My Disney Girl Perfectly Princess Tea Party Review with photos

[bsusanmb]

My DD was so sweet and paid for my DGD Makayla and I to go to the GF for the DGPPTP. It was really over priced. $250 for the two of us. One of the moms I sat with brought her two daughters and paid $400. She was not happy with the offerings and let the management know it.

It is really very sweet, but I think that 3 is too young to really enjoy the entertainment by Rose Bud. Nevertheless, I will never forget the lovely event that I was so fortunate to share with Makayla. Here are photos:

Makayla is on the right, the other little girl was so excited she just gave her a hug!

Waiting on the chair at the GF

She receives her invitation, and is so excited at the whole idea she just grins from ear to ear.

Each little girl is called up and crowned with a very very inexpensive "crown", not a Disney crown, and sprinkled with rose petals. The crown could have been much nicer and more substantial. Really, it is just not what I expect of Disney.

The children get apple juice for tea. The adults are served tea....nothing else, no honey, no sugar, no cream, nothing...no water...disappointed in this.
The children are served peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut into heart shapes, and the bread was beginning to get stale, and ham and cheese sandwiches...hummm for $250? The adults received the usual tea fare.
Each girl gets a Disney My Girl doll dressed like Aurora. They do not sell the Aurora dress in the stores. So this is the only place you can get one. They have little tea pots and cups, and a pink linen napkin with a charm bracelet and pink heart attached. The cake is pretty, but just an artificial cake. They take it away and serve a delicious white cake with strawberry filling, I think anyhow that it was strawberry. It is a lovely setting. I have been to the high tea in the same room. Rose Bud sings and dances and tells stories, but like I said, it is a long time...it was to be an hour and a half, but we were there 2 hours and we had to leave...
I love the picture of Makayla looking longingly at Aurora...she blurted out, "Aurora, where is your prince"
Aurora visits with each child, and does a little walk around the room with the children, presents each one with a beautiful pink rose, but leaves very soon. I think she should be there the entire time. So did the children.
Makayla spilled her apple juice but no one was available to assist in cleaning it up....the linen napkins were not absorbent at all. The staff was too busy serving and doing whatever it is they do. They are very pleasant, however.
Makayla really loved her tea, and was so overwhelmed with the activity that I had to feed her the PBJ sandwich and grapes while she watched all of the others.
At the end, there is to be a parade of the children around the GF lobby, up to the toy store and there they get a certificate with their name and the name of their new doll, and a special scrapbook page.
Makayla saw a princess tea set in the gift shop, and wanted nothing to do with the parade...she wanted that tea set and to leave...so we did and went to get her certificate and scarpbook page before the parade. Many other did also.
It is a lot of money for this event. The room was full of children and parents/grandparents.
I don't think that I would recommend this. I think that no matter how wealthy you are, it isn't something that is worth this amount of money. Makayla has a DIsney My Girl doll and all of the outfits. She does, however, LOVE tea parties. I think this could be done elsewhere for a lot less. I would prefer to have just have a princess or two for the entire time, I wouldn't mind paying that much money for princess interaction. Afterall, that's what every little girl expected and wanted.

This is just my opinion. I think Disney could do much better, but why should they when they can fill this event and charge this much money?

I will always cherish the memory with my grandchild. And now we have a special new tea set to play tea party and a new Aurora doll.

Susan

 

[henrylovespooh]

Thanks for the review. We're going in January 2009, and I had thought about surprising my daughter with this. Now I think I'll stick with lunch in the castle.

It does seem like a lot of money for what you get.

The photo of Makayla looking up at Aurora is priceless.

 

[bsusanmb]

Thanks for the review. We're going in January 2009, and I had thought about surprising my daughter with this. Now I think I'll stick with lunch in the castle.

It does seem like a lot of money for what you get.

The photo of Makayla looking up at Aurora is priceless.

That photo just captured her moment, didn't it? Thanks. We did dine at the castle for the evening meal and we loved it. Had done it a couple of years ago, and we didn't care for the food at all. It has changed for the better.
For dinner it was a 7pm seating (it was the night of the MNSSHP) and we were just about last in the line. So that gave us lots of time with Cinderella.
My DGS was dressed as the Knight from Narnia and Makayla was in her Cindy dress. It was just adorable. Cinderella was a beautiful girl, just breathtaking. She spent a lot of time downstairs with them. I had prime rib and DH had the salmon. They were both great. We thought the fairy godmother and mice were really darling. In all we had a wonderful evening.

We also enjoyed last year the SBP at Norway. Don't care for the food, but the princesses are wonderful. Makayla was so excited.

I hope you have a wonderful trip.

 

[roliepolieoliefan]

Thanks for the review. I also thought about doing this with my 5 yo DD. We are also going to stick with lunch at the castle. I was going to make an appointment for her at BBB, but she'd rather do the Haunted Pirate Cruise with her brother. Go figure.

My princess tomboy. Your pics and review were great.

 

[bsusanmb]

Thanks for the review. I also thought about doing this with my 5 yo DD. We are also going to stick with lunch at the castle. I was going to make an appointment for her at BBB, but she'd rather do the Haunted Pirate Cruise with her brother. Go figure.

My grandson did one of the pirate cruises from the Yacht Club. He loved it. He is 4 and was too young to do the one from the GF. At first he was a little leary of going alone, but I found him a friend and he was fine. We did the BBB. I don't think Makayla recognized herself for quite a while. She just would stare at herself in the mirror. She liked the stick on jewel they put on her cheek the best.

 

[disneyin2008]

Ok, this isn't Princesses, it's Alice in Wonderland, but if your little one is more interested in the tea aspect than the Princess aspect, it might be a perfect match:

Wonderland Tea Party - A tea party (lasting one hour) for children, hosted by characters from Alice in Wonderland. Children will make and eat cupcakes, enjoy a story, eat lunch, and have tea with the characters, and make flower bouquets. Lunch includes turkey and cheese or berry sandwich, chicken nuggets, fruit, dessert, and apple tea (apple juice). (Menu subject to change.) Children who are potty trained and ages 4-10 may attend.

Monday through Friday from 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Available to all guests, Cost is $40.00 ($42.60 incliding tax).
Reservations 180 days in advance at 407-WDW-DINE.

"First let me start with the staff at the Grand Floridian is very helpful and friendly. The Tea Party started with all the parents signing in their kids and receiving pagers.(fair trade i thought...laugh) we escorted our kids in and the flashes went mad the table was decorated with plushes from the Alice Movie Tea Cups, Pots, Etc. The host then said "all kids waive to your parents...because we are kicking them out!" When time was up the kids came out with a picture of themselves with Alice and the Mad Hatter. My daughter informed me that they ate dessert first because they didn't want to be too full from lunch (they serve them a small lunch). The Mad Hatter declared he needed a grape which was followed by a barage of grapes being thrown at him by the kids. Overall my kids loved it. Parents...take your kids to the tea party its worth it!" Sam Knight

"My 5 year old daughter attended the Wonderland Tea Party. We dropped her off at 1:00 at 1900 Park Fare and were told to return to pick her up at 2:30. She had a wonderful time! They decorated cupcakes, had tea, and I think some sandwiches (she's stingy with the details). Alice and the Mad Hatter were both there. She had her picture taken with both of them and received a really nice certificate. The characters played "hide and seek" and "Hatter Says" (instead of Simon Says). We took the opportunity to go around to the Grand Floridian Cafe and enjoy a quiet, child free meal. There were only about 20 children and all were safely in the restaurant with the doors closed and when we went to pick her up we had to show our credit card receipt. . One last tip... send a camera! She took some great shots and some of the Cast Members took pictures for her as well." Suzanne Payne




And when she's a bit older, I can highly recommend the afternoon tea....my girls are pre-teens but still love tea time at home, so this was a must do, and they loved it so much that we'll be doing it again when we return in December. I wouldn't really recommend this afternoon tea until the little one is mid-elementary age at least. A young child might find the pace too slow and the offerings to mature, but the Alice tea sounds like pure fun to me, and is much more reasonably priced.

I've seen other threads about this Aurora doll party and apparently the high cost is because of these collectible dolls. But I don't think I'd be wanting to give an expensive porcelain doll to a pre-schooler.....something this expensive I'd want in a display case, not being tossed around the way little girls play with dolls (not saying they're too rough, but my little ones loved several dollies to death in their time, lol). It does seem that for the money they could do more, but yours is not the first complaint like this that I've read!

 

[captinhookedondisney]

Looks very Gourmet

and a lot of fun for a mom and her girl(s)

 

[Lynn5700]

Awww too cute!! She is a doll! Very pretty eyes!

 

[jaurban]

My DD5 and I enjoyed it quite a bit, but I knew very well in advance what to expect and what the offerings were, so I was not disappointed. Actually, since it is at 10:30 in the morning, I could not really have eaten more than than what they served any way. It was not about getting a deal, it was about the show and the doll and the party, not the food. My DD is an older 5, and I saw many younger girls and some older too, and one little boy. I think I would agree that 3 is too young to get it, and even some of the youngish 4s - I think about 4 1/2 - 6 or maybe 7 is about the best range. But, I can see where someone expecting something more would be disappointed in the value. As for lunch in the castle in comparison - just a very different experience, and the food is not so great there either. We have done both. The age range could be broader for that event though I think.

 

[bsusanmb]

Ok, this isn't Princesses, it's Alice in Wonderland, but if your little one is more interested in the tea aspect than the Princess aspect, it might be a perfect match:

Wonderland Tea Party - A tea party (lasting one hour) for children, hosted by characters from Alice in Wonderland. Children will make and eat cupcakes, enjoy a story, eat lunch, and have tea with the characters, and make flower bouquets. Lunch includes turkey and cheese or berry sandwich, chicken nuggets, fruit, dessert, and apple tea (apple juice). (Menu subject to change.) Children who are potty trained and ages 4-10 may attend.

Monday through Friday from 1:30 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.
Available to all guests, Cost is $40.00 ($42.60 incliding tax).
Reservations 180 days in advance at 407-WDW-DINE.

"First let me start with the staff at the Grand Floridian is very helpful and friendly. The Tea Party started with all the parents signing in their kids and receiving pagers.(fair trade i thought...laugh) we escorted our kids in and the flashes went mad the table was decorated with plushes from the Alice Movie Tea Cups, Pots, Etc. The host then said "all kids waive to your parents...because we are kicking them out!" When time was up the kids came out with a picture of themselves with Alice and the Mad Hatter. My daughter informed me that they ate dessert first because they didn't want to be too full from lunch (they serve them a small lunch). The Mad Hatter declared he needed a grape which was followed by a barage of grapes being thrown at him by the kids. Overall my kids loved it. Parents...take your kids to the tea party its worth it!" Sam Knight

"My 5 year old daughter attended the Wonderland Tea Party. We dropped her off at 1:00 at 1900 Park Fare and were told to return to pick her up at 2:30. She had a wonderful time! They decorated cupcakes, had tea, and I think some sandwiches (she's stingy with the details). Alice and the Mad Hatter were both there. She had her picture taken with both of them and received a really nice certificate. The characters played "hide and seek" and "Hatter Says" (instead of Simon Says). We took the opportunity to go around to the Grand Floridian Cafe and enjoy a quiet, child free meal. There were only about 20 children and all were safely in the restaurant with the doors closed and when we went to pick her up we had to show our credit card receipt. . One last tip... send a camera! She took some great shots and some of the Cast Members took pictures for her as well." Suzanne Payne




And when she's a bit older, I can highly recommend the afternoon tea....my girls are pre-teens but still love tea time at home, so this was a must do, and they loved it so much that we'll be doing it again when we return in December. I wouldn't really recommend this afternoon tea until the little one is mid-elementary age at least. A young child might find the pace too slow and the offerings to mature, but the Alice tea sounds like pure fun to me, and is much more reasonably priced.

I've seen other threads about this Aurora doll party and apparently the high cost is because of these collectible dolls. But I don't think I'd be wanting to give an expensive porcelain doll to a pre-schooler.....something this expensive I'd want in a display case, not being tossed around the way little girls play with dolls (not saying they're too rough, but my little ones loved several dollies to death in their time, lol). It does seem that for the money they could do more, but yours is not the first complaint like this that I've read!

I would have liked the Alice tea party, but Makayla is too young.
The doll is NOT porcelain. It is the same doll anyone can purchase in the WDW stores ... I think it is about $40. The outfits are all princess and are $25. She has every one of them. The only difference in this doll is that it is dressed like Aurora (Sleeping Beauty). You cannot purchase the Aurora dress for the doll, but everything else, you can. So, Makayla has one of these dolls already. I think it is pricey because of the entertainment, and because Disney has no problem filling the room. It sounds so delightful, and in many ways it is. I think that the general consensus is that the princess should be there the entire time. I wouldn't mind paying $250 for an hour and a half with the princess Aurora. Makayla would have loved it. She was a bit tearful when Aurora left, and so were some of the other little girls.

 

[bsusanmb]

My DD5 and I enjoyed it quite a bit, but I knew very well in advance what to expect and what the offerings were, so I was not disappointed. Actually, since it is at 10:30 in the morning, I could not really have eaten more than than what they served any way. It was not about getting a deal, it was about the show and the doll and the party, not the food. My DD is an older 5, and I saw many younger girls and some older too, and one little boy. I think I would agree that 3 is too young to get it, and even some of the youngish 4s - I think about 4 1/2 - 6 or maybe 7 is about the best range. But, I can see where someone expecting something more would be disappointed in the value. As for lunch in the castle in comparison - just a very different experience, and the food is not so great there either. We have done both. The age range could be broader for that event though I think.

I agree with you entirely. I knew exactly what we were getting, and I had no other expectations. I love high tea at the GF and to me it is so elegant. Yes, 3 is too young, and even 4 might be for the Rose Bud entertainer. She is very talented, however.

It is something that you do once, and I hope somehow Makayla remembers some of it. I know she will remember the tea and the tea set she got. She also insisted I sign her autograph book...and I thought that was just adorable.

She loves the princesses and I know it won't last forever...so I am thankful that I had the experience with her. Being a grandmother is the BEST. And until you become one, you think, Hummmm what could be so great about that...afterall, I raised 5 children...but grandchildren are just a gift from God...and they make life worth living and enjoying.

Blessings,
Susan

 

[bsusanmb]

Awww too cute!! She is a doll! Very pretty eyes!

Thank you. That was very sweet. She is my little dolly....she loves to come to grandma's house and we have a sleepover in my king size bed...no boys, Grandpa...and we watch movies and eat popcorn from her lunchbox! What fun...she is a heart melter!

 

[TinkerCarol]

Thanks for the report. It will be very helpful for those who are "Not sure" about doing this. You daughter is very beautiful! And your pictures are wonderful. What kind of camera are you using. Just so crisp and clear!

 

[melancholywings]

Each girl gets a Disney My Girl doll dressed like Aurora. They do not sell the Aurora dress in the stores.

Thank you so much for the review. I was humming and hawing about this but I think we'll skip it. They used to sell the Aurora dress at Disneyland. I picked one up later at the character wharehouse store.

 

[ILuvCrush]

your pictures are beautiful!! They bring back wonderful memories of when I attended with my 2 little princesses (they were 5 and 8 at the time). At their ages they could appreciate the party more than a youngster of 3-4. They both say to this day that it was the Best part of their 1st trip to WDW!!

It was ridiculously expensive.... but since my girls are now a bit too big for it, I'm glad I indulged when they weren't!!

