Feeding tube and dining plan

[JWigs]

Hi all,

Sorry been laying low it's been a pretty tough year but we are coming this Sunday for Xmas and I wanted to share some news I got from GS.

My oldest is 4 and has been tube fed since she was born. Prior to her turning 3 we didn't have to pay for her and not think twice. But since she's turned 4 it has become more difficult especially because she now has a 1 year old sister.

I have read enough on the topic to know that it is too difficult to prove that someone isn't eating due to medical need and Disney stance was you had to pay. I am happy to report (cautiously) that I was informed that due to her medical needs and if she isn't eating we should not be charged for her meal even if it's a show i.e. fantasmic or ROL.

So assuming this is correct it should save us about $195 on the dining plan it was costing us to have her. We were having to do character heavy and make sure we used her QS and snacks for us and little sister.

If this is indeed true, I thought it would be helpful for other folks who might be in the same boat.

Let's be clear we would have been happy to pay it as we understand people can abuse things to avoid paying but for us the reminder she can't eat with us was already hard enough and then the added expense was just another thing to deal with.

Will post back if GS was wrong. We have Ohana ressies on Xmas night so will know then.

Hope this can help other folks who might have some anxiety or questions about it.

 

[LilyWDW]

I would not count on it. I have seen too many posts on these boards of people being charged at any buffets or all you can eat locations even with feeding tubes. I mean, I hope GS is correct for you all, but I would keep the money in your budget in case they are not. I would hate for you to be caught off guard.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

I can see them charging you for Character Meals for sure... because you still get the interaction despite not eating...

 

[disfan07]

I am on TPN and I've (almost) always been charged at buffets, dinner shows, etc. anything NOT a la carte.

Only time I was not charged was when we went for my birthday. Completely unexpected, but we weren't charged at Crystal Palace or 1900 Park Fare last time we went. We did tip as if all of us were eating.

Not being charged is a whole lot of pixie dust. I would personally not trust what you are told on the phone.

 

[DisneyOma]

I agree with disfan07 - I'd never trust what a CM told me over the phone. They are not on property, seem to have little to no real experience at any Disney property, and are wrong as often as they are right. While I would hope they wouldn't charge you at a regular buffet, I'd think the ones with entertainment should charge a fraction of the cost, as the non-eating member is taking up a space that could technically be sold to a paying customer.

I also think it is amazing that they don't charge for toddlers, though.

 

[Allison]

If you talked with someone over the phone, they aren't reliable.

 

[JWigs]

We have a split stay so if we find out after day 1 it's not true then we have time to add to the balance of trip.

We had already budgeted for her to be on the DDP so worst case we will lose a few days on the front end. Will report on Xmas night.

 

[lanejudy]

We have a split stay so if we find out after day 1 it's not true then we have time to add to the balance of trip.

We had already budgeted for her to be on the DDP so worst case we will lose a few days on the front end. Will report on Xmas night.

I can’t tell if you already have the DDP or plan to add it. I believe the DDP must be added to a reservation at least 3 days prior to check-in, and everybody on the reservation must be included (package tickets and DDP).

As others have mentioned, you may get “pixie dust” at a meal or two, but that doesn’t mean other venues will be “wrong” to charge based on policy. I’d hate for you to expect something and end up having to pay more.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[JWigs]

We had the DDP (We are DVC owners) And i called and voided since we were told we may not have to pay for our 4 year old since the tube. DVC GS did tell me it's 24 hours to add or remove not 48 as I had thought. They just had to put me on hold to get approval.

So we did 2 days split stay then jumping to AK. So worst case we find out we will have to pay for her we should be able to add on the DDP. We know it's a risk but we have paid for her meals at DL earlier this year and it just feels so wasteful when she can't enjoy the food. We get it's the experience you're paying for (Which is why we have paid it in past). But if there is an accommodation for her situation we would like to know (as I'm sure others in our boat would too).

I had already mapped our ADR assuming on DDP so worst case we go back on DDP and we confirm the policy. We are big Disney ppl and we've sadly had places at epcot discriminate against her for not ordering a meal (at an al a carte) and it was super disappointing. Hope is our first Christmas trip will turn out great either way of how this DDP pans out.

