Dining Plan

[DNS]

I am very curious about how many use the dining plan and which one.

[Mousehead35]

We always do the regular dining plan (1 snack, 1 Counter Svc and 1 Table Svc) and LOVE it. In all the years that we've used it, we've never encountered any issues. I do miss the days when tips were included though.

[Scar]

Used the regular one once, when appetizer and tip were included. Decided I would never buy it again and that was before they eliminated the appy and tip. They would have to offer it for free and give me a room discount before I used it again.

[retiredfigment]

Scar - curious of why?

[chefmickey3]

We used the regular dining plan twice - it didn't work for our family - just too much food. The prepaying of our meals was conveient, but I always felt like I had to order the most expensive thing on the menu to get the most value.

[tinklover]

we plan on trying the quick service plan this up coming trip. I have a recently diagnosed ADHD child and she is also getting screened for Aspurgers. table service is just not in our future. she is always go go go.

[Strmchsr]

Scar - curious of why?

I can't answer for Jeff, but I I agree with his statement. For us it's too much food. Here's the rub with it. IF you eat every single thing on the plan and use it wisely then you can come out ahead on dining. However, if you're like my family and would never eat that much food in one day without the DDP then you're paying extra for food you don't need or really want (e.g. we usually have 7-10 snack credits left that we have to find something to spend on on our last day). It's rare for us to eat a full TS and CS per day per person. We might split a TS meal or CS meal, but not one for each. Before my oldest turned 10 it was a decent deal, but now that he's 10 we won't do the DDP any longer. We can spend MUCH less on food by not doing it and eating the way we want to.

[Momto3littlemice]

We used the regular DDP once in 2007 when tip and app were included. Although it was fun to try, we decided that we were absolutely stuffed and not even looking forward to our next meal. We ended up with extra meals at the end and decided it wasn't worth it for us.
Having said that, we walked away liking the idea of not worrying about every meal price etc, so now we just put aside approx what one would spend on the dining plan for our meals and figure it's already spent. We, of course, don't spend nearly that amount and end up with money leftover. We also have started to stay offsite (due to the large size of our party and small children) and that allows us to cook some meals in. Now we feel like the one meal we eat out each day is a real treat!

[Scar]

Scar - curious of why?

Yea, Chris pretty much summed it up. I enjoy a good TS meal as much as the next guy, but at WDW I just don't want to have to have one everyday. I've run the numbers and it just isn't a value for me. Not to mention that I hate making ADR's more than 8 hours in advance, I just don't plan that far ahead, and you have to make ADR's on the DDP.

One more personal note. I typically go during the F&W Festival and there's no way I can fully enjoy it and have to eat a CS and TS at the same time. Last year I literaly ate 90% of my food at the F&W kiosks over 3 days... it was great!

[the other micki]

We have always gotten the regular DDP and have enjoyed it. Yes, there are times when we haven't been hungry when we sat down for our next meal, but that's just taught me to plan better (more time between meals). I like having things prepaid and not having to always be pulling your wallet out. I can't imagine getting the deluxe plan! Now that's alot of food! I do like having one TS meal per day. It gives us a chance to relax and take a break from the parks. Hope this helped!

[cer]

We use the Regular Dining plan (1 CS, 1 TS, 1 Snack/day). We like it.

You will find that there are many arguments on here for or against, it all comes down to personal preference and what works best for your family.

Some like having everything prepaid, others will argue too much food...the pros and cons go on and on...

Celebrate whatever decision you make! You'll be at Disney!

[faline]

I think we've done the dining plan on three occasions - all of them "free dining". Generally, it just doesn't fit the way we eat. When we first did it, with both the appetizer and dessert, we found we brought most of the desserts home and had them for breakfast the next morning. The last two times, we did the same. We're much more likely to order an appetizer than a dessert with a table service meal. Having desserts with quick service it just too much food for us. We never order dessert when we dine quick service at home. On each occasion, I believe we've walked away with unused quick service and snacks.

