Opinions on what I did wrong...

BTV

Earning My Ears
Joined
Jan 29, 2018
Seems like there's a lot of knowledge on this board, thought I would try to find a place to throw this question out...

We just got back from our first ever trip to Disney World. 10 days, and we bought the dining plan. We used a travel agent who assured us the dining plan was the way to go and was the best value. We informed her that we aren't big on desserts and really didn't want to be eating junk food, she reiterated that the dining plan was still the way to go. We stated that none of us drink alcohol (2 adults 1 child on the trip), and we mainly drink water. Our son only drinks water or milk, so it seemed between the alcohol allowance and the re-fillable resort mugs, we might be paying for a ton of things we will never use. She assured us the mugs were "worth their weight in gold."

The trip is now over and I can report that we brought 3 brand new mugs back with us in our luggage. Never filled any of them with anything. We used Amazon Prime groceries to deliver 3 cases of water to our room and for the low cost of $24 we had 105 bottles of spring water. The dining plan included desserts at all the table service meals which we declined, and it took me until the mid point of the trip before I found a place where I could use my snack credits for things like vegetables and couscous. I don't feel like the travel agent was listening, instead trying to sell me on Dole Whips and funnel cakes...neither of which I ever tried.

However, looking at the insane cost of food on the menu, it is possible the dining plan was still the way to go...although I think I could have come out of it cheaper. The mugs, desserts, and alcohol allowance were a non factor for us, yet seem to be the three biggest selling points, leading me to believe I could have been better off without the plan.

Anyway, as I said there appear to be a ton of Disney experts here so I wanted to get some post trip feedback if anyone has any thoughts on the dining plan and how it may have worked better for us. Thanks!
 
I would say the dining plan probably isn't a good fit for your family and there's nothing wrong with that...live and learn.

I use this calculator when trying to decide if I should get it for a particular trip. You enter your trip dates and where you will be eating each day. It calculates the average cost of a meal there and gives you two totals: how much the dining plan would cost and how much you would pay out of pocket.

I like how there is also a spot to put in your family's preferences if you were paying out of pocket (ie: we would buy 2 mugs but not 4, we split 1 or 2 desserts per table rather than 1 per person). It takes all that into consideration when bringing up the out of pocket total. For us it has always come out cheaper to get the dining plan, but we have young kids so do a lot of character meals/buffets.

http://www.distripplanner.com/
 
I HATE that you were pressured into getting something that wasn't a good fit for you.

I've always come out ahead, but we have 5 kids, so that helps. Also, should you get it again, there is a thread on here with the confirmed snacks for 2017. You'll be surprised by how much variety is on it.
 


I use this calculator when trying to decide if I should get it for a particular trip. You enter your trip dates and where you will be eating each day. It calculates the average cost of a meal there and gives you two totals: how much the dining plan would cost and how much you would pay out of pocket.

http://www.distripplanner.com/
What a great tip...thanks Minniemoo15!!
 
Well, my first tip is to never use that travel agent again. That sucks that they didn't listen to you, since nobody knows your needs better than you. I do my planning on spreadsheets, and include an estimate of costs (including meals). I haven't had DDP be a value for my family in a long time. Just too much food for us. We prefer taking (or ordering/shipping) some items to our resort, and then paying for special meals (character meals, favorite restaurants, favorit snacks). Seems to work well with us. I think you have probably figured it out for the next trip though.
 
We used the dining plan the first few trips and never got much value out of it. Our last trip was literally a last minute trip and we didn’t get the dining plan. It was surprising how much money we saved. We ate mostly table service and had a few snacks at Erin McKennas bakery. We came home with 900 dollars leftover! From now on, I’m buying discounted gift cards from a Target and BJs and charging it all to the room. Then I’ll pay the room charges with those.
 


Dining Plan is never going to be a good move even if you eat everything they offer, you are forfeiting any other discounts, like room only, and you are usually paying for stuff you won’t eat if you didn’t have the plan. Only when is free and you have 4 people in the room you will see any saving. Otherwise is more for the sake of having everything paid before the trip. I will add you should have asked for a replacement on dessert, some places will substitute for a piece of fruit or even cookies, instead of letting the desserts credit to waste. You live and learn, now you definitely know dining plan isn’t for you.
 
You gotta eat a lot and keep refilling your mugs to "save money" on the dining plan, and people do. Once a good TA heard you say you are not big eaters, that should have been that. No dining plan.
 
Wow, avoid that TA like the plague if you go again! You are right, she wasn't listening to you, she was trying to increase her commission.
We have always had the dining plan, but only because we got it for free. There is no way we'd be even close to getting our money's worth if we had to buy it.
 
The only time we ever did the dining plan was when it was included and even then, we found it to be far too much food. My dad is the biggest soda drinker in our family and even then, he barely drinks it while mom and I stick to water 99% of the time. I also found that we struggled for healthier options although the last time, we did much better.

Now, since we drive to Disney, mom typically bakes some kind of banana bread which covers our breakfast and usually she and I can split a meal while Dad is content with a turkey leg or something like that. Often times, we'd get two quick service meals and split between the three of us. Plus we brought our own snacks like mixed nuts and beef jerky so we were never hungry.

Sound like the travel agent was after their commission more than listening to what you actually wanted...
 
