A few thoughts on character meals

[DaniMoon]

We did a ton of character meals trip. We had free dining, so cost was not an issue. If it were out of pocket, we would have done less.

It's all subjective, some people can't put a dollar amount to an "experience". Breakfast buffets were one place where I knew my littlest would eat. Give the boy eggs and he's a happy camper.

We are planning our next trip for November, keeping an eye out for FD dates, my kids requested Chef Mickeys as the only character meal. So yup, we are going to go again.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

Your dining wasn't free, you just paid for it in other ways that seemed less obvious, such as higher priced room.

 

[ajwolfe]

My family enjoys at least one or maybe more character meals while we are there on vacation. I think the wonderful thing about planning and taking a Disney vacation is that what you may love and find a necessary part of your trip is not someone else's favorite thing to do. Everyone has different opinions on where to eat, how to tour, where to stay, etc and thankfully there is something for everyone there so everyone has their "dream trip". Just because you don't see the value in something doesn't mean it might not be priceless to another family. Would I pay $100+ to eat breakfast anywhere but Disney, no - but I will happily do it there if my kids would like.

 

[luvmy2babies]

We love character meals. But we tend to do Crystal Palace at 8am. We love CP and we love getting into MK early. So we don't miss much park time to do it. Eeyore and Piglet are favorites and can't be met anywhere else unless you're there during a special event. We also like the Disney Jr. meal at DHS, which also has characters that are only at the meal.

The question of whether character meals are worth it depend so much on the people involved. We enjoy them. It's a nice way to meet characters especially for me traveling alone with my children. We've done most of them; and a few we have done twice; but there are 3 we were really hooked on: (CP breakfast, Tusker House Breakfast, and Hollywood and Vine breakfast).

 

[maxiesmom]

The more people who don't think the cost is worth it, the easier it is for me to book character meals.

 

[sallytigger]

I do understand your points and we probably won't do more than 2 on our next visit for many of those reasons. However, there is a lot of magic in the character meals to us. Watching my 8 year old getting "fought over" by two princesses in CRT and leaving with big lipstick kisses on his cheek is one of our most favorite memories of the trip (and his too). It was priceless right there. The breakfast, forgettable, but being in the castle and interacting was a great memory for all.

 

[Lupeix]

P Once again DD has no interest in the characters coming to our tables, and they were very rushed.
.

If your DD isn't into it then no wonder you don't see the value! I woulnd't do character meals at all if my kid wasn't into it.
My DS still thinks characters are the real deal. When he saw Pooh coming over to the table he lost it he was so happy. Same with Tigger, Eyore and Piglet. At Tusker house he hugged Mickey so hard he wouldn't let go. I did like the food at Tusker house quite a bit, for Disney food that is. Eating at the parks is overpriced, that is just a fact. With small children we wouldn't see the characters any other way.
What people perceive as value depends on what they like on a vacation. It is like the on-site off-site debate. I will hapilly pay OOP for some character meals. Then, I much rather stay on a 2 bedroom condo at WBC than pay the same for a tiny room with 2 double beds at AoA. In the end it is just choices.

 

[Disney Khaleesi]

I haven't believed the characters were real since I was three, but I've always loved character meals. I'm 16 and I still do. I'm planning a graduation trip and my friend and I are really looking forward to character dining. But, we're dorks. The reason the majority of the answers as to if character meals are worth it is because that majority of the people on these boards find some value in them and do believe that they are "worth it" in some capacity. If the original poster is satisfied with that answer, they can always look up answers elsewhere for a more objective opinion.

 

[WooPigScientist]

Our last trip we hit up CRT, CP, Tusker House, and DIsney Jr play and dine. Next trip I will go back to Tusker House, and try 1900 PF and Akershus. I agree that "worth it" is totally subjective. If I was on a tight budget I would skip all but whatever my kids were obsessed with at the time. But I enjoy them, and like a PP said I would rather sit and eat than wait in even a short line! And I do tend to splurge on these type of things. BUt, overall, if meeting characters is your priority there is no beating "characterpalooza," and I would miss all the meals hands down for a repeat experience of this. It was definitely the most magical part of our trip, and amazingly cost free, wait free, hassle free.

Maybe a silly question - what are you referring to with "characterpalooza"? I've never done much with character stuff before, meals or otherwise, but now that we have small children I CANNOT wait to see their reaction! Hopefully it's not tears

 

[kcpinwdw]

Maybe a silly question - what are you referring to with "characterpalooza"? I've never done much with character stuff before, meals or otherwise, but now that we have small children I CANNOT wait to see their reaction! Hopefully it's not tears

Check out Kenny the Pirate's website for information and times of characterpalooza. Basically it is an unannounced gathering of random characters, with handlers, so if you hang out where they are coming you will meet a ton. We met pocohontas with Meeko, stitch, the evil queen, jasmine with aladdin, minnie mouse, rafiki.... so much fun! My boy likes characters but not face characters. My daughter wasnt thrilled with either but CHaracterpalooza really let her warm up to them because we had so much time. Stitch was rolling around on the ground for her and played with her toys, and then she wasnt afraid anymore. I can load a picture or two later.

 

[PollyannaMom]

I actually miss character meals. DS is 14 now, and wasn't interested interested on our last trip. And he was never one to want to stand in line for characters over rides anyway, so the meals were generally where we got character photos and autographs. (I used to have them sign photo mats, and once a pillow case. It was so much easier to get a bunch at once.)

