Turning 3 and dining

[LauraL]

During our next vacation our daughter will be turning 3 on the last day of our trip. I know that dining at buffets is free for children under 3 and free at CRT b'fast. I made all of the ADR saying that she was 2 and that it was her 3rd birthday dining. Will I be charged for her meal since she is turning 3 that day? Or do they not charge you?

 

[WantToGoNow]

I’m curious to know the answer as well. My dd will turn 3 on our last full day. We planned Chef Mickey’s for her for her birthday dinner. We will be on the dining plan – since she will be 2 for our entire vacation except the last day and a half, we won’t be buying the dining plan for her.

 

[pbharris4]

I’m curious to know the answer as well. My dd will turn 3 on our last full day. We planned Chef Mickey’s for her for her birthday dinner. We will be on the dining plan – since she will be 2 for our entire vacation except the last day and a half, we won’t be buying the dining plan for her.

Good question! If you are doing the dining plan and she is 2 for most of the trip then I wouldn't buy her the dining plan either. They will eat for for free 99% of the time.

As far as the birthday dinner and turning 3 that day and whether they will charge or not..my guess would be no, but it is a possibility. My DD will turn 3 the day before we get there so we have to buy her the DP.

 

[lovinpoohbear]

I have a question, my ds will turn 2 at the time of our trip. i know he will eat free at buffets and such but is it possible to order the dining plan for him? he is a big eater and it will be cheaper to have the dining plan for him.......anyone know?

 

[1princessesmom]

WOW! I've been wondering the same thing. We leave next week for our trip to WDW and DS will turn 3 on our last day. We have ADR and a birthday cake at Garden Grill for his birthday and I've been wondering if we will be charged for him.

 

[beth_cam]

Lovin pooh bear - I think a CM had told someone on here that to add the child to the dining you would have to call the child 3 and buy a ticket as well for the child. Then you can just save the ticket for later.

 

[GeorgiaAristocat]

Someone more experienced can correct me if I am wrong, but I thought the rule on dining was the same as for tickets - if they TURN 3 while on the trip, then no charge, as long as they were 2 when the trip started. Don't ask me where to find the Disney rule - this is just what I remember from when I was contemplating planning a trip which was to include my daughter's 3rd birthday. You might also want to ask this question over on the Family board - I'm sure someone there has personal experience. My guess is that you WON'T be charged.

I'd be interested to hear the answer from someone with experience, though.

 

[beattyfamily]

Once your child turns 3 then they will be charged for food. It is not the same as when you buy a ticket for the parks when they are age 2 and it applies to the whole trip.

Especially if you are celebrating their 3rd birthday. You will definitely get charged.

 

[Cheshire Figment]

I just checked on the Cast Portal and read the official rules both for the Dining Package as well as dining in general. There is nothing specifically to cover a child who turn three during the trip.

It appears to me that you would not have to put the child on the package, but once the child turns three would have to pay at least at the buffet restaurants. IMO just as a child under three has to pay if something is ordered off the menu, if the child eats from a parent's plate there would still not be a charge.

This is not to say that the server or manager at the restaurant would or would not waive the charge.

 

[donnajon]

I thought the rule was if you checked in at age 2, you were considered 2 the whole trip. I know my DD celebrated her 3rd birthday there and on her birthday - they knew she had just turned 3 but we were not charged for that entire trip because we checked in at age 2.

 

[smiller]

We'll be celebrating my niece's 3rd birthday about halfway through our trip with a breakfast at Chef Mickey's. The rest of us will be on the DDP, so we were just going to mention the birthday and see if they charge us for that one meal, not worrying about paying for her during the rest of our trip.

 

[LauraL]

Thanks for all of the replies. We'll have to find out what they do. It would make sense that they start charging us at her birthday buffet meals...we'll see!

 

[jessica52877]

My son had just turned 3 before we went to disney, we ate at Chef Mickey's and they didn't seem to really care, when he turned 3, just that he was three. 2 slices of pizza was $13. Of course I assumed that going into it, my mother was the one asking if they do it different for say 3 and 4 years olds versus others. But not the case of course.