H&V Fantasmic package and non eater

[Alison Wunderland]

I was wondering if anyone had experience with H&V or H&V fanstasmic package specifically and someone who is unable to eat for whatever reason. My son will be 5 when we go in September and he has Autism and Sensory integration disorder. He eats very little and nothing that is served at Disney. He eats specifically Goldfish crackers, pirates booty, and sometimes cheerios and that's it. I am prepared to pay the full price even though I don't want to for him to watch us eat dinner. Has anyone had any luck of having either the manager or server reduce the price for them for someone who was medically unable to eat? Even though I know that full price is a reality, its just hard for me to stomach paying $19.99 when he won't eat or drink a morsel. I'm debating cancelling but my husband and I love this buffet.

 

[aaarcher86]

No. I've seen a fee taken off maybe once or twice in my years of posting, but that was for a very clearly, tube fed child. Never seen it happen for someone autistic. They just don't have the ability to police the food intake.

You can always ask, but I'd plan on paying full price. Especially because it's a special dining event or character meal with entertainment.

 

[Alison Wunderland]

I wonder if they would be able to provide me with goldfish and cheerios then. At least he would be eating and I wouldn't feel so ripped off.

 

[aaarcher86]

If it's not on the buffet I wouldn't count on it, but you could ask.

I don't see the rip off here if you know what to expect going in and choose to do it. My oldest will be 10 the next time we go, and at 9 she weighs 35 lbs because she also has autism and trouble eating. We will end up paying the adult $30ish for a piece of bacon and a few strawberries, and we know that going in. It sucks, but we don't have to do it.

You can go to an a la carte restaurant instead! and then you only pay for what you order.

 

[SueM in MN]

As the other poster mentioned, you will in all liklihood be charged the whole price even if he eats nothing. From their standpoint, guests choose to come there. Whether or not they eat is up to the guest. They don't have enough staff to watch and see who eats (besides that would be kind of intrusive).

If you are getting the Fantasmic package, part of the price you pay is for that access.
I would not count on them having any of his for special items to set, even if you contact them ahead of time.
If it's important to you and/or him that he have something to eat while you are eating, bring his food with you. They can't heat up anything (in case his diet changes).

 

[Amanda999]

Doesn't hurt to ask. Hopefully ymmv but I always had to pay full price for character meals, even though both DS are on the autism spectrum and years ago ate nothing but food I brought myself (not due to allergies; just sensory aversions etc.). Sometimes one white bread roll but that's it.

I remember a parent posting that her DD was solely tube fed (special liquid that of course her parents brought), and they were still charged full price at a character buffet.

Doesn't seem F! Dining package would be any different, but no harm asking!

Or maybe just do F! with a fastpass? Still good seating, and way cheaper. Thats what we do.

 

[redberyl]

Why should they provide you with cheerios and goldfish if thats not on the menu? My daughter only "eats" pediasure, should i demand they go buy some special just for her next time we do a character meal? where do you draw the line?

 

[Nevada Jen]

At Blue Bayou a couple of months ago, they did suggest I let them charge me the kids price for my 16 year old DD who is 40 pounds and very obviously disabled. I did tell them that we would pay full price (my hubby wanted to kill me). My reasoning was that my DD eats as much as the next guy and I wanted to set the example for my son that we do not lie even when we can get away with it. THat is not to say that I have not stretched the definition of "under 3" at Disney when she was younger and in a baby stroller

 

[MakiraMarlena]

If they don't HAVE cheerios and goldfish available, then they can't provide them. You can ask, but you won't know until you get there. Unfortunately whether someone eats or not has no bearing on whether they will be charged at a buffet/AYCE restaurant. Everyone age 3 or over is charged. They can't watch your table to make sure that the "non-eating" person will really eat or drink nothing. yes, there have been instances where persons with feeding tubes have been charged.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

My son is also on the spectrum and he also has adhd which he is medicated for. Last year when we went to Disney we were on the deluxe dining plan. All he ate the entire week was literally cantaloupe. That's all he wanted and if the place didn't have any he wouldn't eat. The only place that went out of there way to accommodate him was garden grill. The cook actually tried to make him something special that wasn't on the menu. But again it wasn't canteloupe so he wouldn't eat. I didn't get any breaks bc you are also paying for the entertainment. I didn't feel like I got ripped off though. My son still enjoyed the characters and the theming of the restaurants. Even though all he ate was canteloupe lol. It really wasn't Disneys fault that my son was having some eating issues while we were there. If Disney gave you a break on your meals bc of your child they would have to give everyone with an autistic child a break and that could turn into a nightmare for Disney.

