Every week I am going to do a Friday Five list. These will be various lists of Top Five things to do around Walt Disney World and in the future Disneyland and Disney Cruises.
In keeping with our dining theme this week, I have a list of the Top Five Character Meals at Walt Disney World. These meals all require one Table Service Credit, with the exception of Cinderella's Royal Table which requires two credits. If you are not on the Disney Dining Plan, out of pocket prices are also posted.
Top Five Character Meals at Walt Disney World
- Cinderella's Royal Table at Cinderella's Castle, Magic Kingdom
- Cinderella awaits you in the lobby of her castle for a free photo before you head upstairs to enjoy dinner with four other princesses. The photo session includes one 6 x8 and four 4 x 6 photos of Cinderella with your party and one 6 x 8 print of Cinderella's Castle. This photo is free with the meal and is later delivered to your table.
- Once upstairs you will enjoy a family style all you care to enjoy meal as four other princesses will walk by your table for autographs and photos. We have met Jasmine, Aurora, Belle, Snow White, and Ariel (as a princess).
- Your young princesses and knights will also receive a special gift from Cinderella and enjoy a special magical moment as the entire restaurant makes a wish together.
- This dining experience is two (2) table service credits, so for many it is worth it to pay out of pocket even if you are on the dining plan. Also, it is important to note the Cinderella's Royal Table is the only Disney Table Service meal that includes gratuities.
- Breakfast: 8:00am - 11:15am
Adults $44.80
Children 3-9 $29.86
Price includes tax and gratuity
- Lunch
Noon to 3 p.m. Daily
Adults $48.54
Children 3-9 $31.11
Price includes tax and gratuity
- Dinner
Adults $54.76
Children 3-9 $33.60
Price includes tax and gratuity
- Chef Mickey's at the Contemporary Resort
- Here you can meet the Mickey & friends while sitting in a restaurant that has the Walt Disney World Monorail drive through it.
- At the entrance there is an optional photo taken with a Chef Mickey's signature plate. This photo is not included with the meal and the photographers will bring it to your table for you to purchase. We have never purchased these as we have found them quite pricey. If I recall, the 8 x 10 photo is about $32.00 or so.
- This restaurant is not open for lunch and take one (1) Table Service credit.
- Breakfast
Served Daily 7:00 Until 11:20 a.m.
Featuirng Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Chip and Dale
$26.62 for Adults, $13.99 for Children 3-9
- Dinner
5:00 pm to 9:30 pm
Featuring Mickey, Goofy, Pluto, Donald and Minnie
BUFFET PRICE : $34.07 FOR ADULTS
$17.03 FOR CHILDREN 3-9
Seasonal Pricing May Apply During Specific Times of the Year ($38.33 Adults - $19.16 Child)
- Tuskerhouse, Animal Kingdom
- Only breakfast is a Character meal, called Donald's Safari Breakfast. This is a family favorite as Donald, Daisy, Mickey, and Goofy pass your table in their Safari gear.
- Buffet style with plenty of options for all ages and tastes. This breakfast is one (1) table service credit.
- 8:00am - 10:30am
COST: $24.49 (10+) and $10.99 (3-9)
- O'hana, Polynesian Resort
- Only Breakfast is a character meal, called Lilo & Stitch's Best Friends Breakfast with Mickey, Pluto, Lilo and Stitch. This is the only character meal where you can meat Lilo and Stitch.
- Family Style all you care to enjoy serving both American and Polynesian breakfast foods. This breakfast is one (1) Table Service credit.
- Breakfast 7:30 - 11:00 a.m.
Adults $20.99 Children 3-9 $11.99 Under 3 Free
- 1900 Park Fare, Grand Floridian
- Both breakfast and dinner are served and are two different character experiences.
- Supercalifragilistic Breakfast is a buffet style meal from 8:00am - 11:30am with Mary Poppins, Alice and the Mad Hatter. We have also met Pooh & Tigger here.
Cost: Adults $22.36 - Children $12.77 plus tax and gratuity.
Non-alcoholic, non-specialty beverages ARE included in the price.
- Cinderella's Happily Ever After Dinner is also a buffet style meal from 4:30pm to 8:30 pm/
Regulars include Cinderella, Prince Charming, Lady Tremaine,
Anastasia and Drizella
COST: Adults $35.99 Children $17.99 plus tax and gratuity extra
Non-Alcoholic, non-specialty beverages INCLUDED in the price
Honorable Mentions
(because there are more than just five great character meals!)
- Crystal Palace Breakfast with Pooh and friends
- Les Chefs De France lunch where Remy from Ratatouille makes a very special appearance.
Well, there is the first edition of Friday Five. Hope this helps to make those dining reservations a little easier! More on all of the meals will be coming in future posts.
~~Happy Planning!!~~
Did I mention there was over 100 restaurants to try in Walt Disney World?? And right now with the Free Dining Promotion available, there is no better time to start thinking about where you want to eat and what you want to eat.
Do you want to eat in Cinderella's Castle at Cinderella's Royal Table? Or how about at Chef Mickeys where Mickey, Minnie, Pluto, Donald and Goofy will join you as the Monorail drives by your table?
Some brief definitions and explanations:
- Table Service - a sit down meal where you are served by wait staff and enjoy Buffets, All you Care to Enjoy or A La Carte meals at a restaurant that generally requires a reservation.
- Quick Service - a cafeteria/fast food style meal where you are served quickly and seat yourself
- Character Meals - A Table Service meal that includes characters stopping by your table for photos and autographs.
