Character meals without the meeting?

[lovethesun12]

My kids love characters but they are shy (mostly my son, and he is REALLY shy) and would prefer to watch them and not meet up close.

Is it possible and/or common to request we do not meet the characters? I really don't want to be rude but I know that would be a better experience.

TIA!

 

[lolomarie]

I have no experience with this, but I also have a shy son so I empathize. What I would do, is seat your children out of the line of the characters. Most of the advice is to seat them in the line of the characters to make it easier for interactions to occur, but I would do the opposite. Also, tell your server discreetly that your children would prefer to watch and wave to the characters rather than interact with them. Also, if fear isn't a factor, maybe fur characters will be a better starting place as they don't talk, so your children may relate to them more easily than some of the bubbly face characters. Lastly, Disney is pretty magical, so your kids may surprise you! Mine did!

 

[monorailmom]

We have done this, simply keep everyone seated when the characters are coming by and when they stop at your table simply wave at them. You can mention to the person accompanying the character that you aren't doing pictures or anything.

 

[KenHutch]

You might try what my brother did. His son was extremely shy as well. My brother told the server and the characters stood about 5 feet away and just waved. Pluto stood there and waved and then motioned for Tyler to come over. End of story he came over and hugged him. He was 4 then and at 22 he still remembers it.

 

[rg35]

Yeah, kids do not have to stand up and hug or interact with characters. There is no forced interaction whatsoever, and you can tell the escort as well about your child's shyness.

 

[mcurran]

You might be surprised - your kid may love interacting with characters. Seat them on the inside and then Mom or Dad get up for a pic and politely ask (no pressure) for child to join if they want. “See mommy/daddy liked the hug - if you want a high five or hug next time go right ahead, but if you want to stay right here and wave that’s just fine too!” I indulge my kids but want to offer growth opportunities along the way. Have fun!!

 

[SomDayMyPrnceWillCom]

My son was 3 this summer when we went and until that time, he would not go NEAR Santa or the Easter bunny but liked to watch them also. When we got to Disney, our first meal was 'Ohana breakfast and he went straight and hugged Stitch and was so happy to meet Mickey, he wrapped him up. I have a picture of him hugging King Louie and he wouldn't let go for a long time and King Louie let him. then King Louie and Baloo danced with him and High Fived him. It was spectacular to watch.

 

[hlhlaw07]

When my daughter was just shy of 2 she was scared to death of the characters. Which we realized while at the Garden Grill for our first character meal. The characters are very perceptive of the scared children. Most of them waved from afar or approached an adult at the table first when they realized that my daughter was anxious and getting upset. We never had to say anything, they just kinda sensed it and didn't approach her.

 

[disneyag]

The characters seem to be quite sensitive to frightened or anxious children. You can always just wave and they will bypass you. However, I second what a PP said---your kids might LOVE interacting. When my 21yo DD was 2 1/2 years old, she wanted NOTHING to do with Mickey or Minnie or Goofy, but ran over to Chip and Dale to hug them. You never know!

 

[3gr8boys]

If it were me (and it didn't stress out my kids), I would get up and pose with the characters and let the kids take the pictures. Some character interaction and pictures to remember it by without pushing the kids to interact.

They are certainly all different. As a toddler my oldest was terrified of character interactions. At 13 months my youngest cried when the characters left the table. Poor Chip and Dale kept coming back to make him feel better!

 

[PrincessWithABlaster]

My DS5 does not care to interact with the princesses. He loves Winnie the Pooh and is ok with Fab 5 but at CRT he just stays in his seat and they don’t hassle him. They interact with my daughters and move on. It’s never been an issue. It sounds like you have more than 1 child. If some of them want to meet characters and your son doesn’t it’s no problem. If none of your kids want to meet them, I agreed with PPs to either have everyone wave or have the parents meet them.

 

[Bellesadventure]

My Daughter loves characters, but we did have one trip to Disneyland that she was feeling under the weather and did not want to be approached. We ate at the Plaza Inn for a character breakfast, which was amazing if you get the chance. My sister was with us and one of us just jumped up for a hug and told each character that my daughter was feeling shy today. They really read the cues, plus seeing us comfortable with the characters led to my daughter eventually wanting to hug the characters herself. I also gave her coloring materials and told her to focus on that if she didn't want to interact. Of course she didn't do that at all. I think they will be able to gauge your cues, don't be afraid to wave them past or just greet them yourself and move them along.

 

[rcs]

As other posters have mentioned, Disney is very accommodating and the characters are really tuned into the reactions of kids as they approach. Our grandson wasn't having anything of Donald when he approached the table at Vero's character breakfast last spring. Donald caught on really quickly, backed off and played shy himself while waving to our Grandson, who remained curious watching as Donald then made the rounds to other tables. After he saw lots of other kids having fun with Donald he finally mustered up the courage to high-five Donald when he walked past our table. Without seeing the others his own size having fun, I don't think he would have done that.

 

[lovethesun12]

Thanks all for your responses! I actually did have my kids at two character meals last year. My daughter (1.5yo) jumped on my lap and my son (3.5yo) went under the table. lol.

After that experience I was planning to avoid but my daughter now 2.5 (which is a pretty major age difference from last year) LOVES princesses. She keeps saying she wants to see them. After she said she wanted to one time, I asked my son if he was ok with it. He said "Yeah, I want DD to see them I'll just go under the table when they come over". lol. I was hoping to try to avoid that.

I think me/DH hugging them first is an awesome idea though! That will definitely help