How to Manage Without the DDP for the First Time Ever

[Garyjames220]

Unless you both drink alcohol at every single meal, the odds that you're going to come out worse off are very slim.

Take however much the DDP would have cost, stick that on a gift card, and order whatever you want like you normally would. I think you'll be surprised at how much you end up with.

you can you just go down every few days and settle the bill with the gift cards

 

[CaptainAmerica]

you can you just go down every few days and settle the bill with the gift cards

I've had bad luck with that in the past. There are certain dollar thresholds, as well as certain length-of-stay thresholds, where Disney will run your card without warning.

 

[Garyjames220]

I've had bad luck with that in the past. There are certain dollar thresholds, as well as certain length-of-stay thresholds, where Disney will run your card without warning.

can the put the gift cards on at the start so your in credit

 

[karen4546]

can the put the gift cards on at the start so your in credit

no

 

[karen4546]

OP, do like the others have suggested and put whatever the QS dining plan was going to cost you on a giftcard. Now, if you book a sit down meal that is going to eat into your money, so if you are going to do that, put the dining plan cost on a gift card (include the cost of the refillable mug also)

My husband and I do this and we like the flexibility much better. We share a lot of meals because who wants to get weighed down with heavy food while on vacation-especially if it is hot?

Also, we tend to go when there is a festival going on and in addition to the dining plan $$ on the GC we add a couple of hundred extra for the booth drinks.

So, the total for us is around $120/adult/day.

We have always come home with money leftover that we just roll into the next trip. We pay with the gift cards so that we don't have to go to the desk to put them on the account each night.

 

[JAMIESMITH]

You can't do that anymore, unless it's a short trip. Disney charges your credit card every 5 days.

I did not know that. It's obviously been a while since we've visited WDW.

 

[Disneylover99]

But that is exactly what the DDP allowed me to relax and do: Drink an alcoholic drink at every meal. And It. Was. Awesome. I had three trips to DLR/WDW of 10-16 days when alcohol was not included and had ZERO alcohol on those trips except one mini bottle of prosecco we bought elsewhere in Anaheim because DLR is just different and easier in some ways. I loved being free and relaxed and getting a drink at each and every meal. Now, it will be painful. I don't do bars or order alcohol at restaurants at home, either, for the same sticker shock. So my Jan 2020 trip with DDP was such a *vacation* because of that freedom.
The DDP is a bargain for people who have alcohol at every meal-esp if the drink is not beer.
Yes, I've been through menus, added stuff up, and have to decide to give up some drinks or face the fact that my food budget would be 40% alcohol. (50% of meals, but thanks to some snacks, more like 40% overall.)

Change the way you drink on vacation if the sticker price for alcohol at meals is too painful. Buy a couple of bottles (of your favourites) from the liquor store and drink around the pool, make mimosas at breakfast, have a nightcap before bed.

Be creative. Have fun! Save money.

 

[snikki]

I’m with others that say put what the DDP will cost and put it on a gift card.

We did the DDP when the kids were under 9. 2008-2011. Back when we would pay under 3k for a moderate hotel, 7 day tickets and the regular DDP (free dining/4-3 deals). We did tons of character meals back then. Usually 5-6 a trip. We made out well.

Since then we don’t get the plan. We like to do lounges now and you can’t use the plan. We also like to just eat around the world or order apps for meals. My daughter is also a filet and charcuterie board person so we order what we want and we’ve never gone over what the DDP would’ve cost and I feel like we did way better.

I have always just charged it to my card and paid it off. Next trip I may try out the gift card thing and pay for all food with that particular gift card and see how I do.

 

[TigerlilyAJ]

...until they're 10 years old, at which point they're a "Disney Adult" and paying for alcohol for every single meal, which is a heck of a lot more expensive than buying a Buzz Lightyear Fruit Punch with cash.


The dining plan isn't going to be available to you. That's just a fact. Given that fact, my goal was to put your mind at ease and say "it's not that bad, you might even come out ahead." Defending the DDP to the death in your thread soliciting advice on how to tour without the DDP isn't going to do anything to give yourself peace of mind.

