Are you planning a trip to Disney? Below are my tips and tricks that I have compiled from several mommies (including myself) that have made frequent trips to Disney World. Living in Florida, we have the luxury of going to Disney as a fun weekend adventure, so have tested out these tips more than once! I hope they help you, too.
Tips for your trip to Disney:
- Pre-plan: I suppose if you know that you won’t be back at Disney for many years, this is a given. However, living in the sunshine state, I never did much planning because I knew we would be back. This wasn’t great thinking as we mainly ended up wandering around and not using any Fast Passes (more on that later). Therefore, we didn’t see much of the park. The last time we went, I made sure to plan as much as possible and we saw so much more!
- If possible, stay at a hotel on property: Transportation is easier, you get wristbands that store your information, you may be able to see the fireworks from your hotel and the on property hotels I have stay at are amazing. You can see some of the hotels we visited here.
- Use Disney’s online planning resource.
- Reserve your three Fast Passes: They help you alleviate some wait time for attractions by selecting an hour window to visit the attraction. You get three a day per park. A “cast member” at Epcot said you can go to a Fast Pass station and book more, so long as you only have three at a time per day. (I didn’t test this out, however.)
- Pick out a few must-see rides: if each person in your party gets to visit one or two of the rides they really wanted to see, everyone is happier. It also helps planning Fast Passess. If you aren’t able to get a Fast Pass for a must-see ride, I recommend getting to the park as soon as it opens (taking into account time to park and ride the shuttle) and going their first.
- Think about character dinning: A few times we spent one day at the park and then next morning, we had a character breakfast. I think my children enjoyed this as much as Disney World! Make sure you check where the restaurant is located when you schedule your character dining. Some need a park ticket for entry to the restaurant while others are located in hotels on property. These can book up quickly so start looking at least three months in advance.
- Pack snacks. This is especially useful if you are going to Disney for a few days. Prices there are a little expensive. We packed dry cereal, fruit and protein bars (see my favorite snack bars and meal replacement bars by clicking the links) for a quick breakfast. We also packed them for a quick snack in the park between meals.
- For younger children, pack a stroller. Most likely, you will be doing a lot of walking and have very long days. Even my seven year old was glad we brought the sit and stand. The are so many stroller parking areas available (this is Disney after all) and I haven’t had an issue leaving my big bags (see next tip) in the stroller. It also provides a nice spot to hold drinks and other items.
- Pack a bag or backpack. This comes in hand to store jackets, snacks, water, sunblock, baby wipes (am I the only one still obsessed with these even after my kids are potty-trained?!?!) and whatever else you may need. I had a small purse that I always carried with me and left a backpack in the stroller.
- Bring water bottles. This isn’t a necessity, but if you are bringing a stroller, why not?
- Band-aids are good to bring. They don’t take up much room and you will be prepared for blisters or any other scrapes.
- Bring your camera. There are so many photo opportunities!
- Wear comfortable shoes.
- If rain is in the forecast (or even if it isn’t), bring a cheap fold up poncho. You can get them at Target or a drug store for a few dollars. Disney poncho’s are very expensive! It is good to note, that in summer, it rains almost daily in Florida, but just for a short time.
- Bring sunblock, sunglasses and/or hats! The Florida sun is hot!
Try to plan your trip as well as possible. However, when you get there, remember things won’t go exactly as planned. Try not to get too stressed, as you are in the most magical place on earth (and they most likely sell whatever you forgot).
Here is a quick summary of the tips that need done early in your planning.
Do you have any questions or Disney tips? I’d love to hear them below or on social media!
Safe travels,
Stephanie
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I live about 30 minutes from Disney, so I can say that you’ve effectively covered it all! Great post!
How nice! Thank you! It took me four trips there to learn the ropes. Thankfully, we aren’t that far away!
We haven’t attempted the cross-continent trip to Disney yet, but it is on our list of things to do in the next several years. Good ideas!
I will remember to keep these tips in mind when we plan our trip to disney 🙂 Great tips though 🙂
I will pass helpful info on to someone who may need it! We are not big Disney fans, but I have heard how expensive it can be. I’m sure this post will be a big blessing to MANY!!
Thank you! I am not the biggest Disney fan either!
I live 30-minutes from Disney too… Disneyland that is! HA! You don’t usually need a rain poncho here. But sunscreen is a must, and a jacket for the evening is a good idea. Great tips.
~Lorelai
Life With Lorelai
I would love to see how the two are different! Thanks for sharing!
Great tips! I can’t wait to take my kids to Disney and this will be so helpful!
Great tips! The poncho definitely comes in handy. It seems to always rain (or at least it did when we were there) for at least some part of the day. Disney is so much better when you come prepared!
Hello from Inspire Me Mondays.
It has been many years since I was last at Disney World. About 30, to be honest. My grandparents lived in FL, but we lived in WA (State, that is).
Now that I have children, I hope to take them someday. As we save, I have been searching for Disney Contests and Sweepstakes and I do a “roundup” on my blog. Maybe I will win our “dream” trip!
I hope you win one, too! Thanks for reading.
This is a great, helpful post. I remember what a magical time it was to take our oldest daughter there for the very first time. Had we not been prepared, it would have been a disaster. Thanks for sharing your tips at the #InspireMeMondays link-up!
Thank you very much!