OMG! Here are 2011 peak season character meal prices

[sjs314]

Just as clarification - there is no tax when purchasing the DP. You will pay $78.99/adult.

Also remember, that you get refillable mugs and 2 snacks/adult on the DxDP. If you eat 2-3 TS meals, the DxDP offers the biggest savings. You will actually save more, as your figures above are incorrect.

Hope this helps, Tiger

Oh Wow now I really fell like I got a bargain, I did not break down the package , just figured there was tax on the DP same as on the room and tickets.

Yes I knew about the refillable mug and snack credits(hopefully we can use the snack credits at F&W like in previous years) another nice lil savings over paying OOP there.

Thanks

 

[Tricia1972]

Do you know what the off-peak prices are? Most curious about the Park Fare dinner. We are going the first of May and are not on the dining plan - staying at a timeshare resort.

If you trust the online websites, which we know aren't the MOST accurate, I have the price difference in my earlier post.

(Take Tigger926's peak price, and subtract what I noted the increase to be. That's the approximate non-peak price)

If you really want to know the exact non peak price, then you'd need to call Disney directly and figure it out. Though they do change their prices frequently, so you won't want to do that too far in advance of your trip.

 

[jandm]

If you trust the online websites, which we know aren't the MOST accurate, I have the price difference in my earlier post.

(Take Tigger926's peak price, and subtract what I noted the increase to be. That's the approximate non-peak price)

If you really want to know the exact non peak price, then you'd need to call Disney directly and figure it out. Though they do change their prices frequently, so you won't want to do that too far in advance of your trip.

Thanks so much for the info. I have an ADR for 1900 PF and I'm really hoping the prices don't jump higher than they are now or I'll have to cancel!

 

[Tiger926]

Thanks so much for the info. I have an ADR for 1900 PF and I'm really hoping the prices don't jump higher than they are now or I'll have to cancel!

I also mentioned how to do this 1 page back, which is similar to what Tricia said - take the peak price, back out the tax (6.5%) and subtract $4.00/adult and $2.00/child.

1900 Park Fare dinner breaks down like this (same as Chef Mickey, which is why I used that example):

Non-Peak $35.99/adult
Peak $39.99/adult

** plus tax and tip **

But as we have said several times, it's best to call Disney to get absolutely accurate prices for your time of travel.

Hope this helps, Tiger

 

[maminnie]

Thank you for sharing this info. I can't believe these prices.

So glad that our children are older and character meals are not a priority when planning our Disney trips. I feel bad for those with small children as character meals are such a fun part of the trip and likely cost prohibitive for many.

We are travelling to Disney World during a busy time this year. I did not book ADR's anywhere near the 180 mark and I was amazed how many reservations were still available, many at the character meals/buffet. We would have booked one just for fun despite our children's ages but said NO WAY when we saw the prices. We are eating more off-site and in the villa. Actually looking forward to not rushing around at the dinner hour for once to get to ADR's.

maminnie

 

[EEyorelover22]

We were in DLR this past November. The character buffets blew WDW out of the water. Character interaction was outstanding and the food was exponentially better!!! The actually had real bacon

We thought the cs options and quality were better as well. It seemed pricier at the time, but WDW has upped theirs to match.

Wish we were closer to CA! We'll definitely be back once CarsLand is open

REAL BACON!!! Yes! the only place that has real bacon anymore is Park Fare. Very sad

When we were at CP this summer they ran out of cinnamon rolls..."no, we aren't making anymore" when we asked when more were coming out. Not happy about that.

 

[mybgirl]

Hi
thank you for the great info,
and your time ,
Our trip is June 2 - 13 , was paying OOP , for one CM, I better make it for June 2nd,

You are so right if have a CM booked , have the MP for sure .


take care

Mary

 

[jenseib]

I wonder why Cape May is higher than 1900 PF?

 

[Tiger926]

Just returned, and wanted to update that I noticed a change in price for Crystal Palace, despite getting pricing from Disney in Janaury. Seems that they raised the dinner, yet again to $40.99/adult plus tax and tip! Outrageous! Breakfast and lunch are still correct.

The difference between lunch and dinner is very high now. I have updated my original list.

Don't know about other restaurants as we didn't dine at any character meals at all.

Hope this helps in someone's planning, Tiger

 

[maggiew]

We have pretty much stopped going to buffets or fixed price places. It is just too crazy expensive now!!

Here is a summary of what DH & I spent during our last trip (from my trip report). The totals are the cost for food for both of us for that meal.

Via Napoli (L) $38.34
Chefs de France (D) $93.46 - $6.95 (wine) = $86.51
Sci Fi (L) $47.30 - $5.25 (Bud Light) = $42.05
Kimonos (D) $29.89 - $9.25 (wine) + $2 restaurant.com cert = $22.64
Liberty Tree Tavern (L) $36.07
Pecos Bills (snack? dinner?) $11.81
Wishes Dessert Party (not including price since OOP either way)
Rainforest Cafe (L) $24.88
Wetzel's Pretzels $8.18
California Grill (D) $134.66 - $14 (wine) - $6.75 (beer) = $113.91
Pop Food Court Bkfst $4.68
Via Napoli (L) $29.82
Pop Food Court Snack $3.83
Il Mulino (D) $55.73 - $15 (wine) + $2 restaurant.com cert = $42.73
Teppn Edo (L) $69.55
EPCOT snack $2.55
Beaches and Cream $11.06
House of Blues (D) $23.49 + $2 restaurant.com cert = $25.49

TOTAL: $574.10


Many (most??) of our meals were LESS than the cost of ONE person at the buffet! I can't believe it.

