Will my special-needs daughter be charged?

[batt01]

We are planning our trip this Feb.

We are a family of five (three kids). Our youngest daughter, age 3, is autistic. Because of this, her diet is exteremely limited. At any one time she will only drink rice milk from a bottle and a few assorted snacks such as goldfish and pretzles. Thus, at meal time I will need to bring these "snacks" for her.

So...If I make a PS for a party of 5, is my daughter going to be included in the final bill eventhough she hasn't eaten a thing off the menu/buffet?

How do I handle this?

Thanks.

P.S. If she went ahead and tried a new food from any restaurant I would gladly pay! Believe me, I would pay 1 million Disney Dollars if she even took a bite of a piece of meat, fruit or vegetable!!!

 

[Familymoon]

I would imagine that if you specified that you will have a special needs child dining with you when you make your PS, you could explain that she will not be eating and ask that they not charge for her.

They are legally required to accomodate her and you in this type of situation.

 

[CarolA]

Disney has been known to charge a $5 charge for people at character meals who are not dining. However, I think that they will accomodate you just because it is Disney. I think that is just to keep a family of 5 from only ordering one meal. (Some people abuse things just to make it rough on the rest of us!) To be honest I am not sure this falls under the ADD act. Disney has to make the meal accessible.

If it is a menu resturant you will probably not even have to mention it. If you don't order a meal then you are not charged and if your daughter did eat some of your food that would not be an extra charge. Disney splits meals all the time.

 

[danny1649]

I can't say for sure but I don't think you would have to pay for DD if she was not eating.It would shake my love of Disney some if thet did.Just let your server know situation.Have a magical and safe trip.

 

[DJBounce]

I have an 8yo DD who has CP and cannot swallow anything thicker than her Pediasure or it will aspirate into her lungs. We have taken her to WDW twice, and both times, we were charged a $5 Entertainment fee for each character meal we went to. Although she did not eat, she did get her share of Character interaction. To handle this, you just inform the rep on the phone when you make the Priority Seatings of the situation, as well as the CM who checks you in to the restaurant you will be going to. For any meals that you go to, including buffets, that do not have any characters, just tell your server of the situation, and you should not be charged at all. I've never had a problem with being inadvertantly charged. Good luck and have fun!!

 

[CoolDisneyCat]

MY Dniece is a special needs teenager. Being autistic is only one of her challenges. I have dined out with her many times. She eats cheese cut into bite size squares and applesause. Sometimes she will eat some pasta or chicken fingers, but only if she is having a good day. She drinks alot of Pediasure from a sipercup.

I have never seen a restaurant be uncooperative with our family. Sometimes a waitperson will stare a bit at a teenager eating cheese cubes from a baggie and using a sipercup.

Have you read anything on the disAbilites forum here on Disboards? Lots of folks there have special needs kids.

We wish we could take her to WDW. But we know she would not get anything out of it at all and the crowds and noise would just not be a good thing. Good for you for making this trip! I hope you have a wonderful time.

 

[s&k'smom]

Hi, we were at WDW last Oct. 2003 and were never charged for son who is autistic. We did pay for him at Chef Mickey's charector dinner but I didn't realize to tell them but I know at Cape May they charged us and when I explained the situation that he didn't eat they took it right off and were very, very nice about it. I know what you mean about the not eating. I would buy dinner for everyone at the restaurant if I thought he would eat a plateful of food from a buffett. As a matter of fact we always brought food for him when we went to a restaurant and no one said anything. One thing you may want to do is send a package of "snacks" before your trip. We did and it worked out great. There are some past threads on package sending.

 

[patsal]

You originally posted that your DD is 3. At disney children age 3 and under do not pay for character meals or buffetts. If you are eating at a regular restaurant, they will not charge you unless you order something for her ( which you won't be!). Let the Cm you book your PS's through know the situation as well, but I'm almost positive they will not charge you for a 3 or under! Have a great vacation.

 

[beattyfamily]

Originally posted by patsal
You originally posted that your DD is 3. At disney children age 3 and under do not pay for character meals or buffetts. If you are eating at a regular restaurant, they will not charge you unless you order something for her ( which you won't be!). Let the Cm you book your PS's through know the situation as well, but I'm almost positive they will not charge you for a 3 or under! Have a great vacation.

Ages 3 to 11 are child rate and then 12 and over are adult rate.

If your child is 2 or under she will not be charged.

If there are no characters, then no charge, but if there are characters, then you will be charged $5 entertainment fee which seems reasonable to me.

 

[Wade Shrader]

I would definitely suggest you head to our disABILITIES board. I have 2 special needs children, and that board is such a blessing to me and my wife.

You will get TONS of great INFO from other parents in similar situations, as well as some fellowship with parents who "know where you're coming from."

Welcome!

Wade