Why Do So Many People Dislike the Dining Plan?

[Darth Figment]

Load up a gift card with money before hand to use for food,. then you can eat whatever you want and not have to worry about opening your wallet. Then at the end of trip you actualy have CASH left over on the gift card that you can use for a veriety of things - including any subsiquent trips, as opposed to a supply of overpriced crap that you would not have bought if you were not trying to get rid of the extra credits that you paid for, but did not need.

-dave

Not a bad idea either

 

[Andrew C]

[Please note: I'm not picking on you here] - This is exactly what Disney wants - People who would rather pay up-front for their food costs than have to worry about the costs when Little Johnny and Jane want a Mickey ice cream bar, or a Mickey pretzel, or get thirsty, etc. Disney wants guests (and, more importantly, their $$$) who have swallowed "THE MAGIC!!!!!" hook, line, and sinker from the moment they book a WDW vacation until the moment they leave Orlando. Magical Express, DDP, and now the Disney Savings Account are all proof of this. The DDP is structured to punish... errr... 'entice' guests to spend their entire vacation on Disney property, lest they "lose out" on their dining credits. Magical Express keeps you a prisoner, for all intents and purposes, on Disney property. I know, you can always Uber somewhere off-property, but you get the point. The Disney Savings Account... don't even get me started on that rotten, steaming pile of trash that's masqueraded as a "savings account". Oooo... you get a $20 Disney Gift Card for every $1000 you spend??? That's a fantastic .2% "interest rate" you get there! Get a Target Red Card, use it to buy Disney Gift Cards, and save 5% instead!!!

And, yes, I know UO operates in some of the same ways, but for some reason you just don't feel like a prisoner over there like you do at WDW these days.

Of course this is what Disney wants...when you are on property, they want to keep you there so you spend your money there. This is obvious and shouldn't be news to anyone....

But the prisoner thing is a bit much. The fact remains that you do have a choice. You can stay off property. You can stay on property without the DDP. You can stay on property with the DDP. WDW will continue to offer incentives to keep you on property. It is up to each individual to decide whether those incentives are worth it for them.

This isn't some big scheme they are running that some conspiracy theorist figured out one day...it would be stupid for Disney to not want you to stay on property and spend your money on property. WDW is a resort.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Age has nothing to do with it. My parents love the DDP just as much as I do, and when I have a family of my own I'm sure as heck going to go with the Dinning plan.

You say that without actually bearing the costs and assuming you will just be able to have as little concern with over paying.

 

[TheGuyThatMakesSwords]

I dislike it because of the effects on non-DDP participants: higher prices, lower quality and diminished ADR availability.

Great post - and HERE is the essence of why I dislike DDP.... All personal opinion, I'm not necessarily right - no one else is necessarily wrong.

JUST as a Hospital must recover its cost from Insurance, vs indigent, vs cash customers? The "DDP effect" pretty much forces Disney participating Restaurants to do the same thing....

Beyond "Menu Clipping", DDP forces "Cost Spreading". Cash? no problem - but that DDP Restaurant WILL end up in the Black - regardless of DDP compensation, regardless of YOUR participation. That Restaurant Manager IS going to make money.... it's what good Managers do .

So - how to avoid "Cost Spreading" to YOUR dinner? Read the list of participating DDP Restaurants - backwards. If it accepts DDP? There IS cost spreading going on... the poor restaurant has little choice . The DEGREE of "Cost Spreading" will vary, depending on the degree of required "DDP Cost Recovery".

Side note - NONE of this applies to the PERCENTAGE based TIW card. This does NOT clip offerings, nor does it promote "Cost Spreading".

Again - All personal opinion, I'm not necessarily right - no one else is necessarily wrong.

 

[ninjaprincesst]

Two reasons for me: price and scheduling around meals. There is too much food with a QS meal. I can't eat it all which means I am throwing a good portion of it away. We can usually just share a QS meal and be fine. I know some people love eating at the restaurants, I do as well. However, what you get is not worth what you pay. An OK steak is going to run $50-$75 and that is for a mediocre cut of beef. I stayed at a DVC resort, bought some nice Cowboy cuts, sparked up the grill there, threw them on, and had two 2LB ribeyes an hour later. The total cost was $45 for steak, potatoes, and a lot of people coming by wishing they were getting some. That is less than 1 mediocre cut of meat at a Disney restaurant. I have no issue cooking while on vacation. I love it. It didn't take away any of my time. We were at the resort enjoying the pool, I had had my own adult beverages to drink, and enjoyed saving about $200 on one meal alone.

