Will the Dining Plan go away?

[Sammie]

Go away, No

Become more restrictive, Yes

 

[DaisyD]

I hope so!! Then maybe they will bring back all the wonderful tasty foods that were taken off do to everyone on the plan ordering it. I do believe eventually the DDP will go away but not soon enough for me!

 

[bertalander]

Uh... no. I don't think it'll go away and it's been here already for a long time.

I think the free dining gimmick is brilliance. Three years ago I wouldn't have even considered Florida during hurricane season. But the chance to have, basically, an all inclusive type vacation for my family of 5 for $1k for 6 days was too much to turn down.

I'm one of 'those' people that so many DISers talk about that usually doesn't get to experience table service meals every night. In fact ONE TS the whole trip was our norm before. We stayed off site and cooked our own food etc.

But I'll let you in on a secret. We wash, the kids know their manners, and we behave out in public. We won't RUIN your meal I promise.

 

[BCV23]

I agree with Jim and NMW's points.

I don't know where everyone is eating but we still find great food and a wide variety at the TS restaurants we frequent. We've had 5 trips since this version of the DDP started. There is a long thread about Olivia's changing and some think it is because of the DDP but who knows. Menus change all the time.

As for chefs not being able to use their creative skills.....don't buy that at all.

 

[bicker]

I think the DP is a great idea. I just wish it didnt have to be a package. Id love to be able to get a discounted room or FL discounted passes....

I suspect that the problem with that sort of thing would be that the appropriate price-point would be far higher than most folks would be willing to pay. Part of the cost of offering the program to DVC members can be allocated to marketing DVC; if they're offering the program at the current price to folks getting heavily-discounted rooms, the discounts already therefore allocated to marketing, then to what can they allocate the corresponding costs? If you cut the revenue down too much more, just imagine how much more the restaurants are going to have to cut costs.

I wonder what happens to the WDW newbies who don't use these boards, get the dining plan and have no idea that they have to make ADRs. Are they able to use their TS credits? Or are they paying $37.99 a day for counter service food?

Nah. I suspect most will reasonably ask, "Where can I get a TS meal right now?" FWIR, the CMs can now go into the computer and find the nearest restaurant with availability. So at MK, that could send guests to the Kona or Grand Floridian Cafe; at Epcot, that could feed Spoodles or Cape May; etc. So it's a win-win: Everyone gets a nice meal; some of Disney's less popular restaurants get a boost in patronage; and Disney gets an additional bump in capacity attributable to guests-in-transit. (For more info on that, search for old messages on "Why are there boats from the Beach Club to Epcot?" )

1. Go back to the regular menus, but only offer certain selections to people on the DDP.

That would defeat most of the allure of the Dining Plan. Many folks are sold on the fact that they can order anything on the menu. Introduce "limited menu" and the price-point of the offering plummets.

2. Reserve a certain percentage of tables in every TS restaurant for walkups.

Sub-optimization is not a good option either. Practical remedies need to be a win-win-win -- not just a change that benefits what is becoming a smaller percentage of the customer-base.

This lets them keep two very imporant groups of customers happy: the locals who decide to dine at WDW on the spur-of-the-moment

It really isn't clear that they've been too adversely affected. While I'm sure there are lots of locals who will chime in, "NOT ME," I believe most locals who visit WDW restaurants aim towards the signature restaurants or DTD restaurants, which have been barely affected by the Dining Plan. (Indeed, I suspect most of the locals who would disagree with that are Disney addicts, not just locals looking for a good meal, so they're going to be visiting WDW anyway, regardless of the dining situations, as they always had, before WDW restaurants got good in the early 1990s.)

and the new visitors who don't understand the need for ADRs.

My suspicion is that these folks would be among those least disappointed. They'd catch on to the, "Gosh this is really good stuff, since it is so hard to get reservations," aspect of it, and as I suggested above, find their way to the nearest available restaurant, chalking their experience up to their own lack of knowledge.

Along with all of those who don't want to or can't plan their meals months in advance.

This is the only group of people I believe will truly be uniformly disappointed. However, Disney will know if they're a large group or a small group, and if they're a small group (as I suspect) then it won't matter much in the grand scheme of things.

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

As long as it packs people in the hotels and keeps them on site I think it will stay. The dinning plan is about much more than food or packing in the restaurants. Disney has essentially created a cruise type of experience for the mass market.

I totally understand and appreciate the foodies being unhappy with the changes. Unfortunately for them they are not the primary target market. The dinning plan is just a means to sell hotel rooms and get people spending more on site. As long as that trend continues then I think you will see an affordable dinning plan for the masses.

Totally agree with this. Disney has had dining plans in the past in will have them in the future........at least some form of it. If WDW makes money and fills their restaurants and hotels, why on earth would they change?

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

Go away, No

Become more restrictive, Yes

I wouldn't disagree with this either..........wouldn't surprise me a bit if Disney "changed" it somehow.

 

[Mom of Sleepy Bashful and BabyDoc]

I don't know where everyone is eating but we still find great food and a wide variety at the TS restaurants we frequent. We've had 5 trips since this version of the DDP started. There is a long thread about Olivia's changing and some think it is because of the DDP but who knows. Menus change all the time.

As for chefs not being able to use their creative skills.....don't buy that at all.

I agree. You know, we don't get to eat a TS meal every night when we are at WDW, but we do get a few in. We've never had a bad meal. Quite the contrary, they've been wonderful. Maybe it's the luck of the draw. And I'm a FOODIE! I love ethnic and very different foods. I usually order the most "adventurous" sounding entree on the menu.

And as far as the second part,...........my family owned a restaurant for 10 years. Being creative with a dish that will cost the customer $25-$30 isn't hard.........it's being creative with a dish that will cost the customer $10-$15 that's the hard part!

 

[!@#$%]

I sure hope it goes away. Especially the free dining. I can't go my favorite time of year anymore because of it.

Why NOT go???
All those people (including myself) are spending LOTS of time in restaurants, and less time on rides and shows!
If anything it would be the perfect time to go!
We were there last sept doing the DDP. It was a ghost town. Anyone who didnt enjoy themselves... well. Lets just say "I cant see that happeneing".

I love it free (its called free, but it does actually cost considering you pay less per night with APs) but if I were buying it... Well, I wouldnt buy it.
I would buy a smaller version of it for a very cheap price, but in my opinion its too much food for one person to eat, and I'm not a small guy. I feel "obligated" to eat an appetiser, a huge meal, a dessert, and a drink or smoothie... which is much more than I usually eat in one meal.