DisLove Podcast with Vanessa and Kris

DisLove E113 Kid Friendly Table Service Restaurants and Yvonne from Destination Sitters LLC

• Vanessa Ferguson and Kris Johns with guest Yvonne Wonder • Season 4 • Episode 113

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In this episode, Kris and Vanessa hear from Yvonne with Destination Sitters, LLC.  Her business is a superior babysitting service for traveling parents. Whether you are traveling for leisure, business, or a wedding, this time you can bring your kids – your children will be looked after in the safety of your hotel room. They refer prescreened, fully vetted and trusted sitters at your travel destination – they can come directly to your hotel, vacation rental, Airbnb or event venue!

Earlier in the episode, they discuss kid friendly table service restaurants at Walt Disney World.  





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Vanessa F  0:05  
Welcome to the Dislove podcast with Vanessa and Kris. I'm Vanessa Ferguson.

Kris Johns  0:09  
And I'm Kris Johns,

Vanessa F  0:10  
we'd like to welcome you to show number 113. And for any listeners joining us for the first time, our show features things we love it Disney and in each episode, we have a guest who creates Disney magic for our listeners at home or on their Disney vacations. From vacation planners to product producers, our guests can bring Disney magic into your life. And as a reminder to our listeners, we appreciate if you can take time to leave us a review on Apple podcasts or any other platform where you listen that helps new listeners find us and of course helps the show grow. And before we get started today, Kris we have a message from our friends at Orlando vacation.com.

Kris Johns  0:48  
And their messages save money. Yeah, use the promo code does love di s L O V E to save 5% off your next booking of three nights or more. You're not going to go to central central Florida and spend less than three nights so this deal is just for you. The great thing is you have to have somewhere to stay I don't think Disney allows you to sleep in the park. Is that true Vanessa? So you have to go somewhere at night the park closes they make you leave in so why not staying someplace awesome. If you're not gonna see our property stay at an Orlando vacation.com property. They have everything from condos that fit tons of people to McMansions that even more people. So the great thing is if you want a place with a pool, they got you if you want a place it's near near the parks, they can take care of you. Not only can they take care of your lodging, they also have great hookups and tickets, go to Orlando vacation.com. Use the code does love save 5% and use that money to spend in the park.

Vanessa F  1:42  
That is for sure. And on today's show we are going to be joined by Yvonne from destination sitters LLC. Her business is the superior babysitting service for traveling parents, which we are that now. And whether you are on a trip just on a Disney vacation, or you're in the Orlando area, or other areas across the country for a conference, or maybe you are like us, we have a Disney wedding, you can have your kids taken care of whether it be in your hotel room in your vacation rental like Orlando vacation.com, or any or if you're having an event you can have their sitters come to the event. It's really awesome. We are so excited for you to hear about this service. And before we get to our interview with your Vaughn for the first part of the show, we are going to talk about we're going to follow that kid friendly theme. So today we're going to talk about kid friendly sit down restaurants or table service at Walt Disney World. And I will give a shout out to our friends at Disney dining.com all ears.net and everything mouse that calm for their rankings I kind of took, they all have some different perspectives on it. And then I kind of mesh it in with some of our experiences as well. To give you some of the top picks we're going to look at in the parks, in the resorts and beyond. And I will say some of these are on the high end of your budget depending on what you're looking at for your vacation. So you can probably pick and choose what fits best for your family. I know some of these right now at our daughter's age, she would be really into and others just wouldn't interest her yet. So probably depends on the kiddos that are gonna be traveling with you and what your budget is for your upcoming trip. Now first we are going to look at the parks and we have some that are at the different parks across property. We're going to start with Magic Kingdom because it's always the easiest to start with. Right now if you have any children in your family that love Disney princesses, you are going to want to go to Cinderella's royal table. Because right now we are missing out on the main the royal banquet dining in Norway at Epcot that hasn't returned yet. So really the only place that you can get a good glimpse of princesses at dining is at Cinderella's royal table. And this is that restaurant that is in the castle. We ate there the day after our wedding. We sure did. Yeah. And we've been there a few times since then. And right now how this will work is Cinderella will come through the dining room and you'll see her and sometimes some of her friends up here. You do not have those set character meet and greets that you have at some of the other restaurants or that we used to have. So but it does give you I think just being in the castle is a cool atmosphere. For Kids and adults just the fact it's much different than what you get at a traditional theme park or somewhere else outside of Disney. Now I will say if you're looking for a little bit more affordable option, they do have breakfast there. And the nice thing is that with breakfast you can depending on what time you have it sometimes you can get in the park a little early. We've only done dinner there but the breakfast I think especially if you have kids that are a little fussier about what they like to eat. This gives you a chance to be there at a little bit cheaper. price point, and enjoy all of the ambiance that you get. And one of the nice things is that it gives you a chance to really have that over the top Disney experience. So Cinderella's royal table that is going to be on the pricier end and without the dining plan and some of those things right now that might not be within your budget. But I think that's always something that's nice to do for something special. So if you're celebrating somebody's birthday or something like that, like we said, we went the day after wedding, it's a good chance to really feel like royalty by dining there. Another one that is also at Magic Kingdom is Be our guest, and we've eaten there before sure have and who makes an appearance at Be our guest?

