The cheapest option

[SantiJB]

In your opinion what is the chespest option for using TS meals:

a) Use TS credits for 1TS restaurants and if i want to go to a 2TS restaurant pay for it.

b) Use TS credits for 2TS restaurants and if i want to go to a 1TS restaurant pay for it.

Additionally, is it possible to go to a 2TS restaurant and pay with 1TS credit plus cash?

I really appreciate your opinions and your experiences.

Thanks. Regards.

 

[SantiJB]

Please advise me!!!!!

 

[goofy4tink]

I'm afraid I wouldn't be much help since I don't do any of the places that require 2TS credits. I have been to CG and it was just okay. I've done CRT but for me it isn't worth the extra money anymore. If I take the $38 that I would pay for a day of DDP, then subtract 2.50 for my 'snack' credit, and then subtrace 10.00 for my counter service credit...that leaves me with a balance of $25.50....not bad for most meals at a TS spot. But, if I have to use two TS credits (now about $51 based on the above figuring) I don't really see the savings. If CRT is about $38 pp for dinner, I would rather pay cash for it than use 2 TS credits. However, I may be way off base in my figures. I may be oversimplyfing things.

 

[mickeyluv]

This is a very good question. I would like to hear some responses on this as well. Good Morning DISer's. Rise and Shine

 

[jjohnson]

Hmm...I was coming back to edit my post & its not here. Anyway...Unless your going to order the most expensive item at (2) ts restaurants I dont feel its a good value. Especially, if you end up paying for another restaurants OOP.
I quickly looked over the menus & added up the most expensive items:

JIKO: $55
FF: $70
CG: $60
Citricos: $57
Narcoossee's: $99 (OK if you like lobster go here)
AP: $53

All others were under $50

It would be impossible to use (1) TS & pay for the rest OOP. What you could do is have 1 guest use (2) TS & share app & dessert & pay for an extra entree OOP.

 

[magicmommy]

I agree with goofy4tink. I just added the dining plan to my stay in May. I believe that 2 TS credits are not the best use of the meal plan. Our plan includes Yachtsman Steakhouse and Flying Fish. I will probably pay OOP for one and use the DP for the other. We will be there 8 nights so 6 are planned using 1 TS credit. You may to jump over to allearsnet.com to view the menus and decide what would work better for you. BTW we also DVC members and AP holders and we have the DDE card so we will get 20% off our OOP meals.

 

[SantiJB]

In the same sense, I'm checking this issue too and i think that the following isn't worth at all:

a) Use 2TS for Spirit of Aloha or for Hoop-H... I think it is worth pay for it.

b) Use 1TS for breakfasts. I think it is worth pay for it too.

What do you think about??

 

[goofy4tink]

I would use the TS credits for dinners...not breakfasts. If, at the end of your trip, you find you have an unused TS credit, then sure, book a character breakfast. I just feel that the breakfasts aren't as good a use of the credits. That's why I'm combining my DDE card with the DDP in Oct. I'll get the 20% off on my breakfasts at Spoodles and I can use the TS credit at night for those dinners that are around $30 pp.

 

[siestakeys04]

Well i made adrs for yachtsman steakhouse which is 2ts i am going to use them for that and the reason i will be able have an extra ts is because when we get there on 7/15 we will arrive that late afternoon and i will only use a cs for our dinner so that would leave a snack credit and ts credit. so that is how i can get 1 meal that takes two ts credit. Did i explain that ok???? I will have 7 nights worth of credits on the dining plan.

 

[jsmla]

I hope I have this right. I'm a very light eater so we're planning on only using 2 TS at Jiko and Flying Fish to cover the both of us on our October trip. DH will order a full meal (using credits) and I'll probably have only an appetizer (OP) and a few bites of his dessert. Drinks don't matter since I always drink wine at dinner. We'll be able to do this, right? Please, please tell me yes because I just can't see us using the Dining Plan otherwise. We prefer the Signature restaurants and have done this when not on the dining plan many times. The only AYCE place we might do would be Boma in which case we'd each use a TS credit.

