Why all of this mystery & hassle?

[catne]

I like planning the whole trip out...keeps me busy (and on my pre-disney-diet!) Plan everything from the route & hotels on the way (we drive) to arrival time, which park/which days, park touring plans...and we usually follow it fairly closely.

there are those who say that planning takes the fun & spontaneity out of it. I say the planning makes it easier for me to really relax & have a grand time while there, because I never have to worry about how many rides I will/won't get to, where we'll eat & whether we'll find things we like to eat...I KNOW what's next, where, and when. No worries, cuz I did the hard part in advance. It's worked like a charm 5 times...here comes #6 on Labor Day weekend

 

[TheDisneyBunch]

We have gone for the past 3 years during free dining. We had not been before that so were not really used to the days of knowing what it was like to go in and choose what you want that day..haha

We actually LOVE the pre-planning though. It helps us to look forward to the trip. We spend lots of time talking about where we would like to go, looking up pics, menu's, etc... We do not do hoppers and do parks based on emh's so we can pretty much know where we will be at each day which makes the dining easy. We plan what sounds good and is either in the park or close to get to from the park. We don't plan counter service meals or anything like that in advance. We know about where we like to eat but don't decide til that day which place we feel like getting a bite from. It is just nice to know that our dinners are all set up and we don't have to worry about if we can get in and what time, etc...

Now, that is not to say we have not changed plans after getting there before b/c we have. We booked an Ohana's breakfast last year the day before with no problems. We also did a walk up at 4pm on a MNSSHP day at Crystal Palace and were seated right away which was wonderful. Sometimes when we have changed our minds we don't have the luck of getting anything we want (like CP b-fast, 1900 PF b-fast, WGP dinner, etc) so it really depends. I saw them the last 2 years turning tons of people away from Le Cellier b/c they do not have anything at all available. I would hate to miss that one b/c I did not book in advance.

What DOES annoy me is how fast they book up now. I called almost right at my 180 day mark and could not get one single dinner at Mama Melrose for 9/15. I have called back many many times since then even trying for a different party size and they are just totally booked up. It is crazy for a less popular place like that to be booked solid like this. I have been quite mad over that b/c it is the night of our anniversary and I would love to be able to eat here and not have to leave the park and such but we just can't seem to get lucky enough to get it. I will sure keep calling though.

We did get pretty much everything else we wanted. Our Le Cellier dinner was a little later than we hoped but we took it anyways.. Not missing out on that one.. I have to have my filet and my choc cake.

 

[Jschlich]

Well actually that IS quite possible and we've done it this way many many times. Sometimes we're seated almost immediately and sometimes they put us down for a meal later on in the day. We sometimes also call the dining reservation number in the morning and ask THEM what's available.
Even if you don't go through the whole ADR 6 months in advance thing you'll probably have plenty/enough spur-of-the-moment options to satisfy your hunger.

I have no problem with this method of finding a meal at all! I guess I'm more into taking a chance, making an immediate decision and finding out how it works out. This rather than being on deadline and schedule during what is what we want to be an explore and relax experience.

I'm sure there are plenty of places outside the gates if I find that all of WDW is booked and we have to eat our plan credits.

 

[mom2taylorandemily]

I, too, like many have already said, enjoy planning out our ressies and ADRs. It gives me something fun to do and gets me excited planning our trip and it also makes the waiting go by a little faster. DH, on the other hand, would prefer that we just show up, go to the park of his choice each day and see where it takes us for eating. But, I had to explain to him in detail that if we don't do our work we won't get to eat anywhere. So, he has made concessions and I just don't tell him where we are eating until we get to the park of the day. It seems to work for us.

 

[winterman]

I love the fact that when we get to WDW we already know where we will be eating most of our big meals. I find it much more stressful when it comes to be mealtime and neither DH or I can decide where to eat. That's how our non-WDW vacations are. There is so much info available re the menus at WDW restaurants that I find the planning almost as much fun as the trip.

 

[ReneeA]

I have no problem with this method of finding a meal at all! I guess I'm more into taking a chance, making an immediate decision and finding out how it works out. This rather than being on deadline and schedule during what is what we want to be an explore and relax experience.

I'm sure there are plenty of places outside the gates if I find that all of WDW is booked and we have to eat our plan credits.

Some of us don't drive to Disney, and with the great service we've had with Magical Express, we don't rent a car either.

It makes sense that since we typically travel during free dining we had better well make sure we have somewhere to eat. I make ADR's in advance, however, we have changed our mind about what we want to eat during our trip and have been able to call up and get in same day to some restaurants.

