It has been drilled into our heads by strategic marketing that the Disney Dining Plan is a great value and will save you quite a bit of money if you purchase it. But that isn’t the case if you make one of these 10 biggest mistakes guests make with the Disney Dining Plan.
1. Spending less than $50.50 at a table service meal. To recoup your costs of the dining plan (unless you are traveling during the free dining promotion, you paid for the dining plan and it’s your hard earned money that you could end up losing), you need to spend at least $50.50 per adult at your table service meal. This includes the cost of the beverage and dessert. It does not include the cost of the tip (18% gratuity is suggested).
2. Drinking only water. Fountain water is free at Disney restaurants. If you choose to drink water, make sure you ask for bottled water instead of fountain water. They can substitute the soda in your meal with a bottle of water.
3. Not having a plan. Dining reservations aren’t the only thing that you need to make before you head to Disney World. Make a plan of what counter service meals and what snacks you would like to try. I hear of so many people who have snack credits left at the end of their trip. Use them throughout your trip instead! Plan your meals around when you think you will be hungry before you go to Disney. We usually eat breakfast in our room, use a snack credit around 11 am, book a lunch reservation for 1:30 – 2 pm (this gets us out of the heat of the day) and have a counter service meal around 6:30 – 7:30 at night.
4. Using dining plan credits on breakfast. Breakfast is the least expensive meal of the day and it is usually not a good value for the dining plan credits. For table service meals, the cost of breakfast doesn’t usually come close to the $46.20 you need to spend per person to break even. Book a lunch or dinner instead. The same goes for quick service meals, you need to spend $16.50 there to break even.
5. Purchasing the dining plan for 10 year olds. At Walt Disney World a 10 year old is considered an adult and pays adult prices including the going rate for an adult on the dining plan. The problem is that most 10 year olds can’t eat like an adult. Unless you are dining at character meals, you won’t get your money’s worth by using the dining plan. You are better off paying out of pocket so the 10 year old can either order off the kid’s menu or order an adult portion of kid friendly foods (usually about $5-$7 more than the cost of the kid’s meal and no where near the $50.50 you need to spend to break even on the dining plan). Keep in mind that everyone in the resort room has to be on the dining plan. If you have a 10 year old, it might be more cost effective to not purchase the dining plan at all.
6. Swapping table service or counter service credits for snacks. You need to spend $16.50 on a counter service meal to break even. If you swap your counter service credit for snacks, you will automatically lose money. If you swap your table service credit for snacks, it is an even bigger loss.
7. Booking signature meals. Most signature meals are not worth the cost of two table service entitlements even though they include the cost of the tip, such as Cinderella’s Royal Table requires you to use two Table Service entitlements. The current cost for dinner at Cinderella’s Royal Table is $75 per adult and it includes the tax and gratuity. Since we value a Table Service entitlement at $50.50 without the gratuity, we would need to add 18% to it in order to do the math, making a Table Service entitlement worth $59.59. Two Table Service entitlements would then be worth $119.18 meaning that you actually lose over $44.00 per adult by choosing to spend your dining entitlements at this Signature Restaurant. If you dine for breakfast ($62 per adult), you will lose over $57.00 per adult in your party.
8. Not considering the tips in the cost of the dining plan. Tips are not included in the cost of the dining plan. Remember to allow an 18% tip for each table service restaurant you will dine at. For a party of 2 adults and 2 children on the Disney Dining Plan who dine at 7 table service restaurants during their trip, you are looking at an additional $25 or so per restaurant or a total of $175 in tips for their vacation.
9. Using snack credits on beverages. You need to spend approximately $5.50 on a snack credit to break even. Most bottled beverages are $3.50 – $4.50. Opt to spend your snack credits on the more expensive food and either pay for your beverages out of pocket or ask for the free ice water (available at any snack or counter service that sells fountain soda).
10. Not keeping track of your credits. Check your receipt every time you use a dining plan credit, or check the My Disney Experience App. This will help you remember what you have left to spend so you can be strategic with your credits. It will also ensure that everything has been charged correctly. If it wasn’t, you can correct it immediately instead of spending valuable time later trying to rectify the situation.
Learn more about Walt Disney World Dining and get suggestions for where to eat, how to use the Disney Dining Plan and more.
PegP says
We often get breakfast on the Dining Plan. Meals at the Tusker House Rivers of Light ($46), 1900 Park Fare ($44), Akershus ($51) and Chef Mickey’s ($49) definitely make it worth the DDP. We usually eat something light in the room then eat a late breakfast. That saves money because we get so stuffed at the buffets, that we’re not usually hungry again until dinner. We’ve been doing that since 2013 and have never regretted it. Kids get to meet characters w/o standing in long meet-and-greet lines & I get to get off of my feet for a few. If you don’t want to give up park time, get an early reservation so you can get into the park before it opens.
Connie says
What is the breakdown for the kids minimum dining plan prices? Table service, quick service and snacks?
Joy says
Me comment I have in regards to money saving for meals is for breakfast at the value resort the kids breakfast is $5 so I usually finger a kids breakfast for me n my son n just go back to the room to eat before we head to the park … Disney food is always huge portions and the kids breakfast is enough then grab a snack at 10am
Wendi says
Number 5 is true but it works financially if your 10 year old loves steak. My 10 year old ordered adult steak at every dinner while we were there last December. While we did have free dining and I didn’t have to make her finish each meal, she loved it!
Christy says
These are some great tips. So many people don’t really figure out the cost of the dining plan in such a way to know whether it is worth it or not. I’m glad you broke it down to how much you need to pay for each type of meal. Thanks!
Paula says
Can unused counter service meals be used towards a table service meal at the end of a trip?
Aggie says
No they can’t. Sorry.
Jrseygirl in VA says
If our kids want to split a table meal or a snack but we use the dining plan, will this leave an extra meal or snack on the plan to be used at a later time? Or will both people be dinged for a meal or snack?
Sarah says
Yes, I’m not 100% sure on this for sit down meals, but when we used the DDP for snacks and counter service it only debited the meal that we purchased and did not take into account who was eating it, so those unused meals/snacks will just roll over to use the following day.
melanie says
Is the dining plan worth it for a vegetarian?
Bri says
Friends of mine who are vegan got the DDP and loved it! Most places chefs made them their own custom meals and came out to the table and spoke with them personally. They felt specially treated and well taken care of. Just be sure to note it both on your reservation and tell the hostess when you arrive or your dietary restrictions.
Krystal says
How do you know what is consider a snack? Just going by the price?
Tabi says
They are marked on the signs with a snack option symbol
Shannon says
We are going on our first family vacation in a week, obviously to Disney :). We will be using the dining plan, can you order anything or are there only certain items included with the dining plan? Thanks!
Rachael says
Almost all items can be chosen on menus at restaurants that accept the disney dining plans
Holly says
In regard to number 5: It’s true that most kids cannot eat like an adult. Just keep in mind that if you choose to ‘pay out of pocket’ for a kids meal then DO NOT put your child on your reservation until you check in. Everyone on a reservation has to have the same reservation plan, another words, the same number of days/type of ticket, same dining plan, etc. The only way to get the dining plan for the rest of the family and not your child is to make sure you reserve a room big enough to accommodate your whole party, and wait until check in to ‘add’ the members who will not be on the dining plan as extra guests. Just keep in mind that they will also have to purchase tickets separately and if they are over 18 there will be an additional guest charge if there are more than 2 adults in the room.