Do campers use the dining plan or refillable mugs??

pinkcheezit

Earning My Ears
Joined
May 16, 2013
We are used to using the dining plan when staying at Disney resorts, we love the convenience of it and we love the refillable mugs. Are there campers who use the dining plan and like it? What about refillable mugs, are they not practical since the resort is so big filling them up might take too long? Do most campers take care of all of their own food?
Thanks for the input!
 
Mug purchases are more popular on this board than the Dining Plan.

For us in the campsites, we have brought our kitchens with us for the most part. So we can eat as much or little as we want and as healthy as we want when we want or choose to dine out. Some of us dine out a little (like me) and some people eat out every day (hello Joy and Robert). Of course the cabins have a full kitchen and dishwasher which is awesome.

The one thing about the Dining Plan and the Fort is that there are limited choices at that Resort. There are a couple items at the Take Out side of Trails End that qualify. The food hut at the main pool has a few meals that qualify. But for variety and change of pace, most people have to go get on a boat or bus and hit up the options at Wilderness Lodge or the Contemporary. That is when you around the Fort for the day that is.

Various discussions on the DIS Dining board seem to agree the Dining Plan doesn't save you money unless you intentionally try to maximize it. It is a pre-paid convenience tool that makes Disney money. Since we all travel with a fridge, a stove, a bbq grill, and the proverbial kitchen sink, Fort guests generally don't go for the Dining Plan.

Just sayin'. :confused3

Bama Ed

PS - oh and the other knock is there is not late night food options. The pool hut doesn't keep late hours and the type of guests who stay late and close down the parks don't have ANY food options at the Fort if they get back after about 10pm.

EDIT - IIRC there is a food truck at the Fort that started in the last year or so that moves its location within the Fort at times. So maybe there's more options than I thought. Still not much chatter about DP tho.
 
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What about refillable mugs, are they not practical since the resort is so big filling them up might take too long?

We buy the refillable mugs when we go to the Fort. There are only 2 places in the campground to fill at, the Meadows pool snack bar, and at the Settlement where Trails End is. I don't recall if the Meadows store has a refill station, but they do have coffee. The refill station at the pool has your standard Coke, Diet Coke etc. The refill station at the Settlement also has that but they have PIBB also. :drinking1
 
When camping, we make our own coffee and have whatever other drinks we want in the fridge. Breakfast in the camper, and maybe another lunch or dinner here and there but typically we eat at TS for dinner. Our favorite meal is getting the take out fried chicken meal from Trails End.
 


We did the Dining plan last trip, as it was DW and I, but we were being park ninja's. So we wanted to not come back to the trailer but at the end of the day. This trip we mixed in a few meals at the camper and dining out, so no DP. As for mugs, it is just not convenient when you have a fridge in your trailer. And well at 18 bucks per person, I can get a dozen cases of soda when on sale for that price.
 
The DW and I decided to do the DP this trip. Like Chris said, it will be just me and the DW and we plan on making the most of our times in the parks. The convenience of the DP will keep us from having to trek back to the Fort. This is the first time we have used the DP in several years. Will probably be the last time for several more years. Like Bama Ed stated, the DP is not a money saving venture, more of a convenience. I'm not sure how long you would have to stay at WDW to actually get your $18.00 worth from the refillable mugs. I would be willing to do the research though :cool1:

Steve
 
Before the changes to the DP and the food we always got it. Now we never do. We do get the mugs every trip. Mostly for collecting and not getting our $ worth.
 


Well it's just the DW and I now and as we have gotten older, we don't eat near as much as we used to so the dining plan is not for us. We enjoy just "snacking" around the parks. On our off days, we cook at the camper or eat premade that we brought from home, (think Runza here). Last trip, Dec 2014, one of our off days, we brought a Prime Rib from home, cooked it on the portable traeger at the campground, canned green beans from home and baked potato. Couldn't have asked for a better meal and a lot cheaper than a sit down in any park. With a refridge and cooler, the refillable mug, other than a souvenir wouldn't be very cost effective.
 
Dining plan killed the variety and quality of the food at Disney. Just my opinion.

My camper has an outdoor kitchen for a reason, and I use it. The money we save by NOT doing the dining plan more than pays for fuel and probably big chunk of resort fees.

We don't buy any extra food than normal. In other words, we buy the same stuff from the grocery to put in the camper as we would have if we'd been at home. The difference is that we change our meals to easier to prepare, such as more crackpot meals. We can mix it up, turn it on, and go to the park. Return later and have a meal. Rest a bit, then go do something else.

