Topolino's Breakfast- Reservations for 4 with 5 in Our Group

[Liz&Griff'smom]

My family is going the WDW in July to celebrate my daughter's 21st birthday. She would like to go to Topolino's for Breakfast on her birthday. 60 days out we were only able to get a reservation for 4 and we have 5 in our group. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I might get a reservation for 5? I called WDW but they said that there was not much that they can do. I have read that there are tools (Tourist Plans.com) that you can use to book get a hard-to-get reservations. Has anyone used any of them before? If so, how successful were you and which one is best? Thanks!

 

[NothingClever]

I would be incredibly surprised if they didn't seat all 5 of your party, especially if they know it's a birthday celebration. I have a friend who routinely does this (strategically) and has very rarely ever not been seated. I would just arrive a bit early to let them know that you have an additional person so they can make arrangements.

 

[SkyGuy]

Checking in early is a good suggestion, but be prepared to wait since Topolino’s is a hot property and going from 4 to 5 means going from a 4-top to a 6-top - they won’t simply pull up a chair to your booked 4-top. They also deal with fire code with reservation numbers, so they’ll have to place you when it works out for those numbers as well, so it’s not as easy as *pixie dust* for a birthday. There are reservation finders (not sure which ones we can mention by name) out there that may be able to help you, and a hint is that it’s easier to find a restaurant res for six (and just not use that sixth seat - you won’t be penalized) than it will be for a party of five. Disney tech doesn’t like odd numbers so much.

 

[serenitynow]

Try to get an additional reservation for 2

 

[starousse]

Just check in a little earlier and let them know that another person has decided to join. You may have to wait a little extra, but they will not say no....especially if they see it's your birthday.

 

[Her Dotness]

Just check in a little earlier and let them know that another person has decided to join. You may have to wait a little extra, but they will not say no....especially if they see it's your birthday.

A little extra? I disagree as popular and fully booked as Topolino's breakfast typically is.

Unless the ADR is right at opening or soon after, you could easily wait an hour or longer due to the characters going around to meet guests as well as their doing performances now and then.

The tools for hard-to-get ADRs are primarily for getting one at all, not for trying to add another person to your party when it'll require a 6-top instead of a 4. You could try such but could easily spend your money for no help at all. Besides, you must generally hop on a notification immediately, or it'll be gone.

 

[CarolynFH]

I agree with suggestions above - look for an ADR for 6, and if unsuccessful look for an ADR for 2 around the same time as your 4-person ADR. I would keep trying, several times a day! Something to be aware of - the system won't let you make 2 ADRs close together under the same name. So since you already have the 4-person ADR booked, you might need to look for the 2-person ADR via the MDE account of someone else in your party. (Normally the recommendation is to book the first ADR in another person's name and then book the second in your name, but since you don't want to cancel the first ADR, you'll have to work around that.)

If you end up with the 4+2 split party, check in with the CM (not via MDE) at least 10-15 minutes early, tell them the two parties are together, and ask to be seated as close together as possible. They will try! And whether you book 4+2 or 6, you won't be charged for the 6th person.

Topolino's is simply too popular for me to want to risk having my 5th person turned away.

 

[wegotodisney]

I often see people on these boards making broad statements about how you won't be turned away when trying to add an extra person (or two) to your party at check in. I have witnessed parties being told, "no, we can not add anyone extra to your reservation."
I've seen it with adults, I've seen it with children under 2 that the reservation maker didn't think needed to be counted, and I've seen it with a group that was celebrating a special occasion and thought they would be accommodated when they showed up with extra people expecting pixie dust.
Hint: every person has a birthday every year. It's simply not that special. I'm genuinely sorry if that's a shock.

I'm not saying that it never works out. I'm sure it usually does work out, but you need a back up plan if it doesn't.
Like others have said, keep looking for the reservation for 5, or even 6, or try getting a separate reservation for 1 or 2.
If that fails, show up early and put in a request, but have an alternative plan just in case. Above all, please don't give the cms a hard time. They get asked to make exceptions all day, every day, and they really do try their best, but not every special request can be granted. It's not realistic.

 

[BK2014]

Keep looking, things open up for try. Searching for 6 instead of 5 might yield better results, and we have never had an issue showing up with less people than listed on the reservation. Also, Topolino's has a walk-up list. Get there right at opening and get added to the list if they can't modify your reservation.

 

[FSU Girl]

When you check in to the restaurant it’ll ask how many in your group and you can add one more. I’ve heard sometimes this is unavailable, but I’ve been able to add going from 6 to 7 at very popular spots. And leading up to I was unable to modify or find a new reservation

 

[PSUPreston]

My family is going the WDW in July to celebrate my daughter's 21st birthday. She would like to go to Topolino's for Breakfast on her birthday. 60 days out we were only able to get a reservation for 4 and we have 5 in our group. Does anyone have any suggestions on how I might get a reservation for 5? I called WDW but they said that there was not much that they can do. I have read that there are tools (Tourist Plans.com) that you can use to book get a hard-to-get reservations. Has anyone used any of them before? If so, how successful were you and which one is best? Thanks!

Lot's of people cancel or change their reservation as the date gets closer. I would keep checking, especially the week of your travel and amend your reservation to 5. It will work out for you, I'm confident!!

 

[SkyGuy]

When you check in to the restaurant it’ll ask how many in your group and you can add one more. I’ve heard sometimes this is unavailable, but I’ve been able to add going from 6 to 7 at very popular spots. And leading up to I was unable to modify or find a new reservation

I was able to add a person from 6 to 7 on a family trip on which I mistakenly didn’t add my 14 month old nephew to our all of reservations except for character dining. I was not given the option to add anyone for Tusker House, Hollywood & Vine, or Chef Mickey’s. I had to go to the podium early and plead my case. It was no issue with TH or CM, and we were seated within about 15 minutes of our time, but for H&V, the hostess berated me, told me she didn’t think it was possible, then came back and said it would be an hour. We did not have a Topolino’s reservation, so I can’t confirm if that will be the case with that one or not.

 

[CookieandOatmeal]

I am in the same boat as you. As a party of 5, I was only able to grab an ADR for 4 and then snagged another ADR for 2 about 15 minutes later on our 60+ day. With 4 adults and 1 toddler, I plan to go up to the podium and explain our situation, hoping that they will have no problem sitting all of us at a 4 top. I'll squish with my 3 year old if need be on one side. If not, hoping that they can seat us next to each other and my in-laws can sit at the table of 2. I do have reservation finders looking for this ADR for 5 and also for a few other places. They already found me an ADR for 5 for Beaches and Cream in the evening.

 

[focusondisney]

When you check in to the restaurant it’ll ask how many in your group and you can add one more. I’ve heard sometimes this is unavailable, but I’ve been able to add going from 6 to 7 at very popular spots. And leading up to I was unable to modify or find a new reservation

I’ve had “you may add 0 extra guests” messages at several restaurants over the years. It very much depends on the popularity of the restaurant & what time your ADR is. I’ve never needed to add anyone but it definitely happens you’re told you can’t add a guest.

 

[MikeOhio]

I’ve specifically had this issue at Topolinos. The app did not allow adding an extra guest. We checked in early and ended up having to wait about 30 minutes past our reservation time.