Disney Springs

Thursday 3: The 3 Disney Springs Character Breakfasts

Disney Character Breakfasts at Disney Springs Area Hotels

I recently visited the Disney Springs Good Neighbor hotels that participate in Disney World resort benefits like Extra Magic Hours and the ability to book FastPass+ reservations 60 days prior to arrival and thought you’d be interested to know about the three character breakfast locations available on select days.  It is important to note that these character breakfasts do not take place at restaurants within Disney Springs itself but are located in nearby Disney Springs Resort Area hotels, all within walking distance of Disney Springs. While the adult prices are comparable in price to the Disney World resort character meals, the child prices are significantly lower which is great for large families.  Another perk is that two of the locations do not charge for 3-year old children and also offer child pricing for 10 - 12 year olds whereas the Disney character meals start charging the child price at age three (3) and adult prices start at age ten (10).   None of these locations accept advance reservations and are a great option if you’re having trouble getting reservations at a character meal location found in the Disney reservation system.  You do not have to be a guest of these hotels to dine at the restaurants.

Which characters are offered:   Disney sends over the characters and they usually just list “Disney Friends” or “Disney Pals” but Minnie Mouse, Pluto and Goofy seem to be fairly frequent visitors to breakfast.   Brer Bear and Brer Fox were making the rounds the morning we were at Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista which I thought was neat because you don’t usually see those two outside of Frontierland in the Magic Kingdom.

How to Get There:  If you’re staying at one of the Disney Springs hotels, you can easily walk over.  If you’re staying at one of the official Disney World resorts, the free option is to take the bus or boat, where available< from your hotel to the Disney Springs Marketplace stop and walk over.   It may be easier to have a taxi, Uber or Lyft drop you off at the resort entrance.

For comparison purposes, here are the prices at three character breakfasts featuring classic Disney characters that are located in official Disney hotels:

  • Contemporary Resort - Chef Mickeys breakfast: $41 / Child: $25 (age 3 – 9)

  • Polynesian Resort - Ohana character Breakfast: $34 / Child: $20 (age 3 – 9)

  • Beach Club Resort - Cape May character buffet: Adult: $26 / Child $21 (age 3 – 9)

Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Disney Springs Resort Area  

Character breakfast available Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday mornings in the Lakeview Restaurant at the Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Character breakfast available Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday mornings in the Lakeview Restaurant at the Wyndham Lake Buena Vista Hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Lakeview Restaurant - this is the only character meal where we ate and I highly recommend it.  The Lakeview restaurant is a very pleasant setting with a lovely view and the buffet was delicious with fresh fruit, breads and breakfast pastries, breakfast potatoes, bacon, ham, sausage, made-to-order omelets, and other tasty options.  The children’s section delighted me because it included breakfast pizza and macaroni and cheese along with traditional breakfast items.   The person at tending the station explained that children need a good breakfast and energy when they go to the theme parks so you have to provide options that they’ll want to eat.  You can’t argue with that logic!

Character breakfast Buffet on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays 7:30 – 10:30AM
Cost: Adults - $26.95 (age 12+) / $12.95 children, ages 4-11
Disney Dining Plans not accepted
No advance reservations – first come, first serve
15% gratuity added to parties of 5 or more

Hilton Buena Vista Palace Hotel

Sunday morning character breakfast at the Letterpress restaurant in the Hilton Buena Vista Palace Hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Sunday morning character breakfast at the Letterpress restaurant in the Hilton Buena Vista Palace Hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Letterpress Restaurant – Letterpress is a bright and modern restaurant located on the lower level of the hotel’s main tower.  

Sunday Character Breakfast Buffet - Characters from 8:30AM to 11:30
Cost: Adult: $30 / Child: $12, ages 4 - 12
No advance reservations – first come, first served

 Hilton Orlando Lake Buena Vista Hotel

Sunday Morning Character Breakfast at the Covington Mill restaurant in the Disney Orlando Lake Buena Vista hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Sunday Morning Character Breakfast at the Covington Mill restaurant in the Disney Orlando Lake Buena Vista hotel / Disney Springs area - Walt Disney World Resort.

