How to choose which princess character meal?

[korie]

I was originally leaning towards Cinderella's Royal Table. We wanted to do breakfast there and be in the park early, thought that would be neat. But I am hearing through the grapevine that maybe it's not worth it, being so expensive, we could easily do the Epcot princess meal or even 1900 Park Fare for much less...I happen to think, though, that my 5 year old twins will get quite a kick out of eating in the castle!

So any thoughts? How do I choose between the 3? We are planning on doing the basic dining plan w/1 TS per day and were going to pay out of pocket for CRT.

 

[Princess Sleepy]

I think a lot of it is personal preference: how long you want to wait on the phone for ADRs, which princesses are your favorites, etc. We did Akershus last February with DD5 and DD2. We saw Belle, Ariel, Mulan, Aurora, and Snow White. Since Aurora and Snow White were our priorities it made sense to do that one. It was great to get to see so many princesses at one time. My cousin was there in August and she saw Cinderella as well, although I do not think that is typical.

Next summer we are going to do 1900 because we peeked in at the dinner there last time and loved the ambiance. Plus, Cinderella is now the top dog for my younger daughter and we will be celebrating her birthday there.

I personally would not spend the extra credits or money to eat at CRT when there are so many other comparable options. But if being in the castle is a big deal for your family, then go for it!

 

[bibbidibobbidibecky]

For us...it will always be the castle. We always go to WDW with my parents and they have said we have to always do breakfast there! My daughter LOVES it, my son likes it and I'm hoping my 2 year old is old enough to enjoy it this time--she finally knows who the princesses are

We have done Akershus and it just wasn't the same--for us. We love to have an early breakfast in THE castle. It's just magical.

 

[Justsyd2]

We have to eat at CRT on our first day! I suggest that if you want to try it, try it, regardless of what you hear. We did, and we loved it! We paid OOP for it, and felt that it was worth every penny!

 

[squirrel]

I have eaten in the castle twice. I know the last time we had a later breakfast. Both times I felt rushed.

This year we had breakfast at Akershus. It was more relaxing. I was busy for the first part as I was getting two T-Shirts signed by the princesses and I was re-adjusting the hoop for each and also taking photos. I still managed to eat and make a few trips up to the buffet to get extra items that my niece needed like syrup for her waffles and ketchup for her hashbrown. At CRT I left hungry both times and my niece last year hardly ate a thing. I was trying to get her to eat the waffle when the server took our plates away.

I would definately go back to Akershus.

 

[mickeyluv'r]

I've eaten inthe castle a few times. The last was about two years ago. I wasn't eager to go back, and the new price increases and menu decreases haven't done anything to bolster my interest.

Norway has never appealed to me much, but I may try it soon, as it's now one of the few places I have never dined.

I have done 1900 PF several times. I prefer it for dinner over breakfast. I didn't see all that much about the breakfast which makes it very different from QS breakfasts. The tea looks cute, but it's not a great time for us. 1900PF can be loud, but I think it is much improved since the remodel.

I'd say the castle is worth doing once, but mostly just so you can say you've done it. They are going to have to improve it greatly once the new Fantasyland opens. I MIGHT consider trying it again after that happens. We also felt rushed and under appreciated. It's not at all the same vibe as some of the other WDW dining establishments that aim to please. It's mostly just about high turnover.

 

[scard192]

We did 1900PF & Akershus on our recent trip, it was my 3 year old grand daughters first visit. She enjoyed 1900PF on our first night, but the highlight of the vacation for her was Akershus dinner. The look on her face as one after another (4) Princesses came around was priceless. She was especially thrilled to meet Jasmine. The menu at Akershus was a bit different; the salmon and beef tips were very good.

 

[tink519]

My DD will turn 3 just before we go this year and I opted for Akershus breakfast and 1900 Park Fare Breakfast. From what I'm hearing Cinderella has been at the breakfast but I'm not holding my breath. She also loves Mary Poppins so we are going to 1900 Park Fare. I plan to do CRT next time we go, which will be when she is 5...if not before.

