Calculator for costing meals (if dining plan good option or not)

[married2mm]

Is there an up to date (2019) pricing calculator available for me to play with?

Or is looking at menus and prices the most effective method?

Additionally; how much are character breakfasts at cape May & tusker house?
Do they cost the same?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[sharonabe]

Is there an up to date (2019) pricing calculator available for me to play with?

Or is looking at menus and prices the most effective method?

Additionally; how much are character breakfasts at cape May & tusker house?
Do they cost the same?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Unfortunately, the best calculator is the one on your phone. The online ones have not been updated to reflect alcohol or the raise in dining costs. I think the makers of them realized how difficult it was to keep up with Disney.

Here's the latest buffet costs I've seen anywhere, and this was last fall. It should at least be close:
https://www.easywdw.com/easy/blog/d...meals-shows-and-all-you-care-to-eat-platters/

 

[married2mm]

Unfortunately, the best calculator is the one on your phone. The online ones have not been updated to reflect alcohol or the raise in dining costs. I think the makers of them realized how difficult it was to keep up with Disney.

Here's the latest buffet costs I've seen anywhere, and this was last fall. It should at least be close:
https://www.easywdw.com/easy/blog/d...meals-shows-and-all-you-care-to-eat-platters/

Thanks very much.

 

[TheOneWithTheTriplets]

Unfortunately, the best calculator is the one on your phone. The online ones have not been updated to reflect alcohol or the raise in dining costs. I think the makers of them realized how difficult it was to keep up with Disney.

Here's the latest buffet costs I've seen anywhere, and this was last fall. It should at least be close:
https://www.easywdw.com/easy/blog/d...meals-shows-and-all-you-care-to-eat-platters/

I'd add $2-3 to each of these for a more realistic estimate. My meals in February/March were all close but slightly higher.

 

[Pumbaa_]

It’s almost as easy to just set up a spreadsheet and do the math yourself by looking at menus and estimating what you would most likely order.

Between the huge hike last October, the addition of alcohol options, the meal plans are more of a value these days

 

[Nancyg56]

I always use my own spreadsheet to determine which plan, if any, is the best option. I have a good idea what my family will actually order, so it's not too hard to calculate the approximate cost.

We use the snacks and usually find that for us, the average is $5 apiece so I add $10 per day per person, and I include $10 a day for beverages. Mine are more, I like wine and cocktails, but not all of us do, so if I average that amount any more we order is simply a bonus.

 

[Wildthing76!]

We have been down a few s years know and we always do dining plan 1 table , 1 quick and 2 snacks we are a family of 3 we cannot eat at Disney World for $75 a day it would work out to be way more .

 

[goofy4mykids]

This is the one I use... https://magicguides.com/disney-dining-plan-calculator/

 

[MarkinNM]

I like this one, data base is kept UTD and it suggests what to pay OOP if needed.....

https://www.distripplanner.com/

 

[sharonabe]

I like this one, data base is kept UTD and it suggests what to pay OOP if needed.....

https://www.distripplanner.com/

Looks like they finally updated for the price hikes last fall, but still don't include alcohol.

 

[ash-n-brensmom]

Looks like they finally updated for the price hikes last fall, but still don't include alcohol.

I just used this calculator and it said it would be cheaper for me to skip the plan. The difference was about $23. However, since it didn't include the cost of alcohol which I plan to get with each meal and either keep in my room for pool time (I have a couple breakfasts at the hotel and I will grab a beer then) or have with my lunch and dinner, I can see this being more of a wash. I don't know what I plan to do yet. I'm going to be on a solo trip in Oct and have lots (too much) of time to think about it. It may be more economical to just put the money I would use for the dining plan onto a Disney gift card and see what I have left. If there is any left over I can just go buy myself something. Win/Win...lol

 

[Darklord77]

Interesting. I used both calculators with the same picks and got a $250 difference over 7 days for 4 adults on the QS plan. Distripplaner says I save $210 by not getting the plan. Magicguides says I save $40 by getting the plan. My personal rough calculations have always been in line with the distripplaner model. Add in alcohol and I might get to the break even point.

