People Angry Over Disney Dinning Plan

[spaceghost]

Hundreds of posts on sites all over the web would seem to disagree.

I think that goes to say more about the people who made those hundreds of posts on sites on the web than the dining plan itself. I suppose if you were blind you might have issues seeing the large DDP symbol next to a snack item on a menu board...otherwise, it really shouldn't be too much of an issue. (Ok, before I get flamed, let me say that of course there are sure to be exceptions where things are poorly labeled, but I didn't find any over the 9 days and 4 parks when we went last April.)

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

I think that goes to say more about the people who made those hundreds of posts on sites on the web than the dining plan itself. I suppose if you were blind you might have issues seeing the large DDP symbol next to a snack item on a menu board...otherwise, it really shouldn't be too much of an issue. (Ok, before I get flamed, let me say that of course there are sure to be exceptions where things are poorly labeled, but I didn't find any over the 9 days and 4 parks when we went last April.)

Well thats all right then, your happy with things so everyone else should just fall into line. Whens your next walk across Bay Lake?

 

[Anniebean25]

We used the DDP when we visited last August. The amount of food offered seemed to work out perfect for my family. I was kind of upset to hear about the change in the plan. I would much rather have the appetizer then dessert.
We are not to big on sweets.
As far as servers, we did come across a few that seemed to care less. One waitress at the Coral Reef was horrible. She brought 2 wrong drinks and mixed up one of the meals. And forget trying to get extra napkins.
I hope that service will improve.

 

[DisneyJoe]

I've seen other boards where there are entire threads devoted to snack credits, including stickies giving a comprehensive list of snacks and a snack FAQ.

Ya' know, I hear there are many boards out there that have thousands of threads and many many members devoted to taking a Disney vacation.

I also hear there are quite a few guidebooks that you can purchase too - for the same thing!!!

Even travel agents that are dedicated to Disney - imagine that.

If that much information and knowledge is needed I wonder how you can actually enjoy your vacation.

:ROFLOL::shrug::hammer:

 

[waterhouse6]

I my little humble opinion the DDP is a great convenience factor. I also like the fact that I will have scheduled downtime each day to eat.

My husband and I went to the World last April for the first time in either one of our lives. We went in a little dumb and clueless to the whole experinces available and how things worked. We didn't even use fast passes until our 3rd day there. Pretty dumb we were. Since then I have started researching every little bit that I can.

We have a trip planned for this April with us and our 7 and 3 yr olds. We bought the DDDP to use while we are there. Sure we may come out just even but we had so many reason behind it. 1.) Our food will already be payed for 2.) We will eat at restaraunts we normally wouldn't because we would have cringed at the check 3.) I know when we will eat and what I can tell my kids or when to hand them a snack 4.) I already know what we will order 5.) I will get to decide what to tip my server based on their service just like I do at home 6.) If we have left overs, I can take them to the hotel to warm up for the kids later

I have a character meal scheduled nearly everyday for the kids sake. We have a dinner show, a breakfast at Cinderellas Castle, and dinners at 3 signature restaraunts. I still have 2 credits left that we will use for on the whim.

For our lifestyle and making sure the kids get downtime, the plan worked for us. I know it won't for others. I am happy that it was available as a choice for us.

 

[H20Babie]

Simply go, eat and have fun.

I my little humble opinion the DDP is a great convenience factor. I also like the fact that I will have scheduled downtime each day to eat.

I agree wholeheartedly. While I've never used the DDP in the past and therefore have no prior experience with it, I am on it for my upcoming trip. For me, the convenience of having my meals pre-paid (and actually sticking to a budget) is huge for me. The last couple of trips, I have shied away from eating at table service restaurants because of the price factor and because I thought my DS was too young to enjoy a quiet sit down meal. Now that he's older, I'm giving it a try while solo, to see if it would work for our 2009 trip.

As for whether appetizer or dessert, it really doesn't matter to me. In fact, because a budget is very important to me, I will probably be ordering desserts that can be packed up and taken with me to have for breakfast in the morning!

For me, quite simply, it's convenience.

 

[RussJT]

We used it on our last trip, and we are using it for our trip in March. Since we have 2 young kids, we eat mostly at character meals / buffets. We save money by using the plan. Since all but one of our meals this coming trip is a character buffet, we wouldn't be getting an appetizer anyhow. Even with having to pay a gratuity, we will save money by using the plan. (It won't be as good of a deal as before, but we will still benefit.)

As has already been said, I also like the convenience of it. Last time when I checked in, it was so nice to her the person say that my vacation was already paid in full. Knwoing that i did not need to worry about paying for meals, etc., was a relief.

 

[Ms. Tinkerbell]

For our lifestyle and making sure the kids get downtime, the plan worked for us. I know it won't for others. I am happy that it was available as a choice for us.

That's how it is for us too We tend to stick to a "normal" schedule for meals and it's not a problem for us having ADR's planned. My children are older, and they like knowing what times we are eating and relaxing so that they can decide how they want our day to go. My son is very picky, so it's great knowing well in advance what we have planned so he can have a good idea what choices there are for him. We've never had a bad experience being on the dining plan or not being on it with restaurants or servers at WDW and they always seem to go out of their way to make sure my son who only eats a few things, gets a meal that he will eat, even if it is picking and choosing different things from different entrees to make a meal for him.

I love having everything paid for in advance as well, so that's a huge plus

 

[KevGuy]

Wow, the lamest thing I've ever heard regarding dining at Disney is the DDP is too much food lol!!!

