Characters and a child who acts younger than they appear

[cornflkgrl]

I have two kids with mental health and developmental issues. We didn't do any character dining when we were at Disney before because it was just dh and myself so I am not really familiar with the process. We have Cinderella's Royal Table and Ohana scheduled so far. My 10 year old -- who is 5 feet tall and 110 pounds -- is SUPER EXCITED. I mean, like the kind of excited where when we see Mickey Mouse on tv he jumps up and claps and yells. I have no idea if this reaction will translate to the parks or if he will be able to tone it down a bit. I realize there are adults that hug characters, etc. but adults are okay with characters walking past them or snubbing them to go visit with little kids. My son will be devastated (and likely we will have to deal with some sort of meltdown) if we go to character meals and/or to meet a princess and they ignore him and pay lots of attention to our 7 year old (who is tiny for his age). Do the characters generally treat everyone the same or do they lavish attention on the little kids and kind of leave the adults and older kids alone? I am trying to decide if the character meals are a recipe for disaster. I already know it's going to be loud and overwhelming. I don't really know any other way to get my son to meet the characters though.

Thanks for the help!

 

[aaarcher86]

They tend to play off the table. If your son is obviously excited and wants attention they'll give it to him. There's plenty of older kids and even adults with handicaps. They're used to reading it. Should be fine.

 

[HopperFan]

My DS is 31 and mentally a young child. The characters are EXTREMELY important to each trip. We have an encyclopedia set of autograph books as he must have a new one each trip and loves his photos.

Some suggestions:
- At Character Meals they come to each table. All other Meet & Greets have lines so they know you want to meet them.
- Get him an autograph book, it will be a visual clue that he is in to the characters.
- Don't be afraid to talk to characters as they approach or you walk up by saying something like "Johnny is so very excited to finally meet you." while directing them to which child you mean. It's okay to talk to even the head characters trying to let them know in a round about way. They understand.
- Almost every trip my DS has had a jumping thing with Tigger.
- The Princesses, Alice, Mary Poppins ... all awesome with them. He doesn't talk so they carry the conversation.
- We've had great interactions at some of the more quiet meals and it's less stressful for DS. Garden Grill, Tusker House, either Princess is good, Crystal Palace, Cape May Cafe. We found Chef Mickey an overall disaster with the characters barely interacting and Ohana way too slow and we had to leave before they all arrived.

It will be fine, don't be afraid to lead the conversation and they will pick up on all your cues.

 

[Dis703]

IME they give everyone equal attention and like pp said they read the table. If you aren't interested they tone it down, if you interact with them they play along.

 

[ttintagel]

I rn into Meeko when he was on his way to one of those "Hot Set" street theater things in Hollywood Studios. I was so excited I ran across the courtyard with my arms open, shouting, "MEEKO!" at the top of my voice like I haven;t done since kindergarten. He and his "human friend" stopped for hugs and pictures and took as much time and care as any other character at a planned meet-and-greet.

the trip before, at the Crystal Palace, I watched the parents at the table across the way try to get a picture of Pooh with their youngest kid, who was JUST NOT HAVING IT. Pooh was so kind and gentle with him, and ended up being able to ort of sidle in behind him for the picture. It was like watching a Baby Whisperer.

My roundabout point is that I think most characters, and the photographers and other people who work with them, are good at reading their audience and reacting accordingly.

Do you think it be difficult for your son to see the characters at other tables before they get to yours? That may be something to think about preparing him for if you think it might be an issue.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

the hardest thing for your son at character meals will be waiting for them to get to your table as they will be stopping at other tables first. hardest part at ones with parades is that can happen just as the character is getting to your table. if you do get missed by one character let your server or handler know and they will make a visit happen before you leave

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

My brother is almost 50 but mentally is like a 6-8 year old. The characters are good at assessing the each person individually and interacting with them in an appropriate way. No worries!

 

[cornflkgrl]

I rn into Meeko when he was on his way to one of those "Hot Set" street theater things in Hollywood Studios. I was so excited I ran across the courtyard with my arms open, shouting, "MEEKO!" at the top of my voice like I haven;t done since kindergarten. He and his "human friend" stopped for hugs and pictures and took as much time and care as any other character at a planned meet-and-greet.

the trip before, at the Crystal Palace, I watched the parents at the table across the way try to get a picture of Pooh with their youngest kid, who was JUST NOT HAVING IT. Pooh was so kind and gentle with him, and ended up being able to ort of sidle in behind him for the picture. It was like watching a Baby Whisperer.

My roundabout point is that I think most characters, and the photographers and other people who work with them, are good at reading their audience and reacting accordingly.

Do you think it be difficult for your son to see the characters at other tables before they get to yours? That may be something to think about preparing him for if you think it might be an issue.

First of all, LOVE the Meeko character story!
Second, thanks for mentioning the part about the tables because I had not even thought of that. We will definitely have to do some preparing/social stories or something. Neither of the kids is great at waiting and I hadn't even considered what it would be like to sit and watch the characters visit with other kids. I am also having ridiculous fears about one of my sons trying to do something that will make a princess feel uncomfortable -- since their sense of boundaries can be poor at times We may have to go over appropriate forms of greeting Cinderella... We've already been over what NOT to do with the other characters like: we don't pull on their heads, etc. We had an issue with the Easter Bunny at an event last year with my older son where he stuck his hand into the Easter Bunny's (actual) mouth to "see what would happen..."

