Hi Julie!
I am all too familiar about how a family tragedy can bring a family together. Spending the holiday season together as a family is so important, especially when a tragedy rocks your world.
My first suggestion would be to think outside of the box. You may not be able to get a dining reservation for your party size at some of the more popular restaurants like Chef Mickey’s, but I am betting that there may be some availability at restaurants in some of the Disney Resort Hotels, or even those that may not be as “popular” among guests.
Secondly, if you are having a hard time, maybe you could try to split your party up into two groups. You may be able to find two dining reservations that are close to each other in regards to time. If you are able to do that, at check in you could “request” that your two parties be seated close to each other. Please do remember that if you did this it would be considered a request and is not guaranteed.
Lastly, I suggest if you are unable to secure reservations for dinner, try to strive for a late lunch or even a breakfast!
The great news is that I did run a quick search on available
dining reservations. When searching instead of searching for a specific dinner time, I searched for “dinner.” For Christmas Eve quite a few options showed up. The one that I would choose is the Hoop-Dee-Doo Musical Revue. This is my favorite dinner show and I have always found the food to be delicious! Since your family may be going through a rough time, this dinner show may be just what your family needs to have a hootin-tootin good time! There also were some great results that came up for Christmas Day so please try your search again and keep an open mind!
I hope that you are able to make wonderful memories this Christmas!
~Heather~