Anyone else resistant to ADRs?

[iheartgoofy]

I go to WDW once a year, but I just can't get into making ADRs. We're very much spur-of-the-moment people and it's just impossible to predict what park we'll be in or what dining experience we'll be in the mood for on any given day.

This is our first year going during F&W and I'm a little nervous that we won't get in anywhere (considering it's also free dining). But I can't bring myself to commit to putting such a strict schedule together either.

We're not picky, and don't really have any 'must do' restaurants, so I think we're just going to play it by ear and either eat at odd times and/or avoid the most popular restaurants.

Just wondering... is anyone else as stubborn as I am? I would love to be able to plan like I see some people do, but I just can't get into it!

 

[NJmommy33]

I go to WDW once a year, but I just can't get into making ADRs. We're very much spur-of-the-moment people and it's just impossible to predict what park we'll be in or what dining experience we'll be in the mood for on any given day.

This is our first year going during F&W and I'm a little nervous that we won't get in anywhere (considering it's also free dining). But I can't bring myself to commit to putting such a strict schedule together either.

We're not picky, and don't really have any 'must do' restaurants, so I think we're just going to play it by ear and either eat at odd times and/or avoid the most popular restaurants.

Just wondering... is anyone else as stubborn as I am? I would love to be able to plan like I see some people do, but I just can't get into it!

We did them our first family disney trip and it actually was just short of ruining the vacation. I cannot decide 6 months in advance what time I want lunch, what park I want to go to which day and where in the park I will be when I am hungry. We have gone 5 times since and never again made an ADR.

 

[TDC Nala]

I don't like making them.

I have a Candlelight processional package and a group dinner at 'Ohana, which were things that could basically not be done without an ADR. I don't have any other ADRs.

 

[LilyWDW]

I love them, but I do understand that type of planning is not for everyone. The thing with ADRs is that you know you will get to eat somewhere. I know the places I want to go to and I want to be sure I get to do them. Without ADRs there is no way to do that. You will most likely be able to find somewhere to eat, but it might not be the exact place or time you want.

During Food and Wine I saw people turned away from dinner walk ups at Le Chefs, Via Napoli, San Angel, Rose and Crown, and La Hacienda.

 

[jcjen519]

i like having the option but miss the days of being able to walk into ohana and sit around with drinks and a buzzer for half hr to an hr. and getting a table w/o an adr. it feels like adrs are mandatory now and with the ten dollar per person fee if you don't cancel 24 hrs ahead its hard to be spontaneous.

 

[aubriee]

I used to be one of those that got up at 0600 to go online and make ADRs at 180 days out. Then about a year ago, we decided we didn't want to do ADRs, so decided to just wing it. This was last Sept about a week before our trip. I had also already made ADRs for our late Oct/early Nov F&W trip. I canceled just the ones for the Sept trip, so I could see how it went. We did TS somewhere every day as a walk up. No it wasn't Le Cellier or Ohana, but we did get alot of good walkups. As soon as we came home, we decided to cancel every single ADR for the Oct/Nov trip and either try for walkups or maybe even go offsite to try some new restaurants we'd never tried before. I am still a creature of habit though and the weekend after we got back was the 180 day mark for our May trip. Like a good DISer I got up early and went online to make all my ADRs. The more we thought about though the more we decided we didn't want to be tied down, so I called and canceled every single one of them, (except BoG). Yeah, we even canceled a perfect 7:05pm ADR for Ohana (deciding to go offsite to try Fogo de Chao instead).. Again we walked into several restaurants as a party of three. I currently have trips booked for Sept 14th-22nd and also Dec 6th-16th and don't have a single ADR booked. It feels so liberating. We may call the morning of or may just try for a walkup somewhere when we get hungry.

Just FYI: over those three trips earlier this past year, we walked up at Liberty Tree Tavern (lunch), Biergarten, Chef's de France (lunch), Rose & Crown (lunch), Yak & Yeti, Via Napoli, Mama Melrose, 50's Prime Time (lunch right at opening), Grand Floridian Cafe, Boma (breakfast), T Rex, Big River Grill, and probably a few more I've forgotten.

 

[aubriee]

I love them, but I do understand that type of planning is not for everyone. The thing with ADRs is that you know you will get to eat somewhere. I know the places I want to go to and I want to be sure I get to do them. Without ADRs there is no way to do that. You will most likely be able to find somewhere to eat, but it might not be the exact place or time you want.

During Food and Wine I saw people turned away from dinner walk ups at Le Chefs, Via Napoli, San Angel, Rose and Crown, and La Hacienda.

I know it doesn't always happen, but we were there during Food & Wine last year and walked up at Chef's (lunch), Rose & Crown (lunch), and Via Napoli (dinner) as a party of three. We've probably just been lucky, but we have always had pretty good luck as walk ups. Even when I did make ADRs, we'd frequently change our mind once we got down there and go somewhere else.

 

[LilyWDW]

I know it doesn't always happen, but we were there during Food & Wine last year and walked up at Chef's (lunch), Rose & Crown (lunch), and Via Napoli (dinner) as a party of three. We've probably just been lucky, but we have always had pretty good luck as walk ups. Even when I did make ADRs, we'd frequently change our mind once we got down there and go somewhere else.