Covington Mill Restaurant – restaurant has a charming country feel with a faux porch and rocking chairs at the entrance; the buffet menu includes Mickey Mouse waffles, made-to-order omelet station and a nice selection of other breakfast options like fruit, cearls, yogurt, fresh baked breads and more.

Sunday Character Breakfast – Sunday 8:30AM – 11AM
Cost: Adult (age 10 & up) $30, Child: $10, ages 3 -10
No advance reservations – first come, first served
Disney Dining Plans not accepted

Don't Miss Out On Great Experiences At Disney World!

We want to help you have the most wonderful, most memorable Disney vacation possible. We know that giving you good, up-to-date information and a few simple tools will make a huge difference in your Disney vacation. Long lines become short lines and you will have great memories of shared experiences instead of missed opportunities. That's why we're called Build A Better Mouse Trip.

Here’s how we help you have a great vacation:

1. Your travel agent – You have one agent from start-to-finish who knows your name and your priorities and who wants to do everything possible to help you have a wonderful experience.

2. “Best Days” Itinerary – We’ll help you build an itinerary that includes your priorities for fireworks, parades, crowds and shows. Then we help with dining & Fastpass+ reservations.

3. Saving Money – Of course we watch for discounts and promotion and automatically apply the best available offer to your reservation but we also help you avoid up-sells and options you won’t use.

4. We Are Fee-Free - We book directly through Disney and we never charge a service fee so you never pay any extra to use our services when you book your trip through us. You can have all the benefits Disney offers PLUS all the services we offer. You can also purchase planning services through us if you've booked on your own or through another travel agency.

Planning a Disney Vacation?

You'll definitely want to subscribe to our free newsletter. You will receive a link to 40 great Disney World Freebies in your welcome note and several helpful “how-to” e-guides over the next week. Unsubscribe at any time.

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Places to Meet Santa at Disney World - 2021

Where to find Santa at Disney World - Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Disney Springs.

Where to find Santa at Disney World - Magic Kingdom, Epcot, Disney’s Hollywood Studios at Disney Springs.

Mickey Mouse and the Disney Princesses are great, of course, but sometimes we just need to get a word in with Santa before he checks the naughty and nice list for the last time before making his rounds. Here are the places you can meet Santa Clause at Disney World:

Planning a Disney Vacation?

You'll definitely want to subscribe to our free newsletter. You will receive a link to 40 great Disney World Freebies in your welcome note and several helpful “how-to” e-guides over the next week. Unsubscribe at any time.

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Disney World Santa Sightings 2021

Magic Kingdom - Santa Claus sighting in the gazebo near the entrance to Liberty Square. daily through December 24, 2021. Photopass photographer on hand for socially distanced photos with Santa. He’s also available at Disney’s Very Merriest After Hours events on select evenings. (separate ticket required)

Epcot - Santa appears daily through December 24, 2021 in the American Adventure pavilion, typically at 11:45AM, 1:45, 3:45, and 5:45PM. You can also meet Père Noël at posted times in the France Pavilion and Father Christmas in the United Kingdom pavilion. Click here for more information.

Disney’s Hollywood Studios - Santa Claus Motorcade on Hollywood Boulevard. This is not a meet-and-greet but seeing Santa cruise by in a bright red convertible is fun.

Disney’s Animal Kingdom - Santa Claus flotilla on the lake.

Meet Santa at Disney Springs - November 12 - December 14, 2021 from 10AM to 10PM / December 15 - 24, 2021 from 10AM to 11PM at Once Upon A Toy store in the Disney Springs Marketplace area. Here’s how it works:

  • Check in at the podium.

  • Physical distancing is in place at this photo opportunity.

  • Because this is an indoor experience, masks are required.

  • A virtual queue will be available.

  • Disney PhotoPass photographers will be on hand to capture digital portraits, available for purchase.

