Free Dining (and the Disney Dining Plan, Generally) Not the Best Deal?

[WDWFigment]

I know people get really excited about the "Free" Dining promotions, but I've done a lot of number-crunching, and it isn't always the best deal. I think people tend to forget that it's not really free (thus the quotation marks above), since you have to pay rack rate on a room that you could otherwise get discounted. Thus, instead, it's an alternative discount. A lot of the times, it is a better discount than one of the other deals you could get, but it's worth doing the math.

You can read more about this, plus my (slightly unfavorable) review of the DDP here:

http://www.disneytouristblog.com/free-dining-plan-2011-2012-cost-reviews-disney-world/

 

[Master Yoda]

For me, DDP caused sphincter clenching!

I was constantly going over our credits to make sure we were on track to use them all up by the end of the trip. (We failed. I brought home a box of cupcakes we didn't need.)

Every day I ran calcs in my head to make sure DDP wasn't costing us more than we would have spent out of pocket. We tried to maximize the bang for the buck and frequently ordered items because they were expensive. For example, at Sci Fi I ordered the ribs when I would have ordinarily ordered the reuben.

Also, the DDP caused us to eat more than we would have otherwise. I recall showing up for reservations for buffets when we hadn't gotten over our counter service lunch. But we had to burn the credits because we had paid for them. Also, who orders dessert with every meal? I can put away the sweets but even I don't do that!

Not to mention we wouldn't have taken that much time away from the parks for all of those sit-down meals... Which put us on even more of a schedule...

Tom's blog post covers all this and I think he does a fair job of presenting other points of view as well. But for me, I feel a lot more carefree if I know there's money in the bank to just order what I want when I want.

We did not run into any of those issues. Having at least 1 TS ADR per day is pretty par for the course for us. When we used the DDP we used the snack for breakfast, the CS for lunch, and the TS for dinner. We would have followed a similar pattern had we been using TiWL. There was no real worry of using all of our credits.

 

[WDWmazprty]

We did not run into any of those issues. Having at least 1 TS ADR per day is pretty par for the course for us. When we used the DDP we used the snack for breakfast, the CS for lunch, and the TS for dinner. We would have followed a similar pattern had we been using TiWL. There was no real worry of using all of our credits.

ditto.

 

[lebeau]

We did not run into any of those issues. Having at least 1 TS ADR per day is pretty par for the course for us. When we used the DDP we used the snack for breakfast, the CS for lunch, and the TS for dinner. We would have followed a similar pattern had we been using TiWL. There was no real worry of using all of our credits.

That was the idea. But with little kids, it was hard to maintain that structure. And frankly, we were full. So we skipped counter service meals or shared them.

On our last day, we ordered 6 counter service breakfasts for the 4 of us and treated it like a buffet. We still had a couple c/s credits and a boatload of snack credits left to burn. I went to the dessert counter and burned them all up on cupcakes because my wife liked them so much. It was a waste of credits, but at least they got used.

Long story short, I could have spent less money paying out of pocket. And the DDP made me feel "locked in" rather than liberated.

I just don't see how giving your money to Disney up front and then being obligated to a set dining plan is desirable unless you're reaping a substantial savings. I don't find that convenient or stress-free at all. :shrug:

 

[wdwsusan]

For me, DDP caused sphincter clenching!

. Also, who orders dessert with every meal? I can put away the sweets but even I don't do that!

QUOTE]

I've been told you can get a bottle of water in place of qs dessert. I haven't tried it yet, but I intend to in April next year.

 

[lebeau]

I've been told you can get a bottle of water in place of qs dessert. I haven't tried it yet, but I intend to in April next year.

Now that you mention it, I have done this. I have also substituted a yogurt which I then fed the baby with. But that kind of gets to Tom's point in his blog that the rules are ill-defined. And the application is inconsistent. You find yourself asking "can I do this?" a lot. Whereas when you pay out of pocket, there are no such concerns.

 

[WDWFigment]

While all very true, there is a psychological element that you are not seeing. One thing I have always like about taking cruises is the care free attitude that you get when you are on board. Aside from alcohol, souvenirs and gambling you know everything else is taken care of. That is quite relaxing. The DDP is as close as you can get to the same experience at WDW. We typically use TiWL and even though I know it is a better deal for us than than the DDP I still cringe a bit when I get the bill at the end. That sphincter clenching disappears when we have used the DDP.

I wouldn't say I'm "not seeing" this at all. I acknowledged this may be the case for some in my blog post, but disagreed with it for myself specifically.

I think I've presented a fairly objective take on this while presenting my own opinions as to why the Dining Plan isn't generally for us, specifically.

 

[disneygirl1]

I know people get really excited about the "Free" Dining promotions, but I've done a lot of number-crunching, and it isn't always the best deal. I think people tend to forget that it's not really free (thus the quotation marks above), since you have to pay rack rate on a room that you could otherwise get discounted. Thus, instead, it's an alternative discount. A lot of the times, it is a better discount than one of the other deals you could get, but it's worth doing the math.

You can read more about this, plus my (slightly unfavorable) review of the DDP here:

http://www.disneytouristblog.com/free-dining-plan-2011-2012-cost-reviews-disney-world/

Tom I could not agree with you more. When we went in December we were lucky enough to be able to choose between 40% our stay at AKL or the free dining plan for our stay. I was shocked at how much more $$$ we saved by going with the 40% the room rate and paying for the dining plan.

Granted, if free dining is the only discount available I'll gladly take it! Any discount is better then none.

