How many sit down meals do you do a day at Disney with smaller kids

[jennylyn_b]

We do on Ts a day for dinner. We have taken our dd at 12.5 months, 18 months and two yrs old and when we go in May she will be 2.5 yrs old and we are doing the same thing; a dinner ADR every night. We schedule them for about thirty minutes before our usual dinner time at home. It's works well for us and she loves all the great food!

 

[Missy13d69]

Hi Kristian! I guess you guys must have decided not to go in May?

We haven't been yet (It's getting close!) But we have one TS a day planned. Some are lunches and some are dinners, we wanted to try a mix to see what was abetter fit for us. We have one breakfast TS, but it's on one of our "down days" when we won't be in the parks. Every other day I'll be preparing breakfast at our villa. We're using the TS meals as a rest time.

 

[Kristian]

Hey Missy!!! No, we decided not to go in May because we needed to do some home repairs and such. After much debate, we've decided on September again. I didn't want to do September because dd was starting preschool, but it happened that way and we can't wait to go. We like TS lunches to kind of beat the heat a bit. I know you will enjoy your trip so much. I am excited for you!!!! Have a great time.

 

[TwinkleKS]

In November when the kids were 4,4, and 2 we did two TS a day. Usually a character buffet in the morning and a sit down supper towards the end of the day. We are going back in May and planning on one TS per day (maybe two on a couple of days). Even at the "slower" places, Disney TS seems to be a lot quicker than your average place at home. They are wanting to turn over those tables My kids are not big eaters, and neither am I, but I just enjoy most of the TS meals more than the QS places, so that is what we tend to go with.

We buy the DDP for convenience, not for money. I am guessing if we didn't purchase it ahead of time we could make it on two adult meals and one kids meal, with two of the kids splitting and me splitting with the other one.

 

[MSSANDRA]

We have always done dinner almost every night with a few character breakfasts thrown in. Been doing the DDP (regular) since it was introduced. Before that, we still ate dinner every night, with a few breakfast thrown in. Next trip we are going to do the Deluxe plan. We enjoy eating places and we have enough trips under our belt that there is no need to rush. DS is 6 but depending on timing may be 7 before we go. We will, most days,5 do a late breakfast/brunch meal and then a signature for dinner most days. If we choose somewhere that is not signature, we may do a light CS breakfast those days. We will not sit three meals, but we know our DS and he will be fine with two though the lunch will be either Character or fun place most days.

 

[Whitaker24]

We took disney two years in a row back to back. Do they not offer the free dining every year in slow season? Also which hotel has a full kitchen?

 

[samacita]

We are going to try 1 TS per day. I don't want to be tied to more than 1 ADR each day. We really enjoy sit down restaurants and find them more relaxing than CS places outside the World. With young kids, we find it so much easier to just sit and enjoy while someone else brings the food, takes care of clean up, etc. It does take longer, but we happen to prefer a leisurely meal, so TS should work well for us.

 

[diamondpixienc]

1 TS or sit deal meal each evening for dinner and we try to eat at or around the same time we do at home. ;0)

 

[bonhorst]

Hi there. I am a mom of 4, on a tight budget, trying to plan meals in Disneyland park. We like to spend most time on the rides and still have small kids (youngest is 5), so what would you recommend to save on dining for those that frequent Disneyland all the time? Thanks for helping a newbie out!

We're most concerned with cost at feeding our family in the Disney parks... it can get to be so expensive. Typically we plan one meal in the park after a big breakfast at the hotel. How do you handle it though, to keep costs down? Do you take anything with? Are there better snacks in the park that can hold us for the day??

Can you even manage to sneak snacks in? Just wondering... thanks for any help or advice!

 

[Kristian]

Hi there. I am a mom of 4, on a tight budget, trying to plan meals in Disneyland park. We like to spend most time on the rides and still have small kids (youngest is 5), so what would you recommend to save on dining for those that frequent Disneyland all the time? Thanks for helping a newbie out!

We're most concerned with cost at feeding our family in the Disney parks... it can get to be so expensive. Typically we plan one meal in the park after a big breakfast at the hotel. How do you handle it though, to keep costs down? Do you take anything with? Are there better snacks in the park that can hold us for the day??

Can you even manage to sneak snacks in? Just wondering... thanks for any help or advice!

Welcome to the boards!!!

I know how expensive Disney can be as far as food goes...especially when your on a budget. This is one reason that were not doing the dining plan this year (unless free dining is offered).

