Can you Dine At Hotels?

[Scootersbabygirl]

We're scheduled to stay at Disney in Oct. and are currently booked at the Pop Century resort. I'm looking over dining options now and see that a lot of the restaurants are at other hotels in Dis. Can you eat there even if you're not booked for that specific hotel? I know this is probably a dumb question, but we're newbies to dis! Thanks!!

 

[Gasface]

Yes.

As long as your staying on Disney property you'll have access to everything on Disney property.

Enjoy your trip!

 

[MommyGina]

Even if you were not staying on a Disney property, you could eat at the hotel restaurants. The travel guide books even indicate that local people dine at resort hotels.

 

[winterman]

Yes.

As long as your staying on Disney property you'll have access to everything on Disney property.

You do not need to stay at a Disney resort to eat at a restaurant on site. In fact I can't think of any activity (other than EMH and some special tours that are for club level only) that is restricted to on site guests.

 

[Melanie B]

Yes you can eat at any restaurant you like. Just make sure to make reservations ASAP because of the free dining promo they book up fast

 

[garettdoyle]

IMHO, the food at the WDW hotels is better than what you will find in the parks. Just keep in mind that the WDW resort is big. In general, you will need to allocate 30-60 minutes to travel from a park to hotel. Eating at hotel can be a nice break from the park. However, if you are traveling to maximize your time in the parks, it can be a time suck. Closer hotels in EPCOT area (Beach Club, Swan/Dolphin) or Monorail Resorts (GF, Poly, Contemporary) will be easier/faster to travel to then say Animal Kingdom Lodge or Wilderness Lodge.

 

[TillyMarigold]

... easier/faster to travel to then say Animal Kingdom Lodge or Wilderness Lodge.

Unless of course you're at Animal Kingdom or Magic Kingdom (respectively). It's about 5 minutes from AK to AKL and maybe 10 from MK to WL.

 

[jennad4]

Definitely try to eat at Chef Mickey's or 1900 Park Fare! We have stayed at POP 3 times in the last 5 years and these are great and easy to get to from Epcot and MK. That said, we ate dinner at Whispering Canyon in WL last time and while the food was good we did have a hard time getting back to POP. Granted we had VERY late resssies. Luckily a very kind bus driver drove our family directly back to POP as well as another to POR. He actually turned off his siign so we could bypass going to Ticket & transp. BTW- We had no trouble getting there from AK.

 

[Minnie Mi]

This is a great way to check out other hotels for future visits. Chef Mickey's is always a treat. Boma in AKL and Whispering Canyon Cafe are excellent too. Ohana in the Poly is fun for kids with their coconut races.

 

[purple figment]

Disney would love to have you dine at the different resorts so that you can look around and perhaps find one you'd like to stay at on your next visit to the World.

Since you are going in October, don't wait any longer to make reservations at the restaurants you would like to eat at - whether it's in a park or a resort. Reservations for October have been available since April and many of the most popular places and times are probably already booked up. However, even if you don't get your first choices, keep trying online everyday. People change their plans and there will be cancellations.

Good luck and have a wonderful vacation.

 

[jdisnut]

The resort restaurants are generally better than their theme park counterparts, so I strongly recommend considering them. As others have said, they are open to the general public. Are there any places in particular you're considering?