Welcome back to planDisney, Linda!
I'm Happy as the dwarf to
continue our conversation about the ins and outs of making different types of Walt Disney World Resort reservations for your thrilling 13.
When booking an
Enchanting Extras Collection experience at
Savi's Workshop - Handbuilt Lightsabers, the first part of the online checkout process asks you to link each reservation to yourself or a member of your Family & Friends List via a dropdown menu. Participating Guests must be 5 or older and can be accompanied by one Guest. A credit card is required to secure the reservation but the credit card will only be charged if you are a no-show or fail to honor the one-day cancellation policy. Payment is due upon arrival, so the person that made the reservation does not have to be the one paying for the experience.
A similar booking process allows you to make dining reservations online for anyone on your Family & Friends List. If booking for your entire party of 13, you'll have more luck finding reservations by breaking up into two smaller groups of 6 and 7. Because one person cannot hold conflicting dining reservations, two members of your party with My Disney Experience accounts are needed to book two reservations at the same time.
Earlier this month, I enjoyed Tonga Toast and coffee as a party of 10 at
Kona Cafe. To make this happen, I booked a reservation for 6 people and my husband booked a table of 4. When checking in, we let the hostess know we'd like to sit together and they were very kind and accommodating. Restaurants that are well suited for large parties include Teppan Edo and Biergarten Restaurant in EPCOT, Be Our Guest Restaurant and Liberty Tree Tavern in Magic Kingdom Park, and Mama Melrose's Ristorante Italiano at Disney's Hollywood Studios.
You can make advance reservations for dining up to 60 days in advance
online or in the
My Disney Experience mobile app. Guests staying at a
Disney Resorts Collection hotel can book for their entire length of stay, up to 10 days, 60 days before arrival. A new day of reservations typically opens at 6:00 a.m. EST. Before your Disney dining day, Linda, I recommend writing out a Plan A as well as a Plan B for dining options. It would also be helpful to decide which person will be making each reservation. If there's a spreadsheet guru in your party, it's their time to shine!
I hope your traveling party knows how lucky they are to have such a thoughtful planner in their midst. It's an honor to be part of your planning team, Linda. When the next question strikes, day or night,
you know where to find me!
Choose magic,
Jennifer