New dining reservation rules--will this change how you plan?

[GeneralTso]

Starting on October 31, Disney will expand its current dining cancellation policy (which right now is only being used for character meals and signature dining experiences) to include all Walt Disney World table service restaurants.

With the policy, guests will be required to put down a credit card number in order to make Advanced Dining Reservations. Should the guest need to cancel a reservation, the guest must do so before 11:59 pm the day before the reservation; otherwise Disney will charge a $10 per person fee. For pre-paid locations, if guests do not cancel in time, the entire amount will be retained

 

[GeneralTso]

Above is from Touring Plans.
I like it. It will help get away from so many spots being taken by folks that don't intend to use them. They're just "covering their bases" so to speak.

 

[Dan Murphy]

I think it is great. Maybe will be able to get e DR once in awhile now.

 

[ellyn2000]

I like it, too. ADR's are too hard to get to allow reservations to go unused.

 

[asmit4]

Fantastic! This will make for some late openings also with cancellations occurring 24 hours prior!

Question though- I booked ADRs already for November. Will I need to go in and put down a deposit?

 

[nugov2]

No. I double booked a couple of TS meals waiting for the TT Fireworks dessert party to open. I wanted to make sure one night we had that and the other we had BOG when we were in MK. So I double booked BOG. It makes no difference if I have to put a cc down or not. Would have still double booked. I also booked 2 other dinner reservations, but once we got there we swapped for something else. All of them were cancelled within the 24 hour new guideline so we wouldn't have been charge.

WDW isn't really a spur of the moment type vacation where you can decide when you wake up where you want to go in most cases, so you have to book well in advance. I can see why they don't want to have the last minute cancellations and are charging guests, but I also think that at most restaurants(especially in the park) don't have an issue filling a last minute cancellation so don't think they need to do it for those restaurants. It doesn't make me mad though and I wouldn't be mad if I got charged for not going. For me at the end of the day I'd rather have the hard to get resie and not use it and pay a fee, then not have it at all.

 

[GeneralTso]

Pretty safe to assume this is for new reservations only, as of Oct 31st.

 

[Jennasis]

Not a problem for us.

 

[cluvsdisney]

Except for maybe LTT for lunch if we have a MK day, we won't be making ADRs. We'll go places that either don't require them, take out chance with a walk up or we'll go off sight. We don't care about how much time we spend in the park so the extra time to go someplace else isn't a concern.

 

[conandrob240]

Yes it will. I won't be making very many ADRs anymore. Maybe 1 a trip,instead of 4 or 5

 

[serene56]

Its a hold on a credit card. People will still hold mutilple'reservations and cancel closer to their stay

 

[BuzzBelleMom]

No change for us, since we only plan one TS a day. DH refuses to leave the parks for hopping, so we stay where we are.

 

[shyjade]

Pretty safe to assume this is for new reservations only, as of Oct 31st.

If you modify a reservation which was previously booked before October 31st (and the ressie date is after the 31st), I read that they will be applying the new policy.

Sort of like how when I modified our resort reservation which was booked before the price increase, they applied the new rate to the modified reservation since the modification was after the new rate came out.

 

[kerplop]

It won't change anything for us personally and I don't see it stopping people from making multiple reservations for the same time periods, unless they keep track via the credit card #. Then again most people I know have more than one credit card. Either way it might be nice for people who get there with no reservations and need to make last minute ones

 

[Snow Shoe]

No problem here! I'm surprised that it hasn't been done years before.

 

[cheesemouse]

Nope. I like the new policy. I book many reservations at the 180 day mark and if my plans change such that some aren't needed then I simply cancel them. If something comes up during the trip such that I can't cancel by midnight the night before, then oh well, I guess I'm out the $10 per person. In the grand scheme of the entire cost of the trip, one unlikely cancellation fee isn't going to make or break my trip.

 

[tlwfun89]

Except for maybe LTT for lunch if we have a MK day, we won't be making ADRs. We'll go places that either don't require them, take out chance with a walk up or we'll go off sight. We don't care about how much time we spend in the park so the extra time to go someplace else isn't a concern.

I agree we have been on the deluxe dining plan for the last couple of years and have determined we would like to stay longer and not be tied to what we can eat and what time. The whole scheduling has become cumbersome along with having to purchase a dining plan for the entire length of stay which would be gosh awful expensive for 5 adults over 10 days. The only way in the past was to divide and switch resorts like we are nuts just to change dining plans. One of the plans is not enough food the way we like to do appetizers, meal and such and the deluxe is too many meals too often and too much commitment to eating and wasting food that we can not stomach.WE like one meal all out appetizer, meal and dessert and the others we like to just eat when we are hungry. Some days we may not feel like going to a particular breakfast at 8 a.m. or a set meal time. or eating 3 -3 course meals every day.

 

[cel_disney]

I think having to cancel the day before is a bit excessive. If the weather is terrible and we can't handle it at the parks, I hate being forced to stay for our dinner ADR or forgo the deposit when I can still provide 3-4 hours notice which is very far from a no show!

No issue with billing no shows or even those that don't give an hour or 4 hours notice...but same day cancellations for dinner seem like a more reasonable approach.

We are pretty faithful diners but our family of 4 will probably start to eat fewer TS meals as a result of this - even as a MAJOR planner its just too hard to predict how my kids, the weather , and the crowds will be for the next day to always have a ressie...

 

[LilyWDW]

Won't change anything with my plan. I have never missed an ADR, I have never double booked "just in case", and I don't make multiple reservations per day. I also do not book reservations on arrival day because too many things can happen. In my opinion, an ADR is like an appointment. I made it and I am expected to be there.

Then again, I am one of those who already knows where I want to eat for my October 2014 trip and, for the most part, my September 2015 trip.

So, no big change for me except for giving the actual CC information.

 

[DisneyWisher]

I think having to cancel the day before is a bit excessive. If the weather is terrible and we can't handle it at the parks, I hate being forced to stay for our dinner ADR or forgo the deposit when I can still provide 3-4 hours notice which is very far from a no show!

No issue with billing no shows or even those that don't give an hour or 4 hours notice...but same day cancellations for dinner seem like a more reasonable approach.

I totally agree. We had ressies at Ohana last month 9/13 (Unleash the Villains) we leave Pop 45 mins before ressie (we are driving) as soon as we leave Pop and drive maybe 500 feet, we hit stand still traffic. For 30 mins we probably went about 100 feet. Finally I get over to the right lane and see if there is an alternate way to Poly. I take a road that leads to I-4W, take that to 192 and get on World Drive (huge circle) the traffic was unbelievable. Even 2 hours later going back to Pop there was still backed up traffic. Luckily I've been to Disney numerous times and for most part I know my way around except for the shortcuts.

Also I make the suggestion don't even think of Mission Space if you have ADRs.

Didn't like Ohana's new changes probably won't go back. Passion fruit vinaigrette with papaya in the salad. Yuck. If they want to give a fruit salad have at it but I miss my honey lime dressing salad!!! Honey lime dressing isn't even something they have at all. We'll just go off site and help the local economy.