 

[bayoubelle]

We're booked using free dining but we're hoping for an nice AP discount. If it's offered, we'll change the reservation. The DDP does not save us money. We get it though because it's convenient. I hate having to pull my credit card out for every meal and snack. It's nice having all of this prepaid. At the end of a trip we usually have counter service and snack credits left. We go to the resort gift shop and scoop up a ton of Disney inspired snacks. My nieces and nephews love us giving them these when we get home.
So maybe come to think of it, the DDP does save money because I'm not buying a bunch of $30 dollar t shirts for the little ones. Rationalizations make life so much better.

 

[wannabeBelle]

We're booked using free dining but we're hoping for an nice AP discount. If it's offered, we'll change the reservation. The DDP does not save us money. We get it though because it's convenient. I hate having to pull my credit card out for every meal and snack. It's nice having all of this prepaid. At the end of a trip we usually have counter service and snack credits left. We go to the resort gift shop and scoop up a ton of Disney inspired snacks. My nieces and nephews love us giving them these when we get home.
So maybe come to think of it, the DDP does save money because I'm not buying a bunch of $30 dollar t shirts for the little ones. Rationalizations make life so much better.

Some AP Dates through the end of the year have been released, Im not sure when your trip is though.
And isnt it amazing, my nephews rack up whenever I go to Disney!!! They usually end up getting more stuff from me than I get for myself. I have no idea how that happened, but when I get home and give them their stuff the smiles I get make it all worthwhile!!! Marie

 

[bayoubelle]

Some AP Dates through the end of the year have been released, Im not sure when your trip is though.
And isnt it amazing, my nephews rack up whenever I go to Disney!!! They usually end up getting more stuff from me than I get for myself. I have no idea how that happened, but when I get home and give them their stuff the smiles I get make it all worthwhile!!! Marie

Thank-you, Marie. Our trip is not until January so we're hoping that the next release of AP discounts will include us.

 

[wannabeBelle]

Ill keep my fingers crossed for you!!! Marie

 

[bayoubelle]

Thank-you!!!

 

[ShookieJones]

While all very true, there is a psychological element that you are not seeing. One thing I have always like about taking cruises is the care free attitude that you get when you are on board. Aside from alcohol, souvenirs and gambling you know everything else is taken care of. That is quite relaxing. The DDP is as close as you can get to the same experience at WDW. We typically use TiWL and even though I know it is a better deal for us than than the DDP I still cringe a bit when I get the bill at the end. That sphincter clenching disappears when we have used the DDP.

Sphincter clenching! Thanks for the laugh and uhmm 100 percent agree.
Weve done the math and considered the convenience vs inconveniece and the ddp wins everytime. It sounds like it doesnt work for some people but Anyone who would blindly do any thing that involves spending disney type vacation money without doing the math is either loaded or dumb :animwink:

 

[WDWFigment]

Sphincter clenching! Thanks for the laugh and uhmm 100 percent agree.
Weve done the math and considered the convenience vs inconveniece and the ddp wins everytime. It sounds like it doesnt work for some people but Anyone who would blindly do any thing that involves spending disney type vacation money without doing the math is either loaded or dumb :animwink:

Amen to that! I wish we fell into the former category, but unfortunately...well, let's just say we do a lot of math!

 

[Mukta]

I fall into a different category.
I travel to WDW mostly with friends, not family. I am also mostly vegetarian. Splitting checks at restaurants when my entree always costs less leads to resentment. I don't want to nickel and dime my friends, but I don't want to ask for separate checks at every meal.
The DP allows us to order whatever we want and split a $30 tip instead of a $150 meal.

There are trips where I could have saved more money not using the DP. I would rather spend extra money to feel relaxed about my meal choices and not look at dollar amounts all week.

I also eat dessert with every meal.

 

[ShookieJones]

Amen to that! I wish we fell into the former category, but unfortunately...well, let's just say we do a lot of math!

Oh yeah I don't know anything about that former category either..and as far as the latter..well I use a calculator to do my math...but d*mn it, I do it!

 

[lebeau]

Oh yeah I don't know anything about that former category either..and as far as the latter..well I use a calculator to do my math...but d*mn it, I do it!

I work up incredibly elaborate spreadsheets. I research menus and figure out who will most likely order what. Before we left, I knew more or less what I would be eating each meal of our trip.

When I did the calcs, we came up close. At best, we were going to save the cost of desserts. But I wanted to try it to experience it for myself. Like I said, for us convenience was not a factor. If anything, it stressed me out over paying in cash. But psychology is funny that way I guess.

 

[plaz10]

another thing to consider when considering the DDP is the type of places you go to eat (table service). If you're big breakfast people...using the DDP to pay for a $12 entree at a breakfast place is a waste. If you go to more expensive places (usually for dinner) at places like Coral Reef, Ohana, even Le Cellier lunch you're paying over $30 bucks a person. Thats a savings.

When the plan is "free" my fiance and I benefit because we normally would not eat at that many sit down places but we love to eat there. This gives us the chance to eat more TS than usual. It's the experience of more TS meals that makes the DDP a big win for us. Plus it's probably the same amount (factoring in what we'd pay with rack rates) "paying" for the package w/free dining than if we got a discount and paid OOP but we get more sit downs.

 

[Uncle Lupe]

What if they let you donate unused credits to help local food banks? So instead of leaving them on the "table" you would feel better if you skipped that last day buffet or QS and was able to put them to better use. I do not know what the cost per person per day but any donations would help.

A touch screen kiosk at your resort could let you choose a food bank in your state of choosing by inserting your card and making your donation.

 

[bayoubelle]

What if they let you donate unused credits to help local food banks? So instead of leaving them on the "table" you would feel better if you skipped that last day buffet or QS and was able to put them to better use. I do not know what the cost per person per day but any donations would help.

A touch screen kiosk at your resort could let you choose a food bank in your state of choosing by inserting your card and making your donation.

Best idea ever