A trip without DDP.

[Mitzie]

We are seriously thinking about trying a trip without the dining plan. Our biggest thing is that we like having the food paid for ahead of time. I know others here suggest just loading up a Disney gift card. That is our plan. We have guessedamated(not a word I know) what we think we would spend. We have 3 teens with us who will not be with us for every meal. If we give them their own gift card how does that work at the point of transaction. They know about tapping their band and entering a pin number when ordering at a counter service using the DDP but not about a gift card. We do not want them charging to the room either. Are the gift cards accepted everywhere?

[joonyer]

We have been to WDW many times without a dining plan. For many trips, we were on a very tight budget. I know that "paying in advance" (whatever method you use) is a convenience for many, but we spent MUCH LESS on food when we did not purchase the dining plan. That may not be a factor for you, but if it is, we have found that ordering only what you you will actually eat (and not what you have already paid for) saved us the most $$ on food purchases.
We just saved in advance of our trip, so in essence, everything we bought, food and souvenirs was already paid for. We have used Disney rewards cards at all Disney locations, so I would imagine a Disney Gift card would be accepted everywhere at the world.

[Strmchsr]

We haven't used the DDP in 3-4 years due to the reasons listed above. Saves a good bit of money and we're happier because we don't feel stuffed from all the food we had to eat on the DDP. Gift cards are taken everywhere that I know of so that shouldn't be a problem for the teens.

[Fangorn]

We don't use the DDP as it is never a good deal for us. Typically, we use gift cards for meals, just because of the convenience. Disney gift cards are accepted nearly everywhere on property, including the restaurants. There are some exceptions - places at the Swan and Dolphin may not accept them, and there may still be a snack vendor or two around that isn't connected to the network. But other than that, you're good.

Gift cards are handled just like a credit/debit card. The card is swiped for payment. No signature is required. The receipt will show the balance remaining on the card. Gift cards can be reloaded, if necessary, at most of the stores, including the ones at the resorts.

I find it actually quicker and easier to use gift cards than charging to the room with the magic bands, since I don't have to enter my PIN.

Steve

[SBETigg]

We have guessedamated(not a word I know) what we think we would spend.

I never really understood why anyone came up with "guesstimate" in the first place, because that's what it means to estimate, to take an educated guess. It's like going out of your way to sound cute and clever, but ending up only sounding like you don't really know what a word means in the first place. Not picking on you. I have used it myself, so I am also guilty of keeping it in use but I'm trying not to use it anymore.

But your plan sounds good. Sometimes we go without the plan, but we usually don't go the gift card route. Let us know how it all works out for you!

[AgentC]

I'm not sure on the gift cards but we never use the DDP. We do have the benefit of having the Tables in Wondeland discount card but even without it DDP just doesn't work for the way my family eats.

[Mitzie]

For us it is about flexibility. We have used and loved the DDP in the past. This trip we want to try it without. If we don't want the dessert that comes with the meal we aren't 'paying' for it. DH would like to try some appetizers instead. DD still would eat chicken strips every meal. We are anxious to try it this trip without the DDP.

[TinkerbellT421]

We haven't used the DDP since our third trip together. Which was probably around 2009. The first trip we used it, we weren't thrilled about it accept the convenience. The second trip we did it as an experiment and saved all our receipts and did our calculations, third trip we saved enough money using the premise of what the ddp would cost. So if we were let's say going to spend $800.00 to purchase the ddp, we saved up in our budget for $800.00, but instead, paid cash. We came home with a little over two hundred dollars that trip by not purchasing the dinning plan. We also realized how strapped we were into ddp. Places not taking it, leaving credits behind that weren't used, having to eat basically two or three big meals a day including deserts, etc. just wasn't good for us. And, I know most people feel paranoid because they feel they won't order what they want, but whatever is cheapest because they are paying cash now, for us that's never been an issue and we always come home with money to put in the budget for next year. Maybe that's how you can budget, budget what the cost would be for ddp for you all, but instead put it on a gift card. Make sure to give us feed back if it worked for you! Also, never forget to ask if places take discounts, if your dvc, annual pass, if so, I highly recommend the tables in wonderland card.

[BigRedDad]

The only thing I know about the DDP is that for us, we will always lose money. We simply cannot eat the portions required to break even and we are forced to look for the most expensive items on the menu. That is not how I want my vacation. If I want a steak, I want a steak. If I want a grilled chicken sandwhich, I don't want to think in my head that I just paid $45 for a grilled chicken sandwich.

[Checkers]

We only use the TIW card. We prefer an appetizer (salad is considered an appetizer) to dessert and sometimes sharing. The DDP is just too much food and is way too expensive for us.

Let us know what you decide and how it worked for you.

[1DisneyNut]

We are like most everyone else above. We never use the dining plan. We never come close to spending what the dining plan costs and we also hate being tied to ADR's. We got the dining plan once when it was free and even hated it then because of the ADR's and also we were always throwing away deserts and didn't use the snack credits. I don't know how anybody could eat all of that and not be miserable or enjoy themselves in the parks. In my opinion, they could reduce the cost of the dining plan by about 20% and do away with the deserts and some snacks and then it might be almost worth the cost.


