Should fee be charged for not cancelling ADR's?

[mickaholic4077]

OP,did you actually ask the people working at the restaurant why the 6 to 8 tables were empty? Did they specifically say that the reason the tables were empty was ADR no-shows? If they didn't say that,then you really shouldn't say that that is the reason the tables were empty. Otherwise,I agree with your position that people should cancel ADRs if they aren't going to be using them.

I notice that the OP hasn't answered my question-perhaps because he knows he didn't ask it and therefore shouldn't have stated that the reason why the tables were empty was because of no-show ADR's.

 

[TDC Nala]

While the OP probably would have said so if he'd asked and therefore most likely was assuming the reason for the empty tables, he had a point about calling to cancel an ADR (assuming you do it early enough to put the time back into the system). However, steep no-show fees for EVERY WDW restaurant shouldn't be necessary.

I could understand them doing it for the popular ones and I think at the very least Le Cellier and Chef Mickeys (neither of them are signature restaurants) should be added to the list of credit card guarantees. But what on earth is the point of charging for a no-show at Nine Dragons?

Unless I am wrong I also saw some suggestions that ADRs be limited to onsite guests - while that would open up some tables I don't see where it's more fair than the current system in which onsite guests get to call first.

 

[Disney Ron]

I notice that the OP hasn't answered my question-perhaps because he knows he didn't ask it and therefore shouldn't have stated that the reason why the tables were empty was because of no-show ADR's.

mickaholic, I'm sorry I am just getting to this, but I worked 16 hours yesterday and 12 hours today so as you can see I've been restricted on time.

I assumed the reason the tables were empty was because of no shows because this wasn't a section blocked off, these were tables throughout the facility. But today my wife called to make an ADR for our upcoming trip in 4 weeks and brought the LeCellier situation up to the CM on the phone. The CM stated that restaurants as popular as LeCellier also have a higher rate of no shows. The CM also said this has been an ongoing problem at the more popular restaurants. My wife brought up the point that maybe ADR's should be held with a CC and the CM said they could do it, because the system is already in place.

Hope this answers your question.

 

[barndweller]

Abolish all ADRs. No reservations anywhere. Just like getting a good viewing spot for the parade. You want to eat at a specific restaurant bad enough then stand in line. No fast pass. No chance to cheat. No need to set the alarm clock. No need to cancel anything. No need to give a credit card. Problem solved.

And while we're at it...get rid of that D$#%M Dining Plan. The menus have gone to pot, everyplace is over-booked & plagued by no-shows, & service is in the toilet.

This thread has deteriorated to the point where it sounds like a bunch of whiney 5 year olds who missed their nap time.

 

[grandfloridian]

I agree with you Barndweller. This thread is serving no purpose at this time.

 

[Milofan]

I know grandfloridian wanted to close the thread and, as a first time poster, I know I’m making an imposition by posting again anyway! (By the way since I am a first time poster, hi everybody!)

The reason I’m posting anyway is that last night, after having read this thread I laid awake thinking of possible ways to change the system – yes that is very lame but unfortunately my mind can’t let go of things!!

My first suggestion would be a new and extra phone number WDW-DINX (but that it should also have a 1-800 number attached to it). This would be solely for cancelling ADRs and would be fully automated. The recording would ask you to enter your confirmation number and then say, “You have chosen to cancel XYZ on March 10. Please press 1 to confirm or 2 to return to the main menu” After confirming the cancellation it would ask if you wanted to enter another confirmation number or hang up.

If you didn’t have to hold through a busy time and a long menu to cancel, you’d be much more likely to cancel I think. Plus, the people cancelling wouldn’t be using a CM so that would hopefully reduce hold times on the normal number.

