Not really that interested in TS... anybody else?

[jomommy]

Our last trip we did the DDP and had lots of character/TS meals... this time, I've made 6 ADRs, but now I'm thinking of cancelling most of them. I'll keep 1900 Park Fare dinner because my DDs love the stepsisters, and maybe one breakfast (CP or Tusker House).

IDK, we are staying CL and we'll have breakfast in the morning and snacks all day long. (We spend all of our afternoons in the hotel). The characters aren't a huge draw for us because we actually love hunting them down in the parks. We met everyone twice last time: in the parks and at meals. It was funny to "remind" them that we didn't need their autographs because we already had it.

Honestly, we didn't have REALLY great food last trip either and now that my oldest is a disney adult, I think it's a lot of money for food we're not crazy about.

Are there any other Disney freaks that don't do a lot of character meals?

 

[koolaidmoms]

Our last trip we did the DDP and had lots of character/TS meals... this time, I've made 6 ADRs, but now I'm thinking of cancelling most of them. I'll keep 1900 Park Fare dinner because my DDs love the stepsisters, and maybe one breakfast (CP or Tusker House).

IDK, we are staying CL and we'll have breakfast in the morning and snacks all day long. (We spend all of our afternoons in the hotel). The characters aren't a huge draw for us because we actually love hunting them down in the parks. We met everyone twice last time: in the parks and at meals. It was funny to "remind" them that we didn't need their autographs because we already had it.

Honestly, we didn't have REALLY great food last trip either and now that my oldest is a disney adult, I think it's a lot of money for food we're not crazy about.

Are there any other Disney freaks that don't do a lot of character meals?

We run hot and cold with it. It seems like we do TONS on one trip and the next we don't want to be bothered by being tied to a schedule so we will only do one or two TS meals.

Usually by the end of a full TS week we don't even want to go to the restaurants anymore.

 

[Pakey]

We've gotten this way. For our 9 day trip in May, I now only have 4 ADR's. We find that staying at DVC or club level, we can enjoy what we have available at our resort and not be tied to such a rigid schedule of being at a certain place at a certain time.

My family is unanimous in this choice. We've done very few ADR's on our last 2 visits now and everyone loves the flexibility and freedom.

 

[jomommy]

Thanks for the responses.

Yeah, I think ALL the character meals last time gave us our filll. And I'm really looking forward to the freedom of not being tied to ADRs. My older kids don't care about them that much right now (except for dinner w/ the stepsisters), and the little ones don't really know better. They'll be thrilled just seeing the characters out in the parks. With five kids, I just think the freedom to come and go will be priceless.

 

[MelanieC]

We've decided to try the QSDP this time. We will only be doing at TS once - Boma! Totally new for us, so we will see.

 

[DisneyGirlie]

Almost all my meals at WDW are TS but that is because I am in love with Disney TS food. I don't find the CS food to be very good in general, although this varies on which CS I go to. I used to be big on character meals, but I agree that seeing them in the park is enough and they kind of interrupt my meals instead of enhancing it. It's like I want pictures with the characters, but I have to be on the look out during the meal. "Oh, pluto's headed this way, do I have anything on my mouth/in my teeth?" It's silly really, and for kids it's probably no big deal.
If I wasn't an addict to Disney food, I probably wouldn't care about TS. I've noticed that ADR's take a lot of time too. Not only sitting at the meal, but I could be at MK and have to leave completely early to get to Epcot for dinner. No big deal since I love the food, but I can definitely see how people could be anti-table service.

 

[pepe of ohio]

No dining plans for us. We feel most of Disney's TS restaurants are over priced, over hyped and mediocre at best. We don't want to follow eating schedules, we've seen other guests sitting outside of a restaurant 45 minutes waiting for their ADR, throw in ordering and eating and thats more time than I want to spend a couple times each day. People think that they have a timed ADR, they going to pop right and and sit down and order, think again. Characters meals are fine for the children, easy to get signatures from the characters but to keep repeating the meals, alot of food and pretty hefty prices, glad our children are grown, we never bother with them any more. As for buffets, only ones we attend and enjoy are at FW, Trails End, breakfast and dinner, about the cheapest Buffet on property and good old American cuisine. People say Disney is about the food, after 43 trips Disney to us is not about the food but the ambiance, atmosphere and attractions.

 

[KatMark]

We always do TS meals; we've found most of the CS meals to be disgusting in quality and enjoy taking an hour or 75 minutes to sit and relax in an airconditioned restaurant. We may not do as many as we used to because we spend the afternoon at our resort for swimming/resting and we will eat at the pool bar.

