Do you REALLY save money on the dining plan?

To dining plan or not to dining plan...that is the question.

Many of the families I work with are gung ho about signing up for the dining plan, and others are more than a little suspicious. Critics of the dining plan site its cost, the overabundance of food and not wanting to be “tied down” to dining reservations so far in advance. While all of that is absolutely true, I decided to wear the hat of my number crunching husband. I took the practical approach to see if the dining plan actually saved us money. Turns out, for our family, the dining plan is not only a winner, but a BIG winner.

We opted to go for the Regular Dining Plan, often called “Plus Dining”, which consists on one table service meal, one quick service meal, and one snack per day for each night of our resort stay. This plan made the most sense for us because I like to have one sit down, relaxing meal each day. In fact, it is my favorite part of the day. I love to be face to face with the family and talk about what we loved, what we didn’t and what we are looking forward to the next day. After we order, I have been known to discreetly pull out the video camera and do a quick interview with the kids. I love hearing about the day in their own words while it is still fresh. I like the break, the “forced” time out from the world to relax and really talk.

Another reason the dining plan makes sense for our family is that I hate nasty surprises. My thought going into the trip that I would either break even or come out slightly ahead cost wise with the dining plan (Boy was I wrong, I came out WAY ahead!). I signed up any way because I wanted to know exactly what our food costs were going to be.  The husband I and decided that even if we ultimately spent a little bit more on the dining plan, it would be worth having as a sort of "insurance" policy.  Also, I like to splurge a little on vacation and Idid not want to “settle” for the hamburger when I really wanted the steak. It was a good feeling knowing that meals were budgeted and paid for in advance. We could order whatever we wanted off the menu guilt-free….no surprises…no sticker shock.

To be fair, the critics of the dining plan do have some reasonable points. If you have paid for so many table service meals, you want to make sure you use them, which requires dining reservations…which requires advance planning. Of course, if you want to eat at any particular tables service restaurant, you will need a dining reservation whether or not you are on the dining plan! I also tend to plan most of my park days well in advance any way. While I do not necessarily believe in scheduling every second, I do not like crowds, so for most days I pick my park based on crowd levels…once I pick my park my dining falls into place.

Assuming that you are going to eat one sit down meal every day, the most compelling argument against the dining plan is the cost and the “too much food” aspect of the plan. So I dutifully saved my receipts and crunched the numbers. I looked at the numbers in two ways…what I actually ordered vs what I would have paid and what I would have ordered if I were not on the dining plan vs what I would have paid. If I were not on the dining plan, we might have shared a snack instead of buying more to take home with us, we would certainly have skipped dessert at lunch, and instead of my husband and I both ordering dessert at dinner, we would have gotten one to share.

I figured that I would have come out ahead on the apples to apples comparison, but what if I compared apples and oranges?  What if I compared the cost of the dining plan to what I would have ordered as if I had to pay on the spot? Would that 1 dessert and 1 snack for the family to share ultimately mean the dining plan cost us more than it was worth?

Well...let’s see… I used our first 4 park days as an example since we ate one quick service and one counter service meal each day. I totaled up what we ate and subtracted the cost of the dining plan to see the savings. To be fair, I did order more than I would have if I were not on the dining plan so I subtracted out the “extras” that we would have passed if left to our own devices.

So over our first four days, we saved over $280 on dining! If you subtract out the extras we still would have saved over $190! I must admit that I was really surprised at the savings. I honestly thought we would come close to breaking even or maybe end up getting out snacks “free” out of the deal.

To be fair, if we were not on the dining plan, I might have chosen some less expensive restaurants. For example, I might have traded in Liberty Tree Tavern for the Plaza. I also may forced my kids to eat from the kids menu. But I am sure that I still would have kept some of my favorite higher end restaurants in the mix. Of course, some of those snacks that I subtracted from my end of day total went to buying rice crispie treats to bring back home as little gifts…so that savings would ultimately have been added back into my souvenir budget.

For our family the biggest savings was a result of having children under the age of 9 on the dining plan and eating at buffet restaurants. The cost of the kids dining plan is $11.99. The cost of some dinner buffets is $14.99-16.99. So we came out several dollars ahead with just one meal! Also, Disney does not distinguish between adult and child counter service credits, so if my kids preferred something on the adult menu, I allowed them to order it. While Disney policy states that kids under 9 should order from the kids menu when available, every cast member when asked, allowed me to order from the adult menu for my kids.

