So are you just SOL if you book a trip < 180 days?

[sponica]

You can also try searching for a party of 8....sometimes that darn computer algorithm doesn't see a table for 7, but all of a sudden it will see two fourtops merged into an 8 person table...

 

[vicb]

You can also try searching for a party of 8....sometimes that darn computer algorithm doesn't see a table for 7, but all of a sudden it will see two fourtops merged into an 8 person table...

That's a good idea... I never thought to suggest that!

 

[Stephy811]

For restaurants at Disney Springs you can also check to see if there is anything available on OpenTable. For our trip Boathouse only showed availability at 9 something but OT had lots of openings from 5p on. Plus no cancellation penalty on reservations booked there unlike Disney website.

 

[Beer Me]

I've booked about 6 weeks out. If you absolutely need CRT, BoG, Ohana and the handful of other most popular restaurants it can be a pain (although not impossible and others have given good advice).

I tend to just deal with whatever is available. For any given date/time/area there should be a lot of choices. When we booked 6 weeks out we got Boma, Biergarten, 50s Prime time, Raglan road, Tusker House that I can remember. All at decent times and in the general location we wanted.

 

[Karebear]

We were part of a group of 8 last time. I had much more luck booking for 2 parties of 4. At Rose & Crown, we were seated on the patio to watch Illuminations. They only had tables for 4 out there, so we sat in 2 tables next to each other. At other restaurants, they sat us together. And sometimes I was able to get reservations for all 8 of us. I also had luck with the TP reservation finder.

 

[missbrooke06]

I went this same time last year and the parks were fine but the dining reservations were scarce because of free dining. Free dining is 11/24-11/27 check in dates. Reservations will be more difficult but not impossible

 

[Dee McGee]

I have a party of seven arriving on 11/26 and can't book 99% of the meals we want. So far I have only been successful scoring lunch at 50's Prime Time at 11:00 AM on a day we're supposed to be at MK. Give me some encouragement! My wife thinks this is a sign the place is going to be miserably packed and we should just cancel now .

Don't plan your day around your meals, plan your meals around your day. First determine which park you will be in that day then search for ADRs at that park. You can narrow your search by going to the WDW official website and go directly to the page for that park then click on the dining link. Hope that helps!

 

[AtlantaDisneyDreamer]

I know it's a scary proposition, but for the first time in our many Disney trips, we winged our lunch and dinner plans last week. And everything worked out great. I had to change our trip dates a few weeks out, so I decided to not even book anything until we got there.

There was a lot of availability the day before we were in a park, and even on the day we were in the park. It was actually kind of fun to check the app to just see what was available.

Many people hoard reservations and cancel a day or two before when they finalize their plans. You can capitalize on that. We could have gotten BOG at 6:10 pm the night before our day in MK if we had wanted it.

At Epcot for lunch, I simply waited until we were ready to eat, then checked the app to see what was available. We didn't have to schedule any fastpasses around dining reservations or walk a long way to get to a scheduled reservation. It was nice.

I also tend to want to eat quick service more often with the new mobile ordering. It works great for our touring style. And there are some good quick service restaurants.

 

[chloelovesdisney]

I booked our upcoming summer trip 4 months out. I haven't been able to get everything I would like but have enough that I'm happy. I did get one adr we wanted using TP reservation finder.

I wouldn't bother booking adrs for restaurants in parks you don't plan to be in that day, it will just make things crazy. Just keep working on finding openings or maybe in nearby resorts.

 

[Meggo]

Don’t give up! We booked a large family trip less than 180 days out and it took more work, but we got a lot of what we were hoping for.

The hardest one for us to get was Be Our Guest. I just checked the app multiple times a day, and finally got lucky and snagged a breakfast ADR - I couldn’t get a dinner ADR.

We did end up making some choices we woudln’t normally have picked. For example, we did Crystal Palace instead of Chef Mickey’s, but it ended up being fabulous! The main thing to remember is that YOU make the trip, not the reservations.

I totally understand how that seems silly when you’re just trying to make reservations, but it’s really true. We didn’t get Cinderella’s Royal Table, or Chef Mickey’s but we still had an amazing time.

 

[Octoberbaby]

Honestly, I have found some of the best restaurants by booking last minute. It's hard to think of not having your favorites booked, but like I've said on previous threads, I found a new favorite by booking a restaurant last minute. I have never not been able to get a reservation I wanted though. Sometimes I had to check at 4am, or 50 million times a day, but I got them.

