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  • On Feb 21, 2008
    Carey from MI 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.

    We have an 8 year old and a 10 year old, would they enjoy and appreciate the character dining?

    This one really has to do with the personalities of your children. I have an 11-year-old and 8-year-old twins. Over the years, we have probably been to 100 character meals.

    I am on vacation at WDW right now. My twins have still loved going to the character meals on this trip. But I've noticed a real shift with my older daughter. Last year she was absolutely fine with any character situation. But she hasn't been that interested in it on this trip. For example, yesterday morning we dined at the Cape May Cafe character breakfast at the Beach Club resort. When Goofy stopped by our table, my twins jumped up to hug him. My older daughter just waved and went back to eating her eggs. Of course she could just be burned out on the whole character thing, but my guess is that she has gotten to the stage where she thinks she's too grown-up for the characters.

    So, an 8 and 10 year old could really love a character meal, or they could think they're too cool for it. Here are some questions to ask yourself to help you decide:

    - Do my kids like the characters?
    - Do they have a particular favorite character that appears at a character meal?
    - Are they shy?
    - Are they good sports about silliness?
    - Are they in a particularly moody phase?

    I would suggest that you book one or two character meals just for the experience of it. One that I think might be a good choice for you would be the Garden Grill meal at Epcot. Not only do several characters make the rounds here, but the restaurant itself is fairly unique. The entire restaurant revolves around different scenes in the Living with the Land ride. A revolving restaurant is cool and entertaining with or without characters. Also, the tables at the Garden Grill are configured to give each party much more privacy than at other character meals. With this feature, there's less potential for embarrassment should your 10 year old decide that he or she really does want to give Mickey a big hug.
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Meet the Panelist: Erin, New York

I have three teenage daughters. We're DVC members obsessed with Disney travel. We've been to Walt Disney World countless times and have visited Disneyland & Disneyland Paris. We've taken several Adventures by Disney and Disney Cruise trips. Learn More About Erin

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