Honestly I would go with CRT. I've never done it myself, but 5 year olds girls will only be 5 once. I'm not sure how often you visit Disney, but in a few years they might not be as into it.

 

[MyTwoPrincesses]

We're going for the first time with a 4 (almost 5) year old and 3 year old. We are doing Akershus. We chose Akershus because it has a lot of princesses, was just 1 TS, and still included the photo. I also read reviews and heard through the grapevine that it is less rushed than CRT. Plus it is castle like which my DDs will appreciate. My DDs have never been to WDW and have no clue that there is a meal in the castle so they won't know what they are missing. Maybe next time, when they're older, we'll try the castle. But for now, Akershus was the obvious choice. We are also doing 1900 PF, but the breakfast not the dinner. We want to see Alice, the Mad Hatter, and Mary Poppins for breakfast. Between the two, we will see all of our favorites. We do love Cinderella too. My fingers are crossed that she will be at Akershus - It seems that she is there occasionally.

 

[3prettyprincesses]

Why not do them all? With your girls being 5, I'd bet they would LOVE any and all princess meals! We've done them all before and are doing them all again on our upcoming trip. BTW, my 3 girls are 9, 8 and 6 and love every single princess meal. I don't think you can wrong with your choices at all and I'm of the opinion that every little girl (and their Mom) should eat in the castle at least once!

 

[laughinplace199]

We've done the Cinderella breakfast in the castle twice, and we loved it both times. I thought the food was very good and we had lots of character interaction.

Sadly, the princess phase doesn't last too long, so enjoy it while you can. If you think your kids would enjoy the castle, go for it. By your next trip, they may be too cool for princesses (which is what happened with my DD - she preferred pirates over princesses by age 8 )

 

[PoohsFan1]

We always do Akershus for breakfast, it is our favorite princess meal. However, if you want to eat in the castle, then I say by all means eat in the castle. In fact, on our December trip we are going to be eating at CRT for dinner only because my DD6 has been requesting that we eat there (last time we ate in the Castle she was 2 so she doesn't remember it). Even though the princesses are not there during dinner, she just wants to be inside and eating....we are going to Akershus too so she will get her fill of princesses that way.

 

[mdurette]

We have been to all of them.

The castle is something to do at least once. But, if you are watching your pennies I would recommend Arkershus for a couple of reasons.

1. Your daughters won't know that they are missing out on eating in the castle - they don't know it is there! They will be very happy with the meal and charachters at Arkershus.

2. Epcot can be somewhat of a long day for little kids. This will give them something fun to do while there.

 

[Will316]

Not crazy about 1900, but you can't go wrong with the other two. They are both terrific. I guess it depends on how important the castle is to you. If it's important, as it was to my daughter, than go for it. If it's more about the actual princesses, Akershus won't disappoint. And I think you're talking about breakfast, but I'm a big fan of the Akershus dinner: nice buffet and then a decent entree afterwards.

 

[Vickis3js]

Last year I had CRT on the agenda and talked to the kids about definatly doing it. None of them seemed excited about the castle they wanted the princesses. So we did Akershurs for BF and 1900 PF for dinner. It covered all the princesses we wanted to see and did cost us anyhing oop. Akershurs was our favorite. Everyone including DH liked the food and the princesses were awesome. 1900 PF was ok. Characters were good food was bad. But the experiance was well worth it. I still want to do CRT just to say we did it but if we don't I won't be heartbroken.

 

[djp0630]

I did Akershus and CRT for lunch and loved both of them. There is something special about being in the castle, and they have the wishing ceremony and give the kids a sword (boys) or a wand (girls). It was a little rushed, but we enjoyed it. It is 2 TS, but gratuity is included.

Akershus was really nice as well. I enjoyed the cold buffet. The entree was ok, but everybody else in my family enjoyed their lunches. The desserts were fabulous! The picture is included in both meals, but this is only 1TS.

