As I mentioned in an earlier post, we are vacationing on a bit of a budget compared to how we're used to travelling. We do, however, see value in booking one sit-down meal a day. It isn't always easy to find a shady spot to sit on a busy day at the park, and a dining reservation at a sit-down restaurant allows everyone the opportunity to relax and recharge.
Our upcoming trip to Disney will be 5 days, so we do have 5 reservations in place.
Day 1 (February 15th)
This is President's Day so a lot of people have the day off. This means that Disneyland will be busier than a typical Monday. Our daughter LOVED her first visit to the ocean last year, so we have decided to skip the crowds, rent a car, and head to Huntington Beach for the day.
Sophie at Newport Beach in 2015
This will also give us the chance to have a day to recover from 14 hrs of airports and airplanes. Before heading to Huntington Beach, we have reservations at Disney's PCH Grill at the Paradise Pier Hotel. PCH has character dining for breakfast, and it is a MUST for our family as Sophie is dying to meet Daisy Duck. Somehow, she evaded us in both Disney World and Disneyland, and Sophie would really like to add her autograph to her collection.
Day 2 (February 16th)
Of the 2 west coast parks, Disneyland is definitely our favourite! I couldn't possible wait until Day 3 to hit it up, so we have planned to spend our Tuesday here. We will try to take advantage or Disneyland Magic Morning and check out a few rides before the rest of the masses arrive.
We didn't add on the Park Hopper option to our tickets, as honestly, we have never used it. That being said, our dining reservation for this day will be in Disneyland Park. This was an easy one for us. Shane's favourite restaurant from last year's trip was Blue Bayou, so we're splurging and giving it another go. If you haven't tried this restaurant, you must! It is set inside of the Pirate of the Caribbean ride and the food is PHENOMENAL. Blue Bayou serves Cajun-Creole food and is located at New Orleans Square. We are really looking forward to dining here again. We booked an early dinner so we can try to catch the earlier showing of the Paint the Night Parade.
Disney has recently added a Paint The Night dining package, but we just didn't have enough information about it to book at this time. It is quite expensive, and if the preferred seating is anything like Fantasmic, then it's not worth it to us.
If you are wanting to try Blue Bayou, do so as close to the 60 days in advance as possible - this popular destination books up quick!
Day 3 (February 17th)
We will be spending our third day at California Adventure. We decided to break up the day with lunch at Ariel's Grotto. We chose this because Ariel's Grotto offers character dining at breakfast and lunch. Sophie loves the princesses, and this is a great opportunity to meet 4 or 5 of them without standing in line. Ariel greets all of her guests in the foyer, and typically, the other princesses makes their rounds to all of the tables to take pictures, visit, and sign autographs. Our shy little girl doesn't need much more time than that!
in Disney World 2 years ago.
Ariel's Grotto is located at Paradise Pier in California Adventure. It was closed last year when we visited, so we are really looking forward to checking it out!
Day 4 (February 18th)
Back to back days at California Adventure! Last year we found that CA didn't have as much to offer us as Disneyland, so we will be splitting this day between the park and Downtown Disney. Mind you, a lot was closed last year in preparation for Disneyland's Diamond Celebration, so perhaps we will be pleasantly surprised! We will likely spend most of the morning and early afternoon in the park, and the step out to explore the resorts and shops of Downtown Disney. We have early dinner reservations at Tortilla Jo's (they had me at tableside guacamole) and then we'll return to CA to take in the World of Color show. Again, this was down last year so we are really excited to see it this time around.
Day 5 (February 19th)
When planning our trip, I knew we had to spend our last day at Disneyland Park. It really is one of the most magical places on earth. We will pound the pavement from park opening until the end of the firework show, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
For our final day, we will be having the Character Breakfast with Minnie & Friends at The Plaza Inn. We did this last year, and it was a shoe-in again this time. For breakfast, The Plaza Inn offers a buffet. The food is good, not spectacular, but good. (Really, it's a buffet - I don't expect spectacular.) The experience is what makes this place truly memorable.
Firstly, I recommend getting the first seating of the day. We were able to book in for 8:10am. This is good for a couple of reasons:
1) There is a special entry gate to the park for dining reservations. Last year we were among the first 10 people allowed entry into the park. It was amazing. Walking down Main Street without a crowd is breath taking. It felt like we had the whole place to ourselves!
2) There are SO MANY CHARACTERS at the first reservation of the day! Sophie's absolute favourite part about Disney is meeting the characters, and she got SO much extra attention at our breakfast here last year. We were greeted by Eeyore, Rafiki, and Chip (or was it Dale?).
Once inside, we had many visitors make the round to our table, sometimes twice! We were visited by Tigger, Rafiki, Chip, Dale, Eeyore, Captain Hook, Peter Pan, Max, Rabbit, and of course, Minnie Mouse herself!
Captain Hook admired Sophie's "jewels" (a bubblegum style necklace) and even gave her kisses and some of his treasure (plastic jewels).
Dale (or was it Chip?) had a duel with Captain Hook and Peter Pan hid behind the window and stuck his tongue at him. Tigger bounced around the restaurant with Sophie by his side. This place was an absolute GOLD MINE for Sophie. We couldn't NOT go back!
Extras
Obviously, I only listed one meal a day. To fill in the rest of our meals, we will be stopping by the quick service and snack counters. Top on our list is the Corndog Castle and The Enchanted Tiki Room for a Dole Whip. We walk tens of thousands of steps a day, so we don't mind indulging! We will also be picking up groceries on our first day. In the past, we typically have a light breakfast in our room (yogurt, cereal, fruit) and pack lots of healthy snacks and water to have on hand throughout the day. I highly recommend picking up some food to have on hand, especially when travelling with young children!
Now I want to know, what are your favourite Disney restaurants, foods, or dining tips? Can't wait to hear from you!
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