Want to give it a go...DH hesitant.

[*QueenB*]

Anyone ever had to convince their SO to try DDP? I think it would work for us and benefit our dining experience.

 

[Abbysmom327]

As long as you do one sit down meal a day it pays for it's self. Goto www.allearsnet.com and check out the menus of where you would eat at. Total the cost write it all down for him at that point it will be a no brainer for him.

Good Luck
Erica

 

[Momto2PrncChrmgs]

I've had to convince MYSELF to use it. I did exactly what the OP said-went to allears and pulled up each menu that we wanted, figured out the cost of what we'd probably order (for me, it wouldn't be what I WANTED to order because I'm too cheap to pay OOP for filet ), drinks (water for me ) and tax. Added it all up and it was within $10 of the cost of DDP. HOWEVER, with the DDP, I'd get to order filet, not stress each time we sat down about how much it was going to cost, the kids could get milkshakes or smoothies occassionally for their drinks AND we'd get basically free desserts.

 

[Faldred]

Essentially, you have the same situation as anyone else asking "are any of the dining plans right for me and my family?" You may have already convinced yourself of the answer, but you are in the position of trying to get someone to agree with you.

The answer to the question has multiple factors, though. One is the cost issue -- will going with a specific dining plan save you money? Generally, if one of the plans matches the way you would normally choose to eat out-of-pocket, then you're probably going save money on that plan.

In many cases, though, going with a dining plan can cost more than paying out-of-pocket. When having to deal with things check by check, people may choose to economize by having fewer meals or choosing lower-end options. Going with a dining plan, even if it winds up costing more, can have a positive impact on the overall vacation experience due to the freedom from having to "penny pinch" on vacation, allowing people to order whatever they like instead of just the cheaper or "safer" options.

On the other hand, all of the plans (except QSDP) require planning. You have to have a solid plan that makes use of all of your credits, or it's going to be a bad deal financially. This may result in a higher degree of commitment than some people would like; when paying out-of-pocket, with few exceptions, you can cancel last-minute with no repercussions if you simply don't feel like a big meal at that time. On a dining plan, you now have extra credits that you will have to find a use for, which may not always be easy except in very off-peak times.

 

[Kymm1111]

I had to try it once, and I counted up what it would cost oop and what the dining plan cost us and we did save a fair amount of money. If you make reservations then the dining plan will work well for you. If you wing your reservations, then it will not work as well.
I am going for a short visit with my Mother and Grandmother and buying the tables in wonderland instead of the dining plan this time because it is a short trip, Grandma does not eat a lot and then I can use it for the next year and realize a good savings- especially if I pair it with the dining plan.

 

[*QueenB*]

Essentially, you have the same situation as anyone else asking "are any of the dining plans right for me and my family?" You may have already convinced yourself of the answer, but you are in the position of trying to get someone to agree with you.

The answer to the question has multiple factors, though. One is the cost issue -- will going with a specific dining plan save you money? Generally, if one of the plans matches the way you would normally choose to eat out-of-pocket, then you're probably going save money on that plan.

In many cases, though, going with a dining plan can cost more than paying out-of-pocket. When having to deal with things check by check, people may choose to economize by having fewer meals or choosing lower-end options. Going with a dining plan, even if it winds up costing more, can have a positive impact on the overall vacation experience due to the freedom from having to "penny pinch" on vacation, allowing people to order whatever they like instead of just the cheaper or "safer" options.

On the other hand, all of the plans (except QSDP) require planning. You have to have a solid plan that makes use of all of your credits, or it's going to be a bad deal financially. This may result in a higher degree of commitment than some people would like; when paying out-of-pocket, with few exceptions, you can cancel last-minute with no repercussions if you simply don't feel like a big meal at that time. On a dining plan, you now have extra credits that you will have to find a use for, which may not always be easy except in very off-peak times.

I am going to write up a plan for us with and without dining being completely realistic of what we will eat either way. We cannot make ADRs yet for our vacation so we have a short while to talk about it and make a final decision. I just hate eating fast food so much, I rarely ate it as a child and now that I am an adult I just feel gross eating it and my children do not seem to enjoy much of it either.
Personally I enjoy sticking to plans, and like making plans even more. I do not really enjoy eating in the hotel room much--though we have a lot with such young children and to save money.

