Yes, we all have those must-have dining reservations at certain restaurants. Some popular ones that come to mind are (of course) Be Our Guest, Cinderella’s Royal Table, Chef Mickey’s, etc., but you don’t have to stress yourself out if you don’t get the reservations you want right away. Easier said than done, I know. If this is your one and only trip to Disney, then I can understand where the stress would come in to play. However, you can keep calm and I will tell you why.
Once your 180 day window opens up, chances are that the more popular restaurants will already be taken. The reason is simple, the day before your window opened other people had their 180 window open up and booked at the popular restaurants. When your 180 day window opens, you are able to book 180 +10. What that means is that, basically, you can book 190 days out. We are going for 11 nights and we were able to book for all the days we wanted because we could book those extra 10 days from our check-in date. The best thing to do is start from your last day and work your way to the first day of the trip. Sounds strange, I know, but it works.
Even if working backwards doesn’t help you get those dining reservations that you want, don’t worry. People always cancel reservations last minute. Whether they changed their minds, someone got sick, or they just overbooked because they wanted to make sure they had options (this happens more than you would think and yes, it’s rude), there are always cancellations. You will even find last minute reservations at places like Be Our Guest and Cinderella’s Royal Table.
A friend recently went to Disney World. The trip was planned a few months before they were going, so there were no Be Our Guest reservations available…at that time. The day before their last full day in Disney, plans changed slightly and they were going to be in the Magic Kingdom to see Wishes. So, she hopped on My Disney Experience to see what reservations were available and lo and behold she found a Be Our Guest dinner reservation! They got to meet the Beast, dine in the ballroom, and it was all booked the day before!
So if you don’t get the reservations you want when your 180 day window opens up, don’t stress. You can keep trying and there is always a good possibility that something will open up while you are on vacation!
Thanks for reading!
*Liz*