Standard Full Board and Standard Half Board Meal Plans at Disneyland Paris
I'm going to try to break down our costs as best as I can. Some of this are approx as I can't check some prices after our trip.
During the planning stages, I discussed with my sister the various aspects of a Disneyland Paris trip.
We decided that onsite would suit us best, and that if possible to get a room with 1 double bed and 1 set of bunk beds.
I had an in depth conversation with her about her expectations for food and meals. She wanted to keep my niece P on as much as a regular meal times as possible. She wanted P to have a good breakfast and a main evening meal around 6pm if possible.
We decided full board would suit us best, as with half board we would still have to eat lunch and would have to pay OOP. Also it meant from a budgeting point of view, all the big costs would be paid in advance which would cut down on money needed in the parks.
I booked at the end of December 2022, which gave us almost 10 months to pay in instalments.
I paid a deposit of €392 on December 29 2022 with the balance payable in 5 instalments before September 15 2023.
As we booked direct through Disneyland Paris website, we were covered by their Zen Guarantee, which meant we could change or cancel the booking with full refund anytime up to 7 days before arrival date.
Breakdown
Hotel and Park Hopper Tickets for 3 Adults and 1 Child = €1863.29
Local Occupancy Tax = €10.17
Full Board Standard Meal Plan = €750
Total Paid = €2623.46
Information about the Meal Plans
This is the page on Disney Paris website
https://www.disneylandparis.com/en-ie/dining/meal-plans/
It gives information about Premium and Extra Plus, which are not currently available.
The only meal plans available at the time I am writing this are Standard and Plus
The meal plan prices and options are linked to the hotel you stay at.
The meal plan prices and options are linked to the restaurants they can be used at
Options are
- Breakfast only
- Half board = Breakfast and Dinner
- Full board = Breakfast, lunch and dinner
Santa Fe the cheapest hotel is the only hotel to have the Standard option as well as the Plus.
With the Standard Meal Plan, lunch has to be at a counter service restaurant.
With the Plus, lunch can be at any restaurant, counter, buffet or table service.
All the other hotels have only Plus.
So what you do is
- Choose your hotel
- Choose how many meals you want in the day, 1, 2 or 3
- If staying at Santa Fe, if you want counter service or buffet / table for lunch
We had Full Board Standard which cost €750
This gave us
- Breakfast X 3 for 3 adults and 1 child
- Counter Service X 3 for 3 adults and 1 child
- Buffet / Table Service X 3 for 3 adults and 1 child
- Counter Service on departure day for 3 adults and 1 child
I did a spreadsheet of only the food we ate using the meal vouchers and put in the al a carte prices if we had been paying OOP for every meal and had the same meals.
The OOP total cost would have been €1075.58
Thats a difference of €325.58
However, if we were paying OOP I dont think we would have paid for the hotel breakfast buffet every day, or have got a desert at lunch time or eaten in 3 high priced table service restaurants. If we were paying OOP our restaurant and food choices would have been very different.
This was my first time doing a Meal Plan at Disneyland Paris. On my previous solo visits a continental breakfast was included and I paid OOP for every meal.
Being solo and being with a multi generation group who have dietary restrictions are very different.
The meal plan worked for us and I can see why it works for families. However, not all restaurants are included with the meal plans. These restaurants are not included
- Auberge de Cendrillon Princess Meal
- Captain Jacks
- Plaza Gardens
- Restaurant Agrabah Café
- Silver Spur Steakhouse
- Cape Cod at Newport Bay Hotel Not On Standard Meal Plan
- Chuck Wagon Cafe at Hotel Cheyenne Not On Standard Meal Plan
- All on the go / snack kiosks in the parks and in Disney Village
- Earl of Sandwich in Disney Village
- Five Guys in Disney Village
- McDonalds in Disney Village
- Rainforest Cafe in Disney Village
- Starbucks at the hotels and in Disney Village
- The Royal Pub in Disney Village
- Vapiano in Disney Village
The only way to save money with the meal plans is to do what we did and use the vouchers for every meal. If 1 or more of the not included restaurants are on your must do list, then you really have to crunch the numbers and and cross check your food budget.
If I go back solo to Disneyland Paris I will do OOP and not have a meal plan.