Dining plan ques - worth it if most of your table service meals will be buffet?

[ewasilau]

Thanks for your help with my last question regarding kids under 3. So, I've done some perusing of menus (thanks Intercot!!) and now I'm wondering whether the dining plan would be worth it to us after all. We will have 3 adults and 1 kid (almost 5) on the plan and 1 child not on the plan and 1 baby. We are staying for 5 nights, which means that each person would have 5 table service meals. Right now, our plans include 2 character buffets (breakfast or lunch at CP and Norway) and 2 buffet dinners (Boma and Ohana). (maybe our remaining 1 ts meal would be ordered by menu)

By my calculations, adult buffet dinner are about $25 per person and breakfast/lunch is $19. If the total cost of the plan per day for adults is $38, and you also get a $4 equivalent snack, that means that you need to "spend" $9-15 on a counter service meal to make the plan worthwhile (and this assumes you are choosing a $4 snack and not a drink or something). Are my thoughts correct? Would each adult typically spend that much on a counter service meal? This is our first family trip to Disney, if that matters, and we're going in late Jan. Should we add the DDP?

[KylesMom]

that means that you need to "spend" $9-15 on a counter service meal to make the plan worthwhile

Honestly, our CS meals average $8 to $10 each per person. We usually eat breakfast in the room, and then do one CS and one TS daily.

Pizzafari was $27.50 for the three of us for pizzas, breadsticks & beverages, Columbia Harbour House was $26.50, Roaring Fork was $30.50 for two double cheeseburger baskets & a flatbread pizza with beverages, hotdogs/chips/beverage for three was $28.00 at a kiosk - you get the idea.

Without tip, Crystal Palace lunch buffet was roughly $22 each person (adult pricing), and Chef Mickey's breakfast buffet was approximately $24 each. In comparison, our Ohana dinner was roughly $29 each person based on DH, DS (10) and myself. Note that none of these prices include tip nor adult beverages, which will be additional. And we went during value season, so they did not include the "surcharge". Going in late January, you shouldn't be hit with it, either.

It looks like you may be close to breaking even on the dining plan by eating at the places you mentioned . . . I understand that you will have a child under three so they'll eat for free at the buffets, but they (buffets) are not the best use of your TS credits.

Now - without adult beverages or tip but with dessert, LeCellier was close to $44 each . . . a much bigger "bang for your buck".

[medic9016]

If you did not do a dessert with a counter service, you could keep it under $8 or $9. $9 - $15 is on the high side for a counter service. I would think most people would pass on the dessert if it was out of pocket.

[TinkerbellT421]

From my assumptions...yes....you would typically spend a minimum of 9.00 on a counter service. I remember being at the Commissary and having a hotdog, fries and a coke for lunch and it was 9.00....again I am assuming. The first trip me and DBF did together it was a very last minute planned trip and did not have the DDP and ate basically only cs and a couple of ts....and it equalled about the same to add the DDP the second trip...and we had better food and more ts....you dont necessarily HAVE to eat buffett to get your "monies" worth out of the DDP....if you are able to eat at places in Epcot like Coral Reef or LeCellier they are well worth the money and expensive and are not buffett....We were able to eat at "expensive" places on the DDP that we would never have even considered if we were paying OOP. BUT with that said, if that is your choice for buffetts then thats worth it to go w/ DDP IMHO...But again there are a lot of mixed reviews when it comes to DDP...so Im sure someone else will post soon. But yes IMHO cs is ATLEAST 9.00 without desert....and snacks...ATLEAST 4.00 usually. But that was in our experience. Either way Im sure you will have a lot to eat and have a magical vacation.

