Why I love the dining plan.

[gina2000]

I just find it strange that a family that scrimps and saves all year for a vacation would pay more for a dining plan than they would if they ordered as wanted. It just seems counterintuitive to spend more so that you don’t have to worry about how much you are spending.

 

[Pumbaa_]

To each their own
For those that scrimp and save for the ddp, it gives them a chance to not have to pay each meal on its own. Paying hundreds of dollars every meal for a family is tough when you are used to saving every day.

 

[kristennn]

SO I have wanted to just eat what we want and put it all on one separate credit card and then check later and see if its actually cheaper than the dining plan. With the dining plan I am absolutely always trying to optimize and get the most for my money - expensive restaurants, expensive meals, expensive desserts and alcoholic drinks. Only snack credits above a certain price etc.
Lots of times I might not feel like alcohol, or the next meal maybe I want two! Maybe some times we want to skip lunch and just eat more snacks ... I like the idea of eating what i want and then seeing how it pans out. I think we would rarely do desserts, or we would split one, or eat a snack dessert later ... and I would choose different restaurants ... and I am sure we would spend a lot less in tips. When you're ordering the most expensive stuff at the most expensive restaurants - 20% adds up.
So with the DP I am committing to one TS and one QS for each day and then I plan accordingly. NOW - that I can do what I want - I am looking at menu's and going ... Is this really so much better than quick service? Maybe we should just eat quick service instead, especially if we have to spend time traveling to get to the restaurants, and when we are staying someplace off site with a full kitchen.
Also with my parents going - I hate to commit them to spending so much oop. I could just pay for them .... BUT I already am paying for their park tickets as a holiday/thank you gift and thats a lot of money already. They may not even let me pay for meals, so likely we would be splitting them where i pay for myself and kids and they pay for theirs, or worse yet they pay for the whole thing and I feel guilty. I did make one dining reservation already (sanaa) and am thinking about adding 50's prime time to our HS day - and am thinking of maybe one dinner for all 9 of us (once my brothers family arrives) but I am not sure where - it would have to be a non park location.

 

[B-Ride]

This is the exact lure of the DP. Once it is paid for you don't have to worry about the high cost of meals. Our experience is that unless you manage to get it for free OOP is more economical. Just order what you like and think about how much the DP would have cost you. I am pretty sure you will come out ahead.