Is the Dining Plan Worth It Anymore?

[Chef Mickey]

I have the Disney dining plan (1 snack, 1 table, 1 quick) for an 8 day trip and it seems to be around $1,000.

By my calculations in my head, it seems like almost a wash and the restriction of 2 table service at Signature Dining might even make it slightly annoying. We always use everything allotted, but I never feel like it's a great deal. Seems like it used to be better?

I know you get dessert and a few extra things, but could I come out better with cash?

 

[Chef Mickey]

Actually, that's $125/day. Most table service restaurants are in the $80 range (without tip) and quick services is around $35. Is that about right? That seems like almost a wash.

 

[sxeensweet]

We never bought it to save we bought it to pre pay for most of our food and drinks. We do add some appitizers and some alcoholic drinks, and pay a few OOP but still even with adding we rather that most of our expenses are already paid. (Have tried the deluxe plan but that was way too much food wise and cost wise being almost double what the regular plan costs) Also TIW really wouldn't save us more either..well a little more but it does not work on most QS locations. (We know it includes the ones in AK etc and some others) So we still love using the dining plan if even if we break even. But usually we save a little even dining at Signatures too. Also to note our QS's on the last few trips several times equaled $40-$45 just for the 2 of us.

 

[Disney4family]

We used to get it, but as our kids got older, we realized we weren't really saving with it. We got TIW last year and loved it. We still enjoy a table-service meal a day, but pick or get a counter whenever we need to. Since I manage to spend all my rewards dollars in a half hour at BVG or MouseGear (and I work so hard all year charging and charging to get those thousands ), we use our bands or Disney card and rack up the 2% (for the next trip's rewards, of course).
There have been some very, very helpful links on this site for you to roughly calculate all variations of plans to see which one is the best one for you. If you already have the meal plan for this trip, hold on to your receipts. One cruddy, winter day, punch in what you did and see how you would have made out with other options.

 

[elhefe4]

Are you sure you aren't looking at the Deluxe Dining Plan? The regular Dining Plan costs $61.82/day, so you'd only be looking at about $495 for eight days. Even with the Deluxe Dining Plan, you're looking at $111.73/day or about $900 for eight days. However, I also think your estimate for the cost of a table service meal is a little high. That $80 price is more in line with a signature table service restaurant. Check out the menus on Disney's website to see the current prices.

 

[LuvtheGoof]

Hasn't been worth it in a decade. Ever since they removed the appetizer and tip. Buy an AP and get a TiW. Use it for 20% off, including alcohol, which the plan doesn't cover at all. Big savings if you use it over more than one trip as well!

 

[officialtom]

We don't use it to save money. We use it to pre-pay and because we love planning out our meals. If we didn't get it, we likely would end up trying to save money by not eating as many table service meals.

That said, we always have trouble using it all despite tons of planning. We usually end up trading snacks in for a quick service on the last day and treating friends (if any are around), or buying souvenir snacks to bring home.

 

[DznyGrlSD]

Compared to what it used to be? NOPE.

 

[Hockey89]

Sadly, it will never go away because it's a moneymaker for Disney and the food suffers....

 

[dreamfinder]

Are your numbers for a party of 2? Basic dining should be $61.84/adult/day (tax included) and deluxe dining should be $111.73/adult/day (tax included). And when are you traveling? They made a few changes to the plans for 2017. So I'd double check your numbers, but your overall question still stands.

But for several years unless you eat exactly to the plan at best it's a break even deal. And with the changes in 2017, even more so. If you will each always get your own drink at a CS meal, and would always eat a dessert at the same meal (2016 only), and tend to gravitate towards the more expensive options, them yeah, you might come out ahead.

So if you were spending your day at MK, did breakfast at BoG, for $24 + $2.49 for coffee, and then dinner at BoG $35 for steak, $5 for dessert, and $3.29 for drink you do indeed come out well ahead on that day, even before accounting for the snack. (24+2.49+35+5+3.29=$69.78) But you are more likely to spend $10-14 for a CS, plus $4.29 for dessert and $3.29 for drink. Meaning your CS entitlement is more likely to max out at $21.58, and may be as low as $17ish. Are you likely to eat steak each day at your TS? If you got the chicken at BoG instead of the steak, it's only $26. So now with your $21.58 CS, and a $34.29 (26+5+3.29) TS dinner, you are only at $56ish for the day, even throwing in $6 for your snack credit you just barely break even for the day.

Yeah, that is only one sample case, you can massage the numbers to show whatever you want. But that is what it comes down to. Look at the places you want to eat, and total up how much it would cost for what you think you eat. See if it's less than the dining plan. Knowing that we usually share a drink at a CS, and almost never do dessert at either CS or TS, it's never made financial sense for us. And they keep tweaking it to make it harder and harder to beat the system.

