Hello, Katie, and welcome back to planDisney. It's great to see you here planning your January visit.
Katie, as a guest who loves
dining around the Walt Disney World Resort, I'm happy to chat about your question. Based on your description regarding your conference, if you don't have the ability to turn your room into a package, you are correct that
adding a Dining Plan isn't an option. However... while I don't have Fairy Godmother's wand to work any Magic to make this possible, I do have an alternative idea that might help make your trip feel all-inclusive.
As an
Annual Passholder, I don't book packages, but fondly remember the ease of the Dining Plan, so my family and I use
Disney Gift Cards to help us not only budget but get a bit of that all-inclusive feeling since I have "pre-paid" for food. Disney Gift Cards can be consolidated up to $1,000 per card so you don't need to carry multiple cards in the parks. You can use the price of the dining plans for budgetary purposes or you can view the online menus like I do and estimate how much I would spend in each restaurant.
Katie, while this likely wasn't the information you were wishing to hear, I do hope it's helpful as you're looking ahead to January. Please don't hesitate to come back to planDisney with any other questions. We love to see a returning guest!
Wishing you a Magical trip,
Lauren