 

[DisneyOma]

I had already mapped our ADR assuming on DDP so worst case we go back on DDP and we confirm the policy. We are big Disney ppl and we've sadly had places at epcot discriminate against her for not ordering a meal (at an al a carte) and it was super disappointing. Hope is our first Christmas trip will turn out great either way of how this DDP pans out.

How did they discriminate?

 

[SueM in MN]

The Dining Plan is a feature that is offered. It works out well for some people, but not for others.
This is regardless of whether a member is tube fed or has other special needs or not. Their policy has been that every member of your reservation needs to be included.

It’s not something my family ever felt was a feature that was a benefit for us - it’s just more food than we would eat.
Everyone needs to look at the total cost and decide whether or not it makes sense for them (realizing it might not).

People have been told in the past when calling that they would not need to include a family member with a feeding tube in the Dining Plan, but found out this was not true when they got there. So, you are wise to assume what you were told might not be true.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

We are big Disney ppl and we've sadly had places at epcot discriminate against her for not ordering a meal (at an al a carte) and it was super disappointing. .

Did they discriminate or were they holding fast to a particular dining policy? Not all restaurants in EPCOT are owned by Disney so they can't always offer the same policies.

I guess you just dropped a small detail that your audience needs to know in order to have a discussion about your experience

 

[lanejudy]

and we confirm the policy.

Sadly, I don’t think you can find the “confirmation of policy” that you hope. Policy is to charge every individual age 3+ at the table for buffets or AYCE restaurants, regardless of how much or how little food an individual actually consumes. You may find a restaurant makes an exception for you, but that doesn’t mean another restaurant is discriminating or going against policy.

What was she charged at an a la cart restaurant? Those places charge what is ordered. Unless it was a character meal and a minimal “entertainment fee” was charged, I don’t understand how they could discriminate with a charge.

I do hope you enjoy your vacation!

 

[JWigs]

Sorry we are flying today so it's been hectic.

We ate at Teppan Edo several times on previous trips and had enjoyed it. But the last few trips each time we came with DD *who was under 3 and didn't require a purchase* they basically caused a huge scene and made us feel like we were scum. We know each restaurant isn't always owned by Disney but it was definitely not in line with Disney.

Because DD has a lot of delays one of them is she can't sit unsupported even in a high chair. She has to be in her stroller which is treated as a wheelchair ( keep in mind she was about 2 or so). We didn't know she would continue on this path.

The first time we asked hostess if we can sit her stroller or car seat at the table and she said sure but we had to wait for specific table. So we waited 15 mins and when they tried to seat us they tried to put DD and her stroller in the corner by wall. Of course we said that doesn't work bc why would I eat dinner while my child is across the room in her stroller alone? They said that's all they could offer bc she wasn't eating. We asked to speak to a manager who asked us to try the high chair. We were so embarrassed at this point due to the scene it was causing we tried. And the entire time I had to hold DD who doesn't have enough stamina to sit unsupported for even a snack.

Then we came again a year later with grandpa and had same happen. They insisted her stroller (And her if she couldn't sit alone) go in corner. So again I asked for manager who told me they wanted her spot for paying customers.

Keep in mind she is under 3 and it is not a buffet. So we didn't have to order her a meal to have a seat and plenty of other families had their babies at the table without push back. So again feeling ashamed and singled out bc I was told repeatedly that it was due to her not paying ( when she's exempt due to age ).

So on this current trip we opted out of going back and will likely never. Its because on multiple occasions they have told us to put her alone in the corner halfway across the room so her seat could be squeezed in by another party. And i find that to be insulting bc they should never ask a family to leave their child across the room alone. It has nothing to do with eating or the food but how they have shown they handle accommodations.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

I think it had everything to do with the blatent safety issue that a stroller pushed up to a table in the middle of a crowded restaurant is, and very little to do with her not eating. Usually when a family has a highchair need, they put your party in the most out-of-the-way spot in the restaurant. When taking my DD out and about to eat when she was stroller-aged, I never had a restaurant once tell me I was allowed to push the stroller up to the table... I had to hold her, or put her in a highchair, for safety/liability reasons.

I can totally understand why the restaurant staff did not want to risk trying to maneuver HOT food and beverages around a stroller AND the other guests. That is why the TS restaurants have some kind of stroller parking outside. The Stroller-as-a-Wheelchair only works for RIDES. Not bathrooms or gift shops or restaurants.... I think that's where this definition of "access" got a little skewed...

