Me too. We use the DDP every year and love to have it pre-paid- whether that means we get too much food or not. I know that I wouldn't be eating $50 steaks every night if I had to pay that at the time. I am quite "ok" with paying in advance. It's a choice that we make well in advance and are very happy to do so. So from one of the "suckers" - I am glad it is an option.
FYI - it's my 2 cents but yes, it's coming back and my guess is that we will see it for 2021 - it is Disney's most popular and lucrative add on.
I am a
travel agent. I have had many clients and friends who have used the dining plan and ended up with leftover meals or too many desserts or snacks they threw away or never used or they didn't eat higher priced meals, instead used dining credits on qs breakfast or similar which didn't make the most of the plan. Also not everyone drinks alcohol they lost out when they subbed for a drink that was $10-$15 less... Yet they love the convenience of having everything prepaid for like a cruise.
I have recommended to many clients, family and friends, (even though i would lose commission on the DP portion) and that is to purchase a Disney gift card in the same amount as the dining plan you would choose. Make your reservations as you would normally do. Plan out your family allocations as you would in the dining plan. Go about your days and eat what you would in the dining plan...Except if you don't want that snack or decide not to eat an expensive menu item or skip dessert, you can, without any pressure of getting the most of the DP or worry about the use or lose. By all means, get the alcohol drink or special kids drink that would normally get with the meal if you want to...
Now either you can just use the card for every meal & snack or add it to your account and everyone can charge on your magicband or app like you would with DP.
By doing it this way you are not obligated to the dining plan as allocated. Its much more flexible and yet still paid for and included in your vacation budget and you can still order what you want. But, at the end of your trip you can see exactly what you spend on food & what you mostly order & eat during your trip.
Here's the nice part, in my experience more often than not, you find you spent less than what the DP would have cost and will have a balance leftover!
No wasted food but more importantly you didn't throw money away you can use elsewhere. That unexpected extra can be used toward your room charges or buy that merchandise item you wanted. You can also just save it for next time.
At the least, If your total at end of your trip was same or more than the cost of the DP you know it works for you and worth adding on the next time. If you still prefer the DP then the next time you can adjust which plan works best based on your experience.
As a tip: you can buy discounted GCs at warehouse clubs or with target red debit or credit card which saves even more.
Just my 2 cents based on experience for anyone interested!
