Welcome to planDisney, Cory!
Thanks so much for choosing to be our Guest! In the words of Winnie the Pooh, "What could be more important than a little something to eat?" Like Anton Ego from Ratatouille, I don't just like food, I
love it! Whenever I travel to
Walt Disney World, one of the highlights is treating my taste buds at some of the many amazing restaurants. I have an upcoming trip this week actually, and I'm so excited to try
Steakhouse '71 and return for breakfast at
Kona Café (the Tonga Toast is worth a trip to Walt Disney World on its own).
If you're staying at a Disney Resorts Collection hotel, you can take advantage of making advance dining reservations. One of the
many benefits to staying on property is the ability to make reservations up to 60 days in advance of your trip plus the length of your stay (up to 10 days). This means you're far more likely to reserve a table at some of the more popular restaurants.
The beloved Disney Dining Plan is a convenient way to have all of your meals paid for ahead of time. Unfortunately, we still don't know when the Disney Dining Plan will return. A number of months ago, the Disney Parks Blog announced that they are planning on bringing it back. So it's on Disney's to-do list! However, as of now, we're not sure when this will be. Hopefully, it will return by the time of your trip. However, we don't have anything concrete yet. I know that's not the news you wanted to hear, Cory.
But I have another suggestion for you: Instead of waiting for the Disney Dining Plan to become available, why don't you purchase a bunch of
Disney Gift Cards? You can then bring these with you in order to pay for your meals. This method isn't really that different from the Disney Dining Plan. You're still basically paying for your meals ahead of time. In fact, in many ways, it's better than the Disney Dining Plan because if you have money left over it won't go to waste. You can use it to buy some extra souvenirs! You can purchase Disney Gift Cards from many major retail locations. Sometimes, I've noticed certain stores even offering deals on them (e.g. $45 for a $50 Disney Gift Card). I've actually been doing this myself for my family's next Walt Disney World trip.
I hope that's helpful, Cory. In the build-up to your trip, check out the new planDisney podcast for planning tips and exciting news.
TTFN, ta-ta for now.
Mike