Options for Character meals for 12 yr old !

dabsjad

First Time Cruiser
Joined
Dec 7, 2004
Messages
129
I am currently planning a Disney trip for my sis-in-law, her DH and their 12 year old daughter for early May(5 nights).
I needed some advice on what character meals/breakfasts are apt for a 12 year old girl. I know there is a lot of princess stuff going on at Disney
so I want to see if we can book that special something for our neice. How can I find out if there is any Dining plan special going on then ??
Tia
Ash
 
At 12 your neice may feel that the princesses are a little young. I'm guessing you'll have to ask her to find out what her thoughts are on that, because some 12yos would still love a princess meal. Maybe she would be happier with the classic Disney characters? My 13yo son still says his favourite character meal is Breakfastasaurus at Animal Kingdom with Mickey, Goofy, and pals. My 10yo daughter still likes the princess meals, but the next few years could make a big difference.

Cheers,
 
My DD is 12 and she is looking forward to Ohana with Stitch and friends. Of course we can't go to DW without going to Chef Mickey's too. I asked her if she wanted to have breakfast with the princesses and she said no thanks. That didn't impress her.
 
12 is a tricky age. My guess is that the princesses would not be a hit at this age. She might be "back into" pooh stage and find them cute or not. If she is a girly girl she might like the afternoon tea at the GF of if not she might like the RFC. Might also really like one of the countries at Epcot.
 

I have a 12 year old daughter, and I found that once we hot the parks, she was no longer the "moody preteen" she is at home. She truely loved every minute of meeting characters in the park. She got autographs and everything! We did the Liberty Tree character dinner and the Crysatl Palace breakfast (character) and both my daughter and 10 year old son loved the iteraction and the food!

The "face" characters might be a little harder for the pre-teen crowd to feel comfortable with, as it's not quite as easy to forget reality and not see a "real" person.
 
We took our family trip this past October. All 3 kids, dd3, dss8, and dsd14. We did alot of character meals (love free dining)!. Anyhow, my 14 year old loved the breakfast at the castle and Chef Mickey's the best.
 
We all went this past October. DS 17's fave character meal was at Crystal Palace with Pooh and Friends. He also liked 1900 Park Faire with Mad Hatter -Mad Hatter teased him and they goofed around it was funny.
 
We will be there the same time as your sis-in-law & her family. I have a DD12 & she loves all of the character meals. She's been to more than 10 of them this year.

Her favorite is dinner at 1900 Park Fare in The Grand Floridian. She's in love with Prince Chraming. She is always beaming in the photos with him!!!

Chef Mickey's is her 2nd favorite place for dinner.

She also loves to get character autographs in all of the parks & is into pin-trading. Your niece (is she your niece) might love all that too.
 
I agree with the chef mickey's. it is a must if you are at disney at any age. there use to be a villan character meal at 1900 park fare; i have never been but other have said it was great fun for older kids.
 
My 12 yo. DS is totally and completely into Pooh. We had to change our plans to go to WDW and switch to DL and the only thing that upset him? Not being able to go to Pooh meal!
My DS10 is not "into" Disney at all. He goes 'cause we go. A few years back, he was really into Donald, but he wasn't at any of the meals. Now, he's into what he considers the "anti-disney", which is the villians. He'd LOVE a villains meal. Or a Pirate's meal.
Girls are a bit weirder. 12 is such a tough age, too. I'd probably go more for the Pooh characters and the funnier or classical ones. She might have a more developed taste (I know my DS12 does, he eats kid sized portions still, but wants adult tastes....like omlettes and bacon cheeseburgers), in which case, focus more on the foods.
Honestly, what I would do is plan some character meals, some sit down meals that aren't characters, like the Japanese steakhouse, maybe the German pavillion, 50's diner, Mama Mia's etc. For the character meals, create a list of the ones you'd be interested in, and then send her the list and ask her to pick 2 or 3 or whatever, and then fit them in. That way you'll get an idea of the characters she'd enjoy and she won't be 'insulted' by your choices.
My kids are weird, when we're in the middle of our trip and toward the end of our trip they want to "go somewhere and be served". Maybe front end the buffets? At 12y.o.'s age, I wouldn't focus my time on breakfast, unless you know she's an early riser or that she LOVES big breakfasts. My DS's both would be happier sleeping in and not having to "sit through" breakfast. And, if we didn't sleep in, they're more inclined to want to go on the bigger rides that would encourage us to get to the parks right away in the morning.
Best of luck!
 
Here's a list of the different character meals:
http://www.allearsnet.com/din/cb.htm
and here: http://www.wdwinfo.com/Just_for_kids/character_dining.cfm

We took our twin nieces to WDW a few years ago and I agree this age is tricky. They weren't as easily impressed by the "magic" of WDW however they did really enjoy their time there and once we'd been there a couple of days they really got into it. They seemed to enjoy the classic characters the most and we did do the Breakfast with Pooh and friends which they loved.

I don't know if there is a surefire way to find out if there's anything special going on in May with the Dining Plan...I assume you're talking about free dining like they did in September? One way to find out about special deals is to sign up for the free Mousesavers newsletter (Mousesavers.com ) or check the Dreamsunlimited site (here) as they always list specials that are happening also. That is actually who we booked our Free Dining trip in September through and I would recommend them to anyone. They gave us great customer service.

Hth!
 
chef mickey's or cape may cafe. we took my 12 year old neice to those and she loved it. the princess breakfasts (no way) do not do those.
 
I'm 12-just turned 12) and we're going to 1900 park fare...I'm very down to earth and like stuff that some kids my age would repel from. My brother is dressing up as peter pan so I'm going as Wendy-also for the family magic tour. 1900 park fare sounds good!
 
My 11yo DS liked Ohana's best... but for a girl.. .I would think at her age she may like 1900 for Cinderella's gala feast... to see prince charming
 
Coool..Thanks a lot for all your responses !!!! I think I am more excited about this trip even though I dont get to go. This planningw will come in handy when we go next December with our 5 & 3 yr old boys.
Thanks so much!
Ash
 
We have dined at many of the character meals. I think she would enjoy The Garden Grill at EPCOT. The meal is family style with basic, good tasting food. The characters are Chip, Dale, Pluto and Mickey. The setting is not all mushy, gushy, little kiddish. The restaurant slowly turns and you can see different settings of the Living with the Land ride. More of a pre-teen age setting.
 




New Posts









Receive up to $1,000 in Onboard Credit and a Gift Basket!
That’s right — when you book your Disney Cruise with Dreams Unlimited Travel, you’ll receive incredible shipboard credits to spend during your vacation!
CLICK HERE






DIS Facebook DIS youtube DIS Instagram DIS Pinterest DIS Tiktok DIS Twitter DIS Bluesky

Back
Top Bottom