Don’t give up, even if you see this!Now that people are traveling more, it’s getting hard to grab Disney Park Pass reservations to a Walt Disney World theme park, especially on the weekends or a holiday. That doesn’t mean that it’s impossible. I’ve had a decent amount of luck getting reservations when none seem to be available. It takes patience and maybe some pixie dust.
The first thing that I do when I want a reservation is to ignore the Availability Calendar. Once it says that it’s full, that won’t change unless Disney adjusts something. You won’t see something new pop up just because a party of five gave up their spots.
What I will do is sign into my My Disney Experience account. I’ll go to the Make a Park Reservation page and create my party. I’ll then hit continue, and head to Select Date and Park. I’ll then do just that, even if I know that the Availability Calendar says that it’s full. From there I’ll start to refresh. That way, if someone gives up a spot, I’ll be able to grab it right away.
How often I do this depends on how far out the date is that I want to go. If it’s a week or more I’ll just try a couple of times a day, only when I think about it. When the day gets closer I’ll try more often. I usually have the best luck 24-48 hours out.
I’ve noticed that it’s usually easier to get a last minute reservation in the evening. The day is over, and people are talking about plans for upcoming days. I’ve also done fairly well first thing in the morning. I’ve tried in the middle of the actual day with some luck. I checked a few minutes ago and found an opening today at Disney’s Hollywood Studios. According to the Availability Calendar, the park is full today.
For some reason I have been able to get more last minute reservations on my cell phone than on my laptop, but I think that’s just because I try more often on my phone. I don’t carry my laptop with me everywhere, while my phone is hardly ever more than a few inches away. Yes, I’m one of those.
There is no guarantee that you’ll be able to get a Disney Park Pass Reservation if the parks are full. But you definitely won’t get one if you don’t try! I wouldn’t recommend centering your vacation around the possibility of getting reservations last minute. That said, if you’re already in Central Florida and want to add a day, keep trying. You just might get what you’re hoping for. And if you have a Disney Park Pass reservation that you aren’t going to use, please cancel, even if it’s the day of. You will make someone else’s day.