We do take snacks into the parks with us. May people take them and it's fine, however we have never been to Disneyland Resort, but I think that it's the same policy...but I could be wrong .I have a cooler insert that slips easily into a tote bag or backpack and it holds roughly 4-6 drinks depending on size. I usually slip that into my dh's bag with our water bottles in it and a small freezer pack to keep it cool. Sometimes I Just slip a juice box or two in it and 2 bottles of water, depending on time and where were going . This helps save on snacks for most of the day and while we usually buy a few drinks, especially dole whip floats , it does help save to a degree. We aren't big snack people while we are in the parks. Well, let me rephrase that...we don't snack a lot because we go in September and it's usually so hot that we just don't feel like snacking much between meals. Once it cools down, I find that our dd and even I like snacking more. So I guess it just depends on the time of day, weather, etc.

We are not breakfast people hardly at all. Yogurt, fruit or cereal do the trick for us and sometimes I find that i'm just not even up for that. We like to do a light breakfast while were getting ready. I will eat my yogurt while doing my hair so that we can be at the bus stop for rope drop in the mornings...literally. We fuel up at lunch by doing most of our TS meals at lunchtime. It allows us an escape from the heat and then we usually go back to the room for a break and then head back to the parks in the evening. Sometimes we skip the break depending on the park and what time its closing. It might be better for you to plan on doing your meals in the park around dinner time and to do light fare for a snack since you eat big breakfasts, but that is only a suggestion.

I hope this helps. The most important thing is to just relax and do Disney the way that suits you and your family best. No one's suggestions or plans are going to work all the time for you, so you just have to go with the flow and kind of adjust things as you go. Have a wonderful time.

 

[jiminykrikkit]

We went in 2011 when my son had just turned 1. We had the deluxe dining plan and did two TS meals per day most days. Most of the time it was breakfast and dinner for TS credits, and lunch was a CS. Sometimes we did TS lunches if it worked out that the restaurant we wanted to try only had a table available at lunch. It worked out just fine that way. He would sleep in the stroller then so we didn't need to worry about going back to the resort for a nap.

We're going again in April and my son will be 2.5. We're doing the regular dining plan, so only one TS per day most days, and 2 TS meals on one day (I believe it's a breakfast and a dinner). We booked this kind of last minute so I just took what I could get after figuring going back to the resort midday for a nap/rest, which I know will be much needed this time.

 

[Suzanne74]

If Disney actually sat you at ADR time, I would book more. But because you can wait 5-60min from your ADR time, I choose to not book many. It takes a lot of our time waiting, sitting, getting check. My 3yr old has no patience for 2hrs of maybe 10min of her eating.

If we do a full park day, we eat breakfast in room, are there at rope drop and go back to the room for pool/poolside lunch (youngest naps with alternating parent) from 1-4pm. We all recharge. Then we do rides, a QS meal, more rides, evening activity at park and head home.

We do a TS Chef Mickey's on arrival day. We do a princess character meal somewhere inbetween and we try and do one or two more. That is it.

 

[Kristian]

If Disney actually sat you at ADR time, I would book more. But because you can wait 5-60min from your ADR time, I choose to not book many. It takes a lot of our time waiting, sitting, getting check. My 3yr old has no patience for 2hrs of maybe 10min of her eating.

If we do a full park day, we eat breakfast in room, are there at rope drop and go back to the room for pool/poolside lunch (youngest naps with alternating parent) from 1-4pm. We all recharge. Then we do rides, a QS meal, more rides, evening activity at park and head home.

We do a TS Chef Mickey's on arrival day. We do a princess character meal somewhere inbetween and we try and do one or two more. That is it.

Our Disney days are very similar to yours. We do a quick and easy breakfast in the room (yogurt, cereal, fruit) and then we head to whatever park we are visiting that day for rope drop. I usually book a ADR for lunch and I shoot for exactly noon or within that time frame. After lunch, if were doing a full day in the park, we'll head back to the resort for a nap or pool time, and then we'll refresh and head back out to the park (we don't do hoppers) for rides, fireworks and a QS meal. If we are at the AK, we don't take a break and continue in the park until were done. All of our days are usually full days in the park besides AK days, which is why we usually take a break.

I totally agree about making and liking more ADR's if things were better paced. We go in September and it is low crowd times, but we have run into instances where we have had to wait at least a half our for our ADR's. A half hour isn't bad compared to Disney wait times in the summer or busier months , however i'm not a fan of having to wait over 15 minutes on a reservation that I had to plan for and arrange 6 months in advance for. Not to mention the fact that after waiting forever, a TS meal can be a long process and I don't want to miss out on park time in the evening once it's cooled down a bit. But to each their own...this is just what we prefer and like.