Tables In Wonderland card now $100 for Annual Pass holders & DVC members, $125 for Florida Residents

[Tom]

The second card is more geared toward locals where couples may not necessarily always be dining together, so each one would need their own card.

(And the TiW discount is for 10 people, not 6)

-Rob

I didn't have my card ready....couldn't remember the exact number. But I see your point....

For the same reason you might need two cars, two credit cards or two of those little cards you get from the grocery store to save gas points.

....2 cards are handy for LOCALS, unless you travel to WDW separately from your family often.

For us regular out-of-staters with APs who go a few times a year and always dine together, 1 card is always enough.

 

[Skyway]

Since no one has done the math yet:

In order to break even with the $100 AP price, you would need to spend $500 at the restaurants.

You'd have to spend $1000 on food just to save $100.

And once you break even, you are still paying the (high) prices on the menu. The card basically covers your (mandatory) tip. Might save you a buck or two.

 

[Tom]

Since no one has done the math yet:

In order to break even with the $100 AP price, you would need to spend $500 at the restaurants.

You'd have to spend $1000 on food just to save $100.

And once you break even, you are still paying the (high) prices on the menu. The card basically covers your (mandatory) tip. Might save you a buck or two.

The key word, or phrase, or whatever, is that you "will save". Everything is relative, but if you don't eat the number of meals and snacks required by a Dining Plan, but if you do tend to enjoy a number of Table Service meals in a given year, you can actually save money.

But yes, you have to eat enough TS meals (or QS at DAK) in a given year that the NET 2% savings at TS meals and 20% off QS @ DAK equal at least as much as the cost of the TIW membership.

For us, since we went 3 times this year (2 conferences then this past week was just for us), TIW made way more sense than a DDP. We recovered the $75 at least twice - and we weren't forced into eating X number of meals and snacks.

We won't be renewing our APs since we won't be back until 2014, but since we're DVC, we may still get TIW for 2014. We'll run all the numbers first though.

 

[tecowdw]

For the first time, I've been keeping track of my TIW usage to see if it's cost effective for me. The idea of whether it is worth it has always bugged me.

I bought the $75 card back in September and have used it 7 times. My total discount has been $52.89 so far. I will be able to use it for 2 or 3 more trips before it expires. I suspect I will break even since I really only need to use it 3 or 4 times to do so.

Here's my dilemma with renewing it at the new $100 price...
I ate at more sit-down places than I normally would as usually we are CS people. With the splurging, the card is more beneficial. However, at the higher price I'd have to dine like that even more often than normal. I just don't see that being likely.

If I look at just the net 2% discount, I've saved about $8. Who knows if I would have spent the same amount in gratuity had it not been automatic. Anyways, if you're just going to break even on the membership price, why bother? I don't think I'll be renewing.

 

[Tom]

For the first time, I've been keeping track of my TIW usage to see if it's cost effective for me. The idea of whether it is worth it has always bugged me.

I bought the $75 card back in September and have used it 7 times. My total discount has been $52.89 so far. I will be able to use it for 2 or 3 more trips before it expires. I suspect I will break even since I really only need to use it 3 or 4 times to do so.

Here's my dilemma with renewing it at the new $100 price...
I ate at more sit-down places than I normally would as usually we are CS people. With the splurging, the card is more beneficial. However, at the higher price I'd have to dine like that even more often than normal. I just don't see that being likely.

If I look at just the net 2% discount, I've saved about $8. Who knows if I would have spent the same amount in gratuity had it not been automatic. Anyways, if you're just going to break even on the membership price, why bother? I don't think I'll be renewing.

It definitely does not sound like it will benefit you at $100....or even if it stayed at $75....since it sounds like you'll probably revert to a CS-heavy agenda.

At $100, we definitely won't be getting it again, especially since we won't be visiting WDW more than once a year for a while....and not at all until 2014.

 

[GoofGoof]

For the first time, I've been keeping track of my TIW usage to see if it's cost effective for me. The idea of whether it is worth it has always bugged me.

I bought the $75 card back in September and have used it 7 times. My total discount has been $52.89 so far. I will be able to use it for 2 or 3 more trips before it expires. I suspect I will break even since I really only need to use it 3 or 4 times to do so.

