New credit card guarantees. Restaurant list, policy & common questions in 1st post

[TLSnell1981]

I don't think, ADRs or even the occasional walk-up, were an issue..BEFORE "free" dining.

 

[Gmouse]

I don't think, ADRs or even the occasional walk-up, were an issue..BEFORE "free" dining.

Amen to that. We went in Nov/1st week of Dec and had no idea free dining would be going on when we made our resort reservations TWELVE months in advance. it made for A LOT more ppl. And was extremely hard to get ressies. We finally got all that we wanted about a week before we left. I started months earlier and it was sooo hard. Every other trip- we walked right up to ALL of the TS restaurants.
We try to go at "slower" times than usual...that time it didn't work as planned. It was packed. 45 mins to an hour wait on everything in the MK. Which normally we would be hop right on, or just a 15-20 min wait...which is really nothing. 45 mins to an hour in a "slow" season??? Free dining should be banished!!
It's really not saving ppl that much anyway. It's all added in the price. All psycology..... You can save by finding codes for rooms, renting points, finding discounted tickets, and not eating big heavy meals every day. We did it... and lived Some ppl like heavy meals all day... I don't want to feel like I'm draggin around the park tho! If you have several small kids under 9- it's definitely worth it, but not for one or two.

 

[maxiesmom]

No kidding, right -- It's amazing to me more people don't see it this way. They've dranken the Kool Aid. We play the game when we want to, but I'm not getting all rah! rah! about it.

I guess the way I look at it is their park, their rules. I wish we could all go back to the days where we walked into the park that morning, and made our dining reservations right there and then. But it isn't going to happen, and we all have to make the most of our vacations with the way things are set up now.

And while I wouldn't drive down the road and throw $10 out of my window for each person in my car, I do think that is a fairly small sum of money. Small enough that I don't panic at the thought of having to cancel an ADR at the last minute. Would it make me happy? No. But in the grand scheme of a Disney vacation it isn't that large of an amount. And to me, it is a small risk.

I'm not trying to be snotty when I say you have to decide for your own family if it is worth the risk or not. It is a bummer that it has come to this. But I am loving the fact that now I don't have to have my ADRs set in stone, there is some flexibility. I honestly think many people were booking ADRs they really didn't want all that much, and many of them have stopped doing that. Which is great!

 

[Mkrop]

I guess the way I look at it is their park, their rules. I wish we could all go back to the days where we walked into the park that morning, and made our dining reservations right there and then. But it isn't going to happen, and we all have to make the most of our vacations with the way things are set up now.

And while I wouldn't drive down the road and throw $10 out of my window for each person in my car, I do think that is a fairly small sum of money. Small enough that I don't panic at the thought of having to cancel an ADR at the last minute. Would it make me happy? No. But in the grand scheme of a Disney vacation it isn't that large of an amount. And to me, it is a small risk.I'm not trying to be snotty when I say you have to decide for your own family if it is worth the risk or not. It is a bummer that it has come to this. But I am loving the fact that now I don't have to have my ADRs set in stone, there is some flexibility. I honestly think many people were booking ADRs they really didn't want all that much, and many of them have stopped doing that. Which is great!

I think this is totally subjective, while $40 is not going to make or break my vacation like some posters, who travel with no extra funds, I am not willing to take that risk for such a silly time frame to cancel. I would not blow $40 at home, I certainly dont want to blow $40 on vacation. I would be more willing to risk it if the time frame was shorter because I think charging for true no shows is totally fair and it is inconsiderate NOT to cancel and allow for a walk up. $40 could be spent somewhere else in WDW that would make me as a guest happy...a tshirt, Mickey Bars, towards La Nouba tickets etc. WDW would most likely still get my $40 somewhere during our trip but as far as customer satisfaction, I would be much happier to spend it on something OTHER than a cancellation fee.

It is their park so they can run things however they see fit, I can complain and maybe it might make a difference, they have changed other policies based on complaints. Or I will adapt my vacation to the new rules, what I feel comfortable with, but that doesnt mean I need to skip down Main St over this new policy. If it ever changed to all places, I could see our ADRs decreasing more and us hitting QS more often.

I guess I am too cheap to spend $40 on NOTHING!

 

[mcd2745]

Um, I do.

I almost never make dining reservations outside of WDW.

When I do make them, I nearly always make them hours before I plan to eat, not SIX MONTHS.

