Reservation Question for the pros...

[Wilbret]

We will be at WDW next week for the 50th. My in-laws were opening day cast members, and that's where they met.

Reservations were crazy hard to get, as you know. For 10/1, they absolutely wanted to be at MK, and I just couldn't get any reservation for an combination of party size in our group. I grabbed one at Whispering Canyon, as they were able to accommodate all 9 of us. Yes, 9.

Generally speaking, I wouldn't bother leaving the park for food, but I was worried the crowds would be so bad, getting food could be challenging, and the bonus is that my FIL was a monorail pilot and ferry captain, so he might like taking the kids on a boat and re-tell the same stories for the 100th time (LOL).

Thoughts? Would you just suck it up and do counter service, or try to make the reservation work? We go to WDW often, we will be back at Thanksgiving, so I'm not terribly worried about missing anything. Just wondering if the "juice is worth the squeeze?"

Thanks!

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I suspect you're going to WANT to leave the park to catch your breath. It's going to be a zoo.

Keep the reservation.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

If it were BEFORE you were entering the park then that's one thing but no I would not leave the park to eat at least not on that particular day.

 

[danyoung56]

You might have a hard time getting back in.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

If it were BEFORE you were entering the park then that's one thing but no I would not leave the park to eat at least not on that particular day.

You might have a hard time getting back in.

Disney has confirmed that those with a Park Pass to the Magic Kingdom will not be denied re-entry *unless* they hopped to another park.

So you can leave MK and then get back into MK but not leave MK to go to Epcot and then come back to MK.

 

[JIMINYCR]

Depends on how much you will want to accomplish at MK. It’s going to be a crush of people and I expect the waits for every attraction will be up there. Leaving the park to dine, then to go back will cut into a lot of time. It will give you a break from others in the park but will that be worth it to you and the others in your party. Using mobile ordering isn’t too bad and by timing it right you shouldn’t have lengthy waits for food. Or just grab snacks to tide you over during the day and go for a nice relaxing dinner somewhere afterwards.

 

[Master Yoda]

Personally, I would not leave the park. Going from MK to any resort not on the monorail line is a pain on the best of days. I can't imagine doing it on the 50th.

What you can try and do is get multiple smaller party reservations around the same time. These are often much easier to get than a single reservation for 9 guests, but even that might not be possible this late in the game.

 

[JohnD]

Sure, I'd leave the park but it depends on the time. I found a sweet spot reservation for Whispering Canyon at 5:00 pm. Late enough for dinner but early enough to have a short break in WL before returning to MK for the night's activities. Personally, I wouldn't schedule anything later than 6:30 pm. I grabbed several ADRs for 6:55pm but decided to give them up. At a minimum, it will take about an hour and a half for a meal. That's approx 7:00-8:30 with only 30 minutes to make it back into MK for the fireworks. Too close for comfort if you ask me.

 

[JohnD]

You might have a hard time getting back in.

I had the same thought but as I've been reminded previously, you'll already have a park reservation. There should be no reason for you not to get back in.

 

[monorail81]

Make the reservation work. It will be better than fighting for food or a space to eat it in the park. Besides…Us former Transportation Cast like taking our former rides And telling stories…(former Monorail Pilot here…)

 

[Wilbret]

Personally, I would not leave the park. Going from MK to any resort not on the monorail line is a pain on the best of days. I can't imagine doing it on the 50th.

What you can try and do is get multiple smaller party reservations around the same time. These are often much easier to get than a single reservation for 9 guests, but even that might not be possible this late in the game.

It wasn't possible on the first moment reservations were available. The only things available after about 9 seconds was at the Contemporary or WL. Lol.

 

[Wilbret]

Depends on how much you will want to accomplish at MK. It’s going to be a crush of people and I expect the waits for every attraction will be up there. Leaving the park to dine, then to go back will cut into a lot of time. It will give you a break from others in the park but will that be worth it to you and the others in your party. Using mobile ordering isn’t too bad and by timing it right you shouldn’t have lengthy waits for food. Or just grab snacks to tide you over during the day and go for a nice relaxing dinner somewhere afterwards.

