Dining plan

[Disney-Nut]

what is everyone's opinion on the dining plan . Is it worth it?

[ibelieveindisneymagic]

There isn't really an easy answer to this question!

Most agree that you don't save a lot of $$ on the regular dining plan, but you can save a bit, and many (like me) like being able to "pre-pay" for our meals and not have to worry about the budget while I'm on vacation.

The deluxe dining plan is a better value, again, if you like eating at the signature or more expensive places. However, we found this to be way too much food! We spent the whole trip eating!

So, if you're considering the DDP, take a look at the menus and see if it would save you any $$, and then factor in the convience factor.

[stitchaholic]

we do the regular DDP and i like it,but keep in mind that my kids(for 1 last year anyway) are under 10 years old,so it is still a great deal!
i love the knowing that my meals are already planned and paid for.

[mkymouse0206]

We have done Disney with and without the dining plan. We like it better with it. :thumbsup: We also enjoy the fact that our meals are "pre-paid" just as one of the previous posters said. It makes it more of a carefree vacation for us. We don't have to tell the kids no everytime they want a snack, or check the prices on the menus before ordering.
Value is another question.:confused: We kept up with the price of all our food on our last trip. We would have spent more money paying out of pocket than we actually spent on the dp. That being said...we would not have eaten the way we did if we had not been on the plan. I don't know about everyone else, but we would never pay over $100 for a breakfast even if it was with the mouse.:mickey: Being on the dp we didn't think twice about the price of the meal because we had already paid for everything. It is all in what you want to get out of your vacation. Some choose to not spend extra time sitting in restuarants and eating, they feel that is a waste of park time. For my family, we have children who very much enjoy the timeouts from the park and look forward to the meals as much as the rides.
Good luck deciding!!

[the other micki]

I like the DDP. (Of course, I liked it more in 2006 when it included an appetizer and gratuity!) However, it still saves us some money. And not having to see my DH wince and complain after every meal as he looks over the bill - priceless. ;)

[The Hitchhiking Ghost]

Prior to 2008 when it still included appetizers and gratuity, is was definitely more worth it.

Most everyone has touched on the pros/cons, but there is one that has not been mentioned. It's probably more a con than a pro, but it is "time management".

If you are like us it means you try get best value, best variety etc., which means booking dinners at several nice restaraunts, some in parks, some in the resorts, some at the Boardwalk. Getting to the places can take a lot of time and planning. ADR's are a must! Which means that you have to plan ahead of time where you are eating on which day, then you have to alter your park schedules around your dining times and allow time to get to and from. It can be rewarding if done right, but it can also be frustrating. Being on the DDP doesn't offer a lot of flexibility once you are there. It's getting harder and harder to make changes and find open ADR's once you are down there, so you have to be really committed to your plan.

We've been fortunate with the DDP, and up to this point I would say it's been worthwhile for us. But with the 2008 changes, I probably would pass on the plan, unless of course offered for free or at a discount.

[jonahbear2006]

I definitely think the ddp is worth it. It offers a whole new magical side to disney. I couldnt imagine going or affording going and eating that way without it. Ohana's, chef mickey's, Le Cellier, Akershus, 1900 Park Fare... the list goes on and on of the wonderful places that I want to eat, but can't afford to be dropping that kind of cash and then feed people again that day. Its amazing and you wont regret it, however you may regret not trying it.

[biodtl]

I'm with everyone else - it was better when it had app & tip, but I still love it. I really love having as much as possible pre-paid.

[Natazu]

I'm with everyone else - it was better when it had app & tip, but I still love it. I really love having as much as possible pre-paid.
:ditto:

We (with non-DDP age DS) enjoyed the Deluxe Plan last month though. We had many wonderful meals, half of which were Signature. I think it's a good value. We saved over $1600 (three adults).

[joonyer]

We (me, DW, and 2 DS ages 15 & 12) have been both with and with out the DDP. When we have used the DDP we have found that it saves you money, IF you figure the out of pocket costs for the same items you get on the DDP.

BUT, we have also found, that if we are not using the DDP, we actually spend less $$$ on meals than the cost of the DDP, simply because we don't eat that often at TS restaurant or order that much food when we do eat TS.

On some of our trips, $$$ have to be watched very carefully in order for us to be able to go to WDW at all, but other times we have been able to splurge a bit and enjoy trying a lot of the TS restaurant we would never consider if $$ was a factor.

So I would say its worth it if you want to eat at a lot of TS restaurants, which is a lot of fun and adds entertainment value to your WDW vacation. But you definitely can eat for much less $$ that the cost of the DDP, if you have to really save $$$.

[WelshieLover]

We were just there last week and used the dining plan for the first time. We were not out to maximixe it i.e. always ordering the most expensive items on the menu. A couple of times at the counter service one of my sons' girlfriends would order a kids meal. We did keep track of what the bills would have been and we did get our money's worth just the same.

I do wish they would allow substitutions of appetizers for desserts. That way the 6 of us could have shared. I also know we would not have always ordered dessert especially at the counter service locations.

My husband did like the fact that it was all prepaid and the bill at the end of our stay was not crazy expensive as it had been when we did not use the paln.

[Wishmaker]

Personally..... I wont leave home without it. :thumbsup:

[TheDuckRocks]

Do I think the dining plans are worth it? Yes.
Is dining a major part of why I like to go to WDW? Yes.
Is the pre-planning for using the dining plans a pain in the.....well you know? Yes.
But here are the totals for our most recent stay on the Deluxe DDP:
Amount we spent for all meals, snacks and refillable mug = $1211.88
2 adults for 5 nights = $699.90
Savings = $511.98
And no, we didn't always pick the most expensive thing on the menu.
We also got very lucky and our Disney Chase credit card had a promo that got us a reduction of $399.90 off the dining plan, which brought our savings grand total to $911.88.

As a side note this morning I was working on our plans for our next trip to WDW and just got to wondering if you only ordered the least expensive items from the menus if the Deluxe DDP would still be a bargin.
This is what I based my calculations by:
A 10 night stay (what we are doing).
1 adult for 10 nights @ $72.99 = $729.90.
Used the restaurants that I've already picked out.
Took into account the cost of a bottle of water and a bag of popcorn each day for a snack.
Cost of buying a refillable mug.
Picked the least expensive item for appetizer, entree (Tofu Skewers at Coral Reef :ack: JMO) dessert and beverage. Total cost = $773.19.
Savings = $43.29.

I'm now off to get a life.:D

[MississippiDisneyFreak]

It would depend on who you ask and then it would depend on how they use it...for us it was still a good value this last trip based on what we ordered we saved money...of course we probably wouldn't order dessert with every meal if we were paying out of pocket... but some of the meals we had the dessert was the best part:) If you order a sandwich or burger at every TS meal, no it probably isn't a good idea for you...but if you order steak, seafood, etc...you probably will save money....I think there is a calculater on info central that helps you figure it and if you use the menus section as a guide it will probably give you a good idea