Why Walt Disney World Should Bring Back the Disney Dining Plan Plus
Walt Disney World has no new rides on the horizon until 2027. At the same time, Universal is opening a brand new theme park, Epic Universe, right down the street. On top of that, pent-up demand continues to exhaust itself and there are signs of a consumer spending slowdown.
But wait, there’s more! We’re only a couple weeks removed from Walt Disney World is Worried About Its High Prices, which revealed that company has internal concerns about Disney alienating its core audience. There are growing fears within Disney about how price increases and unpopular decisions are angering fans and losing guest goodwill.
That’s a very real and relevant consideration because at a crossroads like this, Walt Disney World would normally try to squeeze more spending out of existing guests with price increases. Or they’d create new revenue streams out of thin air by inventing upcharges, new product offerings, or even pricing schemes. But right now, they’re a bit between a rock and a hard place. Wanting to find ways to grow revenue during what’s otherwise a period of stagnation, but also needing to contend with potentially concerning guest metrics.
The good news is that it is possible to thread the needle.
About half of our List of “Big Little” Things Walt Disney World Needs to Bring Back are upcharges or would otherwise generate revenue and not just incur costs for the company (even things like the Cinderella Castle Dream Lights qualify). Judging by the chorus of comments, many Walt Disney World fans agree. They’re tired of paying more–but they’re also willing to spend extra in certain circumstances, counterintuitive as it might seem.
As we’ve mentioned repeatedly, it’s not just price increases. It’s those coupled with corresponding cuts, nickel and diming, and other ways the guest experience has been diminished. Price isn’t the only, or perhaps even primary, concern. It’s the value proposition, which has taken hits in both directions–people are paying more…and getting less. That’s the real issue, at least for many fans.
One of the ways the value proposition and guest experience have been diminished is via reduced variety. For some fans, it’s the missing breakfast at Be Our Guest Restaurant. For others, it’s the special seminars during EPCOT’s festivals, missing dessert parties, and so forth. Yes, these are things that make Walt Disney World even more expensive. But they also added value to the experience, and that’s the critical component.
Another point we’ve made recently is that Walt Disney World needs to do more to attract young families.
Disney Adult DINKs are a great demographic for Walt Disney World; it makes complete sense that the company would do more to cater to this growing portion of the population, especially given their comparative purchasing power. This is why we’re seeing so many new lounges, a focus on merchandise brands, and partially explains the recent roster of new rides.
At the same time, young families are historically Walt Disney World’s bread and butter. Parents take their kids to Disney, those kids form emotional bonds, grow up visiting, and take their own kids to Disney. Rinse and repeat. Countless multi-generational ‘Disney Families’ exist due to this dynamic, including both of us–and probably many of you!
Pricing out families with small children is the surest way to break the cycle, resulting in future generations that have no emotional connection to Walt Disney World . There are hugely negative long-term ramifications to losing a focus on families, but thankfully, it seems like there’s concern about this internally.
The bottom line is that Walt Disney World needs to make a concerted effort to attract more families. They’ve already done this to a slight extent by lowering the price of the Disney Dining Plan for kids (while raising it significantly for adults), along with various other special offers.
At the intersection of this all, there’s something we’d love to see happen when 2026 Walt Disney World vacation packages are released (which should be fairly soon): bring back the Disney Dining Plan Plus (DDP+).
For those who are unfamiliar with it, which is probably most of you since it was so shortlived, the Disney Dining Plan Plus was released in late February 2020–five years ago this week. It was available for only a few weeks before the closure, and has not returned since. The DDP+ offered the following:
- 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 Disney Dining Plan Plus was quickly identified by planners as being best for those planning on booking a large number of character meals. Yes, you could use it for other purposes, but a character breakfast and character dinner each day were, without a doubt, the optimal use case from a practical perspective.
When we say “identified by planners” we’re really talking about ourselves. Our Disney Dining Plan Plus Review was laser-focused on character dining; we were already planning a series of character dining ‘itineraries’ for strategizing the best breakfasts and dinners before the closure. We had used the DDP+ once to great success, saving a ton of money in the process–a rarity even then with the DDP–and knew it would be hugely advantageous for more character dining experiences.
That was all long before Megatron. I understood the value of the Disney Dining Plan Plus for families on paper. As someone who can use a calculator, it was easy to see how the DDP+ was an even more fantastic option for families than it was for us. But admittedly, it was still an abstraction.