The only thing we are accomplishing is celebrating the In-laws, honestly. It's their day. It's MIL's bday, too. If this was a once in a lifetime trip, I'd stress more about leaving. I may keep it until I have to make the call to cancel. I keep checking for something to open up, but it just doesn't. I literally booked everything for this trip the moment I could, and it was a battle. Some days I split the group, some days I lucked out.

Thanks for the reply. The reality is we may just rely on snacks and counter service and be happy. It won't matter to me, I'm not the 73-year old!

 

[Master Yoda]

It wasn't possible on the first moment reservations were available. The only things available after about 9 seconds was at the Contemporary or WL. Lol.

Sounds about right. We did not even attempt it and planned on CS and snack carts from the get-go. I figured there are worse things than a day eating nothing but Dole Floats, eggrolls, and churros.

 

[DznyGrlSD]

You might have a hard time getting back in.

If they have a park reservation for MK, they will be allowed back in.

 

[Queen of the WDW Scene]

Disney has confirmed that those with a Park Pass to the Magic Kingdom will not be denied re-entry *unless* they hopped to another park.

So you can leave MK and then get back into MK but not leave MK to go to Epcot and then come back to MK.

My comment pertained to the crowds/time it could take to leave the park and then return.
Had nothing to do with being denied re entry.

 

[TheGuyThatMakesSwords]

We will be at WDW next week for the 50th. My in-laws were opening day cast members, and that's where they met.

Reservations were crazy hard to get, as you know. For 10/1, they absolutely wanted to be at MK, and I just couldn't get any reservation for an combination of party size in our group. I grabbed one at Whispering Canyon, as they were able to accommodate all 9 of us. Yes, 9.

Generally speaking, I wouldn't bother leaving the park for food, but I was worried the crowds would be so bad, getting food could be challenging, and the bonus is that my FIL was a monorail pilot and ferry captain, so he might like taking the kids on a boat and re-tell the same stories for the 100th time (LOL).

Thoughts? Would you just suck it up and do counter service, or try to make the reservation work? We go to WDW often, we will be back at Thanksgiving, so I'm not terribly worried about missing anything. Just wondering if the "juice is worth the squeeze?"

Thanks!

Something you said prompted me to suggest the Sicilian Reservation System (PS I AM Sicilian, no slam intended) - use your well deserved connections.

"My in-laws were opening day cast members".
OK, seriously - this is where I would Phone WDW, do the insane wait, and say "escalate escalate escalate".

I can not believe that WDW would do a Restaurant Reservation Squat on you, IF you are bringing your opening day CM in-laws.

 

[ArmoredRodent]

The reality is we may just rely on snacks and counter service and be happy.

We did not even attempt it and planned on CS and snack carts from the get-go. I figured there are worse things than a day eating nothing but Dole Floats, eggrolls, and churros.

Hold on a sec. It used to be that snacks and CS were a distant second option and the hustle to make TS rezzies was much more necessary. But in the last few years, a lot of snacks and CS opportunities have improved. In some cases, by a lot. At the same time, TS places have declined. In some cases, by a lot (looking at you BOG, but you're not alone). In fact, for our upcoming trip, we're mostly relying on snacking, if only to try a lot of different things at different places, and have very few TS rezzies in mind. Here's a sample of our MK pick list (only 2 TS options considered high enough to list), with particularly highly-rated items (on DFB or Allears) marked with an asterisk*:

Lunch/Dinner/Snacks:

Aloha Isle, Adventureland: Raspberry/Pineapple Dole Whips

*Egg Roll Wagon, Adventureland: changing flavor spring rolls (Cuban, reuben, *cheeseburger, pepperoni, etc.), highly-recommended, big price increase due to popularity: $9.50/2 (not open right now, but ought to open up)

*Sunshine Tree Terrace, Adventureland: *Pot Stickers, strawberry Dole Whip; *Citrus Swirl (OJ and vanilla soft serve)

*Pecos Bill, Frontierland: carnitas or fajitas, guacamole, toppings bar

*Aunt Polly’s Dockside, Tom Sawyer’s Island, USUALLY NOT OPEN: BBQ sliders, PB&J, Mississippi mud brownie

