How necessary are ADR for breakfast and lunch?

[dorothymantooth]

I have booked all of my reservations for dinner but do I really need to book in advance for breakfast and lunch? We are not looking for character dining or anything special like that. We are on the dining plan and we get three sit down meals but it just seems like so much planning. Can we just wing it or will we be shut out of most restaurants? Thank you!

 

[TDC Nala]

You probably wont' be shut out of "most" restaurants...but depending on the time of year you go and the parks/restaurants you choose, you may not be able to just walk up to any restaurant and get in.

 

[DisneyRookie2007]

I have booked all of my reservations for dinner but do I really need to book in advance for breakfast and lunch? We are not looking for character dining or anything special like that. We are on the dining plan and we get three sit down meals but it just seems like so much planning. Can we just wing it or will we be shut out of most restaurants? Thank you!

You did not mention "when" you are going. That is the major factor in determining if an ADR is required or not.

If crowd levels are expected to be high during your stay - or free dining is being offered - and the restaurant you want is in high demand - then yes I would make several ADR's for the places you want to eat at.

Nothing wrong in cancelling and ADR if you plan's don't permit it - but without and ADR you may get shut out of the places you want to eat and then be left with many TS credits you cannot use - which in my book is a big waste of $$.

 

[figment_jii]

I would add that you never know when a place will be very busy even if you normally could just walk-up. I was at Boma once for breakfast in October around 9:00 am and they were telling folks that the walk-up wait time was 45 minutes. It was pouring rain outside, so I guess more folks stuck around the resort for breakfast than normal.

If you're planning on having breakfast or lunch in a park, I would make an ADR. Especially at the MK, where the options are limited (especially is you don't want characters at your meal).

 

[Song of the South]

I have been hungry, hungry and unable to get a sitdown breakfast at the resort before. Definitely get ADRS if you want to guarantee a meal. If you wouldn't mind having resort CS instead of sitdown you can chance. I hate being hungry first thing though so I have learned my lesson!

SotS

 

[VandVsmom]

I would definitely not wing it. If you are not planning at being at the parks for rope drop, it is pretty easy to eat at certain resorts last minute, but lunch will definitely difficult, especially if you don't want to leave the park for a meal.

 

[Mouse13]

DH, DS, and myself will be visiting for the first time October 19-27 and really don't want to plan our meals in advance. We'll probably eat breakfast at our resort and do counter service in the parks. It's supposed to be a time of year when there are lower crowds but I'm guessing that free dining will probably be going on. Do you think we'll starve if we don't make ADRs or will we probably be able to find places to eat? Thanks for your advice!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

If you get three meals a day (DxDP?) I would HIGHLY recommend making a few breakfast reservations to get into the parks early. This was one of my favorite things we did when we tried the DxDP. We got early reservations (around 8:00) for Crystal Palace at MK, Tusker House at AK, and Akershus at EP. We had great food, got to interact with the characters (they don't stay long if you're not interested), and the best part was being able to see the parks without anyone in them! I got excellent pictures of the castle with exactly ONE person in my picture. I can't think of another time when that's possible (unless you stay very, very late at night).

As an extra bonus, we paid right at the beginning of the meal, so the minute we were done we were on our way to our first ride. It was great to be able to beat the crowds!

 

[SimplyGoofy]

DH, DS, and myself will be visiting for the first time October 19-27 and really don't want to plan our meals in advance. We'll probably eat breakfast at our resort and do counter service in the parks. It's supposed to be a time of year when there are lower crowds but I'm guessing that free dining will probably be going on. Do you think we'll starve if we don't make ADRs or will we probably be able to find places to eat? Thanks for your advice!

You certainly won't starve, but free dining periods tend to make it difficult to get into a lot of restaurants. Often, many restaurant will not take any walk-ins during the free dining periods. You may be able to get into a restaurant at a very off time (very early or very late dinner, for example), but you will likely be shut out of the most popular places (such as Le Cellier, 'Ohana, Via Napoli, and Be Our Guest).

Since you're there during F&W, this may be less of an issue since you can fill up quite well by trying food from the booths. Another option if you have a Smart Phone is to try for a dinner reservation once you know what park you'll be in that day. You may not get a first choice spot, but there are usually a few reservations left same-day at a few places. The same places with a same-day reservation may not allow a walk-in a few hours later.

Another idea is to make a few reservations at spots that don't require a credit card guarantee. This way, you know you have reservations at a few restaurants you really want to try, but you can cancel them that day if it won't be able to work for you.

Good luck! There's tons of good food at Disney, so you should enjoy yourself no matter what you choose.

 

[Mouse13]

You certainly won't starve, but free dining periods tend to make it difficult to get into a lot of restaurants. Often, many restaurant will not take any walk-ins during the free dining periods. You may be able to get into a restaurant at a very off time (very early or very late dinner, for example), but you will likely be shut out of the most popular places (such as Le Cellier, 'Ohana, Via Napoli, and Be Our Guest).

Since you're there during F&W, this may be less of an issue since you can fill up quite well by trying food from the booths. Another option if you have a Smart Phone is to try for a dinner reservation once you know what park you'll be in that day. You may not get a first choice spot, but there are usually a few reservations left same-day at a few places. The same places with a same-day reservation may not allow a walk-in a few hours later.

Another idea is to make a few reservations at spots that don't require a credit card guarantee. This way, you know you have reservations at a few restaurants you really want to try, but you can cancel them that day if it won't be able to work for you.

Good luck! There's tons of good food at Disney, so you should enjoy yourself no matter what you choose.

Thanks, SimplyGoofy! I really appreciate your insight on this subject. I have absolutely no idea which ADRs don't require a credit card guarantee. Is there a list somewhere on the DisBoards?

 

[SimplyGoofy]

Thanks, SimplyGoofy! I really appreciate your insight on this subject. I have absolutely no idea which ADRs don't require a credit card guarantee. Is there a list somewhere on the DisBoards?

Yes! You can find the list on a sticky at the top of this board.

Credit card guarantees are required for ADR's at the signature restaurants and places with character meals. Be Our Guest also currently has a credit card guarantee (likely due to its popularity). The dinner shows and CRT require pre-payment instead of the guarantee. There are tons of great places (Rose & Crown, Yak & Yeti, Liberty Tree Taven...) that don't require the guarantee.

Keep in mind that you are always welcome to make a reservation that includes the guarantee--you're only charged if you don't show up or don't cancel the day before. If there's a few spots that look fun but require the guarantee, go ahead and make the reservation. If, once you're there, you're no longer interested--call and cancel the reservation (at least the day before) and you should be fine.