So is the dining plan for you? I give you an enthusiastic “YES!” if one or more of the following is true:

• You plan to sit down and eat one meal a day.
• You have a budget that is important to adhere to.
• You have kids in the 3-9 age range.
• You enjoy eating from the "higher end" of the menu.
• You enjoy eating at "higher end" restaurants.

And if all of the above are true - you are crazy NOT to be on the dining plan!

If I can help you with your vacation planning please contact me at TMC Travel or by email.  As always there is no fee for my services!

Aloha! Welcome to Disney's Polynesian Resort - Part II: Tokelau

I hope you enjoyed Part 1 of my review of Disney's Polynesian Resort.  In case you missed it, be sure to click here to catch up.  Now for more specifics about the Tokelau building and my Garden View room...

After consulting the Tikiman Pages, I requested the Tokelau building. I chose this building for it's fairly central location, large rooms, and patio/balcony options. The room itself was clean, comfortable, and spacious - which was important since we were planning an full week of "family togetherness".

I also liked the general layout of the room. As you open the door you walk down a mini hallway with the bathroom on one side and a wall of storage on the other. The "storage wall" consisted of two closets, one with double rods and the other with a single rod, safe, and shelving unit. In between the closets was a mini fridge, with counter area and coffee station. It is nicely designed and very functional.

The main part of the room featured a desk area with a chair large mirror over it. This served as a nice make up/dressing area, freeing up the bathroom area for showers, saving and, you know, other stuff. Next to the table was a nicely sized dresser with 6 drawers. An HD television hung over the dresser, and a small, but useful shelf over that.

We had two comfy queen sized beds, a day bed that easily converted to a comfortable twin size bed (no bar in your back!) a chaise type lounge, upholstered chair, and drum shaped table. (I cannot tell you how much the 4 year old enjoyed her "Congo Drum"). Outside on the balcony were an pair of chairs and a small table.  I do wish that the "Congo Drum" table were more dining table height instead of coffee table height.  Watching my girls hunched over in the chair while trying eat their cereal off the low table made me nervous.

With the dark browns, burnt orange tones,and dark blues the room felt rather dark. While the room itself showed minor wear and was quite clean, the dark colors left me feeling like there was a possibility that it could be "hiding" a lot. Of course, that is my hotel room neuroses talking.

The bathrooms were spacious and clean as well, but they are about due for a face lift. A corner of the wall paper was peeling up and the artwork was warped from constant moisture exposure and was beginning to peel. Both quite minor and very cosmetic. I must say that the back of the bathroom door was in very bad shape. The paint was peeling off the back in a pretty significant way. Again, this is just a cosmetic issue due to moisture, but I feel it should probably be addressed. For a room that goes for $385 in the value season and over $600 at peek times, I expect a little more. To be fair, I did not bring the issues to the attention of hotel management, as they truly were cosmetic in nature, and while it effected my overall impression of the resort, it did not effect my enjoyment of it.

We did have a minor issue that did effect our enjoyment of the room. There was a large wet spot right out side the bathroom door the night we checked in. Of course, I noticed it as I was unpacking the last of our stuff when I stepped into the bathroom and nearly broke by neck by slipping of the floor. (OK, that is a bit dramatic, but I slipped enough that my heart beat a little faster!) I pointed it out to bell services a few minutes later when they delivered our groceries. The very kind man apologized, said he would bring it to the attention of management and they would move us to a "much better room". I would normally light up at such a possibility but a) I had just finished unpacking, b) it was time for the kiddos to go to bed, and c) I was trying to ditch the rest of the family and head off to the Magic Kingdom to watch Wishes solo! I thanked him for the offer, but just asked that they just take care of the problem in the morning. When I returned later that evening I noticed several towels had been laid down and they brought in a fan to dry things out the next morning. Problem solved...or so I thought.

What I should have realized and what they certainly should have realized was that a puddle in that particular location was an indication of something else going on. On day 3 of our trip we return "home" to a funky smell. I finally figured out that the refrigerator was broken and the contents had spoiled. Unfortunately, my husband did not notice that he gave our children vaguely warm yogurt (eewww!!!) for breakfast that morning. Fortunately, no body got sick. While I think the staff should probably have known what that puddle meant, I must stay the issue was handled was appropriately. I called bell services and explained the problem. Within minutes, a new refrigerator was delivered, the spoiled food removed and I was sent to the lobby to explain what happened. The desk agent apologized for the problem and offered a $50 credit to the room for my trouble and the spoiled groceries. The carpets were cleaned the next morning as soon as we cleared out for the day. The mini fridge break down was certainly beyond their control, but it did cause me a bit of inconvenience. The $50 credit replaced the groceries with enough left over for me to get a few pins. While I would have preferred to spend that credit on some extra undies, I left happy.

