Right on the heels of the announcement that the Jungle Navigation Co., Ltd. Skipper Canteen has started to accept Advance Dining Reservations comes another “ADR” switcheroo!
According to wdwmagic.com, The Plaza Restaurant in Magic Kingdom will begin to expand its availability to walk-up guests (those without Advance Dining Reservations) beginning July 17th.
Of course, in order to do so, The Plaza will not be accepting Advance Dining Reservations for a majority of the day. Wdwmagic reports that Advance Dining Reservations will only be available for booking from 11:00 am – 12:00 noon daily. Guests interested in dining later in the day can visit the podium located just outside the restaurant.
And indeed, a search for Advance Dining Reservations for the week of July 17th on the Walt Disney World website resulted in options available only in the 11:00 am hour for lunch. Here’s an example:
The Plaza Advance Dining Reservation screenshot
And though you are still able to search for “Dinner” options past July 17th, nothing comes up in testing several dates.
The Plaza Advance Dining Reservation screenshot
This change has not been confirmed by Disney at this time. However, the verbiage on the Walt Disney World website noticeably reads, “Put your activity-packed day on pause with an impromptu but leisurely meal at this inconspicuous eatery.”
Inside The Plaza Restaurant
Now, we know there are trip planners out there as well as those who prefer to wing it. In this age of Fastpass+ and 180-days-out Advance Dining Reservations, I say it’s nice to know there will still be an option at Magic Kingdom for those who prefer to go with the flow. How about you?
What do you think of this potential change to Advance Dining Reservations at The Plaza Restaurant? Please let us know with a comment!
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We have really enjoyed The Plaza Restaurant. I think this may be a good idea. Worth a try, anyway.
I think they would be smart to have some spots that are walk up service. There should always be a variety for different needs.
I’m someone that plans most aspects of my Disney trips ahead of time, but I still think it’s great that Disney is trying to open up some options for those who like to be more spontaneous. Sometimes you just don’t know where you’re going to want to eat six months prior to your trip, and other times plans just flat out change.
I’m a little sad about this. We have a tradition of eating at the Plaza on the first night of any Disney trip. After a day and a half of driving, it’s nice to have a laid-back meal at the Plaza without waiting in line. Looks like we will need to find another option.
Great idea. Need more options other than “fast food” for those who do not micro plan a trip to DW.
Not cool. Get ready to stand in a long line just to find out there are no openings. It’s a return to the old days of never knowing if you could get in. For those that like to waste their time and increase their frustration level, this is right up your alley. There needs to be a mix of ADR throughout the day with more walk-up slots.
I think this could potentially be a great idea. We tried for a walk-up for the Plaza on my birthday a few years ago, only to be told they were fully booked, although it wasn’t busy inside. We then found reservations available on MDE, so booked and returned half an hour later. On returning the CM told us that they were still fully booked…so we said we now had a reservation.
It was a lovely meal, but we could’t help but notice that the restaurant wasn’t very busy, and we were the only table that our server had – so they were very attentive. I think having walk ups could definitely help in these scenarios.
I wish the Plaza Restaurant would get the fried chicken from the Plaza Inn in Disneyland! Maybe some day 🙂
Hoping they still plan to honor all previous reservations! I have a dinner reservation for mid August.
At last Disney is going to look after those like myself , who just love visiting Disney and be able to casually just pop into a resturant without having to plan , not everyone has I phones. Etc, we have a relaxing attitude towards the parks and just want to go with the flow, and our last visit was disappointing with so manty restaurants not letting us in ,coming from the uk long way to be diapointed, yes we’re over 60 and love our yearly visits.
Love this. As a person who loves to plan but also doesn’t want every living minute planned out this is great. How do I know when my family wants to eat? Wish they would do more of this.
I am a steady visitor to the Plaza with reservations ahead of time. I think it is good to open more tables without reservations but this no all should be scattered evenly though out the day. To not be able to book a reservation at my favorite restaurant in the park will be very stressful and take away a lot of the happiness of our many monthly trips. Only the first hour after opening is wrong for many return customers.
As a pass holder I think this is great. We have passes because we really like to go for the day or part of it on the spur of the moment. Getting a sit down meal is getting harder and harder so we usually leave the park to eat. Now we cannot only get a meal in the park but at one of our favorite places. Thank you WDW.
To those that seem to think now they will now be able to just pop in to this tiny restaurant and get a table in any sort of timely manner… good luck! Having no reservation system for a popular restaurant in a packed park is going to lead to a lot of people wasting time waiting in line to be told there are no openings. This isn’t a step forward, it’s 3 steps back.
I agree that they need to have a mix of walk-up and reservations. That way maybe all or most people will be served. I wish they’d have some walk-ups for Be Our Guest or Akershus!
I like this idea. We gave up eating at The Plaza because we are that spontaneous family and don’t like to micromanage every single thing. I am hating the online Fast Pass thing. It’s kind of discouraging us from going to Disney as much. 🙁