All of mine were for dinners. I just remember the number of very upset people while we were checking in and waiting for tables (or just hanging around eating from the booths). It can be so different based off of day, time, special events, and more. We were there starting the Wednesday after Columbus Day.

That is why when someone asks if they should make ADRs my answer is "Do you KNOW you want to eat somewhere for sure? If so make an ADR. You will be able to find somewhere to eat without them, but it might not be the place and time you would have chosen."

 

[Skywise]

I agree with you totally.

I go out to Las Vegas about once a year and we eat whereever we happen to be at at the time. If there's no openings at that time, we get a reservation for later at that point or just walk on. I like planning "at the moment" because you never know what you're going to be feeling like or how hungry you'll be or even where you might be.

That said...

I have ADR'd all of our major meals for our trip. It started out just getting 'Ohana and CRT reservations because... well you have to. But the more I thought about it the more I was afraid that we'd end up having to eat quick service for dinner every night and then maybe at restaurants we didn't want to eat at... then factor in seeing the fireworks or parades and the scheduling associated with that and I started realizing that I'd rather suffer SOME planning than end up having an sub-par experience with dining.
So I've got breakfast and dinner planned out for every day of the trip. I've left lunches up to chance so I can have some spontaneity but I also have a good idea of the places I'd like to eat at.

Also keep in mind we're only there for 3 days. If you're there for 7 or so you can obviously do a little less planning.

 

[mcd2745]

While I don't dislike making ADRs, I do loathe having to do it 6 months in advance. Unfortunately, Disney has made it a nearly necessary evil - at least for us. As a family of not-so-adventerous eaters, we like to stick to certain restaurants that we know we like. And since many of those are some of the most popular on property (Ohana, Via Napoli, Chef Mickey's or Crystal Palace, Tusker House breakfast, etc.), we have to play the game.

 

[bdklein]

and it's just impossible to predict what park we'll be in or what dining experience we'll be in the mood for on any given day.

I can't bring myself to commit to putting such a strict schedule together .

Just wondering... is anyone else as stubborn as I am? I would love to be able to plan like I see some people do, but I just can't get into it!

I wouldn't call it stubborn at all. I would call it not wanting to plan a whole vacaion, and plan it around meals 6 months in advance, which kind of defeats the purpose of a vacation.

So what I do is make an ADR in one of the parks, and another ADR under another name in one of the resorts. We do a TS each night. Then as it gets closer I cancel one of them to avoid a CC fee (if applicable) and let someone else snatch it up.

 

[mcd2745]

I wouldn't call it stubborn at all. I would call it not wanting to plan a whole vacaion, and plan it around meals 6 months in advance, which kind of defeats the purpose of a vacation.

So what I do is make an ADR in one of the parks, and another ADR under another name in one of the resorts. We do a TS each night. Then as it gets closer I cancel one of them to avoid a CC fee (if applicable) and let someone else snatch it up.

And therein lies the problem with the whole 180 days thing. It leads itself to practices such as this - where you have guests with two ADRs for one meal for maybe as long as 5.9 months. So they have created a a system where the demand for ADRs far exceed the demand for actual meals. And that in turn encourages more guests to engage in such practices. So it became this vicious circle that fuels itself as it spirals out of control. The CC guarantees helped a lot, but didn't entirely eliminate it.

 

[cluvsdisney]

I don't like planning out all of our meals in advance. If we are going to parks, we'll make 2 ADRs (LTT for lunch & SciFi or 50sPTC) otherwise we just wing it and call ahead to make an ADR the day of when we know exactly where we'll be.

 

[Anthony1971]

Unless you are a large group -- or have to eat somewhere at a certain time and know this six months out...
We have never made ADR's in advance in the 20+ years we have been going we will make them the day of sometimes and we have never had a problem eating where we want and near a time we want.
If I can not eat exactly where I want I will likley eat there next trip (although this has never happened) I have been there almost every month FD times and not. People give up reservations all the time the day before and they are open the day of for the more popular places.
But if your trip will be ruined if you do not eat somewhere then Make ADR's
It is just not for us.

 

[mchelle77]

If you don't care about table restaurants, then don't make any ... you'll find plenty to eat!

If you DO plan on wanting to sit down somewhere, I'd make one or two. Last trip we had a rez at Akershus for about 810pm and even WITH that, we had a 30 minute wait. People who didn't have a reservation were told two hours. One guy FLIPPED out at the poor hostess, yelling at her that he just became a DVC owner and he should be able to feed his kids on vacation since he "paid her bills now". The girl was shaking and suggested a few counter places (also was F&WF at that time) but he wasn't happy about it.

Also at 1900, we had an 8pm rez and didn't get seated until 845pm. At DHS, I switched that last minute and could only get a 940pm reservation (with a 4 year old ... ) Trying to switch to somewhere else earlier, everyone said at least a 90 minute wait (This was at 8pm, would have taken us to our rez time anyway, so we kept ours at Sci-Fi)