 

[North of Mouse]

I just used this calculator and it said it would be cheaper for me to skip the plan. The difference was about $23. However, since it didn't include the cost of alcohol which I plan to get with each meal and either keep in my room for pool time (I have a couple breakfasts at the hotel and I will grab a beer then) or have with my lunch and dinner, I can see this being more of a wash. I don't know what I plan to do yet. I'm going to be on a solo trip in Oct and have lots (too much) of time to think about it. It may be more economical to just put the money I would use for the dining plan onto a Disney gift card and see what I have left. If there is any left over I can just go buy myself something. Win/Win...lol

Read on someone's trip report - don't remember who - that all alcoholic drinks must be opened when purchased with QS meal. That's their way of getting you to consume it at that time - not save it - not sure why.

 

[Pumbaa_]

This is why it’s worth the time to do your own spreadsheet. No averages, no wondering when was it last updated. It’s super easy to create and worth the time investment. If you decide not to get the plan you have a very strong budget on what you plan to spend

 

[Nancyg56]

Read on someone's trip report - don't remember who - that all alcoholic drinks must be opened when purchased with QS meal. That's their way of getting you to consume it at that time - not save it - not sure why.

This is not true. You can bring your unopened beverage back to your room. You cannot leave the parks with unopened alcohol.

This is why it’s worth the time to do your own spreadsheet. No averages, no wondering when was it last updated. It’s super easy to create and worth the time investment. If you decide not to get the plan you have a very strong budget on what you plan to spend

I agree. It takes a little time but you have a better idea what your will eat than a calculator that uses averages, and has no idea if you drink or not.

 

[North of Mouse]

This is not true. You can bring your unopened beverage back to your room. You cannot leave the parks with unopened alcohol.

No argument from me - this was not my experience as I don't drink. I don't know how to copy and paste, but looked up the poster I said had this experience. It's Lisa F on her dining review of Sunshine Seasons in Feb. '19 post #37 - 'The Picky Kid And Foodie Mom'. Your post seems contradictory, a little confusing!

 

[Nancyg56]

No argument from me - this was not my experience as I don't drink. I don't know how to copy and paste, but looked up the poster I said had this experience. It's Lisa F on her dining review of Sunshine Seasons in Feb. '19 post #37 - 'The Picky Kid And Foodie Mom'. Your post seems contradictory, a little confusing!
[/QUOTE
It is, I am sorry. You can bring resort CS beverages back to your room. You cannot take any alcoholic beverages purchased in the parks out of the park. We were allowed to leave the restaurant with an unopened beer, however at the gate we had to toss it when we left the park.

 

[siren0119]

The thing that turned me off from the calculators is that they really doesn't address the differences in how an individual eats. It would work for buffets and things with a flat adult/child charge but for any restaurant where we'd order off a menu - it was just too general to give me an accurate picture. I did the work with a spreadsheet, including what we'd REALLY eat and drink in a meal (literally scanned the online menus to see what my family members would most likely order) and then compared actual cost. For us, it turns out that DDP isn't really a good value, but I know there are plenty of people get their money's worth out of it (either in dining value or in peace of mind that all meals are prepaid). YMMV.

 

[Mazz519]

Last Dec when we went we kept track of all our purchasing while on the DDP. It seems that with the constant raising prices of this plan that it doesn't pay for us to get this anymore. our next trip in Sept we are not getting the DDP so we will see how we like that.......

 

[Christine]

Is there an up to date (2019) pricing calculator available for me to play with?

Or is looking at menus and prices the most effective method?

Additionally; how much are character breakfasts at cape May & tusker house?
Do they cost the same?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Hey I found the calculator I got from someone here last year. It was in my Google Docs. Here is the link for it:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_wUC0mZSCPIYlLkRWdkEBeN1MdyzYM3FA_qiEj0fAf4/edit?usp=sharing
I tried to make it public but not really working. If you can't open it from the link then you could probably PM me your email address and I can share it. It seems to let you calculate on the side what you'd pay out of pocket, the DDP plan details are in the middle, and there's a column on the side to list out what you actually got.

This one is not really filled out. The person who shared it last year scrubbed out most of their details but I think you can get the gist of it.