Next Trip I Will Finally Do Disney Right!

[luvgoing2disney]

That's the way we do Disney as well. For our September trip we have 1 ADR planned for the entire week. I've gotten a little tired of the stress that the trips can cause, so we plan which park we are going to and get FP+ for those parks, but eat at CS the vast majority of the time. When we are hungry, we stop by someplace close and eat.

I don't get up at midnight to snag FP+. I try to get what I like , but if not, we go standby. Of course, September is a slower time, if a slower time exists anymore, so that helps.

We've never bought into the "Free" Dining, and after each trip when I add up the receipts for meals, it ALWAYS costs us less than the Dining plan would, and we save much more time.

 

[princess_ariel_85]

We've done a few tips with either no or very few ADRs made and it hasn't made our trip any less magical. There has been times when we've sat in our hotel room and made a last minute reservation at somewhere totally random, so if you're not too fussy you can find yourself trying somewhere you didn't think you would. I like a bit of spontaneity from time to time.

 

[loves to dive]

Have fun, that is how I do every trip. We do eat TS but we don't book any more advance than the morning of, we enjoy trying new places and don't worry about times or parks since we have hoppers and are adults so I just get on MDE and say find something for x time or find something in x place any time. We have never had any problem getting day of ADRs. I also don't book FPs until about a week before we go, if then. More often than not I'm changing them the night before because we decide we don't want to go to that park tomorrow or have been known to even cancel them the morning of and rebook at a different park. Life is too short to not stop and smell the roses every once in awhile.

 

[hookedonears]

i have finally seen the light! We have decided to do a long weekend in Nov 2017, and this time I am going to to do it right! Our trip will be 3.5 days with no table service, no ADRs, no in-laws, no stroller, no big camera, and hopefully a lot less stress! We are also going to go to HS with kids for the first time.

My only dilemma is whether we schedule an AK, which I feel like we have to with Pandora opening, and skip Epcot? I love Epcot, but it was our kids least favorite last time. I suppose we could head over there after HS. Luckily I have over a year to decide!

No ADR's? I'm afraid you're still going to be searching for that right way.

 

[Anesthesia Fine]

No ADR's? I'm afraid you're still going to be searching for that right way.

Meh. Last trip we booked a couple of ADRs ahead of time (for some value of "ahead of time" that equals "the week before", in a couple of instances) and also found some nice stuff just checking for availabilities the day of. Totally doable if you're flexible and keep a positive outlook.

 

[georgina]

No ADR's? I'm afraid you're still going to be searching for that right way.

Not everyone is into TS dining. ADRs can add stress because you have to determine where you will be ahead of time. We've been happy going to Columbia Harbor House or Cosmic Ray's for dinner at MK, or getting a sandwich at Backlot Express at HS, plenty of good quick places at Epcot World Showcase, etc. I had a very nice dinner at the Fountain at the Swan (or Dolphin?) last trip, on my way from HS to Epcot

 

[loves to dive]

No ADR's? I'm afraid you're still going to be searching for that right way.

As I said earlier, ADRs are easy to make day of if, like Anestesia Fine said, you are flexible. We never book in advance and have never had a problem finding somewhere to eat.

 

[OFF2NVRLAND]

i have finally seen the light! We have decided to do a long weekend in Nov 2017, and this time I am going to to do it right! Our trip will be 3.5 days with no table service, no ADRs, no in-laws, no stroller, no big camera, and hopefully a lot less stress! We are also going to go to HS with kids for the first time.

My only dilemma is whether we schedule an AK, which I feel like we have to with Pandora opening, and skip Epcot? I love Epcot, but it was our kids least favorite last time. I suppose we could head over there after HS. Luckily I have over a year to decide!

This is what we did for our Nov '14 trip and we had a great time! We aren't ADR people. My boys are 4 & 11 and it wouldn't matter what restaurant we were at, they are still going to order nuggets and cheeseburgers. I also do not want to spend that much on food. I would rather spend it on souvenirs or a longer trip.
We took our camera for meet and greets and used cell phone cameras for everything else. The cell pictures were everyone's favorite. Especially the selfies we took on Dumbo and a few other outdoors rides. As PP mentioned, everyone is different. I'm sure you will have a great trip!

 

[KaSe]

Sounds like a GREAT trip!! (You had me at "No in-laws" too. LOL!) We've learned through the years that while I really like the TS dining restaurants, it does require more rigid planning & doesn't allow for things like, "What if I'm not hungry at that time & what if we decided to hop to another park for the afternoon & what if I decided at 4 p.m. that I couldn't live another minute without a giant cupcake?" etc. So we much prefer the flexibility of quick service instead (and there are PLENTY of great choices for that as well!) We have our QS favorites (like Katsura Grill in Japan or Pecos Bills/Cosmic Rays in MK) and we'll hit those when we're hungry in those parks. That's about the extent of the meal planning that we do. So, good for you, nat8199! Relax & enjoy!

