First Time at Disney in Over a Decade and Struggling with Dining Procedures

[hershey4]

My husband and I will be at Disney World (arrive 1/24, check out on 2/1) for the first time since January 2012, so there will be many changes for us. This is clearly more of a last minute trip, and I'm trying to get a grasp on a few things. We have purchased the Dining Plan and will have eight table service meals and eight quick service meals. I've already booked the first night's dinner at Boatwright's (we are staying at Port Orleans Riverside).

Now for the remaining seven table service meals. How do I go about planning all my meals when I don't know for sure which park I'll be at on a given day?? The last time we went (we also had the dining plan) I was able to just make a same day reservation based on the park we were in that day. I am NOT super set on any particular restaurant. Is there any chance we can risk just making a same day reservation like we did 12 years ago? If I'm flexible on the restaurant, could that work? Or am I totally living in the past, lol?

I just don't happen to be someone who enjoys planning out every minute of my day. I know that I can make a reservation and change it, but my understanding is that it needs to be cancelled 24 hours before. Would that be a decent compromise? Hope that I can get a change, if so desired, the day before? It's not QUITE as bad as looking for a same day reservation.

Thanks for any advice!


Oops! Just realized that I probably should have posted this in the restaurant forum!

 

[1lilspark]

It depends were there certain restaurants you were hoping to dine in?

 

[disneydreamer1980]

You will more than likely be able to get something, though possibly not the most popular ones like the castle. Many people cancel last minute so you should be ok if you’re not too picky. With the dining plan in force again though it’ll be harder to get tables than before, so keep that in mind too.

 

[champagne&disney]

It is going to be hard to get reservations to anything popular - you may get lucky or you may be stuck with 9pm slots only. So it will really depend on what you're hoping for.

Boatwright's is one of the easier gets so I wouldn't judge the rest of your trip based on that. And with the re-introduction of the DDP, it is going to make getting reservations even harder than it has been the last several years.

I would do my best to book out something for every night now and hope to be able to change otherwise I would worry you won't get to use all the TS credits.

 

[fla4fun]

Since you say you’re flexible, I think in most cases you will be able to find something. Since the newish cancellation policy is to cancel no less than two hours before your ADR, I would suggest that you start looking first thing once you know which park you are going to, and if nothing is available at that time, try again about two hours before you want to dine. I agree that we don’t know how the return of the dining plan will affect ADR availability, so you should also have a plan B in mind, in case you can’t get a reservation inside a park.

I do not see the benefit in making ADRs now if you aren’t planning to be at the parks on specific days. If you make an ADR at AK and then decide to go to DHS, having the AK ADR gives you no advantage, and actually increases your tasks since you have the extra step of modifying/cancelling it to avoid the no-show penalty.

 

[gottalovepluto]

Don’t forget hotels also have TS restaurants so if a park is sold out you could hop to a hotel.

The ADR cancellation window is now 2 hours prior to the ADR.

 

[hershey4]

Two hours is SO much better than a 24 hour cancellation. Ok, I will see if I can predict which park we will be at for at least of couple of days and make reservations. MK is my favorite, so I'll probably head there the first full day.

 

[champagne&disney]

I forgot to say I hope you have the most magical trip after so long!!!! I'm truly excited for you.

 

[Best Aunt]

Deleting since it appears I was incorrect.

 

[SkyGuy]

I'm confused. Maybe I'm missing something.

Don't you have to know which park you will be going to for the start of each day? I think you will need to have either a date-based theme park ticket or a theme park reservation. If you have a park hopper pass, I think by then you will be able to hop to a different park at any time of day, so you might not know where you are going to end your day. But I think you have to plan in advance where you will start your day. So get a lunch ADR for the park where you will start your day. Then do quick service where you will end your day, because you don't need an ADR for that.

That's a whole lot of food. I haven't paid much attention, but I think in the past you could trade the quick service meals for snacks, so some people got snacks to take home with them.

Park reservation with a date-based ticket will no longer be required as of Jan 9, so she can just wing it. PH restrictions also disappear that day.

 

[jdisnut]

If you are flexible about where and when you eat, you shouldn’t have a problem finding reservations to use your credits. The most popular restaurants will likely be booked, but even those often have last-minute tables pop up. If you log onto the app while waiting on a ride line and check for openings, you’ll definitely find availability at many places for later that day.

