When does it make sense?

[wgwtgb]

I think I remember something about the ddp not being worth the cost in some situations...I just can't find what situation that is.
We are a family of 4. At time of travel it will be dh, myself, ds9 and dd4. We were very pleased last time with the 1ts, 1 qs, 1snack last trip. I really enjoyed not worrying about what everyone ordered and how much it would cost. I'm the person who for goes the appetizer bc I don't want to pay for it (wow, that sounds really cheap)!! Dh is not!! He will order appetizer + salad+ entre + dessert! What should I do? Do I get the plan and a little piece of mind, or bring cash??
I'm questioning this bc I read where someone was saving a ton by booking a room only and purchasing tickets through undercover tourist. Of course by not doing the package they could not purchase the ddp.
Just needing some opinions!! TIA

 

[worm761]

You really have to run the numbers to see if it will work with your family. We get the DDP for one reason and one reason only. If we don't then boyfriend looks at how much something costs and orders by cost rather then what he wants to actually eat. We did come out ahead with the basic plan. Boyfriend, Me, and DS (13 at the time). Now, DS is a super picky eater and sometimes ordered kids meals even though we had an adult dining plan for him. I like the not having to worry about money aspect of it.

 

[hannahdrewmom]

Overall undercover tourist (while great and we've used them before) does not save very much. (For our family of four it saved less than $40) There savings came from using the room only discount. You can book room only and still turn it into a package thus getting your ddp.

I think with kids the value of the ddp is great. They will almost always eat more in a day than the package is worth (especially if you are doing buffets.)

I think the dining plan gets sketchy when people who have kids that are 10 and considered disney adults. They are paying alot more for the package and in reality most of the kids would still rather order of the kids menu which would be a lot cheaper to pay oop.

 

[catne]

I think I remember something about the ddp not being worth the cost in some situations...I just can't find what situation that is.
We are a family of 4. At time of travel it will be dh, myself, ds9 and dd4. We were very pleased last time with the 1ts, 1 qs, 1snack last trip. I really enjoyed not worrying about what everyone ordered and how much it would cost. I'm the person who for goes the appetizer bc I don't want to pay for it (wow, that sounds really cheap)!! Dh is not!! He will order appetizer + salad+ entre + dessert! What should I do? Do I get the plan and a little piece of mind, or bring cash??
I'm questioning this bc I read where someone was saving a ton by booking a room only and purchasing tickets through undercover tourist. Of course by not doing the package they could not purchase the ddp.
Just needing some opinions!! TIA

Just wanted to mention: you don't mention when you last did the DDP, but did you know the Disney Dining Plan you mention (1TS, 1QS, 1 Snack per night) does NOT include an appetizer, right? They discontinued the appetizers several years ago, and will not let you substitute an app for a dessert. So if you'd rather order an appetizer, and your hubby wants want every meal too, well, you'll have to bring extra cash anyway!

YOu might want to look at menus at the places you'd eat and run the numbers on what you'd probably want to order each place...if you can easily get your total up to the cost of the dining plan each night, then go for it.

 

[disneymayz]

Overall undercover tourist (while great and we've used them before) does not save very much. (For our family of four it saved less than $40) There savings came from using the room only discount. You can book room only and still turn it into a package thus getting your ddp.

I think with kids the value of the ddp is great. They will almost always eat more in a day than the package is worth (especially if you are doing buffets.)

I think the dining plan gets sketchy when people who have kids that are 10 and considered disney adults. They are paying alot more for the package and in reality most of the kids would still rather order of the kids menu which would be a lot cheaper to pay oop.

But at this point if you still have 1 child under 10 the nyou can use the 10yo "adult" CS for the 2 kids to share lunch and use the child CS for them to share breakfast since not to many places have a kids breakfast.