I was not able to put my husband's allergy on our dining reservations (ADRs) :( - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
Welcome! We're happy you've found the PassPorter Community -- the friendliest place to plan your vacation to Walt Disney World, Disney Cruise Line, Disneyland, and the world in general! You are now viewing the PassPorter Message Board Community as a guest, which gives you limited access. As our guest, feel free to browse our messages by selecting the forum you want to visit from the list below.
To post messages and ask questions, join our FREE community today and you'll get access to tools and resources not available to guests, such as our vacation countown timers, "living" avatars, private messaging system, database searches, downloads, and a special PassPorter discount code. Registration is fast, simple, and completely free. Just click the Join Our Community link.
If you think you've already joined, log in below now. If you don't remember your member name or password, please visit our Member Name and Password Recovery page. You are also welcome to contact us.
I was not able to put my husband's allergy on our dining reservations (ADRs) :(
While poking around MDE at our reservations, etc., I noticed that there were no allergies listed under our ADRs. My hubby is allergic to mushrooms... odd I know, not life threatening, but they make him pretty sick, and we do not want that on our Anniversary trip!
At first, I thought it might have been another MDE "bug" (I had an ADR not showing up on my account, which they were able to fix), so I called to check. I was told that they could not list his allergy, because it wasn't on their "list". What? Don't they have an "other" category? Something that will flag that there is an allergy? All she told me was that we would have to mention it at the podium at check in. Not very helpful. I guess we will have to remember to mention it before hitting the buffets! He is fine at remembering to ask when ordering off a menu, but they can hide those little things in almost anything on a buffet, and we don't do a lot of buffets here at home.
Will we have an issue mentioning his allergy at the last minute at check-in?
PassPorter's Free-Book to Walt Disney World It’s hard to believe anything is free at Walt Disney World; but there are actually a number of things you can get or do for little to no cost. This e-book documents over 200 free or cheap tips to do before you go and after you arrive. You could save a considerable amount of money following these tips. Perhaps more importantly; you can discover overlooked attractions and little-known details most people whiz by on their way to spend money. Click here to see free sample pages from the e-book! Get this popular e-book free of extra charges when you join the PassPorter's Club for as little as $4.95. A club pass includes access to all our other e-books; e-worksheets; super-size photos; and more! This e-book is also available for separate purchase in the PassPorter Online Store for just $5.95.
Not at all - as a matter of fact, it's much better to mention it once you get to the restaurant anyway. I've had things noted on our ADR's that have been completely overlooked until I mentioned it to the server. So just from my experience, don't lose sleep over the lack of a notation. Mention it when you check in but then make sure you let the server know too (the server is the most important person to mention it too though as they'll get the chef).
Not at all - as a matter of fact, it's much better to mention it once you get to the restaurant anyway. I've had things noted on our ADR's that have been completely overlooked until I mentioned it to the server. So just from my experience, don't lose sleep over the lack of a notation. Mention it when you check in but then make sure you let the server know too (the server is the most important person to mention it too though as they'll get the chef).
I agree with mentioning it when you check in, but I do also wonder whether a call back might be worth it, as it does sound a bit odd that they can't list an allergy because it's not on their "list", as everyone is different and we all have different allergies, if you see what I mean.... That response just surprised me.
I just tried to make an ADR on the Disney Dining site on my computer and there was a category "other" under allergies. It was on the bottom left on my laptop. Are you on a computer - or your phone?
PassPorter Guide Community Rank: Legend Extraordinaire
Join Date: Apr 2003
Location: Jacksonville, FL
Concierge Level: 6
Posts: 31,940
Post Thanks / Like
Likes (Given): 2
Likes (Received): 7
Thanks (Given): 0
Thanks (Received): 1
Pixie Dust (Given): 0
Pixie Dust (Received): 0
They have an "other" check box on the ADR website - and then when you arrive, tell them about the mushroom allergy when they check you in and the chef will come to your table - then you can tell the chef what your allergy is. I have a coconut allergy - and coconut is not on the list....
I have 2 people in my family with allergies, one of which appears on the list and the second is an other which I made sure to note on every ADR. When we checked in to all restaurants or buffets during our trip a few weeks ago the hostess would stamp a big red allergy on the ticket that was put on our table and the server would ask what the allergies are and then the chef would come to the table and would work our what they could have. At the buffets a chef walked with them to discuss what they could have and what to stay away from and even made things special to supplement. Disney is so wonderful when it comes to allergies.
