Tag Archives: ADR

Getting the best bite for your buck.

Posted on by
7

“I’m so rumbly, in my tumbly… I’d be grateful, for a plateful….”  We have all had that happen to us, enjoying our park day and your stomach starts to talk.  Today we thought we would break down what plans Walt Disney World offers for their Dining Plan and how you can get the best bite for your buck!

Walt Disney World offers three dining plans as options with the Magic Your Way package. The three plans available are: Quick Service, Standard, and Deluxe.

Let’s break down the cost of each plan and what it includes (Costs are approx for 2010): 

  • Quick Service Dining Plan
    • Cost:
      • $31.99 per adult, per night
      • $9.99 per child (3 – 9) per night
    • Includes:
      • 2 Quick Service meals (per person , per night)
        • Entrée or Combo
        • Dessert
        • Non Alcoholic Drink
      • 2 snacks (per person, per night)
      • 1 refillable mug, (per person

 

  • Standard Dining Plan
    • Cost (Tiered based upon season):
      • $42 – $47 per adult, per night
      • $12 – $13 per child (3 – 9) per night
    • Includes:
      • 1 Table Service Meal per person, per night
        • Buffet or Entrée meal
        • Dessert
        • Non Alcoholic Drink
      • 1 Quick Service Meal per person, per night
        • Entrée or Combo
        • Dessert
        • Non Alcoholic Drink
      • 1 Snack per person, per night

 

  • Deluxe Dining Plan
    • Cost:
      • $72 per adult, per night
      • $21 per child (3 – 9) per night
    • Includes:
      • 3 Meals (Table or Quick Service) – (per person, per night)
        • Buffet or Entrée Meal
        • Appetizer
        • Dessert
        • Non Alcoholic Drink
      • 2 Snacks (per person, per night)
      • 1 refillable resort mug per person

 Example of cost:

  • Family of 4 using the Quick Service Dining Plan (two adults, one 17 year old, one 8 year old)
  • Total cost for 7 night vacation would be approx $750.00 (or about $107 a day)
  • Total credits:  56 Quick Service credits, 56 Snack Credits

 Quick Service credits can be used at most all counter service establishments in the parks and in the resort hotels. A counter service restaurant is typically where you would order your food at a counter, and carry your food back to your table. Table Service credits can be used at most ‘Sit Down’ restaurants inside the parks and at the resort hotels. A Table service restaurant is typically where you are seated and someone comes to your table to place your order, and returns with your meal(s). You can use Table Service credits at many of the Character Meals. Some special meals require using two credits per person, such as the ‘Hoop De Do Review’ and ‘California Grill’. A complete list of which counter and table service credits can be used at which restaurants is available at www.waltdisneyworld.com

 Our first experience with the Dining Plan was during a promotion in September 2008 – we were offered the Standard Dining Plan (One table and one Quick Service) for free as an upgrade with our ‘Magic Your Way Package’. This offer is now common during the times around late August and September. If you are planning a trip around that time, it is a great way to get a feel for the plan without spending the money.

 On our next family trip in 2009, we decided that we liked the plan so much and the convenience it offered, that we added the Quick Service plan to our package at our own cost. It was so nice to know that all our meals were paid for before we left. The only cost we had to worry about was any souvenirs!

 Like anything, there are many pro’s and con’s that you will need to consider before making the decision yourself regarding the Dining Plan. Here are just a few:

 Pro’s of Magic Your Way Dining Plan:

  1. All your meal expenses will be paid for before you leave home.
  2. Allows family members the freedom of choosing what they want for their meal without having to worry about cost.
  3. Easier to manage your meals – every receipt has a credit balance that tells you exactly what is left for your entire family.
  4.  Depending upon your eating habits, it can save your entire family money in the long run.
  5. Having snack credits (1 or 2 per person, per day depending upon the plan) is very, very convenient when you are walking through the parks at mid day in 90 degree heat. You can walk up to a snack cart and simply swipe your card for an ice cold drink or ice cream.

Con’s of Magic Your Way Dining Plan

  1. Unless you would normally eat an entrée, dessert, and drink during at least two meals every day – you may not be saving money, you may possibly spend more.
  2. You need to have a good idea of where you want to eat well in advance. This is especially true with the plans that include Table Service credits. Advance Dining Reservations are highly recommended for Table Service meals, and need to be made 180 days prior to arrival if at all possible.
  3. Having an ADR each day can limit your flexibility. If you have a reservation in one park for a given day, you are either going to have stick with that park, unless you have park hoppers, or you are going to risk not getting seating at another location in different park because you did not have the ADR set up.
  4. Unless you would plan on eating one to two snacks per person every day, you might not see the savings.
  5. If you plan on going offsite for any partial or full days, and eating at that off site location, you will end up spending out of pocket for that meal(s) and either have to eat an extra meal on property to use that credit, or not use that credit, and end up losing money.

