Ok, here is something interesting. I am spot checking park pass availability for hotel guests and ticketed guests and all the ones I’ve checked are exactly the same. (AP has many differences.)
While I was looking around earlier, HS was available to both on 6/10 and then suddenly wasn’t available for either at the same time.
Based on my booking experience, they definitely are set up to be separate pools, but I wonder if they actually have the “inventory” for those two merged at the moment.
The need to keep AP separate makes sense (so they don’t book all of the HS passes to constantly try to get BG, for instance), but maybe they aren’t seeing a need to separate the others at this point, but wanted to have that capability/expectation in place in case it is needed. (For instance, maybe just activate it to give hotel guests an advantage when a new ride opens or whatnot.)
That could also explain why @gingerSnaps543222 is seeing her AP park passes as a separate grouping sometimes but not others. Maybe it’s in a “common inventory pool” the days they are grouped together and separate when they are not?
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That is very curious! It’s possible they are technically separate pools, but that they have programmed them to rebalance themselves periodically when one has extra capacity and the other is short.
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So…I got an email this morning saying my 5pm flight arriving at 8pm on May 28 is now a 9am arriving at noon flight…which means another Table Service dinner to book. Thanks to you and the others with all this research on Leading Reservations I got Homecomin’ on that weekend which is a holiday friday night at 6pm. And I moved the night I did have Homecomin’ for and got Topolino’s at 7pm. Given how much struggle others seem to have with these THANK YOU!!! And also a shout out to Frontier Airlines for giving me more time in the world! 
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Just want to report back my success so far! I have made the dining (+ Savi’s) reservations for my whole trip! I got every single restaurant at the time I wanted for my entire party of 7 (no split parties)! Hopefully I don’t change my mind on any of these. Thanks everyone for the tips!
One question:
Where is a good place to have a casual dinner at the Contemporary Resort? Is their QS any good? Do I need to spring for a TS? That will be our last dinner before our departure day, so I want something relatively inexpensive but also pleasant.
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I would eat at the bar at the Wave. They have a decently priced bar bites menu which has some good stuff on it.
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I should mention I have 4 kids, including littles.
The Wave lounge actually has some large banquet booths that I’ve seen many families with children sitting at before, but I’d probably stick to Contempo Cafe. The food is decent and convenient to your hotel. Grand Floridian Cafe is a TS but has really economical prices so that’s an option too if you want a real sit down meal.
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The process is working well for us too! Today I booked party of 7 at both Oga’s and Beaches & Cream. Hoping they all “stick” okay after the leading reservation is cancelled. 
We’ve only had to split at Narcoossee’s where our party grew to 9 since my DC and her SO are joining us.
We still have a bunch more days to go, but the selection is outstanding at 60+10, without getting up early.
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you can also mobile order the wave and eat outside but we’re going in May/June sooooo
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We really liked the food at Contempo Cafe, but it is really loud since it is right outside of Chef Mickey’s. If your kids would want to go to Chef Mickey’s maybe not a good idea to eat right outside of it.
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@amvanhoose_701479
Me too! I have everything I want so far. And I’ve noticed the system works really smoothly now my kiddo is back in school and I’m waking up at 6:30am instead of 7:30am. I think people must be bogging the system down later in the morning. Tomorrow I’m booking Topolino’s breakfast. I debated about Oga’s for the hubby whose never been but am I the only one who thought having to stand was awful. DD13 (12 at the the time) and I did it in DLR towards the end of a rope drop day when the park opened at 8am and I really wanted a darn chair! If I could pay more for a guaranteed seat I’d do it for a post lunch drink but with no guarantee I don’t know if I want to take that reservation away from someone else.
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The Wave Bacon and Egg appetizer was one of the best dishes I ate at Disney on my trip last year.
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I liked their salad that hubby brought back to the room for me from the mobile order but you put goat cheese on anything and I’m in heaven. 
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We were ok with it, but I agree it’s not preferable. It was one of DH’s favorite experiences of the trip. He did the rancor thing!
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I will admit my weekend went something like morning flight, lunch-midnight at Universal Hollywood for Halloween Horror Night, Princess Brunch at Napa Rose followed by lunchtime-11pm Oogie Boogie Bash, then rope dropped for 8am DL opening. So the fact that I couldn’t sit down late in the afternoon was strongly colored by the nonstop pace to fit in all the Halloween stuff in one four day weekend. I’m sure that colored my opinion. The blue wine I had was really good though. But I don’t think DD was impressed with the Batuu snacks. They didn’t have the charcuterie board back then.
Edit: I asked hubby and he said he’d only want to do it at night as he doesn’t day drink and I have sit down dinners booked every night so far that I don’t want to give up for it. He didn’t seemed super enthused even though LOVES SW. He likes IPA’s mostly beer wise but he’s really more of an expensive scotch drinker anyway (snob!).
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My DH is all about speyside scotch when that’s an option! Specifically, Balvenie Caribbean cask
DH doesn’t get a choice. It’s his birthday and I have many requests to fit in! We will have happy hour at Oga’s at 10am and he will like it!
Yes, the charcuterie was a much needed addition to the menu. We’ll split one of each snack, have a drink or two in our 45 min, then toddle off to DB7 for lunch! Beaches and Cream at 3:15pm (he’s also an ice cream fiend). Dinner for 2 at Morimoto at 8pm while DM wrangles the kids elsewhere.
And hopefully we’ll get a BG that throws a monkey wrench into all of that!
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Well done! You’re the master of fitting it all in. We have noon Mama Melroses one day and sci fi the 2nd with no post lunch plans besides the pool or maybe mini golf? And dinner. we could do a post lunch drink either day. But I can also have a pool bar drink so I mean…and he can have his dinner scotch at topolinos one night and a Japanese whisky at Teppan Edo the other. His favorites are highland park and Macallan I think it is but he and my dad are best friends and have regular tastings. It’s super cute. My dad makes note cards and everything.
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So far I’ve also been able to get every ADR I want and at times that I want, too. Thanks to you all for the ideas and coaching. We’ve still not eaten indoors in a restaurant for a year—but breaking that pattern at Disney seems like the best of the best!
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Honestly, I probably would not do this normally - unless I was going at a really busy time, maybe - because I’ve never needed to. I’ve always been able to get every ADR that I wanted. But with the reduced offerings and reduced capacity, it’s a lot more difficult right now.
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