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

[Tricia1972]

I'm kind of wondering what parents did when they booked CRT or Akershus and this situation came up. I've never seen any complaints about it. Maybe that's just because there are now more restaurants involved but I've never seen anyone say "I made this reservation for CRT, the kids were asleep and I didn't want to wake them up, but I had to because if we don't go we lose the payment for the entire meal."

I agree with this and as a parent myself I want to add my thoughts to this.

When it was just CRT and Akershus then most families may make one special reservation for their kids at a meal like this for the entire trip. In that case it's pretty easy to plan for it for one meal. "We don't want to eat a big dinner tonight, we have that CRT tomorrow morning" or "We have that big CRT reservation tonight, let little Jill take a nap in her stroller and we'll just sit out on the park bench" or even "Let's cancel our Crystal Palace for lunch, I'm still full from breakfast and we have CRT planned for tonight"

The inclusion of so many more restaurants, specifically character meals, also increases the percentage of your reservations with this credit card hold. When you're making your entire trip revolve around your dining...it gets much more challenging for a parent. We travel with a party of 7 - so $70 out of pocket for every time that a situation can come up that may affect a meal. If we can't call the day of for a reservation, we'll likely dine offsite more.

 

[eliza61]

I am trying my best to see how this is a bad thing. For those of you against it as you say you can't know 24 hours prior whether you will show, what have you done in the past.

Have you been not showing up or cancelling at the last minute and letting tables set empty, preventing others from dining, costing Disney lost revenue which results in higher prices for you and the rest of us.

Honestly and I am not judging, I just can't seem to grasp not living in a world where this is already common practice.

I mean Disney has very strict policies for rooms cancellations that are much more expensive, require a credit card or debit, and much further out than 24 hours, how do you handle that?

I guess short of dire emergency which I would at that point care less about money lost, I can plan 24 hours out, as I do it all the time in my daily life.

Don't any of you take other vacations where advance reservations are a necessity? I know we do.

Sorry I have to politely disagree.

I lived, worked and owned a restaurant in NYC (well my family did) I can't name 7 restaurants that ding you for not showing up. If any thing most restaurant over book prime dining time expecting a % of no shows.


I spent 10 days in Paris France, the gastronomical capital of the world. Never, ever have I been charged a fee for not showing up and we made reservations nightly.

I'm the exact opposite I think all the excuses we give Disney for lousy food and lousy policy are just that. The rest of the tourist destination world manages to operate very nicely yet some how disney always seems to have a problem.

 

[Sammie]

Sorry I have to politely disagree.

I lived, worked and owned a restaurant in NYC (well my family did) I can't name 7 restaurants that ding you for not showing up. If any thing most restaurant over book prime dining time expecting a % of no shows.


I spent 10 days in Paris France, the gastronomical capital of the world. Never, ever have I been charged a fee for not showing up and we made reservations nightly.

I'm the exact opposite I think all the excuses we give Disney for lousy food and lousy policy are just that. The rest of the tourist destination world manages to operate very nicely yet some how disney always seems to have a problem.

Frustrated restaurateurs reserve right to charge fees for no-shows
http://www.nrn.com/article/frustrated-restaurateurs-reserve-right-charge-fees-no-shows


Nojo: Charging for no-shows
http://insidescoopsf.sfgate.com/blog/2011/07/18/nojo-charging-for-no-shows/


Chefs and Restaurateurs Weigh In on No-Show Customers
http://eater.com/archives/2011/09/30/chefs-and-restaurateurs-weigh-in-on-noshow-customers.php

If Disney has lousy food then why would you care if they do this since you would not be dining there anyway. It is only 19 restaurants out of hundreds, I don't think anyone will not be able to find places to eat if they avoid these restaurants due to the policy.

DisneyKevin of the Podcast Team and who does many of the wonderful restaurant reviews for the DIS has shared his thoughts in this thread and pretty much very succiently explained the point I have tried to make, that this is not uncommon policy.

