What is a Disney Dining Plan and is it worth the cost?

Posted on by Mathew Corn Animal Kingdom, Disney Dining, Epcot, Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom

Sooooo, you have your vacation booked. Buying your tickets to the park and your resort accommodations is complete. Now the question is…Should I purchase a Disney Dining Plan?

To do that, you must understand what a Disney dining plan is and what is the benefit to having a dining plan.

What is a Disney Dining Plan?

A Disney Dining Plan or DDP is an option for people who are staying at an on site resort and can added to their vacation package.

When you buy a dining plan, you are prepaying for your meals by buying credits that can be used to purchase those meals. The amount of credits that you receive depends on the number of nights that your vacation lasts.

The dining plan is good for the duration of your vacation, you cant just add it for part of your vacation.

When you go to a restaurant, you pay with the credits that you have obtained. Most of the restaurants at Walt Disney World cost 1 credit for 1 meal. Some special dining experiences, such as a reservation at Cinderella’s Royal Table, can cost 2 credits per meal.

Click Here to Book Your Dream Vacation

The restaurants that require 2 dining credits include;

Magic Kingdom

  • Cinderella’s Royal Table
  • Be Our Guest (Dinner Only)

Epcot

  • Le Cellier Steakhouse
  • Monsieur Paul

Hollywood Studios

  • The Hollywood Brown Derby

Animal Kingdom

  • Tiffins

Disney Resorts

  • All-Stars In-Room Dining (Room Service)
  • All-Stars Sports Pizza Delivery
  • Jiko – The Cooking Place (Animal Kingdom Lodge – Jambo House)
  • Kidani Village Private Dining (Room Service) (Animal Kingdom Lodge – Kidani Village)
  • Art of Animation In Room Delivery (Room Service) (Art of Animation Resort)
  • Flying Fish (Boardwalk Inn Resort)
  • California Grill (Contemporary Resort)
  • Narcoossee’s (Grand Floridian Resort and Spa)
  • Citricos (Grand Floridian Resort and Spa)
  • Disney’s Spirit of Aloha Dinner Show (Polynesian Village Resort)
  • Pop Century In Room Delivery (Room Service)
  • Miss Jenny’s In Room Dining (Wilderness Lodge)
  • Yachtsman Steakhouse (Yacht Club Resort)
  • Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue (The Cabins @ Fort Wilderness Resort)

Disney Springs

  • Jaleo
  • Morimoto Asia (Dinner Only)
  • Paddlefish
  • The BOATHOUSE Restaurant

Make sure when booking a reservation you know how many dining credits that meal will cost. Plan your meals to ensure that if you are ok with a meal costing two credits, you will have to cut out a meal or pay out of pocket for that other meal.

With each meal, you get an appetizer, entree, dessert, and a beverage (alcoholic beverages are also included in the plans).

Not only do have meal credits, but you also get 2 snack credits a day which you can use for virtually anything at different vendors. Using your credits is easy. Simply have your magic band scanned and the correct number of credits will be deducted from your account.

Reminder – Gratuity is not included in the dining plan and is an extra out of pocket expense.

Why Should you get a Dining Plan?

Disney has a vast variety of Dining options when you visit the Disney parks and resorts. They have counter service type restaurants, sit down style restaurants and fine dining restaurants. Knowing what you and your family enjoy eating and experiencing goes a long way to know what restaurants are right for you and your family.

“Most of my life, I have done what I wanted to do. I have had fun on the job.”

— Walt Disney

What are the benefits of having a DDP? First off, they are convenient. Once you purchase it, you do not have to worry about checking the bank account or the cost of the items on the menu. It is 1 credit whether it is the cheapest or most expensive thing on the menu. You also don’t have to worry about paying for drinks while in the park as you have 2 snacks per day.

Depending on where you enjoy eating, it is actually cheaper to have a dining plan. If you want to eat at a table service restaurant or character dining experience, you will pay a ton for them out of pocket.

Probably the biggest reason to get a dining plan is that sometimes, Disney has promotions where a person can get a dining plan for free. This normally occurs in September but is a very popular promotion for good reason.

As a person who likes to try to save money when planning (which doesn’t always work out), a DDP has always been the route we have taken. Maybe its right for you, maybe it’s not, but don’t just simply overlook it because of the initial cost. The benefits of having one far outweigh what you think are the costs, and by having one, you may actually save money in the long run and everyone will be better for it.

Visit BestMickeyTrip.com to start planning your Vacation today!

Why Hollywood Studios is My Favorite Disney Park!

