On
May 28, 2009
Andruletta from WI
Asked
Note: This answer was provided prior to the change to planDisney and may still contain references to Disney Parks Moms Panel.
Experiences, policies, pricing and other offerings are subject to change and may have changed since the date of this answer.
“
Tanya you are so awsome,thanks again! What do you think are times to have b,l,d when doing any character dinning and signnature dinning to avoid really big crowds.what are the snacks like?what's the best or quiet side of DMR to stay on?U R A SWEETHEART!THX”
Hi Adruletta!
Wow! You just made my day. I spent my morning cleaning up after two kids with stomach viruses (I know too much information, but we're moms right!!!) and I wasn't feeling very appreciated! Thanks so much for the feedback!
Now, back to your question. If you have advanced dining reservations, Disney does a darn good job of seating you on or close (sometimes even early!) to your scheduled time. Therefore, if you've taken our advice and set up your "ressies" you'll be in good shape. In general, as you can guess, eating at "off-peak times" helps with crowds. For breakfast really early (like 7:30 am early) and late (after 10) works well and the same is true for dinner. For lunch, I've found that late is better than early. More people with little kids tend o eat lunch at 11am, for example, rather than at 2pm. Honestly, as long as you have reservations, you'll be fine. Just remember to show up a few minutes before your reservation to check in.
My times work really well for counter service locations. At Pinocchio Haus (our favorite counter service at Magic Kingdom), for example, we've been able to snag a table overlooking the It's a Small World Ride very often by following my rules.
Finally, snacks vary from location to location. In general, items available to be "counted" as a snack are up to $4. Examples of what you can get include: a single scoop of popcorn (I swear Disney's is the best!), a hot pretzel, piece of fruit , bag of chips, bagel, ice cream bar, frozen lemonade, muffin, cookie, bowl of cereal and milk, etc.
Thanks again for making my day!
T.