The other issue is never using all of your credits. The 2 times we did the plan, I came home with a good $300 worth of Rice Krispy Mickey Ears. Grand total of $20 worth of Rice Krispy treats that I spent 15x on.

I can see how it's not for some, and yes, Disney food may be overpriced, but I cook all the rest of the year I absolutely refuse to cook and do dishes and clean on vacation. We almost always share the quick service meals too. We then have meal credits left for the last day. usually enough for everyone to have breakfast and lunch. I like the Disney sit down meals more for the unique experiences, not just the food, and for me personally it is much easier to pay for the dining plan over time (which I can't remember the last time I paid for the dining plan we have been on free dining the last 7 or 8 trips) than can up with $1500 dollars or so for at the time of the trip.

 

[TheOrangeBird01]

You say that without actually bearing the costs and assuming you will just be able to have as little concern with over paying.

Hey, I get it. The dining plan is expensive. For my family though, it's cheaper to go with the plan then to pay for everything individually. It's not over paying if you would just buy the same things if you were off the plan.

 

[lazyboy97o]

Hey, I get it. The dining plan is expensive. For my family though, it's cheaper to go with the plan then to pay for everything individually. It's not over paying if you would just buy the same things if you were off the plan.

Over eating to get the value of the plan means it is more expensive than going without because you would not be gorging yourself without the plan. You asked why people dislike the program and rather consistently the same far-reaching reasons have been given and instead you just keep talking about how you like to eat your fill when you are in-fact in no way impacted by the program.

 

[TheOrangeBird01]

Over eating to get the value of the plan means it is more expensive that going without because you would not be gorging yourself without the plan. You asked why people dislike the program and rather consistently the same far-reaching reasons have been given and instead you just keep talking about how you like to eat your fill when you are in-fact in no way impacted by the program.

I asked the question because I wanted to hear other member's opinions, and I very much respect everyone's opinion. My opinion is different than most, because the DDP suits my family's needs and makes sense for us. I'm just giving a reason why we like the Dinning plan, I'm not trying to force anyone to like it or use it. Now I'm more informed why people choose not to go with the DDP and it's very interesting.

 

[xdan0920]

All personal opinion, I'm not necessarily right - no one else is necessarily wrong.

Wrong. You are right.

There isn't really even a debate here. There are stated facts. Then there are people who say "I know the facts, and I don't care, bc I like pre-paying"

 

[righttrack]

I like the idea of prepaying, of letting my kids roam and get their own lunch or snacks and not having to reimburse them. I like not having a huge credit card bill at the end of the trip. WDW did this to keep you on property and also to experience all they have to offer. The food can be a very interesting and good part of the trip.

This upcoming trip, we aren't doing the dining plan. It's not the first time we have traveled this way, but I just think it will be better for us to eat what we want rather than what we are given. There are a lot of times we would prefer an appetizer to a dessert. Sometimes the desserts are so awesome you just want to eat those. Sometimes, we do feel chained to the dining plan. I advise the dining plan to any Disney beginner. It helps you discover things in an orderly way. When you're seasoned pros like we are, it's probably best not to do it. There's no real savings.

 

[DVC4bestvacations]

Here's why I hate it.

You can't have a quite meal at a better restaurant. The dining plan has allowed families to bring their kids to restaurants that they wouldn't at home because of the cost. We ate at Citrico's last November (8pm ADR) the food was outstanding. However the atmosphere was something out of a middle school cafeteria. Loud and obnoxious.

 

[Andrew C]

Here's why I hate it.

You can't have a quite meal at a better restaurant. The dining plan has allowed families to bring their kids to restaurants that they wouldn't at home because of the cost. We ate at Citrico's last November (8pm ADR) the food was outstanding. However the atmosphere was something out of a middle school cafeteria. Loud and obnoxious.

get off my lawn you kids!

 

[Master Yoda]

Great post - and HERE is the essence of why I dislike DDP.... All personal opinion, I'm not necessarily right - no one else is necessarily wrong.

JUST as a Hospital must recover its cost from Insurance, vs indigent, vs cash customers? The "DDP effect" pretty much forces Disney participating Restaurants to do the same thing....

Beyond "Menu Clipping", DDP forces "Cost Spreading". Cash? no problem - but that DDP Restaurant WILL end up in the Black - regardless of DDP compensation, regardless of YOUR participation. That Restaurant Manager IS going to make money.... it's what good Managers do .