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney Parks, Hollywood Studios

I LOVE Hollywood Studios!!! Some of my favorite shows, rides, and restaurants are there. Plus, with the addition of Toy Story Land and, soon to be open, Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge, I am literally salivating to get back to WDW to see the new attractions. This park has some of the more unique attractions that you don’t necessarily associate with being Disney.

A lot of people have a negative opinion of this park when comparing it to Magic Kingdom or Epcot. It does not have the typical Disney nostalgic feeling. It does not have a heavy variety of rides like the Magic Kingdom. It does not have the plethora of the dining options of Epcot. However, what it does have are a combination of attractions, shows, and dining options that balance the park perfectly.

Since visiting for the first time in 2010, Hollywood Studios has underwent a tremendous amount of change. Some of these were necessary to accommodate the changes that needed to be made to enhance the park, some are a little bit harder to get over.

Book Your Next Disney Trip Now! Click Here!

While the addition of the “Star Wars: A Galaxy Far, Far Away” is a decent stage show that recognizes the characters of the movie franchise, and the March of the First Order is a neat thing to witness down the streets of HS, they still do not take the place of Mickey’s Sorcerer’s Hat, that was a staple of the Hollywood Studios landscape.

So here are my top 5 reasons why Hollywood Studios is my favorite Disney park.

The ShowsI

I believe Hollywood Studios has the best combination of shows of any park at WDW. While the park does not have the ride attractions of some of the other parks, although with the additions of Toy Story Land and Galaxy’s Edge that changes, every one of the shows there is an enjoyable time.

The “Indiana Jones Stunt Spectacular” is my favorite show to visit each trip to Hollywood Studios. Between the pyrotechnics, the choreography of the stunts and the comedic spots during the course of the show itself, this show takes the audience inside some of the best scenes from Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (which, btw, is the best movie of the franchise, in my humble opinion).

Another show that I enjoy visiting is “For the First Time in Forever; A Frozen Sing-along Celebration”. I know what you are thinking, but no. I do not sing along. This is a fun show for the kids to sing along to all of the frozen songs but also get a hilarious history lesson from the official Royal Historians of Arendelle.

“Beauty and The Beast – Live on Stage” brings the classic tale to life in the open-air Theater of the Stars on Sunset Boulevard. This broadway-style show has been giving audiences a shortened version of the Disney movie since the park opened in 1989.

Beauty and The Beast

In “Muppetvision 3D”, you are treated to a 3D show that is more than just that. There are different times where the screen becomes just a piece of the overall theater and the theater itself comes to life, with Statler and Waldorf doing their typical heckling from the booth above and a cannon shot from the screen to the back revealing bricks and a hole in the back wall of the theater.

The Rides

While Hollywood Studios does not have as many rides as the Magic Kingdom, the rides that it does have are all worth riding.T

The “Twilight Zone Tower of Terror” and I have a love/hate relationship. I am not a huge fan of these types of rides that simply take you up and drop you several times, but this is different. The whole theme of the ride is fantastic. The back story, the look, the feel, the drama, the suspense of not knowing when it will drop, to wondering how many times it will drop (it drops a different amount each time) all works to make this one of the best rides at WDW.

Rock n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith is another must when on a trip to WDW. From the speed on the initial launch from 0-57 mph in 2.8 secs, to the awesome soundtrack, this ride is literally a blast. Riders will experience a 5G start, and travel through 3 inversions while flying past bright neon road signs.T

Toy Story Mania has been the one ride at Hollywood Studios that seems to always have long wait times and is the one ride at HS that a fastpass makes a huge difference. This 3D shooter ride is one of the more technologically sophisticated attractions ever developed by Disney Imagineers.

Don’t Wait – Book Now!

This ride puts 2 people head to head, competing in 6 mini games ranging from tossing pies, darts, eggs, baseballs, rings, and suction cup type arrows. This game is so much fun and, for me, blows away another toy story shooter ride in Magic Kingdom. Always a great family adventure (and maybe a little competition)

Fantasmic

While this could have been added in the Shows category, doing that to Fantasmic would simply not do it justice.

This night-time multimedia event features fireworks, lasers, lighting effects, and music. It stars Mickey Mouse as the Sorcerer’s Apprentice from Fantasia as he fights the forces of evil.

Mickey invokes the characters and spirits of favorite Disney classics such as Beauty and the Beast, The Little Mermaid, Cinderella, Aladdin, Pinocchio, The Lion King, Alice in Wonderland, Peter Pan, Dumbo, Tarzan and more. 

