those who Do Not do ADR every day/meal

[jm106]

Please, reassure me Disclosure- I am fully aware I will not be able to walk up for TS and I am ok with it, I know it will most likely be CS. But for some reason, I always question my decision to not inundate my trip with planned meals. Too many posts say this is CRAZY...We do a few and choose where we like or want to try. So its not crazy right? I know we arent the only family that doesnt plan every meal. We do have a plan for which parks which days and some plans as to must see attractions/rides/shows, when to try to get FP and to be sure to allow rest times.
We did not have ADR last trip for many meals and it was fine, However it was extremely rainy so we escaped the parks/storms many times and retreated to our off site resort.
This trip, we have right now 3 ADR, Chef Mickeys(for one character meal) 'Ohana on our day of rest so a leisurely trip, enjoy a monorail ride and then San Angel in Epcot. In DHD, ds requested pizza planet which will be lunch. We figure a meal at CBR is possible after an afternoon swim before reentering park. AK, we enjoyed Flame tree for lunch, dinner I dont have any plan for it.
So with all of that said, is this an ok plan since we are ok with CS and have no set have to aside from those? I expect some ppl not to agree, I am looking for support or feed back from those who choose to do something similar. TIA

 

[PIRATEGIRL007]

Ok so you have 3 ADR's and plan to eat counter service the rest of the trip, right? That's not crazy at all, not sure why people are saying it is.

We have done trips with 15+ ADR's for TS places to trips with no ADR"s and walked up to TS places, to trips that were all CS. FWIW you may be able to still walk up to some TS places and get in, they aren't all full all the time, of course peak weeks and during free dining (Aug-Sept yearly free dining, not all these new additions of dates that aren't super popular yet) alot of places are harder to get into but you can find something open espically in the resorts.

When is your trip? From my count and your ticket you are looking at late May? We went that time last year, had ADR's but also saw lots of empty restraunts, for hard to get places or meals that are super important I can see the need for ADR's but even with the 'free dining' plan for that time of year this year I don't see every TS place being booked all day everyday.

 

[ldymcbth]

I think it sounds fine. If you get there and decide you want an ADR, you can check with the concierge and see what's available - probably won't get into CRT or something like that but I'm sure there will be at least 1 thing available.

We have 4 ADR meals planned for our trip, and the rest we will do either CS or eating in our room. Might even go into Orlando for dinner one evening. Honestly, I feel really hemmed in with more than a few ADR's - I like to have more flexibility.

 

[BradyBz12]

Ok so you have 3 ADR's and plan to eat counter service the rest of the trip, right? That's not crazy at all, not sure why people are saying it is.

Agreed! Totally depends on your and your family and how you want/like to eat.

Time of year weighs in of course. It's much easier to 'wing it' during the not-so-crazy-busy times of year. Or free dining.

Flexibility can definitely be your friend. If you don't mind venturing out to some of the resorts away from MK/EP, you can generally find a TS meal much more easily also.

 

[phinz]

I've *never* had an ADR and *never* had a problem getting a table.

 

[jm106]

Thank you, feeling better about it, you are all great. We go in late May, come home memorial day weekend.

 

[tndisneyfan]

We only do a few TS meals every trip. Two or three is enough for us. I don't like to be tied down to an ADR and I don't like the time it takes to do a TS. Especially the restaurants in the resorts.

 

[shortchange1026]

You are not crazy! We do the same thing. We are going the end of October for a week and I will be making 3 ADR's, Biergarten and Yachtsman for dinner and then Crystal Palace for one breakfast. The rest of the time we wing it and do CS. I can't be held down to a week long schedule. I'm from old school WDW where you could actually call or go to a kiosk in Epcot the day of and actually get a ressie for dinner!

 

[NYDisneyGal]

We usually plan about 4 ADRs into an 8-day trip - and we sometimes end up cancelling one or two simply because we end up touring a different park or see something else we'd like to do. I don't like being tied to too many ADRs. During Christmas we were able to walk up to Planet Hollywood and were seated in about 10 mins, we loved eating at Earl of Sandwich, and we also ate offsite to get away from Disney prices.

That said, there are some places we absolutely want to eat at, so those ADRs are needed - California Grill is a must-do for us so we select that ADR early and keep it. If you want a nice dinner for a holiday or special occasion, make that ADR (we heard people begging at the Brown Derby for a Christmas dinner sitting).

