Are you still adding on the DDP when you go?

[Purrrrfecta]

I am wondering how DVC'ers are feeling about the Dining Plan. Are you still using it when you go, or are you either sticking to the DDE card, or for those who are sans a DDE, are you just paying as you go along?

We used it last year, and I was just thinking now that this is WAY too much food, and pain for the PS at the table service restaurants as well.


Let me know what you think, please.

 

[DMKEDM]

We'd done DDP twice, loved it, but agree that it's an awful lot of food (which, unfortunately, I eat every bite of...despite all the walking I do (and love doing) at Disney, I come home yet heavier every time on the DDP!)...

So, this last trip, when we had a split stay, we didn't sign up for the DDP for the first two days ... and we spent more money on less food those two days ...

So, we're DDP addicts...my only remaining challenge is to figure out how NOT to eat every last bite to which I'm "entitled" (under the plan)...but for us, the cost of the plan each day is about equal to one TS dinner for each of us--maybe a tad less...so the CS and snacks are "gravy"...but w/out the plan, we go TS at least once each day anyway--and we do eat more than once each day--so we save money even when we have too much food...

 

[Inkmahm]

We don't do DDP, we do DDE. I've seen people ordering their food on the DDP and there's no way I could eat that much food every day of the vacation. Also, we rarely eat at counter service locations other than Tusker House in AK (and that is covered by DDE.) We prefer table service for both lunch and dinner.

 

[Purrrrfecta]

We'd done DDP twice, loved it, but agree that it's an awful lot of food (which, unfortunately, I eat every bite of...despite all the walking I do (and love doing) at Disney, I come home yet heavier every time on the DDP!)...

Yes, I get that five pound add-on when I go to Disney


So, this last trip, when we had a split stay, we didn't sign up for the DDP for the first two days ... and we spent more money on less food those two days ...

OK, this is what I was wondering. So you didn't cook in your room? Did you have breakfast in your room. How many are in your party? I have two children under 10 and two adults.

So, we're DDP addicts...my only remaining challenge is to figure out how NOT to eat every last bite to which I'm "entitled" (under the plan).

I understand. It was good thing that I got a stomach virus last year. My husband was 6'3" with a 32" waist before going, and after the first week, his 34" pants were too tight!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! All I could hear coming from the bathroom was, "oh my gosh." He ate and ate and ate around 17 pounds worth, which look good on him since he was sooo skinny before.

..but for us, the cost of the plan each day is about equal to one TS dinner for each of us--maybe a tad less...so the CS and snacks are "gravy"...but w/out the plan, we go TS at least once each day anyway--and we do eat more than once each day--so we save money even when we have too much food...

Yeah, I am just wondering if we will be going to TS every day. It is fun, but time consuming.

 

[Deb & Bill]

We did the DDP at Thanksgiving. We had way too much food. In June and upcoming Thanksgiving, we'll be using the DDE card instead.

 

[Chuck S]

The DDP has never been economical for us. We've always spent less using the DDE (including taxes and tip) than the DDP would cost us. And we do normally eat a TS meal almost every day, unless we are at AK.

It really depends upon your normal dining habits, and what you are comfortable eating during a single sitting.

 

[WDWorld2003]

We did a split stay at Easter Break and use the DDP the first half which worked out perfectly and we loved it! It was a lot of food and we even had leftovers for the second half of our stay.

It would have been way too much food for the whole trip. However, if you used a few of the signature options for 2 TS credits it could work nicely.

 

[jennypenny]

We tried the DDP the last two trips, but I think that's it for us. My kids hated the children's meals so we ended up paying out of pocket for an adult meal for our boys to split. We might consider it again if we were travelling with a large group (easier to split the tab) or if they changed the kids menus.

I'm not trying to start the healthy meals debate. It's just hard to explain to kids why they are getting plain, cold chicken and sugar-free jello when mom and dad get a great hot meal with a yummy desert.

I think it's a good plan if it works for you. It just doesn't work for us right now. I do think it's great if you're traveling with extended family and friends.

Jenny

 

[Dean]

My opinion of the plan has never changed even after using it twice. It is a specialty item best suited to shorter stays, heavy eaters, those willing to plan for and opt for the more expensive options and situations where you can legitimately share (which would seem to be few if any at this time). And maybe those with kids the right age. I think the arrival and departure plans also impact how the plan works for many. If you get there early on the day of arrival and leave later on the departure day, that makes a huge difference, IMO. But like anything else one needs to look at their personal situation and decide what's best.

 

[alldiz]

I am a new DVC member....so I dont have the DDE...

but i love DDP....It feels like my vacation is "all inclusive"....
besides booze....with the food prepaid....i dont spend much money..

BTW...how much is a DDE card....where do you get it?....
how long does it last?
thanks
Kerri

 

[Dean]

I am a new DVC member....so I dont have the DDE...

but i love DDP....It feels like my vacation is "all inclusive"....
besides booze....with the food prepaid....i dont spend much money..

BTW...how much is a DDE card....where do you get it?....
how long does it last?
thanks
Kerri

Kerri, unfortunately just like many AI, you end up paying more many times than you would have otherwise. Plus you are a slave to the plan to a degree. A big deal for some, not for others.

DDE is not a function of DVC but is available to FL residents and passholders. It's $85 for one card if I recall correctly but passholders get a $20 discount. DVC members do get the $100 off the AP or $125 on PAP.

