place to another.

We also get a lot of value out of the Deluxe plan. I sit down with the menus and figure out what we would spend if we went to these place OOP. I include TS and CS to see how the regular dining plan would work. If paying OOP, my DH and I would split some meals as well, maybe an app and dessert in some places. I figure the costs and compare. Deluxe doesn't cost much more than paying OOP splitting some meals or doing the regular plan and paying OOP for the extra meals we would want. I estimate $3 per snack as well. The main difference is the tax and tips you would pat for a TS meal over a CS meal. But the difference is only like $100 bucks for us so having everything covered and not having to worry about what to order is way worth that $$.

Enjoy your trip!