 

[Amanda999]

Last year when we went to Disney we were on the deluxe dining plan. All he ate the entire week was literally cantaloupe.

Cantaloupe! At least he's a healthy picky eater!

Thinking about it: We go to H&Vine at least once every trip - DS LOVES the characters. Now they have F! package at lunch, at the same price as regular lunch, I've heard. But we can't go to F! due to DS's issues (even though he loves Sorcerer Mickey - i.e., he'd love F!). But I still pay the same price as people who get the F! ticket. And DS1 is over 9 years old now, so it's expensive. Cost of doing business I guess!

PS They might have Cheerios - they do serve breakfast - but seems easier to just pack a ziploc of Cheerios than to ask/wait/wonder (at least for me it is - I don't like uncertainty). They do have white bread and vanilla soft serve (pump your own!) - which I know my picky eater will eat. HTH.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

Yeah we did fantasmic last year bc we had the package but it freaked my son out. This year we don't have the package. We are going to wing it and see what sort of mood my son is in. If he wants to see it we will try and get our 4th FP for fantasmic

 

[Dis703]

PS They might have Cheerios - they do serve breakfast - but seems easier to just pack a ziploc of Cheerios than to ask/wait/wonder (at least for me it is - I don't like uncertainty). They do have white bread and vanilla soft serve (pump your own!) - which I know my picky eater will eat. HTH.

IME they only seem to serve Kelloggs brand cereals so I doubt they will have Cheerios.

 

[Amanda999]

IME they only seem to serve Kelloggs brand cereals so I doubt they will have Cheerios.

Yeah, you're right - I'm probably remembering when we brought our own.

 

[2tinkerbell]

I am sure there are a lot of parents of children who are on the Spectrum with their own stories of eating problems and paying full price for nothing. Mine involves paying $50 for a grilled cheese sandwich...lol!

I have to weigh the costs and the benefits. For example, a group of my friends and I, along with my DD were meeting at the Disneyland Resort for a vacation. I had not seen my friends for several years. Many of my friends were helpful when my DD was attending the Riverview School in MA. The group decided that they wanted to watch World of Color and they were having the dining package at Ariel's Grotto. I viewed the menu and saw that there was basically nothing that my DD would eat (even though she was much better than she had ever been in the picky eater department - sensory issues and all). My DD viewed the menu and she agreed that there was nothing that she was even willing to try. Because it was important to me that I meet with my friends and it was important to my DD that she meet with them and thank them for their support, I paid $45 for my DD to be able to "eat" dinner and watch World of Color. We stopped at Pacific Wharf and my DD got her something to eat before we ever went to Ariel's. I looked at that $45 as entertainment and not a meal.

Having a meal at H&V and watching F! knowing ahead of time that your DS will not eat anything is a decision only you can make. Disney isn't going to reduce the cost or provide something not on the menu.

 

[Amanda999]

Yeah we did fantasmic last year bc we had the package but it freaked my son out. This year we don't have the package. We are going to wing it and see what sort of mood my son is in. If he wants to see it we will try and get our 4th FP for fantasmic

Good idea - wonder if it is available as 4th FP usually - that could help OP (and me too). DS sleeps with a Sorcerer Mickey plush, and dresses as him for Halloween - I would love to get him to F! someday.

 

[StirlingSilver83]

They usually have a ton of seating there. When we went last year there were lots of empty seats. This year when we go we are actually leaving DHS for dinner at Beaches and Cream. We will prolly decide before we leave for dinner whether or not we want to go back for Fantasmic or just call it an early night. If for some reason we can't get a FP we more than likely won't do it, but I've heard Fantasmic is actually a good thing to use for your 4th FP, specially if theres 2 showings in 1 night. This is just my plan not sure what we are going to want to do. We are just going to play it by ear. My older son might find it fun to have a little bit of an early night and maybe do some resort hopping and checking out the different resorts. I've always wanted to see Animal Kingdom Lodge up close and personal, so if we don't go to Fantasmic that will most likely be what we will be doing

 

[Thing 1]

Will your child enjoy the characters there? If so, I would just pay it and be done. It is very unlikely they will not charge you. Reality is my typical child has gone to buffets at WDW more than once and not eaten a bite for a couple different reasons. Just too hard to police. If your child will not enjoy the characters, I would switch to MM for the package. MUCH better food. Also be sure your child can handle fantasmic. Its a very sensory full show.

 

[MakiraMarlena]

If you are on the package, they won't let the kid sit without paying even at MM. The package is fixed price.