Feeding children under 2 off of your plan. Please help!! : )

[MommyofTwinks]

I have twins that will be 21 months old at their age of travel.
I'm a little confused. Is there a dining plan we could do where we could pick items off of the children's menu for them?

For example.
Lets say we do TS in Mexico for lunch. If I want to order my kids something off of the children's menu and have it be INCLUDED (not pay OOP) for their meal, can I do that??

 

[PSULion]

If you are on the DDP, children under 3 are supposed to share off the adult's plates. If you want to order them something seperate off the kid's menu, you have to pay OOP.

On our next trip our DS will just be turning 2. We have almost all buffet meals planned. This way our DS can have his choice of lots of kids food, and I'm not stuck ordering something that he'll like just so he gets something to eat.

I guess another option would be to pay for the DDP for each of them, in which case they would each get their own kid's meal, but I can't imagine that would be cost effective. You'd be better off paying OOP when the need arises.

 

[MommyofTwinks]

ok so the most cost-effective thing would be to go to buffets OR just pay OOP for the kids.

we were *thinking* about the deluxe plan, too.
some mentioned it may be too much food and we would be left over with some credits.

 

[Cafeen]

ok so the most cost-effective thing would be to go to buffets OR just pay OOP for the kids.

we were *thinking* about the deluxe plan, too.
some mentioned it may be too much food and we would be left over with some credits.

Most likely yes.

If looking to upgrade your kids to have plans, you will have to register their ages in as 3. This would also force you to buy park tickets for them as well on top of the dining plan cost. Which, using the current prices on the website and a 7 day ticket purchase, could add up to an extra ~$450.

 

[tmanaster]

When our twins were two we ate at many character meal buffets where they are no additional charge. Family style places like Hoop doo did not charge either. At other table service restaurants my DH and I just shared with them or we ordered an extra side dish if it didn't seem to be enough. We did not have much out of pocket expense and we all ate plenty.

Snacks on the other hand was the bigger problem. No one wants to share a Mickey bar or Ice cream cone! We did pay extra for snacks...

 

[TDC Nala]

There is no dining plan you can purchase for a child under age 3. You would have to register them on your resort reservation as 3 years old and buy the child's dining plan. Of course if you are on a package with tickets, you would then have to buy them a park ticket, because 3 year olds need park tickets. A better move might be to book a lot of buffets/family style restaurants, then pay OOP for some kids' meals and snacks when you don't have enough to share.

At an a la carte restaurant like the TS in Mexico, if you order anything specific for the children you would have to pay for it, as they are not covered under the dining plan.

 

[dixonsontour]

I'd choose mainly buffets and family style to avoid paying oop this trip.

Also if you are on deluxe ddp you will have plenty to share eg maybe you could choose an appetiser that would serve as the twins meal.

You also have 2 snacks a day they can eat.

Counter service meals can include fruit such as grapes as a side or yoghurt for dessert - ideal for them.

When I went with DD 23 months she ate little and often. I took snacks like raisins, crackers, applesauce etc into the park.

Have fun. Last trip we saw a family with 2yr old girl triplets at akershus - all in belle dresses. Great savings for the parents - breakfast for a child is 17.99 and the princesses made such a fuss of them.

 

[patsal]

When DD was 18 months old we just ordered an extra side or an order of mac and cheese, the child portions at the nicer restaurants were very large and easy for her to share with her brother who was 5 at the time. She could also share pasta and other child friendly foods. Upgrading to 3 to get the dining is not cost effective. I would budget about $10 per kid per day I'm almost certain you won't need that much!