Fast-forward five years, and I find myself reevaluating so many of the things I thought I knew about Walt Disney World from a fresh perspective. And as we race to do as much character dining as possible in the next year-plus before Megatron turns three, I’m now more keenly aware of costs for kids ages 3 and up. (I’ve already mentioned elsewhere, but I can already tell the age brackets for kids is going to drive me crazy.)
The notion of paying over $40 (probably over $50 by the time she’s 3 given the pace of price increases and inflation) for our daughter to eat approximately $3 worth of food is unappetizing. We’re faced with a dilemma: do these character meals now while she’s still a bit on the young side (but we can appreciate her reactions) or wait until she’s a bit older, but will have to pay the child’s rate.
Enter the Disney Dining Plan Plus.
With previous price points of $94.61 per adult and $35 per child when it was last available, the Disney Dining Plan Plus certainly is not cheap. And if it were to return in 2026, it would probably cost over $120 per night for adults, and around the same price for kids (other tiers of the DDP for kids are more or less unchanged from early 2020).
That’s a lot of money, and the reintroduction of the Disney Dining Plan+ obviously is not one of the things Walt Disney World needs to do to combat perceptions that Walt Disney World is pricing out the middle class. But it could be one of the things that Disney does to improve the value proposition, guest experience, and other metrics.
As for why the Disney Dining Plan Plus hasn’t returned already, that likely came down to staffing shortages and pent-up demand.
When the return of the Disney Dining Plan was announced, demand for character dining experiences had remained surprisingly strong. We theorized that this was lagging pent-up demand for those meals, as so many of those meals were missing or modified long after the parks reopened.
Basically, that character dining was slower to return in regular form, so Walt Disney World regulars who had previously postponed character meals in 2021-2023 until they were back to normal were still getting their fix at these meals. Since kids grow up quickly, families were still making up for lost time and doing character dining experiences.
That lagging pent-up demand has now been exhausted. Although there still may be some Advance Dining Reservation difficulty for larger party sizes and around peak season, even character meals like Artist Point, Cinderella’s Royal Table, Topolino’s Terrace, Chef Mickey’s, and 1900 Park Fare have all become much easier to book. I would go as far as to say ADRs are mostly easier than they were in 2019, and demand has certainly plummeted since 2022.
The bottom line is that Walt Disney World could kill multiple birds with one stone by bringing back the Disney Dining Plan Plus.
Absent the Deluxe Disney Dining Plan returning (also a good idea!), the DDP+ would become the top tier of the Disney Dining Plan. Plenty of families would upgrade to it, undoubtedly increasing the key per guest spending metric in the process. In so doing, it would be one of those ways to juice revenue for the next couple of years while organic growth is likely to stagnate.
It would also boost bookings at character restaurants, which have seen a massive drop-off in popularity over the last year-plus. Finally, it would be bringing back a ‘little thing’ that would make a certain subset of guests very happy, without negatively impacting the guest experience for others. It would be a true value-add, as opposed to playing games with pricing.
All of this more or less describes us. Once Megatron turns 3, we will become much more picky about which character dining experiences we book given the dramatically diminished value proposition. And that’s with only one child and the excuse of needing to do “research for the blog.” I cannot imagine how parents with multiple kids and no such excuses manage. (The notion of dropping ~$150 for 3 kids to eat a combined 4.5 Mickey waffles, 2.75 sausage links, and 8 grapes makes me cringe!)
In the absence of something like the Disney Dining Plan Plus, we’ll probably do only one character dining experience per trip once Megatron turns three. With it, we’d likely do at least one per day. If we don’t do those character meals, it’s not like we’re going to pay out of pocket for fancy sit-down restaurants–we’ll probably trade down to counter service, since we’re quickly learning that’s easier. The Disney Dining Plan Plus would enable us to justify many more character dining experiences than we otherwise would, significantly increasing our spending and satisfaction in the process.
That’s right, we’d spend more money at Walt Disney World while being happier about it in the process. This was the driving motivation behind so many offerings and upcharges in the “old days” (2019 and earlier), and Walt Disney World really needs to get back to the basics with this type of thinking.
Walt Disney World is almost assuredly going to attempt to create new revenue streams, and even if the Disney Dining Plan Plus isn’t one of the ways it does this, we should want to see it occur in substantive ways that are beneficial as opposed to detrimental. This is precisely why we’ve loved the Halloween and Christmas character meals that Disneyland has done over the last couple of years. We did a couple of meals that we otherwise wouldn’t have specifically because of the seasonal costumes (and we would’ve done all of them, but for massive price increases last October).