*Columbia Harbor House, Liberty Square: Mostly for seafood; chicken pot pie, clam chowder, grilled salmon, shrimp kebab; cobbler; tuna sandwich *UPSTAIRS SEATING IS SPECIAL

*Crystal Palace, Main Street: fixed price table service, Pooh & friends: prime rib, pork chop, cornbread muffins, peach cobbler

Plaza Restaurant, Main St. table service: crab cakes, meat loaf, roast beef au jus, signature choc cake

*Gaston’s Tavern, Fantasyland: LeFeu’s Brew (apple juice slushy); *cinnamon rolls; *“grey stuff” cupcakes

*Cheshire Cat Cafe, Fantasyland: *Cheshire Cat Tail (Danish pastry), seasonal pastries

 

[Wilbret]

Hold on a sec. It used to be that snacks and CS were a distant second option and the hustle to make TS rezzies was much more necessary. But in the last few years, a lot of snacks and CS opportunities have improved. In some cases, by a lot. At the same time, TS places have declined. In some cases, by a lot (looking at you BOG, but you're not alone). In fact, for our upcoming trip, we're mostly relying on snacking, if only to try a lot of different things at different places, and have very few TS rezzies in mind. Here's a sample of our MK pick list (only 2 TS options considered high enough to list), with particularly highly-rated items (on DFB or Allears) marked with an asterisk*:

Lunch/Dinner/Snacks:

Aloha Isle, Adventureland: Raspberry/Pineapple Dole Whips

*Egg Roll Wagon, Adventureland: changing flavor spring rolls (Cuban, reuben, *cheeseburger, pepperoni, etc.), highly-recommended, big price increase due to popularity: $9.50/2 (not open right now, but ought to open up)

*Sunshine Tree Terrace, Adventureland: *Pot Stickers, strawberry Dole Whip; *Citrus Swirl (OJ and vanilla soft serve)

*Pecos Bill, Frontierland: carnitas or fajitas, guacamole, toppings bar

*Aunt Polly’s Dockside, Tom Sawyer’s Island, USUALLY NOT OPEN: BBQ sliders, PB&J, Mississippi mud brownie

*Columbia Harbor House, Liberty Square: Mostly for seafood; chicken pot pie, clam chowder, grilled salmon, shrimp kebab; cobbler; tuna sandwich *UPSTAIRS SEATING IS SPECIAL

*Crystal Palace, Main Street: fixed price table service, Pooh & friends: prime rib, pork chop, cornbread muffins, peach cobbler

Plaza Restaurant, Main St. table service: crab cakes, meat loaf, roast beef au jus, signature choc cake

*Gaston’s Tavern, Fantasyland: LeFeu’s Brew (apple juice slushy); *cinnamon rolls; *“grey stuff” cupcakes

*Cheshire Cat Cafe, Fantasyland: *Cheshire Cat Tail (Danish pastry), seasonal pastries

We have three 70+ year old Disney opening day people with us, they asked to try to have a time to sit down. If it was just us and the kids, we wouldn’t even have reservations because we are cheapskates! Lol

 

[MickeyCB]

I think this is the neatest story ever!!
Are they in the LIFE magazine cover photo, in what I believe is the opening day photo from October of 1971?! (I have 2 copies)!
If their desire is more to reminisce it seems like a lovely idea to take the boat over from MK and somehow fit the monorail into your days plans.
And I would definitely call Disney ahead of time and ask if there is anything special they could do for your in laws as a treat. The worst case is you are on eternal hold and then they say too bad for you.
Someone else here on the forums can probably hook you up with who to call that might net you more success than a random new CM.

 

[ArmoredRodent]

We have three 70+ year old Disney opening day people with us, they asked to try to have a time to sit down.

I'm with them, but there are some seating areas around the various CS and snack locations. For example, As an older person, I now understand the value of what my father used to do at DL (before it was DLR): let us kids roam around while he would sit and "people-watch." Except for the busiest times, we could usually find a bunch of seats (and tables if needed) at a CS location.