Quick Question about Ressies...

[Main Street USA]

Ok, we're heading down in December, and I've made several Ressies for 8 of us. 6 adults, 2 children.

One of the ressies is at Cinderella's Royal Table, where prepayment is required. So, now I've pre-paid....what happens if 2 of the people in our party end up not being able to make it? Will we be charged for 8, or do they just do the bill based on the 6 that show up? Does it work the same way for Hoop De Doo?

Thanks in advance!

 

[wdwmagic]

Good question. I'm thinking that if you dont modify the group size before the cancellation window closes, you will be charged for what is on the booking. I'm not certain though, will be interesting to find out.

 

[Mystic]

Unless you cancel for those people within the specified window you will be stuck paying for them. I can't remember if the window is 24 or 48 hours. But I'm sure someone on here will be able to tell you for sure but if you don't cancel for the two people prior to that window you will be stuck paying for them. Same goes for both CRT and Hoop Dee Doo.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

Amend your booking as soon as you know

 

[Pumbas Nakasak]

Are you sure about that? I always thought that they dont take any payment untill the day, and then if you show up they bill for what you have. If you dont show you pay XXX depending on where you go.

Im sure we had someone drop out (possibly FIL) who was knackered that day, and we only were charged for the 5 that turned up. :shrug:

 

[Master Yoda]

The current policy is a 24 hour cancellation or you will be charged the full price of the meal. Payment is required at the time of booking except if you are on the dining plan. A CC guarantee is still required with the dining plan.

For the OP...if 2 do not show you will be stuck paying for them.

Here it the full guest policy from the official site.

There is a one-day cancellation policy and a full meal price charge if you cancel within one day of the reservation.

All dining facilities are non-smoking.

Due to the Wishes Nighttime Spectacular presentations and shows taking place in front of Cinderella Castle , alternate routes are frequently used which may add to your travel time.

Menu items, pricing and hours are subject to change without notice.

Price includes tax and gratuity.

Payment or credit card guaranty is required at the time of booking.

Third-party payments are not accepted. The last name on the credit card must match the last name on the reservation. If applying multiple payments, the last name on at least one credit card must match the last name on the reservation.

Transportation Time: Allow up to 1.5 hours to travel to your destination when traveling within Walt Disney World property.

Plan to arrive 20 minutes prior to your reservation time. You will be seated at the first available table for your party size.

All Walt Disney World Resort table service restaurants that accept reservations may accommodate special dietary requests (such as allergies to gluten or wheat, shellfish, soy, lactose or milk, peanuts, tree nuts, fish, or eggs) if requested in advance. Please contact specialdiets@disneyworld.com at least 2 weeks prior to your table-service reservation or quick-service dining experience. You may also visit www.disneyworld.com/specialdiets for more information. If you are booking within 2 weeks of your reservation date or otherwise wish to call about your special dietary request, please call (407) 824-5967, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday - Friday. Calls outside of business hours will be returned the next business day. You may also ask to speak to a chef upon arrival at the restaurant.

In order to participate in this experience, Theme Park admission is required.

All Walt Disney World Resort table-service restaurants that accept reservations offer balanced menu choices and can accommodate lifestyle dining options (such as no sugar added, low-fat, low-sodium, vegetarian or vegan). Please advise a Cast Member of your request at the time you place your order and he or she will be happy to assist. For dinner shows, 24-hour notice is required for any lifestyle menu request. Our quick-service locations also offer balanced menu choices and can accommodate most lifestyle dining options.

Characters are subject to change without notice.

Most Walt Disney World Resort table-service restaurants that accept advance reservations can accommodate Kosher needs if requested at least 24 hours in advance by calling (407) WDW-DINE or (407) 939-3463. Guests under age 18 must have parent or guardian permission to call. A credit card is required to guarantee this meal; the full price of ordered meals will be charged if you cancel within one day of the reservation or are a "no show" for the reservation. At family-style or buffet locations, you will only receive one meal; does not include all-you-care-to-eat. You will be charged the regular buffet or all-you-care-to-eat price.

Special seating requests, such as by the window or outside, must be made at the dining facility.

At time of booking, payment in full must be charged to a valid credit card or, if on a dining package, there must be a guaranty to a valid credit card.

 

[Main Street USA]

See, I guess even reading that guest policy from their site, I don't get that we'll be charged if 6 out of 8 of us show up. What I take from it, is that if we no show altogether, they'll charge us.

The main dilemma is this...I booked Cindy's royal Table 96 days in advance, because if you don't, you don't get it. Unfortunately, not everyone in our party is 100% sure they'll even be coming down, hence the problem.

The second part of the problem is this...in the past when I've called to change the number of people in the party, they can't do it without canceling the ressie, then rebooking. If they try this with this ressie, it simply won't be there anymore.