 

[DisneyFans4Life]

On the extended trips that my wife and I have done at the parks (8 nights and 5 nights) we did the DDP both times, but to dreamfinder's point...you have to plan your meals more strategically to make the plan worth it.

We did a lot of character meals (Chef Mickey's, Akershus, Hollywood & Vine, etc) that cost more to really make the plan worth it. Heck...Akershus is over $50 per person and when we ate at Hollywood & Vine last Saturday, we spent $50/person. If you were to eat at places like that everyday, it would definitely save you money to get the DDP.

However, if you don't need to eat that much, then I'd probably opt to just pay OOP. We have another 8 nights booked for March and I don't think we're going to do the DDP at all and opt for more QS meals with only a few TS meals thrown in here and there.

 

[Chef Mickey]

Are your numbers for a party of 2? Basic dining should be $61.84/adult/day (tax included) and deluxe dining should be $111.73/adult/day (tax included). And when are you traveling? They made a few changes to the plans for 2017. So I'd double check your numbers, but your overall question still stands.

But for several years unless you eat exactly to the plan at best it's a break even deal. And with the changes in 2017, even more so. If you will each always get your own drink at a CS meal, and would always eat a dessert at the same meal (2016 only), and tend to gravitate towards the more expensive options, them yeah, you might come out ahead.

So if you were spending your day at MK, did breakfast at BoG, for $24 + $2.49 for coffee, and then dinner at BoG $35 for steak, $5 for dessert, and $3.29 for drink you do indeed come out well ahead on that day, even before accounting for the snack. (24+2.49+35+5+3.29=$69.78) But you are more likely to spend $10-14 for a CS, plus $4.29 for dessert and $3.29 for drink. Meaning your CS entitlement is more likely to max out at $21.58, and may be as low as $17ish. Are you likely to eat steak each day at your TS? If you got the chicken at BoG instead of the steak, it's only $26. So now with your $21.58 CS, and a $34.29 (26+5+3.29) TS dinner, you are only at $56ish for the day, even throwing in $6 for your snack credit you just barely break even for the day.

Yeah, that is only one sample case, you can massage the numbers to show whatever you want. But that is what it comes down to. Look at the places you want to eat, and total up how much it would cost for what you think you eat. See if it's less than the dining plan. Knowing that we usually share a drink at a CS, and almost never do dessert at either CS or TS, it's never made financial sense for us. And they keep tweaking it to make it harder and harder to beat the system.

I'm going to break down and just do the math. The Disney Dining Plan (1 Table, 1 quick, 1 snack) is $1020 for 2 people for my dates in September 2016.

How much is Crystal Palace for lunch? I can only get a range on their website. I'm thinking it's something like $35/person, but I can't remember.

 

[Chef Mickey]

I'm looking at the pricing right now for my 8 day trip at AKL. This are the prices, no other options.

Quick Service plan (2 people, 8 days): $706 for 2, $44/person per day
Disney Dining Plan (1 quick, 1 table, 1 snack) (2 people, 8 Days): $1,020 for 2, $63.75/person per day
Deluxe Dining (3 table or quick, 1 snack) (2 people, 9 days): $1841 for 2, $115/person per day

 

[Weather_Lady]

We've gone with and without it (and I saved all my receipts and did the math to see how we fared!), and for my family's particular dining preferences (YMMV):

- it's a "wash" if we purchase the DDP and choose the most expensive 1-credit TS restaurants, order the most expensive items everywhere we go, and order all of the snacks, desserts and fountain beverages that are included, whether we want them or not. Our refillable mugs get used only a couple of times and much of the food goes to waste. (Plus, next time we travel to WDW, my oldest will have turned 10, meaning we'd be paying much more for him on the DDP, even though his eating habits haven't changed, so we'll go from being in the "wash" category to the "losing money" category!)

- we save about 15% by paying OOP and only ordering what we really intend to eat (which is much less food than the DDP offers, often not the most expensive thing on the menu, and in some cases, a CS meal from the kids' menu for my "adult" 10-year-old) and going to the restaurants we'd most like to visit, irrespective of cost or "credits." This still includes one CS meal, one TS meal (including 1 or 2 2-credit signature restaurant meals during the week, an upgrade we don't allow ourselves on the DDP), and one snack per person, per day, but no refillable mugs, and only about half as many desserts and fountain drinks as the DDP would offer.

The only exception where we save on the DDP: if there's a "free" dining package offered. For example, on our upcoming trip, even though we had to spend several hundred dollars more to be eligible for the offer (e.g., upgrading to a preferred room at our resort, paying for an extra night OOP so we could "arrive" within the designated date window for a free dining package), when all is said and done we'll still save over $1,000 over 6 days on what we'd have spent for food OOP, and more than $1,200 off of what we'd have spent if we'd purchased the DDP.

