When I first heard about the
Disney dining plan I looked into it and couldn't see any benefits to it. You don't get a discount on food. You pay for a set amount of food upfront. And I couldn't see paying for food I might not eat. So we had ruled it out, but when my new WDW travel agent talked to my wife about it, she looked into it again. We scavenged other blogs, discussion forums, and even the Disney webpage. What we found out was amazing. If you do your research, and travel during off peak times, and are very lucky, the dining plan could cover your food.....for FREE! Take a minute to let that sink in. I couldn't believe it at first. I thought "well they must limit your choices". Nope. "You must have to eat quick service only (Disney speak for fast food)" Nope. They will pay for a snack, a quick service, and a sit down meal per day per person. AND you have a refillable cup that you refill at designated places. FANTASTIC!!
The catch is you must purchase it at the time you book your travel package. If you book out as far as my wife and I do, they may not have it available. Also it is not a guarantee that if they did it the last five years they will do it again. You gotta buy it on faith and hope like heck they do it again, and rebook your package with the free meal plan. If you are good at researching, and pick your times judiciously, with a bit of luck you can get the meal plan free. It is saving us over a thousand dollars for eight days in Walt Disney World.
I would probably not do this while visiting Disneyland because there are cheaper eats within walking distance. But when you are enjoying the bubble of WDW, I think it is a great move.
