I have been to disneyworld 6 times in 5 years so I feel like I know that place inside out but now I have decided to embark on a new journey Disneyland since I am a new comer to DL any suggestions on dining? We have 3 boys 5, 11 and 13. My little one is obsessed with Mickey. Is the prepaid meals worth it? How do they work? I have done the dining plan at WDW and has worked great now they have changed it for 2008 so I don't think it is as good as a deal. Please any suggestions are appreciated! Thanks!!

I can't give you any advice on the prepaid vouchers.. Never tried it.. We like to use our AAA discount at restaurants and now our AP. It's a savings of 10% If you are staying at a Disney Hotel you can call Vacation Planning Services and they can help you with everything. I would recommend Goofy's Kitchen and Minnie and Friends Breakfast at the Plaza Inn. These are two of our favorites. Have Fun Planning! :)

The prepaid plan does not save you anything (and can cost you if you have AAA or an AP.) However, you do have it prepaid, which some really like. I prefer to just make priority seating. You can do this by calling Disney Dining at 714-781-DINE.

We always buy the dining plan. I agree that it does not usually save you money, but this year it will for us. We bought the plans before the price went up for the character meals and Disney will honor the price we already paid for the vouchers.

I like the vouchers because we pay for our trips monthly and so when we go, the whole trip, including meals is paid. But usually there is no money savings as the vouchers are mostly for dollar amounts.

I am just planning my first trip to WDW and it seems to me that dining is a much bigger and much more complicated part of a trip to orlando, than it is at the DLR. there are only a few places where you can actually make advance reservations at DLR compared to WDW, and you can't do it at 180 days - and with the exception of a few really busy times, it doesn't seem to be as necessary to book very far in advance anyway. and unlike at WDW where you have to plan your days around where you want to eat because of the travelling time between venues, at DLR everything is right there so you can eat wherever you want without it impacting on your day.

also, although everyone has favorite places to dine, there are very few places that are uniformly considered to be excellent and good value. in my opinion, there isn't anywhere inside the parks that really offers great food (at least not to the level that people seem to rave about with regards to some restaurants at WDW). I think Napa Rose (at the DGC) comes the closest. We just accept the fact that we are at disney and the food will be ordinary and have a great time anyway.

which is just to say, that this part of your trip will be much easier to plan than you may be used to.

regarding the 'dining plan', we used it once but won't do so again. Unlike the plan at WDW, the DLR version is not a plan where you can save money. The dining plan gives you a number of vouchers in cash denominations, which you can spend whereever and whenever you like (with some exceptions - the character meals and the 'breakfast' vouchers, for instance). The vouchers are worth specific amounts and you pay in full for them (no freebies thrown in), and if your meal costs more than the value of the voucher, you have to pay the extra in cash. However (and this is what we really didn't like about them) if your meal costs LESS than the total on the voucher, you lose that money - they don't give change. This led us to buy two churros with the snack voucher (and pay the extra in cash) rather than just sharing one, so as not to lose the $2 difference and so on - which is really not a desirable outcome for us. The plan includes character meals which your kids would probably like, but we (adults) went to one character meal and that was enough - we didn't want to have to go to three (which is how many came with our plan). Lots of people like the convenience of having paid in full before they leave home, but you get exactly the same benefit if instead of buying vouchers, you buy disney dollars. when you spend those you get change, and you can cash any remaining dollars you have left over, at the end of your trip. That's what we do. You can buy them in advance or (and this is what we do) keep the money in the bank earning interest, and then just buy them all at once at the park - our first stop of the trip.

I've never been to WDW but go to DL twice a year. If you want to do any dining with the charcters you have to make resv. in advance at disney dining its better to be safe. We stay at the DLH and love Goofy's kitchen, also love the Plaza Inn with Minnie and Friends at the park the food is really good and its buffet style at both. On a personal note I love....the Blue Bayou in Pirates of the Caribbean (again need to make a resv. ahead of time):p

I'm a huge Lilo and Stitch fan so of course I had to do the Lilo and Stitch breakfast at Paradise Pier. It's fun because it has a Hawaiian theme. My husband is pretty picky but he loves eating at Bengal Barbecue in Adventureland, it's a quick stop place but good none the less. Also, I agree Plaza Inn is great, I always get the kids pasta dish it's enough food for me plus it comes with a drink. As far as nicer restaurants Napa Rose is great but I don't suggest it with kids, I'm not sure that there is even anything for them to eat. Blue Bayou is fun for the whole family but keep in mind the portions are pretty large, they do charge a split fee but most of the time it's worth it.

I only have DL experience, it has been about 8 years since I went to WDW and I don't really remember where or what I ate so I don't know how these places will add up.