LET ME TAKE THE STRESS OUT OF YOUR VACATION PLANNING

Is the Disney Dining Plan worth the cost?

I recently went to Disney for a 6 night stay.  This was our first time using the Disney Dining Plan. Last year we stayed in the Cabins at Fort Wilderness and cooked a few of our meals. This year we stayed at Port Orleans-Riverside and decided to try the Dining Plan. The Disney Dining Plan includes a refillable mug plus 1 snack, 1 Quick Service meal and 1 Table Service meal per night of stay.  The cost is about $97 per adult and about $30 per child (age 3 - 9) per night of stay. For my recent trip that meant I had 6 snacks credits, 6 quick service meals and 6 table service meals.  The table service meals include one alcoholic beverage.  These credits can be used whenever you would like from day of check in to midnight on checkout day. It is also worth noting that snack credits can be used on departure day for take home items like specialty popcorn, candy and caramel apples.

I was traveling with toddler grandchildren and knew character dining was a priority.  Using a character dining experience for a Table Service meal helps ensure the user gets the full value for that meal credit.  Character dining at lunch or dinner averages $70 per adult and $44 per child. Character breakfast experiences average $55 per adult and $35 per child. A few character meals require 2 table service credits, but I chose to avoid those experiences.

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At the end of my stay I totaled the cost of the food I had eaten if I was paying at each meal, including tax. My meals, snacks and character dining would have averaged $95.60 per day. I do not drink alcohol, so if I had purchased one alcoholic beverage a day I would have easily spent over $100 per day. The meals my granddaughter ate would have averaged $58.84 per day. Basing my opinion on that information, the Disney Dining Plan is definitely worth the cost, especially for children! Did I eat more than I would have without the dining plan? Definitely so, but I was also sharing with a 2 year old. I'm normally a snack and a table service per day.  The Disney Dining Plan is something I can honestly recommend to my Disney World clients. 

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