What am I missing re DDP?

[OklahomaTourist]

All,

Each of our last two trips to WDW, we've opted not to purchase the Disney Dining Plan, and sometimes I think I'm the only Disney visitor on earth to do so. I'm trying to figure out if I'm missing something.

Based on the pricing I'm working through for a possible trip this summer, DDP is going to add about $1,300 to our trip (2 adults/2 "adult-age" kids, 15/13, for 7 nights). But when I do the budget math on the Disney restaurants we plan to visit, it isn't even close - the DDP is much, much higher for us.

We're presently planning to do four table-service meals - Breakfast at Chef Mickey's, and dinners @ La Cellier, 50's PT, and Teppan Edo. Based on a review of their current menus, and doing a bit of quick arithmetic, it looks like my crew of four would be looking to spend in the extreme about $700 on those meals (est $30/entree x 4 entrees x 4 meals = 480 + 6.5% tax + 15% tip, which totals just under $600 in reality, but I leave in a bit of extra for special drinks or desserts).

We plan to stay at SSR and have light breakfasts in-room, and I can't see us dropping $600 on lunches given only six days in the parks. We also have a couple of favorite non-Disney places to visit in the Orlando area, where the DDP is obviously irrelevant, so no matter how I do the math, it seems like the dining plan isn't a good fit for us.

Am I calculating something incorrectly? Am I missing something? I obviously don't want to be overlooking something obvious, so those who have done the DDP and might be able to point out the error in my ways would be welcome to enlighten me!

Many thanks,
OT

 

[ms mouse]

You really have to do the math (which you did) to find out if it is right for your family. Remember free dining has been offered quite a bit lately and for some it results in a bigger discount than some of the percent off discounts. Also some people just want to know their costs and pay in advance. Regular dining has never worked for us and we have only done deluxe if we upgrade free dining.

 

[Mom2micayla]

DDP definitely isn't right for everyone. I've done and redone the math at least a dozen times for our upcoming trip in March (just DH & I) and have decided against it. For us, the only way it works out is if we ate all our TS meals at dinner, ordered some of the most expensive entrees and always ordered desserts. DH is diabetic so rarely eats desserts, and I'm always too full for them. At the most, we'd share a dessert, and we rarely ever do that. Plus we often prefer a heavy meal to be mid-day as opposed to evening. Another factor too was that several of our TS meals are on the cheaper side (like 50s, Plaza, etc) and no matter what entree we'd get we wouldn't be breaking even, let alone coming ahead, that day.

Plus, frankly I like not having to feel bad if we're not hungry and want to call and cancel a TS ADR and worrying about replacing it somewhere in our trip so we don't waste the credit (money). So no DDP for us!

 

[gibsontrio]

I dont think it would ever work for our family. We are the type to fix a quick breakfast in our room, have one big meal (either lunch or dinner) and snack for the rest of the day. That way we can grab whatever looks tasty near where we are. We are doing about 3 or 4 TS meals for our 6 day trip, the rest will be grab and go.I dont think I could ever have my kids sit for 2 or 3 TS meals and actually enjoy the meal without thinking about all the rides we could be doing. Like others have said, so really really enjoy eating their way through the world, others dont.

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

You are NOT missing anything.

In many ways the dining plans are just a marketing hook. We would have lost $600 on the Quick Service plan last year. I already knew we would lose money on the basic & deluxe plans, so we tracked our spending on counter service meals and snacks and came out at HALF what the plan would have cost.

 

[6bowmans]

I dont think it would ever work for our family. We are the type to fix a quick breakfast in our room, have one big meal (either lunch or dinner) and snack for the rest of the day. That way we can grab whatever looks tasty near where we are. We are doing about 3 or 4 TS meals for our 6 day trip, the rest will be grab and go.I dont think I could ever have my kids sit for 2 or 3 TS meals and actually enjoy the meal without thinking about all the rides we could be doing. Like others have said, so really really enjoy eating their way through the world, others dont.

That's us too. We all like just a simple bowl of cereal in the morning for breakfast. During the day, the kids are just too busy enjoying the parks to take the time required for a meal at a sit-down restaurant. We do have a few TS meals, but it is usually on our "down days" when we have time to enjoy them. We end up spending about a third to a half less for food than if we had a dining plan. With the dining plan, it seems you spend half your time at Disney worrying about making sure you manage your credits, getting to/from restaurants, and spending a good deal of time in restaurants and not in the parks.