 

[otisandmaggie]

Needing the ADR's forces me to go ahead and make decisions at home (where my time is much cheaper!) I know we would waste a lot of time discussing where to eat if we didn't have / need the ADR's and that time would be very expensive park time. Also - I have two kids who rarely agree on dining. Someone would ALWAYS be unhappy - someone would "win" and the other would "lose" By discussing where we're going ahead of time at home, everyone gets input - we all feel like we had a part in the decision and the kidos know that the reservations are made - that's where we're eating - no discussion. Everyone ends up happy! I know that some thrive on spontinaity but those ADR's are great for my family.

 

[KYMickey]

Making reservations so far advanced certainly does not contribute to a relaxing vacation in any way! It's getting so you can't get into any "decent" restaurant in WDW without a ADR and even making them has become a frustrating hassle. You have to remember what day you can call and set-up your schedule so you're available when the lines open and even then you may not be able to get the reservations you prefer. After you finally get them (if you do) you end up having a Fast Pass for a ride on the other side of the park 10 minutes before your reservation.

I long for the old days when you could only make reservations for World Showcase restaurants via a video-phone on the exit side of Spaceship Earth only on the day you wanted them. Back then you could enjoy your vacation without having to carry a PDA just to keep track of your reservations. Back then restaurants were still packed like they are now but the entire experience was much more relaxing and enjoyable. I'm also sure that Disney didn't have to worry so much about cancellations since people were only making reservations when they really knew what they wanted to do.

Disney needs to rethink the entire dining experience at WDW with an eye to more flexibility for the consumers. Reservations at the premier restaurants in the resorts maybe OK to be made months ahead of time but the others should be open seating or at least only allow reservations to be made no more than a week in advance. Restaurants in the parks should only allow walk up seating or reservations made the day of. Disney restaurants would still be just as full but the entire experience would be more enjoyable.

Add with edit I was just reading another thread that was discussing people already not being able to get the ADRs they wanted for New Year's Eve! That's over six months away and it's ridiculous trying to plan out your entire vacation that far out. People are already fretting over not being able to do what they want to while on vacation instead of looking forward to it and that's not how a vacation should be.

 

[Shell54]

After a dozen or so well planned (read: obsessively planned) trips, we now travel down to WDW with very little pre-planning.
OP, depending on the time of year you go and if you're flexible when you get there you can still get spur of the moment or day-before dining reservations.

It always seems like everyone else is making their ressies and snapping them all up but we've found that only true for the most popular restaurants AT the most desirable times. Like I said, be a little bit flexible and I think you can go without super duper uber planning. LOL

Good luck!

I didn't find that to be true for OHana as far getting a good ressie for my upcoming Sept. trip. I called about 2 weeks ago..being a Disney rookie and NOT being an uber planner and was shocked when I was told that for the week me and mine are there Sept21-26..I couldn't get a ressie til 9:30PM for dinner I grabbed it because we really want to eat there but I was not happy about the time.. It galvanized me into making ressies for the rest of my trip. I guess Ohana is a popular place. I was able to snag a ressie for dinner at Boma and Iam thrilled about that..but i had to be a little..creative I was very laid back about ressies in the beginning stages of planning my trip, but not anymore.

 

[Laura]

Well, I'm not a big planner. Our last trip I only made one ADR before we left (just DH and me). We were able to wing it the rest of the time, and got all of the TS meals we wanted. Much more relaxing that way.

WDW restaurants used to be better than they are now, and we have such great restaurants at home that I don't consider WDW's restaurants a big part of the trip.

 

[sotoalf]

Add with edit I was just reading another thread that was discussing people already not being able to get the ADRs they wanted for New Year's Eve! That's over six months away and it's ridiculous trying to plan out your entire vacation that far out. People are already fretting over not being able to do what they want to while on vacation instead of looking forward to it and that's not how a vacation should be.

Sure, but guests are choosing to go during the most crowded time of the year, and not just crowded, but insanely crowded. Of course they're not going to get the reservations they want.

For those who look fondly at the halcyon days of yore, the WDW resort hotels – when only a handful existed – used to be reserved two years in advance during busy periods. Think about that for a bit.

Finally, WDW isn't a vacation in the true sense – how can you relax when you're standing in line in the heat, getting up early for character breakfasts, and taking crowded buses? As long as you don't confuse a Disney vacation with a trip to the beach, you'll suffer less stress.