However, if I don't feel well enough to attend a fancy dinner, I feel at liberty to cancel. The few places I make dining reservations at home ALSO take walk ups and ALWAYS have walk ups waiting for tables. So I don't ever feel like I'm leaving a place high and dry.

I don't eat at the kind of places that are 'reservation only'. I make reservations at the kind of places that have an hour wait for walk-ups every weekend, and where half the time we are among the folks waiting for a table. (although, at least one of the places we go every week knows us well enough that I think they quietly give us a table ahead of our real place in line- over the 'non-regulars.' )

At WDW, we usually get the DDP. We have prepaid for our meals. That's quite a commitment on my part to spend LOTS of money on food at WDW. Disney knows we will be eating somewhere on property. I truly think we should have the flexibilty to eayt what we feellike eating, when we feel like eating.

To me, being an adult means I get to choose what I want to eat, when I want to eat it. Being at WDW does not mean I forfeit that freedom.

You're right, simply being at WDW does not mean you give up that freedom. And logic would dictate that in order keep that freedom and be able to "eat what I want, when I want", one would never make ADRs - therefore rendering this policy moot as far as you're concerned. However, once someone makes the choice to make ADRs, they are voluntarily forfeting some of that freedom/flexibility in favor of ensuring a table at a restaurant of their choosing. Like everything else in life, it's a tradeoff.

 

[Colleen27]

The availability is definitely improved. Interestingly, it seems to have improved across the board, not just at CC hold places. (At least from what I've seen.) We actually stopped at DTD this past Friday on our way home from relatives in SW FL and we were able to get a walk-up at T-Rex Cafe for lunch and were seated almost immediately. I was quite surprised as DTD was packed.

T-Rex tends to be a special case because they only release a fraction of their tables into the WDW dining system to begin with, and many people don't know that even if it shows as unavailable on Disney's site there may be tables available. They're also very new to the dining plan; 180-out planners travelling right now didn't know T-Rex was going to be a DDP participant when they made their ADRs and while some might change plans to try it, many will stick with their plans as already set.

That aside, I suspect that the combination of the inflexible CC policy and the DDP/DxDDP price increases have worked to lower overall DDP participation and thus reduced total demand for TS dining. At current pricing, one cancellation fee for a family can all but wipe out the small potential savings of the basic DDP which makes the plan far less attractive to travelers savvy enough to do the math, and it is virtually impossible to utilize the DxDDP without committing to a large number of CC-held ADRs.

We used to do the DxDDP every trip; we won't use it again with the new policy. That means we eat less TS than we used to, and we no longer limit ourselves to DDP participants. Those changes open up availability, not only at the signature restaurants that we're not booking because of the CC guarantee but also at places like T-Rex, Liberty Tree Tavern, Chefs de France, and others that we'd have had lunches at if we were still on the DxDDP.

 

[mcd2745]

T-Rex tends to be a special case because they only release a fraction of their tables into the WDW dining system to begin with, and many people don't know that even if it shows as unavailable on Disney's site there may be tables available. They're also very new to the dining plan; 180-out planners travelling right now didn't know T-Rex was going to be a DDP participant when they made their ADRs and while some might change plans to try it, many will stick with their plans as already set.

That aside, I suspect that the combination of the inflexible CC policy and the DDP/DxDDP price increases have worked to lower overall DDP participation and thus reduced total demand for TS dining. At current pricing, one cancellation fee for a family can all but wipe out the small potential savings of the basic DDP which makes the plan far less attractive to travelers savvy enough to do the math, and it is virtually impossible to utilize the DxDDP without committing to a large number of CC-held ADRs.

We used to do the DxDDP every trip; we won't use it again with the new policy. That means we eat less TS than we used to, and we no longer limit ourselves to DDP participants. Those changes open up availability, not only at the signature restaurants that we're not booking because of the CC guarantee but also at places like T-Rex, Liberty Tree Tavern, Chefs de France, and others that we'd have had lunches at if we were still on the DxDDP.

I agree with the bolded. I think the price increases the last few years has made it a lot less attractive to a lot of people. I always saw the value in the DDP more for its convenience rather that for any monetary savings I might realize. However, if I felt it would cost me more moent than OOP, I would never get it. Going forward, I don't see us getting the plan anymore anyway - even if they didn't increase the prices. My son is now 10 years old and therefore an "adult". He does not eat anything at all like an adult (he's always been a small eater), and would order from the kid's menu most of the time. So paying for him as an adult wouldn't make sense.

