What's the Downside of DDP?

[Pumbaa_]

To me, the biggest downside is your money is committed. If you get sick, don't feel like eating, had enough desserts, just want an app and a salad, the meal doesn't work

It is also stressful and human nature wants you to get the best deal possible.

It has its place, it works for some and doesn't work for all

 

[Donna M]

In our situation the DDP does not work. There was way too much planning involved to make sure we got all the value out of it. The only time we felt is was worth it was when we stayed one night and got the Deluxe plan and went to a signature place. We changed resorts but got to use the mug all week.

For the people who like the idea of prepaying, I would think loading up a gift card with what you think you will need for the week, and then using the card each time you eat would work just as well. If there is money left over, it's yours, or you don't have to feel like you're losing money if you don't buy all the snacks. Just save the card for the next trip.

 

[Sepo]

We used to do DDP and DxDDP and stopped for the last 4 trips as a 5-person family when the two oldest kids became "adults" by their rules. It does not save money for all the reasons folks have posted.

Ironically, I am doing DDP for the first time in many years for an upcoming 2 person trip w my 8 yr old precisely bc I want to treat ourselves and remove the temptation to skip TS to save money. Forced "being on vacation", in effect. The all-inclusive feel, admittedly artificial.

 

[vinotinto]

We have done trips with the DDP, DXDP, and OOP, depending on what fitted the trip the best, and I will say the comments on this thread are spot on.

The biggest disadvantage is if someone in your party gets sick and credits go unused. You are prepaying and there is no reimbursement if someone can't use their credits.

Those with kids 3-9 planning to do prix fixe/character buffets will find the most value on the plan, especially on the DXDP. The cost of the plan for kids is marginally more than fixed price meals. Once the kids move into the "Disney Junior" Phase, it's much more difficult to get value out of the plan.

If you plan to do a lot of Signature dining, the DXDP is a good value and a way to truly treat yourself without looking at the prices. There is an intangible value in that, which is why the dining plans are popular even when they may not save any money.

Regarding the intangibles that could sway you against the dining plans:

1. Category 1 is not available for most shows using dining plan credits.

2. I find paying with credits a tad confusing. They always bring me out the entire bill, with a tip line. I put the tip in. Then, they come back with a receipt that zeroes out anything covered by dining credits and includes all the room charges (any alcohol, any appetizers, and the tip room charge) for me to sign. This receipt ALSO has a tip line. Very confusing.

3. You are somewhat limited on choices under DDP. I've never ran into an entree not being included, but I have run into the situation where an appetizer is more interesting than the entrees. But, because of reimbursement issues, you usually cannot sub an appetizer for an entree. Side dishes listed separately are also not included. If you wanted to order an appetizer and a side as your meal, that would not be covered under the dining plan. Vegetarians also will get less value out of the plan as the veggie option is usually the least expensive, usually even less than chicken!

4. Factor in the cost of tips for TS. They do add up, especially doing Signatures on DXDP. We've had tips that have been larger than a full light meal OOP.

5. My family has gotten better about eating QS, but for a while none of us were interested in eating QS meals daily. The DDP would not be a good fit for that, as you want to use all your credits.

I hope that helps!

 

[djc9699]

I have the free dining for 13 days from 17 - 30 Dec. We always get 10 day hoppers so no extra there and we stay value so no better deal. I've checked and ran all numbers since they announced fall discounts. I upgraded to the regular dining plan for $600 for me and my daughter. I am going to add $900 to upgrade to the deluxe because we are going at a very busy time and will do 2 table service meals a day instead of waiting forever in counter serve lines. We are doing HDD, the Candlelight Processional dining (twice - wanted to see Trace Atkins and NPH), and trying some restaurants we haven't tried before. My daughter loves steak and will use at least 2 snacks a day (Starbucks nut). She also always has dessert and I like one every once in a while. We both drink soda with our meals. We probably won't maximize the plan because we will probably share one appetizer instead of each getting one at some meals. We have always wanted to try escargot, but would not spend $12 to try it, but will since it is part of the plan. I don't drink alcohol so that is not a factor for me. I did the math and based on where and what we will eat, we will be paying almost $800 less with the plan and that doesn't include some quick serve we may add or pizza we may order in. Of course, we started with free quick serve. I would not purchase this if we were going at a slower time and part of it was not already paid. It would cost us $1200 more without the free part. We do normally buy the regular plan and we do save money with that. We liked to eat on vacation as we never really eat out in the real world.

