Character Meals w/ kids who are afraid

[Marthonica]

Anybody been to character meals with a child who was afraid of the characters? Do the characters stay away if it's clear the child only wants to see them from a distance?

DS (4) had a bad experience at Red Robin one night. Someone was dressed up as Red Robin and even though DS kept hiding behind me the character kept after him. Once we sat down at the table the character came back. DS crawled under the table and the bird tried to get under there too DS now afraid of the characters. He likes to see them, but wants them to stay away from him.

We're doing CRT for lunch and CM on our last day. I'm hoping he warms up to them over time.

 

[DisneyCatMom]

Are they afraid of the big animal characters or can they handle the princesses; real people?
When my daughter was young she loved real people characters. And yes, if a child looks scared (and they notice) they will typically wave to them but keep their distance. Keep in mind though that at character meals the tables are close and so they may be very close to you while visiting tables next door.

 

[Metsoskil]

I have observed that most (if not all) Characters will take cues pretty well from a child who is nervous and not press the issue. DS who was 18mo. was a little shy around characters at the beginning of the trip last year even though DD who was 4 loved them. The characters would simply wave to him or stay away if he looked nervous. By the end of the trip he was honking Pluto's nose and giving Minnie kisses on the cheek.

 

[bellazachmom]

I think a character meal is the perfect place for a little one who is not too sure of the characters! My 3 kiddos LOVE them, but we went with my sister and her family last year and her 5 year old was terrified of them! Anyway, we started with a meal at Chef Mickey's and just told the CM's about our concern when we checked in and then also told our waitress. Each character has a "handler" and they will make sure that the character only interacts as much/as little as your child is comfortable. The resturants are great because it lets the child see the characters at his/her pace versus waiting in line and then not wanting to go when it is his/her turn ... does that make sense? Also, at CM the characters come in waves and then one or two often hang out around the buffet/open area so you can approach them when you are ready. CRT is a good meal to do first because you will be meeting "face" characters that aren't nearly as scary to little ones and then you move on. Have a wonderful time!

 

[MickeyNicki]

We did Chef Mickeys with our then 3 year old niece and she was fine with Mickey and Minnie because they knelt down to her level...then she was at the buffet with my DH and Goofy came up behind her and tapped her on the shoulder...when she turned around he scared her to death....she dropped her plate of food...hid behind DH legs and started to cry.

Now this was our first day there and we were all tired, this was her first interaction with any characters and for the rest of the trip she freaked if she saw anything goofy. To this day if you show her a stuffed Goofy or something she says "He scared me and I dont like him"....it has been almost 2 years!

 

[properlywarnedyebe]

The only character that DD was ever scared of was the Mad Hatter at 1900 PF. He's kind of loud and Mad-Hattery. DD was 2 at the time and just started screaming & crying at him, the handler knew to keep him away from her when he made the rounds again. She doesn't remember it though and now she thinks he's hysterical. You never know what will tip a little one off.

 

[abc999]

Last year, we took DS to Sesame Place and he was terrified of Elmo, Zoe, Big Bird, and all the other characters.. The following month we went to Disney and he ran and hugged Mickey Mouse and every character he saw there!!! We figured he outgrew his fear of characters.. So, we took him to see the Easter Bunny this year.. he wanted nothing to do with EB, but he still asks to go to Disney to see Mickey everyday.

They sprinkle pixy dust or something at Disney, it is really magical..

 

[SmallWorld71]

All my children went through a stage where they were afraid of characters. I have found the characters at Disney to be wonderful with shy/ nervous children. We went when DS9 was 2 1/2 and he wanted to see them all but freaked if they touched him/ got to close. I would just say something to the characters (nicely of course) as they approached. They were great. We have lots of photos from that trip with me holding him a few feet away from each character. He was so happy with those pics after the trip. You may want to sit the nervous child at an inner seat so that they are less easy to approach.