 

[Straughn]

I have not read all 122 pages/1800+ posts in this thread, so I may be making points that have been made somewhere else. My apologies to those of you have read all of them if I am redundant.

I made 4 TS reservations, at signature restaurants, this morning, for our F&W trip in Oct, exactly at the 180 day point. I anticipated difficulty in getting reservations for the restaurants I wanted at the time I wanted - 8 PM, give or take 1/2 hour. To my utter and complete surprise, I got three of them at 8PM and the other at 7:50, which was the CA Grill. Some of these reservations were over the weekend and never in my 25+ years of going to WDW, have I been so lucky, especially at the CA Grill. I happily provided my c/c to guarantee the bookings. I commented on my good fortune to the cast member who was assisting me. I just thought I was lucky; she said that because of the c/c guarantee, people are more reluctant to book because they don't want the "no-show" fee. She said the biggest issue was parties booking multiple reservations for the same evening at three or four different locations because they didn't know what they would want to do at 6 months out. They felt they had to book that early in order to get the restaurants they wanted, at the time they wanted.

This sounds like a problem of Disney's own creation. By accepting reservations that far out, people have to book that early to get what they want when they really don't know what they want. Maybe a shorter window for booking a reservation (60-90 days) would cut down on the multiple bookings. Maybe holding a small percentage of reservations back for short term booking would help. I don't know; this sounds like a damned if they do and damned if they don't situation or you can't please all the people all the time so you end up not pleasing most of the people all of the time.

I understand how people can get incensed at not being able to cancel the day of because of illness or other valid reasons. Unfortunately, once Disney accepts these cancellations, the word will get out and you will have people falling back into the same old habits of booking multiple times in order to get what they want. Then they call and say "my kid has a fever and is throwing up".

Disney is trying to keep their restaurants full (can you blame them- they are a for profit business) and they are also trying to accommodate walk ups and people who want to make a short notice (24 hours or less) reservation. I live in a major city where many popular restaurants have similar policies and make it clear that short of a death in the immediate family (preferably your own), you will be charged, no excuses accepted. Some of these restaurants charge a lot more than $10/person. I know of one that charges $40 per person during the week and $50 on the weekend, if you are a no show. In addition, a lot of spas and salons are requiring a credit card and they will charge you for the service you booked if you don't show up. That can be pricey for a massage or a facial. Unfortunately, there are too many people, who, without some sort of consequence, just are not considerate enough to call and cancel. Welcome to the "it's all about me" world we live in.

 

[LisaCat]

The other "Disney created" problem that causes people to make multiple ADRs is the multiple schedules they release stuff on. For the trip I'm planning, I want to do a meal at LeCellier. I want to do a Wishes Dessert Party. I want to see the Candlelight Processional and am willing to do the dining package, especially if it means I can combine Le Cellier and the Processional, but if all they do is a lunch at LC, I'll pass because I want a later viewing of the Processional. My 180 day was over a week ago. Candlelight won't go on sale until most likely sometime in mid to late July. The Wishes party won't be available to book until probably the end of August. So to make sure I get the other "must do" meals (Ohana and Crystal Palace), I have dinner at Ohana three nights of my stay and 2 breakfasts booked at Crystal Palace. I will end up canceling two Ohanas and one Crystal Palace, but not until I can get the Candlelight and Wishes booked, so we're talking possibly September. Now, that's still 60+ days out, so I'm sure someone will pick up those bookings. While I feel kinda bad about hogging 2 extra Ohana tables, this is a beast of Disney's own making. Throw into the mix the mess of cancellations and dining shifting that's going to occur when Be Our Guest starts taking reservations.....

 

[maxiesmom]

The other "Disney created" problem that causes people to make multiple ADRs is the multiple schedules they release stuff on. For the trip I'm planning, I want to do a meal at LeCellier. I want to do a Wishes Dessert Party. I want to see the Candlelight Processional and am willing to do the dining package, especially if it means I can combine Le Cellier and the Processional, but if all they do is a lunch at LC, I'll pass because I want a later viewing of the Processional. My 180 day was over a week ago. Candlelight won't go on sale until most likely sometime in mid to late July. The Wishes party won't be available to book until probably the end of August. So to make sure I get the other "must do" meals (Ohana and Crystal Palace), I have dinner at Ohana three nights of my stay and 2 breakfasts booked at Crystal Palace. I will end up canceling two Ohanas and one Crystal Palace, but not until I can get the Candlelight and Wishes booked, so we're talking possibly September. Now, that's still 60+ days out, so I'm sure someone will pick up those bookings. While I feel kinda bad about hogging 2 extra Ohana tables, this is a beast of Disney's own making. Throw into the mix the mess of cancellations and dining shifting that's going to occur when Be Our Guest starts taking reservations.....

