Hello Yvonne, and a warm welcome back to planDisney! You've come to the right place with your planning question, and I'd love to chat about your Disney Dining Plan options.
First, bravo on your choice of
Animal Kingdom Lodge. In my opinion, the immersive theming and live animals on the savannah make this one of the absolute best places to stay in all of Walt Disney World! Even when we are staying at a different Disney Resort, my family always makes an advance dining reservation for
Boma - Flavors of Africa so that we can soak up some of the wonderful vibes at Animal Kingdom's Jambo House for an evening.
That free
Disney Dining Plan offer is fantastic! The plan that comes with the Animal Kingdom Lodge package features 1 table service, 1 quick service, and 1 snack per person, per night of stay (and one of my favorite things... the resort-refillable mug!!) This gives you a terrific range of eating options to choose from during your magical vacation.
Currently, the Disney Dining Plan does not allow you to substitute or "swap out" the different types of dining entitlements, but you still have some flexibility. After checking in on arrival day, all of your dining credits will be available through your My Disney account reservation. Your Dining Plan credits can be used in any amount or order that you wish, and are valid through midnight on your check out day.
You can keep track of your remaining dining credits balance in the
My Disney Experience app, under your resort reservation details, on the "Check Dining Plan" tab.
As an example, perhaps you have a busy, on-the-go park day and end up using 2 quick service credits for lunch and dinner. Then the next day, you plan to enjoy a character dining breakfast somewhere like
Topolino's Terrace, and a nice evening meal at another Disney Dining location... using 2 table service meals that day. With a little planning of your schedule, and a few advance dining reservations for table service locations - this can be a highly enjoyable vacation eating strategy!
And if you don't wish to be tied down to dining reservations each day, even table service dining offers some room for spontaneity! When you start to feel a little hungry, just open up the My Disney Experience app, from the home screen click the "+" sign in the bottom center, and then select "Check Dining Availability" to find something nearby.
If you are worried you won't use all of your table service credits, another option would be to reserve something special like a
signature fine dining experience, or the fun dinner show
Hoop-Dee-Doo Review. Both of these options would utilize 2 table service credits. Hoop-Dee-Doo is hilarious, serves delicious food, and is such an enjoyable time! We've made some wonderful memories spending the evening at Pioneer Hall, I highly recommend it.
Yvonne, I hope this helps with your Dining Plan decisions. Please feel free to send me a
message at planDisney if I can assist with anything further.
Bon Appétit!
Tami