Stuck on where to make ADR's!

[DisneyFan1003]

Ok..this has NEVER happened to us before, but we are totally stuck on where to make ADR's for our holiday trip. The 180 day mark is next week, so I'm trying to pull everything together. Our daughter will turn 2 right before we go, so I think that's where we're stuck. Do we load up on ADR's like normal and hope for the best, or do we lighten the load and be more flexible with CS options? We LOVE to eat at WDW, so it's hard not to make a lot of ADR's.

Suggestions on dining with a 2 year old??? :shrug:

 

[WDWmazprty]

Well, you cant go wrong with a princess character meal for a girl. Akershus, CRT, Park Fare will all be good. Or Crystal Palace or Chef Mickeys. :wave:

 

[bmarkelon]

My experience with Disney dining with little ones has taught me this...
~don't book breakfasts so early that you may have to wake them
~book earlier dinners, I like to stick to 5-5:30 PM
~we almost never do 3 table service meals in one day, it's overload and hard on parents to remain patient and enjoy your meals
~any character meal is always easier on everyone, the food is not as good but it is easier to relax during these meals as they are geared towards your little one
~definitely still throw a signature (if it's in the budget) in the mix, usually better earlier in the trip when your energy level is at the top...it's nice to still have a good quality meal for your enjoyment
~if your day is a little off, meltdowns/exhaustions kicking in, don't push to make that dinner....call and cancel and order in...you will be happy you did.

Hope this helps...enjoy!

 

[K&KMom]

I am a big fan of the flexibility of QS meals with little ones! It's tough racing to the other side of a park to be on time for your reservation when the munchkin wants to stay a little longer doing something else. That said, SOME ADRs are a great idea. I've done Akershus with my own girls, and that was fun, and the kids also really enjoyed eating at the Coral Reef - the aquarium is mesmerizing! I think a balance between the two is a great plan!

 

[coltow]

We never plan more than 1 meal a day. We generally only make ADRs for dinners. We go a little on the early side (or normal side for the kiddies) like 5:30. That way they would have had their afternoon break and be ready to go. We have done only a couple of breakfast with the kids they haven't done as well, because they are excited to get the day going. So we learned that if we wanna to breakfast it best to do a late one so we could have gotten in a few attractions 1st.

My kids aren't great breakfast eaters either so dinners to us make more sense. If your child normaly eats one meal better then the others make ADRs for that meal. Pay attention to your kids and try to eat meals around the same times at WDW that you do at home, that also helps

 

[wm49rs]

Well, you cant go wrong with a princess character meal for a girl. Akershus, CRT, Park Fare will all be good. Or Crystal Palace or Chef Mickeys. :wave:

I would agree, along with tossing character meals at Tusker House, or even Hollywood & Vine....

 

[SnowWhite71]

I have never taken a 2 yr. old, so I would agree to the other's advice and do what works best with your child's schedule. When I've planned trips I look at the EMH first, though if you are going over xmas they will all be open early and late. Once I know what parks we will be at on those specific days I build ADR's around that so we're not traveling all over the "world". For a 2 yr. old Crystal Palace character meal would be good, Chef Mickey's for sure, CRT or Akershus for princesses, San Angel Inn/Le Cellier/Ohana for adults. All the restaurants have so much ambience/fun you can't go wrong. I also think more than 1 sit-down is tough. The dining plan with 1 table/1 counter/1 snack has worked well for my family. This leaves room for two parks a day, nap/pool, and a nice sit-down meal.

 

[EvilQueen-T]

i think it really comes down to knowing your child. mine are grown now and i also now have a 7 year old granddaughter and we've certainly done disney a ton of times with each generation. when my daughter was little she was a creature of habit and if we didn't stick to her "normal" schedule we were toast, she was also not one to sit through a long meal so we did quick service when she was little. my son and especially my granddaughter did great with eating whenever, doing sit down meals and staying up past nap times/bed times. so i think making your plans around what works best with your 2 year olds needs is what will work out best for you. for us we're going at the end of this weekend for a quick trip and my 7 year old granddaughter has every plan to be there when the park opens through the end of emh at 3am and has been very vocal about where to make our adr's. every kids different.

