Hi Jennifer,
Welcome back to the Disney Parks Moms Panel and thank you for asking us another question, my fellow Canadian!
From what I understand, yes, you can use one table service entitlement from your
Disney Dining Plan at a quick service location. You’ll just need to tell the Cast Member who will be taking your order that you’d like to make the switch.
Even if you can’t get a Disney dining reservation for the location you want during one of the days that you’ll be visiting Walt Disney World Resort, please don’t lose hope! I really wouldn’t recommend making that swap as it’s really not a great value, especially when you factor in the exchange rate. After all, we Canadians need to get the most out of each loonie that we spend when we visit the United States…
Here are some of my suggestions to help you get the most out of your Disney Dining Plan during your upcoming vacation. First, because of the
cancellation policy associated with table service dining reservations at Walt Disney World Resort, I’ve found that dining reservations for several of the most popular Disney dining locations (including dinner at
Be Our Guest Restaurant!) are often available at peak times a day or two beforehand. So don’t give up hope if you don’t manage to snag the perfect reservation; keep checking for availability with your My Disney Experience account, even once you’ve started your vacation.
Second, there are several table service restaurants that I find to be absolutely delicious and that often have last-minute dining reservations available. These are places such as
Restaurant Marrakesh at Epcot (and several other locations around World Showcase often have last-minute tables available too),
The Wave… of American Flavors at Disney's Contemporary Resort and
Grand Floridian Cafe at Disney’s Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. I’ve had wonderful meals at all 3 restaurants, and I highly recommend making a “backup” reservation for any one of them, just in case the location you have your heart set on experiencing doesn’t pan out.
My final tip: if you really can’t find anything else that you’d like, I would consider switching one of your dining reservations to a
Signature Dining Location, such as
Tiffins at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. Although this means that you would need to pay “out of pocket” for one of your meals during your trip, these fine dining locations make for an absolutely delicious and memorable meal for your entire family. Even my son, who is now 6 years old, loves going to these places, because they make such an effort to ensure he has a wonderful time, too.
Please don’t hesitate to come back and see us if you have any other questions!
Have a Magical Day,
Lynne