Canceling our October trip. No dining availability.

I'm sorry you had problems with booking dining. How large is your party? That could play a factor in finding ADRs. That said, Chef Mickey's and Cinderella's Royal Table have been a hard reservation to get for many years, even before there was a Dining Plan.

I am going the first week of November, which is commonly known as Jersey week as NJ schools are closed for the teacher conventions, and I am seeing plenty of restaurants available for our party of 2. This is also a week where free dining isn't offered, as there are heavier crowds that week.

I hope you have a wonderful vacation. You'll be with loved ones no matter where you go, and that is the important part.

DizneyFreak2002;2457798 wrote: Instead of cancelling over dining, go eat off site.. Expand your horizons.. There is life outside Disney... Oh and the food is better...

This is what we have been doing for about 5 years now for sit down nicer dinners. We haven't eaten at a table service restaurant in WDW for dinner in years. We despise being tied to ADR's.

We pick a beach and drive over one evening and find a nice seafood restaurant. We go hit places on International Drive. We go over to City Walk at Universal and eat at their restaurants. We have had some really good meals and experiences over the past several years.

 

1DisneyNut;2457849 wrote: This is what we have been doing for about 5 years now for sit down nicer dinners. We haven't eaten at a table service restaurant in WDW for dinner in years. We despise being tied to ADR's.

We pick a beach and drive over one evening and find a nice seafood restaurant. We go hit places on International Drive. We go over to City Walk at Universal and eat at their restaurants. We have had some really good meals and experiences over the past several years.

CityWalk restaurants: 30 days out, no stressing 6 months in advance.. and even better, use Open Tables!!!!

There are so many better options off property than Disney sit down service...

DizneyFreak2002;2457865 wrote:
There are so many better options off property than Disney sit down service...

Here's the thing. I think everyone is aware that there is dining off-site. Whether it's better is a matter of opinion. We know it's yours, as you've told us 2 times already in this thread alone. Unlike you and a few others Bobby, folks here still love and find magic in dining AT WDW. It's part of the experience, whether it be character/location/etc. themed, and an important part of their vacation. I totally get that!

With that said, I do think there was some kind of glitch here when the OP originally looked for reservations. While it may be true that some of the more popular restaurants were booked, there are many other wonderful places to choose from. I looked at that last week in October, and there were plenty of choices. I really encourage folks to look outside those big 5 or 6 'popular' restaurants and try some new things. You might find some new favorites! :blush:

DizneyFreak2002;2457865 wrote: CityWalk restaurants: 30 days out, no stressing 6 months in advance.. and even better, use Open Tables!!!!

There are so many better options off property than Disney sit down service...

1DisneyNut;2457849 wrote: This is what we have been doing for about 5 years now for sit down nicer dinners. We haven't eaten at a table service restaurant in WDW for dinner in years. We despise being tied to ADR's.

We pick a beach and drive over one evening and find a nice seafood restaurant. We go hit places on International Drive. We go over to City Walk at Universal and eat at their restaurants. We have had some really good meals and experiences over the past several years.

I'm interested to hear some of your recommended off-site restaurants...

elorac;2457914 wrote: I'm interested to hear some of your recommended off-site restaurants...

At citywalk we have really enjoyed Margaritaville and Bubba Gump's. We always hit those in whatever tourist town we are in that has them and have been to quite a few of their locations. They have been great every time.

On International drive one of our favorites is Miller's Ale House. The food is always pretty good but the main draw is the happy hour drink/appetizer specials and their wide selection of draft beers. We have been here a number of times. Where else can you get a really good grilled Mahi Mahi for under $16?

We also go to BB Kings in the Pointe Orlando shopping center on International Drive close to the convention center. This is one of our favorites. You have to try the pile of Nachos with jalapeno's and Memphis BBQ. Plus they have great live music if you enjoy that sort of thing.

We haven't made it there yet but everybody highly recommends The Oceanaire at The Pointe. It is next on our list.

Outside of that we have eaten at excellent seafood restaurants in many of the major beaches that are within 1 to 1/2 hour drive from Orlando. Places like Daytona, Cocoa Cocoa beach, Tampa Bay, Clearwater beach, St. Petersburg, Melbourne Beach, etc. I can't remember the names of the restaurants off the top of my head since we have only eaten at them once. Typically what I do is I look at reviews on Yelp and get a short list of possible places and then when we get to the beach we ask a couple of locals what "The Seafood Restaurant" in the area is and it is nearly always one of the ones on my list and that is the one we hit.

It may be hard for those that don't ever venture off WDW property to believe but these are quite often the highlights and most memorable parts of our trips.

I have a horrible time every year with this, but am usually able to get most eventually. It's just having to spend so much time trying is very annoying.
I hope you write/email to Disney and let them know this.

