PPO BOG no longer first come first served?

[Christine]

Earlier this month, I ran across a thread on BOG PPO that talked about this. Some of my party had an 8:50 PPO ADR there and I discovered that many people with later ADRs we arriving to the park very early and that BOG was just letting all PPO ADRs in whenever they came. Didn't get to test this out as they cancelled the breakfast but I surprised to read that.

Looks like they may have caught on to this and are cracking down or, as another person said, too many 8:45'ers showed up at 8AM that day.

 

[Heather07438]

Years ago we had a PPO at Crystal Palace 8:10a. We showed up to the podium 5 minutes prior and waited 40 minutes to be seated. At the time I wondered how could things get so backed up upon opening. We had fun taking pics with our son in an empty plaza (for 40 minutes!!!) but missed any early arrival park advantage; the ADR ended up being a hindrance. After I learned from boards that people with later ADRs were being sat before us because they showed up 30+ minutes before their ADR. The coveted 8:10a ADR actually stinks if you don't also know there's a game to be played.

Maybe when hacks learned online whack procedures out enough, they change it. Like Resort Monorail where they recently redirected guests outside Monorail resorts to kindly take the Express (after MNSSHPs). Aggravated Monorail Resort guests waiting for the 7th monorail home may have played a part in Disney changing procedures.

 

[Rangers67]

So sounds like there’s been a change which does make sense if too many are showing up early. We’ve always found it to be a significant advantage because we can ride 7DMT twice before rope drop and my kids really like it.

 

[brockash]

We ate there twice earlier this month as PPO breakfasts, and both times cast members were turning people away who attempted to check in more than 10 minutes before their reservation time.

Was this before park open? It is a very common practice once the park is open, but PPO have generally, like all others, a first come first serve. We did have a bit of an issue in June where we had a 845 adr and checked in at 8 at BOG. The first CM tried to say we had to wait til closer to 845, but I just kinda looked at him and the other CM said no they're fine, gave me the rose and told me to go get in line. The other time in June we went, no issues and in Sept we had no issues.

 

[Afabena]

Was this before park open? It is a very common practice once the park is open, but PPO have generally, like all others, a first come first serve. We did have a bit of an issue in June where we had a 845 adr and checked in at 8 at BOG. The first CM tried to say we had to wait til closer to 845, but I just kinda looked at him and the other CM said no they're fine, gave me the rose and told me to go get in line. The other time in June we went, no issues and in Sept we had no issues.

I just did a BOG PPO 2 weeks ago and was let into BOG about 30 min before my ADR time, and there were 6 of us. We got into magic kingdom around 7:45 and by the time we walked back and checked in it was 8:05. Did the OP preorder breakfast? Maybe that makes a difference? There was a significant difference in the line sizes between the folks who preordered and the ones who still needed to order. Just a thought?

 

[rad91]

This is rather disheartening. I got an 8am PPO reservation in December that took me forever to get. I thought this was an advantage. Do CM's even try to find 8am ADR's? What time do people start lining up?

 

[Nancyg56]

This is rather disheartening. I got an 8am PPO reservation in December that took me forever to get. I thought this was an advantage. Do CM's even try to find 8am ADR's? What time do people start lining up?

For as long as I can remember CM's sat people in the order they checked into a PPO restaurant, not in the order of ADR, I believe this was to get folks in and to expedite breakfast service. It seems that for BOG this has changes, and CM's are checking ADR times prior to allowing entry. I imagine that it is just too difficult to manage all the early arrivals and they are getting a lot of negative feedback for those who are waiting while folks whose time is later breeze in.

I always arrive around 7:30 for a PPO breakfast and the gated open for us aroiund 7:45.

 

[Gentry2004]

This is rather disheartening. I got an 8am PPO reservation in December that took me forever to get. I thought this was an advantage. Do CM's even try to find 8am ADR's? What time do people start lining up?

Just arrive early (7:30) as you will be let into the park at 7:45. You have the advantage that you actually HAVE an 8am. I’d definitely politely but firmly point that out when checking in.

 

[GeorgiaHoo]

Maybe they were just actually full, with all the people doing what your friends were doing?

Our one attempt at this was a dud, not because of BOG. It because 7DMT was down at opening. So we woke up and ate an overpriced mediocre breakfast for nothing.

Ha, same for us. Got there, ate, headed out to get in line for 7DMT, and it was down for the first 30 minutes of park open. Ended up hopping on Peter Pan instead.

 

[AngiTN]

We ate there twice earlier this month as PPO breakfasts, and both times cast members were turning people away who attempted to check in more than 10 minutes before their reservation time.

Good. Surprisingly, ADR should be for eating, not riding. If folks want to rush their food to ride fine, but do it within the time of your ADR. Letting someone in way ahead of their time to take up a seat just so they can ride is unfair to someone who actually wants to go to BOG to eat. Not to mention all the ADR taken by folks who really don't want to eat, they just want to get in to ride. Sure, they pay a fine if they skip it entirely and sure, some do go and order 1 meal to spread among everyone but there are lots of folks who really just want to eat. Hopefully this change to following rules will open up spots for those folks.

