Hey Steven, I'd like to wish you an especially warm welcome to planDisney from one Canadian to another!
With the current weather in Ontario being as wintery as ever, it definitely helps to think warm thoughts of the sunny skies that await you in Florida when you make your way down here in May! I love helping fellow Canucks plan ahead for their southward journeys, especially when it comes to enjoying the
vast variety of Walt Disney World Resort food!
You'll be happy to hear that the majority of dining locations only charge you at the end of your meal; as you
make reservations in advance online or via your
My Disney Experience mobile app you may be required to input your payment information, but in our experience we have never been charged prior to our reservation.
However, there are currently two exceptions in which you may be charged in conjunction with making a dining reservation:
- At the present time if you book a reservation for the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue or at Cinderella's Royal Table, prepayment may be required. This may be subject to change and availability without prior notice, so I recommend keeping an eye on any changes or other dining locations adopting a similar policy in the future.
- Be sure to take note of the cancellation policy in place for dining locations before making a reservation; for those with a two hour cancellation policy, you'll need to make sure that you cancel at least two hours prior to your reservation time to avoid being charged a cancellation fee that applies per person. This was recently changed over the past few months, and like any other policies, may be subject to change again in the future in terms of fee pricing and the cancellation window.
One of my Princely Picks, Tips and Tricks to avoid cancellation fees is by choosing to modify your reservation to a later time or date later during your visit. In my experience, it has allowed us to have another chance to experience that dining experience or even cancel if our plans change - as long as it is outside of the cancellation window for the newly modified reservation time.
I hope that this was helpful to you as you plan ahead and dream about the future dining options that you'll be able to enjoy; please feel free to
come back to planDisney if you have any other questions ahead of your voyage down to The Most Magical Place on Earth!
All the best on your upcoming trip, and Bon Appetit!
Prince