Hello Elizabeth, and welcome back to the Disney Parks Moms Panel with a great question.
I am so excited to hear that you will be visiting the Walt Disney World Resort next year. I love it when the time comes to make my advance dining reservations. If you are a guest, with a reservation to stay at a Disney Resort Hotel, you should have been able to make your reservations for the entire trip. You can
make your selections online as early as 6:00 a.m. Eastern Time or by calling (407) WDW-DINE or (407) 939-3463 at 7:00 a.m. Eastern Time.
I am so sorry to hear that you were not able to get a lunch reservation for the Garden Grill. That is one of my favorite Character Dining Experiences in Epcot. Disney does not hold on to any slots for last minute bookings. However, there are times that guests will make a reservation at the 180-day mark and then have a change in their plans that may cause them to cancel a reservation. When this happens, another guest may be able to book the slot that was released. I would suggest checking back with Disney Dining at 60 days, 30 days and 2 weeks prior to your arrival for any tables that are available. Good luck with the rest of your planning. If you have any more questions before you arrive, please come back and visit us again.
See ya real soon,
Andrea