Feeling frustrated with Disney--anyone?

[gotomu212]

Those that have genuinely done no planning except found out what hotel they wanted and decided to go to the Magic Kingdom first generally have a bad time of it. They walk in at 11 am having missed the best hours of the day both heat wise and crowd wise and then waste 10 minutes at the RR bridge looking at their map and deciding where to go first. They end up in long lines, tired, hot, thirsty, and frustrated when they pass by the area for that popular princess meal and can't get in. They come away thinking Disney is just not worth it. And what is worse, is some families go having issues. Well unfortunately Disney doesn't solve them. Nor do the issues wait outside the gate. On the contrary, Disney brings these issues right to the surface and lays them bare for all to see. And it's not pretty when it happens. I can't say that arguments, yelling and the like and sometimes even out and out fights are on the rise. I only know that I am seeing more of them.

Now someone like me that knows the place can get away with a week before hand reserving a room somewhere and going on a whim and still have a great time. I can find those places where things open up day of or while we're down there and adjust. Most are not to that point yet.

Not exactly disagreeing, but a lot of it depends on your travel and personality style. The first time we took my son to MK was on a whim. We were at the beach and said hey let's drive up to Disney tomorrow morning. Disclaimer it was Oct so not the insane summer crowd, but we had a fantastic time! We just rolled with it, rode the rides we remembered as children (and back in the day befor FP you had hour long waits so longer lines weren't a huge deal), we didn't eat at any of the really hard to get restaurants but we did do TS without a problem. We strolled, occasionally looked at the map, and it was great. Three years later we did it again but with my mom in tow this time-same day before whim decision.

If you are an uber planner, commando park visitor (and nothing wrong with that) the lack of a plan and possibility of a missed ride or experience would have a bad time of it. However I think those of us with a different approach also have just as great a time of it just with different expectations.

 

[cabanafrau]

It's a theme park visit and it's just gotten to be so far removed from relaxing it isn't even funny. A real kick in the pants to me is the fact that if you want to be able to plan your days a certain way, take in specific attractions or eat at certain times of day at certain restaurants you have to jump through hoops X number of months or days in advance. Conversely, Disney sees no problem with making very short term announcements regarding closures and hours and offerings. It's one thing in the case of something suddenly needing unanticipated repair or maintenance, obviously safety of guests and CMs trumps everything. But if I as your guest need to book 180 days out or whatever timeframe is involved if I want to secure my being able to do something, then IMO Disney certainly should be obligated to respect my time, my money and my planning with the decency of making announcements affecting the timeframe of my visit before the window of reservations opens on my visit.

Going to WDW used to be an attractive option in that I could book my visit, arrive, drop my bags and head out for days of fun without being a slave to planning or a clock. Now even if I give my best due diligence I cannot rely on the company to act in a manner to respect my reservations, instead they think nothing to undo my efforts with little to no notice. No thanks, there's a whole big world out there to experience.

 

[Realfoodfans]

Let me ask this... you say you're frustrated at Disney, but what would you like them to do to fix the "problem"? The "problem" isn't Disney. It's the "uber planners" who have the reservations tied up. It's not like Disney can make more reservations. An attraction/restaurant can only go through so many people at a time.

I do agree with you but I do wonder is there a way they keep a certain amount of bookings for walk ups etc?
I was on the ball (only wanted three TS ADR's) and got what I planned - then my DGS said he thought we would go to TRex - on no I hadn't booked that. No problem I thought I'll book us a lunch for departure day - nothing available-- lunch on our rest day - nothing- that evening- nothing - I was surprised cannot believe TRex is fully booked for 8 weeks time!

 

[PrincessJo]

I agree with the previous poster who mentioned the 'uber planners'. That's me.

On our 60 day mark I was up at the computer logging in at 6am (CST). By the time I logged in, got to the FP+ page and went through the process, it was 6:06 am and I snagged a FP for Flight of Passage 6:00 - 7:00 pm... and one minute later they were all taken. It was barely 6:07 am here in Texas. It took 7 minutes and they were all gone.

Not exactly Disney's fault, IMHO.

 

[sam_gordon]

I do agree with you but I do wonder is there a way they keep a certain amount of bookings for walk ups etc?