My next idea is more complicated (but not that much) and probably more “controversial”(LOL). I assume that when you book a DDP you get a reservation number for that and that it is possible to tell how many people are on it and for how many days it is booked. To make an ADR you would have to give your DDP number and then, if you had duplicate bookings it would be flagged up on the system and the CM would ask which booking you’d like to keep. But what about non-DDP guests or if you know when you want to go but haven’t booked the DDP yet? Those people could give a valid credit card number (along with full name and zip/postal code) to secure the ADR. If several months later you booked your DDP you could call up and change the ADR from cc secured to DDP.

Obviously, there’d be nothing to stop people making multiple credit card bookings except that their name/zip would flag them as having an ADR already and the same thing would happen as with the DDP number – “Which ADR would you like to keep?” Of course, people could give fake cc numbers/names/zips but that is where my next thought comes in (and this is the bit that people won’t like).

14 days out from the ADR all credit cards will be charged $20 per person for the bookings (don’t worry its not non-refundable at this point!!). If someone has given a fake number or the name/zip on the ADR don’t correspond with the cc number then the payment wouldn’t go through and the ADR would be cancelled.

This means that at 14 days out a lot of bookings should come back onto the system and, at this point a DDP res number would still be required but no credit/debit card details would be taken and it would be a non-secured ADR (I’ll explain what I mean by that further down). There would still be the option of leaving a credit/debit card number if the booker so chose.

Also between 14 days and 48 hours before the ADR if it is cancelled the card will be refunded with the charge. (The DINX number I suggested above would have a message saying, “Your cancellation is processed and your cancellation number is XYZ”)

From what I could gather from all these other posts, if someone is stuck at a park, or on a bus or has a sick child they could miss the ADR but that really wouldn’t be their fault and nobody really begrudges that kind of no show (plus, even if they do cancel an hour before its too late for the ADR to go back into the system and Disney makes overbookings to allow for this). The people who “get people’s goats” are those who make multiple ADRs for the same time. Between 14 and 48 hours, those with a credit card booking (that had been accepted as valid) could call and change that booking to a non-secured booking and receive a refund to their card. When you had a non-secured booking you would still have an ADR but you would be seated after all those on the Dining Plan and all those who had secured bookings were seated. If your whole evening plan was for dinner around fireworks rather than grabbing something to eat in the convenient park you may want to leave the booking as secured to make sure you were seated more promptly than those on an unsecured booking.

It would also be possible for those on the DDP to make an unsecured booking but unless they called at least 24 hours beforehand and moved their DDP reservation number to the unsecured booking, they would not be allowed to use DDP for that restaurant.

Those who didn’t call to change their ADR to unsecured or cancel between 14 days and 48 hours would have the charge remain on their card – to be credited against the meal or just as a no-show deposit.

I think I’ve covered all the thoughts I had whilst lying awake last night and just want to add that I didn’t think of this for any personal reasons. I only wanted one ADR for my upcoming trip and I managed to get it 6 weeks in advance (albeit slightly earlier than originally desired) and, since its for the Fantasmic package its credit card secured anyway. Multiple ADRs and no-shows don’t affect me in any way, I was just interested in possible solutions!!

Sarah

 

[Tricia1972]

As we all know, talk to a different CM, get a different answer. I spoke with a CM a few days ago and while making and tweaking ADR's I brought up this thread.

In summary she said:
*They do over book
*Le Cellier has gotten so popular that they don't accept walk-ups EVER.
*If 6 tables were open from no-shows, she felt that it was a grand gathering group that did not show up. Otherwise the overbooking should not have affected the restaurant so strongly.
*Other things could have caused the empty tables.
*Becuase of the popularity (NOT because of no-shows) she FEELS that they MAY require CC's to hold LeCellier ONLY. She told me to NOT take that as Disney's official word. It was only her feeling.


If LeCellier isn't accepting walk ups ever, then what good is it to cancel an hour before the ADR? I'm not saying you shouldn't cancel your ADR's, I am just asking why they don't ever take walk ups. Let's say the grand gathering called two hours before their reservation. The problem is LeCell doesn't take walk ups. The grand gathering did what they should have. They called to cancel. Le Cell had the space, but didn't choose to fill it. That's a shame.

