Character meal w/ infant worth it?

[QJ411]

Hi everyone,

I love all the character meals we used to go to, but now we're going w/ our 6 month DD and I'm not sure if we should bother. We'd love to go and personally, I think the photo ops would be great.

Any recommendations? We'll be at AKL for only 3 days, so any meal would be nice...what do u recommend?

Thanks!

 

[kcashner]

I'm not sure what you mean by "worth it." The child will not be charged for the meal.

In my experience, the characters are very sensitive to the behavior of the child. If the child coos and shows delight, they play with her. If the child seems afraid, they stay away, but still greet the others at the table. If your child wants to play, you'll get great photos.

The character meals are among the least expensive sit-down meals at WDW...so if you will eat a sit down meal, they are a good value.

As to which ones...you might think in terms of the resorts--Chef Mickey's, 1900 Park Fare, or breakfast at Cape May. That way, you can go over without treking thru a park and potentially being very tired. CM tends to be the noisest of the 3 if that matters.

 

[PlutosFriend]

Hi everyone,

I love all the character meals we used to go to, but now we're going w/ our 6 month DD and I'm not sure if we should bother. We'd love to go and personally, I think the photo ops would be great.

Any recommendations? We'll be at AKL for only 3 days, so any meal would be nice...what do u recommend?

Thanks!

We went once when my dd was 9 months. I don't regret it at all. We have some very sweet pics of her with the characters They gave a lot of attention to her at all of the character meals we ate at. Crystal Palace might be a good one to try. Enjoy it while she is still young enough to go for free

 

[bjscheel]

I would say Crystal Palace- she may find the furry Pooh characters more appealing than face characters such as princesses- she wouldn't realize that the face characters are any different from regular people.

 

[tink2]

Both of my children went to character meals at 6 months old and both trips were wonderful! At 6 months old- they aren't really old enough to be scared of the characters (the trip when dd was 2 1/2- she was terrified but the character meals were helpful then too!). We have the cutest pictures when they were babies- Tigger at Crystal Palace on the floor with dd, Mickey at Garden Grill and Pooh at CP holding dd (some will and some won't- Pooh insisted on holding her- which was fine with us- but I'd imagine they aren't supposed to). Cinderella at CRT held DS (we were there for dd) and gave him a big red kiss on his little cheek! Anyway, go and enjoy it! The baby will get lots of attention, she is free, and you will get good buffet food! I'd recommend Crystal Palace- every baby needs their pic. made with Pooh and the gang. And if you want to do others- go for it! I'm sure the princesses would love to see a baby too!!!
Be aware though- when ds was 6 months old- dd was 2 1/2. ds slept through a lot of the character meals- which was fine at the time b/c dd was scared at the time and we were coaxing her talk to the characters- she finally fell in love with them. Just remember the nap schedule may be off b/c of the trip and she may fall asleep. If she does- the characters still bent down beside ds and we made their picture! Chip and Dale tiptoed around him every time they walked by- it was cute!

 

[QJ411]

Thanks everyone! I didn't realize I've word my statement wrong. I understand that b/c she's still so young, we don't get charged for DD. What I meant to say is, DH and I went to CRT and thought the experience was great, but the food wasn't too good...so we didn't think it was worth it, but w/ our own little princess now, we were trying to decide if it was 'worth' it to pay for ok food just to have the experience with Cinderella, especially at 6 months old. Did I make sense there? Or am I still rambling....

We really enjoyed 1900 Park Fare, Chef Mickey's, LTT and Donald's Breakfastasuraus (sp?!), but have never tried Crystal Palace. It's been a couple of years since we've gone back and I don't remember if there were any character dinning at AKL...

Well, thanks again for the info!!!

Tink2:: I do have to remember timing her nap time! It'll be murphy's law that she's napping away while the characters come greet us! Thanks again!

 

[jpolak]

QJ411- I understan completely. DW and I did CRT on our anniversary a few years back and were soooo disappointed. Well when our princess made her first visit to WDW we skipped CRT and opted for the PSB at Norway. DD was 10 months at the time and loved the characters. Especially at PSB. She let everyone hold her and the pictures are great. When we went back in Oct we did PSB again, and will do it again in Aug. We just do not think CRT is worth the price.

 

[kcashner]

CRT is all about atmosphere--your little one is too young to appreciate that, and the price is high. In December, no one in our group ate much.

The suggestion of Crystal Palace is great. LTT and Chef Mickey's, as well as Cape May Cafe are also good. LTT has the advantage of being served at your table (I used to hate doing buffets with an infant).

DOnald's breakfast at AK is my least favorite character experience because the characters seemed very rushed when we were there and the food was just so-so.

 

[MissMagnolia]

We took our DD when she was 9 months and the experience with Pooh, Eeyore, Tigger, and Piglet at Crystal Palace was priceless. They gushed over her and we got the best photos of her hugging Eeyore. The food was great too. We went for lunch.

 

[CRSNDSNY]

I'm thinking a character meal would keep her pretty well entertained for enough time for you and DH to scarf down some food! We took dd at 5mo and the character meals were great -- DD was completely entertained by the people and the characters and DH and I were able to get soem food in our bellies without really having to take turns!

 

[marcyinPA]

Crystal Palace is a great suggestion....if she will recognize or relate to any characters, the Pooh gang will probably be it! My kids "knew" Pooh and loved him from a very young age!!

I think if you are up for the experience, then you should go! She won't know the difference one way or the other....but this will be a great chance for photo ops!

Marcy

 

[cobbler]

Took my son at 10 months and would do it again in a heartbeat.

The photo opps were fantastic. He was a bit nervous but the way they were gentle and cautious with him was wonderful.

One time my son was occupying himself with some silverware and Pluto came up and licked him. My son was totally oblivious. It was great.

The pictures I have are so precious.

 

[Lady SnowElla]

I agree that the pictures will be so special that you won't regret it. In deciding which restaurant or actual character that you want to visit. . .is her nursery done in a special theme such as the Baby Pooh theme? Does she have a special toy/lovey that she loves such as Baby Mickey or a Baby Princess? If so, I would choose that. If not, I would choose my favorite character or DH's favorite type meal?

 

[QJ411]

Thanks everyone for the input...I'm thinking its going to be Crystal Palace. Although I do agree with KCashner that LLT is great b/c of the table service instead of buffet, it's got to be tough to do a buffet w/ an infant no? Is LTT the only one that does the all u can eat table service? I am leaning towards Crystal Palace, but are they a buffet style restuarant?

THANKS again!

 

[andromedaslove]

First, Character meals aren't just for the kids. I love them myself. As far as wether or not your baby is going to enjoy it, well that depends on your baby. If your baby is already kind of outgoing and interested in everything around them, then they will probably have a blast. Here's mine, who is usually very shy and doesn't really talk to people he doesn't know, having the time of his life at Crystal Palace.

 

[marcyinPA]

First, Character meals aren't just for the kids. I love them myself. As far as wether or not your baby is going to enjoy it, well that depends on your baby. If your baby is already kind of outgoing and interested in everything around them, then they will probably have a blast. Here's mine, who is usually very shy and doesn't really talk to people he doesn't know, having the time of his life at Crystal Palace.

Omgosh, your little guy is adorable!! What a cutie pie!