 

[ThreeKMom]

We are a family of 5 (4 adults and one child),we always do the regular dining plan and save money!

The way we figure it, the cost of the plan is just about equal to the cost of a table service meal for us, so it's like we are getting a quick serve meal and snack almost for free!

We spend about $190 - $200 for a TS meal and CS meals are about $50 and if we each got a snack for $4 that would be another $48 as long as the price for the plan is less than that - we save money!

Also, by using the plan and paying in advance we can not look at the price of entree's and we can each order an AWESOME dessert! Usually at home we never order dessert but in Disney the desserts are so amazing how can you not want to try one!

Usually we use our snck credit for breakfast, however this year we will be staying at the BWV's so we will bring along breakfast and get to use our credits for FUN snacks!

I know the dining plan is not for everyone, but it works for us!

 

[Nadjalu]

Each plan only benefits those who eat like the plan.

For instance to come out ahead on the DDP each member in your party has to eat a CS meal and a TS meal along with a snack each day of the vacation.

So if people like yourself isn't eating this way, no the numbers won't add up in your favor. Make sense?

The plans are there to save people money who would normally eat the way the plan is designed.

We save about $100 per day on the DDP. It is just DH and I and we eat a CS lunch (usually an expensive one) and then a TS meal (again usually eating a more expensive entree. Which is what I would normally eat) or a TS buffet. So this plan saves us money without changing what we would want to eat.

 

[Reddy]

We do the quick service but a snack for Breakfast & a coke or mickey ears in the park take the snack credits then we have 2 CS meals each - The dessert is a great vacation treat since we don't eat them at home often & I love not having to carry money around with me all of the time & try to think - do we have enough for this

 

[Huff]

DDP always saves us money. Biggest difference from your plan is we do not do many buffets. They are not a good value on the DDP and better paying OOP for.

For 2 adults and 1 adult aged teen we easily save money.

It costs us $45 x 3 X 9 nights = $1215

Example DDP day at Kona and Sunshine Seasons:

TS Dinner Entree $24
TS Dinner Dessert $7
TS Dinner Drink $3
Total Dinner $34 X 3 = $102

QS Lunch Entree $10
QS Lunch Dessert $4
QS Drink $2.50
Total Lunch $16.50 X 3 = $49.50

Snacks 3 X $3 = $9

Total for day = $154.50
Total for week = $154.50 X 9 = $1390 + 6.5% tax = $1477

This shows a decent savings but in reality we save much more because many of our restaurants are much higher such as Coral Reef or QS at Wolf Gang Pucks.

For families that go to several buffets or less expensive restaurants the DDP would not save much if anything. For our visits we've saved every time although not nearly as much in years prior when appetizer and tip were included.

For our upcoming trip our ADR's are:
Coral Reef, San Angel, Marrakesh, Le Celliar (lunch), Kona (Twice), Ohana, Tu Italia, Boma, Tony's.

 

[MM27]

The Dining Plan(s) would never work for us. We don't eat that much and many times we end up skipping meals and just grabbing a Mickey bar or popcorn or something midday. I love reading the food reports that people write and I like to look at the pictures, but I sometimes wonder if they ever have time for rides/shows. It wouldn't be enjoyable for me to have to plan my day around getting to meals.

 

[Figment2]

Friends and I tried the plan in February 2010. They liked it - I didn't. The only place it worked for me was buffets. I'm more of a salad & appetizer type person and very rarely order entrees. we ended up with about six unused QS credits and I can't tell you how many rice krispie treats they took home as snacks.

Since I'm an annual passholder, the Tables in Wonderland card works better for me.

JMHO

Cyn

 

[AugustDisney]

It will work for us because we are going to have several table service meals and less counter service. We both have places we like to eat at and then you get into the fancier places because this is a couples trip. PLUS, there is the added bonus of not having to have much cash on hand. For a young couple, prepaying for the trip is TOTALLY worth it.

 

[mountdew1]

It's all about the numbers. For some people it works, for others it doesn't. Do you normally get a dessert with each meal? If not, the DDP ends up having you pay for something you don't normally eat. And does every member of your party get a drink when you do CS? Otherwise once again, you pay for something you don't need. My wife and I never get desserts, and we will either share a drink with a CS meal, or get the free ice water. As such, the DDP ends up costing us way more than we would spend. And the same with TS meals. Do you routinely order each person a dessert? If you normally split them, thats an extra 5-7 dollars you are paying for on the DDP.

