How Hard is it to get into TS restaurants WITHOUT ADR?

[kk&shay]

We leave in a week and a half for our trip! WooHoo!!!!!

Just decided last nite to upgrade from QSDP to DDP. I was fortunate to still get a few character meal reservations, although 1900 Park Fair and Chef Mickey's are all sold out.

Are there any dinner shows you would recommend?

Also, if we don't make an advance reservation, how hard is it to get a TS meal for lunch or dinner? Is it nearly impossible? I don't really know what we'll feel like eating at a those particular times and would like to leave it "open" if it's possible to get something to eat somewhere.

 

[Donaldswife]

It can be very difficult to get in without an ADR, and yes, some restaurants are impossible unless you want to eat at "off" times, ie 3:30pm. You can check with the concierge at your hotel if you are staying on site and can sometimes get lucky while you are there, and you can check with guest relations at each park while you are there and see if any TS locations have availabilty that day, but be prepared that you may come away empty handed.

 

[ccgirl]

As the earlier posted said, it can bear near imposssible without reservations. Check the restaurants in the resorts as those tend to have availability. You would also probably have better luck with lunch ressies than dinner. Some restaurants that I love are Crystal Palace in MK and Akershus in Norway. Another fun one is Biergarten in Germany. If you are on the DDP, you can also try Coral Reef in Epcot. As far as shows, I do not usually book them with the DDP as they use 2 TS credits and you don't usually get the best category of seating. I liked the luau at the Poly though. It was a luau Disney style. I thought the food was good too. Have fun and just try to eat at "off" times as the PP stated. Good luck.

 

[MissionMouse]

We leave in a week and a half for our trip! ...
Just decided last nite to upgrade from QSDP to DDP. ... if we don't make an advance reservation, how hard is it to get a TS meal for lunch or dinner? ...

Purchasing the DDP with about 10 days prior to your trip and now facing trouble getting ADRs may be illustrating you may have waited to long to get the DDP. You might be better off returning to the QSDP and paying TS out of pocket. Getting in an TS restaurant without an ADR has a lot of variables. Having ADRs is best. On Disney's site they provide the disclaimer about the demand on TS restaurants and the need to make ADRs, so just because they sell the DDP doesn't mean their going to be sympathetic to your situation. You can lose money with a DDP without planning. They know the situation and this is why they highly recommend ADRs.

Walkup can be a challenge, since most people want to eat around the same time. Without an ADR avoid these times. Don't eat at prime dining times. Party size matters. Select the less popular restaurants and even then you have no guarantees. You will hear "NO" more than you want and your group may start to rebel as you traverse from TS to TS restaurant as their stomachs start to growl.

 

[Luv2Roam]

This time of year you will probably be able to get in some place. Maybe not your first or second choice. The Flower & Garden is about to start. So Epcot will be busier than usual.
Resort restaurants are often easier to get in. However they can be more time consuming to get to also.
Biergarten, Nine Dragons, Tutto and Morrocco are often easy to get in. Part of that is those restaurants can hold a lot of people. And all are yummy.
Turf Club at SSR, Maya Grill are CSR and Kona Cafe at the Poly are all very good. We enjoy Olivia's also at OKW. You may like the buffet at Cape May too, at the Beach Club.
Lunch is often easier to get into. You may want to also try places just as they open also.
However even if it is the same day, I suggest getting an ADR. Sometimes I call in and see what is available within the hour!

 

[Hopefully]

I would definitely recommend going on line and trying to see what is still available. It is highly unlikely that you will find ADR's IN the parks. I would suggest you try nearby resorts, or less popular restaurants.
Walkups are always a possibility, but they are VERY unlikely.
I too, would not purchase the DDP if I did not have TS ADR's. It is very likely that you are pre-paying for meals that you can not obtain.
Good Luck

 

[kk&shay]

To clarify, I was able to get some ADRs:

50s Primetime (dinner)
Akerhaus (lunch)
Cape May (bfast)
Crystal Palace (lunch)
Garden Grill
Planet Hollywood

When on the QSDP, we got the Garden Grill and Cape May ressies and after adding up the costs, we decided to upgrade to DDP. But, there are a few other places I would really like to get into, but Im happy to get the ones that we've already gotten!

 

[TillyMarigold]

How many more do you want?

I'm sure you can get into more restaurants easily, including without a reservation (especially for lunch). The question is whether you can get into the ones you want to get into. You probably won't get the most popular ones, as you've already figured out, but you may be pleasantly surprised by some of the places you never thought of. It's all in the attitude. Look at it as an unexpected opportunity to eat somewhere off the beaten path.

You will definitely not be able to get into Chef Mickey's or 1900 Park Faire without a reservation unless you're staying at one of those hotels (sometimes hotel restaurants allow walkups by guest of the hotel but not by other people).

 

[eelkmj01]

I heard from a Manager at 50's Prime Time Cafe that walks ups are now easier than reservations. This manager thought that was due to the 180 day booking window. Since a lot of people might not know what they want to do on a particular day 6 months from now, they make dining reservations at or near all 4 parks and then choose 1 on that day. He said there are about 1200 reservations at 50's per day, and approximately 400 reservations "no show". So if you can't get your reservation, you might have better luck walking up right now!