 

[disprincessjasmine]

I disagree with charging a fee for not cancelling. If the restaurant has patrons walking up that can fill those cancellations then no revenue has been lost.

You're wrong. At Disney they turn walk-ups away if they are booked. Then there are just empty tables.

 

[dburg30]

That's why people suggest folks call even the day of, or a few hours before if you are unable to get ADR's for someplace, in case just this event happens. That's why you probably see some folks that cant seem to get adr's and others that say, 'we just called that afternoon and got right in'.

Right or wrong, if that's how Le Cellier is booked, you have to play by their rules.

 

[kribit]

If Disney was losing money (which they are not), they would charge a fee like they do for CRT. This thread is ludicrous.

My family didn't have one reservation last trip and "walked up" to every restaurant and were seated right away. Those restaurants included Chef Mickeys, Mexico, SciFi, Germany, and Alfredos. No, we did not attempt LeCellier, but I've eaten there in the past and I'm not sure what the big draw is. I think the ADR thing is completely out of control. I'm not going to sit by my phone 180+10 days to make a reservation to eat. I don't know what I'm even having for dinner tonight.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

I don't know where you usually dine, but I've found that even high end restaurants that take actual reservations typically have you wait at least a few minutes to be seated. Sometimes more than a few minutes. No one can plan for the party that dines at a more leisurely pace, and therefore, is still at "your" table when you arrive. So changing to a straight reservation system won't guarantee immediate seating.

Obviously, when I talk about "immediate" seating with a reservation, at any restaurant, a wait within 5 minutes is reasonable. I live in Manhattan, where the large majority of higher end restaurants take credit cards to save your reservation, and it works great. Typically, when you arrive, you are immediately taken to your table, but waiting at the bar for a few minutes to be seated is certainly not unheard of. In the case of the poster who ate at Rao's and said they happily waited 45 minutes? Well that certainly would not fly with me...not for a second. There are to many great restaurants in the city to put up with slip shod service like that. For example, last Friday, I ate lunch at Jean George, easily one of NYC's best restaurant going. We arrived on time for my reservation and upon giving my name, we were taken immediately to our table. No "Wait at the bar" or "It'll just be a second." Immediately! To me, having to wait 45 minutes for a reserved table is like putting in your order with your server and having to wait 45 minutes for your food to arrive. It's bush league, at best.

With the ADR system, Disney allows itself a huge margin of error to do whatever they like with your wait time. It could be 5 minutes, it could be an hour. If they instituted a cc charge for actual reservations, the guests would definitely hold their wait time to a much higher standard, and rightly so.

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

If Disney was losing money (which they are not), they would charge a fee like they do for CRT. This thread is ludicrous.

My family didn't have one reservation last trip and "walked up" to every restaurant and were seated right away. Those restaurants included Chef Mickeys, Mexico, SciFi, Germany, and Alfredos. No, we did not attempt LeCellier, but I've eaten there in the past and I'm not sure what the big draw is.

I was beginning to think that I was the only one who didn't get the draw of Le Cellier... Guess that makes two of us!

 

[TinkerbellMama]

pmiranda, I absolutely didn't think everyone would agree with me, but please some of the excuses you've come up with just don't cut it. Short of a medical emergency, why wouldn't one be able to call and cancel. Stuck on a ride or a car breakdown doesn't stop one from making a call.

And why does Disney take CC's on New Years Eve to hold reservations? It seems if they can do it then, they can do it everyday.