  • Click here for more information

More Helpful Information:

Don't Miss Out On Great Experiences At Disney World!

We want to help you have the most wonderful, most memorable Disney vacation possible. We know that giving you good, up-to-date information and a few simple tools will make a huge difference in your Disney vacation. Long lines become short lines and you will have great memories of shared experiences instead of missed opportunities. That's why we're called Build A Better Mouse Trip.

Here’s how we help you have a great vacation:

1. Your travel agent – You have one agent from start-to-finish who knows your name and your priorities and who wants to do everything possible to help you have a wonderful experience.

2. “Best Days” Itinerary – We’ll help you build an itinerary that includes your priorities for fireworks, parades, crowds and shows. Then we help with dining reservations that coordinate with your itinerary.

3. We Are Fee-Free - We book directly through Disney and we never charge a service fee so you never pay any extra to use our services when you book your trip through us. You can have all the benefits Disney offers PLUS all the services we offer. You can also purchase planning services through us if you've booked on your own or through another travel agency.

New PhotoPass Studio in Disney Springs - Disney World

Choose from several great backgrounds at the PhotoPass Studio in Disney Springs / Walt Disney World Resort - Florida.

Choose from several great backgrounds at the PhotoPass Studio in Disney Springs / Walt Disney World Resort - Florida.

Here are a couple of the images taken at the new PhotoPass Studio in Disney Springs. You get to choose your own backdrop. My daughter wouldn't get in the picture with me so it's a little awkward with just 1 person in the picture! (Plus I wasn't a fan of the posing....)

 There are view stations available so you can preview your photos and you can purchase prints of the photos right there, if desired.   Your photos taken at the PhotoPass Studio are included in the Memory Maker and are linked to your MyDisneyExperience account. 

To have photos taken, you go to the PhotoPass Studio in Disney Springs, and tell them you have the Memory Maker and you want the studio pictures taken that go with it. You then get to choose your background (I'm not sure if you just get to choose 1 or several....I told him I am a Travel Agent and was interested in seeing how it worked and showing clients so he let me choose a couple of them). They take the pictures and they show up in your Memory Maker!

PhotoPass Studio in Disney Springs - images are included in the Memory Maker package / Walt Disney World

PhotoPass Studio in Disney Springs - images are included in the Memory Maker package / Walt Disney World

The PhotoPass Studio is located between The World of Disney Store and Ghirardelli's Chocolate in Disney Springs.   Click here for additional information.

Map courtesy of Google

Map courtesy of Google

About the Author: Monica is the most experienced agent at Build A Better Mouse Trip, a travel agency specializing in Disney World and Orlando theme park vacations.  Click here to read more about Monica.

Planning a Disney Vacation?

You'll definitely want to subscribe to our free newsletter. You will receive a link to 40 great Disney World Freebies in your welcome note and several helpful “how-to” e-guides over the next week. Unsubscribe at any time.

Thank you for subscribing!

Meet Santa at Disney Springs from Nov. 14 - Dec. 30, 2016 (Free event)

Disney World Seasonal Freebie - From November 8 through December 24, 2019 (11AM to 11PM), Santa and his helpers will be greeting Guests at their cottage across in the Disney Springs Marketplace near the Christmas Tree Trail across from Once Upon a Toy Check in at the podium and give your mobile phone number so can enjoy the area until it is your turn.  When you receive a text from Santa’s Helpers, you will have 10 minutes to return.  Photographers will be on hand and photos with Santa are included in the Memory Makers photo package.

 More Holiday Cheer at Disney Springs

Click on the photo for a list of crowd warnings, closures and special events at Disney World in December.

Click on the photo for a list of crowd warnings, closures and special events at Disney World in December.

Planning a Disney Vacation?

You'll definitely want to subscribe to our free newsletter. You will receive a link to 40 great Disney World Freebies in your welcome note and several helpful “how-to” e-guides over the next week. Unsubscribe at any time.

Thank you for subscribing!