Obviously, restoring the Disney Dining Plan Plus is not going to be the key to changing the narrative about Walt Disney World pricing and the guest experience. There’s a lot of work to be done, and it’s going to take special offers, policy changes, perks, and more. Nevertheless, this is the exact type of ‘everyone wins’ solution to revenue growth that Disney should be looking for, instead of trying to squeeze more spending out of guests who have already hit their walls. If this justification is unpersuasive for the leadership at Disney, they should consider the fact that it has a “plus” in the name, and that’s like catnip for the company.
Planning a Walt Disney World trip? Learn about hotels on our Walt Disney World Hotels Reviews page. For where to eat, read our Walt Disney World Restaurant Reviews. To save money on tickets or determine which type to buy, read our Tips for Saving Money on Walt Disney World Tickets post. Our What to Pack for Disney Trips post takes a unique look at clever items to take. For what to do and when to do it, our Walt Disney World Ride Guides will help. For comprehensive advice, the best place to start is our Walt Disney World Trip Planning Guide for everything you need to know!
Your Thoughts
Do you think Walt Disney World should bring back the Disney Dining Plan Plus in 2026? Disappointed that the top two tiers of the DDP are still missing? Would Walt Disney World bringing back more of the little things–even ones that are upcharges–make you more likely to book a trip? Or would you be upset if more pricey paid offerings return, viewing it as another sign Walt Disney World is not catering to the middle class? Do you agree or disagree with our assessment that the issue is as much (or more) about the value proposition as it is about price increases? Any questions we can help you answer? 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!
Parent of 14,12, and 10 year old boys. The ONLY win we get on theme park pricing is when we book a deluxe room at Universal to get express passes. (I guess we would kind of win on free dining, but given the package requirements, and the fact that the boys are under 21, the math isn’t as good).
Any “nicer” dining at Disney has become prohibitively expensive. We are planning a trip for Epic next year. I asked the boys if they would rather add a couple of WDW days, or put the money towards VIP/line skipping at Epic. I didn’t even finish the sentence before they said Epic. It broke my heart a little…but not too much
The Deluxe Dining Plan used to work for us. My kids didn’t want the meals on the kids menu. At the time we went to Tiffins, my son was 11. He ordered octopus for his appetizer and surf and turf for his entree. I had conversations with other DVC members and they said it forced you to get more expensive meals. That was the point for us. Not to eat as we did at home. It was never really about cost savings but convenience. We miss the deluxe dining plan.
What do you mean? We LOVED paying $33 for our three-year-old daughter to eat a handful of Froot Loops at The Crystal Palace two weeks ago! 😉 In all seriousness, character dining is the highlight of our trips for her, so we’ll continue to book them. But a plan like this sounds amazing! My husband especially would be drawn to something like this for a vacation. He loves taking a break from the parks for sit-down meals, and this would definitely force us to slow down and enjoy more dining if it was prepaid. Seems like a smart way for Disney to lock people into paying more AND keep them from venturing off property!
One thing I’d counter with is that the marginal food costs of an additional party member at a table are pretty immaterial in the grand scheme of things (I remember reading somewhere that food costs are less than a quarter of the typical post-gratuity dining bill). For character dining, the costs are primarily those of staffing and running the venue as a whole – and character dining likely costs more than even signature dining. And realistically, kids are primary audience of character dining. That said, I agree it’s probably a good business decision to rethink this (for other reasons). Even if the final bill is similar, the target audience would be happier if they feel it’s apportioned “fairly”.
On a similar topic, I’m surprised Disney haven’t turned their attention to stamping out solo diners at their higher end restaurants. Eating alone in high end restaurants is one of my favourite things to do, but the opportunity cost to Disney of allowing me to occupy a table must be huge. I can only imagine they feel it’s worth the business hit to avoid the negative sentiment.
You’re right about marginal costs.
But you’re also right about opportunity costs–but maybe not in the way you think. There is no opportunity cost to bringing back the DDP+ because tables are already going unfilled, and labor costs are fairly fixed. Better to capture some revenue via the DDP+ than let the tables go empty.
Walt Disney World actually did ‘stamp out’ solo dinners during the phased reopening. It was (literally) impossible to book a table for 1 at many restaurants in 2021-2022, and even tables of 2 were rare. I suspect they’ve eased up on this because there is no opportunity cost now, but there was then.
