Better without the meal plan?

[ellie]

Hi, I'm Ellie. I'm heading to Disney early May with my boyfriend.
We've signed up for the meal plan but are wondering if maybe we'd be
better off dropping it and just paying for meals as we go.

We have ADRs at Les Chefs de France, Boma, Sci-Fi Dine In, and 'Ohana.

Les Chefs is droppable... and it may be easier to just eat counter service
that night at Epcot before Illuminations.

I guess I should just go run the numbers, especially with two buffets.

I've always done the meal plan before - traveling with girl friends made
it easier for splitting expenses - but my boyfriend and I aren't big eaters
and we might just split a dessert or an appetizer at dinner and could
buy a snack later instead of eating dessert at lunch. I drink water and
he drinks soda.

[Brandie]

I've done the meal plan with my family once. I ran the numbers after and realized that it hadn't saved us any money.

Run the numbers for you and your boyfriend and go from there.

[Janine]

Definitely run the numbers. Compare to what you would normally order, not to the cost of what you would be entitled to on the dining plan (ie if you don't normally order dessert, don't include it in your OOP comparison). What I found when doing the comparison, was that cost was about the same for the 2 adults, but we got huge savings with the kid. Without kid you may find little cost difference. FYI menus are at Allears.net so you can compare costs.

[RoonieRoo]

Another thing to consider is if you are an AP holder? DVC? TIW? Not sure if you any of those are options for you. If they are, they definitely make the meal plan not as worthwhile especially for two people.

[jilly7896]

We've done the meal plan the past 3 trips. It may not save us much, but I like the convenience of it. It is also nice to have it prepaid.

[lisapennie]

I think the meal plan can save people money, but it largely depends on how you eat. Based on what you're saying, I'm thinking you won't save much, if anything. There's the convenience factor as well, as you mentioned, but again, that doesn't seem to be a factor here.

While we've done both the regular and deluxe dining plan in the past, we likely won't ever do one again because the cost on them has gone up and we want more flexibility in how we eat.

[josh]

I'm not crazy about the Dining Plan now that it costs so much. It was a "killer deal" originally with the appetizer and tip included, but the prospect of saving much money is basically lost now that it's like $46 a night. You can sort of rationalize the "convenience" of it, but really it's no more convenient than handing over your card and having them charge it to the room. But as others have said, whether or not it's "worth it" depends entirely on what you order.

[lisapennie]

I'm not crazy about the Dining Plan now that it costs so much. It was a "killer deal" originally with the appetizer and tip included, but the prospect of saving much money is basically lost now that it's like $46 a night. You can sort of rationalize the "convenience" of it, but really it's no more convenient than handing over your card and having them charge it to the room. But as others have said, whether or not it's "worth it" depends entirely on what you order.

I think it's convenient if you have people eating together who aren't paying together (like a girls' trip, as the OP mentioned) or if one of the people in your party is likely to have major cost issues that could negatively affect the vacation (so dad is going to penny pinch if they're not on the plan, or grandma won't order anything but the chicken for fear of costing too much).

[MichaelColey]

We've gone both ways and were huge fans of the dining plan (especially with the "free dining" promotion), but as they've continually raised the prices and lowered the benefits, it's just not worth it to us anymore. We stay in timeshares and can do a mix of cooking, packing lunches and eating out (both on and off site) for considerably less.

[JW73]

We only did the dining plan once and that was way back in '05. We won't do it again. It just isn't cost effective for the way my family eats. I would definitely crunch numbers if I were you.

[blyday]

I think it's convenient if you have people eating together who aren't paying together (like a girls' trip, as the OP mentioned) or if one of the people in your party is likely to have major cost issues that could negatively affect the vacation (so dad is going to penny pinch if they're not on the plan, or grandma won't order anything but the chicken for fear of costing too much).

I think that Lisa hit the nail on the head so to speak. For us, the DDP is a great value because we travel with family who we are paying for to be there. The dining plan avoids the inevitable fight over the check. And the bigger point, everyone can order whatever they want without anyone getting upset or making comments that they are spending too much, etc. This was a point that was not lost on my 13 year old nephew who looked at the prices on the menus and found the most expensive thing he could. If it sounded good.....he would order that just because he could. He told me that it was one of his favorite parts of the trip because he was never allowed to do that at home. I honestly doubt that we save any money on the DDP and might even lose some. I know that we eat order things that we wouldn't get if we were not on the plan (for example, I always just order water....I like water.....I prefer water.....but my drink is paid for.....so I order a lemonade or some other non-carbonated drink when I'm on the plan.)