Here's my dilemma with renewing it at the new $100 price...
I ate at more sit-down places than I normally would as usually we are CS people. With the splurging, the card is more beneficial. However, at the higher price I'd have to dine like that even more often than normal. I just don't see that being likely.

If I look at just the net 2% discount, I've saved about $8. Who knows if I would have spent the same amount in gratuity had it not been automatic. Anyways, if you're just going to break even on the membership price, why bother? I don't think I'll be renewing.

If you switch to CS then the tip doesn't apply. If you continue to eat at table service you would have to tip either way so the savings would be 20% not 2% unless you planned to not tip at all. For me it might be 22% since my standard tip is 20% unless there is a real big problem. If I got good service using TIW I would leave more on top of the mandatory 18% but that's just me.

 

[Tom]

If you switch to CS then the tip doesn't apply. If you continue to eat at table service you would have to tip either way so the savings would be 20% not 2% unless you planned to not tip at all. For me it might be 22% since my standard tip is 20% unless there is a real big problem. If I got good service using TIW I would leave more on top of the mandatory 18% but that's just me.

We received outstanding service from our waitress at Coral Reef. I mean, she was incredible. Her name was Kim and I even wrote her a note on the signed receipt telling her how outstanding she was. I left a chunk of cash in the bill folder for her, on top of the 18% TIW gave her.

The rest of our servers were par, and they got the default 18%. I rarely experience servers at WDW who service my table the way someone should in order to earn a 20% (or greater) tip - which is a shame.

 

[GoofGoof]

We received outstanding service from our waitress at Coral Reef. I mean, she was incredible. Her name was Kim and I even wrote her a note on the signed receipt telling her how outstanding she was. I left a chunk of cash in the bill folder for her, on top of the 18% TIW gave her.

The rest of our servers were par, and they got the default 18%. I rarely experience servers at WDW who service my table the way someone should in order to earn a 20% (or greater) tip - which is a shame.

I have 2 small kids who almost always end up making a mess. I usually feel bad for whoever has to pick up those half eaten chicken nuggets under the table so I tend to leave a little more. Not even sure if the right person ends up with the cash. When I did a "sentence" at TGI Fridays one summer in college we would tip out the bus boys who worked in our area. Essentially they got a cut from all of the waiter's tips.

 

[Tom]

I have 2 small kids who almost always end up making a mess. I usually feel bad for whoever has to pick up those half eaten chicken nuggets under the table so I tend to leave a little more. Not even sure if the right person ends up with the cash. When I did a "sentence" at TGI Fridays one summer in college we would tip out the bus boys who worked in our area. Essentially they got a cut from all of the waiter's tips.

Yeah, I'm not sure how Disney TS tips work. I hope it's not a socialist system where everyone's tips go in a jar and they split them. I almost wanted to leave a little note with the cash saying to stick this in your pocket....but decided not to. If I knew for sure that they pooled or split tips, I would have done something like that, because SHE deserved that money, not the bus boy or anyone else there.

 

[71jason]

For locals, you also need to take into account the $15 valet fees (honestly, one of the main selling points for me).

 

[Tom]

For locals, you also need to take into account the $15 valet fees (honestly, one of the main selling points for me).

What do you mean by this? Does a TIW card get you the valet fee waived if you dine at a deluxe resort restaurant?

 

[menamechris]

What do you mean by this? Does a TIW card get you the valet fee waived if you dine at a deluxe resort restaurant?

Yep...for now....

 

[steve2wdw]

Just bought mine on Thursday at the $75 rate....didn't know it was going up, so I got lucky. Already saved $49 on this trip, and have 17 more days on property this year, so it definately works for us.

 

[Figment1986]

The second card is more geared toward locals where couples may not necessarily always be dining together, so each one would need their own card.

