Walt Disney World’s Dining Plan comes in 4 tiers, with prices starting at $55 per night for adults and $26 for kids. This guide covers meal plan pricing, money saving tips, what’s included, whether it’s worth getting, Free Dining dates, and info about the DDP’s temporary suspension. (Updated May 8, 2023.)
Let’s start with the current status of the Disney Dining Plan. The bad news is that it’s not available for booking with 2023 Walt Disney World vacation packages. The good news is that we finally have official confirmation that Walt Disney World is bringing back the Disney Dining Plan in 2024! (Comprehensive details in that post, with key points covered below.)
When it comes to the Disney Dining Plan, the next question is inevitably: “When is Free Dining available?” We answer that question in detail here. It should go without saying since the Disney Dining Plan is temporarily unavailable, there will not be any 2023 Free Dining dates. It’s possible that we’ll see the Free Disney Dining Plan promotion in 2024, but don’t hold your breath on that, either. If you’d like to be notified if/when it’s released or we have more details about the 2024 Disney Dining Plan, sign up here for our FREE Disney newsletter here.
Prior to the return of the Disney Dining Plan in 2024, the DDP had evolved over time; the biggest relatively recent change was the debut of the new Disney Dining Plan Plus, which won’t be available in 2024. Before that, the most significant change was the inclusion of alcoholic drinks on all tiers of the Disney Dining Plans. This is a nice perk for drinkers, but has downsides.
Due to the latter change coupled with menu price increases, the Disney Dining Plan had actually become a better value in the last two years prior to being suspended. That’s discussed below in more detail–as with everything else, it’s up in the air as to whether the 2024 Disney Dining Plan will maintain that edge.
One thing is almost certain about the 2024 Disney Dining Plan: it will cost more money, one way or another. That last part is a bit of an asterisk, as we’re not entirely certain that the sticker price will be higher. For one thing, Walt Disney World is reducing the number of snacks available on the Disney Dining Plans from 2 to 1 per night. So that alone achieves cost-savings for the company.
For another thing, Walt Disney World has already engaged in aggressive culinary cost-cutting, especially at counter service restaurants. They’ve substituted suppliers, changed ingredients, and reduced portion sizes. All of this means that even at the same prices, the Disney Dining Plan will offer less than before–or you’ll have to spend more to get as much, etc.
This should not be a huge surprise, given how inflation has disproportionately impacted food costs. Consequently, menu prices at Walt Disney World have gone up in the last year or so, albeit not to the full degree of inflation. (Perhaps Disney’s annual price increases have put them near the price ceiling for many guests.) In any case, we’d expect Disney Dining Plan pricing to increase by at around 10% across the board as compared to what’s listed here, which reflects price points that are now roughly 2 years old.
Once it comes back, here’s everything else you need to know about the Disney Dining Plan…
We’ve used each tier of the Disney Dining Plan numerous times, usually multiple times per year (the Deluxe is our favorite, for reasons we’ll cover below). Our tips and opinions are based on our first-hand experience with the Dining Plan–we even used the brand-new Disney Dining Plan Plus!
Before we get to dollars and cents, let’s cover some basics. The DDP is a prepaid meal plan offered at Walt Disney World so guests can budget their dining costs in advance and (potentially) save money. It provides guests with credits that can be redeemed for snacks, counter service meals, table service meals, or fine dining meals.
Disney Dining Plan credits are stored on the guest’s MagicBand or Key to the World card, with the receipt provided after redeeming the credits indicating how many credits remain. Gratuity is not included on the Disney Dining Plan, meaning guests need to pay that out of pocket. Otherwise, it’s a fairly all-inclusive meal plan, albeit with some limitations.
Walt Disney World guests purchasing a vacation package with a room and tickets through Disney are eligible to buy the Disney Dining Plan. This means that if you want the DDP, you cannot save money by staying in off-site hotel or by purchasing discount Walt Disney World tickets through a Disney-authorized ticket seller.
Disney Vacation Club members staying on points are also eligible to add-on the Disney Dining Plan, without the purchase of park tickets through Disney (as many of them either have Annual Passes or prefer purchasing discounted tickets through authorized third parties).