As much as I did enjoy the Polynesian, there were a few other "misses" during our stay. We arrived prior to check in and our room was not yet ready, which was fine. We got our key anyway, checked our luggage with bell services and headed off to the parks with the promise that we would receive a text message telling us our room number. Unfortunately, the text was never sent and we had to stand in line again to find our our room assignment, then head over to bell services to ask that our stuff be sent up. Overall, that process could have been a little more smooth, but was just a minor bump.

I was also a little bothered by the cleanliness of the public areas in our longhouse. While the "Mousekeeping" staff did a great job with our room, and left a lot of wonderful towel creations for my little princesses, the seating area in front of the elevators and the elevator itself seemed a bit neglected. If someone read a newspaper while enjoying a soft drink in the common area at 1:00 and left their trash behind, it would not be cleaned up until the next morning. Yuck! At a place known for their service and attention to detail this just seemed a bit odd. A gum wrapper will not remain on Main Street USA for more than 2 minutes, yet a crumpled up newspaper and an empty soda can will sit around the resort for 20 hours? And the elevator was just plain old dirty. There was dirt and dust in the corners and a sticker stuck to the floor for the duration of our stay. Clearly, nobody has been assigned "ownership" of these areas, and it shows.

On a humorous note, I have never stayed in a hotel with attractive carpet in the hallways.  Never.  I am not sure why hotels feel compelled to have tacky carpet.  Perhaps it is to urge people to leave the hallways and move along to their rooms?  In any event, in this respect, the Polynesian does not disappoint...in fact, it may take things to a whole new level!

Finally, I must mention the staff. Other than the fridge snafu, we had very normal contact with the staff. I must say that I found everyone to be friendly and helpful. I was always greeted with a smile and an "Aloha!" from everyone we met - or even passed on the sidewalk.  It is clear that the staff is dedicated and cares about their work.  When I asked the husband to list some Polynesian "stand outs", the staff was one of the first things he mentioned.

Overall, we really enjoyed the Polynesian.  While I cannot say that everything was absolutely perfect, I can say that our overall experience was wonderful. I pride myself on honest opinions, so if I have a "nitpicky" thought or if I thought something could have been better, I will certainly share it.  However, I do want to be clear that sometimes I really am "nitpicking".  I think the way a resort staff handles and unexpected problem or issue far out weighs whether or not there is peeling paint on the bathroom door.  Based on that, I would happily stay at the Polynesian again, and feel comfortable recommending it.  In fact, my husband fears we may have made a fatal error...Once you stay deluxe, especially on the monorail, it is going to be really hard to go back to anything else!

I would love to help you plan your next visit to the Polynesian or to any other resort!  TMC Travel offers the same rates (and discounts) as if you booked through Disney directly, but with lots of extras.  Please Email me if I can help!

Check out TMC Travel's You Tube Channel to view my Polynesian slide show.  Double click on the video to open in a new window.

Aloha! Welcome to Disney's Polynesian Resort - Part I

Last month we got to spend a 8 days and 7 nights at Disney's Polynesian Resort.  I am a summer time, beach loving girl, so the Polynesian's themeing seemed like a perfect fit for my little beach babies and me (especially in the winter!)  Of course, the husband came along too, but as long as he has a pillow and a clean room, he could care less where he stays.

As a general disclaimer, even though I am a blogger and a travel agent, I was flagged as neither during my stay.  I booked my travel using a PIN code in my husband's name.  I did not get any sort of industry discount nor did I flash a business card or anything else that would identify me.  So this is 100% my experience as an average family visiting the Polynesian for a week....I was totally "incognito" (feel free to insert the Mission Impossible theme song here)

Of the several factors that I considered when choosing our hotel, I weighed transportation options the heaviest.  Yup, with all of the more glamorous factors to consider, buses, boats, and monorail were on the forefront of my mind.  I wanted to maximize my time in the parks, not waiting to get there.  Also, my crew is still young enough that we have strollers and afternoon breaks to consider.  That of course gave the edge to the monorail resorts.  But which one?  The Polynesian got the edge because not only is the Magic Kingdom just one stop (less than 10 minutes away), but you can actually stroll over to the TTC to get the Epcot monorail.  From our longhouse it was only about a 5 minute walk, only about 2 minutes longer than the stroll over to the Great Ceremonial House to get on the Resort/Magic Kingdom monorail. Throw in boat service to Magic Kingdom for fun, and pretty frequent buses to the other parks the Polynesian has, hands down, the best transportation options on property.