We have done several character meals over the years - Crystal Palace, Tusker House, Garden Grill, and even Liberty Tree Tavern back in the day, and I've always been happy enough with the food. CP before the park opened was one the best things I've done in planning our Disney trips! Being in the almost empty park was magical, and I got some of the my favorite pictures that year.

I think, like others said, it's about choosing where to put your budget. We liked the break of a sit-down meal, not waiting in character lines, etc. But, like someone else mentioned, I didn't see the value in Memory Maker. I enjoy taking my own photos, and thought the service seemed very expensive. It's all about what adds the most value to your vacation, and everyone is different.

 

[HockeyIsLife]

This is going to be my first trip, sons second, and wife's third. We booked Park Fare for our first dinner. I'm excited. Can anyone let me know their thoughts if you've been there?

This is literally my favorite. The meal is ok, lots of American meal choices. Typical buffet type. Bread pudding is great. Highlight for my kids was the giant bowl of gummy bears. HAHA
The reason this is my favorite is the characters are SO funny and interactive. Quick with jokes and the interact very comically with each other. You will most likely see Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine, Anastasia and Drizella (stepsisters). We also got the Fairy Godmother 2 or three times. Sounds girly, and it definitely satisfies the sparkle my kids need, but the interaction, sarcasm and comedy of the stepsister and step mother is so much fun.

 

[ilovebassets]

For the most part, I agree. We have only ever done character meals when we have had free or discounted dining plans. The food is usually subpar (Crystal Palace) or the timing of the characters really bad (1900 Park Fare). That said, we did really enjoy 'Ohana breakfast, and I would probably pay OOP for that one. Lilo & Stitch is my 2 year old's favorite movie, and we found the family style way of serving the food SOOO much better than buffets. Of all the character buffets, only Tusker House had food that was actually GOOD, but it was the most expensive of all the character meals we've tried.

 

[maxiesmom]

For the most part, I agree. We have only ever done character meals when we have had free or discounted dining plans. The food is usually subpar (Crystal Palace) or the timing of the characters really bad (1900 Park Fare). That said, we did really enjoy 'Ohana breakfast, and I would probably pay OOP for that one. Lilo & Stitch is my 2 year old's favorite movie, and we found the family style way of serving the food SOOO much better than buffets. Of all the character buffets, only Tusker House had food that was actually GOOD, but it was the most expensive of all the character meals we've tried.

I really love the food at the Crystal Palace. The hash is very tasty, as if the puffed french toast. I could go for some of that right now.

 

[BubblyTrip]

I have to eat anyway, and no way are we wasting precious ride time in line for characters, so to our family it is worth it to do a couple. My photos are usually pretty good, and we bang out a bunch of character meet and greets in one ACed setting. Plus I've personally never seen a line that was only ten minutes long in the parks, and I've never ever waited in a buffet line to get food at a character meal.

 

[BellsFam]

spend 10 minutes in line to meet Pooh and Tigger, get one on one time with fewer distractions,

WHERE did you only wait in line for 10minutes? We waited an hour and a half in line to meet Woody & Jessie... An hour and a half in a restaurant paying the price to sit in the air conditioning (or not standing in the rain, because after waiting 45minutes for Merida she left for the day as we were second in line because it started raining)...On our first visit we spent soo much time in line for these characters we missed almost every ride. I WILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN!

I WISH they had a meal for every character...I would have stayed up until 3am booking them all!!!

 

[aaarcher86]

We would be eating some kind of breakfast sit down anyway, so the difference in cost for a character meal would be worth the convenience for us. And we just think they're fun. I'm not real intense on saving money and the very best monetary value on every aspect of vacation.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

WHERE did you only wait in line for 10minutes? We waited an hour and a half in line to meet Woody & Jessie... An hour and a half in a restaurant paying the price to sit in the air conditioning (or not standing in the rain, because after waiting 45minutes for Merida she left for the day as we were second in line because it started raining)...On our first visit we spent soo much time in line for these characters we missed almost every ride. I WILL NEVER DO THAT AGAIN!

I WISH they had a meal for every character...I would have stayed up until 3am booking them all!!!

Our first trip as a family, late July 2014, we stood in a 10 minute line to meet Pooh and Tigger right outside the winnie the pooh ride. We did Petes silly sideshow that trip during an evening rainstorm and literally had the whole place to ourselves, all 4 characters, zero waiting. 5 minutes waits for tinkerbell, ariel, and town square mickey. Rainstorms make the parks so much more fun!

 

[Disneylover99]

Your dining wasn't free, you just paid for it in other ways that seemed less obvious, such as higher priced room.

Sometimes free dining, really is free dining. My husband insisted on staying at POFQ for his birthday. We booked a free dining BB the year before and I'm glad we did. There were no room only discounts available during our time of travel anyways at our resort.

We love character buffets and try to book as many as we can. I detest waiting in line for characters. We go in August and I feel like we're always standing in the blazing sun waiting for our turn. I would much rather have the characters come to me.

I also love the food at buffets. Yep, I do. I don't have to look at a menu and choose. I can just wander up, get what I like, try new dishes, sample this or that. Love em!!!!

 

[TinaLala]

I think it comes down to what type of experience you want to have. My next trip I'm going with a group where most have never experienced a character meal, so I picked the ones that had a good variety of food and the best characters. We are doing the dining plan so cost wasn't an issue.

However when I'm with just my family we go to our favorites and only one is a character meal. Whe. The kids are older it starts to come down to good food, when younger it's all about the experience with the characters.

When I'm 70-80 will I still go to Chef Mickeys - YES, do I like the food there, not so much.