At Akershus, we had Snow White, Cinderella, Belle (yellow dress, greeting), Human Ariel & Aurora. At CRT we had Cinderella (greeting), Belle (blue dress), Jasmine, Snow White & Aurora. All of the princesses were great. Both Snow Whites kissed my 13 month old DS and left a big kiss mark. Cinderella at CRT kissed DS as well. I really enjoyed both so much. We were one of the first tables to be greeted by the princesses (the first at CRT after they were announced), and just had a ball. For me, I'm not sure which I would go back to. I think definitely Akershus since it's only 1TS, but I enjoyed both, so I might do both again

Good luck deciding!

 

[mermaid&cinderella]

Disney is a magical place and I want my princess to experience that magic everyday we are there. We do all 3 princesses meals, we go to Disney for her and I want her to experience all of them. We have done all of them every year we have gone. I agree CRT is expensive when you think of it in $$$ but the smile on my DD face is priceless to me. The castle is soooo magical! My DD first question when she knows I am booking adrs is "Are we eating at the castle?" I would never NOT eat there. So to me its worth the money!
I think all the princess meals are good. I would say do all of them but if your DD is not a fan of Cinderella don't bother with 1900 Park Fare since she is the only princess there. The good thing about CRT and Norway is that there are many princesses!

 

[Rosie8801]

I say chose the castle. Your girls will only be into princesses for a while, and it going into the castle is magical. We have been to both Norway and the castle, and the princesses were great in both. But I preferred the food and the ambiance at the castle. But once is enough considering the cost.

 

[ShannonMB]

We've done the Cinderella breakfast in the castle twice, and we loved it both times. I thought the food was very good and we had lots of character interaction.

Sadly, the princess phase doesn't last too long, so enjoy it while you can. If you think your kids would enjoy the castle, go for it. By your next trip, they may be too cool for princesses (which is what happened with my DD - she preferred pirates over princesses by age 8 )

We did our first meal with the princesses in the castle when DD was 6, then again on our last trip in Feb. when she was (is) 8. I never thought her fascination would go away, but sure enough, she's grown out of princesses!

I prefer the breakfast to the lunch at CRT, but I think everyone should experience eating in the castle at least once! Not that DD wouldn't still enjoy eating there, but I'm glad we did it while she was still so in awe.

 

[sss]

Hi,
My family and I are going back to wdw 10/31. This will be our fifth trip as a family and our fourth involving a princess meal (or two, lol). I have 3 dds ages 7, 7, and almost 5. I agree with the pp who said it depends on what princesses are your daughters favorites. If they are hard core Cinderella fans...well...the castle it is... Please please note that for no good reason that I can think of we have never done 1900 Park Fare. We have done CRT I believe 3 times and Akershus once on our last trip last year. Last year, when our twins were 6 we did both CRT and Akershus because we didn't know how much longer the twins would be into princesses so we thought we'd do it up, lol. Having tried Akershus here is my two cents for what it's worth...
For parents, CRT is a nightmare. It is crowded, it is rarely handeled smoothly by cast members and seriously, I could do without the wish ceremony which I still don't understand. And I agree with another PP who felt rushed. That said, one of my most emotional mommy memories of disney was when one of my twins was about 3.5 and rendered speechless (and she is a talker) upon meeting Cinderella. She was so overwhelmed, she had no idea what to do with herself. The kids LOVE it. The parents, not so much.
Last year, we decided to try Akershus...whoosh, for parents, much different. It is roomier, the food is better, it's handled much more smoothly, it is less stressfull and I definitely did not feel rushed. The kids loved it too. That said, my precocious twins are a whole year older and kind of bummed that we aren't doing CRT. My husband and I however are quite done. We feel like we did it 3x, which is more than most people get to do and we can't deal with someone screaming "The Jones family is royally invited to be seated" or whatever it is they scream that makes me want to tear my hair out.
Also, please note, we are huge fans of doing these character meals for breakfast. Why? It gets everyone up and out and by the time we're finished, the rest of the park is just opening. Our girls are early risers so we typically make fairly early ressies. Also, once we did lunch at CRT. Ew.
Just my two cents.
have fun!