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2815922

 

[MEM]

There are tired and cranky children the way things are now, without the credit card guarantee. And most Disney restaurants are so noisy to begin with that a tired child is hardly going to register. If you have a child that is out of control they are so tired then yes, you need to suck it up and lose the $40, and put it down to being a good parent.

People seem to be forgetting that this isn't happening at all restaurants anyway. If the idea of a guarantee bothers you, then avoid those restaurants that have it. Problem solved.

Honestly, if you over-do things so much that you are skipping out on one or two ADRs a trip, you are part of the problem WDW is trying to solve. Kids don't get sick that often on trips, and if you are pushing them so hard that they are basket cases by the time dinner rolls around, then you need to step back and re-evaluate how you are touring the parks. And what you are expecting from your child. Kids get tired beyond belief and they get sick, but it shouldn't be the status quo. And that is what some people are making it sound like.

What you say is so true! Some parents will bring the tired/cranky child along so that the parents don't miss out on the dining experience. Haven't we all overheard conversations like this? I made these reservations 6 months ago! We're going! You'll be fine! You just need to eat!

 

[MamaJessie]

Hey...this may just lead to the Disney ADR Insurance plan....for a small premium your ADRs would be protected--you wouldn't get charged the $10 and Disney would still make money...or maybe they would give you say 10% off the ticket for showing up and keeping the ADR--of course, only if you bought the insurance.

LOL I thought the same thing

Honestly, if you over-do things so much that you are skipping out on one or two ADRs a trip, you are part of the problem WDW is trying to solve. Kids don't get sick that often on trips, and if you are pushing them so hard that they are basket cases by the time dinner rolls around, then you need to step back and re-evaluate how you are touring the parks. And what you are expecting from your child. Kids get tired beyond belief and they get sick, but it shouldn't be the status quo. And that is what some people are making it sound like.

Exactly.

Obviously the current policy of expecting guests to do the right thing is not working.

I agree.

 

[angelmav]

News Flash: Disney announces more restrictive policy for guests that will mean more money for Disney: Disney fans cheer!

I really dont see how this is anything to get excited about. What is the net benefit to the public? Are there really that many people convinced that ADR hoarding is going on? Do you really expect to see any personal benefit from this change? It just made your future trips potentially more difficult to navigate, not easier.

This site is made up of a group of people who tend to frequent WDW. How many thousands of people will make ADR's not realizing the hectic pace, overstimulization, portions, weather, illness, and any number of other things that are hard to factor in when you have never been? First hand accounts of people who have been multiple times reflect instances where the 24hr cancellation window would not be able to be met. The average disney visiter that doesnt know what they are in for is going to get hit over the head with this.

 

[Cafeen]

If you really want a character with no accountability you could still do Garden Grove right?


I doubt a lot of people would do that. I have no idea what the policy would be, but I would be mortified if DH tried to get us to sit there, I mean if we could go and sit there why would we be cancelling the ADR?

The character choices are severely limited at Garden Grove. No Mickey, No Princesses, etc. It is the only place you can dine with Timon and I think Rafiki though.

Also, it being off the dining plan is a turn off to a lot of families.

The reason California Grill had a credit card guarantee in the first place is because it used to be open to the public and they had a problem with people just coming up to watch the fireworks. So they closed it to the public and put a check-in desk on the 2nd floor. Then they had guests making reservations just so they could get upstairs and watch the fireworks, they'd then leave without ordering anything. I'm thinking if they did that after the guarantee was instituted, they'd be charged. At character meals, you'd be charged for the full meal just for sitting at the table anyway.

So, now, If I find out I have no appetite shortly before my ADR (which happens), I have to either order and pay for food that will go in the trash (thus taking up server, host(ess), chef time and materials), or pay $10 pp? Since I didn't realize that I wouldn't be hungry enough for a meal until just a few hours before it (if that, but I'd be happy if the timeframe were just a couple hours), and this certainly wouldn't qualify for "Extreme Circumstances", there's no way I could get out of paying this.

