Dining on Site - too expensive?

[susieh]

I am just curious to understand how many people really take the majority of their meals on the Disney site? We find it far too expensive - I don't mean far too expensive to afford, I mean far too expensive to want to pay their prices.

For us the reason to buy into DVC was to be able to eat in our room if we wanted. We tend to do so for breakfasts most days and then occasionally for lunch or dinner. We've also used the fact than we can store food to make up our own packed lunches and take these to the parks etc.

Coming from the UK I like the opportunity to try different foods we see in the supermarkets etc, and different restaurants in Orlando (Ming Court is a special favourite for example) I can understand US folks not wanting to do this but even allowing for that fact don't people think the prices on site at Disney put them off from eating there too much?

 

[Rex Rules]

Well, with us, our deal is this - I am a SAHM and I cook dinners every day. On vacation, I want to go out to dinner and have someone else make the dinner and clean the mess. I do like to have a fridge and do breakfast in the room. I am not a morning person anyhow.

 

[ryanmilla]

I thought this in the past, but then I got a job in NYC. I started looking at the menus on allears when planning this next trip and noticed the prices were the same or less than what I pay for lunch here. But again, that is NYC prices. We are not known to be cheap either.

I guess it is all relative to what you are used to. But overall, yes, I do think they are more expensive than most places.

 

[crisi]

We live in Minneapolis and prices at WDW are comparable (a little more expensive, but not worth the quibble) to what we pay at home. We eat out. We sometimes do breakfast in the room.

By the time I pay for airfare, park tickets etc, I really don't want to waste time to save $10 - it isn't a "cost effective" savings for me to drive around Orlando to eat. We just budget for a dining.

 

[gppnj]

I thought this in the past, but then I got a job in NYC. I started looking at the menus on allears when planning this next trip and noticed the prices were the same or less than what I pay for lunch here. But again, that is NYC prices. We are not known to be cheap either.

I guess it is all relative to what you are used to. But overall, yes, I do think they are more expensive than most places.

Yes! Unfortunately NYC prices make prices everywhere else seem not so bad.

Traditionally, I've eaten all my meals at restaurants, but now that I've joined DVC, I'm sure that I'll be having breakfast in the room on most days. Even putting the cost saving aside, it's just more convenient. It's easy to have a quick bowl of cereal while the other person is in the bathroom, and then when you leave the room in the morning, everyone is ready to hit the attractions with no further delays.

For other meals, I'm sure I'll continue to eat at the restaurants. Trying new places and returning to my old favorites is part of the fun for me. Then again, in my case, I travel with friends, so all I ever have to pay for is myself. If I had to pay for a whole family, I might think differently.

 

[dsneygirl]

We don't eat out a lot at home. And it's usually at an inexpensive casual restaurant so our vacation time is really time to splurge. Now that we're DVC I think we'll have a lot of breakfasts in the room and maybe snacks but I don't intend to do much cooking on holiday

 

[KelNottAt]

We don't eat out much on vacation, which is one reason DVC was so appealing to us. I'd estimate that for a 21-meal trip, we only eat out about 4 or 5 times. In our opinion, there are several reasons for this:

dining out is more expensive
dining out is more time consuming
dining out is more fattening
dining out usually means we have to make ourselves look presentable

Yes, yes, yes, I know there are plenty of ways to make dining out cheap, quick, and healthy before I take a shower or change out of my bathing suit. For us, I just find that whipping up something in the villa is more enjoyable and easier.

 

[bobbiwoz]

We tend to have breakfasts in the villa, and we may go back to the room for lunches, but we do spend more money on dining out when we're at WDW than when we're home. At home, I think I'm saving for our WDW trips, so we don't go out to eat that much.

DH really likes Fulton's Crab House's crab cakes, I really like going to Artist Point, DH likes the fish at Great Britain in WS, these and others are one reason we like to go to WDW, it's a great place for us to eat out and enjoy each other's company.

We are empty nesters.

Bobbi

 

[lllovell]

We go with a mixture because the kids would flip out otherwise if we had them sit for 3 meals a day in a restaurant (plus - its a terrible waste of time to eat 3 meals in a restaurant daily).

Breakfast is ALWAYS in the room (unless this is what we choose for our one character breakfast during our stay). Lunch tends to be quick and easy sandwiches when we return to our room for break time (my children are still small enough to nap). Dinner is usually out somewhere, but if we are in the parks, a counter service meal is the most quick and efficient time use for us. If we are staying at the resorts or heading to DTD Disney, we do a sit down meal.

I make a few ADRs (PSs lol whatever they are right now!) for our trips, but the kids still like the finger food selections at WDW and by not eating every meal at the parks, I dont feel like we have given them nothing but chicken nuggets and fries for a week.

