Anyone with shy children tried a character meal?

[travelbug]

I've never been to a character meal, but could be considering one for an upcoming trip with 2 cute nieces, ages 7 and 4. So I'm wondering. If shy children are sitting quietly just watching the characters from a distance, do the characters usually give them some space? Or do they tend to get right up close and possibly freak out the kids?

Anyone with shy kids have experiences to share? Thanks!

 

[Magic2000]

We've had many character meals - sometimes my girls were jumping up and down, hugging, and asking for autographs, and other times, they just sat there very quiet and burying their head on my lap.

The characters were always very good with the kids - if they saw that the child didn't want to play, they usually just waved or patted their head. Then, if she suddenly decided that she did want a hug, the character would play along. Usually, they played around until she at least gave them a smile. But they weren't pushy at all.

Try it - the character meals are so much fun!!!

 

[MOMTOMOOTOO]

The characters are very in tune with the kids. They know the kids that need space. You will surprised at how quickly kids overcome shyness when around Mickey

Don't be afraid to try. Maybe you should try a meal with the face characters at CRT or PSB. not as overwhelming as say Pluto or Goofy. And the girls will love the Princesses.

Laura

 

[goofiesgirlies]

Last year was the first time we took our DD - 4 yrs. to Disneyworld and to a character meal. I actually dreaded it because she has been terrified of characters since day one - Santa, etc. Well hats off to the characters at Chef Mickey's! They were excellent. Just as the others have posted the characters are terrific with the kids.

At first DD would barely even look at them. Then she was happy to give a character 'five' or have one of us stand in between and take a picture. By the end of the dinner DD was yelling across the restaurant at Chip! Chip let her 'honk' his nose and hold her hand and that was a really big step.

FYI - this year when we went she wasn't scared at all and happy to have them all sign her autograph book.

Have a wonderful trip!

--Jn

 

[pleakley]

My daughter is really shy, we took her to Disneyland last year and my whole family thought we were nuts. I was a little nervous about how she would react, but she adored the characters and was like a whole different child, she hugged them, got autographs and everything. She was actually more intimidated by the face characters, she wanted to meet them, but wouldn't get too close. We had lunch at Goofy's Kitchen and it was awesome, but the Mad Hatter and Alice sent her under the table. They were so hysterical, but they did move on quickly when they saw how nervous she was. We all enjoyed them from afar as they went to the other tables, even she laughed then.
I have to say that made the memories all the more special seeing such a shy child come out of their shell like that

 

[travelbug]

Your replies are really encouraging! Thanks so much for sharing your experiences.

Anyone else?

 

[laurabelle]

I agree with choosing a "face" character meal, like the princesses. They seem to be less intimdating to my youngest.

 

[crisi]

My daughter treated the characters like big teddy bears.

My son had a "don't get too close to me and I won't get close to you" arrangment. The characters picked up on this and respected it. I have great pictures of my daughter "up close and personal" with Minnie while my son stands two feet away - just out of reach, looking away. By the end of the trip (after seven days) he shook Pluto's hand. Once. And got kind of close to Minnie.

I'd recommend scheduling the meal for a few days after you arrive. This will give the kids exposure to the characters in the parks and parades (my son LOVED them in the parades, where he was pretty sure they weren't going to get too close).

Some kids do turn out to be "screamers" - the characters within fifteen feet (which they will be at a character meal, even if they are giving your child space) is enough to set them off. If you schedule your meal a few days in, you'll know whether the girls will do well "eating with Mickey" or if you'd be better off cancelling.

As to "face" characters, my daughter was much warmer to the non-face characters. She was a little wary of the face characters. I think it dependson the kid. Some kids who are shy with strangers see the face characters as strangers, but Mickey or Chip as a big stuffed animal that moves and are better with Mickey or Chip. Other kids are the opposite, the face characters are at least familiar while the big moving stuffed animal is scary.

 

[Carlnne]

I am not sure what kind of training the characters receive but they are all wonderful with all types of children. They will back off or gently pat a head if they see fear or worry. My son is extremely shy- crawls under the table at restaurants when waitresses start singing those horrific birthday songs- but he was fine. We even got one picture when he was 5 of Pochahontas kissing him on the cheek! Dont miss out.

 

[Madi100]

My daughter is very shy. She had no problem getting her picture taken with the characters, but that was about it. She waited in line, handed offher autograph book, got a picture taken. Most of the characters were great with this. We did Cinderella's breakfast, and they just didn't spend a lot of time at our table.

Now, just a warning. If you are going to have your children see the characters that are out wandering around, there were a few chracters that because of their character, were not the best one for the shy. From our experience, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum are not for shy children. They kept trying to tease my daughter, and she didn't like it, and they didn't care. Cruella DeVil can be mean. Shaker (Country Bears) freaked my daughter out. We have a picture of Shaker, my daughter and my husband. My daughter looks like she is going to pee her pants from fear, and my husband look like he is going to pee his pants because he's dying of laughter.

This was just my experience. On our next trip, we are doing a couple more meals. My daughter is STILL shy

 

[tink2]

On our last trip, my DD was 2 1/2. We had a character meal scheduled every day. The first one was Crystal Palace. She would not even look at the characters once they got within 5 feet of her. They were all very good- they'd try to get close and then back away. I was very concerned about the rest of the meals for our trip. By the second meal, she would hug them at that was it. By the third meal, she was sitting in their laps and loving all over them. I really don't think she would have come out of her shell the whole trip had we not done the character meals. They are definitely worth it and a lot of fun! The characters will be great with your neices- try it and have a great time! You won't regret those priceless memories!
BTW-Cruella is another character to shy away from at the meet and greets- she can be mean! Also, my DD is afraid of Captain Hook- he was really teasing kids when we saw him!
Have a great time!

 

[Abra Cat]

My son was 3 months shy of his 3rd birthday on our last trip. We expected that he'd be afraid of the characters, as he never wants to have his picture taken with Santa, or with any characters at storytime (complete opposite of his sister the ham), but he really amazed us when we took him to Chef Mickey's. He was more than willing to hug all the characters, and I was able to take lots of pictures. Of course, the next day at Hollywood and Vine, he wouldn't let them near him, and in fact, almost attacked Chip (or maybe it was Dale) when he gave ME a hug! He sure loved the princesses though, when we went to CRT...

 

[travelbug]

I'm so grateful for all of your responses, advice, and encouragement! This is all so helpful. Thank you, everyone!

 

[hygienejean]

My DS was just 6 weeks away from turning 3 when we were at WDW a few weeks ago. He too would never go near Santa or the Easter Bunny. He didn't want to touch the characters but he let them get right up close, only occasionally turning away with a giant grin! The character were wonderful with him and he keeps talking about them all the time!