Hello, Disney food lovers! Whether you have stumbled upon this post because you’re a foodie looking for high-class, gourmet eats or because you’re hoping to book a hard-to-get character dining experience, you’ve come to the right place! This is my guide to making Disney dining reservations, one of my favourite parts of planning a trip to Disney World. I’m going to share everything you need to know to make booking dining at Disney World as straight forward as possible. So, let’s get right into it.

Which restaurants require reservations at Disney World?

There are two types of restaurants at Disney World; quick service and table service.

Quick service restaurants do not take or require reservations. Orders can be placed on the My Disney Experience app using mobile ordering, or at the counter in the conventional way. Simple as that.

Quick service restaurants rarely have long wait times and are an excellent fallback plan if you’re unable to score a reservation. They are often more cost effective as well, making them great alternatives to table service restaurants when you’re looking to save some of money.

Table service restaurants do take reservations and making them in advance is highly recommended. In the theme parks, you may see the occasional “walk-ins welcome” sign, but that depends entirely on how busy the park is that day. I strongly advise making reservations if you have your heart set on a particular dining experience. The best way to avoid disappointment is to book ahead!

When can you make Disney dining reservations?

So, when can you book? Dining reservations can be booked online or by phone at 6am EST 60 days in advance of your arrival at Disney World. However, there is one caveat… and it is an important one to know!

Guests staying on Disney property can book dining for their entire vacation (up to 10 days) at 60 days prior to their check-in day. This is a huge advantage when it comes to booking reservations near the end of your stay. More on that to come.

Guests staying off property must book reservations for each day individually. That’s right… One. Day. At. A. Time. This means logging in at 6am 60 days prior to each and every day you wish to book a reservation.

How to make dining reservations at Disney World

Now let’s talk about booking those reservations. Whether you’re staying on-property or off, you’ll need a good strategy if you want to grab a reservation at every restaurant you’re dreaming of. Let’s go through that strategy step-by-step.

Step 1: Make a list of the reservations you would like to book

This is my favourite part of planning a Disney World vacation! Researching restaurants can be fun for foodies. And, even if this seems tedious to you, there is a LOT of information out there from past visitors.

First, decide what types of experiences you are interested in. Is anyone in your party dreaming of character dining? Any particular type of cuisine you love? Search the Disney website. Watch Youtube videos. Read reviews.

Write down your top picks and keep in mind any backup options you might consider if necessary.

Step 2: Prioritize your list of desired reservations

Ok, so here’s where we start to get strategic. There’s going to be competition for your reservations. You need to think not only about which restaurants you most want to reserve, but also consider how hard-to-get each of your desired reservations are. You’re going to book your reservations in order of difficulty.

So, which restaurants are the most challenging to reserve at Disney World? Generally, these include character dining, signature (fine) dining, and dinner accompanying a show. The following restaurants are currently the most difficult to reserve:

Chef Mickey’s

‘Ohana

Victoria and Albert’s

Space 220 Restaurant

Le Cellier

Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Review

Be Our Guest Restaurant

Cinderella’s Royal Table

Akershus Royal Banquet Hall

Storybook Dining at Artist Point with Snow White

Topolino’s Terrace

Roundup Rodeo BBQ

Now let’s prioritize. If any of the restaurants above made your list, you will need to prioritize those reservations first. Next, prioritize any character dining experiences not listed above. Then, add any signature dining restaurants you’re interested in. Lastly, list any casual dining restaurants without characters.

Example: After reading lots of reviews online, I decide I want to book the following reservations; The Garden Grill Restaurant, Cinderella’s Royal Table, Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen, and Tiffin’s Restaurant.

I prioritize these reservations as follows;

1. Cinderella’s Royal Table (hard-to-get character dining)

2. The Garden Grill Restaurant (character dining)

3. Tiffin’s Restaurant (signature dining)

4. Jungle Navigation Co. LTD Skipper Canteen (casual dining)

Reservation times may factor into your priority list occasionally. For instance, if you are trying to book a reservation at a restaurant with a fireworks-view during Happily Ever After you will want to bump this reservation up your list.

Example: I decide to add California Grill during Happily Ever After to my reservations list. As this is signature dining during a fireworks show, I add it to my list above Tiffin’s Restaurant.