 

[ThinkTink721]

With a 2 year old girl, I would suggest:
Chef Mickey's
CRT
1900 Park Fare
Crystal Palace
Donald's Safari
Princess Storybook

 

[disneygirl76]

Ok..this has NEVER happened to us before, but we are totally stuck on where to make ADR's for our holiday trip. The 180 day mark is next week, so I'm trying to pull everything together. Our daughter will turn 2 right before we go, so I think that's where we're stuck. Do we load up on ADR's like normal and hope for the best, or do we lighten the load and be more flexible with CS options? We LOVE to eat at WDW, so it's hard not to make a lot of ADR's.

Suggestions on dining with a 2 year old??? :shrug:

Well, I can't respond as a parent of a 2 year old as my DH and I are still solo in that department. However, I totally understand where you are coming from with lightening the load of ADR's to be more flexible. My DH and I are doing more counter service and splitting meals this time - although we do have the dining plan and have our fair share of ADR's. As for the 2 year old - you could split the ADR's between places you really love to eat and what will be entertaining to her. For example, a nice romantic meal at Les Chefs but the next night do a character breakfast at Chef Mickey.

 

[becanya]

We have gone with a 16 mo. old and a 2 year old. By the time she was two she was scared of characters...but by the fifth day of the trip she was over it. Opposed to much of the advice you have been given, in our experience, the sit down meals are much needed breaks in the AC that help us revive and survive the rest of the day. Instead of making the day more stressful they make it more doable. But my kids are generally good at restaurants. We have only had a few meltdowns where we had to pack up our food to go...when it happens we just roll with the punches and eat our yummy food in our room. :lol: I do agree with the previous poster who suggested early ressies...we do lunch at 11, and dinner before 6. Otherwise, you greatly increase the likelihood of a meltdown.

 

[DisneyFan1003]

Sorry for my lack of reply...out of town for the holiday!

Thanks to all of you for the suggestions....I'm finalizing plans now for Thursday's 180 day mark! We've decided to decrease our normal number of ADR's, but still make some for some structure and to help guarantee we we'll have a few times to sit down as a family and relax. At least if they don't work out, I can cancel!

Great advice on the meal times...that was one of the reasons I wanted to call on the first day possible so we could score prime times.

Planning two character meals (anyone ever done Crystal Palace for dinner? we've only done breakfast) - don't know how DD will handle the characters, so we'll tread lightly this time.

Thanks again!

 

[WDWmazprty]

Sorry for my lack of reply...out of town for the holiday!

Thanks to all of you for the suggestions....I'm finalizing plans now for Thursday's 180 day mark! We've decided to decrease our normal number of ADR's, but still make some for some structure and to help guarantee we we'll have a few times to sit down as a family and relax. At least if they don't work out, I can cancel!

Great advice on the meal times...that was one of the reasons I wanted to call on the first day possible so we could score prime times.

Planning two character meals (anyone ever done Crystal Palace for dinner? we've only done breakfast) - don't know how DD will handle the characters, so we'll tread lightly this time.

Thanks again!

Crystal Palace is great for dinner also! Characters are the same. You'll enjoy it. :wave:

 

[Penelope]

I also agree on the Chef Mickey recommendation!!!

Suggestions on where to eat with a toddler for lunch on our Animal Kingdom day? We do NOT want to eat at the Rainforest Cafe if at all possible as I fear she will be too capitvated by all of the "decor" :lol:

 

[Mukta]

Suggestions on where to eat with a toddler for lunch on our Animal Kingdom day? We do NOT want to eat at the Rainforest Cafe if at all possible as I fear she will be too capitvated by all of the "decor" :lol:

Pizzafari is the only Quick service place with Air conditioning if you are going during a warm time of year.
Flame Tree BBQ has the best QS food in the AK.

If you are looking for table service, check out the menus for Yak & Yeti and Tusker House and see which appeals to you more.