 

[DVC Grammy]

We'll stick with the DDE when it's just the two of us. Tried the DDP once and we felt like Thanksgiving turkeys................STUFFED!

Also, we tend to spend less than $78/day on food..... We'll eat a large breakfast in a restaurant that honors either the DDE or our DVC member discount, pack snacks for the park (usually nuts or pretzels brought from home), and then have a light very-late lunch/early dinner at another place w/discounts (maybe CS or TS, depending on where we are at that time).

We bring wine and chocolate/cookies for the room and if it's an early evening, we'll sit on our balcony and "chill", or, if we're going to EMH at night, we'll wind up near whichever resort we're at, stop off for some "down time" for a glass of wine and dessert on our balcony, and later, head out to the park with EMH.

Very few people understand that going to WDW is the cheapest vacation we can take (but that's because we have DVC, DME , DDE, and SW Dings! )

DISCLAIMER: This only works when there's the two of us going. When our kids were still at home, or when we go with family/friends, it's a different story.......

 

[BCV23]

I agree that it completely depends on your family. If you did not enjoy having reservations, then it probably isn't a good fit for you.

We enjoy TS more than QS and have always had 2 or 3 dining reservations per day in WDW. Our middle child has had type I diabetes since 1988 and meals at a set time were imperative in the past. With different insulin, we have a bit more flexibility now but find he still does best if we keep him on schedule. That is much easier in full service restaurants with a reservation. After so many years of enjoying relaxing table service meals with our family at WDW, I can't imagine doing it any other way. So with DDP, we use most of our QS for breakfast in the villa.

We have no problem not ordering everything we're entitled to on the plan especially at QS. We do however end up ordering desserts at TS restaurants which we normally don't. But we are not members of the clean plate club.

I think everyone has to run the numbers for their own family as well as think how to make their vacation most enjoyable. If you don't like having reservations, DDP would probably make your vacation less magical.

 

[ADP]

We've used the DDP once and found it to be too much food. We would have never ate that much food if we didn't have the plan. The other downside since it is so much food we feel full all the time. That is not a good feeling walking all day in a hot park. It is very uncomfortable. The only time I would consider using the DDP would be during the free dining period Aug - Sept.

Like others have stated we have the DDE card. We really enjoy the flexibility it provides us. We can eat whenever and as much at just about all sit down locations (even some counter service locations accept the DDE) without having to worry about losing credits. Not only that, but we do drink some alcohol while we are on vacation. The DDE saves us 20% percent off of our alcoholic beverages.

Unless the DDE card cost goes way up we will continue to buy and use it every year. Lately, the cost of the card has gone up. I believe $15 in the last year.

One other note, you can use the DDE card for up to 10 people on the same bill. That savings can really add up. Oh! Did I mention free valet parking at the non-DVC resorts as well.

 

[TMB1203]

We've did it for the first time in Feb., and plan on doing it again in November.
We always do 1 TS per day and the plan saved us money.

I liked paying for it upfront and not worrying about how much each meal was costing us. It was alot of food and most of the time, we brought dessert back with us for a late evening snack.

We are all pretty big eaters and we never felt too full or hungry our whole trip.
Oh and I lost 3 pounds...must be all the walking, since normally, I'm behind a desk.

 

[bobbiwoz]

We're glad to have the option..and use DDP during December because so far the Candlelight Processional has been included, as is Fantasmic dinner/seating package, and the DDE can't be used for either of those. Usually we just use DDE.

We have a 2/3 night stay in June, and we do have DDP for the 2 night BCV stay...we've dinner reservations at Le Cellier and Chefs de France, so we can really stand with less food for the following 3 nights!

Bobbi

 

[Ksp]

We used the DDP our last visit and did enjoy using it. However, we definitely spent more using the DDP than if we had just used our DDE discounts (which we were still able to tack on occasionally, BTW, when we bought alcoholic drinks or got a dessert that wasn't included in the DDP).
And that does factor in at least one table service each day -- we tend to do breakfast in the room, make lunch the main meal, and then try to look for less expensive dinner options.
For our family, I think as long as we have a kitchen (at least a 1BR unit) we won't get DDP. If we are in a studio, I would strongly consider getting it again, especially if it just my husband and myself.

 

[dianeschlicht]

We did the DDP on our last trip (two reservations), and while we thought it was okay for a couple of days, we have decided we will NOT be doing it for extneded trips or for trips where we have guests again. We have a split trip coming up in a couple weeks. We will do the DDP for the first 3 nights, but the remaining 4 nights (different ressie) will be DDE for us. We'll likely do the same thing for Thanksgiving. We will not have it for teh 6 nights we have guests in the 2 bedroom, but we will probably do the last 5 nights when it's just to two of us.

 

[mrsR123]

A big factor for us will be transportation; if I have my van, then I don't think I'd do DDP. If I can get to Publix, then I don't mind doing breakfast, snacks and even a pasta meal or two in the villa. Without a car, though, DDP was terrific.

A second consideration will be my DS's next birthday: there's no way he'll eat enough to justify the adult price when he turns ten next month.

He'll be elevn by the next time we go, though. And we'll probably get AP's and DDE if there's still a member incentive by then.

 

[deide71]

For us, 2 adults and 3 children, we could never eat the way we want at Disney for a day under the $110/day the plan costs. However, we will need to reevaluate things as our children get older .