If we grill then I usually cook a couple days worth of stuff at once. Chicken, steaks, burgers, etc. Cook it all at once. Refrigerate leftovers and just microwave for the next meals.

Unless Disney makes that dining plan actually save money (which it doesn't anymore) or increases the quality of it we won't use the plan unless staying at another resort.

Now we do book a few table meals each trip, but these are usually character meals for the kids.
 
I'm not sure how long you would have to stay at WDW to actually get your $18.00 worth from the refillable mugs.

Can't remember for sure how much the refill mugs are, but for round numbers let's say 18.00 plus Fl tax, tourist tax and what ever, 20.16 per mug. Now, we by 3 each trip for a grand total of about 60.48, give or take. We are there minimum 10 days, and I know its not all that convenient, but, where in Disney are you going to by a soda or three for 6.50 per day. Your not. Now, how much would the same 60.48 buy at the store, a lot. And, you can take your refillable mug to the other resorts ( hotel that is ) while you are hopping around on the monorail and refill there also.

Not trying to start any arguments, just saying. :confused3
 
Can't remember for sure how much the refill mugs are, but for round numbers let's say 18.00 plus Fl tax, tourist tax and what ever, 20.16 per mug. Now, we by 3 each trip for a grand total of about 60.48, give or take. We are there minimum 10 days, and I know its not all that convenient, but, where in Disney are you going to by a soda or three for 6.50 per day. Your not. Now, how much would the same 60.48 buy at the store, a lot. And, you can take your refillable mug to the other resorts ( hotel that is ) while you are hopping around on the monorail and refill there also.

Not trying to start any arguments, just saying. :confused3

Totally agree with not being able to buy a soda (or three) for $6.50 a day at Disney. That is why we choose to carry a 24oz Thermos full of ice and water. There are several places throughout Disney like the Electric Umbrella at EPCOT where you can refill with ice and water for free. My point on whether it is worth the $18.00 is due to the relative small amount that the cups hold. How many times would you need to refill them to come close to the $18.00 cost. I always carry a book bag with a couple of bottled waters along with a few snacks. You can buy a lot of bottled water for $60.00. We don't do a lot of resort hopping while at Disney. We would mainly be using them while at the Fort. If these cups could be refilled in the parks then that would be a different story. Again, we are going to try and stay in the parks as much as is enjoyable. Hopefully the DP will help. The mugs are a bonus for us using the DP.
Steve
 
The DW and I decided to do the DP this trip. Like Chris said, it will be just me and the DW and we plan on making the most of our times in the parks. The convenience of the DP will keep us from having to trek back to the Fort. This is the first time we have used the DP in several years. Will probably be the last time for several more years. Like Bama Ed stated, the DP is not a money saving venture, more of a convenience. I'm not sure how long you would have to stay at WDW to actually get your $18.00 worth from the refillable mugs. I would be willing to do the research though :cool1:

Steve

When calculating the value of the mug I always value it as an $18 souvenir. The coffee or soda is a plus as I can create that in my resort room or at a campsite. It's my Disney memory on my way to work in the morning filled with home brewed coffee!
 
This trip that just concluded the Dining plan for the 10 days was 1300 dollars on top of tickets and all. Our total groceries for the camper, a few meals in Disney including CRT and 3 prints/tshirts/etc. and we spent about 900 dollars. We have enough groceries left in the camper for us and the nephews for a camping trip this weekend, and there are plenty of snacks also left in there. So we still did not spend even what the dining plan would have cost us for the 10 days.
 
Just wonderin' here - but do they still have that horrid instant coffee available to fill your cups with? I think it was called "Nescafe". <--Oops, am I allowed to even use words like that on a family board?
 
This is just my opinion. When we stayed in the cabins or another resort the dining plan was THE way to go. Our furry ones weren't with us and it was after all OUR VACATION. My wife makes a great dinner every night and she deserves it. Now with AP's and TIW we do one major meal Late lunch or early dinner at a restaurant and all the rest in the camper. She pre-makes some things others we do on a grill or crock pot.
As for the refillable mug. i am in the same camp as Judique I got a great souvenir mug I use all year long. That is my coffee cup for the ride to work. What I take for my ride to work and get discounted refills when I stop at Wawa or Royal Farms and while on my way to my regular Good Mommy and Daddy club meetings For me it on of the best values on property. Again only my opinion
 
Just wonderin' here - but do they still have that horrid instant coffee available to fill your cups with? I think it was called "Nescafe". <--Oops, am I allowed to even use words like that on a family board?
I think anything on property that was Nescafe is Joffrey's now.
 
are there other options of drinks besides soda and coffee that can be filled in the mugs?
 

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