There is something about being handed a plate of food by a waiter while Cinderella drifts over to say hello that never quite stops feeling magical, no matter how many times we do it. Character dining is one of our favourite things to do when we visit Disneyland Paris, and being able to meet the characters with little to no queue means more time left in the parks to enjoy the rides and shows. Mr Disney is just as keen on a character meal as I am, especially if Daisy Duck is around, so it is always near the top of our list. It is one of those experiences that sounds a little daft when you describe it out loud, you are paying to eat dinner while cartoon royalty pop by your table, and yet it ends up being one of the warmest, most memorable parts of any trip.
If you have never done it before, the idea is simple. You sit down for a proper meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner depending on where you book, and the characters come to you. No queues, just hugs, photos, autographs and a bit of a natter while you eat. Meals usually run between an hour and ninety minutes, so there is no rush.
2026 has shaken things up more than any year we can remember. Plaza Gardens, a long standing favourite for character breakfasts and dinners, has closed for a big refurbishment until early 2027, while the brand new Regal View Restaurant has opened over in Disney Adventure World to take up the princess mantle. That means there are five character dining venues on paper this year, but only four running at any one time. So whether you are planning your first ever character meal or working out which one is worth the splurge on your next visit, here is each of the venues running right now.
Auberge de Cendrillon
If you only do one character meal at Disneyland Paris, this is the classic. Tucked away in Fantasyland, Auberge de Cendrillon, or Cinderella's Inn, sits you right inside the fairytale. It is the home of princess dining at the resort, with Cinderella and a rotating cast of Disney Princesses making their way around the room, and from April 2026 Mickey has joined the line-up too, dressed for the occasion.
It is a table service restaurant serving gourmet French cuisine, so it is a proper sit down meal rather than a buffet. One word of advice, do have a look at the menu before you book, as it leans quite French and grown up, and it may not suit every younger or fussier eater at the table.
Auberge runs breakfast, lunch and dinner, and the breakfast sittings are worth understanding before you book. There are two, at 8:15 and 9:45. The 8:15 sitting is bookable only by guests staying at one of the onsite Disney hotels, as it falls inside Extra Magic Time, the early access window that runs from 8:30 to 9:30 for hotel guests, or 8am to 9am in winter. The 9:45 sitting is open to everyone, though as with all the in-park venues you will need valid Disneyland Park entry to dine here.
Royal Banquet
Over at the Disneyland Hotel, the Royal Banquet is the resort's most lavish character buffet, and it has fast become one of our favourites since the hotel reopened in its grand new royal styling. This is where you will find Mickey, Minnie and their friends decked out in their majestic royal attire, working their way around several beautifully themed dining rooms hung with Disney portraits. As a buffet, it is an all you can eat affair, with a generous spread that leans into the idea of a feast fit for royalty. It is the priciest buffet of the character dining options, but for the setting, the characters and the sheer amount on offer, we think it earns its keep. The Royal Banquet runs lunch and dinner only, so there is plenty of choice over timing whether you want to break up a day in the parks or settle in for a relaxed evening meal.
Regal View Restaurant & Lounge
The newest arrival, and the one taking over Plaza Gardens' princess mantle, Regal View opened in March 2026 along Adventure Way in Disney Adventure World. It is a table service princess dining experience, purpose built for the characters rather than squeezing them into an existing room, and it runs breakfast, lunch and dinner. The princess line-up is a real draw here. The likes of Ariel, Belle, Aurora, Mulan, Merida and Jasmine appear in outfits created especially for Disneyland Paris, so even seasoned princess hunters will spot something new. Attached to the restaurant is the Regal View Lounge, which has the honour of being the first proper bar inside a Disneyland Paris theme park, handy for a drink before or after your meal. We have already been along to try the breakfast and shared our full thoughts, including whether it is worth the money, which you can read here.
La Table de Lumière
The most exclusive of the lot, La Table de Lumière is the signature restaurant inside the Disneyland Hotel, and its character dining is a dinner only, sit down affair. Set in surroundings inspired by grand palace styling, it pairs fine dining with appearances from Disney Princesses and Princes, making it the one to pick if you are marking a special occasion rather than just fitting in a meal between rides. There is one important catch worth knowing before you set your heart on it. At the moment, character dining here is open only to guests staying at the Disneyland Hotel. We checked this ourselves while planning our own upcoming trips, and as neither of our stays is at the Disneyland Hotel, we were unable to book it. So if La Table de Lumière is on your wish list, you will need to be booked into the hotel itself to dine here for now.
Booking, tickets and meal plans
A few practical things are worth knowing before you start, as character dining takes a little planning to get right.
How to book. Reservations are made through the official Disneyland Paris app or website, and the popular sittings fill up fast, so the golden rule is book as early as you can. If you are booking a Disney holiday package, you can add character dining as part of your package at the time you make your booking, which is the easiest way to lock it in early. Otherwise, bookings generally open around two months ahead, though if you are staying at a Disney hotel you can often book from the point your stay is confirmed, which gives you a useful head start. If a slot is not showing straight away, it is worth checking back regularly, as some restaurants only release their tables closer to the time. One thing to note is that breakfast character dining is the exception to the early booking rule, as it can only be booked up to three days in advance through the app.
Do you need a park ticket. For the in-park venues, yes. Auberge de Cendrillon sits inside Disneyland Park and Regal View sits inside Disney Adventure World, so you will need valid entry to the relevant park to dine at either. The two Disneyland Hotel venues, the Royal Banquet and La Table de Lumière, do not need a park ticket, as they are inside the hotel itself.
Meal plans. If you are on a Disney meal plan, character dining works a little differently depending on which one you have. With an Extra Plus Meal Plan you can use one voucher per trip towards a lunch or dinner character meal. With a Premium Meal Plan you can use as many of your vouchers as you like on lunch and dinner character dining, up to the number of vouchers you hold. On the other plans you can still book character dining, you will just pay a supplementary charge on top. Either way, a meal plan does not skip the booking, you still need to reserve your table. For more information about meal plans and how they work click here.
Our verdict
Character dining is never the cheapest way to eat at Disneyland Paris, but for us it is one of the most worthwhile. The chance to meet the characters properly, with time for a chat, a photo and an autograph, is what keeps us coming back to it trip after trip.
Whichever you choose, our biggest tip is to book early, check the menu before you commit, and treat it as a proper part of the day rather than just somewhere to eat. Get it right and it will be one of the moments you remember long after the trip is over. We will be doing exactly that on both of our upcoming visits, and we would not have it any other way.
