Party of 17

[graciedad]

Hello-

We have a trip coming up mid-July. We've been to Disney many times with our small party of 3, but this summer there will be 17 of us. Any recommendations on securing dining reservations for that many people? Is that even a possibility or do we need to split in half or thirds? We will be there for 10 days, but are only going to try to eat all together maybe 3 times. For example, what are my chances for Hoop Dee Do?

 

[patty57]

I've never tried to make reservations for that many, so I can't speak from experience, however, you might have some luck using Open Table to check restaurants in Disney Springs, or Swan & Dolphin. I made a reservation at Il Mulino at the Swan for ten using Open Table. Other than that, I'm guessing your best bet is probably to call.

 

[thanxfornoticin]

Over the years, we've done several large family trips. The approach to dining options has changed a great deal over those years. 10-15 years ago, it was much simpler to find some restaurants to take our entire group. Now, it seems a bit more challenging. I agree that your best bet might be to call the dining line to work through it. If you are staying on-site for 10 days, there's a decent chance you could get some good dining ADRs. Some places, line 'Ohana and Boma used to provide larger tables - we actually sat 21 together at those restaurants as recently as 2017. But if not, cast members (at 407-WDW-DINE) can help you set up 2, 3, and maybe even 4 reservations for a restaurant around the same time. Then when you check in, go a little early and request to be seated together or close together. They often will do their best - of course, 17 will be challenging!

I also agree with patty57, that Open Table options might work better, too, at most of the Disney Springs restaurants. So I'd pick out the restaurants you'd really like to do together - perhaps push those to a little later in the trip so you can take advantage of the 60+10 days for ADRs (assuming you're on site), and be prepared with potential "Plan Bs" if your first choices don't work out. Good luck and have fun - sounds like a great trip. I know we have amazing memories from our larger family trips!

 

[champagne&disney]

The most you can book on most OpenTable reservations is 10 so FYI. But worth calling those restaurants as they can accommodate larger parties easier!

 

[Stormalong Smiths]

We had a great Thanksgiving Day meal for 12 at Wine Bar George last fall. I reached out directly to their events team via the form on their website about 65 days prior and they were more than happy to accommodate us. Very pleasant and quick to reply. We did have to provide credit card info to guarantee the reservation, which was done easily via DocuSign. Highly recommend!

 

[Princess Merida]

We are going with 16 the first week of April. We have split reservations (3) for Trattoria Al Forno, La Hacienda, Tusker House, and Beaches and Cream. We will request to be sat together or close together when we arrive at the restaurants. I don’t expect this to be possible at Beaches and Cream, but I will try to remember to report back when we return about which locations were able to accommodate.

 

[jimim]

I have done 11 max. You got to know what places have the larger tables and how many so you know off the bat how to plan your tactics at booking window. I also had help from managers I knew so it made things easier. A lot of places don't have huge tables so I knew off the bat 2 ADR's.

 

[tom1944]

I think if you call most restaurants would do everything possible to have 17 customers.

 

[NeverlandClub23]

We had a party of 24 and ate at Rainforest Cafe, Ohana, and Hoop Dee Doo. We were split into two tables of 12 all three times. At Hoop Dee Doo, we weren't at tables next to each other (which was a little chaotic trying to figure out where everyone was going to sit, as we were just trying to get out of the way of all the other parties being sat at the same time, and we didn't know how many tables we were going to be split into ahead of time). It was a great time, though!