Coordinating Plans Via "Friends and Family" on MDE

[Weather_Lady]

Hello, all!

Our family and my sister's family are planning overlapping WDW trips. We are looking at sharing a couple of group meals (requiring table service ADRs) and a couple of sets of shared/overlapping FP+. I've read everything Disney has published about "Friends and Family" on MDE, and it's about as clear as mud, so I'm bringing my questions to the experts.

Sis's booking windows for ADRs and FP+ will open 3 days before my family's. Here are my questions:

1 - If we link our MDE accounts via "Friends and Family," when Sis's 180-day window opens I know she can make ADRs that include my family members among the guests. Am I correct in assuming that this only works "one way" and not reciprocally? (In other words, I can't get on my MDE and make ADRs for meals we're sharing with Sis's family 180 days out from Sis's arrival just because we're each other's "Friends and Family," right? Since my 180-day window won't open until 3 days later, I assume that only she can do that.)

2 - If Sis and her husband are both logged into her MDE account on different devices, can they both make ADRs simultaneously for their family/guests on the morning their 180-day window opens, or will MDE kick one of them off? (I've never had an issue with being logged into MDE on my computer + phone + DH's tablet, but I've also never tried to make changes on more than one device at a time.)

3 - My understanding is that even after your own FP+ window has opened, allowing you to make FP+ for yourself and others on your room reservation, you can't make FP+ plans for others who are on a separate reservation ("Friends and Family," etc.) on MDE unless/until their FP+ window has opened. Is that correct? Assuming it is, have there been any recent changes to the procedure for "copying" FP+ from Friends and Family once your window opens, or can I simply wait until my FP+ window opens, pull up Sis's plans via Friends and Family, and try to copy some over to mine if they're still available?

 

[Rob562]

Hello, all!

Our family and my sister's family are planning overlapping WDW trips. We are looking at sharing a couple of group meals (requiring table service ADRs) and a couple of sets of shared/overlapping FP+. I've read everything Disney has published about "Friends and Family" on MDE, and it's about as clear as mud, so I'm bringing my questions to the experts.

Sis's booking windows for ADRs and FP+ will open 3 days before my family's. Here are my questions:

1 - If we link our MDE accounts via "Friends and Family," when Sis's 180-day window opens I know she can make ADRs that include my family members among the guests. Am I correct in assuming that this only works "one way" and not reciprocally? (In other words, I can't get on my MDE and make ADRs for meals we're sharing with Sis's family 180 days out from Sis's arrival just because we're each other's "Friends and Family," right? Since my 180-day window won't open until 3 days later, I assume that only she can do that.)

2 - If Sis and her husband are both logged into her MDE account on different devices, can they both make ADRs simultaneously for their family/guests on the morning their 180-day window opens, or will MDE kick one of them off? (I've never had an issue with being logged into MDE on my computer + phone + DH's tablet, but I've also never tried to make changes on more than one device at a time.)

3 - My understanding is that even after your own FP+ window has opened, allowing you to make FP+ for yourself and others on your room reservation, you can't make FP+ plans for others who are on a separate reservation ("Friends and Family," etc.) on MDE unless/until their FP+ window has opened. Is that correct? Assuming it is, have there been any recent changes to the procedure for "copying" FP+ from Friends and Family once your window opens, or can I simply wait until my FP+ window opens, pull up Sis's plans via Friends and Family, and try to copy some over to mine if they're still available?

First step is to make sure you're fully connected through MDE, and this does not mean just your primary accounts. If you each "control" your own family's profiles, you'll have to friend-request each of the sub-profiles on the other's account so that you're fully connected for things like FP+ and dining reservations.

After that's done, to answer your questions as best as I know....
1) You are correct. The person who makes dining reservations becomes the "primary guest" on it and "owns" the reservation. A primary guest must have a resort reservation to use the 180+10 function of dining reservations. If you have dining reservations that *you* want to own, your account will have to be within 180 days of your checkin date.

2) Multiple people logged into a single account is possible, but just asking for issues. Just like FP+, there are very, very few ADR's that are *that* critical to book immediately at the exact 180-day mark that it requires multiple people logging in together. Best to prioritize reservations and have one person handle them.

3) I've read a few instances of people who had resort reservations saying they were able to include friends who did *not* have a reservation when they were booking their 60-day window FP+ choices. I have not personally tried that.

But if she *isn't* able to make FP+ for you before your own 60-day window, she can easily go into each individual FP+ and click "update FP+ party" to add more people into the group. (This functionality is slightly changed from a couple years ago when they moved to booking FP+ one at a time rather than all three at once)

-Rob

 

[Wngo905]

Great Questions WL and ones that we are beginning to deal for the first time ourselves. My parents 180 window opened today, ours will open Friday (long story on that mismatch). Today, my mom got two reservations for a party of 6 (2 parents and my wife, 2 kids and me). So #1 worked and she even added the persons as our MDE accounts are shared.

We too will have the same situation in October when our 60 day+ FP window opens. Little background story: My parents are in their 70s and go to WDW just the two of them a couple of times each year. (My family goes often and we have been going separate from them since our last group trip in 2010). My dad has not been able to ride some rides due to my mom (a.) not wanting to ride or (b.) not able to ride. So I offered to go with him on any ride he wants. So far he only is interested in Mine Train (I hope he will also go on Splash and Test Track as I think he would enjoy both). So my mom is on point to get us both FP for Mine Train when their 60 day window opens before ours.
We share your #3 question - My daughter (and probably son) wants to go on it with us, so I too question if she would be able to make more than two FP at their 60-day window, since their DVC room only (1 bedroom) is for a party of two (but could hold five.) and our FP window won't be open until three days later.

Rob, haven't looked but I can't picture how you could add people to a FP after making an initial reservation. Wouldn't it be limited to a FP for that same time frame being available at the time a person is added?

 

[Rob562]

Rob, haven't looked but I can't picture how you could add people to a FP after making an initial reservation. Wouldn't it be limited to a FP for that same time frame being available at the time a person is added?

Adding people to your FP+ choices still requires there to be availability for those additional people in the same time slot. But rather than copying FP+ selections from one person to another (like it originally did), the update a couple years ago changed it so that each FP+ reservation operated in a similar fashion as a dining reservation. Meaning, that you have a party of 4 people. You want to make it a party of 6 people, you click Edit Party within the FP+ reservation, and then add or subtract Guests and hit Next. It will then check to see if there's enough availability to make the change. The old version will stay the same until you confirm any changes.

I'd get you a screen shot of the process, but my friend let his AP lapse so I don't have anyone in MDE who has valid admission assigned to them at the moment.

Edit: Turns out I already had a screenshot of it. It's a year old, but it's probably still accurate. In the attached photo, note the "Change Party" link in blue. It's not as obvious as the "Modify" button above it, but it's there.

-Rob

 

[Wngo905]

Adding people to your FP+ choices still requires there to be availability for those additional people in the same time slot.

-Rob

Thanks, yes, we were saying the same thing: you can modify adding people later but there has to be availability in that window. It appears a little confusing when I say
"I can't picture how its done." I thought you were initially saying that once you have a window you could add more people regardless of amount. We are both on the same page