 

[Heather07438]

Good. Surprisingly, ADR should be for eating, not riding. If folks want to rush their food to ride fine, but do it within the time of your ADR. Letting someone in way ahead of their time to take up a seat just so they can ride is unfair to someone who actually wants to go to BOG to eat. Not to mention all the ADR taken by folks who really don't want to eat, they just want to get in to ride. Sure, they pay a fine if they skip it entirely and sure, some do go and order 1 meal to spread among everyone but there are lots of folks who really just want to eat. Hopefully this change to following rules will open up spots for those folks.

It's nice to have the advantage with ppo ADR but yeah, first and foremost it is to eat at a scheduled timed just like every other ADR.

If everybody's let in, why bother with the misleading timeslots of 8:10, 8:15, 8:20, etc? All the ADRs for that hour should just read 8:00am if that's the way they'll be honored.

Doctor's offices have a policy to avoid this issue. No matter how early someone arrives, they cannot be added to the waitlist until 15 minutes prior to their scheduled appointment.

 

[queenof2princesses]

I was so excited for my 8am PPO ADR I made a couple of months ago and then Disney extended hours and are now opening at 8! How early will they let us back to the castle to attempt to check in? Has anyone had an ADR before 8? I’ve never noticed..

 

[Disneylover99]

I was so excited for my 8am PPO ADR I made a couple of months ago and then Disney extended hours and are now opening at 8! How early will they let us back to the castle to attempt to check in? Has anyone had an ADR before 8? I’ve never noticed..

I think 8am is the earliest breakfast.
I’d cancel if you don’t want to miss out on prime ride time.

 

[Nancyg56]

How badly do you want the ADR? If it was for some sort of advantage, you just lost that. If the MK opens early, it is becuase Disney expects larger crowds, and that hour can make the difference between getting a lot done, and not.

You will not get in much earlier than anyone else, probably 7:45. You can check in but the restaurant will not open early. If you booked the ADR to eat, keep it, but that is all it is good for now. Breakfast.

 

[Brett Wyman]

Just this last September we were seated immediately, with a party of 6, at 8am for an 8:40 reservation and we rode 7DMT no issue. So it may vary based on how busy they are. I think its worth a shot as long as you aren't building your entire trip around it.

We were also there just this last Wednesday for an EMM and they still had the BOG ADR line setup even with EMM running. So it can work on EMM and non-EMM mornings.

Now if the entire park opens early, thats another story.

 

[queenof2princesses]

I’m going to be completely honest and expect some flame throwers lol. I have an 18 year old first timer with us this trip and booked the ADR for him and my daughter to get the 7DMT advantage. She balked at the price for breakfast and doesn’t want to do it. I have had BOG breakfast and lunch and know that the ambiance is only reason for the cost. The food is ok, but not great. I will probably cancel, but considering how busy the park is going to be, I’m thinking $20 is worth being first in line for a first timer on a very crowded day. I’m sure if my 2 no show spots are really missed, someone walking up may get a nice surprise entrance!

 

[mom2rtk]

I’m going to be completely honest and expect some flame throwers lol. I have an 18 year old first timer with us this trip and booked the ADR for him and my daughter to get the 7DMT advantage. She balked at the price for breakfast and doesn’t want to do it. I have had BOG breakfast and lunch and know that the ambiance is only reason for the cost. The food is ok, but not great. I will probably cancel, but considering how busy the park is going to be, I’m thinking $20 is worth being first in line for a first timer on a very crowded day. I’m sure if my 2 no show spots are really missed, someone walking up may get a nice surprise entrance!

I doubt they allow walk ups before park open. You can order kid meals if you prefer though.

 

[jillt2ph]

It's nice to have the advantage with ppo ADR but yeah, first and foremost it is to eat at a scheduled timed just like every other ADR.

If everybody's let in, why bother with the misleading timeslots of 8:10, 8:15, 8:20, etc? All the ADRs for that hour should just read 8:00am if that's the way they'll be honored.

Doctor's offices have a policy to avoid this issue. No matter how early someone arrives, they cannot be added to the waitlist until 15 minutes prior to their scheduled appointment.

I so agree with this. I am especially frustrated by the folks who do this for Garden Grill because the turnover is nowhere near as quick as BOG.

 

[Genie-In-Training]

Just wait until Tron opens. Then rope-dropping 7DMT will be a cakewalk.

So true. Time to start taking reservations for Cosmic Ray's. Sonny Eclipse at 8am anyone?

 

[KrazeeK120]

We were also there just this last Wednesday for an EMM and they still had the BOG ADR line setup even with EMM running. So it can work on EMM and non-EMM mornings.

See, that irritates me. We like to do EMM. I don’t think anyone other than EMM guests should be allowed on rides until the park opens. EMM guests paid for the early access. People with ADRs paid for a meal, not for early access to rides.