Highway in the sky- children?

[msdroz]

Hi there, just heard about the hits dining experience and think this is right up my husbands alley as he likes a break from the parks and likes to resort hop. I think our 11 year old would also enjoy it as he has been to many high end restaurants and knows how to behave (and has a more sophisticated palate than my husband)! From all the reviews I've read, no one really mentions children. My son is an only child and is used to being around adults, does Disney discourage children from attending? Just curious if it is more a romantic thing to do without any kids. Don't want to ruin anyone's vibe! Thanks

 

[Hopefully]

Hi there, just heard about the hits dining experience and think this is right up my husbands alley as he likes a break from the parks and likes to resort hop. I think our 11 year old would also enjoy it as he has been to many high end restaurants and knows how to behave (and has a more sophisticated palate than my husband)! From all the reviews I've read, no one really mentions children. My son is an only child and is used to being around adults, does Disney discourage children from attending? Just curious if it is more a romantic thing to do without any kids. Don't want to ruin anyone's vibe! Thanks

Disney does not prevent children. There is no children’s menu. The only other poster who I have seen who felt as you do, ultimately chose not to bring their child. I personally would not bring my well behaved 11 year old.

 

[msdroz]

Disney does not prevent children. There is no children’s menu. The only other poster who I have seen who felt as you do, ultimately chose not to bring their child. I personally would not bring my well behaved 11 year old.

He doesn't eat off a kids menu at this age anyhow... but curious why you wouldn't? Adult atmosphere, cost, another reason? Thank you!

 

[Hopefully]

He doesn't eat off a kids menu at this age anyhow... but curious why you wouldn't? Adult atmosphere, cost, another reason? Thank you!

A couple of reasons.
I think it is clearly adult focused, both from cost and the included alcohol.
I don’t think having an 11 yo is appealing to other adults looking for an adult evening.
I don’t think he would enjoy it.

 

[dreaming4disney]

My DH and I were at Poly in Sept and saw one of the highway groups out in the lobby -I guess it was more towards the beginning of the evening. We were headed over to GF to eat dinner at Citricos. We got a good chuckle as we were leaving our dinner and came across the group again outside of Citricos. The CM's in charge of the group were counting up the people trying to make sure everyone was there before heading back to the monorail. They were doing head counts when I noticed that everyone in the group had a lanyard with their name on it. Just like preschool. The group as a whole seemed to be having a good time. They were much louder then at the Poly. Didn't see any kids. The atmosphere seemed more adultish with the alcohol provided.

 

[EdmondD]

I did Highway in the Sky, @msdroz.

The seating is such that there is a different seating arrangement at each stop. We ended up randomly around different other couples throughout the evening, which was nice. If there had a been an 11yo there, I wouldn't have cared, if the kid was well-behaved and polite. Most conversations revolved around either Disney (natch), kids, work, other vacations, and home towns. If an 11yo had either sat quietly or chimed in constructively, it would have been fine with me. It's not romantic at all. If the kid had annoyed me, I would have tried to not sit with his family at the next stop.

You and your spouse could always share the drink that is part of your son's dinner (I guess they'd allow that...you paid for it, right?). But there's already a lot of alcohol. If I'd had another half-drink at each stop it would have been Highway on the Floor for me.

@dreaming4disney - The lanyard doesn't actually have your name on it (unless things were different for my group). They reuse them. In fact, they seem specifically to be used for advertising...big, stylized letters, making sure other guests take note of this special group.

 

[CinderDuffy]

I don’t think it’s particularly romantic. It’s a group activity & he’s 11, not 3. I’d go ahead and bring him if it’s something he’d be interested in.

 

[Keels]

There is an age limit - 12 & up.

 

[CinderDuffy]

There is an age limit - 12 & up.

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That’s not an age limit. That’s just a suggested age. Kind of like the “dress code” isn’t a rule but a suggestion. If there was an age limit, it would say “guests under 12 years of age not permitted” or words to that effect.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

Hi there, just heard about the hits dining experience and think this is right up my husbands alley as he likes a break from the parks and likes to resort hop. I think our 11 year old would also enjoy it as he has been to many high end restaurants and knows how to behave (and has a more sophisticated palate than my husband)! From all the reviews I've read, no one really mentions children. My son is an only child and is used to being around adults, does Disney discourage children from attending? Just curious if it is more a romantic thing to do without any kids. Don't want to ruin anyone's vibe! Thanks