Kris Johns  5:44  
Be our guest. The Beast? Yes, yes.

Vanessa F  5:47  
So the beast makes an appearance at from Beauty and the Beast. And this is super cool. Because if you've not eaten at this restaurant, especially if you go at dinner, that's when the beasts will appear. And you are immersed in, they have the library room, they have the west right, West Wing room, they also have just like the main ballroom, so you feel like you're in the movie. And the cool thing is, is that beast will make his way around the dining room. He does not stop for specific photos. Now pre COVID, they used to have a set spot where you would get photos with him. And that hasn't returned yet. In fact, that's one of the reasons why we went to the restaurant was to CBS. Exactly, yeah, so you get a chance to so if you have any kids in your family that love Beauty and the Beast, those three themed rooms are going to be awesome. They're gonna like it. Now one thing that I know our daughter is not a fussy eater, like she'll eat most anything. But I know a lot of kids are fussy. Yes, yes. So the one thing that you will probably want to check out is the diner or the menu at be our guest because it is not as child friendly as some of the restaurants. Now, at dinner, they do have a great baked macaroni and cheese option. So if your kiddo likes that sort of thing that option B, you want to check out the menu probably before you do a dining reservation there because it is going to have a set price, it's going to be a little bit on the higher end as well. So that's something to consider. Now we're going to move over to Epcot. And one of the restaurants there, I think is one of our favorite restaurants in general, because it helps whether you have picky eaters in your family, kids or adults. You get character experiences, and it has a little bit of a different atmosphere where it is and that's the garden grill.

