Edited: Friday, January 22, 2016

We are back with another great question from the DFB Inbox! And we figured if one of you asked, then many of you probably wonder the same thing. 🙂

Today, our reader asks:

My family and I are planning to dine at many Disney table service restaurants on our next visit. We are a party of six, but there’s an infant who won’t be eating in our group. Will gratuity be automatically added to our bill?

As many of you know, Disney automatically adds a gratuity of 18% for parties of 6 or more when you dine at a table service location. (This also includes buffet-style restaurants.) But what happens if you have an infant or toddler who won’t be eating?

According to several calls to WDW-DINE, the headcount of “six or more” technically refers to guests who are over the age of three; but based on the comments we received below, we called a few more times. We were told that the policy states “six or more” and that it is left up the restaurant’s discretion whether or not they will charge. We were told that restaurants will rarely charge the gratuity if the sixth person is under the age of 3, but as you can see from the comments, it DOES happen. Thanks to our commenters for sharing their experiences!

Not counting toward the total number for gratuity is consistent with other areas at Disney. For instance, infants and toddlers are admitted to the Parks when they’re under the age of three for free. And the under-three set can share off of your plate at buffets and all-you-care-to-enjoy restaurants for free as well.

Keep in mind, however, that if you’re using the Tables in Wonderland discount card, gratuity is automatically added to the bill, regardless of the size of your party. Also, if you are in a situation where the gratuity is added automatically, you can always increase the amount if you’d like.

Now we’d love to hear from you! Do you agree with the automatic gratuity assessment? Leave a comment and let us know your thoughts!