Since its opening in 2012, Be Our Guest Restaurant has been a wildly popular favorite with visitors to Disney’s Magic Kingdom. Be Our Guest is one of the most highly sought-after restaurants in all of Disney World, and reservations can be frustratingly hard to come by.

Be Our Guest is “an expansive and elegant 550-seat dining destination located at the foot of Beast’s Castle in Fantasyland.[1]” This immersive dining experience features 3 elaborately styled rooms: The Grand Ballroom, The West Wing, and The Castle Gallery.

At breakfast and lunch, Be Our Guest is a quick service format. Upon entering the restaurant, you order your meal at a walkup kiosk, find a table, and then wait for your food to magically appear at your seat. No really, I mean magically – waiters use the RFID tag in your magic band or a magic rose beacon to deliver your food on a brass cart no matter where you sit down in the restaurant. For dinner, Be Our Guest becomes a seated restaurant, featuring a 3 course pri-fixe meal. Dinner also often includes character appearances by Belle, Beast, and Gaston.

If the thought of getting a table at Be Our Guest makes you want to rage like the Beast, “we invite you to relax, let us pull up a chair,” as we proudly present… our top tips for scoring one of these coveted reservations:

Start Early

It may seem a little crazy to plan out what you’re going to be eating in 6 months, but planning far in advance is going to ensure you have a great dining experience during your stay. A good tip is to start thinking through dining options 7-8 months out from your stay.

Once you have your plan finalized, set a calendar reminder on your phone, get your alarm ready, caffeinate, and get pumped so that you can make your reservations – especially your dinner reservations – as soon as your reservation window opens up online or in the My Disney Experience app.

One important thing to remember – you can make dining reservations for the entirety of your stay, not just for the first day. If you look at booking towards the middle or the end of your stay (when other guests haven’t had a chance to book yet), you may have better availability.

Be Flexible

In my experience, being flexible can make your park visit so much more enjoyable in general, and there are several ways that it can pay off here!

Think about visiting for breakfast or lunch

Dinner reservations at Be Our Guest are the hottest ticket. Reservations for breakfast and lunch reservations are much easier to get! If you’d like to experience the Beast’s Castle and are less concerned about seeing characters or having a seated, 3 course meal, this could be a great option for you.

Be open to slightly off-time meals

You may have better luck getting a reservation that is a little earlier or a little later than normal meal time – think 10:00am for breakfast or 1:30pm for lunch. This will have the added benefit of letting the peak crowds die down and ensuring you get your food more quickly.

Plan your park schedule around your dinner reservation

If eating dinner at Be Our Guest is a top priority for you, consider planning your visit to the Magic Kingdom around when you can get a reservation, rather than the other way around. If you have a park hopper pass, you’re going to have maximum flexibility. You can then visit other parks during the day, and come back to the Magic Kingdom for dinner.

Consider breaking into smaller groups

If you’re making a reservation for a big group, think about breaking it into 2 smaller groups. Smaller tables are more plentiful and are going to be easier to come by.

Be Persistent

Don’t despair if you’re not able to get your desired reservation right away! Guests will often make multiple reservations and then cancel the ones they don’t need once they’ve finalized their schedules. This means that tables can open up before your visit. Check back online or in the My Disney Experience app regularly to snap up reservations that may come available. Once a day or once every few days is a good cadence to check.

If you aren’t able to get a reservation at Be Our Guest, you can still have a wonderful Disney dining experience. The resort has literally hundreds of fabulous restaurants (here are some of my delicious, less crowded favorites: Columbia Harbour House, Via Napoli, and Frontera Cocina).

And if what you’re really after is to be immersed in the world of Beauty and the Beast, you have other great options: use one of your a Fast Passes to visit Enchanted Tales with Belle, stop by Gaston’s tavern for a warm cinnamon roll and a glass of Lefou’s brew, or bring home a Chip and Mrs. Potts salt and pepper shaker from Bonjour! Village gifts shop, just like my mother in law.

Click here to learn great insider tips, tricks, and cost saving ideas, connect with a Pixie Vacation planner, and begin booking the Disney vacation of your dreams.

[1] https://disneyworld.disney.go.com/dining/magic-kingdom/be-our-guest-restaurant/