Character meal disappointment - advice for future bookings?

[EllaRoosmummy]

Just had princess dining experience in EPCOT and so sad to say we left disappointed with the princesses and their attitude to their roles. It was hurried and very much - here's the picture, here's the autograph now on to the next table. Snow White in particular almost threw my kids pen at her she was in such a hurry to get away! (sadly not an exaggeration) Belle was our meet and greet and she was lovely which was a saving grace as she's my DD favourite, however, being 6 she is still desperately into all the princesses and was left pretty downhearted by the whole thing to say the least.

I felt it was all too hurried - not purely the CM's fault. They obviously had to get round all the tables in a set time and see all the kids/families before doing the totally worthless parade (in my opinion time that would have been better served giving them longer with the children). Due to this every character was at our table within 5/6 minutes and the kids (also a 3 year old boy) were up and down like a yoyo. It appeared that they had to be away before the food was served? My previous experience of character dining was at Chef Mickey in Paris where the characters were much more staggered and visited throughout the meal. This way the excitement lasted and they spent much longer with each table giving a proper experience for the children. I've also booked the Disney Junior breakfast at Hollywood and Vine and Donald's character lunch at Tusker House in Animal Kingdom. However, I'm now having second thoughts if these are going to be similar to the princess experience of today. Has anyone done either of these and if so can you give me advice on how they run?

 

[wilkeliza]

Just had princess dining experience in EPCOT and so sad to say we left disappointed with the princesses and their attitude to their roles. It was hurried and very much - here's the picture, here's the autograph now on to the next table. Snow White in particular almost threw my kids pen at her she was in such a hurry to get away! (sadly not an exaggeration) Belle was our meet and greet and she was lovely which was a saving grace as she's my DD favourite, however, being 6 she is still desperately into all the princesses and was left pretty downhearted by the whole thing to say the least.

I felt it was all too hurried - not purely the CM's fault. They obviously had to get round all the tables in a set time and see all the kids/families before doing the totally worthless parade (in my opinion time that would have been better served giving them longer with the children). Due to this every character was at our table within 5/6 minutes and the kids (also a 3 year old boy) were up and down like a yoyo. It appeared that they had to be away before the food was served? My previous experience of character dining was at Chef Mickey in Paris where the characters were much more staggered and visited throughout the meal. This way the excitement lasted and they spent much longer with each table giving a proper experience for the children. I've also booked the Disney Junior breakfast at Hollywood and Vine and Donald's character lunch at Tusker House in Animal Kingdom. However, I'm now having second thoughts if these are going to be similar to the princess experience of today. Has anyone done either of these and if so can you give me advice on how they run?

I've done Tuskers House several times and never felt rushed. I would say there was at least 5 if not 10 minutes between each character. Since it is a buffet you usually have time to get something to eat and bring it back for the table.

Also every time at Tuskers the characters have been playful and spend time with each guest. We have several silly pictures of Mickey sitting down for coffee (we always do character breakfast not lunch or dinner) or Goofy trying to take a selfie with us. I also have a great picture of Pluto from Chef Mickey thinking his tag was the same as my running medal.

I'm so sorry that you had such a bad experience. I hope your daughter gets to meet the princesses again and the magic returns to her.

 

[juliebug1997]

Sometimes, the characters move a little faster with some families than with others. Let's say that Ariel was my favorite so my table held her for a little longer for a talk about dinglehoffers. However, Snow White was coming up quickly, saw that Ariel was talking with us and went around to see you. We let Ariel go and you see two princesses in a five minute time period.

We've done a lot of character meals as two adults and we've had some where the characters came in the first 20 minutes of our meal and we've had others where we see a character, find that the next is 10 minutes away so that we can either eat, visit the buffet or go to the restroom.

PS: A lot of people prefer Akershus because it's cheaper and they say that the character interaction is better than at CRT. I had the same experience as you did at Akershus (less than attentive princess experience) and the food wasn't all that great, IMO. However, I have always had wonderful character interactions at CRT and never felt rushed.