(And the TiW discount is for 10 people, not 6)

-Rob

And you used to get this second card FREE with your original membership... That way say your wife is at the parks meeting friends they could dine in japan while your at work and not worry about giving her a card before hand. The first cut was taking away the free second card (when they redid the system to the way it is now), and now increasing prices... I just don't see a huge advantage to me with it since not every sit down is part of it. granted at times my friends have one so no worry as they would run their discount on my check anyway even though it says they wont

 

[PolynesianPrincess]

We are huge TS diners. Disney is just as much about the food for us as it is the attractions, shows, etc and we usually have at least 1 sit down meal per day. We started this trend even before we were passholders. We bought our TIW card November 2011 ($25 each since we have 3 people who always travel together - so we each only had to spend $125 each to break even) and it paid for itself after 5 days there. We used it again in May where we had 11 sit down meals. It worked for us in those instances. HOWEVER - in Sept we opted for free dining. It turned out free dining was about $50 MORE than it would have been to use the TIW card but that $50 included the refillable mug and the 2 day base ticket (which values $187 itself) so the free dining actually was better for us.

TIW is worth it for some people, not for others. If CS is your way of dining it definitely wouldn't work. We have 3 trips planned next year so TIW is worth it for us. We're traveling in May for a week and plan to renew since we are staying at the Swan because A - We're using Starwood points so we can't get the DDP and B - you can't add DDP to rooms at the Swalphin anyway. We're traveling with additional family who is budgeting all they can to be able to go and do the nice sit down meals and not just QS all the time. It will be nice for us to be able to offer them some discounts on their dining.

 

[Master Yoda]

Side note:

Disneyland respects their APs enough to give them a discount on dining automatically with their passes.

WDW passholders get a pretty crappy shake when it comes to food discounts. No TIW counter service discounts outside AK and value resorts???

Even worse, CMs don't get a discount on CS either???

All pretty crappy. I know I would be much more free wheeling with my drinks spending with even a dismal 10%. Sea World gives 10%. Just sayin'.

Just like the seasonal overlays, DL does this because they have to. For the most part you can show up at DL and eat wherever you want without reservations. The same is not true for WDW as nearly every popular place is packed 5-6 months out. If the same were true at DL, the discounts would quickly dry up.

"Add a second membership for your spouse or partner for only $50 more!"

Anyone remember when the second card was free?

Yes, and people abused the crap out of it. I knew a number of people that had 2 cards that were neither spouses or partners. They were simply friends and one bought the card and the other got one for free.

 

[DougK]

We recently used our card at Victoria and Albert's. TIW practically paid for itself ($75) with that one meal.

 

[Clyde Birdbrain]

I just checked the participating TIW restaurants at http://tablesinwonderland.com and was surprised that the CS restaurants Pizzafari and Restaurantosaurus at AK are included.

Also the food courts at the value resorts are on the list. This includes Landscape of Flavors at Art of Animation, which I really like. We ate there a few times with our TIW card not realizing that we could use it. D'oh!

 

[Master Yoda]

I just checked the participating TIW restaurants at http://tablesinwonderland.com and was surprised that the CS restaurants Pizzafari and Restaurantosaurus at AK are included.

Also the food courts at the value resorts are on the list. This includes Landscape of Flavors at Art of Animation, which I really like. We ate there a few times with our TIW card not realizing that we could use it. D'oh!

It has been this way pretty much from the start as these locations do not have a Disney owned TS restaurant. It will also work at POFQ and sometimes RS.

 

[WDW1974]

I just wanted to chime in with my typical Disney bashing (i.e truth) ... I had the Disney Dining Experience card as it was known before the DDP forced the change to the ridiculously named TiW from 1995 when it started for FLA residents only.

It cost me $25 a year. For two cards. Back when you could go to a full serve restaurant and get soup or salad INCLUDED with dinner and lower lunch prices. Hell, lower prices all around. It wasn't good at as many places in the early days, but later was good at places it now isn't like all QSRs at the resorts whether they had full serve or not. I always used it at Roaring Fork at WL (along with my LIFETIME FREE SODA mug, since I see someone has resurrected a thread just in time for the holidays!)

Do I think it is worth it now? Hell no. That's why I gave mine up four years ago. That's when I cut my Disney meals by a good 75%. Now, they get my money where I get an AP discount or when I go out with Cast pals for those great 40% lunches etc. My money goes to Levy's locales at DD ... goes to third parties at Swan/Dolphin/DD hotels and, naturally, off property.

Can you make it a deal for yourself? Sure, if you allow Disney to screw you over in the first place, you certainly can come out ahead a little. But take a look at who's really winning that battle.