In 90% of the cases, the DDP is only a good option if you are traveling with a group and it is therefore more convenient to split the check, if you or a member of your group will not order the food that they'd really enjoy because it is too expensive and settles for the chicken or the pasta because it is the cheapest thing on the menu or if you fit in my situation and are paying for extended family and want them to not worry about the cost but just enjoy the meals. In 10% of the cases, where you typically eat at least one table service meal per day and order a drink and dessert with every meal...the plan works also. If you don't fit into one of those categories....chances are that you will not be saving money or will only be saving a small amount and being tied down by the plan just really isn't the best option for you. You need to crunch the numbers if you are not in the first 90% of people to see if you fall into the rare 10% how really just plain save money on the dining plan.

[josh]

I guesssssssssssssssss but even then if you aren't "coming out ahead" even with people ordering whatever they want, it still doesn't make sense to my brain. And then you run the risk of the exact opposite happening - I want the chicken but I feel like I should order the steak. Anyway, there are certainly instances where the Dining Plan "makes sense." It really takes a lot of steaks though.

[lisapennie]

I guesssssssssssssssss but even then if you aren't "coming out ahead" even with people ordering whatever they want, it still doesn't make sense to my brain. And then you run the risk of the exact opposite happening - I want the chicken but I feel like I should order the steak. Anyway, there are certainly instances where the Dining Plan "makes sense." It really takes a lot of steaks though.

It doesn't really make sense for most families - but there are some where the exact situation Brenda and I have discussed occurs. I've read enough posts where people say things like "my children will have to decide on a meal that they are comfortable splitting at ::insert name of CS restaurant here:: because I am not paying $12 for a second meal." In that case - the dining plan is worth it. I can't imagine being forced to order something I don't want because mom or dad is determined to save money that way. I know Brenda's family isn't the only one where someone is treating - and in many cases, those being treated don't know what the dining plan costs - so the statement to order whatever they want actually leads to them doing just that.

I've also heard of the other phenomenon you discuss - ordering the most expensive thing because they want to get the most bang for their buck - but I think that's less of an issue in some ways. Those same people likely order a lot more food than they really want on cruises, too, because they want their money's worth (which is okay, but not what I'd want to do).

Personally, I think the regular dining plan is a poor value. I think the deluxe dining plan can be a good value, depending on how it's used. But I can see situations where the benefit of the regular dining plan might not have anything to do with saving money, and I can see situations where the disadvantages of the deluxe dining plan could outweigh the potentially good value it presents.

[josh]

I guess you could just lie to Grandma and tell her everything is prepaid. Is that wrong? My head is too thick to figure out how "paying" with the Dining Plan is any more convenient than paying with a room card when you're going to have to split the check anyway. I guess I'm just too rational - I can't trick myself into thinking that the Dining Plan "makes sense" when I end up spending more money purchasing it than I would if I just paid cash. No matter whether I spend that money a month before I even leave on vacation or the day I check out. It doesn't really matter to me. I can understand wanting to get it paid for and out of the way though, but that's just not enough. You're going to be cringing at the bill sooner or later.

Deluxe Dining is a whole different can of worms entirely, but I can't really speak from experience because I've never done it. I don't have a lot of opportunities to buy the Dining Plan anyway for an extended amount of time. Maybe one of these days.

[vatmark]

I'm not crazy about the Dining Plan now that it costs so much. It was a "killer deal" originally with the appetizer and tip included, but the prospect of saving much money is basically lost now that it's like $46 a night. You can sort of rationalize the "convenience" of it, but really it's no more convenient than handing over your card and having them charge it to the room. But as others have said, whether or not it's "worth it" depends entirely on what you order.

It was a good deal back when you got appetizer and tip included. We did the dining plan on our 1st trip in 2005, 2nd trip in 2006, both with tip and appetizer. Our 3rd trip this past september we didn't get appetizer and tip included but we had the free dining for the 4 of us(2 kids being considered Disney adults). This trip in June we are off site and will not have the dining plan. I really don't think we will miss it. We have scheduled far less TS meals and it seems like it makes the trip flow better by not being restrained with ADR's we must have to use all the credits. Most of the time we would really rather have an appetizer and no dessert. Dessert with lunch and dinner just got to be too much.

Ann

[RoonieRoo]

I definitely thing that in ellie's case the dining plan is a bad idea. DH and I did the plan back when it included the gratuity and had appetizer and dessert. For even just the two of us THEN it did work out to saving us money. However we were down right ill from all the food as it was not how we normally eat. We split our appetizers and dessert. We haven't done the plan since around 2002. Now we get the best bang for our dining buck with TIW since we get AP's.

But even if we have a trip on a year that we don't do AP's, it is still more expensive to do the dining plan for just the two of us. I do agree that families with kids that are eating machines (like my sister's two teenagers) would definitely benefit from the dining plan. But it would be very hard for a two person couple like ellie and her boyfriend to come out ahead.

I think that those that want to have the "prepaid" sense for their meals and not worry about what is ordered should try the gift card method. Calculate out what you would pay for the dining plan + gratuity and buy a gift card for that amount. Then use that for the payments. Just tell your family that all meal payments go on this magic card to stop argument over who pays. I've read of families who have tried this experiment and it really opened their eyes to the true cost of the dining plan.

[USAgooner]

We don't like to overeat during lunchtime so my DW and I tend to split and the we can split 2 kids meals for 3 kids. Because of this we don't do the dining plan.

[4mickeyfreax]

I have been trying to ignore this thread for two days, but since it just won't go away, I feel I have to chime in.

Like others have said, during the initial years of the dining plan, it was a good deal. A great price for dinner that included apps, dessert and tip. Now, that apps and tip are gone, not such a great deal. However, I can see the convenience factor of having all of your vacay paid for in advance, and not having to worry about shelling out for food while you're there or getting the bill after the fact.

I'm pretty sure I'm in the minority here, but my biggest beef (Ha! Ha!:RpS_lol:) about the dining plan are the children's meals. IMO they suck! The variety is horrible, the quality is a disgrace, and I think Disney feels that they only have to satisfy the parents (cuz they're payin' for it) as far as food is concerned. I think they think they don't have to try hard to satisfy the kids, and they phone it in. Now mind you, I have "trained" my kids to eat what the family is eating. They get no "special" meals at home. If they don't like what's for dinner they have nothing. I think because of this practice, my children enjoy a wide variety of foods when we sit down for mealtime at home. My kids complained about the lack of food choices while on the Disney Dining Plan, and the crappy quality (well, they didn't say it like that). But they complained about the yucky burger being cold and cooked to the point it was similar to a hockey puck. The pizza that was like cardboard with sauce. Once they figured out that these items were crappy, they basically ate chicken nuggets for the rest of the week, and even that gets old for them.

There were many times that my kids were eating off of our adult dinners because their meals were so inferior. Now, back to the value of the dining plan. There is NO VALUE in purchasing the dining plan for a child that will not eat the children's meals. Why doesn't every Disney restaurant offer smaller portions off it's regular (adult) menu as selections for the kids? :frusty: There are few and far between restaurants that will offer one watered-down selection for the kids.

Our only way around this dining train wreck was to schedule all of our ADR's for buffet meals. This way, kids could eat whatever they wanted off buffet, and kids were much happier. The adults, however were not as happy about a week's worth of buffets.


OK, I'm off my soapbox:soapbox: (for now).

[blyday]

OK......first let me say.....I think that all of us are in agreement Ellie that the dining plan isn't the best option for you and your boyfriend.



I guess you could just lie to Grandma and tell her everything is prepaid. Is that wrong? My head is too thick to figure out how "paying" with the Dining Plan is any more convenient than paying with a room card when you're going to have to split the check anyway. I guess I'm just too rational - I can't trick myself into thinking that the Dining Plan "makes sense" when I end up spending more money purchasing it than I would if I just paid cash. No matter whether I spend that money a month before I even leave on vacation or the day I check out. It doesn't really matter to me. I can understand wanting to get it paid for and out of the way though, but that's just not enough. You're going to be cringing at the bill sooner or later.

I've thought about doing the "just lie to them" thing but first of all......I don't like lying.....ever!! and second of all......they are smart.....they would all figure it out at some point. Like when they are getting their CS meal from a different place then we are at and they see the receipt!!!! Or like when the waiter comes to the table and asks out loud, "Are you on a dining plan?" Yep......they would know we were lying....so not a good thing. And I also know my family. There is no way that Jason and Ethan would have been able to order the $30 meal at WCC if we were not on the plan. DSIL would have had a fit. Same thing with DDad who wouldn't have been able to order the food that he did because my mom would have spent the entire trip talking about how much of our money he was wasting. In fact, due to the way that DVC made you pay at the time of check-in she found out how much the first week of DDP was and she went on and on and on about how much we'd spent on food and that she could have spent far less, etc. She is horrible that way and I didn't want that. (Luckily.....it was my birthday trip and I finally told her that it was my trip, my b-day present, my money and she just needed to get over it. She stopped saying stuff to me but I know she thinks that we are horrible for paying for it.)