Ugh.

 

[CAPTAIN HOOK]

See, I guess even reading that guest policy from their site, I don't get that we'll be charged if 6 out of 8 of us show up. What I take from it, is that if we no show altogether, they'll charge us.

The way I understand it is if you book for 8 and only 6 of you turn up you are depriving Disney of two full paying guests (whose places they could re-sell). Therefore Disney will make you pay for their lost income.

 

[Main Street USA]

Right, I completely understand the logic, and most of us are likely showing up. I guess I'm looking for someone with experience in actually having it happen. I've had it happen at a restaurant where there was no credit card guarantee, and of course, they say "no problem" and seat you.

They don't charge the credit card unless you cancel within the window, which means if your party shows, they don't charge you until the meal is over and bring you the bill.

In any case, we're not canceling the ressie, so I guess I'll just report back if the situation occurs and let you all know what happened.

Thanks for the replies.

 

[dormouse72]

I have this same issue - I made a reservation for San Angel Inn for 12 people and now my SIL (who didn't get the free dining) is saying she will probably not join us for that (my niece is a picky eater and she'd rather not pay for an expensive meal she won't eat). Same for our reservation at Wolfgang Puck Cafe.

As of right now, I'm not making any changes for fear of losing my existing reservation (my niece is not only a picky eater but also incredibly spoiled - she could very well decide at the last minute that she wants to spend every waking minute with her cousins and throw a fit if there isn't a spot for her). But...what if I walk up for an ADR for 12 people but only 9 are there? Also, I only booked restaurants which are part of the free dining - how would they calculate any lost earnings if we would be pre-paid and they wouldn't know what we would have eaten?

I live in NYC and, while I certainly don't frequent the restaurants which require reservations months in advance, there are restaurants which will not seat you if all members of your party are not available.

 

[Main Street USA]

I have this same issue - I made a reservation for San Angel Inn for 12 people and now my SIL (who didn't get the free dining) is saying she will probably not join us for that (my niece is a picky eater and she'd rather not pay for an expensive meal she won't eat). Same for our reservation at Wolfgang Puck Cafe.

As of right now, I'm not making any changes for fear of losing my existing reservation (my niece is not only a picky eater but also incredibly spoiled - she could very well decide at the last minute that she wants to spend every waking minute with her cousins and throw a fit if there isn't a spot for her). But...what if I walk up for an ADR for 12 people but only 9 are there? Also, I only booked restaurants which are part of the free dining - how would they calculate any lost earnings if we would be pre-paid and they wouldn't know what we would have eaten?

I live in NYC and, while I certainly don't frequent the restaurants which require reservations months in advance, there are restaurants which will not seat you if all members of your party are not available.

Well, they'll definitely seat you in WDW. In fact, they'll likely tell you it's no problem at all. The problem is when you've already given them a credit card number. They'll still say "no problem" and seat you as they would have before....but then when you get the bill....is it for the original ressie, or only those that showed? Don't know 100% either way on that one. I'll find out soon enough.

 

[reptar77]

The way I understand it is if you book for 8 and only 6 of you turn up you are depriving Disney of two full paying guests (whose places they could re-sell). Therefore Disney will make you pay for their lost income.

Correct. Also due to the demand for tables they want to insure you show.
The California grill did this also.

 

[Main Street USA]

I get what it says, it's just that I have a really hard time believing they'll actually put an extra couple people on your bill when they aren't actually there. Even if it's the policy, Disney isn't in the practice of making the guests angry. You can bet that if a usual party of 8 that booked for 10 got the bill for an extra couple people, all they would have to do is complain, and they'd get reimbursed.

And just to clarify, I'm not that type of guest, but I can assure you (and I'm sure most of you know) when people complain at WDW about just about anything, they get something for free. Sad but true.

 

[elatino]

I thought you could only make reservations 90 days out? Do they push the date out for certain restaurants?

 

[Master Yoda]

I thought you could only make reservations 90 days out? Do they push the date out for certain restaurants?

If you are staying at a Disney resort you can book your dining for you entire trip for up to 10 days at your 90 day mark hence the term 90 days + 10.

 

[Main Street USA]

Thanks again, everyone, for the input.

Just to update the situation, and the policy, I suppose...

The family who was going to possibly be there with us has already cancelled, leaving just my wife and I for an 8 person ressie. We were already charged on our card for the full amount of 8. However, when I called today she was able to simply modify the reservation rather than cancel and rebook. She then refunded our card the amount of the six who wouldn't be there. We have the same ressie #, same time, everything. Easy as that!

Basically, the system will allow you to modify if you're changing it to LESS people, but not if you're adding people.

Good ending for us!

* ALSO...if anyone is looking for a CRT ressie the night of December 1st right after the Castle Lighting, there were 6 open spots as of 5 minutes ago.