Disney Dining Plans: How they work and are they worth the cost?
Most people want to know 2 things: How do they work? Are they worth the cost? Let’s get started…
Everyday I get questions about the Disney dining plans. They are the most challenging component of a Walt Disney World package. Most people want to know 2 things: How do they work? And are they worth the cost?
Grand Floridian Cafe at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort
Well, in my experience at a travel advisor, those who purchase a dining plan find at least one of the following features appealing:
The all-inclusive nature of the dining plan
Ability to dine at the most popular Walt Disney World restaurants without worrying about costs adding up.
Transparent pricing - having a better idea of what the trip will cost well in advance.
I find that dining at Walt Disney World is the one vacation expense people do not sufficiently plan for.
Aside from being on vacation and having to eat all your meals in restaurants, you’re also a captive audience. Yeah, food costs a little more than if you were at home.
Why Disney offers dining plans
Disney’s goal is simple: the dining plans allow Disney to compete with the all-inclusive, family-friendly resorts in the Caribbean and Mexico.
Family cruises are extremely popular right now and of course, nearly everything is included in your cruise.
Introducing the 2024 Disney Dining Plans
Disney World currently has 2 dining plans:
Basic Disney Dining Plan (most popular)
Quick Service Dining Plan
California Grill at DIsney’s Contemporary Resort
Basic Disney Dining Plan:
Dining plans are per person and based on the number of package nights.
For each package night, each person will receive:
1 table service meal credit
1 quick service meal credit
1 snack or beverage credit
1 Resort-refillable mug per person in your package. Mugs are refilled at the self-service beverage station at your hotel's quick-service locations for the duration of the stay.
If you’re planning to do at least one Disney character meal, the Basic Disney Dining Plan is a great value. Most character meals cost 1 table service credit.
Pecos Bill Tall Tale Inn and Cafe at Magic Kingdom
Disney Quick Service Dining Plan:
For each package night, each person will receive:
2 quick-service meal credits
1 snack or beverage credit
1 Resort-refillable mug per person in your package. Mugs are refilled at the self-service beverage station at your hotel's quick-service locations for the duration of the stay.
How the dining plans work
You prepay for the majority of your meals in the form of credits.
For example, if you book a 6-night vacation package with the Quick Service Dining Plan, everyone listed on your reservation will receive:
12 quick service credits
6 snack or beverage credits
If you include the Regular Disney Dining Plan on a 6-night package, everyone on the reservation will receive:
6 table service meal credits
6 quick service meal credits
6 snack or beverage credits
Now here’s the important part.
All of your dining and snack credits will be deposited into one account when you check in to your hotel.
You will track your credits using the Disney World mobile app. Credits can be used at any time during your stay, even on your check-out day.
When ordering at any Disney restaurant, Cast Members will ask if you are using your dining plan credits. You’ll then tap your MagicBand, phone, or Key to the World Card to have the restaurant deduct your credits.
Cost of the Disney Dining Plans at Walt Disney World
The cost of the Basic Disney Dining Plan is
$94.20 per night, per person (ages 10+)
$29.69 per night, per person (ages 3-9).
The cost of the Quick-Service Dining Plan is
$57.01 per night for adults (age 10+)
$23.83 per night for children (ages 3 to 9.)
Children ages 3-9 will order from the kid’s menu when available
How to save money with a Disney Dining Plan
The dining plans offer a lot of value, so they are not just about saving money these days.
Today, it’s more about convenience and transparent pricing.
Purchasing a dining plan probably won’t cost you more money than paying out of pocket. The dining plans cost about what you would spend if you paid out of pocket.
See, Disney’s profit is built into the menu prices at the restaurants. Disney doesn’t double-dip by making a profit on the menu and then again on the dining plan.
Remember, Disney’s goal is to capture families who like the idea of all-inclusive travel, not necessarily making record profits dining.
Now, I know some of you are going to try and stick it to the Mouse with the dining plan and try to come out ahead. Great! I think it would be a fun challenge!
Here are my best tips for the Disney dining plan:
Dine at the Epcot table service restaurants.
Book character meals, as they are super expensive! You can break even on the cost of the dining plan with just one character meal.
Table service credits are a better value when used at dinner because menu prices are higher than at breakfast and lunch. Plus dessert is included.
Use your snack credits at Starbucks inside the parks.
Order a glass of beer or wine with your meal when included.
Teppan Edo at Epcot
Are the Disney dining plans worth the cost?
The Disney Dining Plans for Light Eaters
The Disney dining plans are not about eating a lot, they are about simplifying your vacation and bundling your expenses into one package.
And for the salad lovers, keep in mind that fresh salads at Walt Disney World cost more than entrees.
For example, at Sunshine Seasons inside Epcot, the Rotisserie Chicken Club Sandwich is $11 and the Power Salad with Grilled Chicken is $13.
Paying out of pocket vs. a Disney Dining Plan
The trend among travelers today is that they want to relax and indulge a little but they don’t want a big bill looming over them at the end of the vacation.
The Disney dining plans give travelers a better understanding of what the trip will cost, well in advance, and it helps them develop a budget around that.
A family of 4 could expect to pay $125-$145 at a table service restaurant an $55 to $65 at quick service restaurants.
Character meals range from about $45 to $55 per person.
Are tips included with the Disney Dining Plans?
No, but you won’t have to pay sales tax. At table service restaurants, a gratuity of 15% to 20% of the total bill is customary.