Just do the math. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't. We enjoy the freedom to order what we want without worrying about the price and my daughter can get a snack when she wants without me trying to save money. If someone doesn't feel well or doesn't use a credit, we can always find a family to purchase a meal for. Maybe not the best use, but it would make someone else happy if we paid for a quick serve meal or bought some snacks for some kids. We did that once at Magic Kingdom when a family had three kids and were going to buy one ice cream sundae for the all to share. We asked if we could use our snack credits to buy an ice cream for each of their children. The kids were able to get what they wanted without having to share. They were very happy and that is the best memory and most fun of all.

 

[HappyGrape]

It is also stressful and human nature wants you to get the best deal possible.

I felt for this the first trip and didn't enjoy it as much. I decided not to second time and it was much better experience. But we always get it if it's on offer, if not we will prefer paying OOP due to flexibility

 

[nursejackie]

IMHO the quality of the food has gone down since they introduced the dining plan. We have definitely noticed a difference, which is a down side for everyone. However we don't participate for the following reasons:

1. Encourages gluttony - we don't always need a full meal, and snacks, sometimes one or the other is enough.
2. Restricts choice - we want to eat, what we fancy and when/where we want, we don't want to be restricted by the dining plan participation.
3. Cost - we visit at Christmas so the DDP is never free at this time of year.

 

[disneychic2]

Many years ago, the very first time they offered free dining, we took advantage. Back then you got an appetizer as well as dessert and gratuity was included!! Those were the days! Every year but a couple since then we've gone when there was free dining. Now to me that's a no brainer. It's just DH and I and we enjoy table service meals. We split breakfast and lunch and then both get the TS. We usually have all of our snack credits left, so we get treats to take home to the neighbors and grandkids. We paid for dining twice and it was b/c of where we wanted to eat. We've done the math and it works for our way of doing things. Since it's just two of us, it is easy to keep track of credits left. If there is any question about that, all you have to do is look on your receipt and it tells you. You do have to check each receipt as you get it to make sure they charged you correctly.

When we go in two days we will not have the dp. When we go in April we won't have the dining plan. We decide each trip what is best for us because it varies. I think you should do what your gut is telling you to do. Everyone is different, trips can differ. As far as cost, we've done a lot of research and for us it's worth it most of the time. But then again, it's free most of the time.

Good luck in deciding. I hope you have a magical time!

 

[dmea10]

never do disney without the dining plan - you pay way more oop if you don't

(disclaimer - we LOVE the dinning plan and never do disney without it)

I don't think this is the case with everyone. Some people get their moneys worth but other find it is just way too much food. We have the standard dining plan. I think we will get our moneys worth because we are doing lots of character meals and one signature restaurant. That is not the case with everyone.

 

[AprilDreamsOfDisney]

Price has been mentioned as a downside to the DDP plan. Under-utilization of the plan (passing on desserts, not ordering the most expensive entrée) is also mentioned. I understand these things, but are they the only aspects to consider when purchasing a DDP? Is everything else the same between DDP and cash?

Is DDP harder to use, has separate reservation lines, easier to checkout, has fewer menu items (pre-menus?), gets preferred seating, or show seating? I presume ADRs are not affected by DDP. I want to say "no" to the DDP plans, but they seem as flexible and easy to use as cash.

I don't care about getting savings on dining, or overspending on DDP. I want the best, easiest to use procedure for dining. We plan to do several TS at Epcot's World Showcase, but also are small portion eaters. We will also be doing character meals and CRT and BOG.