 

[loganpaulsmom]

My DH was hesitant too.. But, all I did to convince him was show him the restaurants that I wanted to eat at and how much 1 dinner would be in comparison to how much the DDP was per day and that sold him.

Although, I will tell you many of us end up paying OOP for some meals.. For instance, next time I go I will have 8 nights of DDP.. which means 8 ts credits for me.. I have 11 meals books.. But, I have also planned already which meals I am going to pay for OOP..

As previous posters have said, if you like to plan this is the things for you.. I have already added, deleted, added, deleted my ADR's about 10 times already..

 

[Scuttle]

This was completely us for this upcoming trip. We have gone back and forth about getting the DDP. I keep finding reasons for it and reasons against it. (We are DVC, so this is a new option for us.)

We have a split stay, so we are doing it for a portion of our stay so we can decide once and for all if this was really worth it or not for us.

I agree with PP about how you eat will really determine your savings. If you go through it and decide based on the exact menus and the exact costs, you will probably see for yourself your savings.

For us, and again, this is MY personal reasoning, we make a plan to have dinner together each night at a table as a family. Being that it's an added expense beyond the costs that we usually spend for a family dinner, being on the DDP means that I don't have to "cheap" us into more fast food/CS! Also, we aren't fast food people at home, so knowing that we will at least have a nice dinner (hopefully including some vegetables or a salad!) each night is helping MY negativity towards eating fast food every day for lunch! LOL

It really is a personal decision. I have deducted that it is a worthwhile expense for us, but the next poster may disagree. I suggest making the decision and embracing it, making the ADRs way in advance, and just go for it.

To help prepare, I have printed out snack options, CS options and planned all the TS meals/ADRs. My biggest thing is being able to answer the questions that my skeptic partner may have, so we don't end up having mini-battles over food - TOTALLY not my idea of a good vacation.

So we will let you know if this worked or not for us when we get back! LOL

 

[3pletprincesses]

My dh didn't want to do it at all. We were supposed to go last fall and ended up having free dining promo but last minute Dh stayed home because work cancelled his vacation so I went with the girls. When I got home and showed him the receipts of how much it would have cost me he changed his mind. Guess who booked DDP for our upcoming trip this may LOL Seriously if you want to eat 1 seat down meal a day, the ddp is the way to go. With being 2 adult and 3 kids, I think I came up with an average of $150 for eveyone per day or $30 per person per day for food. No way I could do better OOP for a caracter/seat down meal a day and a QS every day. Plus is so much easier to simply look at the menu and order and not have to worry about cost since it's already accounted for. I know I would constantly looking at the prices and ordering the lowest priced item on the menu to save if I was paying OOP. It's worth the peace of mind.

 

[havoc315]

I am going to write up a plan for us with and without dining being completely realistic of what we will eat either way. We cannot make ADRs yet for our vacation so we have a short while to talk about it and make a final decision. I just hate eating fast food so much, I rarely ate it as a child and now that I am an adult I just feel gross eating it and my children do not seem to enjoy much of it either.
Personally I enjoy sticking to plans, and like making plans even more. I do not really enjoy eating in the hotel room much--though we have a lot with such young children and to save money.

Dislike of fast food is a good reason NOT to do the ddp. With the ddp, you must average 1 counter service meal per day. In fact, for the plan to save you money, you typically must eat a CS lunch and TS dinner. If, for example, you use your CS credit for breakfast at the resort -- that may often be a value of under $10. And many TS lunches aren't expensive either. A TS lunch at the Plaza Restaurant, even with soda and dessert, may be under $25. So if you did the CS breakfast and TS lunch, you would have paid $47 for the ddp, but only gotten $35 in value.

So, if you want a CS lunch, practically every day, with dessert and soda... And you want a TS dinner practically every night, with dessert and soda, then you would probably save 10-20% on the ddp.
But for most other combinations, it may be cheaper to just pay OOP.
For example, let's say you are staying 7 nights. If you think, over that time, you want 3 TS lunches, 5 TS dinners, 2 TS breakfasts, and a 4-5 scattered CS meals. You could get the ddp... Waste a couple of the CS credits, and pay oop for 3 of the TS meals... But you would then find it would have been much cheaper to just pay oop the whole way.