Akershus or CRT for a little princess?

[DisGirl819]

My DD3 is in love with princesses and I wanted to add a princess meal for her. What would be more magical: Akershus or CRT? I know CRT is a 2 meal credit/expensive place so I'm not sure which to book. They both have openings for our upcoming trip!

 

[goofy4tink]

Eating in the Castle is a big deal. BUT.....I prefer the princess breakfast at Akershus. Since your dd is just 3, I would go with Akershus. She, more than likely, won't really remember eating in the Castle, so why spend that kind of money, or 2 TS credits? Akershus is very lovely and castlelike....love it there. And, a ton of princesses!!

 

[Coconuts]

Eating in the Castle is a big deal. BUT.....I prefer the princess breakfast at Akershus. Since your dd is just 3, I would go with Akershus. She, more than likely, won't really remember eating in the Castle, so why spend that kind of money, or 2 TS credits? Akershus is very lovely and castlelike....love it there. And, a ton of princesses!!

Totally agree. We did CRT when DD was almost 2 and I think the whole experience/2 TS credits was lost on her. Meanwhile she LOVED Akershus because there were so many princesses and a parade! I would wait to do CRT until your DD is older and can appreciate eating in the castle.

 

[josh29]

Agree with both. Akershus for breakfast was a great meal and we had a blast. We loved the castle, for sure, but if I could only do one this trip I'd do Akershus.

The only other consideration I would have for CRT would be if you could get an early reservation and get in the park before opening... Just because that, in itself, is very cool.

 

[DisGirl819]

Thanks! I booked Akershus! I'm excited Is dinner or lunch there better (food wise?)

 

[Main Street Matilda]

I'm going to sound a little wishy-washy by saying this, but I found the restaurants different enough that I didn't find one preferable to the other. They each were their "own thing". We did CRT first and Akershus on our next trip. My DD (7) liked each of them equally and didn't really compare them.

Now, my DS (13) would day go to CRT ... he loved the Chocolate Cream Cheese Buckle dessert!

 

[Alinasan]

I'm sort of struggling with this question myself, as I have a 3 y.o. dd too.
I was convinced that Akershus would be better, because of the cost and the novelty of the Norweigan food. Then I started thinking that Cinderella's castle is just so iconic and as a girl, I wanted to go in there and never had the chance. I'm fairly sure DD will want to go in even if it isn't "THE" castle to her, but just "a" castle, though she does know who Cinderella is.

 

[DisGirl819]

I'm sort of struggling with this question myself, as I have a 3 y.o. dd too.
I was convinced that Akershus would be better, because of the cost and the novelty of the Norweigan food. Then I started thinking that Cinderella's castle is just so iconic and as a girl, I wanted to go in there and never had the chance. I'm fairly sure DD will want to go in even if it isn't "THE" castle to her, but just "a" castle, though she does know who Cinderella is.

See...this is what I was thinking about too. She adores castles and I think she is the perfect age to 'get' eating in a castle with princesses...but it is so expensive.

 

[Babbletrish]

This is one of those cases where you have to try and think of things from your three-year-old's point of view. Being able to climb up inside the iconic Cinderella Castle is a huge, huge deal -- when you're old enough to have been to WDW a few times and to remember the experience. (Speaking personally, my mom and dad swear we ate at CRT when I was little and I recall absolutely nothing of the experience.)

Akershus, on the other hand, can handle more people so you don't feel like you're being rushed, and gives you more time to interact with the characters (who interact far more often with guests; for some reason Cinderella doesn't even tour the tables in the castle! You have a minute-long meeting and photo session with her before you are seated; Cindie comes across as a weird combination of a stuck-up diva and a mall Santa.) You can eat as much as you like and whatever you like. So unless your three-year-old is dying to eat inside the castle, I'd give it a few years.

 

[traveladdiction]

The food, interaction and experience in Norway is so much better than CRT.... you'll get way more princess time in Norway... Without a doubt, it's what I'd recommend for you!

 

[hannahdrewmom]

We took my daughter to CRT @ 3 and it was amazing! She LOVED it and still talks about it. It is expensive and the food quality is no better than Ashker.... but it's the castle. She truly believes it is Cinderella's castle that she ate in. That is a huge deal at that age. Yes she might not remember it when she is 7... but at 7 she also isn't going to believe it's real. So I think right now at 3 it's worth it for her to live her little fairytale. She won't believe it forever.... so I want to keep her in her little safe world of make believe as long as possible!
I'd go CRT. (I just try to think of Disney money as a foreign currency... if you think of it as real dollars... you'll go nuts!)