 

[GigiDisneyfreak]

Just had princess dining experience in EPCOT and so sad to say we left disappointed with the princesses and their attitude to their roles. It was hurried and very much - here's the picture, here's the autograph now on to the next table. Snow White in particular almost threw my kids pen at her she was in such a hurry to get away! (sadly not an exaggeration) Belle was our meet and greet and she was lovely which was a saving grace as she's my DD favourite, however, being 6 she is still desperately into all the princesses and was left pretty downhearted by the whole thing to say the least.

I felt it was all too hurried - not purely the CM's fault. They obviously had to get round all the tables in a set time and see all the kids/families before doing the totally worthless parade (in my opinion time that would have been better served giving them longer with the children). Due to this every character was at our table within 5/6 minutes and the kids (also a 3 year old boy) were up and down like a yoyo. It appeared that they had to be away before the food was served? My previous experience of character dining was at Chef Mickey in Paris where the characters were much more staggered and visited throughout the meal. This way the excitement lasted and they spent much longer with each table giving a proper experience for the children. I've also booked the Disney Junior breakfast at Hollywood and Vine and Donald's character lunch at Tusker House in Animal Kingdom. However, I'm now having second thoughts if these are going to be similar to the princess experience of today. Has anyone done either of these and if so can you give me advice on how they run?

I assume this was Akershus, I partly agree with you about the parade. I don't mind it, but I feel they do it too often. We had a great time there, in fact my daughters requested we go back. My one daughter who loves Belle was disappointed with her and I can't say she was wrong, but the other princesses were lovely. I'm sorry your time there was disappointing. I haven't been to the other 2 restaurants you are planning on going to but I have heard nothing but good things about Tusker House. The one thing you should learn from this is 2 people can have entirely different experiences and because you were disappointed with Akershus doesn't mean you will have the same disappointment at the other 2 restaurants. Sometimes character experiences can be inconsistent. I hope you have a better experience. Have fun!

 

[jco_direwolf]

I hate to say it, but the princesses (Both CRT and Ankasura (sp?)) always seem to be so crowded, and they have jammed tables into every space. Unlike 10 or so years ago. I think every time I venture into either of them they have found a tetris player to figure out how to fit in 2 more tables.

I've often felt like the princesses to make their rounds were rushed. Not a feeling I've gotten at Fur character meals.

I feel bad for you. Because those experience are what you go to Disney for.

 

[AngiTN]

I've done every character meal on property, except for Cape May. We have never experienced anything like you did. Sorry it didn't meet your expectations. Ours were never rushed, they did not have to come by the table before food was served. At several, Askerhus included, we had them come by more than once. Some interactions were better than others but none treated us rudely or rushed. Specifically we had great interactions with Jasmine and Ariel at Askerhus. They joked around a lot with DGD (she and Ariel's daughter share a name).

I think you'll find your other meals go better.

 

[Aurora0427]

I'm so sorry you had a poor experience. We had a similar experience at Akershus. Snow White & Ariel were lovely, and very attentive. Aurora & Cinderella were meh.

We had a WONDERFUL experience at CRT. They were all wonderful. Snow White even sat down at our table and spoke to my husband and MIL while waiting for my dd and I to return from the bathroom.

We've always had good experiences at Chef Mickey. Some characters stay longer than others. They were staggered.

We are trying Tusker House this next trip!

 

[lizard1]

Just had princess dining experience in EPCOT and so sad to say we left disappointed with the princesses and their attitude to their roles. It was hurried and very much - here's the picture, here's the autograph now on to the next table. Snow White in particular almost threw my kids pen at her she was in such a hurry to get away! (sadly not an exaggeration) Belle was our meet and greet and she was lovely which was a saving grace as she's my DD favourite, however, being 6 she is still desperately into all the princesses and was left pretty downhearted by the whole thing to say the least.

