OMG! I can’t believe how much food you get though. And thanks for sharing the price, yes I can look it up but it’s easier when it’s posted.Was this a lot of money? Yes. Was it worth it? In MY eyes, YES.
OMG! I can’t believe how much food you get though. And thanks for sharing the price, yes I can look it up but it’s easier when it’s posted.
I booked a cheap weekend cruise (never been on one or to the Caribbean)
YOLO! (I never say that but it’s popular in the Royal Caribbean community to say “I yolo booked a cruise” so that made me think to say it haha)I decided since it took us 10+ years for a no kids vacation, it would be a long time before we would have this opportunity again so I booked it. I was also able to get California Grill for dinner, which we have never been for dinner.
I really enjoyed reading your reviews! Very helpful!The Wrap Up
Cost Breakdown:
Cost of the Disney Deluxe Dining Plan at $116.25 a day X 5 days X 2 Adults= $1162.50
Bear in mind, that for a few of the meals that I mentioned, I did not have Mr. J.’s receipts, but knew what he ordered from the photographs and was able to come up with the pre-tax amount. Therefore, my calculation of the total amount spent will actually be a little lower than what it actually cost, since the tax is missing (and I am too lazy to calculate the Florida tax).
Meals: $1304.24 (missing some tax$$)
Mugs: $37.98 (w/o tax)
Snacks: To make this easy, I am just going to say $5 a snack X 20 snacks, even though, I believe most of our snacks were over $5= $100 (w/o tax)
Our Total: $1,442.22
Savings: $280 (not counting some taxes and higher snack costs)
This was my 2nd time doing the Deluxe Dining Plan and the 2nd time I have come out ahead. Mr. J had never stayed on property before, so this was his first time using a plan at all. He was very impressed by what we were allowed to order, how much it saved us, and the quality of food.
Now I will say this, we did opt to pay for some things out of pocket. This was by choice, not by necessity. I could have easily used my snack credits at the Festival of Arts instead of opting to pay with a gift card. Also, we chose to stack our credits to eat at 2 TS restaurants, which typically resulted in 2 meals a day with some snacks thrown in. We preferred this way of eating. We used some breakfast meals simply as a fast pass tool to ride 7 Dwarves and Frozen. There were a couple of meals that we did not order any alcohol, but for the most part, took advantage of that being included.
For those who say it is too much food, I have found that at most of the 2 TS restaurants, portions are smaller, which make it easier to have an app, entrée, and dessert. I also stopped when I was full and we did take dessert with us a couple of times. While we were not wasteful, we did not always clean our plates (I’m talking about you Rice Pudding!). We did share a couple of meals, like at BOG and 50s Prime Time.
Realistically, we did not get all the value out of the mugs, as we did not hang at the resorts. We used them a few times. That said, the mug gets used at home, so I feel like I get worth out of the mug itself, rather than the beverages.
We did not purposely choose to eat more expensive items. For example, one may argue that my vegetarian/vegan dish at Jiko was not a wise option at $30 when I could have gotten something much more costly. However, we ate what we felt like and were not tethered to trying to eat the most expensive items. Mr. J was really excited that he could order Surf and Turf and the largest portion of King Crab legs and it be covered by the plan.
I enjoyed this experience because it allowed me try foods without worrying that I would dislike them and feel I wasted my money. I am an inexperienced seafood eater, so I enjoyed trying new things and finding that I like seafood. I enjoyed eating at nicer places because I prefer that type of food more than at quick service places. I work full-time and have 3 kids, one of which is a 1.5 year old who is constantly into everything. For me to have 5 days where I did not need to cook anything, got to be catered to, and did not have to tend to children during mealtime made it all the more worthwhile using the indulgent Deluxe Dining plan. Also, I know myself, if I were paying out of pocket, I would feel way too guilty spending $70 on crab or steak. I would talk myself out of eating a lot of food because of the cost. Using the plan makes me feel more comfortable doing that (I know that does not make sense to some, but it works for me).
We are planning a December family trip, in which my oldest child will now be a Disney adult, but my littlest one will be free. It is a split stay, so we will likely do the DxDP for the first half and then pay out of pocket the 2nd half because we are trying Club Level. and plan to eat at less places, and possibly off property. I am working on the math involved before I commit to the plan, as well as which restaurants to eat at on plan vs off plan. It is likely that my oldest and I will share many meals to stretch the credits. When my other kids become Disney Adults, I will have to continue to do the math to make sure it is a good price point for us and that the food amounts make sense, as I fully recognize that one day it likely will not if I have all Disney adults. But for now it works and I enjoy it.
Thank you for taking the time to read my first food report and a big thanks to those who took the time to comment because it encouraged me to continue to write it.