Let’s get more into the nitty-gritty of the Disney Dining Plan, starting with the basics: prices and what each plan includes…
Disney Dining Plan Overview
For the purposes of the Disney Dining Plan, a “counter service meal” consists of a combo meal (entree plus side) and beverage, including alcoholic beverages for adults (where available). It no longer includes a dessert. Also as of this date, a counter service meal may also consist of 3 snack items (defined below) in a single transaction.
A “table service meal” consists of an entree, dessert, and beverage, including alcoholic beverages for adults. For those guests on the Deluxe Disney Dining Plan, this also includes an appetizer.
As part of Walt Disney World’s healthy living initiative, the dessert in the table service meal may also be substituted for a side salad, cup of soup, or fruit plate.
A “snack” includes items sold at snack carts around the park or in quick service restaurants. The definition of a snack has been expanded to include any single serving side item, which means more items will now be considered snacks (snacks were previously determined on a case-by-case basis with the DDP symbol (the purple thing above) denoting what was a snack). A snack now includes every side item, hand-scooped ice cream, and many other items that previously did not qualify as snacks.
Tax is always included, but guests pay for tips out of pocket. Two table service meal credits may be used for one Signature Meal, Dinner Shows, Pizza Delivery or Room Service Meal. Children under 3 eat free from an adult’s plate.
Quick Service Disney Dining Plan (AVAILABLE FOR 2024)
The Quick-Service Disney Dining Plan is the lowest tier of the DDP. This is the tier that is typically included with Free Dining at the Value and Moderate Resorts.
For each person on the room reservation, the Quick Service Disney Dining Plan includes:
- two counter-service meals (per night)
- one snack (per night)
- a refillable drink mug (per stay)
The last year it was offered, the per night price of the Quick Service Plan was $55 per adult and $26 per child ages 3-9. Don’t be surprised if the 2024 Quick Service Disney Dining Plan sees a price increase of 5-15%.
Standard Disney Dining Plan (AVAILABLE FOR 2024)
This is the standard tier of the Disney Dining Plan, and what’s typically included with “Free” Dining at the Deluxe and Deluxe Villa Resorts. For the price difference between the plans, you can upgrade from the Free Quick Service Dining Plan to this plan at the Value Resorts.
For each person on the room reservation, the Standard DDP includes:
- one counter-service meal (per night)
- one sit-down meal (per night)
- one snack (per night)
- a refillable drink mug (per stay)
The last year it was offered, the per night price of the Standard Disney Dining Plan was $78.01 per adult and $30.51 per child. Don’t be surprised if the 2024 Disney Dining Plan sees a price increase of 5-15%.
Disney Dining Plan Plus (UNAVAILABLE FOR 2024)
This is the upgraded tier of the Disney Dining Plan, which is best for guests who want to do table service lunch and dinners, or breakfast breakfast and dinners every day of their vacation. For the extra cost, you receive a second table service meal in place of a counter service meal–but you have the option (or “flexibility” as Disney calls it) of simply using those credits at quick service restaurants.
For each person on the room reservation, the DDP+ includes:
- two meals at your choice of table service or counter service restaurants (per night)
- two snacks (per night)
- a refillable drink mug (per stay)
The per night price of the Disney Dining Plan Plus was $94.61 per adult and $35 per child.
Deluxe Disney Dining Plan (UNAVAILABLE FOR 2024)
This is the upper echelon of Disney Dining Plans, and the closest thing Walt Disney World offers to an all-inclusive meal package (albeit not covering tips and other things you may want to order/purchase). By default, no resort tier receives this for Free Dining, but you can pay the difference to upgrade to it.
For each person on the room reservation, the DxDDP includes:
- three meals at your choice of counter service restaurants or table service restaurants (per night)
- two snacks (per night)
- one refillable drink mug (per stay)
The per-night price of the Deluxe Disney Dining Plan was $119 per adult and $47.50 per child during regular season, and more during peak season.
Those on the Deluxe Plan may officially mix their adult and child credits, meaning that child credits may be used for adult entrees. This has long been an unofficial loophole (and remains one for the lower tiers of the plans), but it’s now officially allowed on the Deluxe Plan.