 

[taholden]

I don't know if this has already been posted, but we overheard something interesting on the last day of our trip 1/1/08. We were on the dining plan and my parents had figured out that you could use your snack (food less than $4) and get those family sized bags of chips (doritos, lays, etc) because they were 3.99. This seemed to be the best way to use it since normally all you could get was a bottle of water or small popcorn (the souvenir bucket size is less than $4, but they wouldn't give you that because it is considered merchandise.) Well on the last day of the trip we were in the gift shop when I overheard the manager telling the cashier that starting the next day (1/2/08) you would only be able to use a snack on a single serving item. So for instance bags of cookies that cost $3, but said they had 3 servings on the back would not be eligible. This would also include all, but the smallest bags of chips, pretzels, etc. This didn't effect us because we were on the way out, but you could see that they were definitely trying to trim the bottom line on the dining plan. It worked out great for us when you compare it to how much money we saved. One knock against it though is that all of the restaurants have cut there menus down to a single page which I believe is in an effort to limit the amount of different meals they will have to make and get a real assembly line going.

 

[tomm4004]

...One knock against it though is that all of the restaurants have cut there menus down to a single page which I believe is in an effort to limit the amount of different meals they will have to make and get a real assembly line going.

Isn't that what happens on cruise ships? Are there many entree choices? There usually isn't when the price is included.

The DDP also gets guests not on the DDP to go to the expensive places such as Citricos, Jiko, Cali Grill, Brown Derby, where DDPers don't tend to go because of the double credit. This has to be figured into Disney's bottom line as well.

 

[spaceghost]

Well thats all right then, your happy with things so everyone else should just fall into line. Whens your next walk across Bay Lake?

Um...yeah. I just think the fact that there are "hundreds of posts" across the internet complaining about something that most people would believe to be easy to use just shows that there are always people who will: A. overanalyze things and B. complain about anything. On top of that, given the millions of visitors that go to WDW every year, and the tens, if not hundreds, of thousands of people who have used the dining plan, I don't think that "hundreds of posts" is much more than a drop in the bucket. There are many things to legitimately gripe about with the dining plan, but I don't feel that figuring out what qualifies as a snack is one of them. I'd love to hear from people though who had problems with this...maybe I was just lucky in that all of the eateries I went to were well labeled.

 

[bugsbunny]

One great thing I did the last time I was at WDW in October was to use http://www.gardengrocer.com

With it, I got about $60 worth of food delivered to my room at Pop and SAVED A FORTUNE. I got a 24 bottle case of spring water for like $8 instead of buying it at the parks for $3 a bottle!

Got snacks, fruit, cereal, milk, juice boxes, etc. With or without a room fridge, it saves a ton of money and really helps offset the cost of food at WDW and/or using the dining plan.

if you have never used this service before, I highly recommend it. They deliver the stuff right to your room and its a flat fee (I think $12) for whatever order. The prices were basically inline with or even better than the costs of a supermarket here in NJ. So there was certainly no price gouging or premium put on it. You can do it online and pick what time/day you want it delivered. The driver even called when he was getting close!

And no, I don't work for these guys or get a cut. I just think its a great service to think about for your next trip. :animwink:

 

[kimmychad]

sorry double post

 

[kimmychad]

I am just hoping this is the beginning of the end. Let's just go back to paying for what food you want, when you want, and where you want it. The end of the DDP might also mean its possible to visit restaurants without making a reservation 180 days in advance. We might also get back to the point where people actually respect the finer restaurants again, instead of using them as a coutner service.

lol you'd like to get back to a time when people respect the finer reataurants and we have people holding their kids over railings so they can urinate in line?

 

[DizFanatic]

Wow, this is crazy how there can be so many differing views on one subject. We did the DDP durring the 2006 Holiday season and absolutely loved it. We enjoyed the first class service and we got to go to many more upscale eateries than we would have without the plan. And yes we did act respectfully, and made reservations less than 30 days before our trip.

My general experience in life is that if people are going to be disrespectful, it doesn't matter whether the "pre-pay" to do it or not. A jerk is a jerk no matter how you slice them up. And they come in all shapes, forms and income brackets. Some people just have no class, and some people think they have class, then others think they own the joint because their bank account is bigger than mine. But that's life. I chose to be respectful to others around me (even if they are jerks) and I chose to teach my children the same. I don't go to WDW to judge others (although I am sometimes guilty of it) I go there to escape the hectic world that is part of my every day life and live in a Disney created fantasy world. And I love it. And I love the choice of DDP or not DDP. I'm "Pro Choice" on this one, but I respect the opinions of others (even if they are wrong:animwink

And one more thing; If heaven is not like Disney World, I'm gunna be very disappointed!:lookaroun

 

[Minnietoo]

For us we did the ddp we just wanted everything paid upfront.

As for the snack can you go to the back shop and get something?

 

[wdwmomof3]

We did the dining plan on our trip in 06 and loved it. I loved having that part of the trip paid for in advance. We will be back next year and I am thinking about doing it again and most likely will.

 

[TestTrack]

Just because my travel agent made this mistake as well, and it seems to pretty prevalent here too...

dining = to eat
dinning = makings loud sounds

:king:

 

[Master Yoda]

Just because my travel agent made this mistake as well, and it seems to pretty prevalent here too...

dining = to eat
dinning = makings loud sounds

:king:

What is in called if you make loud noises when you eat? Dinning dining perhaps?:lookaroun




:lol: