Reviews of Disney Dining Plan
Reviewed by elkhunter1 Review Date: 08/17/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
Our family of 3 have used the DDP on our visits in 2011 and 2013, and while it works for our family, I can definitely see where it won't for other families- it all depends on your appetite, your food and restaurant preferences, and if don't mind taking time away from the parks,especially at dinner time. To optimize the value, we order the most expensive entrees available that we like, along with the desserts, at dinner and we make our reservations at places we probably wouldn't eat at if we weren't on the dining plan [we always put Hollywood & Vine and the Crystal Palace on our to-do list because we love these buffets!]. We do the same at lunch time for our Q/S meals, but instead of having desserts most of the time we get extra bottles of water to take with us in the parks. We are coming back in 2014 and if we can't fit our trip around a free dining plan offer, we won't hesitate to use the plan again. A quick note on tipping from my perspective - I don't have an issue with a 18-20% tip for good service, and with 1 exception,we have had very good servers, and they have made our WDW trips even more enjoyable.
Pros:
ConvienceCons:
—Reviewed by Aquila163 Review Date: 08/15/2013
Rating: (3) Recommended
We got the dining plan for free in 2010. We had to make reservations months in advance to get a sit down restaurant every day of our trip. Then we had to be in the park where that reservation was every day. We used park hopper on two days to make meals. The amount of planning was nuts and I'm a disney planning nut. You must make the reservations well in advance because when they give out the dinning plan for free the table service reservations are used up by people that would otherwise go to counter service meals more. Last trip we ate what we really wanted for our ten day trip plus ate at Biergarten, House of Blues and Rain Forest plus all the counter service we felt like when we wanted to. The bottom line was we beat the counter service dining plan price by $75 and ate at three table service restaurants. It's not a money saver unless you normally eat ALOT and don't eat appetizers and do eat dessert. I'm sure many people eat more that DW and I do, it's not a money saver. If you can afford it, it is a convenience at best. Disney is so good at making money that international companies pay them for business training. They are not putting out the dinning plan if they don't financially benefit from it.
Pros:
Only if you eat alot anywayCons:
Unless you eat alot anyway is a looserReviewed by Hannah1230 Review Date: 08/07/2013
Rating: (7) Recommended
There are some good aspects to the DDP. We have used it for quite a few trips. Some complain of having to make some reservations so far out and you have to plan too much. I kind of find that fun. Planning park and restaurant visits so far ahead of time feels like the vacation lasts longer.
As others have said, however, it was a much better value when we could have an appetizer rather then dessert and when the tip was included.
We would much rather have a nice appetizer then a heavy sweet dessert....most times.
Our trip this November, we are not using the DDP. Instead, we are having a couple table service meals at a favorite restaurant and the rest will be at favorite QS places. I am really looking forward to this for a change. I still have my plans on what parks we will visit each day and the QS we will aim to that day, but this way we can change our mind at the last minute, if we want and we can have great appetizers if we want and no dessert just because we feel we have to eat it because we paid for it with the DDP.
The DDP has it's place but not for every visit.
Pros:
Lots of choicesCons:
too much dessertReviewed by sreynolds5 Review Date: 08/05/2013
Rating: (6) Not Recommended
We used to be big fans of the dining plan. But then, it used to be a better deal. We remember loving it when appetizers and gratuities were included w/table service meals and 2 snacks per day were offered. Sigh... Our biggest "hitches" with the current Dining Plan were the lack of more snack credits and the out of pocket expense of tips. Our teens love snacks in the parks, sometimes to the exclusion of a meal. One snack a day was not enough, yet we ended up with extra counter service meals at the end of our stay. The tips expense blew me away. Be aware that if you have 5 in your party and book a table service restaurant every day, each of those meal will come to app. $200 - $250. Disney invites you to leave 15,18, or 20% gratuities. We encountered a lot of wonderful service, but it hurt to leave $45 and $50 meal tips every day. (That is an expense we neglected to budget for.) After 9 trips to WDW, 5 utilizing the dining plan, we will probably not be using this option again. Our family would be better off eating at fewer table service restaurants and paying out of pocket for the food we'll really eat.
Pros:
ConvenientCons:
Tips not included, may not fit food/snack needsReviewed by plt964 Review Date: 08/04/2013
Rating: (5) Recommended
My husband, son (8) and I just completed an 8 day stay at Disney. We go almost every year and have used the dining plan for the past several years. Due to the change in our eating habits and the increased cost, this was most likely our last time using the plan.
We broke about even on cost. My husband is a vegetarian, that means that the meal choices that he makes are the lowest priced at the sit down dinners. Although we enjoy sit down dinners, we would have been fine with only 5-6 during the length of our stay. Sit down dining takes away from your time at the parks and pool. Also it was hot and we preferred lighter eating. There were times, that I would have preferred to have just ordered a salad and appetizer for an evening meal. Although the overall cost would be about the same, the swop is not allowed on the plan. We also did not always want a dessert at the quick service. We would have preferred more snack credits so that if we wanted a treat we could have enjoyed it later.
The dining plan could still be a bargain for some families. Look at your family's eating habits and do the math. If you have a lot of steak eaters, and will eat your sit down dinners in the evening, and enjoy all the desserts, money will be saved.
Anther note is that when my son turns 10, we would have to play the adult price. I do not see his eating habits changing that much that soon to make up for the added cost.
Pros:
conveniece, possible savingsCons:
lack of flexability, increased costReviewed by bellebookworm9 Review Date: 08/01/2013
Rating: (8) Recommended
I was able to purchase the dining plan for myself and two friends at a discounted cast member rate of $33.99/person/night for 6 nights.
There was a snafu with my room key, and somehow we ended up with an extra day of CS credits. We ended up going to Earl of Sandwich on our last day to buy 8 meals, and gave all the drinks away before going to the airport. In addition, we used many of our snack credits at the Main Street Confectionery and Goofy's Candy Co.
For our meals we had breakfasts at Boma and Akershus, as well as meals at Ohana, Raglan Road, Via Napoli, and 50s Prime Time Cafe and various counter service restaurants.
I paid $652 and we ended up eating over $1100 worth of food, including what we got with the extra credits. We also had some meals off of the plan. I do not think we would have eaten as many counter service meals without the plan, so while we technically saved nearly $500, it's not really a fair equivalent. We probably would not have purchased the refillable mugs on their own either.
While this was a good deal because in general the table service meals alone were more than $34 per person, I do wish there was some sort of a la carte version where you could pick and choose how many types of each meal you want.
Pros:
Saving moneyCons:
Probaby would not eat as much without the planReviewed by mawdryn Review Date: 07/09/2013
Rating: (10) Recommended
My family always does either this plan or the deluxe plan, because they are both such money savers. We have priced it out each time, tallied receipts and have found that we have saved hundreds of dollars by doing it this way.
It's also nice to have everything prepaid, and there's so many menu options to choose from.
This trip, we dined at: Olivia's, The Grand Floridian Cafe, Liberty Tree Tavern, Tutto Italia, the Lotus Blossom Cafe, the Captain's Grill and Landscape of Flavors. We had everything from NY strip to crab cakes and crab legs. Yummy!
The only negative to me is that the guest should be allowed to choose an appetizer or dessert. I always find that I'd rather have a starter with my meal instead of a sweet at the end.
Pros:
Saving Money!Cons:
—Reviewed by hello12345 Review Date: 06/04/2013
Rating: (5) Recommended
This is just Disney's way of getting you to stay in resort to eat. You really don't save much, if any money. You're basically are just paying for the food in advance. How many people get desserts with QS lunches if not on DP? Not getting desserts at QS lunches and cut out 1 or 2 snacks per person and you already save money over the DP. The DP is convenient, but it is nothing more than a Disney strategy to keep you on the resort when your stomach starts rumbling. I paid $582 for 4 days of DP. I calculated we got $680 worth of Disney food. That was counting in all the snacks and desserts at QS. I broke it down and eliminated those unused snacks we used at the end to get cookies and candy. We also had 6 unused counter service meals that we used on 5th day. It was nice to have them on our final day, but not necessary. After I made those adjustment we would have saved money. It's also not worth it if your kids are in the 10-13 range and do not eat like adults. Disney considers a 70 lb 10-year old an adult. If the DP is free then great. Having to pay for it is not worth it anymore.
Pros:
—Cons:
—Reviewed by fcoffey Review Date: 06/02/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
Was very easy to use. Didn't have to worry about how much things cost. Reservations were nice to use. Wouldn't go to Disney without the Dining Plan.
Pros:
Ample Food, Very ConvenientCons:
—Reviewed by Sydney Review Date: 05/07/2013
Rating: (9) Recommended
We've used the dining plan on our last four trips since 2006 and are using it again on our upcoming trip. This is a great value for myself, my husband, and our two boys, now ages 12 & 16. This site is an HUGE help in planning meals with all the menus listed. I can figure out what everyone will most likely get, how much it would cost, and we come out ahead using the plan. Sure, we could get by on the cheap, but on vacation we like to splurge a little. When we go to a buffet, we have to use four credits. But we've found at most places, we can split 2-3 meals between the four of us because the portions are large and dessert is included. That way, we also get to try more choices. On our upcoming trip, we're only coming out of pocket for lunch on the drive there and dinner on the way back. We're doing sit down meals at Big River Grille, Sci-Fi, Olivia's, Planet Hollywood, Tony's, Kona Cafe, Whispering Canyon Cafe, Boma, and Be Our Guest. Counter service meals will be at Fairfax Fare, Blizzard Beach, Pepper Market 3 times, Gasparilla Island Grill, Pecos Bill's, Yak & Yeti quick serve, and Earl of Sandwich. Snack credits will be used at Food & Wine Festival. We've also used snacks for breakfasts.
