Character Dining Canceled at Disney World
As announced a couple days ago, Walt Disney World will be canceling all existing Advance Dining Reservations, plus Free Dining and paid Disney Dining Plans through next year. Email notifications have started going out, providing additional details–including the impact on character dining and other certain experiences.
This shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. When Walt Disney World presented its official reopening plans, they stated that character meet and greets would be temporarily suspended. Walt Disney World has since announced that “characters will still be in our parks to entertain and delight you during your visit.”
It’s likely that these meet & greet alternatives will be accomplished via physical distancing. We’re not talking air hugs or plexiglass installed in normal meet & greet locations (a depressing prospect, to be sure). Instead, the more likely scenario is impromptu “Smile & Wave” greeting moments.
“Smile & Wave” (or “Meet & Smile”) greetings are a concept that has been popularized at Tokyo Disney Resort, where they were implemented for a different reason: high demand. There, Duffy is such a rockstar that he and ShellieMay frequently draw multi-hour wait times for (in our opinion) very poor and regimented meet & greet experiences.
The idea is similar to something like the “Move It! Shake It! Whatever It! Roaming Noise Festival” (as we call it) at Magic Kingdom. That gives a large number of guests the chance to see and engage with characters, but without the drawing power of a parade or intimacy of one-on-one meet & greets. It’s an in-between approach that would work perfectly during this temporary abnormal phase.
Since reopening, Shanghai Disneyland has introduced “Mickey Avenue Kiss Goodnight,” “Princess Balcony Greetings,” and “Wave Hello to Your Favorite Mickey Avenue Characters” as alternative character appearances that occur throughout the day.
These are little ‘magic moments’ that don’t appear on a set schedule. This is likely to prevent crowds from congregating, which would defeat the purpose of physical distancing. (Additionally, new stage shows have debuted and indoor entertainment has already returned after only a couple weeks of the park’s reopening.)
We would expect Walt Disney World to take a similar approach. (Perhaps moving to runDisney-style elevated selfie stations in a subsequent phase of reopening.)
Characters could likewise appear above turnstiles as guests enter the parks, on the Cinderella Castle balconies, catwalks in Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge, World Showcase windows, Main Street USA Train Station balcony (not like the train is operating, anyway) and other overhead locations.
Heck, maybe we’ll get Mickey Mouse perched high atop Spaceship Earth again! (Okay, definitely not–but that’d be something to see and would almost make all those construction walls in Future World worth it. Almost.)
Even before the latest announcement, character dining when Walt Disney World reopened never really was one of the viable alternatives to meet & greets.
For one thing, there is no physical distancing at character meals. They’re hands-on experiences occurring inside intimate environments with minimal control over guest movements. If anything, they’re worse (when it comes to current limitations and safety protocol) than structured meet & greets.
It’s easy to implement a “no hugging” rule on paper, but try explaining that to a 3-year old who sees Belle or Cinderella waltzing around the restaurant and is compelled to run over to their favorite princess. There’s no workable solution to that.
There’s also the practical reality that most character dining experiences are buffets. It’d be possible to convert these to family-style or a la carte meals, but with Walt Disney World already cutting the meet & greet components, it probably makes more sense to just cancel character dining reservations entirely for now.
Guests who booked these are paying a significant premium for the characters, so if an alternate arrangement for these restaurants is possible, it’d be better to open that to new reservations at a later date to avoid bait & switch accusations.
In any case, we now know for sure that character dining is not going to return when the parks reopen thanks to Disney Dining Plan cancellation emails. Here’s sample text of the email Disney began sending out late last night:
As we plan for the reopening of our Disney Resort Hotels and Theme Parks, we are keeping the wellbeing of our Guests and Cast in mind. And we’re here to help you as we introduce new measures focused on delivering an enjoyable and magical experience for everyone who visits.
Unfortunately, these new measures have also required us to cancel any dining reservations, experience reservations and FastPass+ selections you may have made.
As a result of physical distancing, capacity in restaurants and availability of dining experiences is very limited and certain experiences such as Character dining cannot be provided.
Because of this, we have also made the difficult decision to cancel and temporarily no longer offer Disney dining plans.
We recognize the inconvenience this poses and we’re deeply sorry. We will be modifying your package to remove the dining plan. As an accommodation, the price of the package will be adjusted to reflect a 35% savings on the room portion. This modified package and price will be provided in a new confirmation. You will receive a refund of the difference in the package price if you have already paid in full or a reduction in amount due if you have not yet made final payment.
There’s nothing you need to do at this time. We will be contacting you shortly with more details about the process to secure new reservations, including our new dining and experience reservation window which will accommodate selections up to 60 days prior to arrival to allow for planning closer to your visit.