Sorry, I don't buy it. Disney doesn't make anyone book the same restaurant 3 times. We decide to do that all on our own. Sure there system is a bit of a mess, but we all still have free will. You could decide to take your chances, and book 1 restaurant for 1 meal, but you didn't. I've done it before myself, but I don't blame Disney. The are not there, forcing me to type in my phone number and credit card info.

 

[mcd2745]

The other "Disney created" problem that causes people to make multiple ADRs is the multiple schedules they release stuff on. For the trip I'm planning, I want to do a meal at LeCellier. I want to do a Wishes Dessert Party. I want to see the Candlelight Processional and am willing to do the dining package, especially if it means I can combine Le Cellier and the Processional, but if all they do is a lunch at LC, I'll pass because I want a later viewing of the Processional. My 180 day was over a week ago. Candlelight won't go on sale until most likely sometime in mid to late July. The Wishes party won't be available to book until probably the end of August. So to make sure I get the other "must do" meals (Ohana and Crystal Palace), I have dinner at Ohana three nights of my stay and 2 breakfasts booked at Crystal Palace. I will end up canceling two Ohanas and one Crystal Palace, but not until I can get the Candlelight and Wishes booked, so we're talking possibly September. Now, that's still 60+ days out, so I'm sure someone will pick up those bookings. While I feel kinda bad about hogging 2 extra Ohana tables, this is a beast of Disney's own making. Throw into the mix the mess of cancellations and dining shifting that's going to occur when Be Our Guest starts taking reservations.....

Youre' right, it is a "Disney Created" problem - all because of the 180-day rule (yeah I know, I'm bringing it up for the umpteenth time). Just sayin...if it were a 45-day window, all those event schedules and everything else would be set and the extra ADRs would be unnecessary. Of course, they could also do a better job in finalizing those schedules earlier than they do, but they would never have them done 180 days out.

 

[maxiesmom]

Youre' right, it is a "Disney Created" problem - all because of the 180-day rule (yeah I know, I'm bringing it up for the umpteenth time). Just sayin...if it were a 45-day window, all those event schedules and everything else would be set and the extra ADRs would be unnecessary. Of course, they could also do a better job in finalizing those schedules earlier than they do, but they would never have them done 180 days out.

Not too long ago they actually did a test, and did away with the 180 window. Apparently a shorter window didn't solve any problems, so they went back to the 180 day window.

I want to add that Disney will continue to tweak their schedule right up until the day of. We have been at WDW and had the park hours change during our trip. Their schedule is never set in stone.

 

[LilyWDW]

Youre' right, it is a "Disney Created" problem - all because of the 180-day rule (yeah I know, I'm bringing it up for the umpteenth time). Just sayin...if it were a 45-day window, all those event schedules and everything else would be set and the extra ADRs would be unnecessary. Of course, they could also do a better job in finalizing those schedules earlier than they do, but they would never have them done 180 days out.

Personally, I don't think a shorter window would help many people. Disney fully books some locations near the 180 day window. Making a shorter window would cause headaches for a larger number of people. Right now, you have a smaller percentage of guests booking at 180. If you dropped it to 45 days, you would have a much larger number of people all trying at the same time to get the same restaurants. Talk about long wait times on the phones!

I like the 180 day window. I plan and, as such, should get something from that planning.

 

[MinnieMouse100]

Ok I'm sure this clarification question has been asked and I read several pages but do not have time to read 92 pages. We are traveling with a party of 10 with 2 additional local family members joining us. I made our ADR's for 12 but the 2 locals may not make all the reservations. Will I be charged the $10 fee for the two of them if only 10 of us show up to a reservation for 12.

 

[mom2rtk]

Ok I'm sure this clarification question has been asked and I read several pages but do not have time to read 92 pages. We are traveling with a party of 10 with 2 additional local family members joining us. I made our ADR's for 12 but the 2 locals may not make all the reservations. Will I be charged the $10 fee for the two of them if only 10 of us show up to a reservation for 12.

There's no charge as long as part of your party shows up.