Also if Teppan Edo is that style of Japanese steakhouse where they cook in front of you and you are sharing the table with a bunch of strangers, that style of restaurant REALLY cannot support a stroller pushed up to a table, it's just too chaotic. I can understand THEIR confusion; if she's not eating, then why does she need to be at the table, and if she needs to be at the table, then why isn't she in someone's lap? They don't know the in's and out's of your child's condition and they don't need to know the details. If you refuse to be accommodated in the ways that they can provide, they aren't discriminating, they are simply unable to provide exactly what you are demanding.

If you have Dining Plan on this trip, I'd just maximize the Character Meals you can get, and work lots of snacks into your stay with the credits you have. Because I can sadly see where the pushback from management would come from, each and every time you try to sit down and have "a nice family meal" at a TS restaurant and why there is this policy to begin with...

Ugh how frustrating, I hope you can come up with an idea that works best for everyone in your family!

 

[SueM in MN]

I’m sorry you did not have the experience you expected. Teppan Edo is not owned by Disney, so may not follow the same procedures as Disney. It’s also a bit different because of the cooking and serving at your table aspect.
That might be part of why they did not want a stroller parked at the table - it would be lower than holding the child on a lap or seated in a high chair. Those would not interfere with the seating or cooking. A stroller would be in the way.

When you made your reservation, did you include your child in the count?
Even if a child is not eating (even infants), need to be included. At Teppan Edo, all of the tables seat 8 and they combine parties to make a group of 8 if your group is smaller. So, there is not room at the table for guests who were not on the reservation. They might be able to fit a high chair, which has a standard ‘footprint’, even though they may not accommodate a stroller.

My guess is the table they had you wait for where they wanted you to park the stroller in the corner was along the outside wall (the tables closer to the ‘kitchen’ would not have a corner and would be in the path for staff).

Just FYI - Biergarten in Germany would be the same situation. Guests are grouped together to fill tables. So, if a child is not included in the reservation, there would not be a place to park a stroller at the table.

 

[JWigs]

We have eaten at almost every Disney restaurant on both coasts (We tend to go 2x a year) And we've never had another restaurant tell us she could not use her stroller/wheelchair as a seat. Most of them happily give us a table (not a booth) so she is not out in the way and remove an extra seat at the table.

She (And her 1 year old sister) are always marked as a head count on our ADR so it wasn't that they weren't prepared for her. We are at Ohana on the same trip and they had no issues and didn't give us a hard time and we had a prime time spot. It's just a different at Epcot so for us we won't come back to that TS.

 

[lanejudy]

Sorry I misunderstood - I thought the discrimination was specific to being charged for someone not eating.

I am very sorry you had those experiences at Teppan Edo. I also would not want to park my child in a stroller across the room. I held DD on my lap at restaurants when she wasn’t able to sit in a high chair. But we didn’t go to WDW with her at that stage. Teppan Edo is not Disney-owned, and I have heard other complaints about it. We've never eaten there. I think you are wise to avoid it for your family’s needs.

Enjoy your vacation!

 

[EveDallas]

Also if Teppan Edo is that style of Japanese steakhouse where they cook in front of you and you are sharing the table with a bunch of strangers, that style of restaurant REALLY cannot support a stroller pushed up to a table, it's just too chaotic. I can understand THEIR confusion; if she's not eating, then why does she need to be at the table, and if she needs to be at the table, then why isn't she in someone's lap? They don't know the in's and out's of your child's condition and they don't need to know the details. If you refuse to be accommodated in the ways that they can provide, they aren't discriminating, they are simply unable to provide exactly what you are demanding.

So it's completely reasonable to expect her to leave her child somewhere away from them because that's all the restaurant can do? What about people in actual wheelchairs? No reason they couldn't have moved a chair from the table.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

So it's completely reasonable to expect her to leave her child somewhere away from them because that's all the restaurant can do? What about people in actual wheelchairs? No reason they couldn't have moved a chair from the table.

I have used an ECV and had to transfer to a chair at most buffets as ECV stuck out past the end of table. from what I saw if what you used could fit in chair space you could use but if larger you had to transfer. I am guessing stroller was larger than chair space and stroller would have to fit so wheels were not in aisle or between tables