Dining Plan Evaluation

[Jing]

We are 25 days out and I would like some input on additions/subtractions. Myself, hubs and 21-month old enjoy good food for what it is supposed to be, be it fine dining or a hot dog. We are staying business class at CSR, so we have access to breakfast and light evening snacks

Tuesday (Arrive by plane at noon, DME to CSR, online check-in, hit a park by 3:30)
3:40 ADR at Crystal palace - OR - 6:05 Biergarten - OR - Flame tree BBQ at Animal Kingdom
***If flight or MDE is really delayed, how lenient are the restaurants about waiving the same-day cancellation fee?***

Wednesday
Noon Akershus
7:30 Narcoossee's (adults only)

Thursday (MNSSHP with Dessert Party)
Resort CS lunch Siesta/Pepper Market
4:05 1900 Park Fare - OR - 5:55 Crystal Palace - OR - Counter Service at MK

Friday (sleep in)
9:05 1900 Park Fare - OR - 10:50 BOG lunch
7:30 Dinner is a private party at AK

Saturday
11:15 Tusker House

Sunday
8:05 BOG
11:40 BOG
Dinner CS at resort or DHS

Monday
8am Akershus
Lunch Food & Wine booths - OR - Noon Akershus
8:50 Cali Grill (adults only)

Tuesday
8:05 Crystal Palace
Noon BOG
6:25 'Ohana

Wednesday - Hang at resort until departure around 3pm

 

[sharonabe]

They will NOT waive the fee due to flight problems. You need to cancel that 3:40 ADR. That's just too close to arrival time, and could set up a very stressful beginning of the trip.

I would not do a full on buffet before the dessert party; I would be way too full to enjoy the desserts. The CS at MK is your best bet.

Any reason you're doing Akershus twice? Trade the lunch one for something else in EP. There are so many options for good food in the World Showcase.

You also have a desire for a lot of BoG meals. Is it the menu or the venue that appeals to much to you? Columbia Harbor House has good food. You could also do The Plaza.

Just my 2 or 3 cents worth.

 

[Alesia]

***If flight or MDE is really delayed, how lenient are the restaurants about waiving the same-day cancellation fee?***

They're not. These situations are why they had to implement a cancellation fee.

Your restaurant choices seem fine (although a bit repetitive for my taste,) but are you really sure that you want so many table service meals? I have to be honest - I would be absolutely miserable. Also, your daughter is going to be spending hours a day sitting in restaurants. Will she be okay with that? Most kids that age would have way more fun at the parks or in the pool.

 

[tabrizia]

We are 25 days out and I would like some input on additions/subtractions. Myself, hubs and 21-month old enjoy good food for what it is supposed to be, be it fine dining or a hot dog. We are staying business class at CSR, so we have access to breakfast and light evening snacks

Tuesday (Arrive by plane at noon, DME to CSR, online check-in, hit a park by 3:30)
3:40 ADR at Crystal palace - OR - 6:05 Biergarten - OR - Flame tree BBQ at Animal Kingdom
***If flight or MDE is really delayed, how lenient are the restaurants about waiving the same-day cancellation fee?***

Wednesday
Noon Akershus
7:30 Narcoossee's (adults only)

Thursday (MNSSHP with Dessert Party)
Resort CS lunch Siesta/Pepper Market
4:05 1900 Park Fare - OR - 5:55 Crystal Palace - OR - Counter Service at MK

Friday (sleep in)
9:05 1900 Park Fare - OR - 10:50 BOG lunch
7:30 Dinner is a private party at AK

Saturday
11:15 Tusker House

Sunday
8:05 BOG
11:40 BOG
Dinner CS at resort or DHS

Monday
8am Akershus
Lunch Food & Wine booths - OR - Noon Akershus
8:50 Cali Grill (adults only)

Tuesday
8:05 Crystal Palace
Noon BOG
6:25 'Ohana

Wednesday - Hang at resort until departure around 3pm

Tuesday I would go for Flame Tree BBQ, that way you do not have to worry about plane delays. I would absolutely cancel the 3:40 CP reservation, it is just too close to your arrival.

