Walt Disney World Dining Plan

If you are staying at a Disney resort hotel, then you can purchase a range of different dining plans depending upon your budget and your tastes. Not forgetting your waistline !!

Disney's Dining plans are designed to make it easier and more affordable to eat whilst within the Walt Disney World Resort hotels and parks (though see restrictions and exclusions below).

Disney's Dining Plan Overview

With a typical Disney theme park or resort table service meal costing $35 or more per person, you can typically save around 30% on your food budget with a dining plan if you intend to spend most of your vacation within Walt Disney World itself.

2010 Disney Dining Plans at a glance

Per day/night	Quick Service Dining Plan	Dining Plan	Deluxe Dining Plan
Adult cost	$31.99	$41.99 to 46.99	$71.99
Child cost	$9.99	$11.99 to 12.99	$20.99
Number of snacks	2	1	2
Quick Service meals	2	1	3 from either Quick Service or Table Service
Table service meals	-	1
Refillable resort mug

On this page you will find details of how the Dining Plan works, the restrictions and exclusions and the changes made for 2010. You can also read about the differences between the various dining plan packages and how you can use your different meal credits to eat at all the different types of restaurants.

The dining plans cover most eateries at the four theme parks, both water parks, Downtown Disney Marketplace, some of the Disney Golf Courses and all the official Walt Disney World Resort hotels except the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin.

The Disney Dining Plan is accepted at over 100 quick service and table service restaurants throughout Walt Disney World including character dining. You can also purchase snacks from outdoor food carts and other locations selling frozen ice cream novelties, popcorn and Coca-Cola® products.

How the Disney Dining Plan Works

When you book your Disney vacation package, you can purchase a dining plan for each member of your party for the duration of your stay as part of your Magic Your Way ticket package.

You are then allocated a certain number of different meal type credits, depending on the dining plan you have purchased. For example the normal plan gives you one snack, one quick service meal and one table service meal for each night of your vacation but you don't have to use them in a particular order. They are allocated across the whole duration of your stay.

When looking for snack options, just look out for the Disney Dining Plan logo.

When you arrive at the restaurant or food outlet, at the time of placing your meal or snack order, you redeem the appropriate meal type credit against your dining plan allowance.

Your receipt then shows the remaining balance of each meal type. At any time, you can contact the hotel concierge for an up to date balance.

You do not have to use one of each type per day, you can combine and spend them as required. This means you can use them in any order until they are all gone or until midnight on the day of checkout when they automatically expire.

New for 2010

For 2010, Disney have introduced a two-tier pricing structure for their mid-range Dining Plan. During peak season, the prices for the Disney Dining Plan go up from $41.99 to $46.99.

Note that none of the Dining Plans include gratuities or appetizers.

Pros and Cons of a Disney Dining Plan

One of the big advantages is that you pay for all your food in advance which makes it easier to budget and if you eat all of your allowance then you will save about 30-40% on the cost of the food you eat.

Of course one of the disadvantages is it might encourage you to eat more than you would normally (and effectively spend more than you would), especially if you purchase the Deluxe Dining Plan, as you feel obliged to use up your allowance.

Exclusions and Restrictions

The Disney Dining Plans are flexible but there are a certain number of exclusions and restrictions: