The ship won’t sink…again. Ahead of Walt Disney World trying to open Beak and Barrel reservations for the second time tonight, they have implemented safeguards to manage demand. One of the safeguards that has been implemented is a Virtual Queue waiting room to enter the dining reservation site. The waiting room is in place now on the Walt Disney World website, but likely won’t be activated until later tonight when demand increases. Here’s what we know.
Virtual Waiting Room Implemented for Beak and Barrel Reservations
According to information obtained by BlogMickey.com, Walt Disney World has implemented a virtual waiting room for its dining reservation system. This virtual waiting room is technically in place right now, but is not needed due to manageable demand on the Walt Disney World website. It is likely that the virtual waiting room will be implemented later this evening as we approach the 7pm go-live time for Beak and Barrel reservations.
Typically, we see these types of virtual waiting rooms put in place for high-demand periods such as initial availability of new deals or offers for Walt Disney World vacations. It is rarer to see a virtual waiting room implemented for a single restaurant. That said, Walt Disney World likely experienced a crush of demand last Thursday when reservations were originally scheduled to open. That demand ended up crashing the dining reservation system. Walt Disney World was forced to end the planned rollout of reservations and set a date to retry. That redo date is today, and it’s all hands on deck to ensure that the process goes smoothly.
Earlier today, we wrote an article noting that the ability to search for and make advanced dining reservations was removed from the My Disney Experience app. With our new reporting that a virtual waiting room has been put in place, it is likely that today’s change to the My Disney Experience app is temporary. By pushing guests out of the app and onto the website, Disney can manage demand via the planned virtual waiting room.
Walt Disney World has not confirmed details of the virtual waiting room, and they have not returned a request for more information about the changes to the My Disney Experience app.
If you’re planning on trying to make a Beak and Barrel reservation tonight at 7pm, we would recommend planning to use the Walt Disney World website, and to be prepared to wait in a virtual waiting room as Disney carefully manages demand on its website.
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