10 yr old is considered adult for pricing purposes??

[lindsroc]

I called last night and booked our fantasmic package reservation, they told me my 10 yr old would be paying adult price of $33,

Is she not allowed to order off the kids menu this year?? There's no way she needs an adult size entree and honestly I think she
Would really prefer the food choices on the kids menu. I'm confused as to how this is going to work for us this time around.
Any info or feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

[GaBelle]

For Disney dining, 10 and up are considered "adults" and unfortunately pay the adult prices.
She (or anyone else for the most part) is welcomed to order off of the kids menu.

I know... it stinks. My daughter is now a Disney adult, too. We always get the DxDDP, so we will be paying a premium for those chicken nuggets!

 

[Jestocost]

I called last night and booked our fantasmic package reservation, they told me my 10 yr old would be paying adult price of $33,

Is she not allowed to order off the kids menu this year?? There's no way she needs an adult size entree and honestly I think she
Would really prefer the food choices on the kids menu. I'm confused as to how this is going to work for us this time around.
Any info or feedback would be greatly appreciated.

For fixed-price meals like the Fantasmic packages, dinner shows and buffets or for the purposes of the DDP, a 10 year old will pay adult prices. If you are dining at QS or at an a la carte TS location and paying OOP, you will pay for what she orders; so if she orders off of the kids menu--which usually is not an issue--you will pay the kids menu prices.

 

[lindsroc]

Ok thank you. Kind of stinks to pay adult prices for her meals, especially considering she is the pickiest eater ever...but glad to know she can still order off the kids menu.

 

[Hopefully]

Ok thank you. Kind of stinks to pay adult prices for her meals, especially considering she is the pickiest eater ever...but glad to know she can still order off the kids menu.

Yes but at buffets, all you care to eat meals, dinner shows, the Fantsmic! package she can eat what appeals to her, but you will pay the full adult price.
I just wasn't sure that was clear for you.

 

[CAJUNWDWFAN]

Not only does 10 year old pay adult prices for meals, they are also paying adult prices for tickets. This is a sore subject around the Disney community. Disney should change this policy.

What really stinks is that there is no childrens Annual Pass anymore. My three year old daughter is going to have to pay the same price for her AP as my wife and I do. Crazy!

 

[TheRustyScupper]

. . . Kind of stinks to pay adult prices for her meals, especially considering she is the pickiest eater ever . . .

1) All companies have to set parameters.
2) The 10-year line was set many years ago.
. . . age breaks first started when they included "juniors"
. . . there were age breaks for infants, kids, juniors, adults
. . . when the "junior" class was eliminated, the 10-year age was set
3) Unfortunately, Disney cannot accommodate all picky eaters.
4) They have to work toward the full population.
5) Yes, they will always be exceptions.
6) But, nothing in any realm can accommodate everyone.
7) So, when exceptions pop up, you just go-with-the-flow.
8) But, as mentioned, if paying OOP, the child can order/pay from any menu.


NOTE:
a) At one time, WDW had four divisions
. . . infant (under 3)
. . . child (3-12)
. . . junior (13-17)
. . . adult (18+)
b) This applied to ride/admission tickets and some (not all) meal prices.
c) They cut it back to the current infant, child, adult.
d) WDW said it was for simplicity.
e) But, it did move more "juniors" into the adult category for food/tickets.
f) I see no way they would go back.

 

[bdklein]

My daughter is now a Disney adult, too. We always get the DxDDP, so we will be paying a premium for those chicken nuggets!

So perhaps it may not be worth it?? Go OOP?

 

[bdklein]

. Kind of stinks to pay adult prices for her meals, especially considering she is the pickiest eater ever...but glad to know she can still order off the kids menu.

Why do you have to pay adult prices for her meals when she is ordering off the kids menu?

 

[JimmyV]

Not only does 10 year old pay adult prices for meals, they are also paying adult prices for tickets. This is a sore subject around the Disney community. Disney should change this policy.

It cuts both ways. I think that parents with kids who just crossed over to the "adult" age bracket have to give a second thought to getting a dining plan. Yes, your "adult" child can order off of the kid's menu, but there is no value in that. You are far better off ordering OOP if that is how your child tends to eat. But changing the policy would then lock 10 year olds into the dining plan as kids, and they would be restricted to ordering from the kid's menu at a time when they might want to open up and explore more. While there are many kids (and parents) who would be content to stick to the kid's menu, there are other children and their parents who would prefer to branch out. But "changing the policy" would not permit this.

I think if you do the math, you will find that if your 10 (or 11, or 12) year old is content with food on childrens' menus, then you should skip the DP and buy your meals out of pocket, and have your child order off of the child's menu. Conversely, if you have a 7 or 8 or 9 year old who prefers more adult options, then again the DP needs to be reconsidered, as the DP restricts your child to ordering off of the children's menu, and those can be very limiting. But if you have young children who eat the food on the children's menu, and you have 10+ age children who prefer to order off of the main menu, then the DP can still work, and the policy can stick where it is.

