First-Time booking ADRs: will I get this right?

Hi there! At the 182-day mark today, and while I think we have things set to go for Sat morning, would like any advice you can give.
We have our main plan + backup dining options, plan to have 2 (+iPad?) laptops going, and will be logged in and ready before 6 am EST. My questions:

  1. is there any limit on how many devices can be logged into the same acct?
  2. will the site automatically show all of the days in our trip (i.e. not just Arrival Day), or do I have to do something special to make them appear?
  3. when searching for pre-RD MK restaurants (9 am opening), what is the latest time you suggest for a reservation, in order for it to be worth your while? (2 DD 6 & 9, not huge daredevils, but would like to have some Fantasyland time prior to crazy crowds one morning).
  4. Do we have to give a credit card to hold Signature, or just CRT / special shows? And is it charged immed, or just used to hold?

Sorry for so many q’s! Very excited, any help much appreciated!!

OK, I’ll pick off a few questions:

  1. No limit that I know of. Rather than deal with multiple devices, I just open up multiple browser windows and set them up for the reservations that I am looking for - that way all I have to do is refresh each window at 6:00 AM.
  2. This is automatic, as long as your room reservation is set up in MDE.
  3. You have to give a credit card to hold all TS reservations - no charge is applied. However, certain “special event” reservations (like CRT)are fully paid for at the time of reservation.

Check out http://touringplans.com/walt-disney-world/advance-dining-reservations for lots of useful information.

Thank-you, @brklinck, that was very helpful! Looking forward to seeing what we manage to get this wknd :smile:

  1. is there any limit on how many devices can be logged into the same acct? I would do tabs as previously suggested. No need to make this more complicated than necessary. Put them in order of priority, and go down the line. The system didn’t like when I was attempting to simultaneously make two reservations and kicked me out of one.
  2. will the site automatically show all of the days in our trip (i.e. not just Arrival Day), or do I have to do something special to make them appear? All days of your linked vacation will be available for reservations.
  3. when searching for pre-RD MK restaurants (9 am opening), what is the latest time you suggest for a reservation, in order for it to be worth your while? (2 DD 6 & 9, not huge daredevils, but would like to have some Fantasyland time prior to crazy crowds one morning). How long does it take your kids to eat? Do you want to be done and ready to go as soon as the official opening? Are you looking at character dining?
  4. Do we have to give a credit card to hold Signature, or just CRT / special shows? And is it charged immed, or just used to hold? All of my table service reservations required a CC. However, you only need to enter it once and it carries it over to all other reservations. If you have a CC already linked it may automatically populate. Have your card either way.

One tip… double check the date on your reservation before you confirm it.

When I was making my reservations my date reverted to the date I was making the reservation rather than the date I wanted the reservation somewhere in the process. I only noticed when I had a random $40 charge on my statement (no-show charge family of 4). When I called WDW Dining they found the issue and were able to get me a reservation on the correct date and refund my no show charge.

When speaking to the CM, she mentioned that this was not an unusual error. When I asked about the issue and told her the amount of the charge she knew exactly what the problem was before looking up my account… so I assume she is right.

Excellent, @NKHarris329 - and thx for the tip about the res date, I think I know exactly what you mean…during some “practice sessions,” this happened sometimes.
With regards to the pre-RD dining time, we’re planning to visit MK 3x over the course of a week, so not too stressed about an exact time, just wondering if it gets complicated trying to enter the park for a res that’s made for 8.30 or later. It will be the 2nd wk of March, so I know things will be busy…
As for this Sat morning, gonna get my coffee ready early, get multiple tabs going, and have my CC at the ready, lol!

Just a generic tip: Do not panic if you are having problems with the site. After planning for months, DH and I were on separate computers, psyched up and ready to go … only to hit glitch after glitch for probably the first hour – basically not able to book anything. Once the site was working again and the phone lines opened, the process went smoothly. It took some calls and a lot of checking back with the website, but we got everything we wanted within about 2-3 weeks after our ADR date.

Thanks, @Ofmiceandmen…we’re super-pumped (have an old office whiteboard with our plans drawn up sitting in the living room - I wish I was kidding!)…it would be a letdown for sure if things are really bumpy, but I know it’ll all work out eventually. What will be, will be, right? :wink:

Can I ask about your pre RD MK plans? Can I assume you are trying to book BOG? CP or CRT will most likely take you longer than an hour to eat and will put you behind the crowds. A BOB reservation up to 8:25 will definitely get you in MK by 8:00 and finished with breakfast well before the crowd (ADRs after 8:25 may get you in at 8:00 as well, I just don’t think it is guaranteed ).

Thx, @PrincipalTinker, that’s kind of what I needed to figure out. Yes, we’re aiming for BOG between 8-8.30 for one of our mornings, happy to snag a CRT later in the day for us, not fussy about time for that one. Just wish we could stay a month & try all the restaurants! :wink:

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2). System had a glitch last month and would not let me book my +10 reservations. After an hour of trying to refresh, Change browsers, etc. the phone lines opened and I was still able to get the 2 pre-RD meals I wanted. So don’t give up if you hit a wall.

Hmm …

SO, it didn’t include the rest of my reply, which was: {thoughtfully considers adding whiteboard to home office}

Lol, @Ofmiceandmen! You can’t go wrong with an oversized white board for WDW planning :wink: And thx, @tiggerbelle59 - with < 10 hrs til GoTime, I’m preparing for the worst, but hoping for the best!!

And we just watched Cindrella (old school version) with the girls…them for the first time…sigh, now I really want that CRT booking, lol!!

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Good luck! Would you be willing to post your results with these strategies? They would have been useful a few months ago!

Phew!! Got 'em all!! Plus an accidental CM res for today that I need to cxl :flushed:
Will post results later on - quick observations:

  1. at last minute, decided to go with 2 PCs, thankfully, as my computer didn’t work AT ALL to book the week of our trip until 13 mins into the process! DH’s laptop snagged our “Priority 1s” right away tho.
  2. Had a snafu with the BOG 8 am res, had it, got bumped out, but <10 mins later, went back in ( after nabbing other res) & still got it!
  3. It only took 26 mins to make all of our res (14 bookings)… Much quicker than I would’ve thought!
  4. admittedly, we are choosing earlier suppers as we have kids & can’t do late meals - there seemed to be no problem with time choice at all.

So happy & excited!!

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Sfl

Glad you got them all!