As a whole, the dynamic was different back when Walt Disney World made the decision to bring back the Disney Dining Plan, which is why the Deluxe DDP and DDP+ didn’t return. But the environment has changed dramatically since then…and WDW hasn’t adapted for some reason.
Mentioned a few times already. The real killer is the 10yrs – “adult” absurdity. I love eating at Disney restaurants but they are trying their best to keep families away that are hitting this “milestone of adulthood”. A meal plan would still have adult pricing for 10yr olds, wouldn’t it? Not sure I could just shut off my brain by pre-paying absurd amounts for what ends up being chicken nuggets.
You got TWO eggs with your breakfast at Chef Mickey’s? The DDP+ would almost pay for itself now!
I’m still disappointed that when they brought back the DDP last year, they cut it down to only 1 snack per day. Not everybody needs 2, but 1 just isn’t enough.
I was disappointed when they took away the dessert with the meals then they took a snack credit. When I am on vacation I want all the snacks/desserts I can get. I’ll worry about the waistline later, maybe.
I miss the original dining plan, 1TS w. app entree and dessert, 1 QS with dessert, 2 snacks and a refillable mug. Oh yeah tips where included and at the All Stars a milkshake was a drink. Did I mention we got it free!! AND I tipped extra every meal because all the wait staff was awesome!
Good times, good times.
You can’t go back, but boy I wish I could.
I’ve considered myself well versed in planning my Disney trips for a few years now, but just recently discovered this whole Disney adult at 10 dilemma…my son turned 10 recently. I’ve been looking at some table service menus heavily contemplating even going now, or sticking to quick service. My son will rarely even finish a meal when on vacation. Really wanted this to be the year for the Garden Grill, but now I don’t know if I can justify it.
GO to Garden Grill (unless you really cannot afford it). Ten years old is magic. Doesn’t last forever. People are losing sight of what 10-12 year olds are getting out of the experience as opposed to just the food. Those in that age range might not eat as much but oh my how they love just being “kids” at Disney experiences at a time in their life when their life adults are expecting more maturity out of them. To me it was never worth being mad at Disney about the adult charge. Do what you can afford and just enjoy it (by the way that’s one reason we always did the DDP-just forget looking at that bill and bring gift cards for tips) I regret nothing!
I was so excited to try the DDP+ when it first came out because character dining is my daughter’s absolute favorite part of visiting Disney and we often do 2 sit down meals on most days because of this (and the fact that she needs long breaks in the AC ). But never got a chance to try it before COVID hit so I totally agree they should bring it back!
Bring back the deluxe dining plan! Or allow for swaps between appetizers and desserts, some of us like appetizers more than desserts!
Also, 10 year olds are not adults, do not eat like adults and do not drink alcohol. It’s insane that Disney thinks they should be charged the same amount as an adult. Bring in a teen price, we’re happy to pay more than you would for a little kid, just not THAT much more!
This – if they allowed appetizers instead of desserts I might consider the DP. I am not a dessert person in general and I find the desserts at most Disney restaurants to be overprice and overrated.
I think your perspective is correct. Add a little something for some guests to enjoy that won’t take away from others. Another thing I would add is the ability to buy the plan for only certain days of your stay. It’s maddening to have to buy it for a full week if you only want to do a few days of park visits, and the rest elsewhere…
Disney already priced me out. I can’t afford them anymore. In the real world, things are not sounding too good in the economic department. I’ve got regular bills to be concerned with. And so I’ve switched to Universal.
Our son turned 10 this past year so he is now a Disney Adult. We can never justify paying character dining buffet prices now- but we also struggle to justify nearly any table service meals. I know a lot of kids are not picky eaters or struggle to sit through a longer dining experience, but ours does. Thankfully, I think you can still enjoy WDW quite a bit while doing mostly quick service. I am glad we have so many great memories and photos of doing these meals when he was very young!
If you think you won’t want to drop coin on meals at the first bend point when your daughter turns 3, just wait until she ages out of child meal pricing and becomes a Disney adult at the second bend point when she turns 10. Ask me how I know.
I agree with you that bringing back DDP+ would be beneficial to those who choose to participate and won’t affect those who choose not to.
And yes, Epic Universe will affect attendance. Daughter was presented with a choice between a day at Animal Kingdom (which was the initial ask from her) or Epic Universe if open for soft opening while we are there. I didn’t even finish the sentence and she blurted Epic Universe.