If you have further questions that aren’t answered by these pages, check out Disney’s Dining Plan website. There are comprehensive and unnecessarily complicated PDF documents describing the various plans and their rules. Most importantly, the site has a list of participating restaurants (nearly every restaurant participates).
DDP credits don’t have a set dollar value, and how much they are “worth” widely varies based upon your dining preferences. For example, a table service credit may be redeemed at an inexpensive restaurant for a water, sandwich, and ice cream dessert that would normally cost $23 total. Alternatively, it can be redeemed at a nicer restaurant for a glass of wine, swordfish steak, and Copetta Sotto Bosco that would normally cost $62 total.
These are actual examples from Walt Disney World restaurants, demonstrating the big difference in value a credit may have depending upon at which restaurant and for which menu items it’s redeemed. You could get even less or even more value out of the Dining Plan, depending upon what you order.
By analyzing pricing, we can reverse engineer an approximate value that Disney places on each meal type within the various DDPs. Based upon our calculations, a table service meal is worth approximately $45, a counter service meal on the DDP is worth approximately $21, and a snack is worth approximately $5. (For the purposes of these calculations, we view the refillable mug as a throw-in, since its value could fluctuate widely depending upon length of stay.)
By comparing those dollar amounts to online menus available for Walt Disney World, you can get a pretty good idea of whether the Disney Dining Plan is right for your family. We write a long review below and also have resources for getting more value out of the Dining Plan, but ultimately it’s a personal thing. With those rough numbers, you can do the math for yourself and make an informed decision as to whether the DDP is right for you.
When it comes to the Disney Dining Plan, the most important thing you need to know is how to best utilize these credits so you get better value out of the DDP. For this, see our popular ‘Value Maximization’ posts:
- Top 10 Restaurants for Maximizing Table Service Credit Value
- Top 10 Restaurants for Maximizing Counter Service Credit Value
- Tips for Maximizing Snack Credit Value.
Frequent users of the Disney Dining Plan become pretty adept at getting more bang for their buck, as they know these strategies are the difference between saving hundreds of dollars with the Disney Dining Plan and losing hundreds of dollars with it. With these posts, quick menu review, and some advance planning, first-time visitors to Walt Disney World can also make the most of the Dining Plan!
As noted at the top of the post, the Disney Dining Plan is offered throughout the year for “free” to Walt Disney World guests who purchase a vacation package (this is not offered to Disney Vacation Club members staying on points). Typically, Free Dining is offered for select dates in August through December.
The Free Dining promotion is incredibly popular with Disney fans. However, you need to remember that there’s no such thing as a free lunch. When Free Dining is available, you forfeit another discount that might be offered–like a room-only discount. You’re also locked-in to buying tickets directly from Disney, which means no discount tickets. Suffice to say, you need to do the math and compare the “Free” Dining Plan to other discounts.
Before even booking the Disney Dining Plan, you should determine where you want to eat and secure Advance Dining Reservations (ADRs). It should be easy to see which Disney Dining Plan best suits your needs, or if the Dining Plan is even necessary.
Even for many on-site Walt Disney World guests, the Dining Plan is not the best option. For example, if you want to splurge and stay Club Level (read our Guide to Club Level & Concierge Lounges at Walt Disney World for more info), it’s not a good fit for you. If you primarily want to indulge in Signature Restaurants or fine dining, the Disney Dining Plan isn’t a good choice. Vegans and vegetarians also will not be well-suited by the Disney Dining Plan. (The list goes on…)
For a simple system, it’s surprisingly complex, so don’t feel bad if it takes some reading before you fully understand how the Disney Dining Plan works and whether it is a good fit for your party. If you only anticipate eating inexpensive meals or want to stay on a tight budget, the Dining Plan probably won’t make a lot of sense. But we’ll get to that…
Is the Disney Dining Plan Worth It? – Pros & Cons
Savings – You can save on the Disney Dining Plan, but you have to be a certain type of eater and not waste any credits. If you are a big eater who likes steak and would like to order it at every meal, you can save money with the Disney Dining Plan. This requires that everyone in your party is a big eater, and that all of you use all of your counter service and snack credits wisely. (See our Worst Snack Credit Uses on the Disney Dining Plan list for more on that.)
