Akershus Royal Banquet Hall Dinner Review
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in the Norway Pavilion at EPCOT is one of the best places at Walt Disney World to meet multiple Disney Princesses during one meal. This character dining experience takes place inside a medieval-style castle, with family-style food served right to your table while princesses visit throughout the meal.
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We recently had dinner at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall, and while we still prefer breakfast here overall, dinner was an enjoyable experience with good food, wonderful character interactions, and a beautiful setting. Learn more about the breakfast at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall in this article.
Akershus is also a great alternative to Cinderella’s Royal Table if you aren’t able to get that reservation, if you won’t have a Magic Kingdom day planned, or if you’d rather meet princesses while dining inside EPCOT.
Overview of Akershus Royal Banquet Hall Dinner
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall is located in the Norway Pavilion in EPCOT’s World Showcase. This is the main princess character dining location inside EPCOT, making it a convenient option if your family wants a royal dining experience without leaving the park.
The restaurant has a storybook castle feel, with tall ceilings, warm lighting, and a banquet hall atmosphere that works well for a princess meal. During dinner, you’ll dine family-style while several Disney Princesses make their way around the dining room.
This is a nice option for families who want to meet multiple princesses in one place, especially if standing in several character lines during the day doesn’t sound appealing.
While we enjoyed dinner, our favorite meal at Akershus is still breakfast. We loved our recent breakfast experience here, especially with the updated family-style service. For families with kids, breakfast may also be the easier meal choice because the food options are more familiar.
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall Dinner Menu Selections
Dinner at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall is served family-style, so the food is brought to your table to share. The menu has Norwegian-inspired options along with some more familiar flavors.
For dinner, you can expect items such as salad, Norwegian-style meatballs, salmon, chicken, cheeses, and family-style desserts. On our visit, our favorites were the salmon, salad, cheeses, and dessert.
We thought the dinner had a good selection of items, and the food was fresh and enjoyable. The family-style setup also makes the meal feel relaxed since you don’t have to leave the table to go through a buffet.
That said, the dinner menu may not be quite as kid-friendly as the breakfast menu. If your kids are picky eaters or prefer classic breakfast foods, breakfast may be the better choice for your family.
Before booking, I recommend looking over the current menu to make sure it will work for everyone in your group. This is especially important with Akershus because lunch and dinner have a more unique menu than some of the other character dining meals at Disney World.
Characters You’ll See at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
Character appearances are always subject to change, but Akershus Royal Banquet Hall is known for Disney Princess character dining. At my dinner, I was able to meet Belle, Tiana, Ariel, Rapunzel, and Snow White. You can see the variety of princesses that may make an appearance here on the card below!
During your meal, the princesses come around to the tables to greet guests, take photos, and sign autographs. This makes it a great way to meet several princesses without spending park time waiting in multiple character lines.
We’ve seen princesses such as Belle, Ariel, Cinderella, Snow White, Aurora, Rapunzel, and Tiana. The exact lineup can vary, so part of the fun is seeing who you’ll meet during your meal.
The character interactions are one of the biggest reasons to book Akershus. If your child loves princesses, this can be such a memorable meal.
Reservations and Planning
Reservations are highly recommended for Akershus Royal Banquet Hall, especially because it is one of the main princess dining experiences at Walt Disney World.
You can make reservations through the My Disney Experience app or on the Disney World website. Since this is a popular character meal, I recommend booking as early as possible if Akershus is a priority for your trip.
If you aren’t able to find the reservation time you want right away, keep checking. Dining reservations do open up sometimes as other guests cancel or adjust their plans.
You can also use a reservation alert service like MouseDining to be notified if a time becomes available.
Meal Pricing at Akershus
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall is one of the more expensive dining options at EPCOT because it is a character dining experience.
Dinner is currently listed by Disney as a higher-priced meal, and it is also important to note that lunch and dinner require 2 Table-Service credits per person when using the Disney Dining Plan.
This makes dinner at Akershus less of a strong Dining Plan value compared to breakfast here, which has typically been the better value option for our family.
There are also several character dining experiences at Walt Disney World that only use 1 Table-Service credit for lunch or dinner, including 1900 Park Fare, Chef Mickey’s, Garden Grill, Hollywood & Vine, The Crystal Palace, and Tusker House.
For that reason, if you’re using the Disney Dining Plan, I would probably recommend booking breakfast at Akershus instead of lunch or dinner. Breakfast at Akershus was one of our favorite meals of the trip, and it is a better use of dining credits. Below was our appetizer plate from our recent breakfast there, and you can learn more about the breakfast in this article too!
However, if your main goal is to meet princesses while dining in EPCOT, dinner might still be worth it for the experience. Especially if the timing works out better for your family!
Is Akershus Dinner Worth It?
Akershus dinner is worth considering if meeting Disney Princesses is a priority for your trip.
It is slightly less expensive than Cinderella’s Royal Table, and it gives you the chance to meet several princesses in one meal. It’s also a great option if you can’t get a Cinderella’s Royal Table reservation or if your itinerary doesn’t include a Magic Kingdom day.
For food alone, I would say there are other EPCOT restaurants I might choose first. But when you factor in the character experience, the beautiful setting, and the convenience of meeting several princesses at dinner, Akershus still has a lot to offer.
For families with younger kids, I would compare the dinner menu with the breakfast menu before booking. Breakfast may be the safer choice for picky eaters, while dinner may appeal more to families who enjoy salmon, salads, cheeses, and Norwegian-inspired dishes. We prefer the breakfast at this particular character dining location and think it offers the best value too!
Rating Akershus Royal Banquet Hall Dinner at EPCOT
We had a good dinner experience at Akershus Royal Banquet Hall. The character interactions were wonderful, the setting is beautiful, and we enjoyed several of the dinner menu items, especially the salmon, salad, cheeses, and dessert.
However, breakfast is still our favorite meal here. (Five stars for breakfast!) The breakfast options are more familiar for kids, and it is a better value if you are using the Disney Dining Plan.
I would recommend Akershus dinner if your family wants to meet princesses in EPCOT or if you weren’t able to get a reservation at Cinderella’s Royal Table. But if you have flexibility, I would personally book breakfast at Akershus first.
Akershus Royal Banquet Hall remains a lovely princess dining experience, and dinner can still be a great choice for families who want a royal meal in EPCOT.
Want to plan more character dining during your trip? Here’s my guide to Character Dining at Disney!
Disclaimer:
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