At this time, while systems update, we are temporarily suspending all modifications. However, you have the option of canceling your entire reservation at any time. We’re putting a great deal of thought into helping you return to the magic and appreciate your patience.
In addition to the line that “certain experiences such as Character dining cannot be provided,” this should put to bed debate about whether Free Dining is being cancelled or if the 35% off discount is actually real–as we saw in many comments yesterday.
Again, this is an unprecedented time and Walt Disney World is scrambling to develop and implement new polices on the fly. Additionally, Walt Disney World isn’t transparently or consistently conveying all information on its public-facing websites or via the phone. In other words, be patient as information trickles out via official channels and don’t assume what’s published online or what you’re told on the phone will remain accurate.
What remains to be seen is how quickly character dining will return and what, if anything, will happen with those restaurants in the meantime. There are several locations that it would be awesome to see opened as normal table service restaurants again, as their themed design is something special that’s seldom seen by guests without kids.
(Ironically, we have a finished Akershus Dinner Review that’s been sitting in draft form for over 2 months because it felt odd to post…but might have renewed relevance right now.)
Ultimately, not a ton of new or surprising information about the status of character dining, but there was some uncertainty about if these meals would return. This should provide a definitive answer to that, while also (hopefully) providing insight into the types of alternative character greetings Walt Disney World will offer.
While character meet & greets and meals will not be possible in the first phase, it’s safe to say that Walt Disney World will reintroduce both as quickly as possible. These are quintessentially “Disney” experiences around which many families plan their vacations, and Walt Disney World will undoubtedly see trip cancellations because of their absence. That’s never something Disney likes to see, so expect character experiences to return in full force as some as health guidance gives the all clear.
Walt Disney World is figuring this out on the fly (several details have already changed multiple times in under 24 hours since last night’s big cancellation announcement) and is doing so with a limited staff while many people are still on furlough. The info is going to be released in a slow trickle, and specific details are going to change and evolve with circumstances. If you don’t urgently need an answer, just relax, sit back, and wait for the info to come to you—potentially with changes as subsequent updates are made. This can be a frustrating process, but this is an unprecedented time and Walt Disney World is in uncharted waters.
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YOUR THOUGHTS
Are you surprised that character dining is being cancelled? Will the lack of meet & greets or character meals cause you to postpone or cancel your Walt Disney World vacation? Would you like to see some character dining be temporarily converted into ‘normal’ restaurants? A variety of viewpoints are welcomed here, but we will not tolerate insults, arguing, or politically-charged comments. Additionally, please do not debate the efficacy of health safety policies—all such comments (for, against, otherwise) will be deleted. Those arguments are played out and isn’t the appropriate forum for that. (Saying you will or will not visit in light of certain measures is fine.)
All I see is DW taking away and very little in adjusting prices we are 60 days out and seriously thinking about canceling especially if they are still charging full prices for everything they have cut!
They could make small
Staging areas throughout e dining area. Then my kiddos could still see, and wave at the characters… and not feel invited to them either (if they were on a small stage) they could even do small performances.
All I ser is DW taking away and very little in adjusting prices we are 60 days out and seriously thinking about canceling especially if they are still charging full prices for everything they have cut!
LOVE the pic of Pluto with what I’m guessing is a Micky-shaped “sandwich” purse in his mouth! Certainly brightened my day.
I had just booked our meals about 2 weeks ago for November I am most upset about my youngest child not getting to meet the characters. It would be her first trip and she’s 3.. she loves all the princesses and Mickey and Minnie. I also booked Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for my 2 daughters. Since it’s so much like a “salon”, any word on what the plans are for it? I haven’t received any cancellation emails for it but I won’t be surprised if it does get cancelled.
BBB will not be available when wdw opens, however, you have a November trip booked, so be patient. There’s plenty of time between now and then that some of the restrictions could be lifted by that time. Nothing is a certainty right now, so the gift of time should provide clarity before your trip arrives. Good luck, I hope many of these experiences return in time for your trip.
I understand completely about the character dining being cancelled, however this was a main component of our Disney experience. I am from Canada, had 9 people going in March. Disney closed the day before we were do to arrive. Spent hours on the phone, booking character dining and dinner reservations. Had paid for a meal plan. Rebooked for June 30. Have cancelled again. This is a once in a lifetime trip for our family. At a cost of over 30 thousand dollars. The Canadian dollar is at a terrible rate. I will not rebook until things have opened up and most of the experiences have returned and no masks are required.I do understand the cancellations and the abundance of caution, however, at this time and in the near future, Disney will have to wait.