Even though you’re not paying out of pocket, total is still provided so you can determine what to leave for a tip.
Keeping track of your dining plan credits
Each time you redeem meal credits, the number of remaining entitlements will be printed on a receipt for you. You can also view your remaining credits in the My Disney Experience app.
Where to redeem dining plan credits
Almost every Walt Disney World restaurant accepts the Disney dining plans and most menu items are in included.
Do I need to make dining reservations in advance?
Yes, restaurants at Walt Disney World are extremely popular. Dining reservations become available to you 60-days prior to your check in date.
Are character meals included with the dining plans?
Yes, most character meals count as one table service credit but there are a few, like Cinderella’s Royal Table that costs 2 table service credits.
Hoop Dee Doo Musical Review is included as well.
Using 2 table service credits for Disney World Signature restaurants
There is a small number of fine dining restaurants at Walt Disney World known as Signature Restaurants. Dining at restaurants like California Grill or Be Our Guest Restaurant will cost 2 table service credits because they are upgrade experiences.
Generally speaking, you would be better off paying out of pocket that using 2 credits. Signature restaurants are expensive, but not 2-table service credits expensive.
Can I use 2 quick service credits for 1 table service meal?
No. Quick service meal entitlements can only be used on quick service dining.
For over 12 years Darren Wittko has been helping people save money at Walt Disney World as both, a travel writer and a travel advisor with Magical Vacations Travel. He’s featured in the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World as a Best of the Best Disney Travel Agent. Darren resides in Celebration, FL.
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Disney World's 3rd Generation Magic Bands, Hey Disney! and Dining Plans Delayed
What happened to Hay Disney, the Disney Dining Plans, and 3rd Generation Magic Bands?
There are many great experiences returning to Walt Disney World Resort like being able to hug the characters again, daytime parades, and entertainment but there are still a number of projects that were promised in “early 2022” that we don’t talk about anymore.
3rd Generation Magic Bands
At the Destination D23 event in November, Josh D'Amaro, Chairman, Disney Parks, Experiences and Products shared some new things we could look forward to in 2022 during a high-energy presentation, complete with characters and Cast Members joining him on stage. To anyone who was in the room, it was incredibly inspiring.
While more experiences and opportunities are coming back very soon (I’m looking at you Minnie Vans) I can’t help but notice that some “early 2022” items seem to have fallen off the radar.
We are halfway through April so I think it’s fair to say it’s not “early 2021” anymore.
Hey Disney! Amazon Echo Device
Hey Disney!
In November 2021, we learned that Hey Disney! is going to be a unique version of Amazon Echo.
Also Hey Disney! devices were to be installed in 30,000 hotel rooms across Walt Disney World in early 2022 plus they could be purchased for home use.
Hey Disney! would be able to handle requests, such as asking for more towels or requesting Bell Services.
Hey Disney! would answer questions about your Disney World hotel, give you Disney transportation tips and wait times, provide park hours, tell you what time the fireworks would be at Magic Kingdom and more.
I was supposed to receive a complimentary home version of Hey Disney! but it never arrived. Recently I sent an email to Disney asking when it might be sent out. The Cast Member explained that the project is delayed but will be available sometime in 2022.
The Return of the Disney Dining Plans
Last August, Disney World sent an email to travel agents stating that the Disney Dining Plans would be returning “soon.” I don’t know how Disney defines “soon” but I assume 8+ months could be considered soon by some comparisons.
I believe Disney wants to offer this product again but there are a still a number of operational concerns that need to be addressed.
Not all the restaurants at Disney World have reopened and most are still not operating at full capacity due to staffing issues. This is why it has been somewhat difficult to secure dining reservations.
At Epcot alone, we’re still waiting for Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in Norway, Takumi-Tei Restaurant in Japan, Monsieur Paul in France, and Restaurant Marrakesh in Morocco to reopen. Hopefully as the Cultural Representatives begin to arrive this summer, these restaurants will reopen…um…soon!
Staff shortages are still a major factor but I’m not so sure Disney is in a hurry to hire more people right now.
Currently the demand for leisure travel is very high. But if the economy makes a downward trend, Disney World could easily be over staffed in 2023.
There are a few more issues that need to be addressed before the Disney Dining Plans can be brought back. But let’s hope they come back “soon.”
3rd Generation Magic Bands
On September 30, 2021 we learned that 3rd generation Magic Band would be arriving at Walt Disney World in early 2022. If you have been paying attention to this article, you know how that went!
Last fall I began advising my clients who booked 2022 travel to hold off on purchasing Magic Bands in anticipation of the 3rd generation bands being released.
Generation 3 Magic Bands are pretty cool, I had a chance to see a test band in action. They come alive at various times as you move about the parks and resorts with color-changing lights, haptic vibrations and gesture recognition.
These wristbands will allow you to engage in new interactive experiences resort-wide. There is no official word on when they will be introduced at Walt Disney World. I just know they’re running late.
As always, stay tuned to OrlandoParksGuy.com/blog for more information about Walt Disney World, Universal Orlando, Disney Cruise Line and Royal Caribbean.
Darren is a Disney-focused travel agent with Magical Vacations Travel and has over 13 years of experience. Readers of the Unofficial Guide to Walt Disney World rate him as a Best of the Best Disney Travel Agent. Darren is also an Orlando-based travel writer with topics ranging from theme parks to cruise lines.
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