Kids Dining plan question-called Guest Services

[gssmks]

Personally, I think Disney would be best off doing away with the Child Dining Plan. It doesn't save anyone that much money, if used as intended... a MAX of about $7 per day... and doing away with it and giving the option to purchase the (now only "adult" Dining Plan) provides a good amount of flexibility while doing away with a lot of the confusion and conflict folks have with regard to the Dining Plan today. Just require all adults on a reservation have the Dining Plan, and then allow guests to purchase the (adult) Dining Plan for as many of the children as they'd like at $38.99 each.

This is almost word for word what I told the cast member the other day. He disagreed and said that the child Dining Plan did save parents quite a bit. It may for some, but my 9 year old has very grown up tastes. She will not eat nearly as much as we do, but she will want, and will eat, the same foods.

I tried to get around some of the additional cost by making ressies at Boma, 1900 Park Fare, Chef Mickey, Whispering Canyon Cafe, Crystal Palace and Liberty Tree Tavern, where I understand there is not a separate child's menu. Hopefully, this information is correct. Then places where I know I will pay OOP are Coral Reef, Le Cellier, Brown Derby and Sci Fi. We also have ressies at Hoop Dee Doo Review. I am assuming the menu is the same for kids there also.

As for CS, I figure we will use the child's meal when there is something she likes, and when not, I will get an adult meal that we both like and share. On past trips, we often shared meals anyway because of the amount of food they give you.

 

[bicker]

I tried to get around some of the additional cost by making ressies at Boma, 1900 Park Fare, Chef Mickey, Whispering Canyon Cafe, Crystal Palace and Liberty Tree Tavern, where I understand there is not a separate child's menu. Hopefully, this information is correct. Hopefully, this information is correct.

At Boma's, Chef Mickey's and Crystal Palace, anyone can get items off of any of the buffets. Liberty Tree Tavern (dinner) is served family style -- everyone eats the same stuff. That is not the case at Whispering Canyon.

 

[gssmks]

At Boma's, Chef Mickey's and Crystal Palace, anyone can get items off of any of the buffets. Liberty Tree Tavern (dinner) is served family style -- everyone eats the same stuff. That is not the case at Whispering Canyon.

Wow! More wrong information from Disney Dining. I was told that this was an all-you-can eat meal served in a skillet and that the children can eat that also and it would count as one table service for each person eating and the child's credit would cover DD's. If that isn't true, I guess I will be paying for that meal tol

 

[bicker]

That is just one of several options at Whispering Canyon. To be fair, there is a child's price for the skillet. However, beyond that one menu item, it isn't the way Whispering Canyon works.

And also to be fair, don't expect accurate menu information from Disney Dining. It's exactly like asking Hilton's national reservations operators what type of soap they're stocking in the showers, or United Airlines concierge desk what meal you will be served on next month's first-class airline flight you're taking. Menus available online are sample, to help you get an idea of the type of cuisine. The actual menu options you'll be offered won't be available until you actually place your order, as with any other restaurant in the country.

 

[WDWCPAlumni]

If you think the kids meal wont be enough for your kid, eat mostly buffet meals and they can eat as much of anything they want!

 

[gssmks]

That is just one of several options at Whispering Canyon. To be fair, there is a child's price for the skillet. However, beyond that one menu item, it isn't the way Whispering Canyon works.

And also to be fair, don't expect accurate menu information from Disney Dining. It's exactly like asking Hilton's national reservations operators what type of soap they're stocking in the showers, or United Airlines concierge desk what meal you will be served on next month's first-class airline flight you're taking. Menus available online are sample, to help you get an idea of the type of cuisine. The actual menu options you'll be offered won't be available until you actually place your order, as with any other restaurant in the country.

That will be fine. I think the skillet will be what my DD will want anyway. She doesn't eat like a kid. She eats like an adult. Also, the last posted recommended to book buffet meals to get around this, and that's exactly what I have done. I think the DDP is going to save us money over all even though I will be paying some things OOP for DD. I keep a rough list of what I spent on my last trip to WDW on food without the DDP. A few days ago, I state down and figured the cost of the meals that I can find a price for. I am anticpating saving a lot. Now granted, a lot of the meals that we have planned we just wouldn't do if we did not have DDP. But March of 2005, I spent a roughly $700.00 in ten days on food, drinks and snacks, and we ate mostly counter service meals. The DDP costed me $649.74 for me and DD for 13 days. That's a savings out of the gate.

 

[janets]

I tried to get around some of the additional cost by making ressies at Boma, 1900 Park Fare, Chef Mickey, Whispering Canyon Cafe, Crystal Palace and Liberty Tree Tavern, where I understand there is not a separate child's menu. Hopefully, this information is correct. Then places where I know I will pay OOP are Coral Reef, Le Cellier, Brown Derby and Sci Fi.