Kris Johns  7:40  
Definitely, yeah, so

Vanessa F  7:42  
that's one that we enjoy going to and the food is great. It's kind of mixed, you'll have everything from mashed potatoes, and macaroni and cheese and vegetables and nice salad. We like the salad rolls. And then you get I think it's Turkey and beef and lots of yeah, they rotate the what the meat options are. And this is really great because you have Chippendale farmer Mickey Pluto is there as well. And you get great character interactions, I don't think we've ever had a bad experience. And that it's going to be kind of a mid price point, which is nice because you not only knock out the fact that you don't have to stand in line to see characters because they're going to come to your table. And you're going to hopefully have enough food that is going to give your kids options of what they like to eat. And if you have any children or adults with food allergies, I know I have a friend who has a lot of food allergies, and she always has a great meal here as well. It's a good place to rest as is well during the hot Park Day, because you are inside is in the land. And it does rotate throughout different scenes that you see as you're on the living with the land boat ride. So it's kind of fun. It's a rotating restaurant. So you get to experience all of those different areas. And again, it's a nice they offer sometimes depending on the time of year they'll offer dining packages that are sometimes have reserved seating for some of the concerts that go on during the different festivals. So it gives the adults a little something as well as the kids are going to enjoy the characters. And we've gone actually I don't think we've not taken our daughter to this restaurant. I don't think so. Yeah, so we've only gone as adults and we've always had a great time. I think our daughter would love this one and definitely will need to add it to future trip. So garden grill is a great one at Epcot. Now another one that I think could be considered Controversial. Controversial for kids is space to 20. So the new space restaurant that has opened in Epcot, and this has a pretty steep high price point. So if you are on a budget, you're probably not going to want to make a reservation here. We personally haven't got gotten a chance to make a reservation here yet, just because of availability, we were there when the restaurant opened last fall, we just haven't been able to get in yet. But it does have a prefix menu. And kids have a choice. This is kind of fun. They have, of course, it's space theme. So even the menu is that way they have listened to these names, space, Getty Smashburger, galactic salmon, Mission macaroni and cosmic chicken. So I think kids would enjoy just that sort of fun play on it. And then they have space themed desserts, they have a cosmic cupcake, and a gelato scoop, which they get to enjoy all of this while looking out through the windows that looks like they're actually in outer space. And I think if you have a kid that loves anything, with space, they're going to love it. I know, I liked space. When I was a kid, I went to space camp. And so I would have really enjoyed this experience. And I think if your kid has any interest in science, or any of those things, or even if they just love imaginative experiences, I think this is going to be that for them, they're going to have a chance to feel like they are in outer space. And it gives them a view of Earth. And it just is totally different than what you can get anywhere else. So if you have the budget, and if you can get a reservation space to 20 is one that is highly recommended for kids as well. What do you think? What age do you think would be good for our daughter to go to like the space? Yeah, I think you probably this would skew on the older end of kids, especially if they do have an interest in space, they might get more out of it. And when it is at that higher price point that gives you an option to look at. Now moving on from Epcot, we're going to go over to Hollywood studios, and one that we've done before. And again, we haven't taken our daughter yet to this one is the Sci Fi dine in. So if you're not familiar with it, it looks like you're in old fashioned cars. And you're sitting at a movie drive in and they play sci fi clips on the big screen. It looks like you're outside. And have you ever eaten at this restaurant? Kris?

Kris Johns  12:12  
I don't think so I'm not really into sci fi. So I wonder what it

Vanessa F  12:16  
looks like you're at a movie at a drive in, in your in like 1950s cars. So it's kind of a fun thing. Maybe Yeah, I don't know that Kris is in here either. So it has really traditional diner foods. So it has a lot of burgers, milkshakes, that sort of thing. So I think it's a very kid friendly menu in that regard. And as well as it kind of, it's just fun, it looks like they're sitting in a car that's been converted to a table. And it gives you a chance to have some fun with it, I would put this on the level of probably for a little bit older kids as well. If you have little ones that really like cars and that sort of thing, they might be into it. But just the clips that are being played on the big screen aren't as exciting. I wouldn't say for little kids. But it is something fun that just that whole atmosphere that you're not going to get other places. Now, finally, at the parks, we're going to talk about tusker house, this one doesn't have really that immersive atmosphere, but it's going to give you a good meal and great character interaction. We always have a good time at tusker Sure do. And we've taken our daughter there as well. And we were actually there right before the pandemic with her and the characters have returned now and that gives you a great chance to number one animal kingdom you always need somewhere to cool off so you're gonna get a chance to cool off in the air conditioning. See the characters, it is a buffet experience. So you're able to get a lot of different options. If you have kids that are a little bit fussy or on what they like to eat, or maybe people who have restrictions on what they can eat. You can hopefully find what you want here. So tusker house is a great option at the parks as well. Now moving on outside of the parks, we're going to just talk about a couple at the resorts. The first one I think it depends on what your kids are into and how familiar they are with different stories. But this one is storybook dining at artist point. This has Snow White. It's really a cool place. It's at Wilderness Lodge, and it's a very immersive dinner. So add it, you have Snow White, you get a chance to meet some of the dwarfs you get to see the Evil Queen. There's all kinds of character entrances. And it's a very big theatrical show. I would say we did that. Yes, several years ago ourselves. And one of the fun things is just the way they do have a prefixed meal. But one of the things is with the kids, they have a lot of interactive things. So their appetizer they're able to mix up the butter and do some different things with their fruit and veggie and cheese plate. They also have a little bit better on options for entrees. So as a kid I liked steak and I liked some a little better food than just the traditional chicken fingers and fries and kids have a chance to even get prime rib. They do have a good mix of things for kids who might be a little fussy or they have some options. And then the fun thing is some of the desserts, you get a shared platter of desserts and they have poison apples, which are fun. They look like little apples, but they have like a dark chocolate Apple mousse in it's kind of has a sour center. So those were fun. And I thought we had fairly good character interactions there with ones that you don't see in other places. Oh, for sure. Yeah. So Wilderness Lodge is a great option. Also moving over, I will say we were at this restaurant for our daughter's birthday this year. And the food was okay. We ate in I'm talking about chef Mickey's at the contemporary. I would probably say now that they have shifted away from the buffet at this point, I would probably return more for breakfast than it is for sure. So we did have really great character interaction. So if you're not familiar with it, it is in the contemporary so on the level where you you'll see it when you are coming from the monorail and you have Mickey Minnie goofy Pluto, you get a chance to meet them. And it's fun because they're in their chef outfits. Right now how it is is they give you an all you can eat. Menu, but it's going to have I almost feel like it's a greatest hits of what they pulled off the buffet. Oh, for sure. Yeah, so it had a mix of salads and different entrees and things. You get family style. Even the desserts are that way. The main entrees you got prime rib salmon and roasted turkey.

