We talk about Disney World dining reservations a LOT here at DFB.
Sanaa
There are quite literally hundreds of restaurants in Disney World and dozens of places to make reservations. With all those options, it can feel mandatory that you try some out during your trip. But dining reservations and table service meals aren’t for everyone — we’re here to tell you why making dining reservations for your trip might be a bad idea!
You Have Small Children
For starters, if you have small children who can be unpredictable or who haven’t been to Disney World before, making advance dining reservations may not work out in your favor. If your kids get hungry too early, have a midday meltdown, or just decide that they don’t want to eat at the spot you chose, you could find yourself questioning why you made the plans in the first place.
Crystal Palace
When visiting Disney World with small children, flexibility is KEY. Sometimes, having no plan is better so that you can make decisions in the moment as you adjust and reevaluate. We recommend going into your park day with some options, but hard decisions aren’t required in advance.
You Have a Long To-Do List
It also might not be a good idea to make dining reservations if you have long to-do lists for your park days. If you dream of accomplishing all the rides in the parks or hope to watch every entertainment option, you likely won’t have time for long sit-down meals.
50s Prime Time Cafe in Disney World
Trying to schedule Lightning Lanes around dining reservations can also be stressful. Navigating the parks with multiple pre-made plans will have you zig-zagging all over the place!
You Have a Tight Budget
One of the most common reasons to skip table service meals is because they can be costly! By dining at quick service restaurants or snack stands, you could save quite a bit of money — money that you can then use to buy souvenirs or more snacks.
Sebastian!
Especially if you’re the type to get appetizers, drinks, and desserts, table service dining can add up quickly. Even if you swap ONE table service meal per day for a quick service alternative, you can cut down on your spending for your trip significantly.
What You Should Do INSTEAD
So if you’re not making dining reservations in advance of your trip, what should you do? Well, there are a few options.
Mama Melrose’s
First of all, you could dine at one of Disney World’s many quick service restaurants or snack stands. Plenty of those spots actually have pretty good food, and you’ll be able to get decent portion sizes for lower prices. We have quite a few favorite spots around the parks, including Columbia Harbour House, Connections Eatery, Woody’s Lunch Box, Satu’li Canteen, and Flame Tree Barbecue.
Seating area at Woody’s Lunch Box
If you still want to dine table service but just don’t want to make plans in advance, you can try the Walk-Up Waitlist feature in the My Disney Experience app. This option allows you to check and see which table service restaurants have last-minute availability. If it’s not too busy in the parks, there should be at least a few restaurants with wait times listed.
©Disney
And of course, one of our favorite table service hacks is to visit the Disney World lounges! There are many lounges spread throughout Disney World that don’t offer reservations, but take visitors entirely based on walk-ups. Some of these spots have really unique entree and small plate options, as well. It’s a great way to blend a table service meal with a more casual atmosphere!
Lounge-style seating
So there you go — those are the times when it might not be a good idea to make dining reservations. We’ll keep you in the loop with more tips and advice for your Disney World trip, so stay tuned to DFB.
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We have a general rule of making 1 table service reservation per trip. We try and pick a new place each time. Sometimes if we’re divided on the choice, we’ll make 2. But other than that, we do quick service, a lot of snacking and really enjoy Epcot festival booths.
I think for us, food is one of the main reasons we go (not really, but kinda lol!) If we get filled up at a table service meal, there’s no room left for snacks! And that’s just wrong. Plus eating a big meal and getting super full kinda puts a damper on the rest of the day. It’s hard to explore Disney when you’re in the midst of a food coma! Last trip we did Homecomin and it was AMAZING! But, we ended up cutting our DS night short because we were too full for anymore shopping. The trip before that we did Steakhouse 71 for dinner. Fantastic! Did we make it back to MK for fireworks? Nope, too full 😂