Do I Need To Make a Dining Reservation For My Infant or Toddler?

December 1, 2017

Q: I’m going to be making my Advanced Dining Reservations, do I need to count my infant or toddler in our numbers?

A: This is a question I get asked a lot. For families with young children, booking Advanced Dining Reservations(ADR) at Walt Disney World can be a bit of a confusing affair. If your child is under the age of 3, chances are they won’t be ordering items off of the children or adult menus so it’s natural to wonder whether you should include them in your dining numbers.

However, the answer is absolutely YES! It’s important to count your little ones when making your reservations. When it comes to dining at Disney, staff are looking at the total number of people, not diners. This has to do with issues of capacity and fire safety. So, you should always count your tiny tots in your total family numbers. For example, if you have 2, adults, 2 school aged children, one 2-year-old and one infant you would make a reservation for 6, not 4 even if your two little ones won’t be eating at the restaurant.

But does that mean I end up getting charged for them? No. There is no charge for children dining under the age of 3. You will not be billed for adding toddlers or infants to your reservation. Disney just assumes that at this age they will be eating off of your plate or will be eating foods that you’ve brought with you.

Can I purchase a dining plan or a meal for my toddler? When it comes to the dining plan a child must be 3 or older. Since children under 3 get into the park for FREE there is no valid park admission so there can’t be a dining plan.

For those not on the dining plan, it is possible to purchase a kids meal or a regular meal for your little ones but their appetites would need to be pretty voracious to make it worth your while. I would instead opt to get their meals at quick service locations rather than table service restaurants. Also, remember that if you are doing buffet dining there is nothing stopping you from preparing a plate for infants or toddlers.

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