Thanksgiving dinner at DL?

[Crazy4Disney72]

I'm kind of bummed right now...it's June 9, 2007, the day that for the last year and a half I've thought we would be starting a week at DL, but right now I'm not at DL, I'm home on the east coast. Over the past winter we decided to move and now our house will be ready in about a week. Because of the move and not knowing when our settlement would be, we decided to put off the long-anticipated DL trip. I've been with each of my children alone, but this would be all 5 of us together and DH has never been to DL so I was eager to share it with him.

Anyway, the kids will be off school the entire week of Thanksgiving and despite the crowds, we are considering going then. We've never seen a Disney park all decked out for the holidays so that would be an added bonus. I'm wondering about Thanksgiving dinner. Does anyone know if the DLR restaurants do a special menu for that day, a traditional turkey dinner? If so, when would they start taking PS reservations, would it still be the usual 60 days ahead of time? Can anyone recommend a restaurant that does an extra nice job on a major holiday like Thanksgiving?

Thanks DIS'ers!

 

[iceskatejen]

I don't know about other restaurants, but I ended up at DL on Thanksgiving last year and the Plaza Inn had a traditional turkey dinner (instead of the usual fried chicken). They don't take PS for lunch or dinner though.

 

[diznylnd]

I have been to DL on Thanksgiving and we ate at Goofy's Kitchen at the DL Hotel. I do not recall if they had turkey dinner, but we had a great time!

 

[RangerPooh]

For a few years we went to DL for Thanksgiving week. Each trip we had Thanksgivng dinner at Blue Bayou as they had a special Turkey Day menu. Ressies need to be made in advance but I don't recall how far.

 

[Crazy4Disney72]

Thanks for all the replies so far!

Another question....what is the weather typically like at DL around Thanksgiving? I've been twice the end of January and it was generally in the upper 60s to maybe about 70, which to us, coming from a Maryland winter, felt pretty warm, maybe not warm enough to swim, but pretty warm. I'm sure it is probably at least that warm, but I'm hoping it's typically a little warmer in late November than it is in late January!

 

[scooter15]

Several DL restaurants do have a special dinner in addition to the regular menu. You'd have to call them a month or so earlier to find out which ones will have it. In addition, there's the Thanksgiving buffet at DLH which is quite popular and has sold out in years past. You need to make a reservation at least a month before. Its expensive but worth it. I've done it twice and love it and its so much easier. There's also Thanksgiving dinner buffets at the restaurant in GCH and PP which is a little cheaper than DLH but not as grand. We had Thanksgiving dinner at GCH last year and it was really good but Disney restaurant reservations did screw up our reservation. The restaurant did accomodate us but I guess with three kids under the age of six looking at the manager, I'm sure he didn't want to spoil it for them. The restaurants in DTD also have something special and I believe you can call Disney Dining to make a reservation and they usually offer that once DLH is booked.

 

[mikayla73]

Thanks you just gave me a great idea! DH and I are moving away from our family in a few days to AZ. We usually do all the holiday stuff at our hose, but there won't be any family to have over on Thanksgiving Day this year. So we could go to DL for Thanksgiving dinner! We may get to come home for Christmas, but not both. So that is another option for us! Thanks again!

 

[DisneyDotty]

I'm also considering a trip to DL this Thanksgiving--wondering what to expect, crowd-wise?
And would anyone know of any deals for the Grand Californian for that time? Any websites I might check?
Thanks!
(Don't mean to hijack this thread--hoping the info will also benefit the OP!)

 

[RangerPooh]

Weather during Thanksgiving can vary. We have gone when it was warm shorts weather and freezing (ok, very cold) rain the entire week.

Crowds are heavy. Earlier in the week (Monday, Tuesday) are lighter than later in the week but don't expect empty parks. Thursday will be busy and Friday on will be like peak summer. We joke that on Black Friday the moms drop their familes off at the parks and don't pick them up until Monday .

Hotel deals...if you are an AP holder obviuously call for rates. Expedia has done the stay 3 get the 4th free promotion during that time frame but I don't know if it excludes nights or will be going then.

 

[JadeDarkstar]

im going a few days after thanksgiving