Why does everyone assume ALL guests will be carrying cell phones? There are still people who don't have them, ya know. Even those who typically carry them may not have them while in WDW, especially if they normally conduct business with them or contact family who will be RIGHT THERE with them in the parks. Hey, we have cell phones and will take them with us, anyway--I'm just sayin'. It's a little strange to expect that EVERY guest stuck on a bus or a broken-down ride can whip out a cell phone and cancel an ADR.
As for requiring a cancellation fee for no-shows, I think it's a very bad idea. They already do this for PSD at Akershus and require complete pre-payment at some other big-ticket meals. Disney has already figured out which meals are popular enough to justify it, but I think it would be a disaster if they started charging no-show fees. Let's be honest--fewer people would even MAKE ADRs if that were the case. Disney could lose business, and they don't want that. Not everyone is all wound up tight over eating TS in the theme parks/resorts. Again, I take it seriously and would always cancel if humanly possible, but not everyone realizes it's a HUGE deal to those of us on the DIS and a crime punishable by death!

 

[dburg30]

Why does everyone assume ALL guests will be carrying cell phones? There are still people who don't have them, ya know. Even those who typically carry them may not have them while in WDW, especially if they normally conduct business with them or contact family who will be RIGHT THERE with them in the parks.

Yea, heaven forbid you find a guest service location in a park, at a hotel etc and cancel them there. No phone required!! I still agree with Ron, short of a life threatening emergency, there should be no reason for not being curtious and canceling ADR's if you arent going to make it. If WDW doesnt release them and get other folks a meal, then so be it, but at least you can say you've done your part at that point.

 

[Jaime]

When we went to CRT for breakfast back in 2005 there were alot of empty tables around us and people were getting turned away at the door because they were full...we asked the CM why they had so many seats and they said they were reserved for different times...since it takes a while for people to get served they stagger the seating times and tables...someone might only take 25minutes to eat while someone else might take 1hour1/2...not sure if this was the case with you.

I do think everyone should cancel by the time they were suspose to show...it doesn't take to long to make a quick call...by the way no cell phone require...we were told you can call for free from any phone on the WDW property...I think all you had to do was dial 0...there may be a situation where you may not beable to cancel in advance but I would think that is rare.

ADR's in WDW book up so quick that I think if there was a charge and they still would fill the restaurants it just may not be so far in advance...I was shocked how easy it was to get last minute ADR's in DL last year...I had multiple time to pick from the day before but the restaurants were still full when we went.

We had to pay a $10 payment when we made our CRT ADR's ...it went toward the bill but if we didn't show we would not get our money back.

 

[Disney Ron]

Yea, heaven forbid you find a guest service location in a park, at a hotel etc and cancel them there. No phone required!! I still agree with Ron, short of a life threatening emergency, there should be no reason for not being curtious and canceling ADR's if you arent going to make it. If WDW doesnt release them and get other folks a meal, then so be it, but at least you can say you've done your part at that point.

dburg, I agree concerning the Guest Services locations. Very easy to have a CM cancel an ADR that won't be used.

BTW, until this thread I never knew so many people have been stuck on rides for such long periods of time at WDW, especially those with upcoming ADR's!!!

 

[TinkerbellMama]

Yea, heaven forbid you find a guest service location in a park, at a hotel etc and cancel them there. No phone required!! I still agree with Ron, short of a life threatening emergency, there should be no reason for not being curtious and canceling ADR's if you arent going to make it. If WDW doesnt release them and get other folks a meal, then so be it, but at least you can say you've done your part at that point.

I don't think you even read my post!

I was referring specifically to emergency situations where IT IS NOT POSSIBLE for a guest to cancel an ADR in advance. Stuck on a ride with no cell phone would certainly qualify, no? Are these people supposed to shout at the nearest ride-operating CM, who is ostensibly trying to fix the ride and/or evacuate guests, "HEY, WOULD YOU MIND CANCELLING MY ADR FOR LE CELLIER, THANKS!" At least one person on this thread (the OP?) has suggested that there is NEVER a reason not to cancel an ADR. Which is absolutely ridiculous, in my book.

To recap: I love TS, I make ADRs exactly 180 days in advance, I have never (so far!) been a no-show (have canceled once or twice but never just not shown up), and think it's rude not to cancel if you are able. I just think a few people on this thread have lost all perspective on reality in regards to Disney dining. JMO.