But it really comes down to a personal preference/tastes/expectations/wants, etc.

 

[MickeyNicki]

We do not mind missing character meals...the food at the dinner ones is not good and we dont like alot of heavy breakfasts...

 

[Hockey Ninja]

I feel like a TS meal is just a once-in-awhile thing. I've always had good food at them, but they take so long! And I'd rather stay flexible with my scheduling than try to plan my vacation around dining times and ADRs. Also, I tend to not be too fond of large meals when I'm spending the day walking around-- especially if it's a hot day.

That said, I've found the ESPN Club to be a good compromise. They don't take ADRs and the times I've gone between 1 and 2 PM or thereabouts they've been nearly deserted. It's nice and dim and cool, plus you get refills on your soft drinks! It's got all the parts I love about TS without the annoyances. The food isn't phenomenal, but it's consistently good and comparable to an Applebees or Red Robin-- something of that sort.

 

[jomommy]

Maybe we'll try the ESPN restaurant, we're staying at the BWI. Thanks.

It's funny, because I did want to plan my trip last time around meals and resting. I was 6 months pregnant last time though and my kids were dying for character meals.

This is the first time in 13 years that I'll be at WDW and not pregnant. I'm looking forward to spending a lot of time in the parks and on rides. . . . and of course, crashing at the hotel in the afternoons.

If my kids wanted to do them this time, I would. They just really don't care so I'm not going to spend the money on it. We actually prefered our counter service meals last trip. Everyone's different.

But like I said, the girls want to meet the stepsisters, so we're going to 1900 PF for dinner.

 

[mom2val]

It's all a matter of personal preference. This last trip we did the DDP and I really disliked having so many quick service meals. I got really bored of them and hated trying to find a place to sit or feeling like I needed to eat fast because someone was standing with a tray full of food eyeing my table. I think we're going to bite the bullet for our trip in Dec '10 and pay for the deluxe plan like we did in 2008. We like room service and signature dining so we'll use the credits easily!

 

[GoofyGoober]

Character meals are fun once or twice, but after you've done it, why bother again?

 

[amw]

We tried the DDP last time but my husband is a foodie and was disapointed with the food quality of Disney restaurants -- especially for the price. That was our first time on property so we were used to better food and cheaper rates offsite.

My DD9 will also be an adult in a month! That certainly makes one re-evaluate cost and worthiness!

We've also overdosed on character meals ... it was cute when they were 3 but now I agree that it's more fun to hunt them down in the parks.

We're not booking any ADRs ... not one! ... we'll probably eat at Downtown Disney since we're staying at POFQ, and we'll get a car for half the trip to re-visit favourites off-property.

 

[Wendy5055]

I do like TS eating, but on our last trip we decided not to do as many character meals. I ask my dd8 who she wants to see the most and we make sure to make it to those meals. Otherwise, we have been doing more signature restaurants (Narcoosees, Citricos) and dinner shows.

You might want to get more adventurous and try some places you normally wouldn't...like in world showcase...signaure dining and dinner shows.

With CL you might want to consider the Basic Dining Plan (CS & TS). I have read that CL offerings have changed because people were using that for meals. You might find some good breakfast options at CL though (like bagels & cereal).

 

[fireman1]

No way do we go without ADR's. We tried that once, never again. Plenty of places have TS without the characters around.

 

[DW2010]

I would love to try a few places but only because I've only been to DW once and have never eaten at a TS before. The upcoming trip we have planned is to celebrate DD's birthday. I definitely will make reservations at Akershus for 8AM, but am not really set on any others. I keep going back and forth between CRT and 1900 Park Fare. I hate that CRT takes 2 credits especially since it gets such mixed reviews. We're also hoping for free dining to cover our meals .

 

[DisCopper]

We seldom travel with kids in our group and have long since stopped doing any of the character dining. It really holds no appeal to us. I walk right past the lines of people waiting for autographs from Goofy anyway. Unless you're six, I just don't get it.

We always do a lot of regular table-service dining though.

Much of the table-service in the World is not impressive. A lot of the World Showcase stuff is really just "glorified fast-food." But there are some hidden gems. It's all a matter of taste, of course, but I believe you can find some great meals in the World. Le Cellier, The Yachtsman Steakhouse, and Jiko's just to name a few.

Counter-service is generally fair to poor. You can find some decent stuff (like Earl of Sandwich), but if I'm running like mad in the Magic Kingdom, all I really want to do is scarf down a hamburger anyway.