You didn't do anything wrong! You were first time visitors and you counted on your travel agent. Unfortunately, she didn't really take time to help you explore your options. I'm sorry.
If you return to WDW in the future, you'll know. That calculator that another poster linked is a great tool! (Reinforced for me that the dining plan isn't worth it for us!) In terms of dessert, they used to let you substitute items, not sure if you asked but something to keep in mind. Also - you should have been able to get non-alcoholic specialty beverages with your meals - again you have to ask. I'm sorry you had trouble using your snack credits - we even used some for breakfast items one day.
Your agent was selling you the "convenience" of the dining plan and not taking your family's needs into account. That is a big selling point for some people. However, if you feel you aren't getting the value - you probably aren't.
The tipping point for the DDP (in my opinion) is how many character meals you plan to do. These are crazy expensive out of pocket, however getting a few in on the dining plan would tip the scales for most people in terms of value.
Also - you didn't say the age of the child - just keep in mind that once they are 10 and on the DDP they must order from the adult menu. This was a factor for us, as our 12 year old still prefers choices from the kids menu and has a smaller appetite. Heck, even I prefer the kids menu sometimes (the kids turkey sandwich is plenty for me) or DD and I will share a meal that comes with larger portions. So live and learn. I hope you had a magical trip in spite of the dining.
 
Seems like there's a lot of knowledge on this board, thought I would try to find a place to throw this question out...

We just got back from our first ever trip to Disney World. 10 days, and we bought the dining plan. We used a travel agent who assured us the dining plan was the way to go and was the best value. We informed her that we aren't big on desserts and really didn't want to be eating junk food, she reiterated that the dining plan was still the way to go. We stated that none of us drink alcohol (2 adults 1 child on the trip), and we mainly drink water. Our son only drinks water or milk, so it seemed between the alcohol allowance and the re-fillable resort mugs, we might be paying for a ton of things we will never use. She assured us the mugs were "worth their weight in gold."

The trip is now over and I can report that we brought 3 brand new mugs back with us in our luggage. Never filled any of them with anything. We used Amazon Prime groceries to deliver 3 cases of water to our room and for the low cost of $24 we had 105 bottles of spring water. The dining plan included desserts at all the table service meals which we declined, and it took me until the mid point of the trip before I found a place where I could use my snack credits for things like vegetables and couscous. I don't feel like the travel agent was listening, instead trying to sell me on Dole Whips and funnel cakes...neither of which I ever tried.

However, looking at the insane cost of food on the menu, it is possible the dining plan was still the way to go...although I think I could have come out of it cheaper. The mugs, desserts, and alcohol allowance were a non factor for us, yet seem to be the three biggest selling points, leading me to believe I could have been better off without the plan.

Anyway, as I said there appear to be a ton of Disney experts here so I wanted to get some post trip feedback if anyone has any thoughts on the dining plan and how it may have worked better for us. Thanks!

Best way for my family was to send down perishables (eg. water, milk and cereal) and eat breakfast at the hotel. bring down paper cups, bowls, utensils. Bring tons of fruit with us. Breakfast solved! Then the option of having a "Linner" or early dinner was key. Bring lots of snacks (ie. granola bars for mid morning or late afternoon munchies. But by eating buffet lunch or dinner at 3 or 4pm, you stuff yourself that you dont' have to eat the other meal. Only spent $80-100 on food per day and at the same time was able to meet characters at DHS (Hollywood/vine) or Crystal palace.
 
Dining Plan is never going to be a good move even if you eat everything they offer, you are forfeiting any other discounts, like room only, and you are usually paying for stuff you won’t eat if you didn’t have the plan. Only when is free and you have 4 people in the room you will see any saving. Otherwise is more for the sake of having everything paid before the trip. I will add you should have asked for a replacement on dessert, some places will substitute for a piece of fruit or even cookies, instead of letting the desserts credit to waste. You live and learn, now you definitely know dining plan isn’t for you.
It is closer to the truth to say, the dining plan isn't a good move, unless you eat the way the dining pays.

You aren't always forfeiting another discount, and if you eat the way the plan pays, you aren't paying for stuff you don't eat.

The dining plan doesn't work for everyone, and for those that it does work, it doesn't always work. But there are certainly families and trips where it does work.
 
The dining plan "can" be worth it if you do a lot of character dinners or all you can eat buffets because they are expensive, other than that, the ddp is never a good deal, especially if you aren't eating a lot of snacks.
 
I too am sorry that your travel agent pushed you into taking it. We did the dining plan once and never did it again. We do not eat dessert at every meal and it was way too much food for us and it cost too much for our family. For several trips after, we did an analysis and as if we would have purchased the dining plan and each time it came out hundreds of dollars cheaper not to do it - even with the costly food. We do eat at Ohana, BOG, Boma, Kona Cafe, etc. and it still would not have saved us money doing the dining plan. You can definitely figure it out before hand but in my opinion I wouldn't do the dining plan again.
 
My Family and I haven't used the dining plan for a few years now. We found paying out of pocket for the meals were a lot easier and the selection of food was much more varied than what you could pick from on the plan.
 
Sorry .... I would find a new TA, who will listen to your needs and help you plan accordingly.
 
We used the dining plan for maybe 6 different trips before we decided that we simply didn't want to spend our entire time focused on eating. I like dessert as much as anyone but I never want that many desserts in one day. The only time I felt the dining plan saved money was the first year we got it and after that the cost simply didn't work for us but we got it for convenience sake only. Last trip we used tables in wonderland or AP'S OR DVC discounts and loved the freedom to only eat what we wanted. I still made some ADR's but often just ordered meals to split and skipped all the desserts. We will never do dining plan again. I also like to try new restaurants not on the plan . The mugs work if you are soda or coffee/tea drinker but I too drink mostly water these days so skipped it this trip. I plan trips for my large extended family and the TA was off the mark by a mile. She used your inexperience against you rather than aiding you in selecting the right components that fit your family. I'm not a TA but I could be one with the knowledge I have and this one failed you miserably.
 

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