I don't think that's a bad idea, and they might still do that. Now, do you have to truly "walk up" to make a reservation for later that day? Do you have to call? What time can you call? How many seats do they keep open? People can travel to Disney in large (say 10+) parties. Do you need to accommodate a party of 10? If you leave seats for 10 open, do you accept a party of 6 and one of 4?

On a side note... anyone else remember getting off Spaceship Earth and having video terminals where you did a face to face chat with a reservations person?

 

[DisMommyTX]

Let me ask this... you say you're frustrated at Disney, but what would you like them to do to fix the "problem"? The "problem" isn't Disney. It's the "uber planners" who have the reservations tied up. It's not like Disney can make more reservations. An attraction/restaurant can only go through so many people at a time.

Booking restaurants 180 days in advance makes everything worse. Many people make extra reservations because they don't yet know the details of their trip. We aren't even sure which resort we are staying at until AP discounts come out! We don't know which parks we are going to on which days because the calendars are not updated that far out. Changing park hours, night-time entertainment schedules, and emh shifts all affect other decisions during the trip. By the time we book our FP at 60 days out, we finally have a pretty good idea what our days will look like, but if we wait until then to book restaurants, the ones we want are not likely to be available--especially when we have 8-12 people in our party!

I think only hotels should be booked way in advance. Reservations for restaurants should start 70ish days out, followed quickly by FP. However, Disney needs to have calendars and schedules finalized by that point and commit to not making any changes except in extreme circumstances. Or, book restaurants 45 days out, FP at 30 days for on-site and 20 days for off-site guests. By then, people would be able to lock in plans without having to guess or hedge which is what leads to those frustrating multiple ressies tying up seats.

Of course, as far as Disney is concerned, restaurants are always full, so there is nothing to fix!

 

[Realfoodfans]

I don't think that's a bad idea, and they might still do that. Now, do you have to truly "walk up" to make a reservation for later that day? Do you have to call? What time can you call? How many seats do they keep open? People can travel to Disney in large (say 10+) parties. Do you need to accommodate a party of 10? If you leave seats for 10 open, do you accept a party of 6 and one of 4?

On a side note... anyone else remember getting off Spaceship Earth and having video terminals where you did a face to face chat with a reservations person?

Last time DH and I were there on our own for a short trip before travelling to Anna Marie Island we went the evening before to RC at DS and got a table for the next evening.

 

[Pkltm]

I do agree with you but I do wonder is there a way they keep a certain amount of bookings for walk ups etc?
I was on the ball (only wanted three TS ADR's) and got what I planned - then my DGS said he thought we would go to TRex - on no I hadn't booked that. No problem I thought I'll book us a lunch for departure day - nothing available-- lunch on our rest day - nothing- that evening- nothing - I was surprised cannot believe TRex is fully booked for 8 weeks time!

For T-rex, just call and ask for one. 1-407-828-8739, we have had way better luck with that.

 

[LittleMissMagic]

I do agree with you but I do wonder is there a way they keep a certain amount of bookings for walk ups etc?
I was on the ball (only wanted three TS ADR's) and got what I planned - then my DGS said he thought we would go to TRex - on no I hadn't booked that. No problem I thought I'll book us a lunch for departure day - nothing available-- lunch on our rest day - nothing- that evening- nothing - I was surprised cannot believe TRex is fully booked for 8 weeks time!

Actually, T-Rex has walk-ups available. You'll need to stand in a line and put your name in, and then the wait could be up to three hours depending on crowds. But at lunch, it should be no problem to walk up. Especially if you do an early lunch (get there as soon as it opens).

T-Rex books up fast because they only reserve a percentage of the restaurant, and the rest goes to walk-ups. Same with Rainforest Cafe in Disney Springs. The other thing you could do, like the previous poster mentioned, is call the restaurant directly. They can usually get you a reservation.

 

[sam_gordon]

Booking restaurants 180 days in advance makes everything worse. Many people make extra reservations because they don't yet know the details of their trip. We aren't even sure which resort we are staying at until AP discounts come out! We don't know which parks we are going to on which days because the calendars are not updated that far out. Changing park hours, night-time entertainment schedules, and emh shifts all affect other decisions during the trip. By the time we book our FP at 60 days out, we finally have a pretty good idea what our days will look like, but if we wait until then to book restaurants, the ones we want are not likely to be available--especially when we have 8-12 people in our party!

I think many people DO know the details of their trip 180 days out. They know where they're staying, what time they're arriving, and where they'd like to eat.