Oh and there is one other reason that I love the DDP for our family trips......I grew up in one of those families where we had to split meals. It was so bad that if we went to a place that charged for water, my mom would get soda and I'd be forced to share a soda which was horrible because I really hate carbonation. I will NOT let my nieces and nephews be forced into doing anything like that while they are at WDW with me. Giving them a card and being able to tell them that they can get whatever they want is a way of treating them. It isn't about the money.....it is about the freedom that it presents to them. Sure.....I could possibly save a few dollars but it is worth those few extra dollars to be able to let kids who I know are restricted normal to have free reign!!!

Edith brings up a whole different point that we really haven't had to deal with. We've only had one "child" with us at WDW (we prefer to take the littlest ones to DLR.....more compact!!!) He did well because he always had 9 other people who ordered meals who were always willing to share off of their plates!!

[joy4tigger]

I've done both the DDP and the DxDP on solo trips and I have decided that it is NOT for me any way shape or form. First off, I eat vegetarian and those meals tend to be cheaper but mostly I HATE having to be somewhere at a certain time if I don't feel like it. By paying OOP for my food as I go I can end up cancelling that ADR without having financial consequences. Plus I can choose to eat 2 appetizers as my main meal or whatever without worrying about it.

I'd recommend just paying as you go.

[lisapennie]

I think Edith's point about the craptasticness of the kid's options is valid. Granted, I've read enough threads over the years from parents of children who are no longer Disney kids who are complaining that their 12 year old won't eat anything weirder than chicken fingers, which certainly indicates that the kid's meals being problematic is relative to those families who either have forced their children to eat different foods or who have kids who are just adventurous eaters anyway. My kid brother would have thrived on the kids' meals, I would have been miserable.

I don't know, though, that the kids' meals being crappy has much to do with the dining plan, except that kids on the dining plan have to order those meals. I'm guessing Disney has done quite a bit of research, and for the majority of kids, the kids' meals work.

[josh]

Take this with a grain of salt, but I've been told that Disney doesn't offer smaller versions of the adult entrees for kids because they don't want to deal with adults ordering those smaller versions. I guess that makes sense. I would rather buy two $8 kids entrees (say a chicken parmigiana and shrimp alfredo) than a $24 shrimp alfredo off the adult menu. That's why you usually see some of the more interesting kids options at non-Disney owned restaurants.

[lisapennie]

That actually does make sense - and since Disney does not enforce an age restriction on who can order kids' meals, they might encounter that problem.

[4mickeyfreax]

I don't know, though, that the kids' meals being crappy has much to do with the dining plan, except that kids on the dining plan have to order those meals.

Lisa, the thread was asking about the relative value of the Dining Plan. My experience with kids meals indicated that it was not a value for our family.


There is NO VALUE in purchasing the dining plan for a child that will not eat the children's meals.


but I've been told that Disney doesn't offer smaller versions of the adult entrees for kids because they don't want to deal with adults ordering those smaller versions.

Yes, as disappointing as this is, I figured that it must not be "cost effective" for Disney to do this.

[ellie]

Thank you everyone so much for your comments/feedback! I really appreciate it.

I went and ran the numbers. I did pay alone (tip/6% tax for dinner, 6% tax for lunch/snacks, +food) vs meal plan (tip for dinner, +370 dining plan cost).

I used the allears.net pages to figure out what we would order paying ourselves. No dessert at lunch, soda for him at lunch + dinner, one $3 snack each per day, desserts at the non-buffet dinners for both.

The meal plan would save us $35.
If we split the 2 non-buffet desserts (we don't have dessert every day here... although
I could eat it! I was considering the Wishes Dessert Buffet) then only about $20 savings.
Dessert only at the 2 buffets, break even... and better for our waistlines.
Counter service instead of Les Chefs, cheaper to pay ourselves.

So I think I'm leaning toward pay ourselves. Like the idea of flexibility and eating more as normal
rather than stuffing ourselves.

I know I definitely did eat more (especially desserts) when I've done the plan.

[vatmark]

I think Edith's point about the craptasticness of the kid's options is valid. Granted, I've read enough threads over the years from parents of children who are no longer Disney kids who are complaining that their 12 year old won't eat anything weirder than chicken fingers, which certainly indicates that the kid's meals being problematic is relative to those families who either have forced their children to eat different foods or who have kids who are just adventurous eaters anyway. My kid brother would have thrived on the kids' meals, I would have been miserable.

