So you've heard the news! Disney World is bringing back the Dining Plans from 1 January 2024. Now with the dining plans returning, you might be wondering if the Disney Dining Plan at Disney World is worth the price! Let's break down all the information for you.
Firstly, come over and join my Disney Mums and Dads Facebook group for all your Disney Parks planning. There's so much helpful information in the group that you won't want to miss! Secondly, if you don't have park tickets sorted, I recommend KLOOK! They have the best pricing, feedback and ease of booking for us Australians heading to a Disney Park.
If you're planning your first trip to Disney World, check out this post on how much it costs to visit Disney World from Australia!
What is the Disney Dining Plan?
Disney Dining is a prepaid plan offered at Walt Disney World so guests can pre pay their dining costs in advance and potentially save money at the same time. You can only book the Disney Dining Plan if you are staying on site and have purchased park tickets. So that means, if you are staying off site or at a good neighbour resort, you won't be eligible to purchase the Disney Dining Plan.
It provides you with Disney Dining credits that can be redeemed for snacks, counter service meals, table service meals and fine dining meals. The credits are stored on your MagicBand or Key to the World card, with the receipt provided after redeeming the credits indicating how many credits remain. Gratuity (tips) is not included in the Disney Dining Plan, meaning you will need to pay that out of pocket.
The dining plan can be added to your vacation package at any time prior to your check-in. Once you have checked into your room, they cannot be added.
How Much Are The Disney Dining Plans?
Quick Service Disney Dining Plan is USD $57.01 per adult and USD $23.83 per child (ages 3 - 9).
For each person on the room reservation, the quick service plan includes the following:
- 2 counter service meals (per night)
- 1 snack/non alcoholic drink (per night)
- 1 refillable drink mug (per stay)
Beverages are included with each meal, which includes beer, wine or cocktails for 21+ and non-alcoholic drinks for those under 21. You can view the quick service locations and menus HERE.
Standard Service Disney Dining Plan is USD $94.28 per adult and USD $29.69 per child (ages 3 - 9).
For each person on the room reservation, the standard service plan includes the following:
- 1 counter service meal (per night)
- 1 sit down meal (per night)
- 1 snack/non alcoholic drink (per night)
- 1 refillable drink mug (per stay)
Beverages are included with each meal, which includes beer, wine or cocktails for 21+ and non-alcoholic drinks for those under 21. You can view the Standard Disney locations HERE.
How To Use Your Meal Credits?
Here's how you can use those Credits: Items will be marked with a Disney Dining icon noting what is included in the Disney dining plan.
Quick Service Meal Credits: They can be used at any Quick/Counter Service restaurant. These are all of the places you order at the counter and or place a mobile order. The Dining Credit will (generally) include an entree, a side, and a drink.
Table Service Meal Credits: They can be used at all sit down restaurants. For menu ordering based restaurants, the Disney Dining Credit will (generally) include an entree, a side, and a drink. For any fixed price meal (such as your buffets and most character meals), the Dining Credit will include the full meal. Note: Some Table Service restaurants actually cost 2 credits per person to eat there.
Snack Credits: They include anything that would be considered a snack (essentially, most all non main meal foods). Candy, desserts, fruit and certain drinks. The list is pretty long and varies by restaurant/food stand. There is always a Disney Dining Plan icon on the menu noting what is considered a snack.
Is The Disney Dining Plan Worth It?
The Disney Dining Plan doesn't necessarily mean you will save money. The dining plan is all about convenience and having your meals pre-paid, but for that alone, I think the dining plans are worth it for us Australians travelling to Disney World. Knowing that all of the food is pre-paid and not having to track your food budget, would make planning and saving for the Disney trip so much easier. After crunching the numbers for my family using the Quick Service Plan, it would definitely save us a few dollars and in USD, that adds up. If you can afford to add a Disney Dining Plan on to your trip, I would definitely do it.
Things You Need To Know!
- Refillable mugs are not fillable at parks and can only be filled at Disney resorts.
- The Disney Dining Plans do not give you special access, nor do they restrict you, to any restaurant. If you don’t want to purchase the Dining Plan, you just pay for your meals out of pocket.
- Credits are based on the number of nights booked, not days in the park and must be used by midnight on check out.
- Credits can be accumulated over your stay, so you could use all your Dining Credits in the first two days or save them all for the end, or use one per day.
- Table Service meals can be reserved from 60 days before the check-in day. So you need to plan where you will be and where you want to eat each day in advance. You can change reservations, but you may not get what you want.
- In the past, Disney World has had promotions where the dining plan is free, so let's hope we can see some of those same deals pop up in 2024.
Have a magical day!
*This post may contain affiliate links where I receive a small commission if booked using my referral link.
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