I understand that CG is like this now, but switch the example to say, Yachtsman. A low demand signature that now falls under this policy. The result is the same and I now have to pay either for an entree that will go to waste, or $10pp to skip it, since I'm canceling less than one day out. The fact that before, I could work around one meal (or just a couple over the whole trip) makes it a bit less to worry about, now, if I have sigs every night, and 3 or 4 character meals thrown in, it makes it MUCH more difficult to do that. Pretty much spot on with what Tricia was saying.

And this appetite thing has happened to me in the past, it's why I didn't enjoy Hacienda as much last year, and why I skipped Citrico's this year (that, and I fell asleep at 3 for a 1hr nap, and woke up at 6!). Sometimes, I'll have full intention on eating somewhere, get there, open the menu, and then realize that I'm not at all hungry. It's rare, but it does happen, and it's entirely unpredictable (for me).

Unless the policy is a lot more forgiving than I'm guessing, looks like the days of my 4-5 Sigs per trip is over, along with a character meal or two. Which means that I can now save an additional ~$35 per night, since I won't need deluxe. Which means I can save even more (potentially), by forgoing the dining plan. This then means I can try the non-Disney restaurants (Il Mulino, Shula's, etc). Looks like this could turn into a win for me . Heck, with no dining plan, I don't even have to stay on site! I can rent a small house for what I pay to stay in a moderate.

Of course, a lot of this is theoretical and extrapolating. You all know I do that a lot .

And all that, and this is still not going to stop the ADR hoarders. It may slow them down, but the fact that several of us have already figured out the work around (and tested it to some extent), means that others, who are actively thinking of ways to hoard the ADRs will have also done the same. This is only going to hurt those who follow the system and have something come up, it's not going to hurt those who secure 14 different ADRs for each day of the trip.

 

[luvmy2babies]

The only part that bothers me really is the 24 hour part. I understand the thing about anyone being able to claim illness, but after going on quite a few trips where neither my daughter nor I got sick, it happened to us. When we went last, we passed around a stomach bug. My son puked on me, then I threw up the next day. I thought my daughter would escape it and she was fine when she went to bed, but at 1am Thanksgiving morning, she threw up.

We had 2 reservations Thanksgiving day, a breakfast and a dinner. I paid for internet and cancelled the breakfast reservation at 4am, 5 hours before the reservation time. I cancelled the other around noon that day, again 5 hours before the time. Had this policy been in effect then (and they decided not to waive the fee) I would have been out $60. I was already losing money because we had the dining plan. Now that's a risk I'm willing to take to have meals prepaid, but I feel I'd suffered enough leaving two TS credits on the table. Losing another $60 when I cancelled one reservation before the restaurant even opened and another hours before the meal time opened would have added insult to injury. I don't keep my children out late. I will not make a dinner reservation after 7. I usually shoot for 5:30 because that is what time we eat dinner at home.

Before the only one we booked that had this was Akershus because I didn't want to pre-pay for CRT (for that very reason). So if something went wrong, I'm out $30. I am definitely going to have to make some adjustments. I'm going to have to rethink my plan between now and December when my 180 day mark gets here. Before to avoid having an ADR every single day, I had 3 days where we tour only a half-day and have two ADRs and some days we would be in the park more with none. With this new policy I definitely don't want two reservations on the same day.

Not sure if it is status quo or not, but when I was fine one minute and puking outside at Toontown the next, it didn't seem to get anyone's attention. It was our first trip but that kind of said to me, "Oh, someone's puking at Disney…next."

 

[Colleen27]

I'm kind of wondering what parents did when they booked CRT or Akershus and this situation came up. I've never seen any complaints about it. Maybe that's just because there are now more restaurants involved but I've never seen anyone say "I made this reservation for CRT, the kids were asleep and I didn't want to wake them up, but I had to because if we don't go we lose the payment for the entire meal."

When it is just one or two places that required the guarantee the odds are lower that something will happen. In the past we've had one, maybe two ADRs at restaurants with cancellation penalties for an entire trip. The expanded list means that we'll have one, occasionally two, per day. So yeah, for me it is that more restaurants are involved.