I've often marveled at some trip plans that include a counter service and table service plan for each day. Too much food, and it seems as though the food choices drive the vacation.

 

[kymom99]

My family doesn't do a big sit-down meal every day at home, so it would be strange for us to do TS every day on vacation. We are more casual kinda folks. The CS places are more on par with our type of eating. I mostly cook simple meals at home and we occasionally get Wendy's or the like when there's no time to cook. Eating out is a rare treat for us, so 2-3 times in a week while on vacation makes us happy. Besides, some of the CS places at WDW are excellent, and don't take up a lot of your time.

 

[Berlioz70]

My family plans a couple ADRs and then swings it for others. There are certain restaurants that always tend to be open for lunch, and we prefer a late lunch instead of dinner.

If you're at MK, take the monorail to The Wave at the Contemp.

If you're at DAK, take a bus to Sanaa at Kidani Village.

If you're at EC or DHS, walk (or take the boat) to Captain's Grill at the Yacht Club.

I've never had an ADR at these locations and have also been able to walk up for lunch!

 

[vital]

We (me and DS11) will be there the same time and have 1 breakfast and 1 dinner ADR's. The only reason we have those is because they are character meals. The rest of the time we will wing it at the Boardwalk and DTD. We also drive so having our car makes a world (no pun intended) of difference!

 

[g-dad66]

Well, if you're crazy, then we're stark raving bonkers.

Cause we never do TS meals (except one trip when we had Free Dining -- and I hated it. Won't do it again.) Free Quick-Service dining works for us, though...

Hate to waste time on food when we could be doing something fun.

 

[avgeek81]

My mom and i were there for a week and only had 3 ADRs. We usually had a bagel or something for breakfast and eat one other meal. We ate at the electric umbrella one day at epcot ad then snacked around the world on our other epcot day. Ate at the backlot express at dhs. One night we ate at earl of sandwich. and at AK we ate at a place near the safari, dont remember the name. Mk was where we had 2 of our ADRs

 

[DonaldTDuck]

I love the TS and have ADRs all planned, but that's not for everyone. However, do yourself a favor and program 407WDWDINE into your cel. Then if you want to check availability you don't have to go to the TS, you can call. I'd hate to get on the monorail, go to the Contemporary and find out the Wave is booked solid.

 

[OB1]

You will also find that if you suddenly have the urge for a TS, then walk up and check the availability. You may not be able to ADR, but you may be able to walk up. You can also eat at the 'non prime time', and have a better chance.

The Land has the food court that is nearly table service quality, and Flame Tree is a great choice at AK. I have not found great/unique choices at HS or MK, but there are plenty of options at both.

 

[glammadiva]

On solo trips I don't do ADRs, with the little guys (both pre-schoolers) we book an early lunch to avoid meltdowns and to get out of the heat AND not worry about finding a table.

 

[Tltorrez]

We do a few ADRs and the rest is CS, esp. for lunch. We never try to do walk up TS. I just hate to waste park time for a sit-down meal.

Now what I do do, is to review all the CS options where I'm going to be. That way I'm not stuck with lousy burgers and chicken nuggets. There are fantastic CS options in every park (well, maybe not DHS!). It's just a matter of scoping them out before you go.

 

[goofy4tink]

I am one of those who has ADRs made for every day. We like a TS meal once a day...it's something my dh really enjoys, so that's what we do. BUT...that doesn't mean everyone has to do it that way. As long as you are fine wit CS, and a few TS mixed in, then go for it. And as long as you realize that if you change your mind and want to do a TS on a walkup basis, and find that you may not get in, then terrific. Many, many people do this, with great results.

It is only those people that say they aren't going to bother with ADRs, and wing it, then find that plan isn't going to work for them that have a bad experience. But it sounds as if you completely understand what you are doing, and are fine with it.

 

[kari B.]

I love the TS and have ADRs all planned, but that's not for everyone. However, do yourself a favor and program 407WDWDINE into your cel. Then if you want to check availability you don't have to go to the TS, you can call. I'd hate to get on the monorail, go to the Contemporary and find out the Wave is booked solid.

If you have to eat at a specific restaurant, then ADR's are necessary. If you don't mind where you eat, they aren't. I think having a few ADR's like you've already done is reasonable. You are definitely not crazy and will have a wonderful time not having to worry about sticking to a strict itinerary. I agree. Just keep the dining number handy in case. There are many times when walk ups are available. It just depends on the restaurant and the day.