Hey there, Hi there Rhiannon!
Thanks for stopping by planDisney with your question. Your Walt Disney World vacation will be here before you know it, so hopefully I can give you some suggestions to help make it as magical as possible.
I'm sorry to hear that you are having trouble making reservations to the
character dining locations that you were hoping for. Right now there are only a handful of restaurants with characters, and as you can imagine, they are extremely popular. They often fill up 60 days in advance. Don't give up all hope though. Guests often change their plans and end up cancelling reservations. Keep checking back as often as possible. You may end up with that coveted reservation as your vacation gets closer. I don't know how large your party is, but I did see a 3:00 PM lunch reservation at
Garden Grill Restaurant in EPCOT for your arrival day. In the past I've had a lot of luck getting a same day reservation to
Tusker House Restaurant at Disney's Animal Kingdom, or even using the walk up list. So all hope is not lost.
In the meantime, there are plenty of other restaurants that are both fun and delicious, even if they don't feature characters.
Whispering Canyon Cafe at Disney's Wilderness Lodge is one of our family's favorite dining locations. There are also some fantastic restaurants around World Showcase in
EPCOT that are fun, delicious, and usually have available dining times.
But what about characters? There are still a lot of opportunities to see your favorite characters. You can
meet Mickey at Town Square Theater in Magic Kingdom or at
Red Carpet Dreams in Disney's Hollywood Studios. Princess Tiana, Rapunzel, Cinderella, and Elena greet guests all day long at
Princess Fairytale Hall in Magic Kingdom. Anna and Elsa have their own
Royal Sommerhus in EPCOT. These are just a few of the many locations where you'll have an opportunity to interact with your favorite Disney characters.
Like character dining, getting into
Savi's Workshop can also be a challenge. Everyone wants to build their own lightsaber. My best advice is to keep trying. Again, guests change their plans and end up having to cancel. You may find that a reservation opens up on the morning of your Disney's Hollywood Studio visit. You can also speak to a cast member and see if there are any walk up reservations available.
Hope this helps a little. I'm sending some virtual pixie dust and hoping the Force will be with you as you try to make these magical moments happen.
Diane