Do cancelled reservations get released immediately or at a set time?

AmyAnne

DIS Veteran
Joined
Sep 20, 2012
Messages
2,387
For our December trip, I have a few reservations that I am hoping to snag when someone cancels. I'm not sure if I should be periodically checking throughout the day? Or is there a set time that the system updates and the cancelled reservations all get released at once?
 
Checking as much as possible is the way to go. Reservations are released in real time, although I’ve had the best luck early morning (5 am ish), less competition I guess.
 
The Touring Plans reservation finder is a great tool. I had a BOG reservation but was looking for a better time so I set up the finder. Eventually I just cancelled the reservation I had. Shortly after, I got the TP alert that a spot opened - the reservation I had just cancelled! So yup, cancellations are real time and TP is on top of it.
 

I checked often as well as had touring plans going. I had luck checking at random times during the work day (probably people at work unable to hop on and grab a reservation.) I also had luck early morning while getting ready for school. Then touring plans popped up saying it found a reservation and I was lucky to log on and grab an ok dinner time for a party of 6 at Be Our Guest. Touring plans also alerted me when a slot was available and it was around times I couldn't just casually check (once when I was in class, once during a class change and once right after a test while I was walking to my car) I've been lucky that the reservations weren't scooped up while I was logging into mine or my moms accounts (it took awhile) or that the slot stayed for the hour and a half long class I was in. Then again I'm going in January so that might have something to do with it.
 
So you are asking if the dining transactions are executed real-time or performed as a batch at a specific defined time period. While we don't have access to see the systems logic/program, I think since their system is designed to managed reservations by date and time we should hope their defined in real-time...meaning it is immediately returned as an option once a person saves their transaction to cancel their dining reservation.
 
I have found the dining reservations to be available in real time as I've coordinated "drop and grabs" with a few people on these boards and on FB groups. If you are trying to coordinate a drop and grab with someone, I would highly recommend being on the main ADR site on the WDW page as well as on the specific reservation page as I find availability sometimes pops up immediately in one window and not the other. And keep refreshing until it pops up!
 
I have had limited success checking constantly before a trip and, of course, doing so is a huge investment of time. I have had much better luck checking the day before or day of, without much effort - people are far more likely to change plans at the last minute, hence why I really don't check anymore until the day before/day of.
 
I think your best bet would be to sign up for a reservation finder so it'll send you an alert when someone drops the reservation you need. You do usually have to jump on it pretty quick or someone else will get it. Another way I got BOG dinner a couple years ago before I knew about the reservation finder was checking very late at night, like 2am. For some reason there seemed to be a lot of hard to get reservations around that time. I continuously checked throughout the day and night leading up to my trip.
 












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