Why don't you purchase the DDP?

[CR Resort Fan 4 Life]

For those guests who choose not to purchase the DDP what are your reasons? My family and I don't purchase it because we don't like to make ADR's at 180 days out, since we stay on Club Level floors with all the food we get it's not worth it to us and we like to eat at a lot of offsite restaurants. The only places in WDW we will eat at is the Rainforest Cafe in Downtown Disney and the odd counter service meal either at the Resorts, or at the Earl of Sandwich.

I also ask that this does not get turned into a why I hate the DDP debate, because that is not what it's meant to be. It's just a simple thread asking what are the reasons other guests don't like to purchase the DDP?

 

[MelanieC]

We don't book the DDP because we buy the DDE card and get 20% off our dining reservations. We do two sit down lunch and dinners almost every day (with a few counter service restaurants thrown here and there). We also go to the Beach and do and are doing Sea World. I used the menu's and figured out what I would pay buying our food outright and using the DDE card and it was still around $500 less for 17 days eating at a lot more table service including a few double credit restaurants.

For us it's just not worth it. Plus we don't eat desserts usuall and we don't usually eat too many appetizers and if we do its' soup or we split a calamari or something like that.

 

[AStamm]

We love DDP when it's free, but other than that, prefer to pay OOP. This is the 2nd time we've had a DDE card, but it doesn't stop us from going to TS meals when we don't have one. The amount of food you get on DDP is insane...we're still at the stage where DS can share with DH or I...and this doesn't ever include dessert (although I generally get a salad as an appetizer).

 

[goofy4tink]

It depends on what kind of a trip we are planning. Sometimes I buy the DDP, sometimes I just use my DDE card. But for those that don't plan on eating on-site it really isn't a great deal. I have friends that are heading to WDW in August who stay concierge at the GF and still got the DDP...talk about a waste. But, to each his own I guess. We all do what works for us.

 

[BadgerBruce]

We've never considered it because it's way too much food for the two of us. When we do TS, at most we will split an appy, each get an entree, & split a dessert. Usually, it's just split an entree an either an ap. or dessert. Don't get me wrong-we love to eat-just not that much food all at one time. Besides, we love too many snacks (popcorn, bakery items, ice cream cookie sandwiches, mickey bars, dole whip float, etc.) at WDW that we need to have every trip!

 

[HappyDznyCamper]

We don't get it for several reasons..
number 1 being that it is not cost effective for my family
we stay at FW in our own/or when DH can't come in my parents trailer/5th wheel and eat many meals there.
We already have park tickets and don't want to buy more just to get the DDP
Way to much food, especially since DS is 11 and considered an adult for the plan but will more than likely eat off the kid menu.
The DDE card is a great discount with lots more flexability.

 

[tinkerbell60]

There are a few reasons for us. Mainly, I have two children that are very picky eaters , DD13 and DS10 - so it costs us $160 per day for the dining plan. If they still order off the children's menu it will cost less than that for the 4 of us/day. Also, we did free dining last summer. It was great, but so much food, and we got tired of trying to schedule our days around meals. We ended up skipping a few TS, and we never did use all of our CS.

I think it is great if your kids eat well. I can see where it would be very cost effective for most families.

 

[Mackey Mouse]

I guess my reasoning is that I truly do not like counter service when I am on vacation....I prefer to have a sit down meal, now that does not mean that I do not have the occasional Casey's hot dog, but on the whole, we seem to do two meals a day.. usually breakfast and one other meal and then if we are hungry, a small snack. I do not want to have to be thinking about how many credits do I have left and what table service I can have...I am not very structured so I like to just go with the flow.

I also have DDE which works just fine for us.

 

[tiffanym5375]

what is a dde card?