And it was a different mix for dinner. We like a lot of food and I just felt like it wasn't the best at dinner. I agree. Yeah. So I would probably our daughter loved it. It was well worth the money for that. But I think next time I would try to get a breakfast reservation here just because of the mix of food is a little odd at dinner. But chef Mickey's is always a hit. I think people are always gonna like it. Even if the food isn't great. You're gonna still love seeing those characters in that experience. thing if you want better food, and you want similar characters, I would go to Toba Leno's terrace over at the Riviera. We ate breakfast there on our last day with our daughter and that food is great over there sure is. Yeah. So Topo. lowing knows, that, of course is another one that's hard to get. But the characters are only there in the morning. So you'll want to keep that in mind if you're making a reservation with your kiddos. And finally, another one that I had a chance to try out when we were looking at places for our daughter's birthday is rebels at the Four Seasons. On the weekends, they do have characters on Saturdays, and their food is great, and it's a little bit quieter. So if you have kids that don't like that really crowded, loud atmosphere, it gives them a chance to meet the characters in a little bit more relaxed area. So I would highly recommend that as well. Now looking beyond the resorts and the parks, we're going to talk about a couple more. And then to round everything out. And two of these are at Disney Springs, and one has a location also beyond that. And the first one I've not eaten there, but my parents have eaten there. And we have a lot of friends with kids that have eaten here and say it's great nets T Rex. It's a table service that has basically animatronic dinosaurs, which I think of your kid. There's a lot of kids that love dinosaurs, and they would love to go here. And it has caves in the big vegetation. I've seen pictures. And we've walked by there. Of course, our daughter isn't into dinosaurs. So so I don't know that we'd be top on our list right now. But if you have any kids that love them, people say between like there's a giant T Rex, there's a woolly mammoth, there's a big Raptor. It's just a very fun thing. And kids are just going to enjoy the atmosphere itself. They have a lot of fun. Just the way they've named the different entrees like they have lava lasagna, and they have paleo pizza. Like just fun little things that I think kids would get a kick out the kick out of there's even chocolate tarpit for a dessert. So T rex is a great opportunity. If you have little ones that are into dinosaurs. I think just kids in general that enjoy the sort of atmosphere. And last but not least, which I wouldn't have thought this but until we recently even went when we went to a Rainforest Cafe in Niagara Falls we did and our daughter and her friend that we were with they both loved it. Yes, they did. Yeah. So I don't think that as adults we think of Rainforest Cafe but it really is. You're in that immersive like jungle atmosphere. The kids are gonna like the animals. Our daughter has been to Disney and seen much bigger and better animatronics but she still loved the animal tronics and rain forest as well as the changing weather. So you have Rainforest Cafe at Disney Springs. And then of course, there's also one out front of animal kingdom. So it gives you a choice there. So if your kid you know what your child likes if they like animals, or if they're going to like characters, or maybe they're just really into those immersive experiences, this gives you a chance to explore all of those different options out there as well. Now we do have a few others that probably would have made the list like 1900 Park fare in the banquet hall in Norway, when she's are still unavailable. So hopefully they return back to the park soon, and those could make it on future lists. So we are looking forward to getting our call up with you Yvonne and sharing all about the services that they offer. We would like to welcome you Yvonne to the show. Her business destination sitters LLC offers babysitting services for you while you are traveling. So whether you are there at the Disney parks, or on a vacation, if you're there for a conference or attending a wedding like we had our Disney wedding, this is a way for you to be able to make sure that your kids are looked after whether it be at your hotel room or beyond. And one of the great things is that she'll talk about how they fully vet their sitters, and it makes sure that gives you that peace of mind while you are on vacation that you can maybe have a night out, and the kids are going to be safe and well taken care of. So thank you, you, Yvonne, for joining us today.