I think only hotels should be booked way in advance. Reservations for restaurants should start 70ish days out, followed quickly by FP. However, Disney needs to have calendars and schedules finalized by that point and commit to not making any changes except in extreme circumstances. Or, book restaurants 45 days out, FP at 30 days for on-site and 20 days for off-site guests. By then, people would be able to lock in plans without having to guess or hedge which is what leads to those frustrating multiple ressies tying up seats.

Shouldn't people who plan more benefit? The number of days is arbitrary. No matter how many days out, someone is going to be upset because they called two minutes late and didn't get any of their restaurants.

Maybe Disney does this already, but they should limit how many restaurants you can reserve in a day, and what times you can reserve. So you can reserve one restaurant (anywhere in the World) between 6a-10a, one between 11a-2p, and one between 5p-9p. You can also make a cancellation policy... 24 hours, 72 hours, or a week from the reservation, you're "locked in". If you cancel anytime after that, you lose your deposit.

 

[Realfoodfans]

Actually, T-Rex has walk-ups available. You'll need to stand in a line and put your name in, and then the wait could be up to three hours depending on crowds. But at lunch, it should be no problem to walk up. Especially if you do an early lunch (get there as soon as it opens).

T-Rex books up fast because they only reserve a percentage of the restaurant, and the rest goes to walk-ups. Same with Rainforest Cafe in Disney Springs. The other thing you could do, like the previous poster mentioned, is call the restaurant directly. They can usually get you a reservation.

That makes sense now - first time we went we got a booking for a couple of hours after we arrived at DS - I will ring tomorrow thank you!

 

[amberpi]

I think the dining reservations thing is especially insane. The best restaurants in the US - like the French Laundtry, Alinea, Per Se, for instance only take reservations up to like 2 months out. Seems insane to have to reserve a crappy buffet at 6 months out. Its something my brain literally can't comprehend.

 

[loves to dive]

I don't think that's a bad idea, and they might still do that. Now, do you have to truly "walk up" to make a reservation for later that day? Do you have to call? What time can you call? How many seats do they keep open? People can travel to Disney in large (say 10+) parties. Do you need to accommodate a party of 10? If you leave seats for 10 open, do you accept a party of 6 and one of 4?

On a side note... anyone else remember getting off Spaceship Earth and having video terminals where you did a face to face chat with a reservations person?

I do, I do. We loved walking up to the little TVs and seeing the person and talking to them, very high tech at the time.

 

[Minnesota!]

I think many people DO know the details of their trip 180 days out. They know where they're staying, what time they're arriving, and where they'd like to eat.

Shouldn't people who plan more benefit? The number of days is arbitrary. No matter how many days out, someone is going to be upset because they called two minutes late and didn't get any of their restaurants.

Maybe Disney does this already, but they should limit how many restaurants you can reserve in a day, and what times you can reserve. So you can reserve one restaurant (anywhere in the World) between 6a-10a, one between 11a-2p, and one between 5p-9p. You can also make a cancellation policy... 24 hours, 72 hours, or a week from the reservation, you're "locked in". If you cancel anytime after that, you lose your deposit.

They used to have a system in place where you couldn't book more than one meal in a span of time. No idea when (or why) that went away.

I would like to see the 180 go away, too. That's 6 fricking months. I rarely book a vacation at 6 months out. It's more like 3 - 4. And that is plenty of time to secure a hotel, flights, any pressing ADR's or FP's. The 180 thing is ridonkulous.

 

[leebee]

I remember the days of Redial, redial, redial, Thank ......1 enter 2 enter 1 enter 1 enter. Thank you. Your call will be answered in the order it was received.
Wait for it wait for it wait for it. Thank.....CINDERELLA'S ROYAL TABLE!!!!!
And if you had a 10 day trip or something, you had to call for each day like 10 days in a row. HAHA.

Ah, I remember it well! The things we'd do for breakfast in the Castle!

 

[MKCP5]

OP here.
We are a party of 5. Three of the five have never been back to WDW since we all worked there together on the college program in it's very early days. I've been back several times but as I said some of the others havent and may not get there again. I really wasn't looking for all that much. I really wanted them to experience BOG. I have looked/watched for anything during lunch or dinner at BOG on the day we will be in the MK. No specific time needed. That's the biggest one. Nothing. Maybe it will open up when we are closer to the date.
I really wanted to start our trip with Cali Grill our first night for a special celebration together. Nothing unless I wanted to eat in the late afternoon. We won't all have even arrived by that time.
Wanted to go to the Rose & Crown in the evening. Nothing.