I’m wondering why you purchased the dining plan at all. Are you sure it’s right for you? I find that it isn’t for most people, and if you’re not eager to dine at the most expensive places, perhaps you don’t want to be locked in?

Just a thought.

 

[sponica]

It's been an eternity since we were a party of 2, but if you're flexible, you should be able to find something. We stumbled into a last minute Le Cellier reservation one time.

 

[Skippyboo]

Do you have park hoppers on your tickets? Park hoppers would give more flexibility w your dining. You could go to MK and then hop to Epcot for dinner. Signature restaurants are 2 TS credits.

I would go ahead now and book some ADR for TS on dining plan (double check because all aren’t on it). Probably have more availability for DS table service or hotel restaurants . Then you still have park flexibility.

Character dining like Crystal Palace or Tusker House are good uses of TS credits and Epcot festival food booths are good use of snack credits.

 

[_19disnA]

People tend to make a lot of ADR's ahead of time then cancel them closer to the date in order to avoid that 'no-show' fee. You can find many older threads where people have found open times closer to the travel dates as these reservations get cancelled. Every restaurant is NOT sold out for your entire vacation. You don't need to make all of your ADR's months in advance of your trip. You can also get added to a wait list at many places if you don't have an ADR.

 

[Mle8308]

I would cancel the DP, especially if you don't have set TS restaurants you want to dine at. You may get lucky and find what you want, or you may not. It's not saving you money by using the DP, it's a convenience. We did the table service DP once and would not do it again. We felt all we did was interrupt our vacation/park day to go to a reservation we had made 60 (or even more a few years ago) days out and really didn't want to eat there when the actual reservation time came. But since we had paid for it... You would probably be better off just getting rid of the DP and eating where you want when you want. The only way you may break even is if you order the most expensive item off the menu at each restaurant (even if it's not what you want to eat) and order an alcoholic drink at each meal. Even then it will be close. Oh, and the tip is no longer included, so if you order the most expensive entree, the tip goes up! Something to consider if you still have time to cancel it.

 

[beccasmom]

Don’t forget hotels also have TS restaurants so if a park is sold out you could hop to a hotel.

The ADR cancellation window is now 2 hours prior to the ADR.

The two-hour window for cancellation has made our lives easier for sure. We don’t make a lot of ADRs except for places we really enjoy and then only for maybe one meal a day. But we don‘t purchase the dining plan and enjoy counter service for a change of pace. There’s a lot of variety of places to choose from and of course that includes the resorts and Disney Springs. Except for the most popular places, we’ve rarely had an issue booking our choice, although we might have to eat a little earlier or later than we would prefer. I think you should be fine, especially since you won‘t be booking for a large group, which can be challenging.

 

[SkyGuy]

I’m thinking (and perhaps wrongly) that we won’t see as many last-minute tables available once the dining plan returns. People participating will feel the need to use their TS credits as opposed to simply not spending money if they’re not feeling it.

 

[Skippyboo]

I would cancel the DP, especially if you don't have set TS restaurants you want to dine at. You may get lucky and find what you want, or you may not. It's not saving you money by using the DP, it's a convenience. We did the table service DP once and would not do it again. We felt all we did was interrupt our vacation/park day to go to a reservation we had made 60 (or even more a few years ago) days out and really didn't want to eat there when the actual reservation time came. But since we had paid for it... You would probably be better off just getting rid of the DP and eating where you want when you want. The only way you may break even is if you order the most expensive item off the menu at each restaurant (even if it's not what you want to eat) and order an alcoholic drink at each meal. Even then it will be close. Oh, and the tip is no longer included, so if you order the most expensive entree, the tip goes up! Something to consider if you still have time to cancel it.

Doubt they can cancel the DP if they are going in 21 days. It’s a package so it would be already paid off by now.

 

[hershey4]

We had the Dining Plan the last time we went and enjoyed having it, so I'm not looking to cancel, even if I could (which as said above, its probably too late to do so anyway).

I have tentatively booked an assortment of restaurants for the week as best as I could. There was plenty of availability, as least as of today! With the 2 hour cancellation window, we could always see what (if) restaurants were available on the day we were already in a given park and cancel the original reservation if we wanted to make a change.

Now I just need to keep my fingers crossed that the crowds are normal/a little below normal, as predicted!

 

[mn51]

My husband and I do not make many dining reservations. We rarely have an issue getting the place we want by walking up. However, we are not particular about the time we eat which helps. Hopefully the crowds won't be bad so it will work out for you. Have a great trip!