 

[YawningDodo]

On the six park-day trip I took with my mother last September I scheduled two ADRs and it was plenty. We did decide we wanted a third TS meal while we were there, and were able to schedule it just a few hours in advance -- it really can be done. We also "wasted" our FP+ by scheduling them all for the mornings so we could burn through them and then be free to change parks, and several times during the trip I completely redid a day's schedule because we'd changed our minds.

And it was fantastic. Honestly, the days when we weren't worrying about being somewhere were the best days.

 

[hookedonears]

Not everyone is into TS dining. ADRs can add stress because you have to determine where you will be ahead of time. We've been happy going to Columbia Harbor House or Cosmic Ray's for dinner at MK, or getting a sandwich at Backlot Express at HS, plenty of good quick places at Epcot World Showcase, etc. I had a very nice dinner at the Fountain at the Swan (or Dolphin?) last trip, on my way from HS to Epcot

We are not big eaters, though dining is a major part of the Disney Experience for us. For many people it's not. We love many of the Signature Restaurants. Character dining also enhances our Disney experience. Yes there are occasions when people walk up and are seated, but that's the exception, not the rule. When ROL finally rolls out, it's possible that you may have to have a FP, or Dining Package to get a seat, or wait 6 hours in a stand-by line. I'd rather have an ADR for a Dining Package, then use a FP on the show or waste a half of day waiting in a stand-by line.

 

[Tara1988]

That actually sounds like a nightmare to me (except the no in law part) And the only reason I don't enjoy vacations with them is because they don't plan anything. We either end up sitting around looking at each other or running around like a chicken with its head cut off trying to figure out what to do. I can't imagine what a Disney trip with people like that would be like, but I know I want no part of it.

 

[kagmypts]

Aside from Fastpasses, we don't schedule anything. We eat when we are hungry... no stress about what we are going to want eat 180 days in the future. It makes Disney relaxing! Have fun.​

 

[nat8199]

Thank you all!! It is great to read the varying perspectives. Part of the reason we would ditch the ADRs is that with just three days at the park, having to be somewhere at a certain time seems limiting. I do love a lot of the restaurants, but I love them a lot less with my kids being tired and cranky. My crew was just absolutely wiped out by dinner time on the last trip. They just wanted to eat something and fall asleep (all three are naturally early risers even at Disney). Of course, they will be two years older this next trip, so things could go better than last time. Maybe an ADR at Be Our Guest or somewhere else casual would work.

We would also still have a general touring plan for each day, but a very relaxed one.

 

[DisneyDad2015]

It's funny how what's "right" for one person at WDW would be totally wrong for another. 3.5 days would be way too short for me, I love having ADR's, and I enjoy a good table service meal to take a break from a long park day.

To each his/her own. At least you have figured out what's best for you.

 

[famy27]

We're going over Labor Day this year. Our 180-day window opened in March, and I made a grand total of 0 ADRs. I will probably make one ADR and then try to snag one more when we're there, depending on how we're feeling. Our last trip was 3.5 days, and our only pre-planned events were the Star Wars dessert party and CRT for me and younger DD. We did get into Skipper Canteen, which had been on our list of new things to try. Everything else we did was QS. We had a great time, and we tried to relax to some degree (which for us is being at the park from 10:00 until close instead of RD to close).

 

[lugnut33]

IMHO, you can skip Epcot and go to Disney Springs where you'll find more selection for food and beverages at lower prices, plus there is ample free entertainment.

 

[powellrj]

When I booked our trip last year I had the deluxe dining plan and had all of our meals planned, when I woke up in the middle of the night and decided to cancel the dining plan and all of our adr plans. We were going for food and wine and I had 3adrs planned everyday plus food and wine. The would have had to roll us out of the park with all that food! We had a great trip and had lots of snacks we had never had plus ate several meals off-site and at dtd. Not only did we save a bundle, we saved calories and had a great trip! We are doing the same thing this year.

 

[nat8199]

It's funny how what's "right" for one person at WDW would be totally wrong for another. 3.5 days would be way too short for me, I love having ADR's, and I enjoy a good table service meal to take a break from a long park day.

To each his/her own. At least you have figured out what's best for you.

To confess.... 3.5 days is way too short for me, too! But it is all that we are going to be able to fit in between our school and work schedules. DH refuses to go during high crowd school vacations, so we are sticking to shorter vacations. Hopefully we Weill be able to go more frequently!

 

[nat8199]

We're going over Labor Day this year. Our 180-day window opened in March, and I made a grand total of 0 ADRs. I will probably make one ADR and then try to snag one more when we're there, depending on how we're feeling. Our last trip was 3.5 days, and our only pre-planned events were the Star Wars dessert party and CRT for me and younger DD. We did get into Skipper Canteen, which had been on our list of new things to try. Everything else we did was QS. We had a great time, and we tried to relax to some degree (which for us is being at the park from 10:00 until close instead of RD to close).

OMG! I forgot about the Skipper Canteen! (I haven't started researching changes by the time of the trip at all.). I might have to break my no ADR pledge if I can get one there!