Making Multiple Reservations

[Sargeant Tibbs]

I don't know if people hoard as much as these boards would make it seem. I think the real culprit is that WDW is simply getting busier all year long. Usually they can handle the extra influx, but free dining really puts the stress on their infrastructure and shows that they really need to a) build more quality restaurants or b) do away with free dining altogether and come up with another sales gimick that isn't going to cause this much strain on their restaurants. I believe this is the intent of the tiered ticketing scheme. However, a little hype goes a long way and if their most popular restaurants are almost always booked it just makes people want to eat at them that much more. I think they create some artificial demand on purpose. Same with the charms. They know those charms are going to fly off the shelves but there are never enough. That's not by accident. They're creating demand.

 

[EvieBug]

I wod be okay if free dining went away, especially if it is causing people to hoard more than they normally would.

I absolutely think the website needs to work better. Disney has set the time, they should know the site will be hit hard then. They should be able to be prepared for that more often then they are (at least recently).

Well I do think FD forces folks to book TS where they might not normally - I personally would probably eat more food court options at the hotel since I have little kids then try for lots of table service if it was not part of my free dining. Also we booked a lot of character dining as FD gives us a chance to get a lot of character interaction at meals instead of standing in a bunch of lines in the park. But I am not sure it's the main cause of the hoarding or the shortages - I just read something about the parks having record numbers of people coming, and the reality is Disney does not seem to be keeping pace with growth. BOG and 7DMT are examples that spring to mind; folks are starved (hahahaha) for new things to see and do at the parks so those attractions that are 'new' get swarmed.

 

[SaintsManiac]

I can understand having a couple ADRs that are "must do" and you will try really hard to get. However some make it sound like every meal is a must do experience. There are lots of options and most people will never be able to do them all, especially in one trip.

Not every meal I have 6 TS credits and I plan to make the most out of them. It was tough narrowing it down to 6!

 

[Aggieamy5]

Well I do think FD forces folks to book TS where they might not normally - I personally would probably eat more food court options at the hotel since I have little kids then try for lots of table service if it was not part of my free dining. Also we booked a lot of character dining as FD gives us a chance to get a lot of character interaction at meals instead of standing in a bunch of lines in the park. But I am not sure it's the main cause of the hoarding or the shortages - I just read something about the parks having record numbers of people coming, and the reality is Disney does not seem to be keeping pace with growth. BOG and 7DMT are examples that spring to mind; folks are starved (hahahaha) for new things to see and do at the parks so those attractions that are 'new' get swarmed.

Just out of curiosity, where did you read about record numbers of people coming to this Disney parks this season? I worry about this based on how hard the dining has been to book (although I do realize there have also been some extenuating circumstances going on with the reservation system). I just haven't seen any of the crowd calendars reflect a massive increase in crowds for when we are going (Nov. 2015) so I've been hoping this isn't the case! : )

 

[EvieBug]

Just out of curiosity, where did you read about record numbers of people coming to this Disney parks this season? I worry about this based on how hard the dining has been to book (although I do realize there have also been some extenuating circumstances going on with the reservation system). I just haven't seen any of the crowd calendars reflect a massive increase in crowds for when we are going (Nov. 2015) so I've been hoping this isn't the case! : )

I did not read record crowds for this season, it was an article about Disneys CEO and how last year had apparently record numbers in the parks.

I'm going the same time as you (yay Nov!) so I also am still hoping for manageable crowds

 

[5DisneyNuts]

I think a lot has to do with WDW marketing and getting the dates out there for booking reservations and FP+ They are now sending booklets with the dates and even refrigerator magnets.

Plus the general population is now more savvy in researching vacation spots leading them to places like this. It is just a result of more people relying on the Internet. Crowds are definitely up by all accounts and WDW is challenged with keeping the new guests happy while maintaining customer loyalty.

If the model continues the way it has been, I think we can expect to see creative ways WDW spreads out the guests as much as possible.

Totally agree though that they must develop EPCOT and HS - they have both been outdated for quite awhile. The new Fantasyland at MK, while cool, was definitely targeted to a specific audience

 

[ThistleMae]

I've usually been to Disney in low crowd times....so going in November for Thanksgiving week has definitely been more of a challenge reservation wise. MDE did not work. I had to call three times. I am looking twice a day for two restaurants we couldn't book. I've never had this trouble before, so I do think it will be a busy time. If it is too chaotic, I will go back to off season.

 

[Lumiere Lover]

I hit my 180+10 day today. I felt super bad because I had two BOG lunches for almost an hour. I had to figure out our itinerary quickly. You should have a general itinerary in mind, book dining, then fast pass + to go with your plans. I wasn't going to leave the website until I got rid of one reservation. We do purchase the dining plan, but I think free dining makes reservations harder to get.