Best Dining Plan Tips?

[HairyChest]

I’m in the planning stages of my next trip and am considering getting the Disney Dining Plan. If you have any advice, tips or tricks to get the most out of it I would appreciate it!!

*Edit* Just saw a great video with some really good tips

 

[Mle8308]

Do your research, it’s not always the best deal. For some, it will work out, especially if you like to eat the most expensive thing on the menu. Run numbers and be realistic about what you would normally eat. Do you want to be tied to at least one longer full service meal every day or would you prefer that time in the parks? Do you have normally have an alcoholic beverage at each meal? If you do the table service plan, factor in at least 18% for tips, it’s no longer included. As you found, there are a lot of good YouTube videos recently released about the DDP, they may be helpful in making your decision.

 

[Merlin's Magic]

Our last trip we set aside the money for the dining plan and created a budget based on that+tips. I kept track of our spending so I would know if it would work out for future trips. The verdict? For a 10 day trip/3 adults we were able to do:
10 TS
1 signature
1 dessert party
QS for the other meals
snacks
the refillable mugs
airport meals there and back

We came in $1300 under the deluxe Dining Plan budget ($700 under the flex plan they offered) for the same amount of days. I don't think we'll ever get the dining plan again but we will use the numbers as a suggested budget in order to get most out of it.

 

[HairyChest]

Our last trip we set aside the money for the dining plan and created a budget based on that+tips. I kept track of our spending so I would know if it would work out for future trips. The verdict? For a 10 day trip/3 adults we were able to do:
10 TS
1 signature
1 dessert party
QS for the other meals
snacks
the refillable mugs
airport meals there and back

We came in $1300 under the deluxe Dining Plan budget ($700 under the flex plan they offered) for the same amount of days. I don't think we'll ever get the dining plan again but we will use the numbers as a suggested budget in order to get most out of it.

That is amazing how you researched it for your future trip, I love it. It seems the longer you have the dining plan the less of value it becomes. I really like the tip I heard in the video of doing a split day and only having the dining plan for a couple nights. Then it’s really easy to find somewhere that’s very expensive that I want to eat without my whole trip revolving around the most expensive restaurants.

 

[disneydreamer1980]

It’s VERY hard to get value out of the DDP (do you think Disney would be offering it if they weren’t making out on it?) Id do what op did, put the cost of the plan on gift cards. You’ll have more than enough money to cover your food with money left over for souvenirs and you won’t have to worry about all the DDP rules- you can eat what/when/where you want, anything on the menu (unlike with the DDP) without thinking about it and without trying to “get the most” out of the plan.

 

[Specter]

DW and I always used to enjoy having the dining plan pre-covid/hiatus of the dining plan. We ran the math and for us it was worth it, but that is based on how we choose to eat on vacation.

While in no way snobs we have just a hint of foodie in us and enjoy trying new/different/exciting things, and that in turn tends to be on the more expensive side. And while we don't do it at home, when we are on vacation we want appetizers, dessert, cocktails, etc. And we also really enjoyed going during the spring when the flower and garden festival is taking place, and we loved using our snack credits at the booths. Some people talk about how they had so many snack credits left over that they were buying candy to bring home just to burn the credits, or forgetting about them. That was never us.

I will also add that for us, we enjoy the planning almost as much as the trip. We truly enjoy looking at the menus of the places we are considering for meals and narrowing down until we have what we want to try and get reservations for, as well as our backups. And, in doing that, you can get a ballpark cost. Obviously what sounds good on the menu when you are reading it a few months out might not be what strikes you in the moment when you are sitting there, but it's all about having that number as a guideline.

However, with the new plan, we just don't see the value. You get fewer snack credits, less included with the meals, and can't convert a QS meal credit to multiple snack credits like you used to be able to do. Additionally, with the cost of DD, even at the kids rate for now, the math just doesn't math anymore though even if it was an adults only trip, we would just pay out of pocket.

On our last trip in November of 2022 I kept a spreadsheet of our spending and while snacks were rolled into a general budget line item and therefore can't be factored into the total, I can say that the cost of the dining plan is about break even with what we spent last time. However, what we spent last time included appetizers and tipping, which is not included in the plan. So going forward, the value just isn't there anymore. It's a shame, we really enjoyed it once upon a time but it's just been chipped away until it is no longer desirable for us.

