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Dining

What You Need to Know About Booking Dining Reservations

Mickey-shaped cinnamon roll

Dining at Disney can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. Here’s everything you need to plan it without the stress.

There are two types of restaurants.

Table Service restaurant

Table Service

These are sit-down meals where a server takes care of you. Plan on 1 to 2 hours, and I highly recommend a reservation. All Character Meals are Table Service, but not all Table Service meals have characters.

Quick Service restaurant

Quick Service

This is your fast-casual option. You’ll mobile order or hop in line, grab your food at the counter, and find a seat. Some spots have indoor seating, some outdoor, and a lot of them are REALLY good. It’s much faster than Table Service.

Table Service meals take 60 to 90 minutes.

That’s a big chunk of your park day, so unless you’re planning a food-focused trip, I’d skip booking more than one Table Service meal per day.

We can make your reservations 60 days before your check-in date!

Your Dining Day is listed on your confirmation email, and I’ll send you a reminder before it’s time to book.

If you’d like me to book your dining reservations for this trip, please make sure you:

1. Log in to your Disney app and add a Payment Method under your profile.

2. Send me all your dining requests by 1 p.m. the day before your Dining Day.

Here is our list of recommended reservations!

Dining Recommendations

You won’t find every single option here, just the ones we love and recommend, both quick service and table service.

If you’re feeling anxious about getting the perfect dining reservations:

Please know you are not alone. There’s a lot of stress that tends to swirl around dining reservations, so I want you to hear this: you do not need dining reservations to have an amazing trip. There are TONS of fantastic quick service options.

Dining will not make or break your trip.

You can still meet characters without a character meal, and you can still find indoor seating and a great meal at a Quick Service spot.

What You Need to Know About Hard-to-Get Reservations

When you stay on-site, you can book dining for your entire trip starting 60 days before check-in. That means everyone who checks in before you gets first dibs on reservations during your stay.

Because of that, the really popular spots can be fully booked before your dining window even opens.

That’s why I like to book the moment your window opens, to give us the best shot at what you want.

Tips on choosing your reservations:

  • If there’s an extremely popular restaurant on your must-do list, I recommend scheduling it for later in your trip (Day 5+), when there’s more availability. The first few days (1 to 4) will always be harder to book.
  • Unless your trip is built around food, I recommend just one Table Service or Character dining reservation per day. I love having at least one. It’s a chance to get out of the heat, rest your feet, and relax.
  • You can book a reservation at any resort. You don’t have to be staying there to eat there!
  • You do need a park ticket to eat inside a park.

When should you have a sit-down meal?

Option 1: Eat at off times (between 2 and 4 p.m.) and grab a Table Service reservation for the middle of the day, when it’s hot and the lines are long. This is my preferred option.

Option 2: Take advantage of park time and have a nice reservation waiting when the parks close, at Disney Springs or any resort. You can also book a reservation just before park closing so you walk out to an almost-empty park (between 8 and 10 p.m.).

Option 3: Have a long, leisurely breakfast, especially for a character breakfast like Chef Mickey’s or Topolino’s. This is best on a rest day. I love booking these on checkout day as a sweet way to say “goodbye, Disney!”

I don’t recommend an early Table Service breakfast on a park day. Use that morning to maximize your park time instead. If you do want a long, sit-down breakfast, book it for after 10 a.m., once the park starts to fill up.

Please also make sure you have a credit card on file under “My Profile, Payment Method” in your Disney app. There’s no fee to book dining reservations (except for select ones like Cinderella’s Royal Table, and I’ll let you know if you pick one with a booking fee), but a card has to be on file to book.

If you have a large party, I may need to split you across multiple reservations. I’ll keep them as close together as possible, and when you check in at the restaurant you can ask to be seated together. Disney will do their best to make it happen.

To book your dining reservations, I’ll need the following sent to me by 1 p.m. the day before your booking window (at the very latest):

  • Dates / Restaurant / Preferred time / Party size
  • Any food allergies I should know about (I’ll note them on your reservation)
  • A valid credit card stored in your Disney account, with your profile updated with your address and phone number. It will not be charged. It’s only used to hold the reservations.

I can’t promise I’ll land everything on your list, only that I’ll do my absolute best!

I’m looking forward to hearing what you decide!

If you’d rather make your own reservations, just let me know. Your family can book dining for your vacation week either on My Disney Experience at 6 a.m. EST or by phone at 7 a.m. EST.