I got that same e-mail yesterday, ALMOST ver batim, except that mine DID NOT include the 35% off. That line was definitely not in there. I just went back and re-read it. Hm…
When are your dates for?
That email went out to those with Free Dining. If you had the paid Disney Dining Plan, you would’ve received a version of the email without the 35% off mentioned.
oh, ok that makes more sense. I misunderstood your post to mean anyone with a dining plan would get that e-mail. Mine was not free dining as our trip is in December. Still trying to decide if we want to go. I do understand why Disney is doing all of this but it’s so expensive for what we’d be getting and we probably will only be able to afford to go one time.
Through next year you said!!! Surely not.
I read that character dining will not return until September 2021. I’m okay with this but they need to lower the pricing. I’m okay with the mask coverings as well. I just don’t want to lose the MAGIC! That is the most important thing. We are going in September 2020, I just hope everyone follows the rules.
Genuinely curious where you read that. It wouldn’t surprise me. Everything has gone off the deep end lately.
I am so upset. How can Disney expect us to pay top dollar for a quarter of the experience. Muppets!
At this point, they have only canceled all dining plan reservations through September 2021. That doesn’t mean things won’t change between now and then. They’re just trying to wipe the slate clean before slowly rolling things out again. It’s a sign that they believe things will be “back to normal” by then, but I wouldn’t take it as a sign that things won’t start to return to normal before then.
In all honesty, if you take away the character interactions & character dining, for me it’s just a theme park and the dining options are just restaurants. To me, that’s what made DW so special and unforgettable. We made reservations this year and finally had the money to take my daughter for her birthday for the first time, who turns 9 in November, and there’s no way I will spend all that money for a “wave as they go by” kind of experience. That’s like saying that “taking a virtual tour” is anywhere near as good as the real thing. I cashed out my 401k when my now college age daughter was 7, to take her to DW and it was the greatest week of my life. I felt like a kid when Mickey wanted to give me a hug too! You can say that the rides are great, and the restaurants are top-notch and they are – but for us, this is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of trip, and taking away the characters is a big deal breaker for me. Lastly, I understand safety first and all that, I’m just sad and disappointed right now, and left wondering if I’ll ever to get to take my baby for the kind of experience I was able to give my oldest….
I know what you mean, we are scheduled to come from the UK in October but due to all the restrictions/health and safety stuff we are really hoping that we can move it (we already moved it from Easter this year). Its not that I dont agree that safety comes first but it’s a lot of money to spend to not have the full experience, especially with little girls who are excited about meeting princesses and collecting autographs. Such a shame.
Any buzz on what will be happening at the resort pools? Obviously a six foot distance but have you heard or suspect anything else? I had a friend say they went on a short getaway (somewhere else) and the hotel was giving out 2 hour spots for the pool and once your two hours expired you had to visit the front desk to see if there were tickets for available for another 2 hour window. We enjoy a break mid vacation for a pool day so I am curious.
Will you still have photo pass photograph workers? We so enjoy our pictures the photo pass people take.
I wonder if they’ll have characters roaming the hotels more often. Kids really cherish those little moments. I still remember being greeted by Timon and Rafiki in the lobby when we were kids and playing with Pluto at the kids camp.
Daisy was waving to us as we came down the water flume at storm along bay. What a cool surprise. That type of thing is what makes Disney stand out from others. I’m optimistic that in a year things will be back to where they were prior to the pandemic.
Yeah Steve I was referring to a trip during Christmas time in the 1990s at Grand Floridian and remember getting off the monorail and being greeted by characters. That would be so cool if they did that in place of meet and greets temporarily. Kids would remember those moments forever trust me. My sister was 4 and remembers Mickey in the lobby at the hotel I was 9 and it was unforgettable.
“There are several locations that it would be awesome to see opened as normal table service restaurants again, as their themed design is something special that’s seldom seen by guests without kids.”
Wow, this hadn’t occurred to me till you just mentioned it. I’ve never even considered eating at Cinderella’s Royal Table (too expensive and don’t like face characters), but maybe now we could just have a regular meal in there – that would be awesome!
Silver lining…
It would be nice if some of the character dining restaurants are able to open as regular restaurants at a lower price. My family actually enjoys some of them for the atmosphere and food, alone.
Understanding the frustration and disappointment of people who have been planning for close to a year only to have everything uprooted, I think Disney is doing a decent job with all of this. They could be more methodical in their communication across the board, but I think it’s a matter of the snowball effect. Just as they figure out one issue, another one needs to be addressed and then three more.
I’m praying that it will be made clear as to whether or not face shields will be officially sufficient. My asthma won’t allow for a regular mask, but I DO want to go as soon as possible.