I don't know, though, that the kids' meals being crappy has much to do with the dining plan, except that kids on the dining plan have to order those meals. I'm guessing Disney has done quite a bit of research, and for the majority of kids, the kids' meals work.


Craptasticness...:RpS_laugh:

Ann

[JW73]

Craptastic is the perfect descriptor! I have adventurous eaters. Almost nothing on the kids menus appeals to them, which was a big issue the one time we did the dining plan. My kids won't touch an Uncrustable or standard frozen chicken nuggets or cardboard pizza.

[jilly7896]

Craptastic is the perfect descriptor! I have adventurous eaters. Almost nothing on the kids menus appeals to them, which was a big issue the one time we did the dining plan. My kids won't touch an Uncrustable or standard frozen chicken nuggets or cardboard pizza.

That's funny. When we went in September, my 12 year old WANTED to eat on the kids menu! So, one of my younger ones would eat an adult meal and my 12 year old would eat from the kids menu. Hahaha. My 9 year old ate better than he ever did... steaks at every meal :)

[JW73]

Your 9 year old and my 10 year old would be perfect travel companions! That boy loves his steaks! :RpS_drool:

[Brandie]

When we went in September, my 12 year old WANTED to eat on the kids menu!

That is why the dining plan doesn't work for us. My "disney adult" children don't have the appetite or the taste for the items on the adult menu.

[Becky2011]

I(so dad is going to penny pinch if they're not on the plan, or grandma won't order anything but the chicken for fear of costing too much).

That's exactly how we ended up on the Premium plan last time. It was before they had the deluxe dining or that would have been perfect for us. Anyway -- basically he wanted to be able to just hand over the card and order whatever he wanted without worrying about the cost. Nearly every meal we had was over $200 when we went. That does NOT happen here at home -- the kids don't get desserts with every meal either.

I'm taking my mom this time and I'm so excited we got the free dining because she WOULD penny pinch and then some! This way she can't argue with us regarding costs, etc.... I'm sure she's going to :faint2: if she finds out how much a character buffet is for 5 Disney adults & 1 kid. Therefore, she doesn't need to know.

[ellie]

Back from our trip. We saved $100 by not doing the meal plan (after subtracting tips from total).
Total was $292.47 including tips at table service and $6 for two sodas at Cirque Nouba.
We brought our own cereal and bought milk/yogurt/bananas for breakfast. We split almost everything and mostly drank free ice water - I carried an empty water bottle for extra.
We loved the flexibility and getting to choose where/what we wanted for desserts/snacks.
Sci-Fi was kind enough to split the steak dinner onto two plates - we weren't very hungry
after the late snack Starring Rolls velvet cupcake.
'Ohana was the big splurge and well worth it with the included glass of white sangria (me) and cup of coffee (him).

5/2 8.73 UK Fish&Chips
5/2 3.47 France Bakery ham/cheese croissant
5/2 4.21 Glas Und Porzellan choc/caramel strawberry
5/2 5.30 Gasparilla's milk+yogurt

5/3 3.00 MK Nut Carts bananas
5/3 22.13 Pecos Bill's burgers with apple slices+coke
5/3 30.86 Plaza Restaurant sandwich+salad
5/3 5.73 Plaza Ice Cream Parlor 2 ice creams
5/3 8.27 Gasparilla's milk+bananas

5/4 20.02 Starring Rolls sandwiches
5/4 4.25 Starring Rolls cupcake
5/4 32.35 Sci Fi steak+coke

5/5 6.38 Kringla veggie/potato tart
5/5 9.05 Lotus Blossom fried rice/eggroll
5/5 2.12 Kringla school bread
5/5 5.50 Fried Ice Cream (had to pay cash, didn't get receipt.. perhaps there was tax added)
5/5 4.21 Glas Und Porzellan caramel
5/5 83.47 'Ohana
5/5 6.00 Cirque soda

5/6 4.87 Gasparilla's bananas+yogurt
5/6 22.55 Flame Tree BBQ pork sandwiches+onion rings

[josh]

Anything a major hit or miss? Are we going to be seeing some dining reviews?

[ellie]

I thought I'd do a post vacation post.
Major hit, 'Ohana.
Major miss, Lotus Blossom Fried Rice.
Major server problems, Plaza Restaurant. Brought wrong entree (we only had 2 items!) and 2 completely wrong checks, first for a party of 4 and second for two different entrees. And she wasn't fast about returning in between. But I really liked the location and food so I'd go back.
Sci-Fi wasn't great but we didn't spend much there and Ernie enjoyed the movie trailers but thought there were too many concession clips.
We loved Flame Tree, Pecos Bills, and Starring Rolls.