[Tygger7]

CS meals can run $9-12 if you include drink & dessert, which is what the DDP covers. You also need to figure in your snacks when looking at costs. Each person will also have one snack credit per day, which equals roughly $5. TIP: The BEST use we found for our snack credits was to use them to get a muffin or cinnamon roll for breakfast. The little cafe on Main Stree in MK has wonderful cinnamon rolls. :cloud9:

As others have mentioned though, if you plan on eating mostly buffets for TS, then I would probably pass on the DDP. The buffets are the "cheapest" TS options and you're better off paying OOP since it's basically a "fixed" cost. If you're doing DDP, I recommend going to TS restaurants you wouldn't normally shell out the big bucks for...some excellent options are Coral Reef (Epcot), Teppan Edo (Epcot), Kona (Polynesian), Rose & Crown (Epcot), Le Celier (Epcot), etc. Using non-buffet offerings is where you'll really get the most from your money on the DDP.

[cer]

OK - We do the dining plan. There would be places we would never eat otherwise. There is a freedom that comes with the pre-payment for us. For instance, I know I can get whatever I want, without looking at the price. So for us, it is more than just trying to compare price of Dining Plan vs Pay As We Go. The value of not cringing when the bill comes, or feeling like we should not have gone there.... or maybe I should not have gotten the dessert, or maybe I should have just gotten water. It is great not having that worry while we are there. So we like the Dining Plan, but for the freedom it gives us, the freedom to get what we want.

[TheDuckRocks]

Being a retired bookkeeper with nothing better to do this morning, I ran some quick numbers for you.
(I am including taxes that are paid when using the dining plan and taking averages from menus from another site. I'm also increasing the price of the DDP for 2009, which I saw when we made our ressies for 2009. I also included desserts and beverages with all the meals.)
If you would happen to eat at the following:
Crystal Palace for breakfast - $72
Norway for breakfast - $111
Boma - $99
Ohana - $99
LeCellier - $125
Flame Tree @ AK - $50
Back Lot Express @ DHS - $44
Sunshine Seasons @ Epcot - $41
Columbia Harbor House @ MK - $44
Earl of Sandwich @ DTD - $34
Total on snacks if $3 each - $60
Grand Total of cost of meals - $779
Cost of DDP for 3 adults & 1 chlid for 5 nights - $650
Estimated savings to you - $129

Hope this helps. If you eat differently your savings may not be as great but on the other hand if you go to CP or Norway for lunch instead of breakfast or order more expensive things your savings could be much greater.

[bkfree]

OK - We do the dining plan. There would be places we would never eat otherwise. There is a freedom that comes with the pre-payment for us. For instance, I know I can get whatever I want, without looking at the price. So for us, it is more than just trying to compare price of Dining Plan vs Pay As We Go. The value of not cringing when the bill comes, or feeling like we should not have gone there.... or maybe I should not have gotten the dessert, or maybe I should have just gotten water. It is great not having that worry while we are there. So we like the Dining Plan, but for the freedom it gives us, the freedom to get what we want.


The exact same for us. Even if we just broke even, the Pre paying and convenience would prompt us to still do it.
BUT, each time I kept all reciepts and added them up once home.When compared to the cost of the DDP, we save several hundred dollars.
We do not use the DDP for breakfast buffets, we use CS exclusivey for lunch and all the TS for dinner. This just works better for our stomachs, the DDP value and our park plans.
We use SC for snacks but not drinks. We pay OOP for drinks and for any breakfeast items.We always have breakfast at CP on the day we leave and pay this OOP also.
But for us the DDP is not about saving money. It is about the ability to pay it off well before our trip and not having to spend all of that money during the week.
It is a budget perk for us.

[TheRustyScupper]

1) You need to plan where you use DDP coupons to get the best value.
2) Economically speaking, DO NOT use DDP for
. . . any breakfast
. . . any character meal
. . . any buffet
. . . any dinner show
. . . most lunches (must be over $29 for entrée/dessert)
. . . many 1-coupon dinners (must be over $29 for entrée/dessert)
. . . some 2-coupon dinners (must be over $63 for entrée/dessert)
3) In your case, I think DDP would not pay off.

NOTE: Disney LOVES the convenience rationale. I think it is seriously flawed. Why overpay just to pay ahead of time? People can send the money to me, and I will return it just before they leave for WDW. Of course, I get the interest and the overpayments. Send checks to: TheRustyScupper, Orlando, FL.