Yvonne Wonder  21:32  
Nice to have you. Thank you.

Vanessa F  21:35  
Now of course, before we get started, we always like to hear a little bit about what people enjoy at the Disney parks. So right now we've been asking people what is your favorite Disney park and why

Unknown Speaker  21:49  
I like Epcot around the world with drinking and dining. But I think mostly enjoy that because when the parents are doing Epcot, then we have the children so that they can fully enjoy their time at the park.

Vanessa F  22:07  
Nice. Now, I was able to tell a little bit about your business. But could you tell us more about your business? And what are the services you offer connected to Disney.

Yvonne Wonder  22:18  
So we can either have a sitter go in the park has an extra set of hands, because some of the rides have different height and requirements. Or we can take the littles and you know be busy with them. If the parents want to enjoy some of the older, more advanced rides with the children. We can stay in any one of the local hotels for nap time, or if parents just want to tap out and have an adult evening out whether it's dinner or enjoy themselves in the park without the children when we're there to assist with basically whatever they need us to do, or non called nanny service.

Vanessa F  22:59  
Now, if I were to have one of your sitters come with us to the park, do they have tickets? Or is that something that you would need to provide as the person hiring the service?

Yvonne Wonder  23:10  
Some of our sitters have seasons passes or annual passes? If they don't, then the parents have to provide the ticket entrance into the park.

Kris Johns  23:21  
Perfect. You know, and so with this, you know, what was your epiphany to start a business that can help families with a need of having a sitter in the park or at their hotel?

Yvonne Wonder  23:30  
Well, originally, I started in San Diego 14 years ago and was traveling with my children moved to San Diego and just saw the need for a service like this and created the idea contacted my attorney at the time and said can you know what do we have to do to provide this kind of service. And when he got back to me that there were no licensing requirements or screening requirements for the sitter's. It was a little shocked. And thought, give me all the kids I know what I'm going to put them through to, you know, work, you know, for just for my family, let alone somebody else's family and I think a lot of families make the assumption that babysitting services have some regulatory requirements when they don't, and I started in San Diego 14 years ago, and now have offices in 14 cities currently COVID We're still reopening all of them but we service families traveling San Diego, Orange County, la Santa Barbara, Palm Springs, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, Las Vegas, Orlando, Miami and Tampa in Orlando, that it's dedicated to you know, Disney World and the services like SeaWorld. We that is our busiest office hands down 24/7 year round then, you know, the regional manager Kelly's constantly on the go.

Vanessa F  25:07  
Now that's great, because of course, most of our audience are going to be thinking about their Disney vacations. And then that is also nice. It sounds like then if we were at Disney Land, then you have the office out there as well.