So - how to avoid "Cost Spreading" to YOUR dinner? Read the list of participating DDP Restaurants - backwards. If it accepts DDP? There IS cost spreading going on... the poor restaurant has little choice . The DEGREE of "Cost Spreading" will vary, depending on the degree of required "DDP Cost Recovery".

Side note - NONE of this applies to the PERCENTAGE based TIW card. This does NOT clip offerings, nor does it promote "Cost Spreading".

Again - All personal opinion, I'm not necessarily right - no one else is necessarily wrong.

Wrong. You are right.

There isn't really even a debate here. There are stated facts. Then there are people who say "I know the facts, and I don't care, bc I like pre-paying"

To confirm @xdan0920 is correct.

I was told directly by the owner of La Hacienda that the DDP effects what can be put on the menu. He stated that you simply can not put something like a fillet on the menu because the DDP will not pay enough for it. Every dish has to come under a price ceiling or the restaurant will lose money on it.

 

[Uncle Theodore]

When my daughter was younger, and we had to do all of the character meals/buffets, it was advantageous to use a dining plan. Now that she is older, she does not care for the character buffets (YAY!), no more dining plan.

Why I dislike the dining plan:
you have to book where you are eating 180 days out, then plan your entire trip around those 3 meals a day. Crazy if you stop and think about it..
The resorts book up 8 months in advance in hopes that "free" dining comes out.
The ridiculous cost of food does not justify the quality. $60 per person for Chef Mickeys...LOL

The trips we have taken with out the dinning plan = FREEDOM!
Not to mention we save money by not using the "free" dining plan.

 

[Courtney6682]

[Please note: I'm not picking on you here] - The Disney Savings Account... don't even get me started on that rotten, steaming pile of trash that's masqueraded as a "savings account". Oooo... you get a $20 Disney Gift Card for every $1000 you spend??? That's a fantastic .2% "interest rate" you get there! Get a Target Red Card, use it to buy Disney Gift Cards, and save 5% instead!!!

I use my red card to get the 5% THEN upload the cards to my DSA to take advantage of both Target's discount and the $20 from Disney

 

[danyoung56]

I think the DDP encourages more people to dine at table service restaurants, which has greatly impacted my ability to book a table.

And please, folks, "dining" is spelled with one "n". Otherwise it's dinning, which rhymes with winning, and it isn't a word.

/stepping carefully off of soapbox . . .

 

[lazyboy97o]

And please, folks, "dining" is spelled with one "n". Otherwise it's dinning, which rhymes with winning, and it isn't a word.

/stepping carefully off of soapbox . . .

dinning
: to assail with din
: to sound or utter with clamor or persistent repetition
: to make a din

 

[Master Yoda]

I think the DDP encourages more people to dine at table service restaurants, which has greatly impacted my ability to book a table.

And please, folks, "dining" is spelled with one "n". Otherwise it's dinning, which rhymes with winning, and it isn't a word.

/stepping carefully off of soapbox . . .

"Dinning" actually is a word.

http://www.dictionary.com/browse/dinning

 

[Phonedave]

Another issue I have with the DDP is that it FORCES me to order value instead of what I want. Some people, and I wish I had their money, simply do not care how much something cost. They have more money than they know what to do with. They simply buy it because they don't care about the cost and love the convenience.

In my mind, it is $64 for the Regular plan. I go get a snack, now I have $60 left to break even. I get a lunch, see what I want for $10, but know I need to spend $15-$20 and order something I don't want. Now I have $40 for dinner. I look through the menu at the items, bypassing what I want knowing I need to get something for $40 to break even. Then I see Flank steak (a $6 cut of meat) for $45. Great, I am going to up $5 with the dining plan. But!!!! I am choosing a meal that is $45 for a value of $10 at most. Now I am down $30.

This is simply how I see the plan. It is my mindset. I am happy to pay cash for dinner at O'Hanas and another restaurant for the trip. The rest of the time I simply eat what I want, when I want, and how I want. That is usually breakfast in the room, share a QS meal, and either cook a nice dinner or go to a local restaurant where 3 can eat for the price of 1.

Flank Steak has gone up in price quite a bit because it has been "discovered". I now buy it in 30+ pound Cryovac packages to get decent pricing.

-dave

 

[danyoung56]

I stand corrected. However, I'm sure we all agree that "dinning" has nothing to do with "dining".