I am fully cognizant that experiences at the new park could be interrupted with glitches and downtime as kinks are worked out, but the increased posts I’ve been reading about downtime at Disney World’s rides hasn’t helped their cause. That combined with experiences taken out of service for reimagining have put our plans to visit Disney Parks on hold for now. Not spending $170 – $200 per person per day for a lessened experience.
“If you think you won’t want to drop coin on meals at the first bend point when your daughter turns 3, just wait until she ages out of child meal pricing and becomes a Disney adult at the second bend point when she turns 10. Ask me how I know.”
This is already on my radar thanks to a few commenters. I know it’s a long way away and we don’t have to worry about it anytime soon, but I also know it’ll make my blood boil once we do.
It’s the various ways that they define “adult.” In some situations, it’s 10. In some it’s 14. Etc. Etc.
But none of it makes my blood boil the way that “Adults (2+)” does when purchasing airline tickets.
Funny, that bothers me less. I’m not implying that I am fair or consistent, just that this never bothered me.
The product being purchased for a 2 year old is the same whether they are 2 or 12. They’re taking up a seat.
And the only reason the FAA allows infants and toddlers to travel as a lap infant is that statistically, flying is safer than driving and they don’t want families to choose a less safe option due to the airfare for babies.
But if you listen to some flight gattendants, they’ll tell you that they wish the FAA would put the kibosh on lap infants altogether.
Literally everything and everyone else must be safely stowed during takeoff, landing, turbulence or anticipated collisions…. except for lap infants whose parents have been unable to hold them safely in such events. I would never tell anyone how to parent their kids. I can only say my daughter always had a seat on jet planes even as an infant.
On the other hand, kids do not eat materially the same quantity of food as adults. Charging a 10 year old $50 to eat a few chicken nuggets at a buffet is nuts.
Agree with Scoop. We’ve always bought Megatron a seat, and although I’d love to not pay full price for whatever reason, if she’s taking up a seat, she’s taking up a seat. There is no in-between like there is with meals at a restaurant.
Solution found : international guests who surely won’t notice the average +15% increase from 2025 to 2026.
I am not sure if American prices will follow that pattern.
I’ve seen you mention this in a few comments. Are you sure you’re comparing apples to apples? European packages for 2025 would be applying promos, whereas they would not for 2026.
Walt Disney World hasn’t released 2026 pricing for the U.S. yet, but I’d be absolutely flabbergasted by a 15% increase. That’s on par with the peak of pent-up demand, and WAY worse than anything we’ve seen in the last few years. It just doesn’t pass the smell test with nothing new, a consumer slowdown, Epic Universe, etc.
Not saying you’re wrong…but I hope you are! 😉
You are absolutely right Tom – I am not comparing « exactly » the same as indeed 2025 got several offers. However, most include the dining plan which actually makes it even worse as those 2026 prices do not include any plan.
On a few occasions prices do indeed include « free nights » but I corrected the price accordingly.
We were huge fans of this plan, until our kids hit 10 and became disney “adults” despite still eating like birds. Then be prepared for this plan to seem like the stupidest waste of money ever.
This is why I want it back for 2026, as opposed to 2033! 😉
But wait, there’s more! As I understand it, Disney will introduce “Surge Pricing” in late March. Why bring back something popular that takes effort and planning and depend on volume when you can find ways to wring more out of present guests with no effort at all?
We covered that last week here: https://www.disneytouristblog.com/dynamic-ticket-pricing-coming-to-first-disney-parks-will-disney-world-follow/
The bottom line is that I’m highly skeptical WDW rolls out dynamic pricing before this October. Even if it was being planned for sooner, I think they might’ve gotten cold feet after the last couple of weeks.
It is inevitable at some point, though.
It made Breitbart Tom:
Richard Greenfield of Lightshed Partners said the pricing plan worked for Disneyland Paris. “Given the early success of Disneyland Paris’ pricing strategy shift, we expect Disney to announce it is moving to a similar airline-style, dynamic pricing plan in the US later in Q1 2025,” he said.
Instituting a move that’s just done to pad the bottom line, but instead of announcing it at the 1Q earnings report to Wall Street earlier this month, it’s just rolled out on some random day in March? That’s the most Chapek thing ever.
Between that lack of announcement and speculation about Disney IT’s needs, I agree with Tom that it’s just not likely until October.
But wait, there’s more! Disney is gonna increase revenue all right . . . . as I understand it “surge pricing” is due to hit WDW at the end of March!!?!?!?!
Why do something popular and depend on volume Tom, when you can wring more out of the present guests?