 

[Minnesota!]

Here now, booking day of meals. Everything but the over-hyped ones are available...

 

[SJSloan]

We have booked all of our trips 180 days out until this year when we booked around 2.5 months out. We are a party of 6 and I was able to get all of the ADRs that we wanted on the first day I looked with the exception of 'Ohana. That one took about a week, I constantly checked and put my request into Touring Plans. Got a text and was able to log on quickly and snag it.

Keep checking. ADRs being booked are no indication of how packed it will be. I am trying to book ADRs for a November trip currently and I feel like there is nothing available, but the projected crowds during that time are supposed to be significantly lower than our July trip where I was able to get all of my ADRs and move them around multiple timed.

 

[rentayenta]

I don't think so at all OP. We booked maybe 4 months out and got everything we wanted, still making changes, and its working out. Dining seems to be less intense as FPs.

 

[Lilsia]

It might be time to branch out and try some different restaurants. Many of the resort ones do not book up. We never make ADRs anymore and walk up to places when they open up for dinner and usually get right in.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

Lots of last minute drops (day before) Plans change. Always play with the reservations calendar and see what is available 1, 2 3 days out etc. Lots of good ones. I've been having trouble getting my November booked, and slowly but surely. Now, we are a party of 6 ad I'bve been most successful booking for 4 then 2. I have 3 reservations that are 10 minutes apart each and the CM said to show up together and see if you can be seated together. It works sometimes. I've been most successful getting party of 4 and 4 then dropping 2 from one party. You need to use someone else in your party's account to secure the second reservation. The system won't let you book 2 reservations within a certain time frame. For instance, I got a party of 4 at 8:10 am for Garden Grill. A search for 6 and 2 yeilded nothing, but usiing my son's account I got an 8:20 for 4 people, then went in and modified to 2. We will show up together and see if we can be seated together. No big deal if not. We are also going to the Halloween party on October 31 (last minute decision) and I got a BOG for 6:15. Perfect, because I like to get to the park early at 4, do a few things, then have dinner while they clear the park. Then when we come out, it's party time! Good luck. Be sure to play with the same week reservation search - it will give you lots of hope. Also, some people grab several of the same reservation then drop them when they shore up their plans. I've seen people drop as many as 4 or 5 BOGs for the same week. They just got them because they could and they weren't ure which park, which day, what time.

 

[Mambo Junkie]

Also, we're changing it up a bit this year. I haven't found any good times for BBB and CRT, so we are taking the girls to the Ivy Trellis at the Grand Floridian, then dinner at 1900 Park Fare with Cinderella and the Prince, the stepsisters and stepmother.

 

[piasalady]

I booked our trip at around 160 days and was able to get all of our reservations. I had to keep checking every day for a couple of them (Le Celier and Tusker House ROL dining package) but was finally able to get both at a time that we wanted. Just keep checking back. Times open up and you can get lucky!

 

[Lisa F]

I booked ADRs for my parents' trip taking my sister and her 4 kids, so 7 total... for middle october a few weeks ago, so about the time until the trip starts.

I was able to get for them:
Chef Mickey's 2:35 brunch on their MNSSHP day (they will valet park at the contemporary)
Crystal Palace 5:05pm on their MK day (it's a party day so they will be ushered out after dinner)
Akershus 3:10 dinner on their Epcot day
Tusker House 3:55 dinner on their AK day

Now they picked those park days based on the ADRs I got for them. I think if you're booking much less than 180 days out you kind of have to plan around your ADRs and not the other way around. Since you haven't made FPs yet it should be easy to do.

I was also able to get a 7:50 1900 Park Fare dinner (cancelled, too late for them... they'd MUCH rather eat 3-4pm and won't eat past 6:30), Akershus on another date, Garden Grill on their second Epcot day. They are going for more than a week but only wanted sit down character meals and I feel I got them some of the better ones.

if you're arriving 11/26 that sounds like it's thanksgiving time? which is super busy and probably why. october is pretty busy too but not a holiday. But I was surprised at how much I was able to get for such a large party.

 

[ws1995]

The week after Thanksgiving is one of my favorite times of the year for Disney. Parks are relativly quiet the weekdays after turkey day. Keep trying. You should be able to get what you want following the great advice already given.