Has anyone done the math for the dining plan?

[ask!]

Does anyone know how much the dining plan costs per person per day for adults/children? If you are staying 6 days and 5 nights, how many sit-down/CS meals are covered on the plan (ie 5 days worth or 6 days worth)?

Thanks for all you know,
Andrea

 

[Mickey&Minnie]

I think that the dining plan costs $35 or $36 dollars per day/per person. If you are staying 6 days onsite then you get 6 snacks, counter service, and sit down meals for each person. For us it is well worth it. Last vacation our dinner itself costs over $100 dollars when they brought our ticket to us to sign. That didn't count the rest of the food we ate that day.
I hope my info is correct and helps answer your question.

P.S. I just saw that you asked for the price of children too. We don't have any kids but I do know it is cheaper for them. $15 I think, don't quote me on that.

 

[Nemo14]

The price is
--$38.99 per adult (age 10 and up) per night of stay
--$10.99 per child 3-9 per night of stay
It includes one snack, one counter-service meal and one table service dinner per day (based on the number of nights of your stay). Some specail meals cost 2 dining credits, but most meals are 1.

 

[Cara1210]

Does anyone know how much the dining plan costs per person per day for adults/children? If you are staying 6 days and 5 nights, how many sit-down/CS meals are covered on the plan (ie 5 days worth or 6 days worth)?

Thanks for all you know,
Andrea

I can't remember the exact prices, but it's slightly less than $40 per day for adults and a little less than $15 for kids. The number of table service, CS and snacks is based on the number of nights you are paying for, so your example would be 5 of each. By the way, I kept track of all of our receipts two years ago(7 nights), and if I remember correctly if we paid out of pocket it would have cost us around $300 more than the DDP.

 

[DisneyGigi]

This is our first time with the Dining plan. All of our other trips we paid for meals seperate. It is a great deal, especially the table service meals. You get 1 each (snack, counter, table) per person per night of stay.

 

[bigorangeandy]

Does anyone know how much the dining plan costs per person per day for adults/children? If you are staying 6 days and 5 nights, how many sit-down/CS meals are covered on the plan (ie 5 days worth or 6 days worth)?
You will get 5 days worth, so if you check in late the first night, and leave early the last day, you could end up not using all your credits. If that is the case you eat at a place that is two credits per meal. Don't forget to make ADRs sooner rather than later.

 

[Dwarful]

When you are trying to do the math, look at the menu's on this site of some of the sit downs you might go to. Also, don't forget to add the cost of the tip because thats included. we have done it once and are doing it again in August with 36 people. If you normally eat a sit down per day it is a great deal. If you normally eat in your room, grab burgers and fries etc., then its a bit more than you would normally spend...but you will eat better.

 

[shanny]

its 37.99 per night of your stay, and you get 1 counter service, 1 table service, and 1 snack. included in table service meals are appetizer, entree, and dessert, so you if you add up all of that for one night, you pretty much will get about the same price ($38) so its like a free snack and counter service meal. i think it will be very worth it, we are using it on our trip next month. plus you have the added bonus of not having to worry about it while you are down there. :wave:

 

[Monty]

The math works out to approximately the cost of a TS at a buffet [$27.99], a CS [~$12 for entrée, dessert and beverage] and they throw in a snack of up to $4. If you take advantage of more expensive entrées at TS, you're ahead by a good margin.

EDIT: And, of course, they throw in an 18% tip and the taxes as well.

 

[slappy magoo]

I'd bet we've all "done the math" with the meal plan, but it varies for everyone based on where and what you like to eat. You can find menus with prices online allearsnet.com and see how it would work out for you.
One bad thing to consider is that kids must order from kids menus which are often pretty slim pickins. You might find yourself having to give them some of your meal, or payong oop for an extra adult meal one in a while if they're past pbj or mac and cheese.

 

[KYMouseFan]

We saved almost $400 dollars on our trip with the Dining Plan for 2 adults and 1 child and we left 4 CS meals there. The last night we had 15 snacks left so we went to the gift shop and loaded up with 12 sodas for the long drive home (12 hours) and 3 cookies to eat while we packed our luggage.

 

[JPVonDrake]

The price is
--$38.99 per adult (age 10 and up) per night of stay
--$10.99 per child 3-9 per night of stay
It includes one snack, one counter-service meal and one table service dinner per day (based on the number of nights of your stay). Some specail meals cost 2 dining credits, but most meals are 1.

I can confirm Nemo14 is correct for the 2007 Magic Your Way Plus Dine Package and the DVC Member points reservation add-on.

There is a total of 12 Signature Dining Locations that require 2 table service entitlements:

Jiko - The Cooking Place - Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge
Flying Fish Cafe - Disney's BoardWalk Resort
California Grill - Disney's Contemporary Resort
Citricos - Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
Narcoossee's - Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa
Artist Point - Disney's Wilderness Lodge
Yachtsman Steakhouse - Disney's Yacht Club Resort
The Hollywood Brown Derby - Disney-MGM Studios
Hoop Dee Doo Musical Revue - Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground
Mickey's Backyard BBQ - Disney's Fort Wilderness Resort & Campground
Disney's Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show - Disney's Polynesian Resort
Cinderella's Royal Table - Magic Kingdom Park

Grand Gathering Guests may use 2 Table Service Entitlements for select Grand Gathering Experiences.