If your teens are human garbage disposals and the adults in your party love steak, the Dining Plan can offer some savings. As soon as anyone in your party starts ordering chicken or pasta, those savings disappear to the point that you start losing money on the Disney Dining Plan. No matter what they order, a vegetarian will lose money by using the Disney Dining Plan–without exception.
With the addition of alcohol to the Disney Dining Plan, anyone who enjoys a drink or two per day will also come out ahead. The cost of drinks at Walt Disney World restaurants average around $8-14, which is larger than the price increase of the Dining Plans this year. If you get two glasses of wine per day, you’re looking at around $20-25/person more in value every day.
Conversely, if you’re non-drinkers or using the Quick Service Disney Dining Plan and spend most of your time in Magic Kingdom (where alcohol isn’t served at counter service restaurants), you come out behind. Alcohol is the huge new wildcard to the Disney Dining Plan, and can really swing the pendulum of value. Whether that’s in your favor or out of your favor depends almost entirely upon how many alcoholic drinks you enjoy per day.
Speaking of which, the Disney Dining Plan is potentially very valuable for those who visit during Epcot’s International Food & Wine Festival or any other Epcot festival (basically, any month except summer). The good news is that taking advantage of this value does not require drinking–this is all about snacking!
Some of the best snacks at the Epcot festivals can cost as much as $10 and can be purchased using snack credits. We highly recommend stockpiling snack credits and using them during your Epcot days, as not only are these festival snacks a great use of credits, but the Epcot festivals are a ton of fun, and this is a way to avoid the sticker shock of paying out of pocket.
The Deluxe Dining Plan can be utilized well if you follow the strategy of eating breakfast (or an early lunch) at a Table Service restaurant (character breakfasts are great for this) and dinner at a Signature Table Service Restaurant, plus snacks whenever. Read How We Saved 50% on the Deluxe Disney Dining Plan for a specific example of how we’ve leveraged the DxDDP for maximum value!
It’s worth noting that prices have risen dramatically for the Disney Dining Plan since it was introduced, meaning that just because you used it on your last trip ~5 years ago and found it to be a good value, does not mean it’s still a good value. The appetizer and tip were cut ages ago, and prices have increased.
However, the biggest of the price increases occurred a few years ago, and prices have not climbed much since then. It would seem that Walt Disney World has reached its price ceiling (or close to it) with the Disney Dining Plan. Prices are only up slightly, and that has been true of previous years, too. Prior to that, there were some double-digit price spikes.
By contrast, table service menu prices have steadily increased since the introduction of the Disney Dining Plan, and at a higher rate (~15%) than the Disney Dining Plan pricing. This means that the relative value of the Dining Plan versus paying out of pocket actually has improved of late.
Effort – If value is your main concern and you aren’t a steak-addict, it can take a lot of pre-planning to save money by using the Disney Dining Plan. Because the margin of savings can be so low, in many cases the Dining Plan causes guests to order the most expensive item on the menu to get “value” out of the plan.
Same goes for choosing more expensive restaurants. There have times on the Dining Plan when a cheaper menu item sounded good, but there was that lingering thought in the back of my mind that if I didn’t order something more expensive, the Dining Plan would actually cost us more than paying out of pocket.
This blog alone has at least 10 articles about the Disney Dining Plan, and we could probably have another couple dozen and still have people asking us questions. Saving money on the Disney Dining Plan requires a good amount of pre-planning or knowledge of how to work the system if you’re just a normal eater.
It’s good to pre-plan where you want to eat at Walt Disney World regardless of whether you’re on the plan (not all restaurants are equal and you’ll need ADRs for some), so that’s not necessarily a bad thing, but using the Dining Plan increases the amount of pre-planning that’s necessary–if you care about saving money. We’ve found that we normally save more with the Tables in Wonderland card than the Dining Plan, and the former requires no pre-planning maximization effort.
Amount of Food – One common complaint is that the Disney Dining Plan often “forces” guests to eat more than they want. While Sarah and I are both big eaters, at times, the Dining Plan is just too much food. There have been occasions when we otherwise would have eaten small counter service meals, but because we had the credits to use, we have eaten at Table Service restaurants. Not only did this result in over-consumption, but it also burned valuable vacation time.