We did have a problem come up with Akershus once, when one person out of the five of us was still too sick to make it, and we weren't charged for his absence. We just explained what happened to the hostess and she took care of it. But I suspect that with so many more meals requiring a CC and imposing fees, Disney will have little choice but to crack down on those exceptions or the policy will become meaningless as word gets out about how to get around it, just as the restrictions on double booking in the ADR system did.

 

[MELSMICE]

So if I stay out late at a park and don't make it for an early ADR - cha-ching. If I have a big breakfast and don't feel like having lunch at the 11:30 time I made the ADR 6 months ago - eat to make yourself sick or cha-ching. Or after forking over hundred of dollars for food over a week I might just get tired of eating by the end of the week and want something smaller at a QS place instead of another character buffet. I had better decide I'm tired of eating at least 24 hours ahead of time or my QS meal will essentially cost me $20 ($10 QS + $10 no-show fee). If your small child is zonked out in a nap - better wake them up and have a miserable night with tired and cranky kids to make your 5:30 ADR or cha-ching.

That is not Disney's fault or anyone else's. Why should someone book an ADR & then all of a sudden decide that they were out too late the night before so they're just not going to show up, thus, penalizing someone else who may have wanted that ADR........or walk up guests.

That's the "it's all about me mentality" IMO.

I worry mostly about if all the party doesn't show up....... this upcoming trip, have another family with us... so party of 8. I can totally see them wanting to sleep in and skip breakfast a day or two... so okay, just my family of 4 shows up - but it would be me booking the ADR, my credit card... I show up, and I get charged for the family of 4 with us who couldn't get out of bed!

Or I book 180 days in advance, and local family shows up on weekend of our trip each time. I'll book them with us for meals for Fri, Sat and Sun..... but don't know for sure till weeks ahead.. will they be there all three days, only two of those days? So means me going to ADR missing people again... and hopefully not getting charged.

It looks like people will have to tell their guests that they either have to be there or it will cost them $10 if they decide not to join the party. The other option is to tell them, "We have ADR's & we will meet you when we're done eating".

And I so see this happening. People struggling with exhausted and overstimulated children at dinner because they didn't want to cough up $40 for services not rendered. And I wouldn't blame them at all. Unfortunately it won't just be the parents and the children having a miserable night. I very much doubt the diners around them will be having a wonderful experience.

Again.......no one else's fault and certainly not Disney's fault. (see response below.......I completely agree with that!)

There are tired and cranky children the way things are now, without the credit card guarantee. And most Disney restaurants are so noisy to begin with that a tired child is hardly going to register. If you have a child that is out of control they are so tired then yes, you need to suck it up and lose the $40, and put it down to being a good parent.

People seem to be forgetting that this isn't happening at all restaurants anyway. If the idea of a guarantee bothers you, then avoid those restaurants that have it. Problem solved.

Honestly, if you over-do things so much that you are skipping out on one or two ADRs a trip, you are part of the problem WDW is trying to solve. Kids don't get sick that often on trips, and if you are pushing them so hard that they are basket cases by the time dinner rolls around, then you need to step back and re-evaluate how you are touring the parks. And what you are expecting from your child. Kids get tired beyond belief and they get sick, but it shouldn't be the status quo. And that is what some people are making it sound like.

Couldn't agree more.

It seems that many people are upset because they may miss an ADR because of sickness, being tired, cranky kids, relatives not showing up or wanting to do something different.

With the exception of sickness, these are poor excuses. You can also make an ADR an many restaurants without the cancellation policy.

 

[MELSMICE]

Originally Posted by nancytoby
Of course, if they wouldn't charge for wifi in the rooms, I'd be quite happy to make my ADRs for that day every morning from the resort room....

I read on Twitter last night that this is something they are considering.

 

[NLD]

I am trying my best to see how this is a bad thing. For those of you against it as you say you can't know 24 hours prior whether you will show, what have you done in the past.

