Bibbidi Bobbidi Boohoo…I didn’t get my dining reservations…
Let’s face it. Getting the dining reservations that you want at Disney is hard. Currently you can book your dining reservations 60 days out from the start of your trip. If you are staying on property you have an advantage. You can book your dining reservations for the entirety of your trip at 60 days. If you are off property you have to book every day at 60 days out.
If you want a popular reservation you need to be logged into MyDisney Experience before 6:00 AM and be ready at 6:00 AM to book what you want. This is especially true if you are looking to get a character dining experience or a very popular restaurant like Space 220 or Chef Art Smith’s Homecomin’. Reservations will be gone in seconds or they will not be available at all. This is because someone else may have started their booking earlier for the same time you need. For example: you need reservations for Monday thru Friday but someone that has a Disney resort reservation for Sunday to Wednesday could start to make reservations for that same time period on Sunday whereas you had to wait until Monday. I hope that makes sense.
All of the above is also true for enchanting extras like Fireworks desert parties, Harmony barbershop and Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique.
There are a few apps and websites that you can set alerts for. Some of them you have to pay and some are free. I have had good luck with the touring plans website and also the Stakeout app. If you search the web you will find a few more apps that will help to get you the reservations you want.
I have found the best luck with waiting to look one or two nights before the day that you want a reservation. This is because a lot of people will hold onto a reservation until much closer to the 24 hour cancellation window and then they cancel which makes it available for you to snag. However if you know what table service restaurant you want and you won’t be satisfied with anywhere else I’d definitely recommend either get on there early or pay for an alert app. I’ll list a few of the alert applications at the bottom of this article.
Now once you have your reservations you need to remember that if you can’t make the reservation you need to cancel before 24 hrs or they will charge you. However if you forget to cancel and it is within 24hrs you can modify the reservation for a different day in the future and then cancel it. This way you won’t be charged. I have done this a few times when I needed to leave the park early or we just didn’t feel like taking the time that day for a sit down meal.
We love table service restaurants when we go to Disney World in the summer. It’s so hot and it’s just nice to sit down at some point of the day in the air conditioning. Also it’s great to know for sure that you will have a seat to sit on and a table to eat on. I also love quick service restaurants but sometimes I don’t want to eat standing at a trashcan.
Disney Dining Alert Apps:
Touring Plans Dining Reservation Finder
Stakeout App