I felt it was all too hurried - not purely the CM's fault. They obviously had to get round all the tables in a set time and see all the kids/families before doing the totally worthless parade (in my opinion time that would have been better served giving them longer with the children). Due to this every character was at our table within 5/6 minutes and the kids (also a 3 year old boy) were up and down like a yoyo. It appeared that they had to be away before the food was served? My previous experience of character dining was at Chef Mickey in Paris where the characters were much more staggered and visited throughout the meal. This way the excitement lasted and they spent much longer with each table giving a proper experience for the children. I've also booked the Disney Junior breakfast at Hollywood and Vine and Donald's character lunch at Tusker House in Animal Kingdom. However, I'm now having second thoughts if these are going to be similar to the princess experience of today. Has anyone done either of these and if so can you give me advice on how they run?

We were there at the end of last month and I felt the same way. We had many other character meals during our trip and Akershus was the worst character interaction (and food) by far. We also did CRT, 1900 Park Fare (breakfast and dinner), CP, Tusker House, H&V (lunch), and Chef Mickey's for reference.

At H&V (we went for lunch), the characters were fantastic. They gladly signed all of our stuff and posed for several pictures. Jake is on of my littlest one's favorites and he got down so she could hug him. Both of my girls wore Sophia dresses so Sophia posed with them and the compared amulets. We were there about 1 1/2 hours and the characters made it around 2 or 3 times, and they stopped at our table EACH time around. The only negative thing that I had to say about H&V was that they were VERY far behind in seating people; we had to wait 45 minutes past our reservation time (though we are a party of 8, and there were other parties of 10 and 12 in front of us waiting).

At Tusker House, it was similar to H&V. We were there about the same length of time and we saw all of the characters 2 or 3 times. My littlest one got to hold Donald's hand and lead the parade playing music. Goofy stole a spray bottle off of our table and pretended to spray Mickey with it (until his handler told him to stop). They gladly signed all of our stuff and posed for pictures. Once again they stopped at our table or at least waved every time they came around the restaurant.

I do have to say that H&V and Tusker House are much more organized than Akershus as well. Unlike at Akershus, when we were seated at each of these restaurants, the waitress explained to us the order that the characters visit the tables. That way we knew based on where the characters were whether or not we had time to get up to use the bathroom or to get more food, and we could make sure that we had our autograph stuff and cameras ready when it was time. The handlers also came around to make sure that we had not been skipped by any of the characters.

I would definitely do TH and H&V again. IF I wanted to see princesses again, I would gladly pay the money to do CRT versus ever go to Akershus again.

 

[lizard1]

I also wanted to add, if you are looking for interaction with Belle, do ETWB and get your daughter to volunteer for a part. Even if she doesn't, she can still get a picture with Belle at the end.

 

[jtowntoflorida]

I'm sorry you had a bad experience. I do think that sometimes magic for one guest can mean a subpar experience for another. The one and only time we went to Akershus, my son (who wasn't quite 2 at the time) flipped out over Snow White. Like screaming like a fan boy, "SNOW WHITE! SNOW WHITE! SNOW WHITE!" with this total look of amazement on his face the whole time. She'd say something to him, he'd look at me with these wide eyes, point to her, and scream "SNOW WHITE." We were all laughing hysterically, and by the end of the meal she was crying because she was laughing so hard. But the table next to ours was not amused, especially when she just stopped by there for a quick hello and picture. That family glared at us, and then asked for a manager. I felt bad because I know that we took that family's time, but it was such a fun moment for us.

We've done the H&V breakfast three times and have always had great character interaction. It's billed as a "play and dine" meal and the kids have an opportunity to get up and dance with the characters. It's a lot of fun, actually.

We've done Tusker House twice. I always felt like the interaction with Donald before the meal was a little formulaic, with just a picture and then being moved along quickly. We've had pretty decent interaction with the characters inside, though.

