Former Cast Members Reveal One MAJOR Tip for Booking Dining Reservations in Disney World!

Grabbing a dining reservation for your Disney World vacation can be a struggle, but this one tip can help!

The Cake Bake Shop in Disney World

As a former Cast Member, I know how frustrating it can feel for guests when they can’t find a dining reservation at their favorite restaurant. So I would love to take some stress out of your dining reservations and tell you about this one tip that you can use on your next Disney World vacation.

While most restaurants in Disney World can only be booked through My Disney Experience or the Disney World website 60 days in advance, some non-Disney-owned restaurants can be booked through other avenues. A great resource for this is the website/app OpenTable!

The BOATHOUSE

OpenTable is a popular third-party reservation service for areas around the country, and some outside-owned restaurants in Disney World are available to book through the service. We’ve found that occasionally, when these restaurants are out of availability in Disney’s system, they still have time slots open for that very same day on OpenTable.

Summer House on the Lake

So which Disney World restaurants can you find on OpenTable? First, there are a LOT of Disney Springs restaurants, which include Summer House on the Lake, Jaleo, The Boathouse, City Works, Wolfgang Puck, The Edison, Maria & Enzo’s, Frontera Cocina, STK, Planet Hollywood, Raglan Road, Terralina Crafted Italian, Paddlefish, Wine Bar George, and Morimoto Asia.

Morimoto Asia

If you’re heading to the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin hotels, you can book several spots through OpenTable as well. These include Bourbon Steak, Todd English’s bluezoo, Rosa Mexicano, Amare, Il Mulino, and Kimonos.

Bourbon Steak

Outside of those, there are several other assorted restaurants on OpenTable. You’ll find the very popular The Cake Bake Shop at the BoardWalk, as well as dining locations at the Four Seasons Orlando, JW Marriott, and a few of the Disney Springs area hotels’ restaurants.

Breakfast at the Cake Bake Shop

Not only is OpenTable a great resource for snagging dining reservations, but it’s also a great way to get the quick guide to these Disney World restaurants. Each restaurant’s page on OpenTable includes the restaurant’s rating, popular menu items, price range, and details like the hours of operation and the address.

©OpenTable

So the next time you’re trying to decide where to dine in Disney World, and you’re running out of options on My Disney Experience, try downloading OpenTable and checking out what’s available! We hope this helps take some stress out of grabbing those dining reservations. For more Disney tips, be sure to follow us at DFB!

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What is one tip you use for booking your Disney dining reservations? Tell us in the comments below!