Character meals or skip and see characters elsewhere? Opinions

[eliza61]

August my family is having it's mini reunion in Disney. so far 18 people booked but that number will probably drop closer to the final payment date.

Anyhoo, it's been over 15 years since I've done a character meal but Oy Vey I just went on line to look at a few and whew, the prices are insane. Seriously 45 bucks per person to have breakfast with a character?
I know a couple of my younger cousins would enjoy getting pictures with the characters especially since they have youngins.

I'm not sure if any are on the DDP, we have a TA making the reservations (no way was I going to do that much work) but they know I'm the crazy disney addict so I've been explaining ADR's, Fp's and other stuff.

Not sure if I have a real question but I'm thinking about not suggesting a character meal and instead suggesting seeing the characters in Epcot or some thing similar.

Am I out of touch with the prices? think from the view point of young parents with small kids

 

[nalajms]

I would pick one neutral character meal. We used to do character meals all the time. But now that DS complains through the whole princess meal, we have cut down. Plus too many ADRs ends up eating up park time, which may be more important to some in your party.

I would suggest a character breakfast. Food at most buffet dinners are not worth the price. Breakfast is cheaper and you really can't mess up eggs, sausage, bacon and carbs.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

What are the kids ages? Character meals are a bit of a waste for our DD2, because she's scared of them. She does great going to the meet and greets in the park, but she wants no part of Mickey coming to our table. Older kids it might be worth the money though.

 

[Happyinwonerland]

Also, it depends on how many park day you have. Some of the character lines take a long time. If you've one got 1 day, I'd say for a character meal and kill 2 birds with one stone. If you're spending a week in the parks, it might be better to just do the meet and greets in the parks and save your money for mickey bars.

 

[eliza61]

Thanks all, we actually have quite a number of park days. we'll be there a total of 8 nights/9 days. with one or two families leaving a day or two early. everyone is definitely there for 6 days.

Kids ages run all over the gamut. from 2 years to 8 yo. then it kinda of jumps to teens and young adults.

Lol as with many things, a lot of it is more the parents than the kids. for example my first cousin Cynn has a grandbaby, 2 years old and it's a little girl. we're trying to prevent her from mortgaging her house because she is so excited to be able to do the princess thing with kyla.

I guess my big difficulty is that I really don't know everyone's pocket book. I'd hate to book some thing that is out of someones budget.

 

[msmama]

I think the character meals are worth it, personally. If I have to eat and have to see characters, I will do both at the same time. Plus, it's something that you really can't do anywhere else. It's special.

That said I don't know if you are planning on being together all the time. Maybe separate family groups could do character meals if they want. Although I do think a meal with everyone would be fun.

Character buffets will get you a lot of food for them money, too.

 

[minushka72]

I prefer to see the characters in the parks and not do character meals. I love getting the Photopass pictures with the characters and you don't get that at the meals (except for 1 character before you sit down at some). Character meals are crowded and I don't like being interrupted every 5 minutes when the characters come by. It takes a while to get my kids settled back down to eat. I like to relax while dining and I don't feel that we get to relax since you are constantly jumping up and down to take pictures.

That said, I have done a few character meals. We did lunch at Hollywood and Vine because that is the only place to meet Doc McStuffins and my DD loves her! We did the dinner at 1900PF in order to see the Cinderella's step-sisters and Step-mother and the Prince. We did enjoy Garden Grill and the character interaction there was awesome!

All the TS dining is pricey whether it includes characters or not.

 

[ZephyrHawk]

I have always done character meals. I do not stand in line to meet characters when I could be riding rides. I sit and munch bacon while characters come to me.

 

[ML_LovesDisney]

We like to do one or two character meals, usually one breakfast (cheaper) and one dinner. With my oldest daughter being 10 next trip though it will be really hard for me to imagine paying an adult price for her at a character meal because she hardly eats! It is fun though and I would splurge at least once per trip.

 

[Mad4Dizne]

We do the character breakfast at Cape May Buffet at Disney's Beach Club every trip, it is one of the "cheapest" character meals (speaking in Disney terms--around the $26 range for adults), the food is always great, the character interaction is great and it certainly is one of those meals which while expensive "in the real world" might work for your large group.

 

[robinb]

I know what you mean about the cost! We stopped going to all buffets once my DD became a "Disney Adult". That being said, I would do one character meal with your group. I would suggest a late breakfast so that the slug-a-beds don't have to get up early but you can still pay breakfast pricing.

 

[Newsies]

My family ALWAYS does character meals. It would feel weird going to WDW and NOT doing a character meal! They're so much fun. The food is usually great and I love getting to play with all of the characters. 1900 Park Fare is my favorite restaurant on WDW property. Plus some characters don't meet in the parks, just in character meals- Prince Charming at 1900PF is one of these. They may cost a bit of money, but they are well worth it.

 

[Gumbo4x4]

Honestly, for me the hassle of a reservation is a much bigger turnoff than the price. But, I could suck it up once a trip as long as the remainder of the meals were a combo of CS, "locker food", and offsite dining.

 

[dprincessmom]

I guess my big difficulty is that I really don't know everyone's pocket book. I'd hate to book some thing that is out of someones budget.

Ok now that you have identified your problem - come up with a little question list for the family. See if anyone feels strongly one way or another. You might be worrying over something that isn't a blip on the rest of your family's radar. Agreed breakfast is going to get you the most bang for your buck - also another thought, do one of the last breakfast times - make it brunch and you are only eating 2 meals that day!

 

[tlh0726]

You need to poll the people going with you as to what they would like to do at Disney.


For our family, we are more snackers than eaters while at Disney. Personally I cannot justify the price for food my kids are not going to eat, that tastes so so, and limited interaction with the characters.

 

[bababear_50]

I would suggest a Character Brunch to offset the cost,(two meals in one).
I would also look at The Swan Garden Grove Character Breakfast meal on weekends.
link to Character meal info from allears (Goofy and Pluto are usually there).
http://allears.net/din/cbchar.htm

 

[bababear_50]

I would also consider
Chip and Dale's campfire singalong, followed by a movie under the stars.

 

[Pesky]

I'd do a quick ping of your group to gauge interest and price point adversity. If folks can swing it and there is a desire, book it. If not, book it but just for your family -- it is very nice to kill two birds with one stone and meet a bunch of characters without waiting in line. Agree with the brunch idea. We did that at DLR for a big one and that worked out just fine (ate some cereal in our room, did the early morning in the park, and then did brunch).

 

[bababear_50]

I am not sure if any of you have a Disney Chase Visa but here is some info I thought I'd share.

link here

https://disneyrewards.com/vacation-perks/

• Character Meet 'N' Greet at our Private Cardmember Location6
  Stop by our private location—reserved just for Cardmembers—to meet and pose with some of your favorite Disney characters. Get a complimentary 5 x 7 photo, too! Just present your Disney Visa Card to enter this exclusive event, offered daily 1pm to 7pm at Innoventions West at Epcot®.

 

[Puffy2]

Not all character meals are the same. Some I thought were a waste of money. Over the years, the best, most reliable meal and character interaction has been at Chrystal Palace. I love to get the 8:05 time to be in the park early, BUT if trying to save money, go for the latest breakfast seating and count that as lunch. I prefer breakfast over lunch/dinner. In short, I do think that at least one character meal is worth the extra.