Thanks

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

In October we ate at Yachtsman. DH & I used credits, we paid cash for DS because his meal was only $9. No way was I going to use TWO credits on a $9 kid's meal.

The total was $130 for the two adults. The first receipt they bring out has an actual total on it, then after they scan your card for the Dining Plan the receipt shows $0.

Same scenario at Kona Cafe, but this time we only had 2 TS credits left because it was our last night so we paid cash for DS. The total for the 2 adults was $95.

In our case it would have been far better to use our credits at places that are 1 credit! We could have gone to Kona two more times had we not used 4 credits at Yachtsman!

We would have come out about $60 better using the credits at 1 TS places instead of using them at a 2 TS signature place.

Yachtsman was fine, but not really worth 2 credits per person! That was the one really BIG issue DH kept telling me when I was planning the trip for this August - NO signature restaurants!

Something we thought was kind of interesting was we ate at Fulton's with some friends. Fulton's does not accept Dining Plan. For 4 adults and 1 child it only cost us $165 and we enjoyed the food more than the food at Yachtsman.

 

[tabrizia]

Honestly I think the easiest way to figure this out is look at the menu prices and add up the prices of what you think you would eat at each restaraunt. We are booked for 2 2TS restaraunts during our stay, and I know one of them will actually be one of the cheapest meals we have (Cinderella's Castle), if there were more dining options I wanted to do (sit down) I would probably pay out of pocket for it.

I did a comparision for hubby and I last night of the difference between the dining plan and just spending our own money and I found based on what we were likely to eat Spoodles and Le Cellier Steakhouse were both around 90$ for the two of us both 1 tickets, Jiko also came in around 90$ and it is a 2 ticket restaraunt.

Personally if I had to make the decission I would probably pay out of pocket for the 2 ticket restaraunts and then use those tickets for other meals.

The main reason we aren't doing that this trip is 6 sit down meals in 8 days is all we need since the other two nights are planned and we don't want sit down meals for them.

 

[SantiJB]

upppppppppppppp

 

[SantiJB]

uppppppppppppppppp

 

[jjohnson]

You really need to look at the menus & decide since I don't know what you would typically order. In my above post I took the most expensive apps, entree & dessert to give you some ideas. Go to www.wdwig.com click on restaurants then click menus of where your interested in dining.

 

[SantiJB]

uppppppp

 

[sportears]

Do not use your dining plan for breakfast meals. We get up early and eat breakfast bars that we bring with us before we go to the parks. We eat early counter service lunches. We use our TS meals for dinner. The Flying Fish and the Yachtsman Steakhouse are our favorites. We use our 2TS for each and use our remaining TS at the Kona Cafe. We paid for one TS out of our pocket. It always works out well for us because our daughter is a little older now and Character meals are not as important.

 

[pjupton]

DH will order a full meal (using credits) and I'll probably have only an appetizer (OP) and a few bites of his dessert. Drinks don't matter since I always drink wine at dinner. We'll be able to do this, right? Please, please tell me yes because I just can't see us using the Dining Plan otherwise.

I don't see why this would be a problem. We'll likely do the same at California Grill - one order app, entree, dessert with dining plan and one just order entree and pay cash.

 

[wdwobsessed]

Wow .. this is why I love these boards.
I have done the DDP before but even so I was ready to lay down 10TS credits for the Hoop Dee Doo for our party of 2adults 2 Jr's and 1 child.

I feel it's "worth" the two credits but when I added up even lunch at a random place not ordering the most expensive items I came up to over $25 without tax and tip.

HDD being $50.22 WITH tax and tip .... the 2credits can be used much better so I'm going OOP for that one!

Thanks! I never really looked at it before.

WDWO

 

[3princesses4us]

You're right SantiJB. The absolute best way to use TS credits is to spend them on 1 TS credit restaurants for dinner. I'm paying OOP for the HDDR and our character breakfast. The rest are being spent on steak dinners at Kona, Spoodles, Le Cellier, etc.
I did the math a long time ago on things such as the Fantasmic dining package at Hollywood Brown Derby. Essentially you are wasting an entire days' worth of credits if you use 2 TS credits for this as the price is just $36.99.