You should be able to note food allergies when you reserve, but you can always call and make sure it shows up on your ADRs. Definitely the best is to remind them when you check in at the restaurant, because that's when they will actually be doing the food selection and cooking for you. Otherwise, it might be overlooked. As others have said, a chef or other staff person will discuss it with you before you order to make sure your needs are accommodated.
Thank you, everyone! I am not too worried (refuse to let this stress me out)! I will just mention at podium & again to our server. I don't foresee a problem, as hubby is a big boy LOL, but found it odd that the CM on the phone was less than helpful! My TA told me she spoke to a manager & relayed my concerns about getting inconsistent answers & they said they are working with the CM's to get everyone on the "same page" with regards to all the changes the new programs are creating.
Registered Message Board Members save 30% off PassPorter guidebooks! When you register you'll have access to a discount coupon good for 30% off the list price of PassPorter books in our online store.
Don't bother mentioning the allergy at the podium when you check in. People there are only involved with seating you and have no direct contact with the kitchen about such concerns.
His allergy will be accommodated by your informing your server.
What with all the system changes recently, I'm not surprised you were given misleading information on the phone.
While we expect more from Disney personnel since the Disney level of service is held to a much higher standard than elsewhere, you can nevertheless get a CM who isn't as well-informed or as conscientious as we'd like. Reporting such to Disney enables them to better train or discipline as needed. If Disney isn't told you had poor service, the problem can hardly be corrected.
__________________
“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
Mention at the podium when checking in to the restaurant that you have food allergies, but you don't have to tell them which specific one(s) -- they don't need to know the specifics at the podium. They should already know from the ADR notation, but a polite reminder is a good thing :-) Your seating ticket will get stamped "allergy" or something similar in red to alert your server that you have an allergy(ies). If you have a special seating need (e.g. not near the kitchen, or inside/not in the sun) the podium CMs are the people who need to be told.
Once you are seated, your server and the chef who will come out to take your order are the two who need to know your specific allergy(ies).
We have never mentioned our allergies at check-in, only to the server. That's why I say it's not necessary to do so if you flagged your ADR's.
I usually flag our ADR's gluten-free so I don't eat more of it than I can tolerate. I can eat some now and then so decided to do that at breakfast one morning and didn't think to mention it to our server.
After we'd begun eating, she appeared clutching a ticket, panicked, and asking which of us needed gluten-free. She was very apologetic about not having seen that alert until after we'd ordered.
So, there appears to be a printed alert linked to the name on your account because we'd said nothing to anyone about allergies. That's why I said it's not necessary to mention food needs at check-in.
__________________
“People say nothing is impossible, but I do nothing every day.” —Winnie-the-Pooh
Registered Message Board Members Get Our Free Newsletter! When you register you'll have the option to sign up for our weekly PassPorter Newsletter. It's chock-full of feature articles; news; tips; contests; photos; and special offers in our online store.
When I made my reservation at Hoop Dee Doo over the phone, I told them to put down vegetarian because I can't eat ribs. I think because Hoop Dee Doo is a premade thing it was noted on my reservation and the chef came to our table soon after we got there.
Off topic, my Dad has a mushroom allergy too. So not weird at all.
When my mom travels with us, I always make a point to reiterate the information about her allergy - to all fish, not just shellfish. We avoid all of the eateries that serve a lot of seafood, but of course cross-contamination is always possible. The WDW servers and chefs are always very accommodating and helpful.
I agree with mentioning it when you check in, but I do also wonder whether a call back might be worth it, as it does sound a bit odd that they can't list an allergy because it's not on their "list", as everyone is different and we all have different allergies, if you see what I mean.... That response just surprised me.
About This Page: 
Don't they have an "other" category? 
Something that will flag that there is an allergy? All she told me was that we would have to mention it at the podium at check in. 
Not very helpful. 
I guess we will have to remember to mention it before hitting the buffets! He is fine at remembering to ask when ordering off a menu, but they can hide those little things in almost anything on a buffet, and we don't do a lot of buffets here at home.
Like
Thank
Pixie Dust
PassPorter Guide Author
Our last WDW trip as a family 
Hybrid Mode