The themeing at the Polynesian is great.  The landscaping is lush and beautiful.  There are also several water features inside and out that are not only lovely, but manage to drown out some of the noise of the outside world.  Soft Hawaiian music is piped in through out the grounds.  At Christmas time, be sure to listen out for the 12 Days of Christmas song Hawaiian style (Numbah One day of Christmas my Tutu gave to me...).

The beach at the Polynesian is a great spot to relax.  I would have made more use of it, but the record lows in Orlando that week made the area slightly less desirable.  The beach is along the Seven Seas Lagoon and is made of pristine white sand.  You may think it was trucked in from some remote paradise location, but it was actually found when the Lagoon was dredged prior to the construction of the Magic Kingdom!  There are lounge chairs and hammocks available to stretch out on...and did I mention that your view is of Cinderella Castle?  In the evenings, you can relax and watch the Electrical Water Pageant float by.  (And laying in a hammock while watching the Wishes fireworks show, listening to the piped in soundtrack is my own little slice of heaven!)  On a side note, if you happen to be visiting during one of the hard ticketed parties at the Magic Kingdom like Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party, or Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party, I urge you to seek out the beach to watch the fireworks.  Fireworks are not only shot from a location behind the castle, but from surrounding perimeter locations as well.  While spectacular from Main Street, the perspective you get from watching at the beach at the Poly is AMAZING!

The Polynesian has two pools, a quiet pool and a feature pool.  The quiet pool is your standard, garden variety, hole-in-the-ground type pool.  You do not have to be quiet to enjoy the pool, but it tends to be quieter and less crowded than the feature pool.  The feature pool is known as the Volcano Pool. The volcano itself houses a water slide.  Part of the interior of the slide is lit so that it looks like molten lava.  There are several lifeguards stationed at regular intervals around the perimeter of the pool, so it is as safe as can be for novice swimmers.  Both pools are heated so they can be enjoyed year around.  It was far to chilly for this girl to hit the pool, but there were several nights I walked by to see kids playing in the water with steam rising all around.  The poor parents were bundled and wrapped in a blanket pool side, but the kids were happy. 

There are several dining options at the Polynesian.  Room service is an option at this hotel, which can be a nice choice for breakfast or at the end of a long day.  My family did not put room service to the test, but judging from the frequency of empty trays left in the hallway, it seems like a popular option.  The quick service location is Captain Cook's grill.  We enjoyed a late dinner there one evening and a relaxed breakfast there on our departure day.  I will write a full review at some point in the future, but right now, I will leave it at "The Tonga Toast is not to be missed!"  The Kona Cafe is located on the 2nd floor of the Great Ceremonial House, near the monorail station.  We did not get to experience Kona, but we will most certainly be putting it on our "to do " list.  Also on the second floor is the famed 'Ohana.   The entire family enjoyed the food, atmosphere, and entertainment.  I will also be posting a review of this hard-to-book restaurant in the future. The only disappointment was that the children requested to eat there again during our stay, which was impossible, as it is such a popular spot.  Finally, there is the Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show.  Located on the beach at Luau cove, this dining experince looks like a lot of fun.

There are also great little shops in the Grand Ceremonial House.  Clever names abound including Samoa Snacks (say it out loud) and the Bou-tiki.  I saw lots of wonderful things there and at Trader Jacks, but neither had what I went in looking for.  First of all, nowhere at the Polynesian can you purchase milk in any size larger than a single serving container.  Annoying.  I also went in search of new underwear.  Someone, who shall remain nameless forgot to pack her underwear.  I am sure it had nothing to do with planning the entire vacation solo, struggling to keep the trip a surprise, and packing everything for everyone else all while staying under the 50lb weight limit for flying with a suitcase.  Anyway I was unable to secure extra underwear for myself  the poor lady who forgot hers.  (It was not as bad as it sounds, I had tucked a pair into my carry on luggage along with a change of clothes.  And thanks to static cling, I found another pair hitchhiking on one of my fleece shirts.  The  wear one, wash one, dry one each day was annoying, but I was glad I did not have to make alternate use of the hair dryer!)