We never use the gift cards other than when someone gives the kids some for Christmas or birthdays but we have never had any trouble using them anywhere we tried onsite.

[WiltonJohn]

Question........

With the Magic Bands ability to send a charge to the room account with a wave of the wrist to the scanners ...... can't you just use that to pay for the meals and then use the credit card that is associated with the room account to end up paying for the costs?

Same 'convenience factor' as having the dining plan... and you don't have to overeat to 'hit your quota'.

Why get a "gift card"?

Been a while since we've been there and maybe this is not an option with the Magic Bands as I think it is.

Planning on finally returning on a family reunion type thing in the summer.

best,

................john

[Fangorn]

Question........

With the Magic Bands ability to send a charge to the room account with a wave of the wrist to the scanners ...... can't you just use that to pay for the meals and then use the credit card that is associated with the room account to end up paying for the costs?

Same 'convenience factor' as having the dining plan... and you don't have to overeat to 'hit your quota'.

That is an option. It's not quite as simple as "a wave of the wrist", since you do have actually touch the band to the scanner and then enter your PIN, but still really easy. Personally though, I find just handing the CM my card (Gift/Debit/Credit - doesn't matter) to be simpler.

If the goal is to at least feel like you've "pre-paid" for your food, using a gift card may be the better psychological solution. While in the final cost analysis, it doesn't really matter how you pay for it, having the funds allocated on a gift card can help many folks choose what they really want and not make decisions based on price alone - making for a more enjoyable experience.

You can also use the bands to pay for meals and then go to the front desk and use a gift card to pay off the bill. It's a bit more work, but also an option.

Steve

[WiltonJohn]

Thanks Steve. I wanted to make sure that my thinking on using the Magic Bands was not totally off-base.

We were there last when they were JUST starting to try out the Magic Bands. And we used them to charge stuff (purchases) back to the room. Worked slick. So I "know the drill" with the little light up symbol business on the scanners.

But we had the Dining Plan in place that last trip....so I was not sure if "billing" the meal direct outside "The Plan" was also possible.

Have to do some analysis and see if the Dining Plan will actually save us anything for this potential coming trip now.

Appreciate the feedback.

best,

...................john

[tjstrike]

For us, QS dining plan is the way to go. I'm a cheap skate and if we don't get the dining plan I find myself trying to starve my family while we're on vacation and that's not what vacationing is about. (For us at least). We did the regular dining plan a few times and find it too restrictive by having to be at a certain place at a certain time.

[hauntedmansiongirl]

We've done both DDP and not. We found we had to take into account who is going (eg. Picky kids/teens are not good on the dining plan- esp. ages 10-12 when they eat kid portions but have to buy the adult DDP- but usually end up eating the kids pizza- huge waste of money!)... and whether the free dining promo is on.

If we vacation with free dining, it's not an option. We go with it. If there is no free dining, we pay out of pocket. As Canadians, we can't buy US Disney gift cards in our disney stores or online. So that's not an option. Instead, I've done the pay-it-ahead of time thing 2 different ways.

With both ways, I look at the menus and try to guess what we will order. Usually I overestimate a bit, just to be safe. Once I know what we will spend with food, tip, and tax for each meal and snack, I either make little envelopes with cash per day or prepay the amount on the credit card. With cash, we pay our bills in cash. With credit, we just charge it to our room on the magic band.

With fluctuating exchange rates, the cash envelopes work better for us. And most times we end up bringing extra money home (which is always great!). It's not hard- I buy a little plastic file folder from the dollar store that goes in my purse on the trip down, then the room safe when we arrive. Each night before bed, I pull the next days envelope and put it with our magic bands and paraphernalia for the morning. And we're ready to go. The only problem is if something gets lost, it's irreplaceable. Thankfully that's never happened to us.

I think you will most likely come out ahead not buying the DDP. Think of it as an experiment! And have a wonderful trip!

[Katzateer]

I used gift cards to pay for everything during our 8 day Dec. trip. We did not have magic band charging ability since we were staying at Shades of Green. The only place I couldn't use them was to get coffee in the morning at SoG.

my daughter used her magic band to charge food when we weren't together using our August trip last year, I had a limit on what she could charge on her band. I put extra on her band later in the week. No problems with the money on the bands either.

I like the payment with bands better.

We don't use a dining plan either- would rather get a room discount.

[Mitzie]

Haunted Mansion Girl-You guys sound just like us! We have always had the dining plan but found with picky eaters and things it was not always cost effective. DH likes having everything paid ahead of time. I think it is a psychological thing for him if he were to see that money coming out of our checking account when we were there. We were leaning towards gift cards so that they money is set aside before hand. We figure if there is money left on the card we will be back in October and we will use it then.

[MyDisneyworld]

We have done both and prefer the freedom of not being tied to DDP. All of us like to split meals so we can try more variety and will generally just get one dessert to share. Plus not being stuffed after a meal allows us to try more of those yummy snacks.
As others have posted we keep all our receipts and always spend way less then we would with the DDP.
Whatever you choose i'm sure you will have a magical trip.