Not sure why you need to pay OOP for LeCellier or Coral Reef. We were there for NJ Week and both have a wonderful menu for kids (not that new icky one). LeCellier has steak as an entree and Coral Reef has mahi mahi, among other things. So if your 9 yo has adult tastes, I would think that would satisfy them. Now I believe that there is going to be some revamping of the menus yet again now that Thanksgiving is over so I would be on the lookout for posts indicating changes, but if your trip is soon (sorry, didn't see when you're going) you will probably be fine at these 2 places.

I believe that Brown Derby and Sci Fi have the "new" menu. Can't for the life of me understand how they justify 2 TS credits at BD for the exact same menu you get at a bunch of the 1 TS credit places, but that's one of the reasons I won't go there.

 

[gssmks]

Not sure why you need to pay OOP for LeCellier or Coral Reef. We were there for NJ Week and both have a wonderful menu for kids (not that new icky one). LeCellier has steak as an entree and Coral Reef has mahi mahi, among other things.

This sounds great. Someone had posted on another thread that the new menu was at both of these restaurants. DD will definitely want steak at LeCellier. It is her absolute favorite meal. Maybe I won't have to do as much OOP as I thought.

 

[janets]

As I said, we were there for NJ Week (Nov. 6-10) and their menu, while having been tweaked somewhat, still had the yummy, better choices (like the lobster soup my older son loves at CR). Now, that being said, I have been told by a manager at CR that there were changes coming again after Thanksgiving and I believe someone here on the boards (who might be a CM at one of the TS restaurants) posted that there are more changes in the works. So no one can be sure what will be the case in the next few months.

But as of earlier this month, those restaurants had great options for kids.

We'll be there the first weekend of Feb for ds's 9th birthday. We have ressies at CR, LeCellier and Concourse. At this point, only Concourse has the "new" menu and I think that will be fine. But since we will be spending ds's actual birthday dinner at CR, and he loves that soup, if they do significant changing, we may have to age him up to 10 (as I said previously, we are staying DVC and have no ticket purchase requirement with the dining plan) so that he can enjoy his birthday without any restrictions.

 

[d-r]

You know, I don't think you have to worry about his age. I'm pretty sure if you tell member services that you want to pay adult rate for him they won't have any problem with it.

 

[janets]

You know, I don't think you have to worry about his age. I'm pretty sure if you tell member services that you want to pay adult rate for him they won't have any problem with it.

Most people don't want to do it since it means that they have to purchase an adult park pass as well. We have APs and since we're staying DVC, we don't have the park pass issue for this trip.

However, we'll be back in August for free dining. The issue will be whether MS computers will update CRO computers and have him aged up, meaning I'll have to buy him a 1 day adult ticket (not such a big deal really) or if it will still have him at 9. I guess I'll have to wait and see what menu changes occur over the next several months to decide what I want to do for August (so very far away.....).

 

[d-r]

I gotcha, I understand about the tickets. What I'm saying is, I'm pretty sure if you tell MS that he is 9, but you want to go ahead and pay the adult rate for him, they won't have any problem with it and won't change his age. They'll just charge you an adult rate. YMMV, of course. I'm saying that they will let you pay adult rate for a child age if you ask MS. You are paying more, what would they care. Just say "He is still 9, but I want to go ahead and pay more for him."

But anyway, here's the thing. Every time I call disney world for anything I have to put my phone number in first thing. Then it asks me if I've ever been to disney world before. Then it asks me if I've been more than four times with one trip since 2000 or whatever. They don't have a magic database that works that well. Even if MS entered his age in the computer, it won't talk to cro's computer. Even if it did it wouldn't matter. It won't even remember it next time. I promise you next time you make a reservation they will ask you the name and age of the child. They ask you this every time.

 

[d-r]

Are you sure? The price difference between a ten day adult ticket and a ten day child ticket is $41.43; there's no difference in price in the add-ons. Is there anywhere else you can cut your budget to cover this increase?

I think a person could buy a one-day adult ticket for the child in advance, then when you get there trade in that one-day adult ticket for a however-many-day child ticket.

 

[Lewisc]

A kids character meal costs around $16 (with tax and tip), a snack is worth around $3 and a kids CS meal is worth $5-6. I think the savings is more like a minimum of $7/day.

If Disney could verify that the meals were actually going to be consumed by kids and not by adults they could offer a low cost upgrade, on a per meal basis, to adult meals. Disney already does this, at no charge, at buffets.

Personally, I think Disney would be best off doing away with the Child Dining Plan. It doesn't save anyone that much money, if used as intended... a MAX of about $7 per day... and doing away with it and giving the option to purchase the (now only "adult" Dining Plan) provides a good amount of flexibility while doing away with a lot of the confusion and conflict folks have with regard to the Dining Plan today. Just require all adults on a reservation have the Dining Plan, and then allow guests to purchase the (adult) Dining Plan for as many of the children as they'd like at $38.99 each.