 

[williamson_ja]

For a dinner show, I would try the Hoop Dee Doo review. My family loves it!! I don't know if you'll be able to get tickets this close to leaving, though. My kids insist upon going every trip. It is a 2 credit TS, but it includes beer and gratuities... so to us it's worth it.

 

[RMulieri]

Not that easy...It depends on party size, the popularity of the restaurant and the time of day.It is not IMPOSSIBLE, but a lot of the more popular places may be impossible and you may have very long waits( with small kids can be difficult).My advice is to call Disney dining from your phone each morning and see what if anything is available where you are going to be

 

[ssawka]

Purchasing the DDP with about 10 days prior to your trip and now facing trouble getting ADRs may be illustrating you may have waited to long to get the DDP. You might be better off returning to the QSDP and paying TS out of pocket. Getting in an TS restaurant without an ADR has a lot of variables. Having ADRs is best. On Disney's site they provide the disclaimer about the demand on TS restaurants and the need to make ADRs, so just because they sell the DDP doesn't mean their going to be sympathetic to your situation. You can lose money with a DDP without planning. They know the situation and this is why they highly recommend ADRs.

Walkup can be a challenge, since most people want to eat around the same time. Without an ADR avoid these times. Don't eat at prime dining times. Party size matters. Select the less popular restaurants and even then you have no guarantees. You will hear "NO" more than you want and your group may start to rebel as you traverse from TS to TS restaurant as their stomachs start to growl.

I know it would not be the best use of a meal credit, but I still don't understand why Disney won't allow you to use a TS credit at a CS restaurant.

 

[DonaldTDuck]

There are several TS that don't take ADRs you can walk in at, specifically ESPN Zone, Beaches and Cream and Big River Grille. And you can use TS credits for room service or delivery pizza. Lots of options, you shouldn't have to lose any.

 

[mickeysaver]

Big River Grille will make reservations in advance if you call them. http://bigrivergrille.com/index.php?pg=location&sub=loc&location_id=23

 

[Elmo888]

To clarify, I was able to get some ADRs:

50s Primetime (dinner)
Akerhaus (lunch)
Cape May (bfast)
Crystal Palace (lunch)
Garden Grill
Planet Hollywood

When on the QSDP, we got the Garden Grill and Cape May ressies and after adding up the costs, we decided to upgrade to DDP. But, there are a few other places I would really like to get into, but Im happy to get the ones that we've already gotten!

I would definitely make the ADRs before you go. When you are there, you can still call the ADR line and see if your preferred place is available or go for walk up. I would just have back up in the vicinity.

I would just keep looking online (I like how they "suggest" other restaurants if your choice isn't available) and look at the less popular times and restaurants (esp. in the resorts). For "bang for our buck", just have the ADRs lined up to fill all of your TS credits. If you find alternatives, just take them and cancel your other ones (release them for other guests!).

And is Planet Hollywood on the DDP? I have no idea, but I would double check (you probably already have!).

 

[kk&shay]

YES! Planet Hollywood is on the DDP plan. That was one of the reasons we upgraded from QSDP. We had an ADR there and 2 other places anyway so we figured we'd spend a few extra bucks and upgrade our plan. For what we would have paid for those 3 meals, we upgraded and now get 7 TS meals!

Great news too! I was able to get an ADR at 1900 Park Fare. I was only able to get a reservation for my daughter and I, but my fiancee and sons prob. wouldn't enjoy it as much as us anyway. I lucked out and got them a reservation at Cape May for the same time. Score!

Next quesiton, how far in advance do I need to cancel my reservation? Also, if we don't make it to an ADR, will we be charged a fee?

 

[eelkmj01]

I heard from a Manager at 50's Prime Time Cafe that walks ups are now easier than reservations. This manager thought that was due to the 180 day booking window. Since a lot of people might not know what they want to do on a particular day 6 months from now, they make dining reservations at or near all 4 parks and then choose 1 on that day. He said there are about 1200 reservations at 50's per day, and approximately 400 reservations "no show". So if you can't get your reservation, you might have better luck walking up right now!

I'm not suggesting to "not" get ADR's, I'm only saying I think you will have luck if you are unsuccessful with ADR's at getting a "walk up" without too much trouble.

 

[MickeyNicki]

I have no luck at it whatsoever...my wonderful husband has been blessed with the Disney Dining Touch and can almost always get us in to booked up places even if I have been told ten times "Sorry we are full"

 

[Missytara]

We were at AK, the weekend after Thanksgiving and it was a very light day there.

We had ADR's at Yak and Yeti for 5:30 pm, but we were somewhat tired so arrived at around 4:45 pm and said we would sit in the bar.

We were seated right away.

Excellent meal and we had a wonderful view on the second floor.

 

[honeydiane1953]

I would not go down without ressies. Even if I had to cancel or change my mind I would book them. Near impossible to just walk up unless it is a very slow time of year. Lately Disney seems to always be busy.