 

[Hootch]

agree that our three year old daughter did not remember the experience as much as she did a year later. I still prefer CRT.

The castle is a big plus but the whole Fantasyland experience enhances that. Go to BBB a couple of hours before your meal, ride a couple of rides - especially the carousel - and then the castle. It's a little bit more.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

We did Akershus lunch and I didn't like the food much, but the princesses were great as well as picture with Belle to take home. CRT is a must do at least every couple trips, but wait until she gets a little older so she can remember it It is expensive, even for breakfast. We are doing Akershus breakfast in February. My girls are 6 and 3

 

[DisGirl819]

Now I have ADRs for both and still can't decide. DH told me she'd love the castle b/c its so much more magical and she's at the perfect age for enjoying the magic. Its ok if she doesn't remember it forever, I'm sure I will And plus we'll have pictures!

We took her to a princess lunch in DCA on her first Christmas and she didn't care about the princesses, just their jewelry but it was fun and we loved it. I'm not the type that worries about how long she'll remember something b/c I know if she has fun in the moment and remembers it for a while and we remember it that is what matters most.

But I noticed the price difference isn't a LOT different between the two meals and yet CRT costs two dining credits!? Is it more worth it to just pay for that meal OOP?

 

[hannahdrewmom]

But I noticed the price difference isn't a LOT different between the two meals and yet CRT costs two dining credits!? Is it more worth it to just pay for that meal OOP?

I'd figure out where you want to go to eat. If you are over credits figure out how much they cost. Depending on the meal it can make total sense to pay oop. If you are doing breakfast at the CRT and then want to do dinner at Ohana and CM it makes much more sense. But if you are doing dinner at CRT and breakfast at Kona and lunch at Sci fi it might now. So I'd plan where I want to eat and then figure out how to pay for it. (Remember though that tip is included at CRT... so if you go oop there you will then be paying for 2 additional tips at other restaurants that you choose to use your credits at plus the oop for CRT. Not normally a huge difference but one of those nickle and dime things that add up)

 

[4littleones]

I am having difficulty with this too. I am struggling with the 2 credits. I am afraid of my kids wanting to go "in" the castle all week if we don't do CRT.

 

[Alinasan]

I'd figure out where you want to go to eat. If you are over credits figure out how much they cost. Depending on the meal it can make total sense to pay oop. If you are doing breakfast at the CRT and then want to do dinner at Ohana and CM it makes much more sense. But if you are doing dinner at CRT and breakfast at Kona and lunch at Sci fi it might now. So I'd plan where I want to eat and then figure out how to pay for it. (Remember though that tip is included at CRT... so if you go oop there you will then be paying for 2 additional tips at other restaurants that you choose to use your credits at plus the oop for CRT. Not normally a huge difference but one of those nickle and dime things that add up)

Very true, and besides the tip angle, I'm also considering that our schedules and our waistbands only have so much room for all this food! So even if I could get 2 other meals out of the 2 CRT credits, we may not really WANT that, versus say, splitting our CS meals up to share or something like that.

 

[Memphis Mom of 3]

We absolutely LOVE Akershus & have been several times. Cinderella is not on the official line-up but has been one of the princesses at Akershus each of the 5 times we have been for dinner. It is a really nice atmosphere & I think your girls would love it. Our do!

 

[TiggerTrigger]

We have done CRT for lunch and dinner and Akershus for lunch and dinner. The first time we had lunch at CRT is was MAGICAL! We of course met Cindy downstairs, had Belle, Jasmine, Aurora and Ariel upstairs...could look out a bit over Fantasyland from our table, no chaos, good food, good service, and the meal length was good. The second time- it was a madhouse downstairs! We had decent princesses, but my food was downright horrible, the a/c dripped on us all meal and our server was less than professional about us being soaked from it, and the meal took forever!

Our first Akershus lunch- check in was NUTS!!! But the food was for the most part good, we had great princess interaction (minus a less than stellar Belle) - and the only downside was it took FOREVER! When we went for dinner - it was far less crazy at check in, the food (which was good last time) was much better this time, however not all of the princess interaction was as good this time.

All in all- if it's your DD's very first princess meal...the castle wins hands down for us. If it's in the budget- consider paying OOP for it. Too many people focus on DDP credits and not the value you're actually getting per credit. In the long run, it's a better use of $ and credits IMO to just pay for this one unless you're on DxDP and have lots of credits to burn. Flipside- if you opt for Akershus- that is a good use of DDP credits.

 

[Daryl]

I've done CRT twice. Frankly I'm really looking forward to Akershus this next trip. Look, you really can't loose either way. One advantage of Akershus is it will enhance a visit to EPCOT for a young child.