ADR in a park without paying for a whole day?

[dan40]

If I make a dining reservation for a restaurant inside a park, and all I want to do is go there and eat and then leave, can I enter that park without using up a day of my park hopper pass?

For example, if I have an ADR at the Brown Derby at DHS but am not going to the park on that day, can I just go to the restaurant?

 

[DisBuckMan]

No...all in-park restaurants require regular theme park admission.

 

[Disney_Alli]

If you book an ADR in the park part of the Ts&Cs you click "Agree" on and don't read state that you will require valid ticket media to enter the park and dine in that location.

 

[Hopefully]

No

 

[Nancyg56]

If I make a dining reservation for a restaurant inside a park, and all I want to do is go there and eat and then leave, can I enter that park without using up a day of my park hopper pass?

For example, if I have an ADR at the Brown Derby at DHS but am not going to the park on that day, can I just go to the restaurant?

No. You need to pay for your ticket, so you might as well book meals in the park you are visiting, or at a resort.

 

[sharonabe]

can I enter that park without using up a day of my park hopper pass?

One of the reasons people buy the park hopper option is so they can go into a park and eat and then go to another park. Are you not visiting ANY park on the day you want to do HBD?

 

[d-train]

If you have park hoppers - that should work fine.
If you are going to a park at all - not using a day of your tickets, this will not work.

 

[dan40]

One of the reasons people buy the park hopper option is so they can go into a park and eat and then go to another park. Are you not visiting ANY park on the day you want to do HBD?

No, I was thinking that if I'm going to be doing my "day off" from the parks but I have a reservation at, for example, the Brown Derby at DHS, then I don't want to use up a day's park hopper just to go to the restaurant.

I vaguely recall doing this on a previous trip and the CMs were very accommodating. They even escorted me to the restaurant. I can't remember how I got out though!

 

[dan40]

If you have park hoppers - that should work fine.
If you are going to a park at all - not using a day of your tickets, this will not work.

I do have a park hopper pass.

 

[eeyoreandtink]

I vaguely recall doing this on a previous trip and the CMs were very accommodating. They even escorted me to the restaurant. I can't remember how I got out though!

How long ago was this, because I have been traveling to Disney for almost a decade and NEVER heard of this being an option, ever. As several PPs have said, there is currently zero chance of this happening.

 

[eeyoreandtink]

I do have a park hopper pass.

Why not just add a day then?

 

[d-train]

Depending on how many days your have tickets for already - it would not be much (in relation to the cost of the whole trip...)
to add a day. Then when you do HBD at HS - do your 3 FP+'s - take the rest of the day off...

 

[rwdavis2]

Depending on how many days your have tickets for already - it would not be much (in relation to the cost of the whole trip...)
to add a day. Then when you do HBD at HS - do your 3 FP+'s - take the rest of the day off...

I agree with this. If you are already there for 4-5 days then the cost adding a day is insignificant.

 

[ddluvsdisney]

No you can't do that. I would just eat outside the park that day if you don't want to spend the day in a park.

 

[dan40]

Thanks everyone, yes, I have a 5-day park hopper pass. I may end up adding another day but leisure time will be at a premium if I do that. Arrival on Saturday, MK on Sunday, Epcot on Tuesday, day off and Disney Springs on Wednesday, DHS on Thursday, Animal Kingdom on Friday, home on Saturday. I could purchase an extra day for Wednesday if it doesn't cost me much but I'll be dead on my feet.

 

[_auroraborealis_]

At one time, in the distant past, they did allow in-park ADRs without a ticket. It was a long time ago.

 

[dan40]

How long ago was this, because I have been traveling to Disney for almost a decade and NEVER heard of this being an option, ever. As several PPs have said, there is currently zero chance of this happening.

Maybe it was during the "Year of a Million Dreams" celebration because ordinarily one couldn't do this and I just got lucky.

 

[dan40]

At one time, in the distant past, they did allow in-park ADRs without a ticket. It was a long time ago.

I think that's when I was there. That's where my vague recollection is coming from!

 

[supersnoop]

I think that's when I was there. That's where my vague recollection is coming from!

They use to offer a "shopping pass" where you paid for a one-day ticket, but they refunded it if you returned to the ticket booth within a certain timeframe; an hour or maybe 90 minutes. Is that maybe what you did?

 

[disneyvoice]

I would definitely just go ahead and add the extra day.