- Snack - a small item such as a cookie, water, popcorn, etc that is purchased separate from a meal
For us, we always start with the Disney Dining Plan, and go from there. There are several options for the Disney Dining Plan based on your needs.
Magic Your Way Package Plus Disney Dining
This popular option includes the following:
- One (1) Table Service Credit
- One (1) Quick Service Credit
- One (1) Snack Credit
- Adults (Ages 10+) : $60.04 per day
- Children: (Ages 3-9): $19.23 per day
Magic Your Way Package Plus Quick Serve Dining
This option includes:
- Two (2) Quick Service Credits
- One (1) Snack Credit
- One (1) Resort Refillable Mug
- Adults (Ages 10+) : $41.99 per day
- Children: (Ages 3-9): $ 16.03 per day
Magic Your Way Package Plus Deluxe Dining
This very filling option:
- Three (3) Meals - Table Service or Quick Service Credit
- Two (2) Snacks
- One (1) Resort Refillable Mug
- Adults (Ages 10+) : $109.53 per day
- Children: (Ages 3-9): $29.86 per day
All of the above are per person per night (*exception, only 1 refillable mug per guest). So, a family of four staying for 10 nights, would have 40 Snack credits on the basic Disney Dining Plan. All of these credits are linked to your Magic Band which also acts as your room key and park tickets (for those wanting even more convenience, you can also link your credit card to your Magic Band and not have to card cash. More on this in a future post). As you order meals, the cast member will ask you to scan your Magic Band and your receipt will reflect your remaining balance of credits.
Our family loves the basic Disney Dining Plan with one Table Service, one Quick Service and one Snack per person per night.. Now, you may be thinking that this is short one meal per day. But, from our experience, this is more than enough food for the average family!! The portions at the Quick Service restaurants are HUGE! For example: one option at Cosmic Rays in Magic Kingdom is a half chicken, rack of ribs and fries! If that is your lunch, sharing with a family member is very doable and both parties will have plenty to eat. Another thing to keep in mind is that many of the Table Service meals are Buffet style or All You Care to Enjoy Family style meals, meaning, the food keeps coming until you are full!
What do you get for FREE DINING?
As with past years, when staying at a Moderate or Deluxe resort, you will get the Basic Disney Dining Plan for FREE with this FREE Dining Promotion. If you are staying at a Value resort you will get the Disney Quick Serve Dining Plan. However, you are able to upgrade to any other plan and are only required to pay the difference per person per night.
For example: one adult staying 10 nights at the Values would get the Quick Serve Dining for Free, but to upgrade to the Disney Dining Plan, it would only cost them $18.05 per day. Eating for a total of $18.05 per day is a STEAL in Disney!! Keep in mind, to enjoy those buffet and character meals, you are going to need Table Service credits (unless you choose to pay out of pocket on the Quick Serve Plan). *It is important to note that Table Service credits do not include tips, and for groups of 6 or more and 18% gratuity is automatically applied.
Disney has a great PDF that runs down their dining plan and the various restaurant options which can be found here. We printed this off and began selecting our restaurant choices from there. All Table Service and Character meals require an Advanced Dining Reservation (ADR) which can be made by phone or online up to 180 days (yes that is six months!) in advance. It you want the castle, you are going to want to reserve it early!! See here for a 180 day calculator. And for Disney online Advanced Dining Reservations please see here or go to www.disney.com.
*Updated September 9, 2014 to reflect 2015 Dining Plan prices and details.
~~Happy Planning!!~~
It's here! It's here!! The promotion we wait for every year!! FREE DINING IS BACK!!!
This promotion has saved our family up to $950.00 for a 10 night stay! The more travellers, the more you save!! And, you do not need to worry about buying food!! WOW!!!
Here is the information from the Walt Disney World website:
Introducing the New Memories Vacation Package
and for a limited time, enjoy it with a free dining plan!
For a limited time, get a FREE dining plan when you buy the New Memories Vacation Package for 5-nights/6-days at select Disney Resort hotels for arrivals most nights between August 28 and September 24, 2011. This new package includes room, theme park tickets and a 20-page Disney's PhotoPass® Photo Book to preserve and share your family memories.
Free Disney Dining Plan
Book a stay at select Disney Moderate, Disney Deluxe or Disney Deluxe Villa Resort hotels and receive a free Disney Dining Plan!
For example, purchase a 5-night/6-day Memories Vacation Package at a select Disney Moderate Resort for a family of 4 for arrivals most nights August 28 to September 24, 2011 for a total package price of US$2,056.
That's like paying just US$86 per person per day in a standard room!
Disney Dining Plan: Choose meals and snacks at over 100 select Walt Disney World restaurants, including some with Character Dining. Each day during your package stay, each person over 3 years of age will receive:
1 Table-Service Meal
1 Quick-Service Meal
1 Snack
OR
Free Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan
Stay at a Disney Value Resort and receive a free Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan!
For example, purchase a 5-night/6-day Memories Vacation Package at a select Disney Value Resort for a family of 4 for arrivals most nights August 28 to September 24, 2011 for a total package price of US$1,614.
That's like paying just US$67 per person per day in a standard room!
Disney Quick-Service Dining Plan: Choose Quick-Service meals and snacks at over 50 select Walt Disney World restaurants. Each day during your package stay, each person over 3 years of age will receive:
2 Quick-Service Meals
2 Snacks
One Resort Refillable Drink Mug (refillable only at your Walt Disney World Resort Hotel)
All of this information can be found here.
In the next couple of days, I will take some time to post information about the Dining Plan, and the benefits of upgrading from the Quick Serve Dining Plan to the Regular Disney Dining Plan.
~~Happy Planning!~~