Step 3: Decide the date and time you wish to book for each reservation - but be open minded

Here’s where those staying on property have a huge advantage.

On-property guests - Make your most hard-to-get reservations near the end of, or at least a few days into, your vacation. Off-property guests are unable to book these dates at this time, and other on-property guests may be staying less time than you. The further into your vacation you book, the less competition.

Example: I book a stay at Disney’s Grand Floridian. I arrive on a Sunday and leave the following Sunday. I decide to book Cinderella’s Royal Table towards the end of my stay, on Saturday.

Off-property guests - Since you don’t have the advantage of booking dates beyond 60 days away, you may want to try to book your top priority reservation early in your vacation. If unavailable, you’ll be able to check the next day, and the next day, and so on until you’re successful.

Example; I’m staying off-property Sunday to Sunday. I decide to try for a reservation at Cinderella’s Royal Table for Monday. If booked, I will try for Tuesday, then Wednesday and so on.

Step 4: Go to the Walt Disney World website and open a tab for each restaurant in your browser.

On the night before your 60 day booking window opens, grab a computer. Open a tab for each restaurant’s corresponding page on the Walt Disney World website. Organize them from left to right in the same order as your priority list from Step 2. You absolutely can book reservations on your phone, but using a computer works pretty seamlessly.

If you’re super keen, pre-select your party size. Be sure to book your reservations including ALL party members. This means that even though your baby may be eating for free, or not eating at all, they still count as a party member and must be on your reservation.

Step 5: Book your reservations!

Wake up a few minutes before your 60 day booking window opens and check that your prep work from last night is all still open.

At 6am EST, open the tabs one by one and make your reservations!

Step 6: Check that your reservations have made it to the My Disney Experience app

To be sure your bookings are confirmed, check for a confirmation email for each of your reservations. Then, hop on over to the My Disney Experience app and double check that they are showing up in the future plans section.

Dining and dessert packages at Disney World

There are several dining packages and dessert parties that include special seating at Disney World events:

Happily Ever After Fireworks Spectacular at Magic Kingdom

Fantasmic at Hollywood Studios

Epcot Forever Fireworks Show

These experiences also open for reservations at 60 days prior, and tend to be popular enough to prioritize high on your list.

What if a restaurant has no available reservations?

There are two reasons dining reservations may be unavailable at 6am on your booking day.

Sometimes the restaurant is completely booked. This may be the case if you are looking to book a reservation early on in your vacation (or near the 60 day booking window).

And sometimes reservations simply don’t get released for a particular restaurant and are released at a later date. I won’t pretend to know why this happens, but it does.

The solution for either one of the above scenarios is simple.

Stalk the Disney World website (or app) daily and attempt to pick up a reservation as it opens up.

Alternatively, you can hire a service to do the stalking for you and notify you when a reservation becomes available. MouseDining is a popular service used for this purpose.

Are there any Disney World table service establishments that don’t accept reservations?

Some bars and lounges do offer table service with a limited menu, but a few do not offer reservations.

Nomad Lounge at Animal Kingdom is a popular lounge that is only accessible via walk up waitlist. Because of its popularity, I recommend booking your party on the walk up waitlist as early as possible. Conveniently, you can access the waitlist virtually on the My Disney Experience app.

Do I need a theme park reservation to visit a restaurant located in a park?

Yes. You will require a theme park reservation to dine within a park. The good news is, theme park reservations can be modified, so if you need to change previously made plans, you should be able to, as long as you aren’t modifying to a sold out park day.

Can I park at a resort while dining and may I leave my car there?

You can park at a Disney World resort for a maximum of 3 hours with a dining reservation.

Canceling Disney dining reservations

It happens. Your plans change. Perhaps you need to cancel a reservation. No problem. Disney allows you to cancel reservations at most table service restaurants up to 2 hours in advance of your reservation.

Exceptions to this rule include Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Review, Victoria & Albert’s, Takumi-Tei, and Monsieur Paul, which can charge hefty cancellation fees if you cancel beyond the time provided in their policies. Cancellation policies may also vary for dessert parties and dining packages.

Now that your Disney World dining reservations are all booked, it’s time to learn How to Use Genie Plus and check out my Guide for Visiting Disney World with a Baby. I hope you enjoy planning your adventure at the Most Magical Place on Earth!

Bon appetit!

Hill XO

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