Yes, I mentioned that the pricing means different things for different ages. This upcoming trip is just two full adults (meaning over 21yo), so those issues don't matter.
I guess my original post should have made clearer that I was looking for thoughts and strategies from people who haven't just merely used the DDP at some point in the past, but people who, like me, would be using on their next trip if possible. Telling me "DDP sucks! You're better off without it!" when I clearly do not feel that way and can show the math on, say, a meal plan at DHS at Woody's and DB7, both with alcoholic drinks, and a blue bantha "milk" snack, that I'm not coming out ahead by going OOP, is definitely not providing peace of mind, either.

Yes, I'm going the gift-card route. Yes, I'll probably change my eating (drinking) patterns to save money. Longview, it will all be fine, and the dining highlight for my friend, around whom the entire trip is crafted, will almost certainly be Oga's, which is always OOP.
Thanks to those who shared how you've adapted to not having the DDP as a choice.

 

[snikki]

Yes, I mentioned that the pricing means different things for different ages. This upcoming trip is just two full adults (meaning over 21yo), so those issues don't matter.
I guess my original post should have made clearer that I was looking for thoughts and strategies from people who haven't just merely used the DDP at some point in the past, but people who, like me, would be using on their next trip if possible. Telling me "DDP sucks! You're better off without it!" when I clearly do not feel that way and can show the math on, say, a meal plan at DHS at Woody's and DB7, both with alcoholic drinks, and a blue bantha "milk" snack, that I'm not coming out ahead by going OOP, is definitely not providing peace of mind, either.

Yes, I'm going the gift-card route. Yes, I'll probably change my eating (drinking) patterns to save money. Longview, it will all be fine, and the dining highlight for my friend, around whom the entire trip is crafted, will almost certainly be Oga's, which is always OOP.
Thanks to those who shared how you've adapted to not having the DDP as a choice.

The first time we went without the DDP was because we had a magical deal that didn’t allow adding the DDP. I was nervous about it but it worked out for us. Now I won’t pay to add it.

 

[roctavia]

Yes, I mentioned that the pricing means different things for different ages. This upcoming trip is just two full adults (meaning over 21yo), so those issues don't matter.
I guess my original post should have made clearer that I was looking for thoughts and strategies from people who haven't just merely used the DDP at some point in the past, but people who, like me, would be using on their next trip if possible. Telling me "DDP sucks! You're better off without it!" when I clearly do not feel that way and can show the math on, say, a meal plan at DHS at Woody's and DB7, both with alcoholic drinks, and a blue bantha "milk" snack, that I'm not coming out ahead by going OOP, is definitely not providing peace of mind, either.

Yes, I'm going the gift-card route. Yes, I'll probably change my eating (drinking) patterns to save money. Longview, it will all be fine, and the dining highlight for my friend, around whom the entire trip is crafted, will almost certainly be Oga's, which is always OOP.
Thanks to those who shared how you've adapted to not having the DDP as a choice.

The one thing that is making me less sad about not having the dining plan is things like Oga's and finding more things that I would actually want to try and didn't before because they weren't part of the plan. I'm also looking forward to being able to pick appetizers if they sound better than the entrees, or sharing a meal and eating at more places since we're just getting more snacks. Not having to worry if something was actually a snack credit or not

 

[Baldy]

This past summer was our first non-DDP trip. We were there 8 days. Like you, we have a hard time ordering “expensive” food/snacks/drinks unless it’s pre-paid. I think we saved money in the end, but we were much more aware of how much money we were spending. (We are still DDP people. We like the all inclusive feel and pre-paid aspect.)

Here is how we did it this time.
- We used Disney gift cards that we purchased ahead of time to pay for all of our meals.
- We looked up menus of any “must-do restaurants” and priced out what we would have bought if we didn’t have to worry about cost. We put that amount on a specific gift card. That way on the day of we were less focused on the money amount.
- We pre-planned and priced out specific “splurge moments” that we scheduled into our trip. (If I didn’t have an exact drink/snack in mind, I priced out the most expensive option that we might want at that location- that way we never went over our budget and I could just had over our gift card).
- We did a few buffet/prix-fixe meals so that we didn’t have to think about individual prices. *There are a few that are more reasonably priced.
- Other than our must-do list and splurges, we purposely ate mostly at lounges or ordered appetizers as our meals (It still felt special because it’s something we would not be able to do on the DDP and there are great options.)
We did still sometimes end up sharing or choosing cheaper options than we otherwise would have, but we discovered some places we never would have tried otherwise. I highly recommend trying out the various hotel lounges. I think those were my favourite meals of the trip.