I truly believe using the dining plan is easiest. It's paid before you go, so there's no wondering if you should order/eat something or not. You use your magic band for everything, so no need to budget or carry cash.
If you're doing character meals, it is 100% worth it to go on dining plan.

I have always gone with a dining plan and am planning to go in March for the FIRST TIME without one, simply because my 10 year old son will cost the adult price and will only eat a child's amount. First time without a dining plan and I'm not looking forward to it!

 

[GillianP1301]

We have used the deluxe dining plan the last 3 trips and have loved it (we book during free dining and upgrade). With a child under 10, it is very easy to get great value out of the deluxe plan.

My DS is now 10 and I am very seriously considering doing an OOP trip. To answer the original question, I think OOP could be the "least stressful" option. That way, if you only want an app, just order an app or if you want to skip dessert, you can skip it. You can still do that on the plan, but that decreases the value quickly. I can also foresee us taking advantage of more great snack options that we tend to forego on the deluxe dining because of all the apps and desserts filling us up during meals. I still plan to do just as many TS restaurants (we do 2 - 3 a day), but I can see how/what we order changing a bit.

I will add, that we do have flexibility with budget, so I won't be counting every dollar at every meal and that certainly helps with lowering the stress of going OOP. I think if you are on a tight/fixed budget and/or you don't want to count dollars at every meal, then the dining plan brings a lot of benefit there.

 

[alltwelve]

We recently added the DxDP to our upcoming trip because we had both Hoop Dee Doo and the California Grill brunch booked as part of our trip. Since the combined total of both of these comes to about $300 for our party of 2, we figured for about $100 more we could add the DxDP, which we could then use to cover the other 2 meals we had planned (Boma and 'Ohana) and save about $87, with the additional snacks and refillable mugs as just included bonuses.

However, if we had went with the regular DDP, we would've lost money on the deal. We actually did an Excel spreadsheet and did a cost breakdown, which I know some people would see as over planning, but after reviewing the spreadsheet, it just made sense to us to add the DxDP (we plan on charging gratuities to the room, which we've also already planned out- again, over planning for some). However, as others have mentioned, if either of us gets sick, then we've wasted $400, because one of us isn't going to go without the other, in which case I guess we would have to use our credits for room service instead. Hopefully it doesn't come to that, and if it does, let's hope the rooms at the Contemporary have a good room service menu!

 

[NYCgrrl]

"
Is DDP harder to use, has separate reservation lines, easier to checkout, has fewer menu items (pre-menus?), gets preferred seating, or show seating? I presume ADRs are not affected by DDP. I want to say "no" to the DDP plans, but they seem as flexible and easy to use as cash.

I don't care about getting savings on dining, or overspending on DDP. I want the best, easiest to use procedure for dining. We plan to do several TS at Epcot's World Showcase, but also are small portion eaters. We will also be doing character meals and CRT and BOG."

DDP isn't harder to use from my sight...it's much like a credit card substituting your magic band. You get no further benefit as far as separate ressie lines, easier checkout (still same as a credit card), or ADR preference.

 

[Kenzientysmom]

The downside for us is that it is way too much food. We just got back from an 11 night stay and had over 30 snacks left (we ended up bringing a big bag of candy and treats home that we would have never bought if we were not on the DDP). Never again.

 

[NYCgrrl]

The downside for us is that it is way too much food. We just got back from an 11 night stay and had over 30 snacks left (we ended up bringing a big bag of candy and treats home that we would have never bought if we were not on the DDP). Never again.

I've thought about the snacks and possibly losing those points but it's not really a big deal to us. We are booked also for 11 days but on the DDxP with the idea of eating predominately at signature restaurants. On paper this is working well for us but only time will tell.

 

[hisgal2]

Obviously, the answer to your question is going to be different for everyone. For our family, there is no downside to the DDP. For starters, we are still new to Disney. We've only been there once, so there is absolutely ZERO chance of boredom or monotony for us. That, combined with my type A personality and the need to plan our meals, and the DDP is a total win for us.