After our family weighed the pro’s and con’s, along with our eating habits, we found that we would not save money by using the dining plan. Since the cost difference was not very large, and having our meals paid for with our package before we arrived for our vacation outweighed the cost difference, we now plan to add the Dining Package to each of our vacations.

 If you have any other questions about the dining plan or if it would be a good fit for you – feel free to ask away.

Carl and Ellie

What Walt Disney World First Timers Need To Know

Posted on by
2

The package has been paid, the luggage is packed, and all that lies between you and your beloved Walt Disney World is a good night’s sleep.  Before you leave home, here are a few tips Carl and I have picked up over the years to assure your trip goes as smooth as possible.

It’s easy in this debit card age to rarely ever have cash on you. This is key from the time you arrive at the airport or hop into your car to drive over.  Cash will be needed at the airport for vending machines,  alcoholic beverages, tips, and food kiosks.  If you are driving, don’t forget cash for tolls and small side stops.  Make sure to also budget money in general for not only gas to and from home, but also for driving around the WDW area.

Yes, your package covered the cost of you room, but there are some hidden costs to be made aware of.  Every time you pick up that phone to dial outside of your Resort, you will be charged-even if you use a pre-paid phone card, you will still be charged. (Found this out the hard way).  If you are staying at a Value Resort, you will be charged over $10 a night to rent a fridge for your room.  Keep in mind the costs to wash your own clothes at the Laundromat or having it sent out as well.  Tips for valet, bellhops, and mousekeepers are also necessary and in cash.

Before even deciding on the Disney Dining Plan, weigh the pros and cons of how much you will be eating.  I know with the deluxe dining is not only A LOT of food, but you also are now under quite the daily event of making and getting to your Advanced Dining Reservation’s each day. Some don’t like this because you have to make sure you are in the right park, area, resort where your ADR is.  Even with the Quick Service Dining Plan, we were eating a desert with each and every meal and honestly, we just don’t do that at home. We were getting fuller faster, each day of our vacation, it was a lot to eat.  With so many stories of people having snack credits left over at the end of their trip, it doesn’t seem like it was worth the money.  Write down your favorite things to eat, places you would like to try, characters your kids would like to eat with, and see from there what you come up with to make sure the DDP is worth the money to you.

While packing at home, don’t forget the essentials that will save you money, time, and hassle in the end.  Buy rain ponchos, light-up toys, water-proof camera, first-aid kit, batteries, spray-fans, film, suntan lotion, medicines, blister preventions, gum, sunglasses and anything else you can think of in your home town before you leave.  These items are extremely costly inside the parks and gum cannot even be purchased on WDW property. Invest in comfortable foot wear for your trip. Bring tennis shoes to cushion the long days, flip-flops for around the pool

Disney Transportation is a very nice thing to have, just not the most punctual when you really need to get somewhere fast.  Give yourself an hour or more when you need to get to dining reservations and you are taking a bus, boat, or monorail.  Most newcomers think that if you have a 1:30 reservation, that getting on the bus at 1:00 is plenty of time- in a perfect world, it would be.  But because of other stops that they do make, you just can’t count on any short amount of time. Always better to be early than late.

On our first trip, we saw a lovely family in matching t-shirts and inquired on how and where they got them. We never heard “Here at WDW” but many other places instead. If you would like to share the “matching magic” with the family, check out your local Disney Outlet store or the Disney Store online and purchase/try them on before you go.  We have tried to do wear the same shirts at least one day every trip and have always received a great reaction.

Beware of impulse buying-this is a hard one for many! Something in the water at WDW makes us pay $10 for a hot dog that we would never spend more than $2 for at home. So why do we do it? Well, you get caught up in the magic.  I see no problem with enjoying the magic, but you can keep a lot more green in your wallet if you make sure to follow some simple tips. 

  • Buy Disney trading pins online at Ebay- sold in lots, these are a great deal and usually have lots of repeats which helps your kids or yourself want to trade them for something else
  • Ride pictures can be expensive, but you want to remember the moment. Take your own camera and take a picture of your snapshot on the monitor if you cannot afford to buy it. Hopefully WDW will eventually apply ride photos to the photopass system.  (although there are some, like Test Track that will place your ride photo on your photo pass card.
  • Share meals and snacks to cut down on costs. Buy one water bottle in the morning and refill it throughout the day.
  • Carry in small snacks in your backpack or purse to cut down the costs of snacks.
  • Buy donut holes or pop-tarts for the resort room for breakfast and save lots of money and time eating in the room in the morning.

Last but not least, learn this- YOU WILL NEVER SEE IT ALL IN ONE TRIP. The best of the best Disney fans can attest to this, it is nearly impossible to do.  Do what you really want to, and let everything else fall into place. No matter when you are going, have a wonderful trip!

 ~Carl and Ellie~