 

[Bichon Barb]

1. My kids are considered adults but don't eat as much as adults.

2. We are adults but we rarely eat appetizers, entrees and desserts. (If they allowed the substitution of a glass of wine for the desserts, that would be a pro. )

3. My husband loves Bongos.

4. We often split our lunches.

5. If we have the capabilities, sometimes we make our own lunch.

 

[yearbook50]

Annual Pass Holder

plus I dont always eat an appy, entree, and dessert at each restuarant - its usually just an entree and splitting a dessert with my table maths

 

[tjmw2727]

We don't because ~

We usually eat cereal for breakfast, so cold cereal in the room with fresh fruit starts the day out best for us. Quick and healthy start to the day.

We eat our biggest (table service) meal for lunch and the prices don't work with the DDP but we do use the DDE so we save 20%.

My dd's are now 10 and 12 and the prices for an adult ddp don't work because they won't finish an adult meal and don't really like kids meals anyway. They are more inclined to eat a salad and or soup or an appetizer or maybe split an adult meal.

None of us really eats dessert after a meal. We would rather wait and have a Mickey bar later on or some other type sweet snack.

We have annual passes so I wouldn't want to purchase MYW tickets in order to qualify.

In short - I would rather get a discount room, use my DDE and get a grocery delivery from wegoshop than purchase the DDP. This way we have snacks, breakfast and sandwich stuff in the room.

TJ

 

[WDWFWfan]

Simple, $$$!

 

[Mickeyluver37]

Well, last time we did DDE, and this time, why purchase it when they are giving it away?

 

[scrump]

We don't get the DDP because it doesn't suit our dining style. We don't do counter service, don't really eat the snacks, and for our TS, we don't always do apps, entree and dessert. We eat mostly at sit down restaurants, and mostly do entrees, and split a dessert.

 

[robynv]

We can't. We are military and stay at Shades of Green. Also for this trip my parents have booked the 4 bed/4bath presidential suite at Bonnet Creek for all of us, so can't get it then either. But having all that room is worth it.

 

[eliza61]

We don't make many adr (average 2 or 3 for a 10 night visit), we have the dde card and we also usually have a car, allowing us to have a wider variety of meals.
#1 reason. We have ap passes and always travel when we can get excellent discounts on deluxe rooms. You have to pay rack rates for the ddp

 

[Disney8704]

Just to let you know if you are a AAA member you can get the DDP and AAA discount. Only time you would have to pay rack rates is during the Free DDP. They give you an opition for room discount or free DDP.

We don't make many adr (average 2 or 3 for a 10 night visit), we have the dde card and we also usually have a car, allowing us to have a wider variety of meals.
#1 reason. We have ap passes and always travel when we can get excellent discounts on deluxe rooms. You have to pay rack rates for the ddp

 

[WDWFWfan]

Just to let you know if you are a AAA member you can get the DDP and AAA discount. Only time you would have to pay rack rates is during the Free DDP. They give you an opition for room discount or free DDP.

Are you saying that AAA offers free DDP anytime? I am a new AAA member, but they never mentioned this. Is it true? If so, what are the details.

Well, last time we did DDE, and this time, why purchase it when they are giving it away?

What is DDE and how do you get it?

 

[Colleen27]

We aren't using it for our upcoming trip because we want more TS meals and fewer CS meals than the plan provides for (we have 15 TS credits worth of meals for an 11 night trip, plus 2 dinners at restaurants that aren't on the plan), so it isn't a great deal for us. With 3 signature dinners and 2 dinners at non-participating restaurants in our plans, we would hardly save anything using the dining plan, and we'd undoubtedly have CS credits that go unused.

Also, my son is 9 but eats like an adult. He's a big kid - 56" and 90 lbs, football player - and prefers adult food over kids meal offerings most of the time. So with the DDP, we'd have to upgrade him to an adult and pay adult ticket prices as well as the adult dining cost so that he could order the kinds of meals he enjoys. The added ticket cost eliminates the small savings we could get by using the plan for the meals it will cover and paying the extras OOP.

And since it is looking like APs are the way to go for us anyway, with a 12 day trip planned and a 4 day trip in the works, we'll be able to get the DDE card instead, which will work out to be a much better deal for the way we eat.