Hello fellow Canadians!!

[definately dory]

Hi everyone, I have been reading posts for awhile now and thought it was time to say hello. I have soooo many questions (this whole Disney thing is very overwhelming). We have our trip booked through CAA so I guess I got over that first hurdle. One question I do have though is about the PS's i keep hearing about. Are they really necessary? I have never been to Disney before, so how do I know which restaurants i want to eat at before I get there? Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. I am travelling with my husband, two children, and my mother and mother in law. We are staying for one week at Pop Century and then going for one week on the western Disney cruise, any ideas on things we must do would be greatly appreciated.

 

[wenabre]

Welcome to the 'Dis' Definatley Dory, and be prepared to meet new friends

Re the PS's, it all depends on the time of year, the crowds and the popularity of the resturant you want to eat at. Also, sometimes it just doesn't make sense, ex: we ( BF Photobear Sam and DD Katdb) were at the Magic Kingdom the day they were filming the Christmas Parade and it took us almost 20 minutes to make it up main street due to the crowds and yet when we got to Crystal Palace, they got us in within 15 minutes!!
If you can, pick up a Disney book and as you see what the layouts of the parks are you can plan your time a little better.
Hope you have a great Disney holiday.
Wenabre

 

[diz karen]

I felt the exact same way the first time we went. How do we know when and where we want to eat when we had never been there so we didn't make any PS arrangements. We got lucky a couple of times and other times we were very disappointed that we couldn't find anywhere good to eat because we had no PS arranged. It depends on the kinds of food you want to eat. If you just want fast food that isn't a problem but we get sick of that fast. To eat at sit down restaurants you may be able to get in if it is not a busy time of year or if you go at off hours.
I would suggest getting a guide book or go to the web site with all the disney menus and pick out a couple of places you think sound good. Make some PS arrangements. You can cancel later if your plans change.

 

[MECH8T7]

For picking PSs, I would definitely recommend getting a guidebook (cost is minimal in relation to the amount of money you are committing to your vacation). I would suggest either the Unofficial Guide to WDW or the Passporter Guide to WDW -- I purchased both. Both have enough reviews on restaurants and attractions to get you started. If you want more info on a restaurant, attraction or resort, you can go to the corresponding discussion board and do a search. Also, lots of great info on the www.allearsnet.com site (which also has a useful downloadable guide on DCL as well: http://allearsnet.com/cruise/mdcg.pdf)

Have fun planning.

 

[cabmom]

WELCOME DD

I don't know about PS's, just wanted to say HELLO!


Marilynn

 

[cdnmickeylover]

Welcome!!

I'll echo what everyone else has said about PS's. It really depends what time of year you go and where you want to eat. allearsnet.com has all the restaurants listed with menus and prices. I would look these over and then decide. You can make PS's for most places 90 days ahead of time although for Hoop De Doo you can make a PS for up to 2 years ahead.

To give you an example of timing -- we were just in WDW last week and it was not crowded at all but you had to have a PS for Chef Mickey's Friday morning for breakfast or you weren't eating there. We saw lots of people turned away. By contrast on Tuesday at noon we decided we wanted to eat dinner at Cinderella's Royal Feast and had no problems making a PS for 6pm. You can make PS's at guest services at the hotel as well.

Another example is that we were there is October and didn't have a PS for one night and couldn't find anything available at a sit down restaurant even though we asked about a PS three days before. The crowd level really tells the tale.

Btw you'll have a great time on the western cruise.

 

[Snowwark]

Welcome to the DIS, definately dory! Are you sure that's your name?

When you have a chance be sure to check out the dining info, right here on the Dis! Here are the links...

~Disney Restaurants Forum~

~Disney Restaurants & Reviews~


Kim

 

[SplashMom]

Hi there fellow Nova Scotian! I think everyone has covered the PS thing quite well. Why not make some PSs even if you are going at a slower time? You can always cancel up to the last minute, but you can't make arrangements at the last minute. Most of the guidebooks (as well as the websites and especially the disboards) will give you all the information you need about the best places to eat. As long as you have some time to read through some information, you should be fine! Have fun planning--it is sooo much fun!

 

[highland3]

Hi from a displaced Nova Scotian... living in Ontario. We made PS's for Character Meals and one for DW and I to go for dinner. Beyond that we'll let the mood carry us. We're going in March, which I know will be very busy, but not as busy as the weeks around Easter. I echo the comments on the guidebooks (I really like Fodor's), and the DIS is an excellent source of honest, first hand info!!!

 

[eleanor]

We never make them and have always eaten well. The only one we made I should say was for V&A. If you have children and need character meals that is different. I never know what I want to eat that day.

 

[definately dory]

Thank you for all of the advice. I don't think I will make any because since I have never been there I guess I won't know what I am missing when it comes to the really awesome restaurants!! My kids will be 4 and 9 so we will want to do a character meal so i guess I will do reservations for those. What is the best one to do?

 

[PoohBWV]

Just wanted to say Welcome to the DIS Canadian Board.

 

[kellyla]

Giving you a big welcome!

 

[maryliz]

Welcome to the DIS boards! Do either of your kids have favourite Disney characters? If we knew that, we might be able to recommend some character meals. They are a lot of fun!

Mary-Liz

 

[ChisJo]

Just wanted to jump on the bandwagon and say welcome to the DIS! Any questions you have will be answered here....

Jo

 

[Abba98]

Greetings from another Nova Scotian,from the Valley!
Just wanted to welcome you to the DIS.Did you know that NS had the warmest temps in Canada today?
Have a fabulous trip to the magic,we're going in November!
Kirsten