 

[Momma2PrinceNPrinces]

Loved loved TH! Yes, the beginning part waiting in line to take a pic with Donald is a tad silly, although made for a super cute pic! The food was delish and character interaction A++! We never felt rushed. We're going back on our upcoming trip

 

[ellone]

Loved loved TH! Yes, the beginning part waiting in line to take a pic with Donald is a tad silly, although made for a super cute pic! The food was delish and character interaction A++! We never felt rushed. We're going back on our upcoming trip

He no longer has a photo & meet outside. He meets inside.

 

[mom2rtk]

PS: A lot of people prefer Akershus because it's cheaper and they say that the character interaction is better than at CRT. I had the same experience as you did at Akershus (less than attentive princess experience) and the food wasn't all that great, IMO. However, I have always had wonderful character interactions at CRT and never felt rushed.

I agree. People have been saying this for years. But honestly, it's just luck of the draw.

I also wanted to add, if you are looking for interaction with Belle, do ETWB and get your daughter to volunteer for a part. Even if she doesn't, she can still get a picture with Belle at the end.

If she has a part, then yes there will be scripted interaction there. But the photo op at the end is the most ridiculously rushed character photo I have ever seen. She practically has to push each guest away after their photo to keep on schedule. The "funny" part is that (I suppose because of the prerecorded script????) it's even rushed when there is absolutely nobody waiting in line for the next show. We experienced this around 11:30 PM during an EMH. It was crazy.



OP, part of it is how many people they are trying to cram through there every hour. But people DO still have good character interaction at character meals. If you want more than a sign and run, you need to find a way to make that happen. Work up a list of interesting questions you can ask the character when they come by. Is your daughter really shy? That might be part of it. They just don't have time to draw kids out. So put her in her favorite princess gown. And prep her as each character comes by. Or ask for her. Try Kenny the Pirate's site. I know he used to have fun suggestions for questions to ask.

But just know that some experiences are going to be better than others.

 

[jiminykrikkit]

Darn. So sad for you that you were disappointed. Akershus was great for us last year. We had amazing interaction with all the princesses, as my son (2.5 at the time) was just flirting and flirting with them. He loves princesses.

I think in general face characters have a harder time staying "on schedule" because they can talk and have a conversation, which naturally encourages the guests to keep talking, etc. The furry ones can only really communicate with gestures, so it's easier to keep it short and sweet. Just my own observation.

Not saying that was an excuse for being rushed, but just thought I'd add in my 2 cents. I hope your upcoming meals are great. I wouldn't cancel them. We've done both and found them to be fun and had no complaints.

The Hollywood and Vine one will have a dance party that the kids like, and doesn't Tusker House have a parade? Despite those extra activities, I felt like we had plenty of time with all the characters. Jake even came back because my son was asleep when he first stopped by our table. Great interaction there.

 

[cvjw]

Yep, you probably got the leftovers because the princesses were giving extra pixie dust to some other little princesses. I agree with PP, there will always be some guests who get more attention than others. The characters only have a certain amount of time in the dining room before the next group of diners come in. Some guests have great experiences and others, not so much.

As an example, we took our 18 and 14 year old sons, along with our 4 year old niece to the character meal at Grand Floridian with Cinderella and the step- sisters. Nobody in the room got much time with the step-sisters because they spent almost the whole time with my teenage sons. They decided they were going to marry my sons, even bringing their mother over to give my sons a talking to about their future wives. It was totally hilarious, but they were with us almost the whole meal. My boys didn't really get to eat, they had to interact and take pictures with the characters.

 

[DisneyKentucky]

The best interaction we've had (granted only one Prince, one Princess and 3 awesome wicked family members) is 1900 Park Fare. The Dinner is well paced and they ham it up big time. It's a little more rushed in the morning but Mary Poppins, Alice and the Mad Hatter are fantastic.

For the furry variety you can't go wrong at Tusker House.

