Disney Dining – 3 Mistakes to Avoid When Making Dining Reservations

Disney World isn’t all about roller coasters, for some people one of the highlights of their vacation is the dining. There are more than 100 restaurants to choose from across the Walt Disney World Resort in Florida and some of those restaurants offer world-class dining experiences. Here are three mistakes you should avoid to make sure that you and your family get to experience the best of Disney dining during your vacation.

1. Failing to make any reservations

Disney World is a popular vacation destination and therefore there are lots of mouths that need to be fed each and every day of the year. If you want to eat at any of the table-service restaurants then you need to make a reservation in advance.

Advanced Dining Reservations, or ADRs as they are affectionately known as, can (and must) be booked 180 days in advance. Yes, you read that right, you need to decide which restaurant you wish to eat at six months ahead of your trip!

If you don’t want to decide that far in advance what you’d like to eat on any given day then there are plenty of quick-service options for you to choose from, but you’ll be missing out on some of the best restaurant experiences.

2. Making too many reservations

Some guests go to the other end of the spectrum and book far too many reservations. They’ll have ADRs for breakfast, lunch and dinner, and before they know it they’re touring the restaurants instead of touring the themeparks! You need to strike a balance, so make a list of the restaurants you really want to experience and make sure that they fit your plans, rather than making plans to fit in with your ADRs.

3. Picking the wrong dining plan

To make life easier for you Disney offers three dining plans, which can be added onto your Magic Your Way package and paid for in advance. The Quick-Service plan allows you to eat at quick-service restaurants, the Dining Plan is for use at table-service restaurants and the Deluxe Dining Plan offers the flexibility of quick and table-service options.

If you want to get the most out of the themeparks and experience as many attractions as possible then the Quick-Service plan is probably your best option. You’ll want to be able to grab a quick bite and not be tied down by table-service reservations.

If on the other hand you are there for the signature dining experiences then the Deluxe Dining Plan will be better suited to your party’s needs.

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