Wednesday looks good

Thursday I would do the BOG lunch

Friday I would do Park Fare for breakfast, since you have a lot of BOG options

Saturday looks good

Sunday I would do the BOG breakfast and QS for lunch, I won't want to do BOG twice in one day, it just seems a bit too repetitive

Monday I would do the morning Akershus and food and wine for lunch, dinner looks good

Tuesday i would do Crystal Palace, we love Winnie the Pooh and 'Ohana and skip BOG, if you are hungry I would stop somewhere like Columbia Harbor house or another QS.

You have a lot of repeats in there and a ton of BOG scheduled. In general we don't mind repeating meals, but if you like that and it works for you that is fine. I would probably actually change one of the Akershus' even in my plan to a different restaurant, though I am not sure what you can get at this point.

 

[Jing]

Thanks for the great feedback!

Not knowing how Mr. Littles is going to react to the simulation of Disney, we wanted to have some back-up reservations that we could drop the night before (we do not intend to eat at BOG or Akershus that much!). He manages sit-down restaurants very well as we have been "training" him to enjoy leisurely meal times - 45 minutes is about average. Hubs and I usually do the 2-3 hour dinners on date nights no matter where we are - keeps us from burning out on vacation (and life).


Amended Plan:

Tuesday: Wing it with CS
Wednesday: Akershus lunch and Narcoossees dinner
Thursday: CS lunch and dinner
Friday: BOG lunch
Saturday: Tusker House lunch and CS dinner
Sunday: Decide night before on BOG vs 1900 and CS dinner
Monday: Decide night before on Akershus for breakfast vs sleep-in; Food & Wine/CS lunch, Cali Grill dinner
Tuesday: CP breakfast and Ohana dinner

Better?

 

[tabrizia]

That looks great!

 

[Alesia]

He manages sit-down restaurants very well as we have been "training" him to enjoy leisurely meal times - 45 minutes is about average.

Just be aware that you should plan on any TS meal taking about 90 minutes (including a fair amount of waiting.) We have never been in and out of a TS restaurant in less than 75 minutes, and we are not dawdlers.

 

[Jing]

He did a 3-night stint in NOLA this summer and did great with 2 hour meals and a lot less breaks than we have planned for Disney. Ditto for this last week in NYC and DC. When I booked these ADRs nearly 6-freaking months ago, I had no idea if the nap/travel/diet situations would have major changes. I predict we will still wind up cancelling half our ADRs and FPs while we are there anyway since that seems to be our MO, even sans child. The beauty of all the planning is being confident in ditching your plans for something more interesting along the way.

 

[LJSquishy]

Your modified plan looks much better!

I just have a couple of suggestions/things to ponder:
-Be aware that you must cancel a reservation 24hrs prior to the scheduled ADR time -- not just the night before. So, if you want to cancel your 8am Akershus breakfast scheduled on Monday, you have to cancel it no later than 8am on Sunday (so you can't wait until the night before to decide if you will sleep in or get up early for breakfast the next morning).
-Some of your meals include characters, right? I admit I don't know for sure which ones do since I don't have kids, but an almost 2 year old could very possibly be terrified of seeing giant characters (or they may love them). So, just consider that.

I think you'll be happier doing more CS meals...Disney World is a lot of stimulation and your little one may be passed out cold in the stroller more than you think, you just never know! I don't know if all of the table service restaurants will let you keep your sleeping child in their stroller while you eat...I think some don't have room for that.

 

[twinkybel81]

I know you have already rearranged some plans, but I wanted to throw my .02 into the ring.

