Disney Dining

[Bill K]

Is there a DVC discount for the disney meal plan? Where can I go for some info? Is it cost effective on a 9 day vacation? We have used garden grocer in the past, have been satisfied with them but would it be better off with a meal plan?

 

[BCV23]

There is no DVC discount. The DDP is already quite a discount.

Many people have reported around 40% savings using the DDP. But every family dines at WDW differently and only you know what will suit your family. It works extremely well if having a counter service (or QS for Quick Service) and table service meal per night of your trip will fit your family's plans.

Some complain that it is too much food, but no one is obligated to order or consume all things possible with the plan.

Under the Restaurants forums, there is an entire subforum dedicated to the DDP. Lots of info there including two helpful stickies put together by two DVCers.

 

[DisneyFreaks]

The DDP doesn't really work for us so we purchased the DDE card because we had annual passes. It paid for itself after only a few meals. We won't be getting AP's again for awhile and we're really going to miss having that card. Does anyone think they will ever offer it to DVC members as well as AP holders and Florida residents? I think it would be a nice idea.

 

[JimMIA]

Is there a DVC discount for the disney meal plan?

No actual discount off the price. As BCV23 correctly noted, DDP itself is already quite a discount.

However, there are a couple of advantages that DVC owners get with DDP that noone else enjoys. One is, we do not have to buy park tickets or pay rack rate for our rooms to get DDP. The other advantage is we don't have to prepay for DDP. We have to add DDP to our ressie 3-5 days before arrival, but we don't actually pay for it until checkin.

The DDP doesn't really work for us so we purchased the DDE card because we had annual passes. It paid for itself after only a few meals. We won't be getting AP's again for awhile and we're really going to miss having that card. Does anyone think they will ever offer it to DVC members as well as AP holders and Florida residents? I think it would be a nice idea.

It WOULD be a nice DVC perk. If they change DDP as expected (no longer including the gratuity), we will no longer use DDP, but might buy the DDE card. I'm not sure on that -- I'd have to do the math, because we might not be eating onsite enough to warrant getting the DDE.

 

[Anthony1971]

My best advice is to look at your last bill from Dinsey and see how much you spent on dinning and if you eat at a TS every day..... We did purchase the DP and found it to be to much food after a few days... I would say if we were going for 3-4 days I would buy it again but for longer trips we would not... However it is a great deal

 

[starbox]

Is there a DVC discount for the disney meal plan? Where can I go for some info? Is it cost effective on a 9 day vacation? We have used garden grocer in the past, have been satisfied with them but would it be better off with a meal plan?

DDP is about the price my family would spend on one table service meal and one counter service meal each day. We would normally drink water, share a dessert, and forego appetizers. We would not eat desserts with lunch. We would normally eat TS and CS each day, so the DDP does not cost us more than we would budget for food. With the DDP we figure we get snacks for free, plus the added appetizers and desserts make it seem like we get more for the $$ we'd be spending without the plan.

BUT - if you've been happy with Garden Grocer and eating some meals in your room, you may find the DDP to cost more than you'd like to spend and require you to spend more time eating in the parks than you are used to.

 

[jfs9900]

What is DDE?

 

[grumpy.uncle]

Is there a DVC discount for the disney meal plan? Where can I go for some info? Is it cost effective on a 9 day vacation? We have used garden grocer in the past, have been satisfied with them but would it be better off with a meal plan?

I find that one of the big advantages to DVC is being able to rent a room w/ a full kitchen. I can't stand eating restaurant food non-stop during vacation. Love to fix my own breakfast in my room and enjoy it out on the boardwalk balcony at BWV. Saves money and so much time when I want to get out the door and head to a park for opening. I would not waste time on a restaurant breakfast unless I had no intention of doing parks that morning. We also love to take afternoon breaks back at our room. Since we started going to Disney (first DL before WDW), we have always done most meals in our room. In order for us to afford a nicer room, we forego most of the restaurant meals. We normally book a couple special meals out during our stay, but the majority of our meals are eaten in our room. My sister has even devised several simple meals and the grocery list to go w/ them. Our last family trip we bought all the groceries for a 2 week stay for 5 for around $400. When we eat at a TS at Disney we easily spend over $100 for one meal. One time my sister was appalled when they had gone to an IHOP across from DL for breakfast. The bill for 2 adults and 2 children was over $100, just for breakfast. On top of that, it wasn't very good. I believe that character meals and buffets tend to be worth the money, but I could not justify spending $200-300 per day on meals for a family. I would much rather spend that money on something else.