 

[colinsdad]

We have gone for the past 3 years during free dining. We had not been before that so were not really used to the days of knowing what it was like to go in and choose what you want that day..haha

We actually LOVE the pre-planning though. It helps us to look forward to the trip. We spend lots of time talking about where we would like to go, looking up pics, menu's, etc... We do not do hoppers and do parks based on emh's so we can pretty much know where we will be at each day which makes the dining easy. We plan what sounds good and is either in the park or close to get to from the park. We don't plan counter service meals or anything like that in advance. We know about where we like to eat but don't decide til that day which place we feel like getting a bite from. It is just nice to know that our dinners are all set up and we don't have to worry about if we can get in and what time, etc...

Now, that is not to say we have not changed plans after getting there before b/c we have. We booked an Ohana's breakfast last year the day before with no problems. We also did a walk up at 4pm on a MNSSHP day at Crystal Palace and were seated right away which was wonderful. Sometimes when we have changed our minds we don't have the luck of getting anything we want (like CP b-fast, 1900 PF b-fast, WGP dinner, etc) so it really depends. I saw them the last 2 years turning tons of people away from Le Cellier b/c they do not have anything at all available. I would hate to miss that one b/c I did not book in advance.

What DOES annoy me is how fast they book up now. I called almost right at my 180 day mark and could not get one single dinner at Mama Melrose for 9/15. I have called back many many times since then even trying for a different party size and they are just totally booked up. It is crazy for a less popular place like that to be booked solid like this. I have been quite mad over that b/c it is the night of our anniversary and I would love to be able to eat here and not have to leave the park and such but we just can't seem to get lucky enough to get it. I will sure keep calling though.

We did get pretty much everything else we wanted. Our Le Cellier dinner was a little later than we hoped but we took it anyways.. Not missing out on that one.. I have to have my filet and my choc cake.

Have you asked about the Fantasmic Dinner Package at Mama Melrose's that night? They hold a lot of the tables for this package, which includes a seat in a special section at Fantasmic that evening. I do believe they have made the seating time earlier for this package, but at least you'd be in. If you can't, be sure you get an "Its My Anniversary" button when you arrive at the park, then walk up to Mama Melroses and ask. The button may help you get "squeezed in".

Also, FYI (you probably know), if staying at the parks, call 180 days before your first day of arrival and make ALL of your dining plans for your entire trip. DIS has the dining calculator the I use to figure out when to call. I'm going at the same time as you are (our anniversary is the 14th) called on that day and I got everything including Le Celier on my anniversary at the exact time I wanted. Good Luck!

 

[KYMickey]

...WDW restaurants used to be better than they are now, and we have such great restaurants at home that I don't consider WDW's restaurants a big part of the trip.

I definitely agree on this point, we certainly have much better and more relaxing restaurants locally than any of the ones at Disney. Unfortunately many people who don't consider going out to nice local restaurant will complain loudly if they can't throw their money away on vacation. They can eat much better and cheaper at home and help local restaurants survive instead of stuffing disney's pockets with more cash.

 

[sotoalf]

but until 1995 Disney restaurants used to be awful! Now at least the restaurants are comparable to what you'd get at home (and the signature restaurants don't charge any more than the ones here in Miami).

 

[KYMickey]

Finally, WDW isn't a vacation in the true sense – how can you relax when you're standing in line in the heat, getting up early for character breakfasts, and taking crowded buses? As long as you don't confuse a Disney vacation with a trip to the beach, you'll suffer less stress.

We normally have a very relaxing vacation at Disney. We don't do character breakfasts (overhyped and too expensive!) and use fast pass as much as possible to minimize our wait in line. We take a car and ride the monorail to avoid the crowded buses. The only impediment to total relaxation is the dining situation which we avoid many times by eating off site. I really think a Disney vacation is much too expensive to not be enjoyable by everyone involved and the items you point out certainly don't make a vacation enjoyable!

 

[KYMickey]

Now at least the restaurants are comparable to what you'd get at home (and the signature restaurants don't charge any more than the ones here in Miami).

That may be the case in Miami but it's not the case here in Louisville! We have a very vibrant local restaurant scene and the food is Much better than at any restaurant I've eaten at WDW. Also a local prices are less than those at WDW in every category.

While I partially agree that the restaurants are better now than they were in 1995, I don't think they've progressed as much as restaurants in many localities. Also I think several of the restaurants in World Showcase have actually declined in quality.

 

[crisi]

You can call Disney Dining and they can do a search for what is available for when you want to go. Some "wingers" call from their cell phone while standing in line for an attraction "where can you get a party of four in tonight between six and seven - we'd prefer Epcot or the Epcot area?"

However, you can't be shocked when your choices are a lot of restuarants you wouldn't consider if you were making your own plans.