If you have a short trip and want to experience as many attractions as possible, this is something to keep in mind. While you can get value out of the Disney Dining Plan, that savings requires sitting down for longer meals and eating a lot of food. If you don’t normally eat as much food as the DDP provides, you aren’t actually saving money–the savings are illusory. You’re over-consuming in the name of (false) savings.
Convenience – Many visitors argue that the Disney Dining Plan is about convenience. We contend that it is not convenient. In terms of convenience, look at it this way: you’re reading an in-depth article about using the Disney Dining Plan, and you’ll probably read other such articles.
How many articles have you read titled “Paying for Meals with Cash Info & Tips”? Hopefully none. A convoluted credit system cannot possibly be more convenient than the universal standard of paying money for a billed amount. It just can’t.
Budgeting – This is probably the most contentious point. In addition to supposedly being convenient, a lot of its fans advocate the Disney Dining Plan because it helps them stay on a budget and avoid thinking about money on vacation. Again, this doesn’t pass the smell test.
In most cases, when people try to stay on a vacation budget, it’s because there is a need for that budget. Overspending might cause financial strain. Viewed in that light, the Disney Dining Plan doesn’t help with a budget, it helps with predictability. Meals cost the same amount every night, regardless of what’s consumed.
If you’re on a tight budget and you’d normally spend $35 per person per night on food if you paid out of pocket, but you end up spending ~$60+ per person per night on food with the DDP, isn’t that predictability doing you more harm than good?
The Disney Dining Plan allows you to fall back on this predictability and ‘turn off’ your brain with regard to how much dining costs on vacation. If you don’t want to worry about money, purchase (discounted!) Disney Gift Cards before the trip. While we don’t advocate making that psychological disconnect between actual and “fake” money, if you really don’t want to think about money, go that route.
We will be blunt: if you are too lazy to make a dining budget before your trip, chances are you’re too lazy to figure out where to dine to maximize your value. Given that, you’ll probably end up saving more money with the gift card method.
Sticker Shock – Even if you’re not on a tight budget, menu prices at Walt Disney World can be a bit…shocking. The psychological disconnect we mentioned above isn’t always a bad thing, particularly if you want to splurge or have financial means, but can’t bring yourself to order certain items when directly paying menu prices.
The Disney Dining Plan won’t scare you away from expensive menu items. If you love filet mignon, but would shy away from ordering it upon seeing the menu price, the Disney Dining Plan might be for you. However, you might have some sticker shock when you see the nightly prices of the Dining Plan, in the first place…
Conclusion
Overall, whether the Disney Dining Plan is right for you is a personal decision based on a lot of variables. We estimate that for the majority of guests, it is not a good value. This doesn’t mean it’s not a good product, as it will offer monetary savings for some families, and psychological comfort for plenty of others. I can’t say whether the DDP is right for your particular circumstances, but hopefully the considerations above can help with your decision. If you use the Disney Dining Plan for your vacation, make sure you do your homework and plan accordingly!
If you are still unsure of whether the Disney Dining Plan might be right for you—or need personalized help with any aspect of your trip from hotels to the DDP and more—we recommend contacting a no fee “Authorized Disney Vacation Planner” (basically, Disney’s term for a travel agent) to get a quote and to help you plan. They get their commission from Disney, so none of the authorized (key word) planners will charge you for booking their trip and helping. Here’s one such recommended Authorized Disney Vacation Planner.
With regard to the Disney Dining Plan and restaurants in general, this article is just a jumping off point. First-time Walt Disney World visitors often underestimate the importance of planning (especially for restaurants, many of which are booked solid months in advance) and have a bad time because they didn’t plan enough. Want more dining recommendations? Check out our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. For info on whether the DDP is right for you, read our Ultimate Guide to the Disney Dining Plan. For comprehensive vacation advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
What is your experience with the Disney Dining Plan? Thinking about buying the 2024 Disney Dining Plan once it becomes available? Does the DDP work for you? Is it a bad fit for your family? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment? Any questions? Hearing your feedback–even when you disagree with us–is both interesting to us and helpful to other readers, so please share your thoughts below in the comments!