The show takes a dark turn when the Evil Queen from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs appears and gathers classic villains like Ursula, Cruella de Vil, Scar, Frollo, Jafar and a larger-than-life Maleficent, to turn Mickey’s dreams into a nightmare. Mickey must fight back the villains with all of the magic in his arsenal.

This 30 minute show might be the highlight of your HS visit and you will, no doubt, walk away amazed.

New Additions

Disney has put a lot of time, fortune, and imagineering into Hollywood Studios in recent years with the 2 newest additions of Toy Story Land and the new, yet to debut, Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge, as well as new attractions such as Mickey and Minnie’s Runaway Railway and Lightning McQueen’s Racing Academy.

Toy Story Land transports you into Andy’s backyard where you feel like the size of one of Andy’s toys. This new section which opened in June of 2018 features new rides in Slinky Dog Dash and Alien Swirling Saucers, as well as the aforementioned Toy Story Mania. It also gives HS a counter-service restaurant in Woody’s Lunch Box. You may also see the Green Army Men Drum Corp or be made an honorary Green Army Man by participating in the Green Army Men Boot Camp.

Galaxy’s Edge opens in August of 2019. It will introduce 2 new ride attractions, a new restaurant, and transport a person into the worlds of Star Wars. I will refrain from speaking on this too much except to say, I cant wait for this to open.

Me in My Element

50’s Prime Time Cafe

This is my favorite restaurant in all of WDW. This meal has the feel of being in the 1950’s “every family kitchen”. The waiters/waitresses treat you as if you are a guest at their dinner table and must display appropriate manners or be punished for various things. The food is also pretty terrific. Give this place a try and allow the staff to put you in the middle of their show and you will walk away full from food and fun.

Awesome Update – Disney Plus Launch Date and Price Released

Posted on by Mathew Corn Disney+

Thursday evening brought some major news on Disney’s new streaming service, Disney Plus. Just 24 hrs earlier, reports began coming out that this new rival to Netflix would be launched in November of this year and some of the possible content on that new service.

Thursday evening, those rumors were put to rest as Disney not only announced the launch date but also the price and some of the new content that will be coming soon.

Courtesy of Disney

Disney+ will officially launch November 12th, 2019 and will cost $6.99 a month. This was all announced at Disney’s 2019 Investor Day in California.

When it launches, Disney+ will include 7,500 episodes of current and off-air TV shows; 25 original series and 10 original movies and specials; 400 library movie titles; and 100 recent theatrical films release, according to Agnes Chu, senior VP of content, Disney+.

It will be available on virtually any platform and will also be ad-free.

Disney+ will be the home for new releases from Walt Disney Studios, Pixar, Lucasfilm and Marvel beginning with the 2019 lineup, which includes “Captain Marvel,” “Toy Story 4,”  “Dumbo,” “Avengers: Endgame,” “Frozen II,” the live-action remakes of “Aladdin” and “The Lion King,” “Maleficent: Mistress of Evil,” and “Star Wars: Episode IX.” It also features a lineup of original series and films.

It will also offer movies from Disney’s video library including all of the Star Wars films, content from NatGeo, and hundreds of episodes from Disney channel shows.

Maybe the most exciting part of this new service will be its brand new original content. Some of the programming that Disney is ramping up includes “The Mandalorian”; a prequel to “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story”; the next season of Star Wars animated series “Clone Wars”; and a new series based on Pixar’s “Monsters Inc.” called “Monsters at Work.”

In addition, Disney+ is set to get several Marvel live-action series, including one centering on Loki (starring Tom Hiddleston); “WandaVision,” with Elizabeth Olsen returning as Wanda Maximoff and Paul Bettany reprising his role as The Vision; and “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” starring Anthony Mackie as Falcon and Sebastian Stan as Winter Soldier. In addition, shows are in the works featuring Scarlet Witch, played by Elizabeth Olsen, and Hawkeye, with Jeremy Renner set to reprise the role.

They will also debut new nonfiction series and behind-the-scenes looks at some of the latest in Disney movie making.

With Disney now owning a majority stake in the popular streaming service Hulu, they are looking at launching 3 separate streaming services in Disney+, ESPN+, and Hulu. While not confirmed at this meeting, there is the thought out there that Disney could bundle these services together.

I don’t about anyone else but with a price tag of $6.99 and 3 young children, this will more than likely be a must in our household. It seems Disney has taken a shot at its main rival in Netflix (even as Netflix has a price hike going into effect next month).

To book your next WDW trip, talk to Michelle Waitt at Waitt Travel — Click the Link