What is the Disney Dining Plan?
The Disney Dining Plan is a prepaid add-on available with selected Walt Disney World Resort hotel and ticket packages. It lets guests pay for meals, snacks, and drinks in advance, which can make budgeting for food simpler before a visit.
The plan is credit-based. Each person in your party receives a set number of meal and snack credits for each night of the Disney Resort hotel stay. It must usually be purchased for the full length of stay, with a qualifying hotel package, and for everyone on the same reservation.
For many families it is a convenient and flexible way to cover meals around the parks, resort hotels, and Disney Springs without paying for every meal separately on the day.
Dining plan options
For 2027 visits, Disney lists three dining plan options:
- Quick-Service Dining Plan
- Table-Service Dining Plan
- Deluxe Table-Service Dining Plan
The table below shows what is included with each plan for each night of your stay.
| Included per night | Quick-Service | Table-Service | Deluxe Table-Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quick-service meals | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Snacks or non-alcoholic drinks | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Table-service meals | Not included | 1 | 2 |
| Resort refillable mug | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Although credits are based on the number of nights in your stay, you do not have to use them in a strict daily order. You can usually use them in any order and on any day during the eligible part of your stay.
What do the credits include?
Quick-service credits redeemed at breakfast, lunch, or dinner usually include one entree and one beverage. For guests aged 21 or over, the beverage can usually be alcoholic where available. At some pizza pickup locations, two quick-service meal credits can be redeemed for one large pizza and two drinks.
Table-service credits redeemed at breakfast usually include one entree, buffet, or family-style meal, plus one beverage. At brunch, lunch, or dinner, they usually include one entree, buffet, or family-style meal, one dessert, and one beverage.
Some character dining, fine/signature dining, and dinner show meals use two table-service credits per person instead of one. Examples that Disney currently lists as requiring two table-service credits include:
- Akershus Royal Banquet Hall at lunch and dinner
- Cinderella's Royal Table
- Story Book Dining at Artist Point with Snow White
Snack credits can usually be used for selected single-serving items such as frozen treats, popcorn, fruit, bottled drinks, fountain drinks, coffee, tea, milk, juice, or soup. Souvenir items and merchandise are not included.
How much does it cost?
Prices and offers can change, so always check Disney's current booking pages before making a decision. As a guide, these are the example per-person, per-night prices from the source document for 2027 dining plans:
| Guest age | Quick-Service | Table-Service | Deluxe Table-Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| Child aged 3 to 9 | $25.82 | $31.94 | $46.85 |
| Adult aged 10+ | $62.78 | $99.87 | $163.01 |
UK guests can sometimes receive a dining plan as part of a free dining and drinks offer when booking a qualifying Disney package. The plan included is normally based on the resort hotel category, and Disney may allow guests to upgrade to a higher dining plan for an extra cost.
It is worth comparing the numbers carefully. For some families, upgrading a dining plan may be cheaper than moving to a higher hotel category. For others, a different room or package offer may be better value.
Gratuities are not usually included, so table-service tips need to be included in your budget. A typical tip can be up to 18% of the meal cost, or the cost the meal would have been without the dining plan. Disney lists a small number of exceptions, including Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue, Cinderella's Royal Table, and private dining at Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa.
Where can it be used?
The Disney Dining Plan can be used at many dining locations across Walt Disney World theme parks, water parks, resort hotels, and Disney Springs. Participating restaurants can change, so check the current Disney dining plan restaurant list before booking any must-do meals.
Check Disney's current dining plan details.
Is the Disney Dining Plan worth it?
That depends on how your family likes to eat. Some families value the convenience of having meals prepaid. Others like the flexibility of choosing more expensive restaurants without thinking about the price of every entree on the day.
The plan can work especially well if it is included with a package offer and you use it to try character dining, dining packages, and fine/signature restaurants that you might not otherwise book. If you already plan to eat some meals away from Disney property, using two credits on selected higher-value meals may still leave room in your plans for off-property dining.
If your family prefers quick meals and less time sitting in restaurants, the Quick-Service Dining Plan may be a better fit. If your group does not usually eat much while out in the parks, buying a dining plan separately may not offer the best value.
For us, the dining plan is most appealing when it is included with the package. We would normally only buy it as an add-on if we knew we wanted to build the visit around several fine/signature dining locations.
Disney previously allowed guests to convert unused dining credits into snack credits, which was useful at the end of a visit. That perk has not returned since Covid, but it is worth checking the current terms before you travel in case Disney changes the rules again.