Split stay - need good advice re booking a late arrival during a super busy week and dining reservations

[DisneyWishes14]

Not always possible. See tge "orphan rooms" comments.

You seem to have missed the rest of my post: "make your ADR's and then adjust your resort reservation once you have a more definitive plan. The only downside to doing this is resort availability fluctuates constantly and your first choice of resort and room category may not be available when you want to modify."

That is so shocking to me. I have taken days off before and did not realize that was how they were doing it. To have the reservation but to have to have it cancelled, then it must be available to re book? That stinks!

Ohana, BOG, all of the usuals and it's a holiday break for kids. So I want to approach this the best way possible, split stay makes it so much to think about.

It's not a cancellation. It's a modification and, yes, they can only modify it if the resort, room category and dates you want are in the current inventory. If not, you can modify to something that is available, but, again, as stated before, you may have to switch resorts and/or room categories. You can certainly ask the phone CM to speak with Guest Services to see if they will modify your reservation to take days off, but there is no guarantee they will do this. I've had good and bad luck with this. It's just nothing you can count on.

OP, I think you need to decide what is most important to you - securing the resorts/room categories you want for your split stay and dealing with the two ADR windows or, if you are unsure of your dates right now, simply make one reservation for your length-of-stay, make your ADRs and then modify your resort reservation when your dates are solidified knowing you may not get the resorts/room categories you want.

 

[Childs1stTime2Disney]

OP, I think you need to decide what is most important to you - securing the resorts/room categories you want for your split stay and dealing with the two ADR windows or, if you are unsure of your dates right now, simply make one reservation for your length-of-stay, make your ADRs and then modify your resort reservation when your dates are solidified knowing you may not get the resorts/room categories you want.

Thanks, going to do this.

 

[kaytieeldr]

You seem to have missed the rest of my post: "make your ADR's and then adjust your resort reservation once you have a more definitive plan

This cannot be assumed to automatically be the solution. Once again, orphaned rooms. If Disney does not expect to be able to sell the one or two nights somebody wants to cut off their stay, the will not allow the reservation to be modified. You can't simply advise someone to sdjust their reservation.

 

[AngiTN]

I think you are under a misimpression. A major one that seems to hold to many WDW guests.
ADR are not hard to come by. Not for any location on property save maybe V&A. And one of their dining rooms has been coming up in a few day out ADR search of late
There isn't a single ADR on property that MUST be done at 180 days. Vast majority are available same day. EVEN for busy weeks like Spring Break. Heck, we book stuff on NYE though that day they can be more picked over at Epcot.

So really, your split stay is not a hinderance in any way. Just book what you find when you can and keep looking. The ADR you want WILL open. I have no doubt whatsoever.

 

[AngiTN]

Hmm, so you are saying that with my online account, even without a reservation, I can book any dining reservations 180 days out? I am so confused by this. I just had a split stay booked before this and I had 2 different windows that opened up to make dining reservations. I could only book each stay's dining at a time from the start of that resort stay. Please help me understand.

To answer this, yes.
Locals who never stay on property can book at 180 days. Anyone can. No matter where they are spending their nights.
What they can't do is book 180 days +10
All an on-site reservation does for you is open that +10 and honestly, it won't do a thing for you at all that you can't do by booking them 1 day at a time.

 

[DisneyWishes14]

This cannot be assumed to automatically be the solution. Once again, orphaned rooms. If Disney does not expect to be able to sell the one or two nights somebody wants to cut off their stay, the will not allow the reservation to be modified. You can't simply advise someone to sdjust their reservation.

Yes, I actually can advise someone to adjust their reservation with the CAVEAT that, when they modify, what they have currently booked may not be available which is what I have been saying over and over again. They can modify it to WHATEVER is currently available. Again, you are misreading my post or not reading it at all. PLEASE read the bolded: "make your ADR's and then adjust your resort reservation once you have a more definitive plan. The only downside to doing this is resort availability fluctuates constantly and your first choice of resort and room category may not be available when you want to modify." Meaning, when she modifies, her current resort and room category may NOT be available. Unless there is NOTHING on property available for her new dates, she will be able to modify her reservation to SOMETHING that is available. Please note that I am actually AGREEING with you. I have advised OP at least three times now that she risks losing her resort and/or room category if she intends on changing her reservation dates during a modification. You have stated that if OP can't remove dates from her reservation that WDW will not allow her to modify her reservation - that is incorrect. OP will be able to modify her reservation to whatever is currently available in WDW inventory for her new dates - again, it may not be the resort or room category she originally booked, but the reservation can be modified. I hope that you understand that we are, pretty much, saying the same thing!

 

[kaytieeldr]

Please note that I am actually AGREEING with you.

Sigh. Okay, fine

Seriously, I apologize for misunderstanding what you were explaining. It has to be entirely on me, because nobody else is disagreeing with you