As others have said, you can make ADRs anywhere ... it doesn't cross check with your park reservations. To date, it's my understanding that no one has been denied park hopping, however, I anticipate that parks may sometimes reach capacity around the 50th anniversary (10/1). You can make reservations at any resort, you don't need to be staying there. If driving yourself, the guard will likely verify that you have an ADR in order to allow you to park.
Here are some other tips/tricks:
- ADRs open for online reservations at 6am ET - some have reported being able to make even a bit earlier (~5:45-5:50)
- Make ADRs using website NOT the My Disney Experience app - the app is very finicky
- Using an in private/in cognito web page may help
- If you know what restaurant you want (vs. just wanting to see what is available at a certain time), many have reported it's better to search from that restaurant's page within the Disney site vs. the main dining page
- You may get more results searching for a specific time (e.g. 8 am) vs. a general meal (e.g. breakfast). Try it both ways.
- Another quirk of the system is that sometimes searching for an even-numbered party size returns more results than searching for an odd-number (e.g. for a party of 3, search for 4). Again, can try it both ways to see what comes up.
- Most of the Disney Springs table service restaurants (with the notable exception of Homecomin') offer reservations on OpenTable and sometimes show more availability than the Disney System. Big River Bar & Grill at Boardwalk and restaurants at Swan and Dolphin are also on OpenTable.
- Don't panic if you don't get what you want - people are changing their plans all the times - just keep checking
- There are a few free reservation finder services (there are also some paid services). They will alert you when what you're looking for becomes available but you still need to log in and book it yourself so you have to act quickly when you get one
Good luck!
