DxDP with a DD4

[sydneysmom]

I hope everyone has some good ideas! We're going in Sept w/ deluxe dining. At first I thought well, it will keep her on a schedule doing 3 meals. Now, I think it might be too much food.
I'm thinking maybe we should do more signature or 2 credit meals. Obviously CRT will be a hit. Would it be better to do counter service for lunch and stick w/ what we've got or will a 4 year old be okay at Citrico's or California Grill ? she's excellent in restaurants, so I'm not worried about behavior...more worried about boredome!

Or maybe do Spirit of Aloha or HDDR ? Please help !!

 

[Pakey]

The signature dinners will take about 2 hours. If your DD is fine sitting for that long, all of the places are pretty child friendly. Citricos will have nothing to entertain her, the restaurant is boring to look at and it's quiet. Ca Grill and Narcoosees are both more lively and have great views outside which would help pass the time--I think they are the best 2 upscale places for young diners. You could always bring a quiet table activity for her.

 

[blanq]

I hope everyone has some good ideas! We're going in Sept w/ deluxe dining. At first I thought well, it will keep her on a schedule doing 3 meals. Now, I think it might be too much food.
I'm thinking maybe we should do more signature or 2 credit meals. Obviously CRT will be a hit. Would it be better to do counter service for lunch and stick w/ what we've got or will a 4 year old be okay at Citrico's or California Grill ? she's excellent in restaurants, so I'm not worried about behavior...more worried about boredome!

Or maybe do Spirit of Aloha or HDDR ? Please help !!

I like the idea of the DxDP, but not the prospect of the reality. With all of the travel to/from restaurants, and then the actual eating/waiting, you can easily spend 5-6 hours per day in restaurants on the DxDP. I love to eat, but I also love my park time. My family has done the DDP, and honestly that can be too much food for us, so I am quite sure the DxDP would be for my family too. But, everyone is different and you just have to figure out what is best for your family and situation. Your DD could very well be bored with the experience of all of the restaurant time. You might want to consider brining a tote with some diversions for her (coloring books, stickers, hand-held gaming device, etc).

 

[ljcrochet]

I did deluxe dining with my 4 year old twins in August. We did a bunch of 2 ts including HDDR which was the hihglight of my girls trip. My girls loved California grill since they brought them goldfish to start the meal and the kids sushi was a big hit.

We found that 3 meals a day was way to much. We did breakfast and dinner most day with the exception of lunch at Sci-Fi and Chef's de france (to see Remy).

 

[StitchFan73]

WE do Deluxe and love it. But there's no way we can eat 3 big meals a day so we do a late character breakfast (10:30-ish) and the a signature or other 2 credit restaurant/dining. Our dd is now 8 and has been doing it since she was 5. I always made sure I had stuff to keep her occupied and she was fine.

You know you child if she's the type of kid who can sit and entertain herself-then go for it. If she gets antsy after 45 mins or so-steer toward restaurants that have more entertainment to offer. But I definitely give Deluxe a try.

Have a nice trip!

 

[DisneyFamily123]

Just did 9 days on the deluxe DDP with DS4. Most of our dinners were signature meals or shows.

I was suprised that DS4 was just fine at the signature restauraunts -- all were kid friendly and some of our waiters/waitresses were very good -- meaning they did not ignore our son... they talked with him, interacted with, to make the meal interesting. That's what gets a good tip in my book. My only caution about shows is Spirit of Aloha because some of the views look very bad for Category 2 and 3, especially for a child. I paid for Category 1 without using the DDP.

Our 2 credit meals were Jiko, Citrocos, Narcoosees, California Grill, and Hoop De Doo.

There were only a couple days when we had 3 meals. One was in Animal Kingdom and we got a very early start that day 8am breakfast, 12:45 lunch, 7pm dinner. Another day, our lunch was right in Magic Kingdom so it was inconvenient and service was fast (Liberty Tree).

For us, the deluxe DDP was no more expensive than the regular DDP. If we did the regular DDP, we would have paid out of pocket (not DDP) just a little more than the additional cost of going deluxe DDP because...
We buy the refillable mugs (included with Deluxe). We like appetizers (included with deluxe). And we planned more table service meals (mostly character breakfasts) than the regular DDP allowed so we would have paid for them off the DDP.

 

[gilsan]

We did DxDP with our DD who turned 4 while we were at WDW. We mainly ate at signature restaurants and she did well. Most restaurants gave her a colouring booklet and crayons and we had an iTouch with movies on it to keep her occupied when she was getting bored.

 

[Colleen27]

We love the deluxe plan, but I definitely suggest some 2 credit meals because 3 full meals per day would quickly get to be too much. The dinner shows all sound fun for little ones and of course the castle is perfect for a 4yo girl. Depending on where you're staying, you could also use 2 credits to order room service. My kids loved the afternoon when we did that, just hung out at the resort, swam, ordered room service for dinner to eat on our patio in our swimsuits, and headed right back to the pool.

As far as signature dinners go, some are more kid-friendly than others. California Grill and Narcoosees both have fabulous views that keep the kids amused and Flying Fish has great decor with a little "I spy" game on the kids' menu. Artist Point and Yachtsman are quieter, not to say children would be out of place, just that there isn't as much "fun" in the restaurant atmosphere. We haven't tried Citricos or Jiko yet, but my understanding is that they're on the quieter side as well.

 

[sydneysmom]

You all have helped so much, thank you !! I really wouldn't have thought of Narcoosee's.....(but looking at their menu , now I am reconsidering). For some reason I thought it was super fancy. (might be mistaking it for V & A for fancy) I think you all make a good point for doing more 2 credit meals. then if she is hungry during the day, we can use our snack credits for a little something. I really do appreciate all your help!!