Hi, Sarah!
Congratulations on your first trip to Walt Disney World! How exciting!
You've made a great choice, too, in booking a
Disney Dining Plan. We love the value we get for our dining dollars as well as the ease of knowing that we've already paid for our meals, leaving little guesswork during our stay.
Regarding buffet locations throughout WDW, they are all you care to eat. This, too, means that you can sample a bit of everything that looks enticing, without having to worry about having ordered the wrong thing. It's all included!
Your choice of character meals is smart, too, in that you'll be able to get some great photos with many of the characters, getting their autographs, too, without having to stand in an additional line to do so. This will free up some time in your schedule to head to another attraction, rather than trying to get a photo with Mickey Mouse or Cinderella...you've already gotten them!
While there are certainly some truly fabulous restaurants in WDW which do not feature characters, only you can decide what is more important to your particular family. If in doubt, you might want to look at switching out one character meal in which you meet a character you'll have already seen in order to try something a little different. We also often schedule one character meal for one day, followed by a day with no character dining, etc.
You won't be disappointed in the offerings at the character meals, though...they are all deliciously unique.
In short, go with your instinct on this one. A first trip will feel so much more magical if you've met everyone you could meet during dining. It's like getting a bonus course at each meal!
Send more questions as you plan your first trip; we love to help!