Rotational Dining for Families with Young Kids on the Disney Cruise Line

Diets be warned! When going aboard the Disney Cruise Line, the belt bucket tends to get a little tighter just by looking at all the amazing cruise food! There are plenty of places aboard to grab a quick meal and an ice cream or two. We are thankful; however, Disney has superb table service restaurants that are part of the rotation dining offered on all four cruise ships. Check out the notes below to help with your rotational dining experience if traveling as a family with young kids in tow!

1 – What Is Rotational Dining?

This concept was new to us before we cruised! Rotational Dining means that you’ll have a scheduled place to dine each night of your cruise. You’ll “rotate” through the three restaurant venues offered aboard the Disney Cruise Line. This means if your cruise itinerary is longer than three nights, you’ll double up on a few of the restaurants. All rotational dining restaurants are included in your overall cruise price, so no bill comes at the end of your meal unless you’ve purchased alcohol with your meal.

2 – Three Venues on Each Ship

Which ship are you cruising with? Each ship has a different lineup of rotational dining restaurants, including the following:

• Disney Magic: Animator’s Palate, Lumiere’s, Rapunzel’s Royal Table
• Disney Wonder: Animator’s Palate, Tiana’s Place, Triton’s
• Disney Dream: Animator’s Palate, Enchanted Garden, Royal Palace
• Disney Fantasy: Animator’s Palate, Enchanted Garden, Royal Court
• Disney Wish: 1923, Worlds of Marvel, Arendelle: A Frozen Dining Adventure

You’ll receive your dining schedule in advance, so you’ll know where to be each evening. You can also find it on the Navigator Cruise App when on board. You may also dine at one or more of these locations for breakfast or lunch. You’ll also have a chance to dine at some of the restaurants for breakfast.

3 – Themed Dining

The best part is that each restaurant has themed dining, which makes for a perfect distraction for the kids! Our kids’ favorite was Animator’s Palate, available on all Disney’s ships, except for the Disney Wish. As you enter Animator’s Palate for dinner, the room starts off very plain, with a few splashes of color here and there. But as the dinner progresses, the room starts to come alive with color. There are also multiple screens where Crush from Finding Nemo will come and talk with you at the table! It’s a real-time conversation, so prepare your kids so that they may be asked a question or two.

4 – Pick the Early Dining Slot

Part of the Disney Cruise booking process is requesting a dining slot. There are two options: Main Seating (5:45 pm-6:15 pm) and Second Seating (8 pm – 8:30 pm). If your kids are anything like ours, the 8 pm dining time is simply too late. Especially after a full day in the sun with lots of activities, having them sit down for a meal at that time is our worst nightmare! So, be sure to request that early dining slot. Keep in mind this is only a request, so the earlier you book, the better chance you have of getting the dining slot you want.

5 – Be on Time

We understand being on time can be super tricky for families with young kids! Try to haul your kids away from the pool or other activities well before your dining time to get them dressed and ready for dinner. If the meal time says 5:45 pm, the service will start at that time. A family was sitting near us that came in closer to 6 pm, and their servers were extraordinarily polite but obviously had to rush through appetizers and entrees. Plan to arrive on time!

6 – Dining Dress Code

What to wear? Swimwear and flip-flops are not allowed in rotational dining restaurants. In other words, don’t expect to run right from the pool to dinner. In general, think of casual wear. Nice jeans or slacks and a polo shirt are appropriate for guys. Girls can wear jeans and a nice top, or dresses/skirts are welcome. One night is an optional dress-up night, and some people do go all out for this! There is also a pirate night on many cruises, allowing you to come to dinner in your pirate wear. We recommend that whatever you dress the kids in, remember they will be eating, so make it comfortable. You don’t want it to be something that will make you upset if they spill or get food on it. Each night our little guy kept asking if we were going to church because we kept putting his casual church clothes on!

7 – Same Wait Staff

In our opinion, the best part of the Rotational Dining Experience is having the same wait staff. Your two servers follow you from restaurant to restaurant. This is such an exceptional experience because they learn your kids’ names and what their preferences are. Our kids started feeling comfortable around them and looked forward to seeing their buddies each evening for dinner! Servers may also perform a magic trick or two if they see your little one needs a good distraction. Our kids were blown away by this! We even saw one server cutting the food for a little girl so Mom didn’t have to. You can tell they have been well-trained in working with kids and making it an exceptional experience for them… which makes it all the better for us adults.

8 – Picky Eaters & Allergies Rejoice!

If you have a picky eater or a child with allergies, you’ve come to the right place! The Disney Cruise Line is the cruise for you because Disney knows how to handle these issues beautifully. First, the kid’s menu has a fairly good selection each night, and tries to change it up for the kids. On the other hand, our little guy wanted Mac and Cheese each night – and that’s exactly what he got. If it’s not on the menu, don’t be afraid to ask for it because the staff may just be able to work their magic. Our daughter is in that awkward tween stage where a kid’s meal might not be enough food, but an adult meal is too much. Sometimes, she got something small (like an extra bowl of fruit) to make the kid’s meal a little larger. When talking about allergies, the staff is excellent at handling these allergies with the help of the Chef. If you need the Chef to come to talk with you, they will make that happen. Even better, since it’s the same staff that follows you to each restaurant, you don’t have to repeat everything all over again the next night. The staff knows and accommodates beautifully.

9 – Great Atmosphere for Kids

To be honest, we were nervous about rotational dining. We didn’t know what to expect! We were worried that our 3-year-old wouldn’t care to sit to eat when there is a ship full of things to do. We also didn’t know if our 10-year-old would think some of it was too childish. We were pleasantly surprised at how much they both loved it! The noise level was a bit loud, alleviating our concerns about our little guy being too loud. From previous cruise experiences, our parents said the later dining slot is much quieter than the first. The only complaint we had is how full it seemed. The tables were close, and there are a lot of people dining at once. On the flip side, our kids thrived off this atmosphere.

10 – Room Service Anyone?

We get it. Sometimes you have great plans to make it somewhere on time, but so-and-so is having an epic meltdown because they have had nothing but sugar and fun in the sun all day. Occasionally you need to regroup, and sitting down to dine just isn’t going to happen. Go ahead and plan to stay in your room for the night and order room service. You’ll miss that rotation of dining, but room service is still included in your package (minus the tip). Sometimes a little quiet time is exactly what kids need.

So, who’s hungry? Let the Rotational Dining begin!