Dining Alerts
How to Use Dining Alerts to Score Walt Disney World Dining Reservations
Getting dining reservations at Walt Disney World can feel like an Olympic sport. From Cinderella’s Royal Table to Space 220, some restaurants are so popular that they book up within minutes of becoming available. Even if you’re ready right at the 60-day mark, you might find your dream reservation already gone.
That’s where Disney dining alerts come in. These handy tools help you find last-minute openings at even the hardest-to-book restaurants—without spending your vacation (or your morning coffee time) constantly refreshing the My Disney Experience app.
What Are Disney Dining Alerts?
Disney dining alerts are services that monitor Walt Disney World’s official reservation system and notify you when a table opens at your chosen restaurant, date, and time.
When another guest cancels a reservation, it immediately becomes available again—and these tools catch those openings in real time. You’ll receive an email or text alert as soon as a table is available, so you can book it before someone else grabs it.
Why You Should Use a Dining Alert?
Even the best planners can miss a reservation, especially during busy seasons. Dining alerts are perfect for:
Popular restaurants like Ohana, Be Our Guest, and Topolino’s Terrace
Character dining experiences such as Chef Mickey’s or Akershus Royal Banquet Hall
Special occasions like birthdays, anniversaries, or “last night of the trip” dinners
Instead of checking the app repeatedly, dining alerts give you a simple, stress-free way to keep an eye on availability.
The Most Popular Disney Dining Alert Services
Here are two guest favorites that make finding reservations easier:
Steakout
Steakout is known for being fast and easy to use.
Go to Steakout.com
Choose your restaurant, date, meal, and party size
Pay a small one-time fee for each alert
Wait for a text when a spot opens up
Once you get an alert, act quickly—the link takes you directly to Disney’s reservation page so you can grab your table before it’s gone.
Mouse Dining
Mouse Dining offers both free and paid options.
Free plan: Set up a limited number of alerts and receive email notifications.
Paid plan: Get text alerts and faster notification delivery (a huge advantage for the most popular spots).
Mouse Dining also includes a user-friendly dashboard so you can manage all your alerts in one place.
When to Set Up Alerts
You can start setting up alerts as soon as you’ve planned your Disney vacation. The earlier, the better—but even if you’re close to your travel dates, you still have a good chance.
Many guests cancel or change their dining reservations a few days before their trip to avoid Disney’s cancellation fee. That means last-minute openings appear all the time, especially within 24–48 hours of your desired date.
Pro Tips from the Travel Genies
Set multiple alerts. If you’re flexible on time or date, create a few alerts for different meal periods.
Act fast. Tables can disappear within minutes (sometimes seconds) of a cancellation.
Check your notifications often. Be ready to click the alert link immediately.
Use alerts even during your trip. You can grab a hard-to-get reservation while already at the parks!
Let a Travel Genie Help
When you book your Walt Disney World vacation with Genie Travel Co., your Travel Genie can help you create a customized dining plan—and even guide you through setting up dining alerts for those must-do meals.
They know the best restaurants, ideal times to dine, and insider strategies to make the most of your experience.
Turn your Disney dining dreams into reality—without the stress.
With the help of Steakout, Mouse Dining, and your trusted Travel Genie, you can enjoy every meal you’ve been wishing for!