Guests staying at select Disney Deluxe Resorts may use 2 Table Service Entitlements for In Room Dining (room service.)

 

[DABIGCHEEZ]

As a DVC member meals are where we save $$$. We have the fridge in the room so we generally are able to have a breakfast in our room, unless we have a character buffet booked. We also are able to pack some lunches when we goto the parks. Generally we only "buy" 1 meal/ day and it isn't always a sit-down.
Even if we didn't do this it just seems like too much food for our family. I have heard from friends who have used it and as other posters have said...they have left behind some meal credits at the end of their vacation that they have paid for but could not use.

 

[spaceghost]

Here's my thoughts on the dining plan: If you eat primarily counter service meals while there, or bring your own food, or are staying in a suite and ordering groceries, or are eating off site, etc. the dining plan will not save you money. However, on the flip side of that, for what you get, the dining plan saves you a bunch of money. You will be eating very well while on the plan. Each table service meal includes an appetizer, entrée, dessert, and standard drink...per person. If you were to add it up and see what those things would cost you out of pocket, the dining plan is a great deal. But that's the catch... if you don't want that much food, and only want to eat table service a couple of times during the trip, you probably won't save much money on the dining plan.

Basically, Disney makes out because the plan surely attracts more people that would not normally eat at a table service restaurant daily than it does people who already normally do that. So, they've enticed you to spend a little extra to eat at the table service places. I will add though that if you are interested in character dining, you can totally save money with the dining plan as most character meals are just 1 table service credit. Here's my pros and cons, as I see it.

Pros: Convenient, a lot of food, character dining, a bargain for what you get, nice to know food is largely paid for ahead of time
Cons: Time consuming (eating table service every day can take time away from touring), too much food (depending on the party), costs more than just counter service.

I came away from the dining plan on our last trip with mixed feelings. I truly enjoyed the dining experiences we had, but I also felt like we had way too much food and that it was frustrating to have to work rides and shows around Advance Dining Reservations and long meals. We will probably do the plan again in the future though, because dining is part of the fun to going to WDW and it is a good deal for what you are getting. Hopefully my $.02 will help you to make the decision on whether or not the plan is right for you.

 

[smayco]

One bad thing to consider is that kids must order from kids menus which are often pretty slim pickins. You might find yourself having to give them some of your meal, or payong oop for an extra adult meal one in a while if they're past pbj or mac and cheese.

There's another problem with "tween"-aged kids on the Dining Plan. My DS, at age 11.5, counts as an adult on the DDP. He'd sometimes want an adult meal, and sometimes want a kids' meal. During our stay, the nights he only wanted a kids meal, not only did we lose out (by ordering him a cheaper meal when we'd already paid for a much more expensive one), but doing so confused the heck out of the CM's!

~Sue

 

[flscooman]

And don't forget the math all changes Jan 1st.

 

[Rob562]

There's another problem with "tween"-aged kids on the Dining Plan. My DS, at age 11.5, counts as an adult on the DDP. He'd sometimes want an adult meal, and sometimes want a kids' meal. During our stay, the nights he only wanted a kids meal, not only did we lose out (by ordering him a cheaper meal when we'd already paid for a much more expensive one), but doing so confused the heck out of the CM's!

~Sue

If you get the Dining Plan again, consider paying out-of-pocket for those times when your son wants a kid's meal. You can then use his credits at another time.

If there's 3 of you and he decides to eat three kids meals during your week, you have three spare adult TS credits that you could use to double-up and have dinner at a Signature restaurant your last night.

-Rob

 

[abug'saunt]

We first used the dining plan for our 2005 christmas trip. There were 4 adults and 1 child. We had one dinner that had we had to pay, would have cost us over $300! This last trip, we took my father-in-law on his first trip and again did the meal plan. He thought it was great. As for too many table services, we just do a character meal or two and watch the child have the time of her life. Plus, having 2 older members in our party this time, sit down meals were nice for them too. My opinion - do the meal plan. In our case, it gave us more spending money for more souviners (sp?)! :lol:

 

[CleveRocks]

I think spaceghost hit the nail on the head.

My opinion, in as few words as possible ... If you are the type to eat a table-service meal each day, then the Disney Dining Plan is a great option, a real money saver, a real no-brainer. If you are like my family and plan to eat a table-service meal only once or twice out of 7 days, then the DDP is a very bad idea financially.

Get a handle on what types of meals you will eat, go to the menus, and do the math. That'll be the only way to know for sure in advance. Happy Hunting!

 

[JDM]

My own experience was a mostly positive one.

We managed to use all our credits during our trip, even using the last one for Breakfast on the morning we left.
But, the amount of food is LARGE and if you're not huge eaters (as my wife and daughter are not) you waste a lot of food, which just feels wrong to me.

Furthermore, I agree with Slappy.....the only real negative was the variety of choices for the Kids menus. Not many at all. Even my 5-year old got tired of the same old thing for every meal. We managed to work around it. one meal, my wife ate my daughter's food and vice versa. But more choices for Kids would be nice.

Overall, I would guess we saved under $100, maybe closer to $50. Nevertheless, we certainly didn't lose money and the convenience of not paying cash was wonderful!