Your DS sounds very similar to mine! (though mine is 10) I had this booked last December for DS and I when it was first released (and there was no age suggestion listed) and posted a bit about it in the general Highway in the Sky thread. I, too, had concerns that we might feel uncomfortable and that DS would most likely be the only child there. I was also a bit concerned about the price tag as obviously DS doesn't drink alcohol and I don't drink either. I ultimately decided to cancel the event put our own "highway in the sky" experience together and we had an absolute BLAST! We went in December so all of the decorations were up. We started at Poly around 3:30 pm, walked around the resort a little and got into Trader Sam's right at 4 pm for mocktails and apps. We really enjoyed watching all of the special effects and antics! We then monorailed to GF to see the Christmas tree and got some gingerbread at the gingerbread house (if you aren't going during the holidays, you could certainly substitute Mizner's in here or a TS. If you can time it when the band is playing - bonus!). We then had our dinner at Cali Grill at CR. It felt so special to be whisked up in the elevator and the view from both observation decks is just spectacular. We then ended our evening at the MK fireworks dessert party, which was spectacular. We go to WDW a lot and the evening was definitely a highlight of all of our trips! All in all, we ended up spending less than the Highway in the Sky event would have cost (most likely because we didn't purchase any alcohol on our adventure), we went at our own pace, ordered what we specifically wanted from the menus and had a much better view of the fireworks.

I am not writing this to dissuade you from doing the event. I just wanted to let you know that if you are on the fence or fear you might feel uncomfortable at the event, there are definitely ways to plan it out yourself and have a fantastic time!

 

[marikujawa]

Obviously, WDW has something for everyone, but not every experience is right for everyone. When Disney states an intended age limit, dress code, etc., it is providing information about the event in order to help people decide whether they would be comfortable attending and whether they would enjoy the event. In many cases, Disney is just stating what most people do - this is done with an eye toward making everyone happy and comfortable. If Disney states that an event is intended for older children, most people would appreciate knowing that their younger child may not enjoy the event and that there would be very few younger children there.

It is true that some people will do whatever they want unless Disney has an express policy prohibiting it AND actually enforces that policy. It's very possible that those people have a greater presence on these boards than at WDW.

OP, if Disney had stated the event is intended for adults, I would be hesitant to bring an 11 year old. But if Disney believes the event is appropriate for guests 12 and up and you have a very mature 11 year old, I would go for it. We attended this event last May and had a great time. There were no children there, but a well-behaved older child would not have been out of place.

 

[Pumbaa_]

This is a very adult oriented experience. Lots of booze and fine dining

If you want to pay $170 for your child to be on a booze excursion go for it. But do not expect the adults to not have an adult time. Complete with adult drinking humor and behavior

 

[sullyfam]

I did this in June with my friend and we had a great time! I would echo others here and say that this is definitely meant to be an adult event with a lot of focus on alcohol. They basically took what people were doing on their own (i.e. a bar crawl or in this case a "monorail crawl") and made it official with a ticketed event. For most, I think they are looking for a night out minus kids and that's the mind set.

Even if your son is mature, I don't think he would enjoy it very much. It's designed as a social event and I would imagine many conversations/activities would be beyond him (or even not appropriate for him!) I have a mature 10 (almost 11) year old son and I can just picture him now about 30 minutes into this leaning over to whisper in my ear to tell me that he's bored

I would do what another poster suggested and recreate the event for you and him. Pick the spots you want to go, order what you want (minus the drinks) and you'll probably have more fun and spend less! Or consider another ticketed event that might be better suited.

 

[MaryLovesPoohBear]

A couple of reasons.
I think it is clearly adult focused, both from cost and the included alcohol.
I don’t think having an 11 yo is appealing to other adults looking for an adult evening.
I don’t think he would enjoy it.

To be totally honest, I would avoid sitting with them. Sorry, I'm not spending $170 per person for an adult evening out, only to end up sitting with someone's child.

 

[GAN]

My kids are older now, but I wouldn't have considered bringing them on this event. It's focused on alcohol and food dishes that are adult-oriented(although some kids might be fine with it -sushi, pork belly, etc). I did it back in June and it was a great night, and while an 11/12yo wouldn't have ruined my night it wouldn't have added anything either. It's only my opinion, but this will be a great event to celebrate your child's 21st birthday and long-deserved entry to adulthood. Why spoil the surprise!

 

[loves to dive]

I did it with my adult son last year and while it isn't prohibited it might be a tad uncomfortable. Like others have said you sort of switch around who you sit/stand with and there is a lot of alcohol flowing. My son went everywhere with me when he was little but I don't think I would have taken him to this. Some adults have no filter after a few drinks, not that that would have bothered my son since my Mama swore like a sailor but it might have made some of the other people uncomfortable.