Breakfast in the room is the best time saver around for us. The kids can eat while hubby and I are getting ready and then we hit the parks first thing for some very laid back play. Lines are great until closer to lunch when we choose to leave anyway. Works out great for us.

Laura

 

[DVCLiz]

Breakfast is always in the room for us, or, more accurately, always in the lobby or the car on the way to the park for the day!!! We buy some things at the resort's store - never stop at a grocery or anything like that on the way in. We keep the fridge stocked with quick breakfast things, snacks like ice cream, and sodas for use in the room at night.

We have always eaten both lunch and dinner on-site. Lunch may vary, but dinner is ALWAYS a sit-down restaurant. We consider this to be part of the fun of the park, for example, at MGM 's 50's Prime Time Cafe, or Cinderellla's Royal Table at MK. I wouldn't ever leave a park just to go back and fix a meal in the room - I'd rather budget for eating out any day!!!!!

I do see your point, though, and if it's your preference to fix meals "at home" - well, that's why they're called "Home Away From Home" resorts!!!! DVC offers such great flexibility that everyone's needs can be met.

 

[MdmMim]

We eat breakfast in our room. However, for all other meals, we eat out.
For us, part of the vacation is enjoying the many, wonderful restaurants, with the different themeing and varied menus.

 

[DVCJEN]

We do continental type breakfast in the room and then have plenty of beverages and snacks. Other meals are generally out.

 

[rocketriter]

I think that value is a very personal matter, since it includes not only dollar cost but also time, effort, as well as the recipes and atmosphere that have always been an important part of what restaurants sell. For our family, sit-down restaurant breakfasts at WDW don't make sense except for a very occasional character meal. Lunches are usually fast food that interrupts our playtime as little as possible. But we love eating dinners at nice restaurants in the parks and resorts, where we value the experience as well as the food. As I said, it's a personal thing.

 

[JimMIA]

Coming from the UK I like the opportunity to try different foods we see in the supermarkets etc, and different restaurants in Orlando (Ming Court is a special favourite for example) I can understand US folks not wanting to do this but even allowing for that fact don't people think the prices on site at Disney put them off from eating there too much?

I don't know how you do it, but many of our friends from across the Pond stay in WDW for two weeks or more. That's more like moving from one home to another, and if we did that, I'm sure we would have a lot more time to spend doing normal things like grocery shopping and cooking. As llovell noted, time is a big factor for us. We can cook at home.

WDW dining is somewhat expensive, and some of it is rather overpriced. But then again, so is a lot of dining anywhere. I had a dinner in Seattle a couple of weeks ago that was overpriced by $35-40.

To us, it's an integral part of the WDW experience to try 2-3 new restaurants each trip. Eating in special places is one of the things that makes the vacation special. Plus the DDE card takes a little bite out of the prices -- at least it pays the tip.

 

[jarestel]

Well, you've hit on one of the great things about DVC... flexibility! For those who don't mind cooking their own meals, it's a very effective way of saving some serious cash. For others who don't even want to see a stove burner light up while on vacation, there are many restaurants available for dining choices.

One of the main things we've learned from our DVC membership is that everyone likes different things and there's no single "best" way of enjoying a DVC membership. What works for some may not work at all for others and what some members find objectionable, others have no problems with. We just go with what works best for us.

 

[Deemarch]

We're from northern NJ and the prices at WDW are basically the same as at home. And since, when we are there I'm on vacation, I don't cook.

 

[LeftCoaster]

I live in Southern California, and the prices at WDW are very comparable to the same "level" of restaurants out here. Alcoholic drink prices there are definately cheaper too.

 

[LeftCoaster]

Traditionally, I've eaten all my meals at restaurants, but now that I've joined DVC, I'm sure that I'll be having breakfast in the room on most days. Even putting the cost saving aside, it's just more convenient. It's easy to have a quick bowl of cereal while the other person is in the bathroom, and then when you leave the room in the morning, everyone is ready to hit the attractions with no further delays.

This is what I do when I'm staying DVC. It's so nice to have a peaceful breakfast on the balcony, even if it's just english muffins and some OJ. And the time efficiency is a plus too.

 

[lllovell]

This is a very interesting read for me. WDW food prices are substantially higher here for where we typically eat (around Atlanta), BUT for similar restaurants quality wise, I suspect its not so different. The BIGGEST difference is that a great restaurant like the sit down ones at WDW would not be so welcoming to my 5 and 3 year old boys!

 

[JohnNJ]

I am just curious to understand how many people really take the majority of their meals on the Disney site?

All of our meals are on-site. We plan our meals as part of the vacation. The only meal we have in our room is when we call room service.