Dining plan question

[wdwmom2+1]

So we always got the dining plan when they did it free but when they didn't offer the free one we would just buy our own meals and not do the plan. We are not big eaters and normally eat a sit down meal and a counter service and not many snacks. We are going this upcoming thanksgiving break.and i'm considering the plan. here is my problem...

i had allotted 1200 for food for our trip- They said the middle dining plan would be 1500 so it would be 300 more. My only issue is it has a sit down meal and a counter service everyday. Since we are going during thanksgiving we could only get sit down meals two of our days. So what do we do with the other sit down credits are they lost?

I know they have the one lower plan but then what about the two sit down dinners?

Still trying to decide

 

[DisAl]

I'm not sure I fully understand your question, BUT, if you cannot plan your meals where you will use all of your table service meal credits you will definitely loose money compared to pay as you go.
As far as I know you can still convert an unused counter service meal to three snacks and use that to take some goodies home with you. We always stock up on those huge cinnamon rolls at Gaston's Tavern with any snack credits we have.

 

[wdwmom2+1]

sorry for my rambling thinking out loud

Yes I was asking what happens if we can't make sit down meals for each day. So far we only have 2 made for our 5 day trip. Will the other days just be a loss?

 

[wdwmom2+1]

any way to find the price of the cheaper plan without calling? do they posts prices anywhere?

 

[Andy64]

You have until midnight on your day of checking out to use all your meals.

 

[DisneyFans4Life]

Check and see if you can make reservations at restaurants that require 2 credits such as Cinderella's Royal Table. So you may not be able to get a 1 credit TS each day (which is highly unlikely), but you can at least get in somewhere that takes 2 credits.

 

[DisAl]

Also remember that you don't have to use one table service credit per day. You can use the credits any way you want to. As another poster mentioned you could use two credits for a signature meal. Then another credit for table service for lunch, and yet another for breakfast all on the same day if that is how you want to use them.

 

[larryz]

So we always got the dining plan when they did it free but when they didn't offer the free one we would just buy our own meals and not do the plan. We are not big eaters and normally eat a sit down meal and a counter service and not many snacks. We are going this upcoming thanksgiving break.and i'm considering the plan. here is my problem...

i had allotted 1200 for food for our trip- They said the middle dining plan would be 1500 so it would be 300 more. My only issue is it has a sit down meal and a counter service everyday. Since we are going during thanksgiving we could only get sit down meals two of our days. So what do we do with the other sit down credits are they lost?

I know they have the one lower plan but then what about the two sit down dinners?

Still trying to decide

You should be able to find space at a TS somewhere on property. It may not be the restaurant you wanted, but SOMEWHERE -- it might be WS in Epcot, or a resort hotel -- will have open space for a TS dinner for you.

 

[Weather_Lady]

Check and see if you can make reservations at restaurants that require 2 credits such as Cinderella's Royal Table. So you may not be able to get a 1 credit TS each day (which is highly unlikely), but you can at least get in somewhere that takes 2 credits.

But the 2-credit TS meals don't usually cost (out of pocket) double the price of a typical TS meal (CRT may be an exception). In most cases, you lose value from the dining plan by eating at 2-credit establishments.

From everything the OP has posted, it sounds like she'll be better off paying out-of-pocket, regardless. Unless one's dining preferences match up well what the DDP offers (in other words, unless you were going to eat at all the most expensive TS restaurants and order the most expensive things anyway, and you were planning on purchasing refillable mugs, and eating the equivalent of 1TS, 1CS and a snack per person per day, etc.), you're not likely to save money using the DDP. My family tends to eat less than DDP provides, we don't use the refillable mugs, we only order fountain drinks occasionally, we don't always want to eat at the most expensive restaurants or order the most expensive entrees, my 11-year-old sometimes prefers to order from the kids' menu at CS places, and some days we like to have more than 1 TS meal. Even with an extra TS meal or two during a week's stay, we save 10-20% on our food costs by NOT using the DDP. Obviously, others' mileage may vary.

 

[CinderMama]

Our family of 6 was at WDW the week leading up to Thanksgiving last year (we flew home on Thanksgiving day). We booked the trip with rather short notice, like maybe 3 mo. in advance, and I was able to find table service meals for us each day. We actually ate at all the restaurants we wanted, including two character meals - Garden Grill and Hollywood & Vine. I had to keep checking for reservations until I got what I wanted, but it all worked out. If you don't want the hassle of calling or checking the website everyday, then you many consider giving up the plan and just paying out of pocket for meals.

 

[DisAl]

Our family of 6 was at WDW the week leading up to Thanksgiving last year (we flew home on Thanksgiving day). We booked the trip with rather short notice, like maybe 3 mo. in advance, and I was able to find table service meals for us each day. We actually ate at all the restaurants we wanted, including two character meals - Garden Grill and Hollywood & Vine. I had to keep checking for reservations until I got what I wanted, but it all worked out. If you don't want the hassle of calling or checking the website everyday, then you many consider giving up the plan and just paying out of pocket for meals.

Even if they are paying out of pocket they should still make ADRs for any table service restaurant where they may want to eat.

 

[Rsj88]

Most Quick Service locations will allow you to use a Table Service credit. It may be a waste of money but we have had to do this a couple of times. The quick service plan is 48.19 a night per adult and 20.88 for children.

 

[djpoore94]

I just did a quick search for a group of 6 (I don't know the OP's party size) for the day before Thanksgiving at 6 PM. There are currently 25 single credit TS restaurants available that accept the DP. Changing to to a group of 4 increased availability to 32 restaurants. It might take some extra checking and planning, but there are certainly places available to use the TS credits!