I have been on two Disney trips as an adult. Trip #1--we booked one ADR per day, for a total of 7 ADRs. We missed one of those in the middle of the trip because my daughter fell asleep exhausted on the afternoon break and could not be woken up. I called and canceled. Trip #2--just my sister and me, two adults--we booked four ADRs for the whole trip, because now, by trip #2, I knew I didn't like being tied to lots of ADRs. I got incredibly sick our last night very suddenly (think it was food poisoning CS) and threw up repeatedly. We cancelled our ADR for that night.

Neither of those situations presented themselves 24 hours in advance.

And before anyone "goes there," I will resent any implication that I'm a bad parent because my daughter got so tired on her first trip to Disney that she needed to sleep through an ADR.

Have you been not showing up or cancelling at the last minute and letting tables set empty, preventing others from dining, costing Disney lost revenue which results in higher prices for you and the rest of us.

See above. Canceled last minute both times, for reasons that could not be anticipated 24 hours in advance. I did call and cancel both times. (Guess what? Under the new policy I'd get charged whether I had called or just no-showed. Kind of removes the incentive to pick up the phone and let them know we won't be making it. If I get charged for calling and cancelling three hours in advance, and I get charged for just no-showing, might as well no-show and not even bother with the call...)

Honestly and I am not judging, I just can't seem to grasp not living in a world where this is already common practice.

It has NOT been common practice for me to make an ADR that I don't expect to make, or book multiple unneeded ADRs. I have never made an ADR I didn't expect to keep. I have never booked multiple ADRs and then no-showed or cancelled last minute just to have flexibility.

I HAVE missed ADRs (two in two trips) for reasons I could not anticipate 24 hours in advance.

I mean Disney has very strict policies for rooms cancellations that are much more expensive, require a credit card or debit, and much further out than 24 hours, how do you handle that?

We've purchased travel insurance both trips. (And got it again for our January trip.)

As another PP said, hey maybe this is yet ANOTHER way for Disney to make some money off us... dining insurance.


This policy punishes ME, the person who honestly books as many ADRs as we expect to use, but then has something come up last-minute that makes it a wiser decision to skip the ADR.

People who double-book ADRs or make more than they expect to use can still do this. They just have to cancel some of them 24 hours in advance.

As for "just suck it up and get charged the no-show fee if your kid really can't make the ADR"--darn right. If my daughter is sick or just too tired and overstimulated, I'm not forcing her to go to Crystal Palace. You're right, that's what being a parent is, doing the best thing for your kid.

However I'm at a complete loss as to why I should just accept Disney charging me for this, for services not rendered.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

If cancelling over 24 hours is really a problem - don't book at the places where this is in effect. There are still a bunch of places around the World where there won't be a $10 fee.

 

[Colleen27]

There are tired and cranky children the way things are now, without the credit card guarantee. And most Disney restaurants are so noisy to begin with that a tired child is hardly going to register. If you have a child that is out of control they are so tired then yes, you need to suck it up and lose the $40, and put it down to being a good parent.

People seem to be forgetting that this isn't happening at all restaurants anyway. If the idea of a guarantee bothers you, then avoid those restaurants that have it. Problem solved.

Honestly, if you over-do things so much that you are skipping out on one or two ADRs a trip, you are part of the problem WDW is trying to solve. Kids don't get sick that often on trips, and if you are pushing them so hard that they are basket cases by the time dinner rolls around, then you need to step back and re-evaluate how you are touring the parks. And what you are expecting from your child. Kids get tired beyond belief and they get sick, but it shouldn't be the status quo. And that is what some people are making it sound like.

Yeah, there are tired and cranky kids now because some parents can't set aside their own priorities or don't want to leave a DDP TS credit on the table, and this policy is going to significantly increase the incentive for that behaviour.

Avoiding all of our favorite Disney restaurants is not solving the problem. The need to do so, or to stress out over what might happen to prevent us from getting to those meals, IS the problem.

I disagree about how common illness is at WDW, and it isn't just limited to kids (I've been sick at Disney more than all three of my kids combined ). It seems to be a pretty common part of our trips - once it was a migraine, once it was morning sickness, once it was a vicious 24hr stomach bug. But every winter there are literally DOZENS of threads full of reports about flu, norovirus, and other common illnesses going around at WDW. And that's just the communicable stuff, not chronic issues that people might have.

