How to Get Disney World Dining Reservations
Short answer: Disney dining opens 60 days before your check-in date, and you should be online right at 6 AM Eastern to land the hardest tables.
The best Walt Disney World restaurants book up within minutes of opening, and most guests find out too late. Here is exactly how the reservation system works, and how I make sure my clients land the tables they actually want.
The core rule: 60 days
Advance Dining Reservations open 60 days before your arrival date, at 6:00 AM Eastern. That is the single most important date in your whole trip if dining matters to you.
The on-property advantage
This is the part that changes everything: guests staying at a Disney Resort hotel can book their entire length of stay, up to 10 days, all at once on their 60-day morning. So on day 60 you can grab tables for days that are technically further out than 60 days. Guests staying off property book one day at a time, each at its own 60-day mark, and are always a step behind. It is the biggest reason I steer dining-focused clients into a Disney resort hotel.
The hardest tables to get
Build your wish list before your window opens and prioritize the tough ones, because these can be gone in minutes: Cinderella’s Royal Table, Space 220, character meals, and the top signature restaurants. Everything else you can usually fill in around them.
Good to know
- Most reservations hold a credit card. Cancel at least 24 hours ahead to avoid a per-guest no-show fee.
- Set your alarm and be in the app at 6:00 AM ET exactly on your open date for the hardest tables.
- Dining plans and menus shift, so I re-verify what is bookable before your window.
How I handle it for you
I confirm your check-in date, count back to your exact 60-day open date, and calendar it at 6:00 AM ET. We build your restaurant wish list together in advance, and I make sure it is tied to your resort reservation so you get the full-stay head start. You wake up with the reservations, not the stress. It is part of full-service Disney planning, as an affiliate of Glass Slipper Concierge.
How to Book Disney Dining, Step by Step
- Count back 60 days. Disney opens dining 60 days before check-in. Guests staying on property can book their whole trip starting at that 60-day mark.
- Make your priority list. Rank the hardest tables first, the popular character meals and signature restaurants, so you book those before anything else.
- Be ready at 6 AM Eastern. Log in right at 6:00 AM ET on your booking day. The most in-demand tables can be gone within minutes.
- Book the priorities, then fill in. Lock your must-have reservations first, then add the flexible meals around them.
- Keep watching for openings. Cancellations release tables constantly, so re-check as your dates approach, or have me watch for you.