It sounds like in your case, you have no benefit from the DDP.

And that is why Disney loves the DDP. They wouldn't push it if they didn't make a profit on it. So all the unused snack credits, and portions of meals that don't get consumed end up as pure profit. And even with meals they eat, in order to end up breaking even your normally need to order the most expensive meals. If anyone orders a lower end entree, they once again win.

 

[photobob]

DDP definitely isn't right for everyone. I've done and redone the math at least a dozen times for our upcoming trip in March (just DH & I) and have decided against it. For us, the only way it works out is if we ate all our TS meals at dinner, ordered some of the most expensive entrees and always ordered desserts. DH is diabetic so rarely eats desserts, and I'm always too full for them. At the most, we'd share a dessert, and we rarely ever do that. Plus we often prefer a heavy meal to be mid-day as opposed to evening. Another factor too was that several of our TS meals are on the cheaper side (like 50s, Plaza, etc) and no matter what entree we'd get we wouldn't be breaking even, let alone coming ahead, that day.

Plus, frankly I like not having to feel bad if we're not hungry and want to call and cancel a TS ADR and worrying about replacing it somewhere in our trip so we don't waste the credit (money). So no DDP for us!

This post saved me from saying the very same thing! Precisely the reasons we haven't done the DDP.

 

[lilmape]

It's just my husband and I for vacation and we are doing the regular dining plan. When I paid for it the plan was about $42 a day per person. That made our total for the plan about $588.00.
We love TS meals and booked LTT, WCC, Le Cellier, Teppan E, Tusker H, 'Ohana and Kona. (Figured from current prices on allears and what I know we will most likely order)
Those 7 alone not counting CS and Snacks will be about $439 dollars. It works for us because we always end up ordering the more pricey things like steak etc. That's what we like to eat. Anyhow It just depends on your family's needs. The plan is best for our budget. Happy Planning!

 

[sharona]

It's all about the numbers. For some people it works, for others it doesn't. Do you normally get a dessert with each meal? If not, the DDP ends up having you pay for something you don't normally eat. And does every member of your party get a drink when you do CS? Otherwise once again, you pay for something you don't need. My wife and I never get desserts, and we will either share a drink with a CS meal, or get the free ice water. As such, the DDP ends up costing us way more than we would spend. And the same with TS meals. Do you routinely order each person a dessert? If you normally split them, thats an extra 5-7 dollars you are paying for on the DDP.

It sounds like in your case, you have no benefit from the DDP.

And that is why Disney loves the DDP. They wouldn't push it if they didn't make a profit on it. So all the unused snack credits, and portions of meals that don't get consumed end up as pure profit. And even with meals they eat, in order to end up breaking even your normally need to order the most expensive meals. If anyone orders a lower end entree, they once again win.

ITA DDP and even free dining are profitable for Disney: free dining fills the parks during off peak times and people choose Disney over other vacation options because of free dining. Also guests don't leave the World to try other Orlando attractions because it makes no sense to pay OOP for food when you are on the DDP.

I also agree it works for some families and free dining is a great deal if you were already planning on going to WDW during off peak times.

It just seems that every year they remove some of the value from the plan but don't adjust the price accordingly. Also, it used to be easy to use and now is a big p.i.t.a.

 

[Pakey]

For us it has nothing to do with numbers. We do not like the dining plans. Too much structure and too much food. And the best restaurants are not on the plans anyway.

 

[mistysue]

See, my family just loves eating out. We go during free dining, upgrade to Deluxe and then save a TON of money on deluxe dining. (cost of food vs. cost of DP upgrade + potential room discount) Both times we have done this, we've gotten to the last day and had about 5 snack credits left. That is what you take home with you for the plane ride!

Our 2009 trip was 7 days and it came out about $800 in our favor- 2010 was 9 nights of the plan and we were about $1400 ahead. My kids are piggies and I prefer giving in to all the whims for ice cream and pretzels rather than saying no.

I've spent a lot of time doing math on it and see why it is a waste of money for most families, but some of us get a great deal.

 

[kcsspartan]

For us, it was the character meals that put us over the edge. Our kids are young and want to do Chef Mickeys, Crystal Palace and Akerhous. Additionally, the cost per kid for the plan was pretty inexpensive.