Thank you 1DisneyNut. I am planning on getting a 13 week contract in Florida next year, so it will be fun to try these restaurants.

Melanie;2457877 wrote: I really encourage folks to look outside those big 5 or 6 'popular' restaurants and try some new things. You might find some new favorites! :blush:

THIS. There are about 75....yes 75....table service restaurants on WDW properties. Branch out! Go eat at Boardwalk! Go try Olivia's at Old Key West! Venture over to the Swan or Dolphin and try one of those out! There are so many places to try. Our last trip (which, granted, was only 3.5 days) we didn't eat at a single place we had been before. We tried Narcoosee's, The Plaza, Trattoria al Forno, and the Fork and Screen at DTD. Had a great time!

I generally try something new each trip, but I can understand the OP's point of view. There are some restaurants that my kids ask for each time we go, and it would be a huge disappointment for all of us if we couldn't eat there. Family traditions are important.

I can identify with this disappointment. Food is often times the best part of my day at any time of the year, so when on vacation (and especially at WDW) it's as important as the other experiences, whether it's lounging on the beach or enjoying attractions. I am also a creature of habit, and I have my usual favorites at WDW and it is rather a let down to look forward to returning to a spot I love I haven't been to in a few years only to find at 180 days out it's not available. Now, I would not cancel my vacation over that.

However, it's within your right to do so and I won't pass judgement on your decision. It's already cancelled, right? If you haven't cancelled yet, or thinking about rebooking during another busy time, I would encourage you to think about some other options on property-

Have you thought about visiting the lounges that serve food? These are typically located at deluxe resorts and are usually adjacent to the signature restaurants. While a limited menu and mostly appetizers, they come from the same kitchen and are most times the same dish you'd get at the restaurant. For example, you can get some 'Ohana and Kona Cafe favorites at Tambu Lounge in the Poly, and I think some of the same items at Artist Pointe are available at the lounge in Wilderness Lodge. No reservations needed, and they tend to be quieter than many sit-down places.

While I love my "regular stops" I challenge myself to try at least one new table service restaurant for breakfast and one new one for lunch/dinner each trip. Next trip if I can't get breakfast at Kona (my favorite and a very popular one with crowds) I will book lunch or dinner there instead and try something new. I'll couch that meal with breakfast at a favorite place so I still get a sense of what's familiar to me.

It's really unfortunate that WDW vacations are such a production nowadays. I've found that if you can be moderately flexible with plans, even when you plan as far in advance as possible, you can make it work. You're obviously very frequent visitors so don't let this deter you - if you can't get something this time around you can always try again next trip. I always try to leave something undone so I have a reason to go back!

azcavalier;2458036 wrote: THIS. There are about 75....yes 75....table service restaurants on WDW properties. Branch out! Go eat at Boardwalk! Go try Olivia's at Old Key West! Venture over to the Swan or Dolphin and try one of those out! There are so many places to try. Our last trip (which, granted, was only 3.5 days) we didn't eat at a single place we had been before. We tried Narcoosee's, The Plaza, Trattoria al Forno, and the Fork and Screen at DTD. Had a great time!

This is how we are as well. The only thing which is repeated each trip is departure day breakfast at the Grand Floridian Cafe and we don't usually book that until the day before. Narcoossee's a family favorite, but we make it a point of going there every other year to keep it fresh. There was a thread a while back (I'll try to find it) asking of what restaurants did you still want to try. When I started to make my list, I was amazed at how many places I had left to try, and we are always trying new things every trip! Now with the new restaurants in Disney Springs, which I can honestly say interest me more than most of the offerings at CityWalk, the list will only get longer.

We almost never book ADRs until a couple of weeks out, but we almost never want to eat at one of the 5 or 6 uber popular places. If we do, those are booked early, but it is just those 1 or 2 places. We are usually a party of 2 or at most 3. Your party size make a big difference, as well as when you are going. Even without Free Dining, Fall is much busier now, with the Halloween Party and Food and Wine.

It has to be a computer glitch, I am going the same week and got all my dining with no problem, including many hard to get restaurants like O'Hana, California Grill and Le Cellier. I even got a table for six at the newly opened Boathouse in Downtown Disney which suprised me.

I think all in all the booking is much better now that people cannot double book and clog up all the reservations and also having to put a credit card down helps with people booking willy nilly.

I would try again or call directly.

I have to say that this isn't something I would cancel over. I understand we all have different ideas of what makes our WDW trip ideal. We love having great meals there and try to get a mix of old favorites and new places. But, as someone pointed out there are so many options! If you haven't cancelled yet, I would bet you still have a good chance of booking some great, fun meals.