 

[aaarcher86]

the hardest thing for your son at character meals will be waiting for them to get to your table as they will be stopping at other tables first. hardest part at ones with parades is that can happen just as the character is getting to your table. if you do get missed by one character let your server or handler know and they will make a visit happen before you leave

Really good point.

And sometimes they will pass your table and come back for different reasons that sometimes don't make sense. We've only ever been skipped at CRT and the attendant was completely on top of it.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

the waiting for characters to finish visiting at other tables was very hard for some of my grandsons as they are used to getting passes to get in around lines at many parks. they were like why do I have to wait as they should come to us first. not the way I would have done with them but I am not the parent

 

[verleniahall]

We don't have kids, but LOVE the characters!! THey have NEVER treated us differently than the familes with kids. Granted, I might ACT like I'm in teh 3-5 age range when we are there......

 

[LilyWDW]

Really good point.

And sometimes they will pass your table and come back for different reasons that sometimes don't make sense. We've only ever been skipped at CRT and the attendant was completely on top of it.

Or have to take a break right before they get to your table so they will leave and then come back after a period of time. Had that happen at Crystal Palace last trip and I could tell the kids at the table after mine were very sad about it and didn't quite understand (even though mom and dad were trying to explain it but the kids were pretty young).

 

[aaarcher86]

Or have to take a break right before they get to your table so they will leave and then come back after a period of time. Had that happen at Crystal Palace last trip and I could tell the kids at the table after mine were very sad about it and didn't quite understand (even though mom and dad were trying to explain it but the kids were pretty young).

Yeah true. It's not a very structured place, if that's something important to the kids.

We just make sure our kids know they will see all the characters and we won't leave until we do.

 

[cornflkgrl]

Yeah true. It's not a very structured place, if that's something important to the kids.

We just make sure our kids know they will see all the characters and we won't leave until we do.

As a matter of fact, my older son would prefer the whole world run on a set schedule that he creates himself. So with that in mind, is there one character dining experience that is MORE chaotic than others or one that is LESS chaotic than others? Or are they all pretty much just an unorganized noisy mess?

 

[ttintagel]

I've heard some people say they like the Garden Grill at EPCOT because the sides of the booths are so high that it's less likely you'll be disrupted by what's going on at other tables.

 

[jmartinez1895]

We have noticed that the characters give attention to everyone equally ( at least with our family).
One morning we had breakfast at Crystal Palace and for whatever reason we had finished eating and had meet everyone but Tigger. We told our server and she told us to follow her. She took us to an out of the way area and came back with Tigger. So if for some reason you do not get to see everyone be sure to let your server know. Usually we get to see the characters more that once.
We love the way Garden Grill is set up and the chipmunks are very playful.

 

[verleniahall]

What I love about the character meals is that they don't just interact with you but with each other - the mad hatter did somethign to Mary Poppins, and she replied "that will be enough of that. thank you" like in the movie - it was awesome - and i cried when i met her (its a great picture, le tme tell ya!)

 

[lizard1]

As a matter of fact, my older son would prefer the whole world run on a set schedule that he creates himself. So with that in mind, is there one character dining experience that is MORE chaotic than others or one that is LESS chaotic than others? Or are they all pretty much just an unorganized noisy mess?

I think there is some sort of organization to most, as there seems to be at least a general flow to the characters. I would have to say that CP and Tusker House seem to be less chaotic because there is a specific order that the characters follow (and they let you know that when you are seated)...however, it is a buffet and they do parade around the restaurant at times, so if that would be too much of a disruption, keep that in mind. I would also second Garden Grill. Since it is round, you can really only see a couple of tables next to you so it isn't as if you can see the character all of the way across the room and then have to wait FOREVER to see them. 1900 PF, CRT, and Akershus seem to be less orderly as the characters will skip tables if another character is already there (they don't let a line form, they move on and then return to the table). I had good luck with Ohana but I would agree with the above advice to avoid CM....VERY loud and the characters seem to wander and sometimes skip tables. If they are still into the Disney Jr. characters, the characters were very orderly at H&V.

 

[CoriM48]

My sister was a princess (actually a few) for a few years at WDW, and she said the characters are taught to not only match the energy of each person, but they are taught how to redirect people who might be inappropriately acting due to needs. They actually practice a lot of different ways to redirect (like grabbing their hands and holding them while talking if the person is having a hard time not touching them in places they shouldn't).

She also said she found it to be very helpful for people with hidden developmental needs if the caregiver would say something as she came over like "John has been so excited to meet you. Our whole family has (gesture to other kids), but John has been waiting with such excitement." She said that helped a lot because often "john" might be so overwhelmed that he/she was not looking overly excited outwardly. Or if the caregiver just whispered in her ear that their adult companion was developmentally young, although as a mother to a child with ID, I can't imagine being so forward in front of my son, but I suppose it works for some people, and she said it did help her a lot.

She told me Disney places a great deal of emphasis during training that adults and children should all be extended the same magic if they seem open to it.

 

[ttintagel]

I would have to say that CP and Tusker House seem to be less chaotic because there is a specific order that the characters follow (and they let you know that when you are seated)...however, it is a buffet and they do parade around the restaurant at times, so if that would be too much of a disruption, keep that in mind.

One thing I liked about the Crystal Palace is that the dining room is broken up into smaller areas with dividers and plants in between, so I didn't feel like I was in a big, loud barn of chaos and confusion like Chef Mickey's. However, the buffet aspect may outweigh that for some.