Dumb Dining Question from first timer

[Fidler]

Ok - I was just thinking about this - and I thought I better ask...

We have the dining plan and intend on eating at various restaurants. My question is - - do we need to be eating at the same park we are playing in that day? IE - lets say we plan to spend the day at epcot - but want to eat dinner in AK - do we need to use our AK tickets to just go to the restaurant that night for dinner? Or use our park hopper thingy? I dont know how this works. I know I sound like an idiot, but any info helping me figure it out would be helpful!

Thanks~!

 

[webray]

If you have park hoppers you can go anywhere with them, multiple parks per day, eat in any of the parks and yes, each time you enter a park, even if you are only eating, your parkhopper is scanned. Counts as a day.

If you have passes that only allow you one park per day, (make sure) then you should make reservations for the park you will be in.

Remember, if you do not have a car, it wastes a lot of time hopping from park to park just for a meal, using disney transportation.

 

[MPHARJ]

Not sure what you mean about AK tickets, if you have park hopper tickets, you can eat where ever you want. Park hoppers are exactly that, they give you the option to jump between 2 parks or all 4 in one day if you so desire. You can spend all day at Epcot or where ever and than you can go eat at MK or AK or where ever you may have a ADR as long as you have park hoppers, if you do not have park hoppers, I believe you will lose a day off your tickets if you park hop and do not have that option added. Did I answer your question with out confusing you?

 

[septbaby]

Welcome to DIS!

You need a ticket to enter any park for a meal. However, if you have Parkhoppers you can enter multiple parks on one day. We went to AK, went to Epcot for Illuminations and made it to MK for Extra Magic Hours.

Just be sure you have enough time to travel from place to place to make your meal reservation times.

 

[dseth]

Not a dumb question - it's very smart of you to ask these questions!! I love to see people planning their first trip!! You can eat in whatever park you want and visit whatever park you want on any given day IF you have a park hopper ticket. I would caution you (only if time is an issue) to eat at least near the park you are visiting. Disney transportation is a wonderful benefit but sometimes it can take longer than you might anticipate. When you visit one park and want to eat in another keep in mind there is going to have to be a hotel stop in that formula if you are using the Disney transportation; if you have a car it's not so much of an issue. Happy planning!!!

 

[disneystacy]

Like other said, if you have hopper tickets you can eat in any park, we however schedule meals in the park we will be in that day so we don't waste time traveling to different parks.

 

[Fidler]

thank you all so much for your info. I guess I wasnt sure about the park hoppers - if i could do more than 2 parks per day, or if was limited.
Thanks for the info!!

 

[BriarRosie]

thank you all so much for your info. I guess I wasnt sure about the park hoppers - if i could do more than 2 parks per day, or if was limited.
Thanks for the info!!

It's basically how the turnstiles read the pass. It's either going to read the day's admission as unlimited visits to that same park (no hopping), or unlimited visits to all four parks (park hopping).

A lot of people wonder if they wanted to visit a second park and they don't have park hopping, would they be allowed to use a separate day off their pass? No. The passes are coded the way I mentioned above.

 

[VacationKicks]

thank you all so much for your info. I guess I wasnt sure about the park hoppers - if i could do more than 2 parks per day, or if was limited.
Thanks for the info!!

Just be aware of your number of days. Once we had 8 day hoppers, we went to Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach. Those days we did not use a day off our hoppers so we did not eat in a different park (like somewhere in Epcot for example) if we did it would cost us a whole day of park hopping. Of course, we could still eat at any resort or Downtown disney so there were plenty of options.

In fact my in-laws decided to go get coffee in Epcot while we were at Blizzard Beach (they told us they were going to stay at the hotel and rest), the last day of vacation they couldn't get into a park That was an expensive cup of coffee!

 

[sharadoc]

if you do not have park hoppers, I believe you will lose a day off your tickets if you park hop and do not have that option added. Did I answer your question with out confusing you?

Hi. Just wanted to clarify that point, you cannot use 2 days on your ticket to go to two parks in the same day. If you don't have park hopping, you can only go to one park each day.

And to the OP - no question is dumb. Folks here love to help - just ask away, no matter how trivial you think the question is. If it will help you plan and have a magical vacation, it's important!!!

 

[Delta Jane]

Boma is not in AK, right ? I mean you can go to Boma without going in the park and using a ticket, right ?

 

[Claire&TheBoys]

Boma is not in AK, right ? I mean you can go to Boma without going in the park and using a ticket, right ?

That's correct. Boma is at the Animal Kingdom Lodge Resort -- no ticket required!

 

[kayla87]

When you visit one park and want to eat in another keep in mind there is going to have to be a hotel stop in that formula if you are using the Disney transportation.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=1876056

 

[pooch]

Not a dumb question - it's very smart of you to ask these questions!! I love to see people planning their first trip!! You can eat in whatever park you want and visit whatever park you want on any given day IF you have a park hopper ticket. I would caution you (only if time is an issue) to eat at least near the park you are visiting. Disney transportation is a wonderful benefit but sometimes it can take longer than you might anticipate. When you visit one park and want to eat in another keep in mind there is going to have to be a hotel stop in that formula if you are using the Disney transportation; if you have a car it's not so much of an issue. Happy planning!!!

There IS park to park transportation at every park, either by monorail (MK to Epcot), boat (Epcot to DHS) or bus (any other combination). The only location from which you cannot go directly to a park is Downtown Disney. You CAN go directly from one park to another. But, to answer your question, you will indeed need to use an admission ticket JUST to have dinner at another park. You must have the Park Hopper option to do this. For a first timer, I would suggest keeping your meals close to the park you are attending, either at the park itself or at a nearby resort. The other posters are correct that going from one location to another takes time you may not want to waste.

 

[adsrtw]

I agree! Not a dumb question at all. I enjoy having the park hopper feature, but some people don't use it. I loved having the choice to leave a crowded park and go to a less crowded one.

Welcome to the DIS!