And I really don't think this policy is in response to people who make their ADRs in good faith but end up cancelling one or two on short notice over the course of a week; I think it has a lot more to do with people who book ADRs they can't possibly use just to avoid making decisions until they're in the moment. I think the system functioned well to compensate for the former with its built-in overbooking allowance, but that the latter skewed the numbers to an unacceptable degree. It is one of those internet things, where it used to be something only a few people thought to do but blew up as word spread - the DIS keeps a tight rein on discussing ways around Disney rules, but other forums, blogs, fan-written travel articles, and some travel agents are all out there recommending double booking and explaining how to get around the online system's pathetic attempts to prevent it.

 

[Dis_Yoda]

List of all table service restaurants where there will be no fee:

ANIMAL KINGDOM
Rainforest Cafe
Yak and Yeti

DISNEY'S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS
'50s Prime Time Cafe
Mama Melrose's
Sci-Fi Dine-In

EPCOT
Future World
Coral Reef

World Showcase
Biergarten
Bistro De Paris
Chefs de France
La Hacienda de San Angel
Nine Dragons
Restaurant Marrakesh
Rose and Crown
San Angel Inn
Teppan Edo
Tokyo Dining
Tutto Italia
Via Napoli

MAGIC KINGDOM
Liberty Tree Tavern
Plaza Restaurant
Tony's Town Square

RESORTS

ANIMAL KINGDOM LODGE
Boma
Sanaa

BEACH CLUB
Beaches and Cream

BOARDWALK
Big River Grille & Brewing Works
ESPN
Kouzzina

CARIBBEAN BEACH
Shutters at Old Port Royale

CONTEMPORARY/ BAY LAKE TOWER
The Wave

CORONADO SPRINGS
Maya Grill

DOLPHIN
Shula's Steak House
Todd English's bluezoo

FORT WILDERNESS
Trail's End Restaurant

GRAND FLORIDIAN RESORT AND SPA
Garden View Lounge
Grand Floridian Cafe

OLD KEY WEST
Olivia's Cafe

POLYNESIAN
Kona Cafe

PORT ORLEANS RESORT
Boatwright's

SARATOGA SPRINGS
Turf Club Bar and Grill

SWAN
Garden Grove Cafe
Il Mulino New York Trattoria
Kimonos Sushi Bar

WILDERNESS LODGE
Whispering Canyon Cafe

YACHT CLUB
Captain's Grille

DOWNTOWN DISNEY
Marketplace
Cap'n Jack's Restaurant
Fulton's Crab House
Rainforest Cafe
T-Rex

Pleasure Island
Paradiso 37 (4/11)
Planet Hollywood
Portobello
Raglan Road

West Side
Bongos Cuban Cafe
House of Blues
Wolfgang Puck Cafe
Wolfgang Puck's "The Dining Room" (Upstairs)

To me that seems like a very varied list.

 

[nkereina]

The only way this will cost you money is if you don't show up - I love this , and it would only encourage me to DxDP .... It seems like a lot of people on this thread have a lot of health problems in their Disney experiences - I always keep my family hydrated, sun screened up and liberally dole out handsanitizer - never had a serious illness - I'm sure they could happen but people in this thread seem to be implying that they are struck down with immobilizing illnesses like every trip .....

I agree a lot of people may beef up the illnesses to justify cancelling ADRs, but after getting sick on my last trip, I can assure you it happens when you least expect it! I exercise daily, take vitamins, and eat well and on our last trip at the end of the week I contracted a cough and fever and did not want to get out of bed. On our last morning, I just wanted to sleep until we had to get on the plane and was not about to go to Ohana at 10am for our breakfast. So we cancelled at about 8am. Now, I'll have to pay too if they decide not to give me a courtesy pass for the $10. And for the record, I went to the Dr. when I got home and I had pneumonia.

I think the people who are concerned about not making their reservations (or not knowing within 24 hours if they can make it) should simply book at one of the long list of restaurants that apparently will not be subject to this policy. Problem solved.