 

[pmiranda]

This thread is such a moot thread, it not even funny. Of the few (you know whom I am referring) that believe calling to cancel is ALWAYS eaisier than breathing (even though some may not even carry a cell, or be near a guest relation desk), their minds will not be changed. I believe it to be common courtesy to call and cancel as well, and I always will, given the opporunity to do so should the case arise. Again, this is NOT so much a reservation, as it is giving you the next available table for your party size. It's common sense to walk up if you don't get an ADR, perhaps you'll get in because there was a no-show, or pehaps not since they overbook for this very reason. REMEMBER, people are vacationing at theme parks. And no, it doesn't give people carte blanche to throw out common courtesy, but it does explain people's frame of mind, and what they are really focused on at this time. This is not a normal week in their everyday lives, they're out and about going on rides, sightseeing, and having a good time. Some people may just forget. It happens. I refuse to believe this doens't happen to everyone at some point, even the nay sayers. Everyone has pet peeves, and it sounds we've found the pet peeve of a few here. Does that excuse people who cancel vacations, or have many opportunities to cancel? IMHO, it doesn't, but then again it's not my business. Charging fees for no-shows at every WDW restaurant will cause chaos and very negative feelings towards Disney. They already know people are on vacation visiting the busiest set of theme parks in the world, and no-shows will exist, which why they overbook. Also, it may be help to keep in mind that for some people, this is not even a matter or common courtesy. It's just a restaurent ressie they were not able to make. Not everyone is quite as obsessed about it. Maybe for me, it's easier to see, since I try to give people the benefit of the doubt. We all have our own schemas, and schemas of how others should behave. Whenever we see people behave out our perceived schema, we're quick to think the worst. We generally don't stop to think there may be extenuating circumstances, or some other reason behind their actions, or that their just acting according to their own schema. Anyway, I really do respect other's opinions, I just think it fair to explore other views.

 

[SandraVB79]

It's not that big a deal to keep a cell phone and a small paper with the dine number on it.

My cell phone doesn't work in the US.

Absolutely correct lily!!! In this world of cellphones, I can't believe people forget how to use them when they can't make it to an ADR they have. If staying on property in your room the phone has a button to press to connect with dining. At the parks a CM can cancel an ADR for you. At the hotels Guest Services the CM there can cancel for you. And finally one can use their own cellphone to cancel.

To me it's just a case of being considerate.

It still doesn't work in the US.

And I have also set an alarm clock, turned it out, and continued sleeping.


AT DLP, your table will be held for 15 minutes, after that, it's free for others again.

 

[dburg30]

I don't think you even read my post!

I was referring specifically to emergency situations where IT IS NOT POSSIBLE for a guest to cancel an ADR in advance. Stuck on a ride with no cell phone would certainly qualify, no? Are these people supposed to shout at the nearest ride-operating CM, who is ostensibly trying to fix the ride and/or evacuate guests, "HEY, WOULD YOU MIND CANCELLING MY ADR FOR LE CELLIER, THANKS!" At least one person on this thread (the OP?) has suggested that there is NEVER a reason not to cancel an ADR. Which is absolutely ridiculous, in my book.

I just went back and re-read your post. I see nothing at all referring to an emergency in your post. You said lots of people dont take their phones to the parks. I said, goto guest services and cancel..

EDITL: unless you are calling a broken down bus or a stuck ride an 'emergency' I agree with Ron, I dont think that happens very often. If the rides broke down that much or the busses, I dont think WDW would be as busy as it is. At that point NO one would need ADRS as it would be a ghost town. And even on the bus deal, I almost guarantee there would be someone that would let you use their phone to call and let them know you were running late. I know I would let someone, it's not like it cost $2 / minute to use a cell phone anymore.



Oh, I agree that it's pretty much a dead thread at this point, but that never keeps me from posting.