Whatever you decide, enjoy the trip!

 

[vinotinto]

I’m in the planning stages of my next trip and am considering getting the Disney Dining Plan. If you have any advice, tips or tricks to get the most out of it I would appreciate it!!

*Edit* Just saw a great video with some really good tips

 

[vinotinto]

The tip about doing a split stay and getting the dining plan for only a portion is such a specific tip, I don’t see how this could be useful at all for most people. You cannot get the DDP with a ticketless package anymore so you either have to get tickets for the portion with DDP, or get an AP, or buy DVC. Many do not like split stays; I did it once and didn’t like it. Were there any other tips that were better than that one?

 

[HairyChest]

The tip about doing a split stay and getting the dining plan for only a portion is such a specific tip, I don’t see how this could be useful at all for most people. You cannot get the DDP with a ticketless package anymore, so you either have to get tickets for the portion with DDP, or get an AP, or buy DVC. Many do not like split stars; I did it only and didn’t like it. Were there any other tips that were better than that one?

I’m alittle confused. Wouldn’t you get tickets, an AP or DVC anyways if you were going to WDW and staying on property? Yeah I found the other tips useful too. That child dining credit tip REALLY tips the scale to your advantage.

 

[vinotinto]

I’m alittle confused. Wouldn’t you get tickets, an AP or DVC anyways if you were going to WDW and staying on property? Yeah I found the other tips useful too. That child dining credit tip REALLY tips the scale to your advantage.

it may not be advantageous to book tickets through a package or your most expensive dining may be on a portion that doesn’t need tickets or you may not want to do a split stay.

 

[HairyChest]

it may not be advantageous to book tickets through a package or your most expensive dining may be on a portion that doesn’t need tickets or you may not want to do a split stay.

Oh yeah good point.

 

[Pyxie]

The tip about doing a split stay and getting the dining plan for only a portion is such a specific tip, I don’t see how this could be useful at all for most people. You cannot get the DDP with a ticketless package anymore, so you either have to get tickets for the portion with DDP, or get an AP, or buy DVC. Many do not like split stars; I did it only and didn’t like it. Were there any other tips that were better than that one?

You absolutely can get the DDP with a ticketless package, but you have to call in. I just did it.

 

[vinotinto]

You absolutely can get the DDP with a ticketless package, but you have to call in. I just did it.

I read that the new rules indicate that ONLY DVC and AP ticketless packages are allowed to add the DDP. Are you affiliated with any of those?

P.S.- According to this thread that’s what was communicated to travel agents as the new DDP rules:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/no-ddp-with-basic-package.3922345/

 

[Pyxie]

I read that the new rules indicate that ONLY DVC and AP ticketless packages are allowed to add the DDP. Are you affiliated with any of those?

P.S.- According to this thread that’s what was communicated to travel agents as the new DDP rules:

https://www.disboards.com/threads/no-ddp-with-basic-package.3922345/

Ok technically yes, it was a ticketless package I booked. But that's the same thing as room only. You just have to call in to convert it to a ticketless package.

 

[Lumpy1106]

I was going to post "don't get the dining plan" but it looks like most, if not all others agree. It took me two trips to convince DW that it was a big waste of money for us. Nevermind best value, we discovered it was locking us in to REALLY expensive meals that we REALLY didn't want. Not to mention, WAY too many snacks. There have always been horror stories about people on departure day running around trying to load up on snacks that they can take home - they just didn't need them.

OK, so you want the full experience and DDP is a go NMW. OK, Molly to the rescue;

 

[vinotinto]

Ok technically yes, it was a ticketless package I booked. But that's the same thing as room only. You just have to call in to convert it to a ticketless package.

But are you DVC or AP? Because those are the only ones that are supposedly able to book a ticketless package with DDP.

 

[KandyM]

But are you DVC or AP? Because those are the only ones that are supposedly able to book a ticketless package with DDP.

its available to everyone
we have two two rooms only reservations booked and I was able to call and add QSDP to both
very easy no questions asked
not DVC or AP