As far as the decor of the resort goes, for me it was just ok.  In general, I would say it has a very dark wood dated 1970's Hawaii feel.  My husband described the Great Ceremonial house as almost "claustrophobic."  Personally, I prefer the more modern "light and airy" tropical feel.  However, in a weird sort of way, the "dated" feel kind of grew on me. I bet the people who had fond memories of the Polynesian as a child will instantly feel re-connected to the property.   My husbands assessment made me laugh with its accuracy..."I feel like I am trapped in the Brady Bunch goes to Hawaii episode.  Bobby, put down that tiki idol!"

You can read Part 2 of my review of the Polynesian here.  In the mean time, I took a stab at trying to edit together a brief video of our stay.  It is my first try at such an effort, so please be kind! Double click on the video to view entire screen.


While you are visiting out youtube channel feel free to check our Holiday Wishes video. It was spectacular! If you can hang in there past the first 45-55 seconds I recover from my tripod issues and everything is stable!

I would love to help you plan your next visit to the Polynesian or to any other resort! TMC Travel offers the same rates (and discounts) as if you booked through Disney directly, but with lots of extras. Please Email me if I can help!

This post is part of the Disney Blog Carnival. Head over there to see more great Disney-related posts and articles.

Netflix Fun - The Mickey Mouse Club

Recently, I spent some time on Netflix building up my queue for the kiddos.  As I was looking for some Disney fare, I came across the Mickey Mouse Club.  They of course had the "Justin, Britney and Christina" series, but I was most drawn to the "old school" club from the 50's.  As a child of the 80's (or 70's if you are foolish enough to believe my driver's license) I remember tuning in to watch these old black and white gems.  I remember I would frequently crawl up into my Dad's lap and watch.  During the commercials he would tell stories about watching the Mickey Mouse Club when he was a child.  Apparently, the show made quite an impression, because even though my Dad has never been to Disney World, he has sported a Mickey Mouse watch off an on for as long as I can remember.

I was really excited to see the red Netflix envelope appear in my mailbox, because it had been YEARS since I had last seen the show.  As soon as the girls got home from school, I grabbed us a snack and popped it in.  In spite of the lack of color, the low production value, and the old fashioned feel of the show, my kids were enchanted.  I guess some things really are timeless!

And what is it with the theme song?  When I hear the first few bars on the bus to the Magic Kingdom, I always get excited.  All it takes is hearing the song once, and it will stay in your had for days...and  not in a bad way like an 80's pop song.  My girls also sing it all the time.  One will spontaneously shout Mickey Mouse!  and the other will reply with Donald Duck! It makes me smile every time.

The DVD is a collection of five half hour episodes.  The episodes are spread over several years, but there is an episode for everyday of the week. Personally, I think the title is a bit of a misnomer - I would not say it is "The Best of" - but it is still a lot of fun to watch.

So head over to Netflix and add The Best of the Mickey Mouse Club to your Netflix queue.  If you would like to add it to your Christmas shopping list, you can find it for less than $12 at Amazon.  In the mean time, enjoy the theme song:



Hope you enjoyed a Mickey Mouse blast from the past, but now it time to say goodbye to all our company.  M-I-C  See you real soon!  K-E-Y  Why?  Because we like you!  M--O--U--S----E.  (Sorry, couldn't resist!)

Book Review: Realityland

After my last visit to Walt Disney World I was really interested in a behind the scenes look at the magic.  I wanted to learn more about the daily operations and the logistics of how Disney manages it's theme parks.  How do the manage to feed, house, and entertain so many people every day while keeping their customers so happy and willing to shell out thousands of dollars for a repeat experience?  It is pretty good question, huh?  Unfortunatley, I could not find the exact book that I was looking for...if you would like to write it you can dedicate it to me and I will be first in line to buy a copy!

I ended up with a copy of David Koenig's Realityland.  I found it to be a facinating behind the scenes look at the creation of Disney World.  I must delare upfront, if you are looking for a magical, pixie dust recounting of Disney history, then this book is absolutely not for you.  In fact, stop reading right now...go on, scoot!