Thought Process When Choosing Your Dining Plan?

[tkseyf]

I love the Disney Dining plan!

 

[manlscott]

We are in the throes of planning our 2017 WDW trip. I, too, have been looking at the DDP. This will be our 5th trip to WDW and we have never done the DDP. We will have 4 adults (me, DH, DS17.5 and DS14) at the parks for 5 days. I looked up numerous restaurants that we are thinking about trying and did a mock meals for one table service meal and one quick service meal per day. I did not include a dessert for us during our TS meals even though they come with one on the DDP, because we wouldn't eat it if we were paying out of pocket. For the new 2017 DDP, the dessert is taken away from the QS meal and replaced with a second snack credit. For our snacks, I added in the price of an ice cream bar each day and a breakfast item that would be considered a snack credit. Here is what I came up with:

No Plan:$1045
DDP: $1346.60

 

[Talby]

We are in the throes of planning our 2017 WDW trip. I, too, have been looking at the DDP. This will be our 5th trip to WDW and we have never done the DDP. We will have 4 adults (me, DH, DS17.5 and DS14) at the parks for 5 days. I looked up numerous restaurants that we are thinking about trying and did a mock meals for one table service meal and one quick service meal per day. I did not include a dessert for us during our TS meals even though they come with one on the DDP, because we wouldn't eat it if we were paying out of pocket. For the new 2017 DDP, the dessert is taken away from the QS meal and replaced with a second snack credit. For our snacks, I added in the price of an ice cream bar each day and a breakfast item that would be considered a snack credit. Here is what I came up with:

No Plan:$1045
DDP: $1346.60

Thanks for sharing those numbers and how you got them @manlscott! When I look at those numbers, I see that the difference is nearly MVMCP for us. I'll be crunching mine another time or two (or 20 lol), but I simply do not see where it is in our best financial interests to utilize any of the dining plan options for this particular trip. It could all definitely look different for a future trip though, so maybe next time. Thanks again!

 

[sharonabe]

No Plan:$1045
DDP: $1346.60

It's still way below if you didn't, but did you add the 6.5% tax to your OOP costs?

With that much of a difference, I'd probably add at least one dessert per TS to share!

 

[Lisa F]

Thanks for sharing those numbers and how you got them @manlscott! When I look at those numbers, I see that the difference is nearly MVMCP for us. I'll be crunching mine another time or two (or 20 lol), but I simply do not see where it is in our best financial interests to utilize any of the dining plan options for this particular trip. It could all definitely look different for a future trip though, so maybe next time. Thanks again!

The difference would have to be in my favor for me to do the DDP. I would not pay more for the all inclusiveness. With a 1:1 kiddo ratio it is in my favor (by a lot, paying $577 for the plan for $820 worth of planned food). Even if I do not maximize the plan I will still come out ahead. If I were not I'd just pay OOP and not worry about it.

 

[Jadyreen1282]

I love the Disney Dining plan!

Me too...when it's free especially!

 

[manlscott]

We are in the throes of planning our 2017 WDW trip. I, too, have been looking at the DDP. This will be our 5th trip to WDW and we have never done the DDP. We will have 4 adults (me, DH, DS17.5 and DS14) at the parks for 5 days. I looked up numerous restaurants that we are thinking about trying and did a mock meals for one table service meal and one quick service meal per day. I did not include a dessert for us during our TS meals even though they come with one on the DDP, because we wouldn't eat it if we were paying out of pocket. For the new 2017 DDP, the dessert is taken away from the QS meal and replaced with a second snack credit. For our snacks, I added in the price of an ice cream bar each day and a breakfast item that would be considered a snack credit. Here is what I came up with:

No Plan:$1045
DDP: $1346.60

Well, we are back from our trip. I kept all our receipts and made a spreadsheet when I got home.
Regular DDP-$1387 plus alcohol and gratuities
We spent a total of $1365.02. That included all our meals (1TS & 1QS per person per day), snacks, alcohol, and gratuities.
Looks like we chose wisely!!
Food-$1070
Alcohol-$135
Gratuities-$160

 

[sharonabe]

Well, we are back from our trip. I kept all our receipts and made a spreadsheet when I got home.
Regular DDP-$1387 plus alcohol and gratuities
We spent a total of $1365.02. That included all our meals (1TS & 1QS per person per day), snacks, alcohol, and gratuities.
Looks like we chose wisely!!
Food-$1070
Alcohol-$135
Gratuities-$160

Thanks for the return update. It definitely "pays" to know your family and how they WANT to eat while on vacation and to plan accordingly.

 

[Texans_loyal]

value and cost play a huge role for me.
We got free dining and decided to upgrade to the regular plan for an extra $190. one meal alone pays the upgrade fee alone. now we can go to buffets and dine with characters and not worry about cost.

on the other hand, i looked at next year's dining plan and it's just not worth it. no matter how i priced it, we would end up losing money.

 

[GillianP1301]

For me, the DxDP decision is pretty easy for the following reasons:

• I have an under 10 year old and you can get great value with a young child on the deluxe plan. Character meals are pricey and if your 9 year old eats filet mignon like mine does, then him being able to order off of the adult menu adds even more value.
• We are 3 meals a day people, skipping meal leads to some major hangry moods, both my DS and myself
• We travel in late August and it's super hot, so having a built in break where I know I'll be comfortably seated in A/C for an hour is a huge bonus
• I'm not a fan of QS at all. Long lines and then trying to find a table while my food gets cold is not my idea of a relaxing meal
• Dining is a big part of our vacation and I spend as much time planning where we are going to eat as I do the rides. To me the restaurants are an attraction in themselves and I always have a really long list of places we want to try, which is another reason why we book 3 meals a day most days.
• I find I'm more adventurous with the dining plan and more willing to try something I wouldn't normally, especially when it comes to the appetizers. This is more psychological than anything else, but definitely true for me.

Not sure what will happen next year once my DS is 10, at that point I'll need to run the numbers again and see if the value is still there. I would never cut down on the number of TS we do, but I can see me opting for OOP If the value drops significantly

 

[DrunkJam]

Previously, we did DDP. BUT, this s our last trip. We ALL love a holiday breakfast, and my son told me eating with the characters was his absolute favourite thing on holiday in WDW.
Given that we also really wanted to try some 2 credit places (take DD to CRT, Le Cellier is a must do for DH, I REALLY wanted Cali Grill Brunch and Tiffins...)
Also, DH loves the dining plan, even though we pay for it, because he feels totally free to choose any item on the menu. And we tend to eat like the plan suggests. Main and dessert. The appetiser will be an interesting thing. And, it's his holiday too. so, anything that makes him feel better about it, and not worry about spending, is a BIG plus for me.
We are also early risers, so, early breakfast, then a 5-6-7 dinner is how we like to work. And there are snacks and a few spare credits if anything goes wrong / any one needs something else.

 

[TwinkleKS]

We do the DxDP, only make reservations for two meals a day, and eat a lot of signature meals / two table service meals. I don't necessarily think it saves us money - it is more of a convenience for us.

 

[jedi jen]

We love DxDP. My kids are older now (15 and 19) and they still love DxDP. When they were young we enjoyed a no line in A/C way to meet characters and entertainment. We do a sit down at lunch and dinner as a respite with lots of signatures. Lots of great memories and the restaurants are so fun.