Arrival night planning question - ADR, AP upgrade, and opportunity cost

[YawningDodo]

So my fight is currently scheduled to get into MCO at 5:00 PM on a Friday night. Now, it being January there's always a chance things will go sideways, but I'm feeling fairly optimistic.

Right now my plan is to upgrade my park hopper to an AP on arrival night so I don't have to deal with it while rope-dropping DHS the next morning. My two best options, as I see them, are to either go to the ticket center at Disney Springs, which is open until 11:30, or to go to Epcot, which is open until 9:00. Is Epcot even a viable option when I'm taking DME from MCO that evening? I'm not expecting to do a lot there, just get my ticket upgraded, grab a snack, and watch the fireworks.

I ask because right now I've arranged an 8:30 ADR at T-REX since I was thinking of doing the upgrade at Disney Springs instead...but that honestly begs the same question in terms of transportation time. I'm debating whether it's better to just drop that ADR and leave my options open on arrival night/remove the ADR commitment from the equation. On the one hand, I like dinosaurs and eating at a cheesy dinosaur restaurant sounds fun (I am fully aware that it is not a great restaurant; that's not the question). On the other hand, if I drop the ADR I'll have more flexibility in the event that I reach my resort early enough to make the dash to Epcot. Thoughts?

 

[Robo]

if I drop the ADR I'll have more flexibility in the event that I reach my resort early enough to make the dash to Epcot.

Yup.

 

[Alesia]

If you really want to eat there, you can join the Landry's select club. It costs $25, but you get a $25 credit on your first purchase and it gives you priority seating without an ADR.

Just so you know, that restaurant is obnoxiously loud. It would be my absolute last pick for dinner at DS, but your milage may vary.

 

[YawningDodo]

If you really want to eat there, you can join the Landry's select club. It costs $25, but you get a $25 credit on your first purchase and it gives you priority seating without an ADR.

Just so you know, that restaurant is obnoxiously loud. It would be my absolute last pick for dinner at DS, but your milage may vary.

I've thought about the Landry's card, but if I don't eat at T-REX on arrival night I'm not especially likely to eat at any of their restaurants during this trip, so I'd be tying up $25 I'm not guaranteed to use.

With the restaurant in general...I just kind of want to experience it. But I'm weighing how much I care about that against the opportunity cost since I could potentially go to Epcot and see fireworks instead, and I'm weighing the practicality of committing to an ADR on arrival night. If it helps, think of it as literally any other arrival night ADR in Disney Springs--I'd be about as excited (or unexcited) about any of the restaurants there, tbh, since it's not really about wanting great dining.

 

[YawningDodo]

So...my usual issue with posting this kind of question has come around again: by the time I ask the question, I usually already know the answer and just haven't admitted it to myself yet. I'm cancelling the reservation; Epcot sounds more fun to me than Disney Springs and if I arrive too late for Epcot I can still get a good dinner elsewhere. This trip is more heavily planned than my previous trips already, so reclaiming a bit of flexibility sounds good.