You can actually eat well at Disney without getting the dining plan. Sadly I think they will continue to jack up the prices of the meals so that the DDP seems a better deal. Then people can compare what they spent on the DDP to what it would have cost if they paid OOP. What they really need to compare it to is what they normally would have purchased if not on the plan (e.g. dessert for everyone at every meal??).

Maggie

 

[blondietink]

Sadly, I have cancelled my ADR's for next month at Akershus and CP. We are all adults and for the price of both those meals, I can buy enough groceries to cook in our villa for 11 days. We'll only keep our ADR at Le Cellier for lunch.Plus a couple of counter service at Flame Tree Barbeque.Publix will get our money instead. The only way we will be able to afford buffets at WDW anymore will be either during Free Dining promotions or if we win the lottery.

 

[Tiger926]

We agree about the prices too. For us, it's ok to miss character meals, as we have done them all a million times each, but it's still sad, as our baby boy is only 3.5 years old, and he is getting shafted as compared to his older sister, but we can't justify the prices anymore.

We used to pay around $28.00 for a character dinner, and now they are close to $50.00 for worse food and subpar service. No thanks!

We had good TS meals for lunch last week, and all 4 of us ate (kids are between 3-9) with beverages of juice or milkshakes and 4 entrees for on average $60.00 as we have TIW card.

Tiger

 

[d-r]

I know what you mean, it does suck for the younger kids. We'll still put in a character meal, but honestly I think we do less of them. Frankly the character interaction hasn't been stellar. If we do one or two a week that is plenty enough for me.

 

[Tiger926]

I know what you mean, it does suck for the younger kids. We'll still put in a character meal, but honestly I think we do less of them. Frankly the character interaction hasn't been stellar. If we do one or two a week that is plenty enough for me.

This is the first trip ever that we did no character meals, and the kids didn't even miss it. So, you never know, your kids might not even mind. My kids were addicted to them, and it was not uncommon for us to do the same character meal 2x in a 2 week trip, but not anymore. We've gone from doing them all to doing nothing, and we all survived just fine! Hubby and I are sick to our stomachs with how many thousands of dollars we have spent on character meals over the last 7 years. Oy!

We've done them all many times over, and through the years, we have seen many changes, most of which is crazy high prices, subpar service, low quality food and quick character interactions.

Tiger

 

[Colleen27]

I know what you mean, it does suck for the younger kids. We'll still put in a character meal, but honestly I think we do less of them. Frankly the character interaction hasn't been stellar. If we do one or two a week that is plenty enough for me.

We did two this last trip - Tusker House and CRT - and the character interaction was rushed and cursory at best. The characters in the parks were much better, friendlier, more expressive, and not in so much of a hurry to get to the next family. We're usually on a dining plan so the cost isn't really a factor, but those character meals weren't worth settling for less than stellar food just for the characters.

I'm not planning any character meals for the next trip (except maybe Mickeys BBQ if we stay at the Fort) and I don't think any of us will miss them; we'll plan our meals for places where the food sounds good and see the characters in the parks.

 

[TDC Nala]

I don't do buffets. The price of Disney buffets has far outstripped the quality. But then I have no interest in character meals at all.

I can still do very well pricewise without having to resort to the dining plan. I used to do the dining plan, but I like having the option to order exactly what I want to order (or not order) much better, so I have a TIW membership that gets a good workout.

 

[MelissathePooh]

I don't do buffets. The price of Disney buffets has far outstripped the quality. But then I have no interest in character meals at all.

I can still do very well pricewise without having to resort to the dining plan. I used to do the dining plan, but I like having the option to order exactly what I want to order (or not order) much better, so I have a TIW membership that gets a good workout.

Oh I totally agree. If I can ever get my kids on board to skip the character meals I'll be kicking DDP to the curb. As it is now we don't do it every trip, but every trip we spend an awful amount of time evaluating the costs. Now that DVC has the flexible option of just adding the plan for the nights you want it, I can see it being a good option for particular instances.

 

[RangerPooh]

We agree about the prices too. For us, it's ok to miss character meals, as we have done them all a million times each, but it's still sad, as our baby boy is only 3.5 years old, and he is getting shafted as compared to his older sister, but we can't justify the prices anymore.

We used to pay around $28.00 for a character dinner, and now they are close to $50.00 for worse food and subpar service. No thanks!

This is how we feel too. Our DDs were spoiled with character meals up until about a year or so ago. It was then that we had had enough of the price increases and limited it to 1 or 2 during our trip. Sadly our DSs will not have as many of these experiences as they get older because I don't want to pay adult prices for a picky 10yo just so the boys can see characters. Sorry if that sounds harsh. Thankfully the DSs are both under 2 and are free. So there will still be some pictures...

The price increases are crazy in general! DH and I commented on this back in December when we went to DL. We use to have breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen for ~$21pp and at Storytellers for ~$18 with the AAA discount. Not anymore.

 

[GetGlowing]

Anyone have recent prices for these meals?

 

[jenseib]

Anyone have recent prices for these meals?

I have a link somewhere, but I don't know where off hand, but I beleive 2012 went up and some of the plans have changed around a bit. Only 1 snack for QS now and a mug is now included in regular dining.