It will work out. Food and Wine is going on while we are at EPCOT, so that will give us some fun options without ADR's. Maybe the others will open up as well as a FP for Pandora. We will have fun no matter what, it just really seems this trip like it's been very tough to make a couple of reservations and get things settled. Maybe it's because others make 3 dining reservations each day and then don't use them...I don't know. It's just been very frustrating. Thanks for all your thoughts.

 

[MKCP5]

Let me ask this... you say you're frustrated at Disney, but what would you like them to do to fix the "problem"? The "problem" isn't Disney. It's the "uber planners" who have the reservations tied up. It's not like Disney can make more reservations. An attraction/restaurant can only go through so many people at a time.

I don't know what I want them to do. I said I am frustrated with the process. I just feel that it shouldn't be this difficult. I could understand if there was something I couldn't get a reservation for. I could understand if I waited til the last minute. I could understand if I was looking for 10 or 12 reservations. But when I am using the systems that they put in place, and I am literally at my keyboard at 6am typing, and not ONE of the requests can be met, that's a system that isn't working well in my opinion.

 

[MKCP5]

I don't think that's a bad idea, and they might still do that. Now, do you have to truly "walk up" to make a reservation for later that day? Do you have to call? What time can you call? How many seats do they keep open? People can travel to Disney in large (say 10+) parties. Do you need to accommodate a party of 10? If you leave seats for 10 open, do you accept a party of 6 and one of 4?

On a side note... anyone else remember getting off Spaceship Earth and having video terminals where you did a face to face chat with a reservations person?

I do remember that! It was high tech back in the day!

 

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

I don't know what I want them to do. I said I am frustrated with the process. I just feel that it shouldn't be this difficult. I could understand if there was something I couldn't get a reservation for. I could understand if I waited til the last minute. I could understand if I was looking for 10 or 12 reservations. But when I am using the systems that they put in place, and I am literally at my keyboard at 6am typing, and not ONE of the requests can be met, that's a system that isn't working well in my opinion.

With all due respect and I'm not attempting to sound mean here. Disney literally has hundreds of places between their parks to eat (and a decent chunk are places where you can make an ADR). What the issue is is that you want several very specific places to eat with a party of 5 and you're not finding availability at this current time for when you want them.

For Rose & Crown I'd imagine that at least to an extent Illuminations! makes evening harder to find reservations (depending on the time of night of course). BOG has been typically the hardest to get though some people have had luck in the "just keep checking" camp and California Grill you want the first night (a very specific date and time). Flexibility generally seems to work easier on these or opening what you want to other restaurants. Most of the time the threads I see regarding availability issues is a "I want BOG for Breakfast on Sunday the X" and I want "Y for Dinner on Monday the Z" if you get what I mean.

Now FPs can be different but a party of 5 at times can be harder from what I've heard. Have you tried looking for 1 or 2 people at a time and seeing if there was greater availability there? I know some people have used the method of booking for say 2 people at 1:00-2:00 and then another 2 people for 1:15-2:15 and so on since there is an hr window to be able to use the FP. FOP will still be harder to get (I believe right now it's the hardest).

All this being said I actually do understand where people are coming from with the 180 days aspect though from what I understand they had shorter time frame (like 90 days or even less) in the past. I do also understand the frustration is even more when its multiple plans just aren't working out at once, best laid plans and all.

 

[Cannot_Wait_4Disney]

Ah, I remember it well! The things we'd do for breakfast in the Castle!

That's right. I had forgotten that little detail until I saw your post. Way back then, they only had the characters at breakfast. You had to do all that to even have a chance at it. If you weren't redial redial redial before they opened and got in right when they did, you had a Snowball's chance in Hades of getting it. And even if you went through all that, there was a good chance you weren't going to get it. I was lucky in that the very first year we wanted to go there we were on the DDP and they had just added the characters at lunch. So I waited past the recording that says if you're waiting for CRT, too bad and I reserved lunch. The lunch wasn't common knowledge quite yet at the time. And it was only one punch. They changed it to a signature two punch soon after. HAHA. We were soooooooo lucky.