What is the benefit of using disney dollars? Do you get a discount? Or are they just cute :)

What is the benefit of using disney dollars? Do you get a discount? Or are they just cute :)The reason a lot of people use the pre paid dining program is because (they say) they have a difficult time saving and would rather prepay so they know they have their food money. But, they end up having to spend more money for the meals because you don't get change back from the voucher. (If the meal is $8, and you hand over a $10, you don't get change. So, they will buy a rice krispie treat or something they would not have bought just to get the other $2 spent.) Also, the vouchers are good for certain meals. The benefit in this case is you can also prepay Disney Dollars and cards from a Disney store. The other benefit is you get CHANGE back and don't have to overspend. You also don't have to spend your last vouchers on cotton candy and cookies as you leave the park, you can simply convert any extra Disney Dollars to cash.

We did the prepaid plan ONCE. The only benefit I saw at the time was that we got triple disney rewards points off of it (promo from many years ago) and it was rolled into "package" which we got interest free for 6 months.

We have not used it for subsequent visits because of the change issue--see previous posts.

What is the benefit of using disney dollars? Do you get a discount? Or are they just cute :)

they are definitely cute but we use them for a very pragmatic reason; we visit from Australia and thus need to buy foreign currency. By the time we get to DLR we need to withdraw cash from ATMs and these carry a huge whack of transaction fees (for overseas cash withdrawals). instead, as soon as we arrive we head to Town Hall and buy a stack of disney dollars in big demonations, with a credit card. it counts as a normal credit card transaction (not as a cash advance) and is *much* less expensive than withdrawing the same amount in cash from ATMS in dibs and drabs over the week we are at the resort. Everytime we buy something we get change in american dollars which we can then use outside the resort if we need to - its win win for us!

With our package we have the option to do the 5 day meal plan. I like the idea of having our meals already paid for in advance--but don't want to get stuck with vouchers that we can't use.

Does anyone have any experience with this?

Kim

I used to sell these when I worked for WDTC. If you're unsure if you will use all that is offered on the 5 day meal plan you can purchase a 4 or even 3 day meal plan. You use them just like cash except they do not give change. Soooo make sure don't use a dinner voucher for a churro and coke. You can combine vouchers from your total party to pay for meals. It really isn't much of a discount but it is nice to have a majority of your meal expenses prepaid. If you have a specific question just post it, I'm not sure if I answered your question.

You use them just like cash except they do not give change. Soooo make sure don't use a dinner voucher for a churro and coke. You can combine vouchers from your total party to pay for meals. It really isn't much of a discount but it is nice to have a majority of your meal expenses prepaid.
I'm not sure if this is completely accurate, but I recall reading that the meal vouchers are not discounted. So it's a straight-across exchange for buying the food. Coupled with no allowance for change, guests typically end up paying more.
I've never dealt with Disney dollars, but maybe that would be another option for setting aside the meal expenditures ahead of time.

I use meal vouchers about half the time I go. You do save money if you ask me, I save about $45 a person (when I asked I was told you save 10%, and I found it was more like 15%). You can combine vouchers to make the payment almost exact. I usually can get it within a $1 and then I just pay that $ so I do not waste a coupon.

I have a hotel that has a large breakfast buffet and we almost always use up the vouchers. There is no date of the vouchers so if you do happen to have one or two left over you can use them next visit. We have to snacks left over from last trip and we will use them next month when we go.


I like it because when the kids go one way and grandma and baby another and me another we all can get our snacks, and I know the kids eat and not just spend the money on mickey ears.

You also get a charactor breakfast, lunch and dinner. I found this is what you really saved on. When you figure a B is $27.99, a lunch is $27.99 and a dinner is $35.99, and you then add all the other coupons up you do save money. If I had to pay those prices we would not go but since I get almost two of them for free I don't feel guilty.

I use meal vouchers about half the time I go. You do save money if you ask me, I save about $45 a person (when I asked I was told you save 10%, and I found it was more like 15%).
Aha. I stand corrected. Sorry.

I use meal vouchers about half the time I go. You do save money if you ask me, I save about $45 a person (when I asked I was told you save 10%, and I found it was more like 15%). You can combine vouchers to make the payment almost exact. I usually can get it within a $1 and then I just pay that $ so I do not waste a coupon.

I have a hotel that has a large breakfast buffet and we almost always use up the vouchers. There is no date of the vouchers so if you do happen to have one or two left over you can use them next visit. We have to snacks left over from last trip and we will use them next month when we go.


I like it because when the kids go one way and grandma and baby another and me another we all can get our snacks, and I know the kids eat and not just spend the money on mickey ears.

You also get a charactor breakfast, lunch and dinner. I found this is what you really saved on. When you figure a B is $27.99, a lunch is $27.99 and a dinner is $35.99, and you then add all the other coupons up you do save money. If I had to pay those prices we would not go but since I get almost two of them for free I don't feel guilty.
I'm trying to figure out how you save, as you are given a set value on teh vouchers, and you don't get a discount when you purchase meals. That was my problem with the vouchers. As an example, you pay $27.99 for the Character Breakfast voucher. As an AP, if I go to the character breakfast and pay with Disney Dollars (or cash or my credit card, or as an AAA member or a Disney Visa member), its only $23.79. So, that meal alone is $4.20 more per person. For that one meal more my family, thats $21 more right there. You have no discount. I calculated it out, and the value and cost are the same (WDW prepaid plans are very different.)

The character meals vouchers also include tip and tax so you can save money with the those vouchers if you go to the right character meal (Goofy's kitchen is usually the most expensive one). But I think most people get them more for the convience of them not because they are a huge savings.

