Feeling overwhelmed!

[marypoppins81]

Looking for help! We are debating whether to pay £500 to upgrade dining as we want to visit chef mickeys, crystal palace and a fantasmic package so for a little bit more we could get a ts meal most nights.
However I can't possibly commit 180 days in advance for every night. I've not been since 2000 and never with kids so want a more relaxed approach. If they're tired I don't want to worry about an 8pm res or of we fancy an extra day in mk I don't want to be tied to dinner in ak. I figure 3 special evenings are ok as we can accommodate those. Will there be ts locations available on the day if we can be flexible with location and time once we know our plans? Or are we better sticking with qs meals and paying oop for the meals above?
Thanks

 

[wilma-bride]

It really depends when you are going, how many in your party and how flexible you can be. In our experience, it is a lot easier to walk up to a restaurant, ask for a table for 2 and be prepared to wait an hour or so for a table. With kids, I definitely wouldn't want to be doing that.

However, if you are travelling during a 'slow' period (Late Sep/early Oct or Jan/Feb) then you have a better chance of getting walk-ups.

I would not pay £500 to upgrade the QS dining plan just for those 3 restaurants. Again, without knowing how many in your party but assuming any children are 9 or under, it certainly wouldn't cost you that to eat at those restaurants. And don't forget it's not just the cost of upgrading yu need to factor in, but also the added costs of tips for all those extra TS meals on top.

 

[marypoppins81]

Thanks. We are 2 adults 2 kids under 9

 

[sarah4291]

Last Saturday we were able to get a reservation for 2 at the yachtsman steakhouse on the same day (3 hours before) And that's a signature restaurant! So it is possible but just be prepared to not necessarily get the restaurants you want! The other options obviously as the PP said are walk-ups!

 

[Elise79]

Last Saturday we were able to get a reservation for 2 at the yachtsman steakhouse on the same day (3 hours before) And that's a signature restaurant! So it is possible but just be prepared to not necessarily get the restaurants you want! The other options obviously as the PP said are walk-ups!

Apart from CG - you can nearly always get same day/next day ADRs at the signatures.

In April I got a same day at YS for 5 at 7.30pm. YS sometimes is a little tougher if there is a large convention in at the Yacht Club.

To the OP - those 3 meals will not cost you the upgrade price. However if you want some TS it might be worth it.

We had free dining in July. I knew I would not be booking a TS every evening so I looked at other ways to use our credits. We had 5 character breakfasts, a dinner show (2 credits) and 2 signatures (2 credits each). This to us was a good use of credits as we wanted to eat offsite too as we have our favorite restaurants and we had a night at the beach. It depends on the value to YOU.

 

[marypoppins81]

Thank you for your replies they really help. I just find it odd they advise you to book everything so far in advance. Goodness knows what I'll be like with fp+!!

 

[Elise79]

The only restaurants that get fully booked at 180 days are the really popular ones such as Be Our Guest and Ohana (dinner). California Grill will probably fall in to that category as well when it reopens.

Most of the resort restaurants you can book a lot closer like only a week or 2 before and still have a pick of times.

Park and character restaurants are generally somewhere in between.

 

[zippy99]

One year when we stayed at POFQ we had QS plan and paid OOP for 5 table service meals that we wanted - it was cheaper than upgrading us all on the DDP (especially as the children were only 10 & 12 and classed as adults).

If its just three meals - pay OOP - it is only worth paying that additional $750 if you really wanted a TS every day.

 

[duffdo]

I upgraded to the DDP on my last trip and have DDP free on my upcoming trip. I am a bit obsessed with planning, so booked 10 ADRs for my last 14 night vacation and have 15 out of 21 booked this time. I have all the reservations (apart from CG) that I wanted. However in your case, I would say you need to bear in mind 3 things:

1- Not having an ADR is fine, just potentially be prepared to be disappointed in trying to dine somewhere you really wanted to.

2- Be prepared to wait.....Many TS accept walk ups, but you may have to wait for a table.

3- DDP does not include tips. A guide amount is probably $18-$20 per TS meal, assuming 2 adults. Double this if it is a signature. I made the mistake of not budgeting for tips on my last trip, and we probably tipped in the order of $250-$300 total (10% of our spends!, so not insignificant!)

 

[MrRomance]

When we went to WDW in 2008, it was our first time on-site. We had the DDP but had never done it before and had no clue about booking ADRs before we went. We never had a problem booking somewhere same day, in fact, this year we're deliberately not booking all of our ADRs so we can do the same again because we ate at restaurants we wouldn't have necessarily picked and found some great little gems!

We just went to the conceirge desk and said "where can we get a table for half an hour?" and they'd give us the choices. It was kinda fun not to know where we would be going.

There are restaurants that you HAVE to book early if you want them. Be Our Guest and CRT are just 2 that spring to mind immediately, but equally, there are plenty of options you can book same day.

 

[Minniesgal]

I would not go during free dining with dining plan without reservations. At other times of year you will get something on the day but unlikely during free dining

 

[2Tiggies]

One year when we stayed at POFQ we had QS plan and paid OOP for 5 table service meals that we wanted - it was cheaper than upgrading us all on the DDP (especially as the children were only 10 & 12 and classed as adults).

If its just three meals - pay OOP - it is only worth paying that additional $750 if you really wanted a TS every day.

I completely agree with this. With 2 kids under 9 that £500 will more than cover those meals plus tips and leave change over. As the character meals are fixed prices you can look up the costs per meal online and work out what it will cost you. We have used the QSDP every year since it came out and have paid as many as 8 TS meals OOP on a single trip and it still worked out cheaper. Once you start adding gratuity to those meals it is going to cost you a lot more than £500 by upgrading for the full trip - and all for the few meals you really want to eat at.

Also, as you have a relaxed approach to your trip schedule, this puts you in an extremely favorable position for snagging even some of the sought after ADRs last minute if you wish, because you will be able to be completely flexible on your times and days. We've managed on the day and day before ADRs over Easter weekend for Chef Mickeys and Crystal Palace. I just went to our front desk at the resort and asked if there was anything in the next x number of days and said any time, any day and told them where we wanted to eat. We were given several options for each of our choices.

 

[bxccah]

Thank you for your replies they really help. I just find it odd they advise you to book everything so far in advance. Goodness knows what I'll be like with fp+!!

For our trip back in feb, with a three year old, I was in charge of the dining reservations. I made a few character meal ressies, spread out over the three weeks, I did quite a few two credit meals, and then made ressies for the popular restaurants.

Everything else, we left and just booked when we arrived at WDW. We had no trouble at all. Only time we had trouble was when Eva adored Garden Grill with Chip, Dale, Pluto and Mickey and wanted to go there for her birthday meal rather than the Princess meal at Epcot. Couldn't get space for that night, however did get one a few days after

Honestly, don't stress too much about reservations. Unless you want the really popular places, you should be fine.