[mulderxcoltrane]

1)
2) Economically speaking, DO NOT use DDP for
. . . any breakfast
. . . any character meal
. . . any buffet
. . . any dinner show
. . . most lunches (must be over $29 for entrée/dessert)
. . . many 1-coupon dinners (must be over $29 for entrée/dessert)
. . . some 2-coupon dinners (must be over $63 for entrée/dessert)


I respectfully disagree with some of these don'ts (I guess specifically not using the DDP for character meals).

Chef Mickey's for dinner is $30 for an adult ($34 during the holidays)

Princess storybook dinner is $29.

I do agree with Rusty & other posters in that:
If chosen wisely - the DDP can save you money -just don't make the mistake of eating somewhere just b/c the food is high-priced and therefore your savings is higher. If you don't eat the food - you haven't saved anything.

[thrillme]

For our trip the DDP was "sorta" free (to get the free dining the room would cost more but it was still a bargin).

I because it was "sorta" free I think we got our "worth" out of it verses paying out of pocket (4 days in the parks and 2 travel days was $300) HOWEVER...if we had paid "full price" for it we would have DEFINATELY lost by about $250. Pretty much I think it "prepaid" our food. It would have been nice to eat at La Cellier...I think I'll do that next time (we couldn't get in this time).

We "do" like the buffets and we "did" really like the Donald's Safari breakfast. We you eat one BIG buffet meal that's usually plenty for the day. Maybe one snack later on but a lot of counter service goes to waste and some of the counter service (Electric Umbrella) was actually very good.

[princessesmom]

Two additional things you need to take into consideration IMO. First you cannot use a discount for the room if you're on the DDP. We have a AAA discount for our upcoming trip and would lose it if we wanted to add the dining plan. Secondly, you get a lot of food with the CS meals (in my opinion). We are a family of 6 and would never order 6 CS meals. I have all of our ADRs done and priced out what we will be spending OOP based upon what I think we'll order and took into account losing the AAA discount. It is less expensive for us NOT to use the DDP. You really have to price it out to know if it is a good deal. I think a lot of people like the convenience factor and assume they are saving money. Some people do, but some don't.

[FlaTinkRAMESAM]

...First you cannot use a discount for the room if you're on the DDP. ...

That isn't entirely true, as you can use an AP discount and get the dining plan (as we have done). The benefit there is really worth it... And I have priced out what I know we spend per day in the parks for food for CS vs. getting to do TS meals and the cost of the dining plan with everything we get and if we would be able to use it all, etc. And we are going to save a substantial amount of money... It really varies with each person/family though, so play with the numbers.

[mulderxcoltrane]

First you cannot use a discount for the room if you're on the DDP. We have a AAA discount for our upcoming trip and would lose it if we wanted to add the dining plan.

This is incorrect - if you book your package through AAA directly - they should give you the room discount in a package. If you use your AAA discount through WDW themselves - you can only book room-only.

We've booked packages the last 2 years through AAA and have gotten the best rate even with the DDP.

[ewasilau]

Thanks so much for all of this information. And especially to TheDuckRocks who took the time to add it all up for me! That REALLY helps!
It looks like we'd break even, as I don't see us doing a very expensive dinner and we'd use it for a lot of character meals/buffets (not that we like buffets, per se, but since we want to character meals and Boma (we're staying at AKL) and all 3 are buffets . . . that's where we're at). It's also nice to get food to little ones fast!
The point about AAA is very interesting b/c so far that's where I've found the best rate and we are tentatively planning to book the room/tickets through them (haven't finalized things yet). I am going to ask them about the DDP and it's impact tomorrow. If we lose the discount, the DDP is definitely out the window. Otherwise, it's probably still out the window b/c we just don't won't eat quite enough to make it worthwhile, and I'm not as into paying ahead since we'll pay for the room, tickets, etc. ahead of time.
Now, when our kids are all in the 3-9 range and huge eaters and we come back to Disney - that's another story!!