Christy

I stand corrected. After reading all the post that state you do not save money, I went to the page and worked out the figures and it is now dollar for dollar. Up until a year ago it use to say you saved money and I know I did in Jan. of 2006 and before. I never checked it in Jan 2007, I just bought the plan. So somewhere it has changed.

This time we are not going to use the plan in June. I think if you plan on using it there still are a few benefits that would be up to an individual family. For me it is convinient not to have to hand out money everyday to teenagers who would spend it on something else and then ask me for more when they got hungry. Also we have mom and two teenagers, a two year old and grandma. It is great to have the flexibility of everyone going to a different place and getting what they want but also have coupons that force us to eat as a family every other day at a sit down resteraunt with charactors. I say force because that is what my kids feel when I tell them that is how they have to use those coupons.

I will say that they are more flexible than being lead in these post. We never eat breakfast in the park either and we have always been able to use that coupon for lunch in several of the resteraunts. I will say that is one of the first coupons I try to get rid of since it is one of the only ones that confuses the staff at disney. If they say no I don't argue I just try the next meal. But within a day or two I have always been able to use it. I also turn the charactor breakfast into a charactor lunch and never have a problem with that either. And when it comes to snacks or such if you have more than one person in the party you add the difference things up and it may be worth it to use a $10 coupon rather than a snack one and to use the snack one for the little left over on a meal.

So if you have kids that take off for hours and you would rather them have voucher instead of cash they work great. If you like to have everyone sit down to a meal every other day, they are great. If you like the flexibility of everyone being able to choose a different place to eat it is great (I am one who would never go to four different places with a credit card and pay for four different meals within an hour of each other, my credit bank would be calling me every 10 minutes if I did that), if you like the ability to know how much you need before you go on vacation than it is great. If you do not have disney card, aaa or ap, it is great. If not than I guess there is no more freebee coupons in the stack so it may not be worth it to you.

I stand corrected. After reading all the post that state you do not save money, I went to the page and worked out the figures and it is now dollar for dollar. Up until a year ago it use to say you saved money and I know I did in Jan. of 2006 and before. I never checked it in Jan 2007, I just bought the plan. So somewhere it has changed.

This time we are not going to use the plan in June. I think if you plan on using it there still are a few benefits that would be up to an individual family. For me it is convinient not to have to hand out money everyday to teenagers who would spend it on something else and then ask me for more when they got hungry. Also we have mom and two teenagers, a two year old and grandma. It is great to have the flexibility of everyone going to a different place and getting what they want but also have coupons that force us to eat as a family every other day at a sit down resteraunt with charactors. I say force because that is what my kids feel when I tell them that is how they have to use those coupons.

I will say that they are more flexible than being lead in these post. We never eat breakfast in the park either and we have always been able to use that coupon for lunch in several of the resteraunts. I will say that is one of the first coupons I try to get rid of since it is one of the only ones that confuses the staff at disney. If they say no I don't argue I just try the next meal. But within a day or two I have always been able to use it. I also turn the charactor breakfast into a charactor lunch and never have a problem with that either. And when it comes to snacks or such if you have more than one person in the party you add the difference things up and it may be worth it to use a $10 coupon rather than a snack one and to use the snack one for the little left over on a meal.

So if you have kids that take off for hours and you would rather them have voucher instead of cash they work great. If you like to have everyone sit down to a meal every other day, they are great. If you like the flexibility of everyone being able to choose a different place to eat it is great (I am one who would never go to four different places with a credit card and pay for four different meals within an hour of each other, my credit bank would be calling me every 10 minutes if I did that), if you like the ability to know how much you need before you go on vacation than it is great. If you do not have disney card, aaa or ap, it is great. If not than I guess there is no more freebee coupons in the stack so it may not be worth it to you.Giles, here is how I handled your situation. I used Disney Dollars, AND for my teens, I required receipts. I would send out what I felt was needed for the time apart, then if they wanted more money later, they had to prove they spent the money appropriately (I didn't reimburse for toys...) Yes, you can get a receipt for a churro, have the guy write it on a napkin. I went from doling out money and having starving kids, to them learning this is the only way they get freedom money. It worked out very well for us. I will never forget when we had a friend with us and my son wanted reimbursement for chowder bowls. His friend goes "Receipt, we didn't get a receipt", my sons chimes in "Oh yes I did!" and pulls a receipt (albeit wet from GRR) for their lunch...

Oh, and when I compared them back in 2004, they were dollar for dollar then.

Pros - It is prepaid

Cons -

Too much food, the plan vouchers provide more food than most people eat

No real discount

Losing the voucher is like losing money

No change given back from the vouchers value

Limited choices of where to eat (such as not being valid at the Downtown Disney restaurants).

IMHO, much better to just use your credit card and pay as you go.

It's definately a personal choice, but I agree with Darkbeer. I think he covered the pros and cons...sometimes you also have vouchers that you don't use and they are non-refundable. I like the Disney Gift card or Disney Dollars better. Also I like to be more flexible with my meals.

I have always known the DLR dining plan to be dollar-for-dollar. I check in every trip I go to see if they have changed it up somehow, and they never have. This has been since I started going regularly as an adult in 2001.

When did they start offering this kind of thing? Did they ever have some other plan in place, in the wayback machine?

We just got back and only had a problem with one cashier in 6 days who couldn't figure out how to use 2 vouchers in her computer (near fliks fun fair in DCA).

They worked well for us. we had 5 people for 6 days and bought the 3 day plan. I'd use a snack voucher (worth 6.50) to buy 3 drinks/waters and just pay the little extra when needed.

Now, no, I didn't save money, but it was nice not to "feel" like I was spending a fortune on food since I had prepaid for the plan.