Not all “discounts” are created equal.
The burger at Tiffins
It likely goes without saying, but a Walt Disney World vacation is not cheap, so it only makes sense that it’s tempting to jump on any possible “discount.” However, we’d advise you to look deeply into these discounts before committing, as some of them are only beneficial in certain circumstances.
The best known – and arguably most misunderstood – of these discounts is Disney’s Free Dining Plan offer.
All the eats!
On the surface, the concept of “free” during plan at Walt Disney World really does seem too good to pass up. “Meals INCLUDED in the cost of the trip, with nothing paid out of pocket”, what’s not to love? Well, the truth is there are some significant caveats.
For starters, many times the “free” dining plan offer is tied to something, like staying at a certain level of Disney hotel, being a Disney Visa cardholder or Disney+ subscriber. Not the biggest deal in the world, but something to keep in mind. Secondly, to use the Free Disney Dining Plan, you’ll likely need to book at least a non-discounted 4-night/4-day stay vacation package at a Walt Disney World hotel, including four days of tickets including Park Hopper. While we admittedly love staying on Disney property, even we know that that package may end up costing you MORE than staying off-property, buying normal single day tickets, and paying normally for each meal.
That’s A LOT of food!
Beyond trip planning, there are also some caveats about using the “free” Disney Dining Plan once you’re IN the parks. For starters, the free dining plan option usually does NOT include gratuity. So, you’ll need to have between 18% and 20% of the cost of your meal ready to leave as a tip for your server. (And no, being on the “free” dining plan is not an excuse for you not to tip.)
Beyond gratuity, the Disney Dining Plan also doesn’t include many add-on or additional meal items. For example, if you’re using 2 dining credits to eat at Hollywood Studios Hollywood Brown Derby Restaurant, it will cost 2 dining credits per guest (since this is Hollywood Studios’ signature restaurant) which will cover one entree, one dessert, and one drink (alcoholic or non, with some restrictions) per person. So, if you want to get an appetizer for the table, or add an extra like shrimp mac and cheese or spoon bread to your meal, they WON’T be included in the plan. So in other words, you’ll need pay out of pocket for them at the end of your meal.
Hollywood Brown Derby
Now, before you come at us with your pitchforks — maybe regular forks are more appropriate in this instance — we’re not saying the Free Disney Dining Plan never works. For example, if you’re already set on staying at a Disney hotel or having park hopper tickets, then there’s no point in comparing what it would cost to stay off-property. Also, you may be fine not induing in additional appetizers or extras at restaurants, content with the straight menu items. If those things are the case, then the Free Disney Dining Plan might indeed be the best option for you.
Just PLEASE don’t forget to tip.
Check out the meat
A couple of caveats that almost always come with free dining offers — you are paying full price for your room (you can’t combine with other hotel discounts), and you usually have to buy park hopper tickets (which are more expensive). So, you just REALLY have to do the math!
Wilderness Lodge
Will the free dining plan save you more money than, let’s say, a 30% hotel room discount that may be available for the same dates? That’s going to be an individual decision. If there are two of you in the room getting free dining, it’s going to save less than four people in the room getting free dining.
Likewise, are you going to USE the dining plan to its fullest? Do you typically snack throughout the day and not eat full meals? The free dining plan may not save you as much as if your family is accustomed to a quick-service lunch and sit-down dinner each night.
While the Free Disney Dining Plan sounds like a DREAM discount, you really should look into ALL the fine print and make sure it works for you before committing. Stay tuned to DFB for more tips on Disney planning.
Don’t Let This Weird Dining Plan Rule Catch You Off Guard at Disney World
Join the DFB Newsletter to get all the breaking news right in your inbox! Click here to Subscribe!
WE KNOW DISNEY.
YOU CAN, TOO.
Oh boy, planning a Disney trip can be quite the adventure, and we totally get it! But fear not, dear friends, we compiled EVERYTHING you need (and the things to avoid!) to plan the ULTIMATE Disney vacation.
Whether you're a rookie or a seasoned pro, our insider tips and tricks will have you exploring the parks like never before. So come along with us, and get planning your most magical vacation ever!
Do offers like the Free Disney Dining Plan work for you? Let us know in the comments below.
Our handy (and portable!) ebook guides make sure you get the best deals and can plan a vacation of a lifetime.
we used to do the dining plan but we no longer do. we’re both diabetic and the dessert is usually something we can’t do and wasted on us. it’d be more useful if disney offered a choice of dessert or an appetizer
this doesn’t mean the plan’s not good. It just doesn’t work well for us
We used to pay for the dining plan, but this ‘free’ version is anything but free. I haven’t done the math myself, but have heard it is almost impossible to get your extra costs of paying full price for hotel and tickets back. We would no longer get the dining plan as I hate the changes they made to it. Sometimes Disney takes all the fun out of going.
The DDP is NEVER a good option. People have argued with me about this, but the numbers absolutely do not lie even if you do have a drink and eat steak at every meal. Allowing for an appetizer instead of dessert would make it better (more palatable, if you will), but you’re still not going to save money on it. Putting the amount of the plan on a gift card and using that to pay for all food provides the exact same convenience, AND you’ll have money left over when you’re done.
We have used the dining plan in the past (pre-pandemic) and really enjoyed it, we actually normally opted for the 3 table service version, and we would spread them out to about 2 a day covering our arrival and departure days. We were satisfied with the value (again, pre-pandemic) but it is definitely worth considering all the options for discounts. Since we started taking longer trips less often, for our most recent trip, I found that getting an annual pass gave us a discount on the room that offset the cost of the pass, we could then buy adult-for-child priced tix through Undercover Tourist for the rest, plus we then got a discount on almost everything we ate or bought with the AP. While we LOVED being able to pre-pay over time for our food with our vacation with the Dining Plan, this different approach probably let us save more on the trip overall, plus gave us more flexibility with our dining, rather than feeling like we were locked in to what the Dining Plan meant. I can’t say that this approach will be one we will always take, I do think that it needs to be a long visit with a big hotel discount for the AP in order for the math to work.
Love the dining plan and since we always stay on property and, now that I let my AP lapse, we buy park hopper tickets, free dining is a good deal for us. I like the dining plan because it’s nice to have most of our food paid for in advance. The math may not work out in every situation but for us it’s worth it.