 

[bigjrfan88]

OP, I know what you are saying about Snow White. Every encounter we have ever had at a Character meal has been similar to yours. Very rushed and she almost seemed bothered to do it. Ariel, Belle, and Cinderella have all been awesome!

 

[MrInfinity]

Just had princess dining experience in EPCOT and so sad to say we left disappointed with the princesses and their attitude to their roles. It was hurried and very much - here's the picture, here's the autograph now on to the next table. Snow White in particular almost threw my kids pen at her she was in such a hurry to get away! (sadly not an exaggeration) Belle was our meet and greet and she was lovely which was a saving grace as she's my DD favourite, however, being 6 she is still desperately into all the princesses and was left pretty downhearted by the whole thing to say the least.

I felt it was all too hurried - not purely the CM's fault. They obviously had to get round all the tables in a set time and see all the kids/families before doing the totally worthless parade (in my opinion time that would have been better served giving them longer with the children). Due to this every character was at our table within 5/6 minutes and the kids (also a 3 year old boy) were up and down like a yoyo. It appeared that they had to be away before the food was served? My previous experience of character dining was at Chef Mickey in Paris where the characters were much more staggered and visited throughout the meal. This way the excitement lasted and they spent much longer with each table giving a proper experience for the children. I've also booked the Disney Junior breakfast at Hollywood and Vine and Donald's character lunch at Tusker House in Animal Kingdom. However, I'm now having second thoughts if these are going to be similar to the princess experience of today. Has anyone done either of these and if so can you give me advice on how they run?

I wasn't impressed by Akershus either. It was rushed, not enough time to talk, the princesses came pretty late to our table, the parade was silly (walk around the room w a bunch of kids?). The food was only average. Other character meals are much better! Chef Mickey's and 'Ohana are my favorites, tho Tusker House is up there. I think you'll like it a lot more.

 

[mom2rtk]

The best interaction we've had (granted only one Prince, one Princess and 3 awesome wicked family members) is 1900 Park Fare. The Dinner is well paced and they ham it up big time. It's a little more rushed in the morning but Mary Poppins, Alice and the Mad Hatter are fantastic.

I used to call 1900 PF the most fun you could have at a character meal. We have gone more times than I can count. But after 2 very disappointing visits, I'm not sure we'll be back. My only advice here is to do whatever it takes to avoid being seated in that back room. We were there those last 2 visits and it was a total snooze fest. On our last visit, Cinderella came by while we were just getting settled, so I didn't get good photos. I actually called her name later when she came RIGHT BY (it's a very small room) to see if we could get another photo and she completely ignored me. One of the characters actually implied to me (very quietly) that they were sorry to have to be so rushed but heir hands are tied.

 

[SillySallySews]

I'm really sorry you had that experience. :-( We had a similar one at 1900 PF recently. The characters (particularly Cinderella and Prince Charming) felt so rushed. The Mom and the sisters were better, but still were only at our table maybe 30-45 seconds before rushing on. The food there wasn't great either. Not bad, just not on the same level as everywhere else we ate while we were there. Our server left a lot to be desired and in fact it was the only meal where we didn't tip the suggested 18% percent or more.

We did the Disney Jr. breakfast at H&V about two weeks ago. It was our first time doing this breakfast and it was great! Our server told us right up front that if we saw a character at a certain table by ours we should not head to the buffet because we would miss them. That was a great tip and I'm so glad she shared that when we sat down. All the characters took their time and really made our kids feel special. Doc noticed my youngest daughter was wearing the same shoes and made a huge fuss over them. They don't do a parade, but they do stop periodically to gather the kids for a song/dance. Our kids got up and participated in every one and loved it. The food was actually a lot better than I thought it was going to be. My husband really liked the make your own breakfast burrito station. My girls were thrilled there was yogurt since that's usually part of their breakfast and they hadn't had any the entire time we were there until then. We would definitely do this breakfast again, but sadly I think by the time we go next year our youngest ones won't be as fascinated by these characters.