davedmaine
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Mar 30, 2011
- Messages
- 2,074
And this is exactly why we do NOT use it. (And neither one of us is wrong. We're just different.)
Some people find "freedom" in pre-paying. I find "freedom" in being handed a menu and knowing that everyone in our party can order whatever they want. What could be "free-er" than that? No having to say: "Sorry, kiddo. You can't order the fried calamari appetizer, because appetizers are extra." No having to say: "Do you really have to have that Caesar Salad to start? It isn't included in the Plan." To me, freedom is saying: "order whatever you want." But I certainly can appreciate the benefit that some folks put on transforming their vacation into a pre-paid "all inclusive", (even if appetizers aren't included). At the end of the meal, I get handed a $100 check. People on the plan get handed a $20 check. I get that. But they also paid more than I did before arriving on property. Monetarily, it comes very, very close to evening out. Do you really think that Disney would continue the Plan if it was losing money on the whole thing? So don't let money sway you. Instead, decide if you prefer "freedom" in the form or pre-paying, or in the form of holding a menu where you can design your meal to best suit your needs. Neither approach is "wrong".
I agree. The hard truth is that unless you're ordering the most expensive things on the menu, at today's DPP prices, you're coming to come out behind dollar-wise. If you're going to order the $15 chicken rather than the $35 steak, you should be paying OOP. Plus, people factor in the costs of the CS desserts, which honestly, nobody would get if they weren't on the DDP. I know that there's a convenience factor at play and I used to think the DDP was great during our first couple of trips, but now that we've been several times, we wouldn't think of the DDP.