I hope this helps. Have a great trip!

Also,
- If you like the non-Disney owned restaurants, you can sometimes get discounted gift cards or groupons. That way you still feel like you’re saving money.
- If your Disney trip is booked as a package (hotel+tickets), this will include some restaurant discounts.

 

[snikki]

The one thing that is making me less sad about not having the dining plan is things like Oga's and finding more things that I would actually want to try and didn't before because they weren't part of the plan. I'm also looking forward to being able to pick appetizers if they sound better than the entrees, or sharing a meal and eating at more places since we're just getting more snacks. Not having to worry if something was actually a snack credit or not

Very true. We never tried lounges or many apps because they weren’t part of the DDP.

Now I’m not against the DDP either. If they offered it for “free”I would take it over a room discount since we can’t feed ourselves on what a room discount would come out to.

 

[DJFan88]

I’m not sure I understand this whole put it on a gift card thing.
Why not just make sure you put the cash in your bank account if your going to spend the money anyway to put it on a gift card and then you at least own that money. Then just use your credit card and since you have the money, pay the card when the bill comes in. No interest if paid that month. If Disney Visa even more so. I just don’t understand the go pay at the desk with GCs theory. If you have the money to buy the GCs whynot just leave it in your bank and pay the CC bill that month instead?

 

[KrzyKtty101]

I’m not sure I understand this whole put it on a gift card thing.
Why not just make sure you put the cash in your bank account if your going to spend the money anyway to put it on a gift card and then you at least own that money. Then just use your credit card and since you have the money, pay the card when the bill comes in. No interest if paid that month. If Disney Visa even more so. I just don’t understand the go pay at the desk with GCs theory. If you have the money to buy the GCs whynot just leave it in your bank and pay the CC bill that month instead?

I think because certain places, like Target with the Red Card, or Bj's with the membership, you can get a Disney gift card for anywhere from 3 to 5% below market. So for example, by paying for my upcoming Disney trip in gift cards, I'm saving close to $700 in total. Depending on how much you might be spending on food, you can get a substantial savings by buying Disney gift cards at the 3 to 5% off.

 

[roctavia]

I think because certain places, like Target with the Red Card, or Bj's with the membership, you can get a Disney gift card for anywhere from 3 to 5% below market. So for example, by paying for my upcoming Disney trip in gift cards, I'm saving close to $700 in total. Depending on how much you might be spending on food, you can get a substantial savings by buying Disney gift cards at the 3 to 5% off.

Yes, this is why we use the disney gift card. The 5% off from target is better than our credit cards 'cash back' rate, so it saves us at least a little...

 

[DJFan88]

I think because certain places, like Target with the Red Card, or Bj's with the membership, you can get a Disney gift card for anywhere from 3 to 5% below market. So for example, by paying for my upcoming Disney trip in gift cards, I'm saving close to $700 in total. Depending on how much you might be spending on food, you can get a substantial savings by buying Disney gift cards at the 3 to 5% off.

Ahhhh…. Ok I get it !

 

[romanr27]

If your Disney trip is booked as a package (hotel+tickets), this will include some restaurant discounts.

I hadn't heard this before. Do many restaurants give discounts to on-site guests with packages?

 

[Baldy]

I hadn't heard this before. Do many restaurants give discounts to on-site guests with packages?

To be honest we’ve never used them but here’s the link to the Disney website page. They’re called “Magical Extras”. It’s mostly for Disneys Springs, but it includes some dining discounts, some merchandise discounts and a free round of mini golf.

https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/en_CA/guest-services/vacation-package-magical-extras/
If anyone here has used the discount, I’d love to hear more about how it worked for you.

 

[Baldy]

I’m not sure I understand this whole put it on a gift card thing.
Why not just make sure you put the cash in your bank account if your going to spend the money anyway to put it on a gift card and then you at least own that money. Then just use your credit card and since you have the money, pay the card when the bill comes in. No interest if paid that month. If Disney Visa even more so. I just don’t understand the go pay at the desk with GCs theory. If you have the money to buy the GCs whynot just leave it in your bank and pay the CC bill that month instead?

For us, the main advantage of the gift card is to pre-pay so we have less to pay off during and after our trip. Also, being from Canada, we can buy them in Canadian funds before we go and avoid foreign currency transaction fees on our credit cards.