Tips and Tricks for Disney Dining Reservations
- Brian
- Jan 11
- 5 min read
Updated: Jan 16
Ever felt yourself frustrated when trying to get a dining reservation at a Disney World or Disneyland restaurant? Or perhaps just unsure of how to begin? After countless Disney vacations, I've compiled the best tips, tricks, along with a general overview of how to go about getting the reservations you want.
Sections
How far in advance can I make a reservation?
Making reservations for your preferred dining destination(s) is a little bit of fun, magic, and frustration bundled together. One of the best ways to reduce the frustration aspect is to book as far in advance as possible.
Disney World
Day: 60 days in advance. If you are staying "on-property," you can book 60 days in advance of the 1st day of your stay.
Time: 6:00 am Eastern. I recommend you log in about 5:45am and start refreshing, as I've noticed that some seem to release early, while others release later.
More Help: Visit the Disney Website for more detail.
Disneyland
Day: 60 days in advance.
Time: 6:00 am Eastern. I recommend you log in about 5:45am and start refreshing, as I've noticed that some seem to release early, while others release later.
More Help: Visit the Disney Website for more detail.
How Do I Make a Reservation?
You have several options for making reservations at your choice restaurant.
Call Disney guest services and they can make it for you.
Walk up to guest services at the hotels or at the parks and get assistance.
Utilize the My Disney Experience app (my preference) to make, adjust, and cancel your reservations.
Use the Disney websites to manage your reservations.
Using My Disney Experience
This is my preferred method for everything Disney. It's incredibly easy to manage your entire vacation this way. The only thing I've found both frustrating and good at the same time is that Disney is constantly changing this app. So just because you operate it one way for this trip, it may be compeletely different the next go-around. So keep checking back and familiarize with the app before each trip.
As of writing this article, when you log into the app, click the + sign at the bottom center of your screen. This will open a menu. The 1st option at the top is Check Dining Availability. Just follow the prompts and it's pretty easy to get what you need.
If you need to change a reservation, you can do this from the app as well, by going to My Plans, selecting your reservation, and clicking Edit. Words of Wisdom: If you need to cancel a reservation and are within the 24 hour no-cancel window, most of them will allow you to change the time to a different day. Do that and push it more than 24 hours out and then cancel it.
Services to Assist
If you are having difficulty getting a reservation you want, there are still options. You can either get on the My Disney Experience app and watch for openings (this can be very frustrating). You can ask a travel agent to watch and reserve for you (not all will do this). My personal favorite is to utilize a service called Mouse Seats. There are other similar services out there, but I've personally had the best luck with Mouse Seats.
With Mouse Seats you can enter in the day(s) you are going, the restaurant(s) you want, and it will constantly check for availability. If it finds it, it will email you. The only "catch" here is that you need to be on top of checking your email. I've successfully utilized this many times to get into Cinderella's Royal Table and a few others.
What are the most difficult reservations to get?
Don't fret if you're having difficulty geting a reservation at various restaurants. There are several that are notoriously difficult to get into inside the parks. The hotel restauarants also have their own challenges, but for this section I'm focusing on in-park restaurants.
Disney World
The Hardest: Cinderella's Royal Table at the Magic Kingdom. This one you have to be on the ball and check availability right at 6:00am EST 60 days in advance to have a chance. Otherwise, utilize Mouse Seats to help. If you have a party of 2, I've found this to be a little bit easier. Bear in mind that the bigger your party, the more difficulty you'll have finding availability. Be flexible between Breakfast, Lunch or Dinner here and it will get a little easier.
Runner Up: Space 220 at EPCOT. This is one of the newest restaurants and pretty unique. I think this one will eventually ease up once it's been around for a while. Right now, though, it's not easy.
Honorable Mentions:
Sci-Fi at Hollywood Studios. You can pretty much get a table if you're willing to wait for walk-up. But reservations can be difficult to come by, especially in peak season times.
Be Our Guest at Magic Kingdom. This one is odd because certain times of the year it's incredibly easy. But during peak season, you can choose to wait in line, or just keep checking back for reservations in advance.
Disneyland
The Hardest: The Blue Bayou at Disneyland (next to Pirates of the Caribbean). This is one of the coolest (just my opinion) restaurants in Disneyland. The food is good, the atmosphere is incredible, and it overlooks my favorite ride: Pirates of the Caribbean. Book in advance (if you can), or expect a long wait especially during peak season.
Runner Up: Oga's Cantina. This seems to be hit-and-miss, but during peak seasons you can expect it to be difficult.
Tips & Strategies for each Park
No matter what park you are at, I always recommend following these simple methods for getting into the restaurants you want:
Decide your "must have's" in advance.
Make reservations at your "must have's" first and then let everything else be flexible.
If you can't find what you want, and using a service like Mouse Seats also doesn't help, check the app 24-25 hours in advance of when you want a reservation and typically it's a hot time for others dropping reservations they no longer want. I've managed to get into a lot of great places by using this method. Just be patient, and don't expect that you'll get what you want (but be super excited if you do!).
My Recommendations for Walk-Up Restaurants
Going to Disney requires a flexible mindset. Things can change. People can get tired. You may just make a last minute decision for something different. Whatever comes your way, there are always great options for walk-up sit-down restaurants at each park.
Disney World
EPCOT
Nine Dragons in China: I've always been able to do walk-up dining with no more than a 30 minute wait. The food is good and you really can't go wrong eating here.
Via Napoli in Italy: This one you may have to wait 45+ minutes for, but it's always good food.
Rose & Crown in the U.K.: This is hit-and-miss on timing, but typically less than 30 minutes to get in.
Hollywood Studios
Docking Bay 7: No reservations here anyway, but it's typically easy to get in, get your food, and get back to the fun.
Magic Kingdom
Columbia Harbour House near the Haunted Mansion: The food here is good and typically you can get right in and out. No reservations accepted anyway, but if you need a quick sit-down place, this one is good.
Pinnochio Village Haus: Another one that you can pretty much always get right in and out of.
Disneyland
Disneyland
Golden Horseshoe: Probably my favorite walk-up in the park. It can be hit and miss based on crowd levels, though.
California Adventure
Aunt Cass' Cafe: This is one of my favorite walk-up restaurants. The food is great and you can always get in. Pro tip: Try the soup in a bread bowl!