When we were planning our first trip, I really thought hard about the DDP. To make sure we would be "getting our money's worth", I looked through all of the restaurants and decided where we would most likely be getting ADRs. Then, I looked at the menus and figured out what meals we'd most likely get. I didn't just look at the most expensive because that's not really how we roll for stuff like that. I added everything up for our 10 day stay and compared the total with the price we would pay for the DDP. I had come within $50 of the DDP....and that was without factoring in the snacks.

I know some people don't like the DDP because of having to choose when they'll use their counter service meal.......do you use it for breakfast???.....or for lunch??...or do you use a table service for lunch and then use the counter service for a lighter dinner??...... For us, we wanted to get into the parks right at opening each day. So, I took instant oatmeal with us (in our suitcase) and we used the coffee maker in our room to make the hot water needed for the oatmeal. We had our routine figured out by the second day. The kids got up and got dressed while I made their oatmeals and then while they ate I made our hot water and got dressed. We were up and out the door in 45 minutes.

I used our table service meals as a time to rest and recharge each day. We never rushed and never bothered to look at he prices on the menu. That, right there, was the biggest pro for us. For us, having everything already paid for and just being able to pick whatever we felt like was totally worth the money. Now, I will say that we had 28 snack credits left the night before we left. I used those credits to by cookies (meh) and rice crispies treats (yum!!!) to take home for that post Disney Blues period you go through when you go home. We used some of those as souvenirs for friends and the LOVED them.

This time around, I'll still go through and do all the math like I did last time to see how the numbers play out. My kids will both be older than 10 this time, but I don't think we'll have an issue with hitting the numbers because my kids don't usually request "kids meals" type of meals. They'd prefer "real" food like steak, seafood, etc. We'll most likely ask them to try new things that we cannot get in restaurants where we live.

As far as not being able to eat your desserts........it was not uncommon for my kids to only eat half of their meals so they could eat the dessert (we were ok with that because we'd just get a box to take the remaining food to the resort to snack on our rest days AND we don't do desserts on a normal basis, so it was something special on our special trip) OR, we had the desserts boxed up to eat later in the evening. We did the second thing more often than the first and because of that, we didn't use the snack credits as much, but you already know how we handled the extra snack credits.

So, the answer to your question really does depend on how you family eats and how you handle things like that. If you aren't going to care if you don't get your money's worth and you have the ability to completely ignore the prices on the menu, then it's a great thing.

Oh....for what it's worth.... I saved every single receipt from meals on that trip and once we got home, I added everything up. Because we bought the DDP, we ended up saving about $300. Obviously, that won't be the same for everyone.

 

[KennesawNemo]

We have 5 days DxDP for our upcoming trip.


I was bored one day so I looked up menus for all the restaurants we are going to eat at and planned what dishes to order.


I then did the below calculations for using dinning plan assuming that we do two meals a day with some signature restaurants. This reflects food cost only, no tip.


With DxDP, we planned some sharing whereas we would be only using 2-3 credits per meal:

Total Plan Cost $1,793.95

Total Food Cost $2,162.07

Total Drink Cost $180.00 (Assuming $3 per drink, I may underestimate a little bit)

Total Snack Cost $190.00 (Assuming $4.75 per snack)

Total Savings $738.12


I then planned below cost assuming we have no dinning plan and will be paying out of pocket for the same restaurants:

Total Plan Cost $1,793.95

Total Food Cost $ 1526.1 (The biggest difference here is I assume we will mostly order no or at most two appetizer/dessert for every meal)

Total Drink Cost $90.00 ($3 per drink, we don’t usually order drink when eating out, but I will allow some juice/soda when on vacation)

Total Snack Cost $95.0 ($4.75 per snack, half of what we will spend with DxDP)

Total Savings -$82.25 (We will not break even using the plan)


So, I think both work for us. We are fortunate enough to have some budget to splurge on this trip where we will eat what we want, buy lots of snacks/drinks, also possibly bring back souvenir snacks. But if we can’t afford the plan, we can still eat at the restaurants we want to try and save money. If we cut some of the table services to quick services and count tips, I will be able to save more.