Tuesday (Arrive by plane at noon, DME to CSR, online check-in, hit a park by 3:30)
3:40 ADR at Crystal palace - OR - 6:05 Biergarten - OR - Flame tree BBQ at Animal Kingdom
***If flight or MDE is really delayed, how lenient are the restaurants about waiving the same-day cancellation fee?***

I would stick to a CS dinner this afternoon/evening, wherever you end up.

Thursday (MNSSHP with Dessert Party)
Resort CS lunch Siesta/Pepper Market
4:05 1900 Park Fare - OR - 5:55 Crystal Palace - OR - Counter Service at MK

I would recommend doing a CS dinner v a TS dinner that evening so that you get the most time to enjoy the party, it passes very quickly!

Friday (sleep in)
9:05 1900 Park Fare - OR - 10:50 BOG lunch
7:30 Dinner is a private party at AK

I would do a sleep-in/lazy morning and start with the BOG lunch.

Sunday
8:05 BOG
11:40 BOG
Dinner CS at resort or DHS

I would ditch the 11:40 BOG lunch, since you'll already be having lunch there on Friday.

Monday
8am Akershus
Lunch Food & Wine booths - OR - Noon Akershus
8:50 Cali Grill (adults only)

I would likely ditch both Akershus reservations and maybe go for breakfast at Captain's Grille before heading into Epcot (walking distance to the International Gateway) or perhaps at The Garden Grill in Future World since they have Chip & Dale, who are not as commonly found.

Be aware that you must cancel a reservation 24hrs prior to the scheduled ADR time -- not just the night before. So, if you want to cancel your 8am Akershus breakfast scheduled on Monday, you have to cancel it no later than 8am on Sunday (so you can't wait until the night before to decide if you will sleep in or get up early for breakfast the next morning).

I do not know this for sure, but I would try to verify the cancellation policy. Within the last week I have seen it posted that the cancellations have to be made by 11:59pm the night before, rather than the full 24 hour period, and I am pretty sure I saw this info posted by a moderator. Like I said though, I don't know this for sure, so I'd verify prior to arrival.

Hope you all have a wonderful trip and fantastic meals!!!

 

[MermaidMommy]

Your modified plan looks much better!

-Be aware that you must cancel a reservation 24hrs prior to the scheduled ADR time -- not just the night before. So, if you want to cancel your 8am Akershus breakfast scheduled on Monday, you have to cancel it no later than 8am on Sunday (so you can't wait until the night before to decide if you will sleep in or get up early for breakfast the next morning).

No, it's not a 24-hour cancellation. You just have to cancel by 11:59pm the night before the reservation.

 

[Alesia]

No, it's not a 24-hour cancellation. You just have to cancel by 11:59pm the night before the reservation.

Correct.

 

[ny0090]

Tuesday:
I would drop the Crystal Palace reservation and go to Flame Tree. After a plane ride, you don’t know if your toddler will want to sit calmly at a restaurant.


Wednesday:
Looks good!


Thursday:
Dinner: Stick with counter service at MK


Friday:
Lunch: 1900 Park Fare
Dinner: Sounds lovely!


Saturday:
You don’t have dinner listed here. CS at Yak and Yeti is suppose to be really good.


Sunday:
Breakfast: BOG would be ideal so you can finish before rope drop
Lunch: I would cancel the 11:40 BOG and go to Columbia Harbour House


Monday:
Breakfast: I would drop the Akershus and sleep in. World Showcase doesn’t open until 11 and I’m not sure there is that much stuff to do at Epcot between 9-11AM (especially since this is your second day at Epcot)


Tuesday:
Looks good!

 

[LJSquishy]

My mistake, you are both correct...I'm sure I read somewhere that it specifically said 24 hours; Glad you cleared it up, thanks!

 

[Jing]

Thanks again folks!

By skipping the arrival day ADR, we may finally get to play bus roulette with our park choice too.

 

[supersnoop]

-Be aware that you must cancel a reservation 24hrs prior to the scheduled ADR time -- not just the night before.

This is wrong. The cancellation policy is "the day before," so anytime prior to 11:59 p.m. is fine.