I had pushed our Spring Break trip to 4th of July because back then it seemed like a possibility. So funny how the months fly by and you find yourself not even wanting to travel anywhere period for 2020 much less July. Our first Disney trip (from NYC) cannot be under these new reopening procedures. I got “the email” Friday night from them re our hotel and experience and dining reservations. It was the first time I even looked at our park tickets since they closed and they said good until Dec 15th 2020. Checked earlier today and they had a 2021 date, then I JUST checked again and watched the date change back to Dec 15th 2020 right before my eyes! Their system must be bonkers. I wish they would just give the option of a refund for park tickets during these times for those who want one. Our first family trip next year after all this will more than likely be a resort or something and not Disney.
Hi Tom,
Have you heard of all emails have gone out. My reservations are for beginning of July and I haven’t gotten anything.
I was surprised that they cancelled my reservation at Planet Hollywood in Disney Springs. I didn’t think it was a Disney operated restaurant. Also, my fireworks dessert party at Tomorrowland Terrace is still there. Do you know if I can make a reservation at Planet Hollywood direct? How far in advance would you do this? Our trip is scheduled for the end of August.
Hello JKay,
Check the website Open Table.
I had WineBar George cancelled for July 4, and was able to easily rebook there.
I’m not totally certain PH is on there, however, many Disney Springs restaurants not operated by Disney have a presence there.
Good luck!
I was expecting it. I’m hoping they’ll still allow dining in Cinderella’s Castle – my girls really want to do that, characters or not. We fiiiiinally had reservations, so hopefully we can get them again in the new booking system.
Same here.
That restaurant is stunning, and it’d be nice to dine there without characters at a reduced rate. Maybe they could even temporarily rename it to King Stefan’s Banquet Hall as a throwback (and to avoid confusion as to the status of princesses).
This was my first thought. I would love to dine here at a lower cost without the characters. This would be my preference anyway.
I agree–would be super cool to eat in the castle without the characters! A window table in the evening…
That would be awesome.
Tom, speaking of dining updates in the Orlando area, do you have any local knowledge on the status of the big White Castle they’re supposed to be building in Orlando? I haven’t seen any news since they announced it last November.
Sorry, I do not.
Much more importantly, I haven’t been keeping tabs on the Portillo’s. I feel like I’ve betrayed my Midwestern roots. (I have, for some reason, been keeping close tabs on the All Star McDonald’s construction. It’s very close to finished!)
I think that was one of the first announcements for that shopping area, so I don’t even think they were scheduled to break ground on that White Castle before the coronavirus hit.
We just received our email this morning and I thought Disney did a fine job of explaining the what and why. I don’t want to sound like an apologist but under the circumstances they had little choice but to make these decisions and for those of us with the “free” DDP the 35% room discount is quite fair. Now if they’ll allow those face shields I mentioned once before I’ll have no problem returning to check out the “limited” experience. I think it could still be great fun.
Personally, I don’t have a problem with the what, why, or substance of the changes. Visiting right now will require significant compromises. The sooner people realize and understand this, the better.
I do think Disney would be well served by ripping the Band-Aid off all at once, so to speak. More bad news is to come and Disney is doing a decent job with skeleton staff, but communicating the negative news all at once in a straightforward and transparent manner would be wise. There’s no good reason why third party blogs like this one have accurate information while DPB or telephone reps don’t have it.
I agree. I received my Disney email and it is Disney trying their best to accommodate everyone but with some restrictions. I agree with it and understand. I personally will probably move our vacation to next year since this year is up in the air and they will be working out the kinks. Let’s hope next year things will have improved more. I believe in keeping the Disney spirit and magic alive.
I have two thoughts after reading this. Some of the restaurants that previously hosted character dining are really going to have to up their food game, and it is too bad they are throwing out (what I perceive to be low risk) “fur” characters, too. Restricting “face” characters makes sense.
Any guesses at all how long the meet and greets/ character dining is suspended for? The end of the summer? The rest of the year? I know it’s anyone’s guess, but just wondering if you have any knowledge behind your guess. Unfortunately this, along with the mask requirement, we will have to reschedule our end of July trip, because with a 4 year old who won’t keep a mask on, and that the princess/characters are atleast 50% of the fun for her . (If I just had older kids it wouldn’t be that big of deal) anyway, I am at a loss as to when to try to move my trip. Insight from anyone?
The problem with guessing on things like this is it would require making a lot of assumptions, including (especially) whether or not a second wave will occur in the fall.
There are simply too many variables to make an educated guess that would have even the slightest semblance of credibility. Sorry! 🙁