If cancelling over 24 hours is really a problem - don't book at the places where this is in effect. There are still a bunch of places around the World where there won't be a $10 fee.

Why should those of us who want flexibility on our vacations be exempt from eating at the "popular" and "fan favorite" restaurants? If I don't feel like going all the way to Poly to eat at Ohana on a rainy night and would rather stay in and get pizza, I don't have that choice now.

 

[Colleen27]

And I so see this happening. People struggling with exhausted and overstimulated children at dinner because they didn't want to cough up $40 for services not rendered. And I wouldn't blame them at all. Unfortunately it won't just be the parents and the children having a miserable night. I very much doubt the diners around them will be having a wonderful experience.

Yep, and that will only add fuel to the "no kids at signatures" fire because every single one is included in this policy. It won't be such an issue at character meals because they're so noisy and chaotic to begin with, but I don't want to be next to the family who decided to keep their Jiko reservation with a cranky, overtired, or sick child rather than pay the fee to cancel.

 

[Lyndria]

I remember the video phones underneath SE!!!!

Me too! As a 15 year old kid, I thought those things were so cool!

As I am reading through this thread, I do agree with the posters who say decrease the window. I think a 3-4 hour window is plenty of time to cancel, instead of 24 hours.


Off to finish reading the thread.....

 

[Lewisc]

I can't think of any other vacation destinations where guests are expected to make reservations for meals 6 months in advance. Where guests see the need to double book and otherwise make reservations "on spec" just in case.

There is no excuse for Disney overbooking restaurants with a credit card guarantee. It's nothing but greed if people have to wait more then a few minutes to be seated.

I'm kind of wondering what parents did when they booked CRT or Akershus and this situation came up. I've never seen any complaints about it. Maybe that's just because there are now more restaurants involved but I've never seen anyone say "I made this reservation for CRT, the kids were asleep and I didn't want to wake them up, but I had to because if we don't go we lose the payment for the entire meal."


And yes, the effect is that if you don't want to take the chance that you won't show up for the meal or be able to cancel, you will need to forego making ADRs for any of the restaurants on the list, including character or signature dining, as of October 26. I can't see that it's stopped a lot of guests from booking CRT or Akershus or California Grill though.



Thyway.

CRT was a "highlight" meal. Chances are you'll go even if someone in your family isn't feeling well. Planning your day you're likely to "block out" enough time. During the course of a Disney trip there will be times you want to skip a meal you had planned. Longer lines. Tired. Some feels a little sick. Under the new policy people who book signature/character meals ever day might get burned.

News Flash: Disney announces more restrictive policy for guests that will mean more money for Disney: Disney fans cheer!

I really dont see how this is anything to get excited about. What is the net benefit to the public? Are there really that many people convinced that ADR hoarding is going on? Do you really expect to see any personal benefit from this change? It just made your future trips potentially more difficult to navigate, not easier.

Some people think ADRs, and even walkup, will be easier to get. Some people think the "no show" penalty will reduce the amount of overbooking by Disney. This might result in shorter wait.

Of course, if they wouldn't charge for wifi in the rooms, I'd be quite happy to make my ADRs for that day every morning from the resort room.... just sayin'. I just don't want to sit on hold or have to navigate a telephone tree or discuss 4 different restaurant options first thing in the morning while my kids are still trying to sleep!

They don't have to offer free wifi. Many hotels, which charge for internet access, lets you browse a few sites without paying. Disney could charge for Wifi but not charge if you want to access a resort, or even a general Disney, website.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Disney should just only take ADRs 24 hours ahead of time. Why don't they do that? They could have kiosks set up in the parks where you could make an ADR for w/in the next 24 hour period and also keep the online and phone ADR resie systems, but you can't book until the 24 hour window.

Twenty-four hour reservations would be fine with me. Heck, they might even be actual reservations, not ADRs... I miss the video phones in SpaceShip Earth and World Showcase (near Germany), too!

But even now, you don't need kiosks. Oh, sure, there's one in DHS; but you can go to any WDW restaurant and make an ADR for any other available restaurant now. The entire reservation system is linked.