[HoosierDisneyFan]

We enjoy the Regular Dining Plan. If you plan on eating 1TS and 1CS meal per day (per person) and you are planning to make ADRs, the plan will save you money and the pre-paid ascept is appealing to most. For our family the meals are a bid part of the enjoyment of WDW. Without the DDP we would likely avoid many of the TS resturants because of the cost (which would be a less enjoyable vacation).

If you are the type that wants to "plan as you go" or does not plan to eat 1TS & 1CS meal per day, the DDP will likely not be for you. Also if you have kids just over 10 years old, Disney considers them adults and will charge them the full adult price. Finally if your young kids are picky eaters, the adult meal may not be to their liking.

Note that making an ADR has nothing to do with the DDP (you will likely need to make the ADR if you want to eat at the more popular TS resturants regardless if you are on the DDP or not).

[magicalmom]

When we (family of 4) had the regular dining plan (app, entree, dessert) we shared TS meals a number of times, because there was just so much food! Also, younger DD was in a kids' menu only phase, (although she was over 9, so her tickets and credits were at the adult rate) so we'd order OOP for her, and conserve her credits.

What this did for us: we ended up using our dining plan (6 TS meals, 6 CS meals, and 6 snacks apiece) for three meals on most days. It took a little bit of planning, but we got to try more restaurants, we ate really well, we were never over-stuffed, we didn't waste food, younger DD always got her chicken tenders, and I think we used our last two snack credits to buy popcorn to have in the car on our way out of town.

[Seasonscraps]

We don't use the dining plan. It doesn't suit our dining needs and preferences therefore there is not much value or benefit to prepaying our meals.

[beksy]

When my sister and I go alone, we use the regular dining plan. I like the convenience of having it paid for (bad reason, I know) but we actually do come out ahead. We are both big eaters and ready for the meals and big desert fans and snack fans. Plus for us, dining is a big part of any trip (trying new places, a way to relax and unwind, etc.).

When my mom goes with us we do the deluxe dining plan. She is in a wheelchair and needs a lot of breaks but still enjoys eating and trying new places like my sister and I do. She also enjoys the signature restaurants and taking home Mickey treats! For us these work.

[wickedgin]

We used the standard DDP, and not only did it save my family money, it saved me some anxiety over the cost of the character meals.

[whitney37354]

We did DxDP a couple of weeks ago for our first family trip. When we got home, I priced everything out. We saved about $250 dollars. However, we did nine character meal, and a total of twelve TS & five CS. We loaded up on snack before we left the last day.

We didn't eat everything, and most of the desserts were a waste of time. We chose the DxDP because it was our first time and we didn't want to deal with any unexpected expected food expenses.

When we go again, we won't be doing character meals and would probably do better with CS meals. We probably won't do dining plan again.

[Disneyfirsttimer]

We get the regular dining plan everytime (1 snack, 1 cs and 1 ts). We like have everything paid for in advance. As others have said, it was better when gratuity was included, but that doesn't come to much.

We generally use our snack credits for either breakfast or afternoon snacks. We use our CS for lunch and use our TS for dinner. We like having a scheduled TS dinner after a long day in the parks. It is nice to just sit down and relax.

The only for us that makes it too much food is dessert with lunch (CS). I wouldn't normally get that. We usually get them and share with the kids or save for later as an evening snack. Otherwise we don't find it to be too much food as it really is only 2 meals a day.

We love the dining plan!

Karyn

PS - Never received the dining plan for free (except for our upcoming trip). We always had to pay for the plan and still opted for it.

[Tinker Fan]

We have done the regular dining plan 4 times and the quick service 1 time. We really liked both and would not do Disney without the DDP. It is nice having everyhting pre-paid and we saved alot on the basic plan but only a little on the quick plan. I am a planner so planning the meals is fine and we do plan our day around our reservations and it always works out for us. We are also big eaters on vacation so this works great for us but of course i can see it not working for people that are not big eaters or planning way ahead and being on a schedule.