 

[daringstoic]

It depends on how you do the math. For my trip last month, I made a spreadsheet to see the cost comparisons based on what I guessed we might order at the place we had TSRs (BOG, Skipper Canteen, Rose & Crown) and QSRs that I prefer for other meals.

When I added up what I would expect us to order if we were on the dining plan (drinks, desserts, and pricier entrees like steak as opposed to the more practical chicken dish), we would've come out on top by about $75. However, when I added up what I thought we'd order at those same restaurants if we were paying out of pocket, our total was about $100 less than the dining plan would've been. My boyfriend doesn't drink pop, so he wasn't ordering drinks, when/if we order dessert we usually just split it, and I almost always get kids meals for myself at QSR places, so I decided that it wasn't worth the extra money. It really just depends on how you look at the cost/value radio.

 

[dreamfinder]

How much is Crystal Palace for lunch? I can only get a range on their website. I'm thinking it's something like $35/person, but I can't remember.

According to WDWMagic here -> http://www.wdwmagic.com/dining/the-crystal-palace.htm lunch for adults is $40.46.

I'm looking at the pricing right now for my 8 day trip at AKL. This are the prices, no other options.

Quick Service plan (2 people, 8 days): $706 for 2, $44/person per day
Disney Dining Plan (1 quick, 1 table, 1 snack) (2 people, 8 Days): $1,020 for 2, $63.75/person per day
Deluxe Dining (3 table or quick, 1 snack) (2 people, 9 days): $1841 for 2, $115/person per day

So your initial price was for the entire trip, not just for the dining plan. Makes a smidge more sense now.

Remember also, that once you drop the package by removing dining you may be eligible for a room only discount that may have not been applicable when you the package.

 

[Chef Mickey]

Yeah, just did the math. Unless you're spending $50/person on the table service meals, it's not worth it. It's impossible to spend that much unless you're doing dinner for table service all the time and getting the most expensive things. Even still, it's going to be close to a wash.

The Disney Dining Plan we are looking at is $1,020 for 2 people for 8 days. I did the math for every restaurant we are eating down to the specific entree, drink, dessert. Then I did all the snack value at $5/person for 8 days ($80 value) and an average quick service meal of $16.50 (including drink).

For the places we are going, I only could get up to around $800. We don't always want or need dessert at every meal, but I even added it for places we will want it like 50s Prime TIme Cafe.

Lunch at places like 50s Prime Time, Liberty Tree and even Mama Melrose kind of kill the deal. We are having lunch at those places and they average around $22/ person for the entree. Since tip is not included, you can get out of your table service meal for around $60 before tip for 2 people.

 

[Chef Mickey]

According to WDWMagic here -> http://www.wdwmagic.com/dining/the-crystal-palace.htm lunch for adults is $40.46.



So your initial price was for the entire trip, not just for the dining plan. Makes a smidge more sense now.

Remember also, that once you drop the package by removing dining you may be eligible for a room only discount that may have not been applicable when you the package.

Which original price? I always said it was $1,000 for 2 and $125/day per person. I guess I just didn't say the $1000 was for 2 people.

Anyway, the 2 of us have to spend $1,000 on food to make this dining plan worth it. I don't think we'll quite get there, particularly if we eat several lunches as table service, which we plan to do as usual. We like that bigger lunch meal to give us energy throughout the day.

 

[danyoung56]

Hasn't been worth it in a decade. Ever since they removed the appetizer and tip.

THIS. I only used the plan once, and I didn't like the pressure of basically having to buy the most expensive item just to save a few bucks. I also like to dine at the signature restaurants, and of course most of those take 2 credits. And I like to have wine with dinner, which is not included on the plan. So it's a big NO from me.

 

[Jess G]

Like others here I find that I (pretty much) break even ... one thing I would prefer is spending my money on an appetizer instead of dessert. In april I did a 14 day stay (split between 3 hotels, 2 on property and 1 off property) I only had the dining plan for my first 5 days, let me just say that I definitely missed it the rest of my trip... Hubby and I tend to order the most expensive things on the menu... I REALLY felt the difference at quick service places, guess i never really looked at those prices before, it was easily $40 for 2 adults each quick service. I really think it depends on the way you eat... are you a steak/seafood guy or a burgers and fries guy? ordering a $20 entree at every table service you will for sure loose your money... As of now I feel like the DDP is worth it for me although I know with prices constantly and consistently rising in a few years DDP won't be worth it... GET IT WHILE YOU CAN.