Paula

 

[Tanzanite]

I sent a camera asked if they could take pictures as i brought camera specially no one took pictures.I was dissapointed as all the girls with cameras never got a picture s. The photo i got my daughter said mum look at Alice her eyes are red was dissapointed as i asked and the staff could have done it wont do again.

 

[WDSearcher]

The children get apple juice for tea. The adults are served tea....nothing else, no honey, no sugar, no cream, nothing...no water...disappointed in this.

I was wondering ... did you request honey, sugar, cream or water and get denied, or was there simply not anyone waiting on you to ask? It seems odd to me that you couldn't get anything for your tea, particularly if you requested it. But I can see how the wait staff might be more involved with serving the kids than the grownups.

The children are served peanut butter and jelly sandwiches cut into heart shapes, and the bread was beginning to get stale, and ham and cheese sandwiches...hummm for $250?

Clearly, the $250 pricetag isn't for the food. My guess is that 75% of the food goes to waste anyway, since the kids get so wrapped up in the event that they forget to eat. (As you witnessed with your own GD.) I wonder what kind of menu you'd have preferred. As for cost .... I guess you'd need to do an accounting of everything -- the entertainment, wait staff, food, dolls, crowns, bracelets, roses, desserts, the room, etc -- to find out whether or not Disney was making a significant amount of money on the event. My guess is that they are indeed turning a profit, but it's probably far less than you think.

I don't think that I would recommend this. I think that no matter how wealthy you are, it isn't something that is worth this amount of money. Makayla has a Disney My Girl doll and all of the outfits. She does, however, LOVE tea parties.

This is, of course, subjective. If Makayla had been a year or two older and did not already have a Disney my Girl doll with all of the outfits, it probably would have been seen by you as a better value. From the look on her face in all the photos, though, it looks as though she was having the time of her life. And you will always cherish the memory, not to mention the memory of all the tea parties you'll share with your new tea set. So it looks to me like you came out way ahead anyway!

 

[bsusanmb]

As for asking for condiments or water, the room was full of people, little ones and parents/grandparents with just 2 wait staff. They were so busy that there wasn't an opportunity to ask for anything, and the mom next to me and I just decided to tough it up. When I have been to the High Tea in the same room, there is much more attention paid, as you order from a menu. I wasn't offended, just disappointed. The assumption is that what they provide is adequate, but someone isn't thinking that many people use sugar etc in tea and IMHO it should have been on the table. Makayla was looking for a little spoon to "stir my tea". I think that whoever directs/arranges/produces this event is looking at it as "entertainment" which is provided by the pianist and the character Rose Bud.

Like I said, don't flame me. I would not recommend this for a little one. It was disappointing to her that Aurora wasn't in the room the entire tea time.
I would recommend it to a child 5 or older, or a very mature 4 year old.

I think the price is steep. I am thankful my DD provided the opportunity for me to attend. However, to add a child to a reservation is an extra $150. That is $400 for two children and a parent. To add another adult is $75. That is $475 for two adults and two children.

BUt what price do you pay for a memory? Of course, I loved being therewith my granddaughter. But before you criticize, please remember, this was just my review and my opinion.

 

[bsusanmb]

duplicate post

 

[bsusanmb]

Thanks for the report. It will be very helpful for those who are "Not sure" about doing this. You daughter is very beautiful! And your pictures are wonderful. What kind of camera are you using. Just so crisp and clear!

Thank you so much. But she is my granddaughter. She is a very sweet little girl, too. My camera is a Canon S3. If you read the photography board on the dis you will find so many recommendations for these cameras and photos. It is easy to use. I think Canon is now up to the S5. It take such beautiful pictures and you can really crop nicely with the high resolution.
I only use the auto point and shoot, but it does a lot of things also...it was about $250 on sale. You will love it if you buy one. My son in law is so upset that he didn't research his purchase and bought a Kodak. THe quality of the photos is just not as good.