The age cut off is always going to be somewhat arbitrary, and whatever age it is set at, certain kids who cross from "child" to "adult" are going to get squeezed.

 

[TDC Nala]

At any fixed-price restaurant (the type where guests are charged per person instead of by item they order) a 10 year old pays the higher price (Disney doesn't use the term "adult" or "child" for tickets or dining plans, they say "guests age 3-9" and "guests age 10 and older").

However, at a la carte restaurants, for the most part it appears they are able to order from the children's menu at children's prices if that is what they prefer.

It does make a difference whether you are talking about fixed price places, like buffets, family style all you can eat restaurants, or fixed menu restaurants, and whether you are discussing a la carte restaurants. Unfortunately for a lot of families with older kids, all character meals are fixed price, and the Disney Dining Plan requires the higher price for children age 10 and over.

They pay the higher price for the tickets because by the age of 10, most children are physically able to participate in all the available rides/shows if they choose to. Disney didn't just set that age arbitrarily. As for the restaurants, I think for whatever reason they wanted to match that up with the tickets, possibly to assist in booking of package reservations including tickets and dining. The restaurants used to be 12 years old for the higher price, not 10.

They still use the designation "junior" for children aged 10-17, but only regarding resort room reservations. A "junior" is a registered resort guest who is too old for the child designation, but not old enough to kick in the extra adult charge on the resort rooms.

 

[smitch425]

Not only does 10 year old pay adult prices for meals, they are also paying adult prices for tickets. This is a sore subject around the Disney community. Disney should change this policy.

Not looking to start a debate, just curious as to why you think the ticket policy should be changed? 10 is the average age at which most children reach the height requirements for all rides giving them full access to all rides that adults would also have access to. The price difference is pretty minimal. When we upgraded DD to 10 so she could eat from the 10+ menu on our QSDP, the cost to switch her 9 day park hopper from a 3-9 to a 10+ was only $19.17. So about $2 a day. That really isn't bad considering there are a lot of rides that exclude children age 3-9 because of height.

 

[GaBelle]

So perhaps it may not be worth it?? Go OOP?

Oh, I showed DH the math. He is unfazed.
He is completely sold on the DxDP.

 

[JimmyV]

Oh, I showed DH the math. He is unfazed.
He is completely sold on the DxDP.

...and Disney loves him for it.

 

[hildarumpole]

When my daughter was 10 we did the Fantasmic! package. The server told us she was required to order off the adult menu. It worked out fine. By dinner time she was really hungry from park touring all day. She didn't finish everything, but we were surprised at how little was left over. She's normally a light eater. You can ask to have a menu item modified within reason if your daughter is very picky about particular ingredients. My son is pretty picky and we've never had a problem being accomodated with requests.

 

[PurpleTurtle]

But changing the policy would then lock 10 year olds into the dining plan as kids, and they would be restricted to ordering from the kid's menu at a time when they might want to open up and explore more. While there are many kids (and parents) who would be content to stick to the kid's menu, there are other children and their parents who would prefer to branch out. But "changing the policy" would not permit this.

Agreed. We are planning to do the TIW card when we go next month. Our 11 year old (and the 9 year olds, for that matter) can order what she pleases this way. Days and days of orange mac and cheese are not what she'll want, but she probably will order it once or twice

 

[Masonmj84]

We have been DxDP users for a few years but next year, after DS turns 10, we are switching to TIW.

 

[Wendy31]

We really loved the DxDP before our 2 older kids became "Disney adults."

The first year we used the DxDP & paid adult prices for our 2 older kids, we were kinda shocked at both how much money & how much food we wasted!

So, the next year, we went back to the basic DP & just pay OOP for things like appetizers & extra table-service meals.

I do miss the freedom & flexibility that comes w/ the DxDP though.

While we have to pay adult prices for our 2 older kids at buffets, character meals, & set-price meals (like the Fantasmic Package or 'Ohana), they have both been allowed to order off the kids' menu, if they preferred.

At some places, they have even gone back & forth from the kid's menu to the adult's menu depending on what they wanted to eat. For example, at CRT last year, DD ordered an appetizer off the kid's menu (cheese cubes & grapes), a combo of the kid's menu & adult's menu for her entrée (plain beef tenderloin w/ a subbed side of French fries), & dessert from the adult's menu (dessert sampler).

If either DD or DS decide they want to order from the kids' menu at restaurants like Sci-Fi or Yak or Yeti (non character/non buffet/non set-price meals), we pay OOP for their meals instead of using a credit & then save the credits for other more expensive meals.

 

[lindsroc]

Why do you have to pay adult prices for her meals when she is ordering off the kids menu?

From what i am gathering...for meals such as the Fantasmic package ...we will have to pay adult price for her, but she can still order off the kids meal if she would like to.

 

[lindsroc]

Well now Im not sure of what I posted above because someone else said their child HAD to order off the adult menu. Whatever....we will make it work.