Unknown Speaker  25:20  
Correct. We work with all the properties around Disneyland and Disneyland itself.

Vanessa F  25:27  
Now, if you have a child that has special needs, or need some additional help with certain things, are you able to accommodate those sorts of things?

Yvonne Wonder  25:37  
Absolutely, we do all special needs children, we speak secondary languages. That's usually needs to be booked in advance. But most of those parents are aware of that. And they call us well in advance to take care of whatever specific ADHD downs autism, verbal and nonverbal requirements they might have with their child. And when we get an appropriate sitter for them that can handle whatever the specific families need. Plus, those families typically are emotionally ready to have the parents take their own break. And what a great place to do that when they have the opportunity to enjoy a little adult time and, you know, Disney World and the Disney parks,

Vanessa F  26:28  
for sure. And if we were whether it be a special needs family, or just an average family, how far in advance would someone need to book your services?

Yvonne Wonder  26:41  
I always say that if you know you're coming, and you need the services on a specific date and time to always plan ahead. With COVID, the restrictions have been a little challenging, and staffing has been a little challenging. But if we can book a last day, same day request, we'll certainly do it. It's just that's not always the wisest thing. Right. Right. Yeah,

Vanessa F  27:05  
with anything with Disney, there's always a lot of planning involved. So I definitely understand. Now, how do you think your service adds Disney magic to your customers lives?

Yvonne Wonder  27:18  
Um, I think it's several ways. One is that they don't have to bring a nanny with them. They don't have to incur the travel expenses of plane tickets and additional, you know, hotel rooms. So they can really focus on their direct family needs. And if they just want to have a say a dinner out without the children or they want to go into the park without their children, or maybe they need an extra set of hands. Then we're happy to provide that for you know, whatever the specific family's needs are. Also, the way we screen our sitters. Every single sitter is pre screened. CPR first aid certified background check, DOJ, FBI, child abuse, drug panel, random drug testing, reference check personal professional. Once they're vetted, we give them our polo shirt, ID badge and a bag of toys for in room sets. If they're going into the park, it's kind of hard to bring the tourism. We take the kids swimming, whatever, what we're really here to provide a service and as seamless as possible for families that are traveling because, you know, they're investing a lot of money into their trips, and we want to enhance that for them.

Vanessa F  28:35  
For sure. And that was going to be one of my questions. So if I'm a parent, and we're asking for in room hotel services, I don't need to worry about planning something or leaving something your your sitters are well able then it sounds like toys and stuff to be able to generate that fun, then.

Yvonne Wonder  28:52  
Absolutely. Our motto is we don't sit we play. Great. And we want the kids as busy as possible.

Vanessa F  28:59  
For sure.

Kris Johns  29:01  
You know, for parents, we're planning an upcoming vacation, whether it be to Disney or another in one of the cities that you have an office in, where can they go to find more about what you have to offer.

Yvonne Wonder  29:12  
So our websites destination centers.com, our phone number is 888-748-5439 Or it's 888 SickKids with a Z. If they book online more than 48 hours in advance, it comes in as a request. Once it comes in as a request, we immediately start working on it and contact the parents about their request. And those are the best ways to do it. We take credit cards, charge the SIDs to the cards on file can make it simple for

Kris Johns  29:48  
the parents. And then what would you encourage for you know for parents who know they're going to be in a specific location like How soon should they book with you?

Yvonne Wonder  29:59  
Once again, And I think it's more like you know, you need the service. You know, whether you're planning a trip two months out, call us we might not be able to consider on two months out, but at least elbows or reservations or time date stamps. So you have priority in that net measure. If you know you're coming in a week, a week's Great. Like, if you're in town, and all of a sudden, you've decided that you want to have an evening out with your wife or husband, give us a call. And if we can accommodate a last minute request, we'll do it. You know, we don't, it's more. You know, obviously more time is better. And I would say usually a couple days in advance is best, but doesn't have to be. 

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