dining plan

[ademello]

We are heading to Disney in 44 days. It will be me and my husband and our 16 year old and her best friend. We went last year with our daughter and son, we paid for the dining plan. We thought it was a good deal. We don't usually eat that much, it was sort of hard to eat it all. This time I am wondering if I should just get two of us on a plan and share it. The girls can use some of the meals and my husband and I can use some. Has anyone done this before? :shrug:

 

[kitten2299]

As far as I know everyone in the room has to be on the same plan. So unless you are getting a two rooms you all have to be on the DDP.

 

[DisneyJoe]

kitten is correct, if all 4 of you are in the same room, you all must have the dining plan.

 

[KaliSplash]

Or none of you, of course

 

[jjgoo]

Also remember that this year the regular dining plan (as opposed to the deluxe) no longer includes an appetizer with your table service. So you are getting a little less food.

You should also take into consideration that it no longer includes tax and tip, so it is definitely less of a value.

If you really don't eat that much and you are not concerned about having a table service meal each day, then you probably should not use the dining plan.

There are definitely ways to enjoy different restaurants (including table service), eat well and spend less than you would on the dining plan.

 

[Rob562]

You should also take into consideration that it no longer includes tax and tip, so it is definitely less of a value.

Tax is included in all Dining Plan credits.

Tip is not included in any Dining credits.

-Rob

 

[betteratmk]

We didn't get the dining plan in April for the first time ever that we have stayed on site,we had our main meal at lunch time when the prices are a little less:slurp: This time in December we are going to have theplan because we have mostly dinner reservations:sohappy: But we have 3 more adults with us this time too. Check out the menues and see if you are more interested in table or counter and that might help you decide.

 

[ThinkTink721]

The DDP is a value for us because we really enjoy the table service meals.
That is one of the main things that I look forward to during our WDW vacations.
But, last year we did stuff ourselves a little too much.
We are planning to eat our counter service lunches around 11:00am & our dinner reservations are mainly scheduled for 5:00pm & 6:00pm.
Last year we found ourselves eating just to be eating & that's not a good thing.
:wave:

 

[lilclerk]

We loved the dining plan last year because 1. everything was included and B. it was all pre-paid. However, we didn't use it this year because it was no longer "all-inclusive" (we're far more likely to get appetizers than dessert, plus tip is no longer included) so we went freestyle this year.
We still ate at a table service restaurant every day, but we didn't feel like we HAD to, and we also didn't have to make sure we ordered something expensive enough to make the credit worth it.
In short, if they hadn't changed the plan, we'd still use it for the convenience alone. However, with the changes, it's not worth it for us anymore.

 

[sensfan85]

My wife and I had the DDP for our last two trips and the second trip we so disappointed with the table service meals. We are going in December and chose not to go with the DDP this time. We have three table service meals planned and the rest of our meals are going to be at counter service restaurants. By my calculations, we'll be saving a considerable amount of money by doing it this way and we'll probably be happier with our meal experiences than last time.

The nice thing about not being on the DDP is that you aren't restricted by dining reservations every day and you can still use your room key to charge your meals. You just have to be aware of what you're buying to ensure your food costs don't exceed what it would have cost for the dining plan.